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Wednesday, October 9, 2019

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Climate activists express criticism Points-based of U-M’s fossil fuel investments system to rank

A2 marijuana dispensaries Local businesses assigned scores for licensing, permiting requirements NIKKI KIM

Daily Staff Reporter

DESIGN BY SHERRY CHEN

ARJUN THAKKAR Daily Staff Reporter

As the threat of climate change continues to provoke protests demanding institutional action to address the issue, student activists are calling on the University of Michigan to reduce its use of fossil fuels for powering facilities on campus. Last week, activists sprayed graffiti and wrote chalk messages

on the Diag and other public outdoor locations claiming the University has $1 billion invested in fossil fuels. The 2018 Report on Investments corroborates this claim, stating the University allocated $1.12 billion dollars, toward investments classified under natural resources. The report defines investments in natural resources as “investments in companies located primarily in the U.S. that produce oil and natural gas, and companies that service those industries, as well as

non-energy related investments in minerals, mining, and wetland restoration.” Zaynab Elkolaly, student at Washtenaw Technical Middle College and cofounder of Washtenaw Climate Strike, criticized the University’s investments in fossil fuels. “The University, from an educational standpoint, has a great environmental curriculum where students fully understand the resulting detriment that comes

with fossil fuel consumption,” Elkolaly said. “Students are not ignorant, and nor is the administration. What’s appalling is that these authority figures touting their prestigious degrees and positions are still involved in the very thing that is destroying the planet, simply because of profit. The University of Michigan is notorious for exploiting students financially, and this is only part of the pattern.” See FUEL, Page 3A

Touted as the cannabis capital of the Midwest, Ann Arbor is no stranger to recreational marijuana use. However, the city’s marijuana market may be undergoing a dynamic shift. This past week, Deputy City Attorney Kevin McDonald presented a first draft proposal for a pointsbased scoring process for businesses seeking to obtain a permit to sell cannabis products. At a City Council meeting Monday, several councilmembers, including Jane Lumm, I-Ward 2, said they believe the topic requires further discussion. “It’s a topic of considerable interest to residents and deserves more public discussion and input,” Lumm said. “I just think it’s critical to get it right,” Points would be assigned to businesses based on four

Students Center for Academic Innovation implicated honors teams for new DEI projects in possible Event celebrates efforts to serve specific groups on campus, promote inclusion app hack GOVERNMENT

Federal investigation examines attempt to hack voting application LIAT WEINSTEIN Daily Staff Reporter

Following an attempt to hack the voting app Voatz during the 2018 midterm elections, the FBI revealed last week they have launched an investigation into the incident, which allegedly involved University of Michigan computer science students. According to an article from CNN, anonymous sources revealed the FBI is investigating an individual or several individuals who tried to hack the app as a part of their University of Michigan election security course. According to the EECS 498 course description, the class teaches students how to hack an election in order to better defend against cyber break-ins. “To defend a system you need to be able to think like an attacker, and that includes understanding techniques that can be used to compromise security,” the course description reads. Fifty-five percent of the students’ grades are determined by a large-scale group project related to a technical or tech policy topic on election cybersecurity. However, the description goes on to explain, the class will not allow students to directly break any laws. See HACK, Page 3A

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The Center for Academic Innovation held an event Tuesday afternoon recognizing academic teams for their spring projects centered around diversity, equity and inclusion. This was the first in a series of six

events, featuring eight teams giving a brief overview of their DEI project and how their project will serve specific groups on campus, ranging from undocumented students to the LGBTQ community. The event began with Rachel Niemer, director for outreach and access at the Center for Academic Innovation, who echoed

sentiments made at the 2019 DEI Summit by Van Jones, CEO of REFORM Alliance, political commentator and host of “The Redemption Project” and “The Van Jones Show” on CNN. “Those of us working in higher education are in a very unique position,” Niemer said. “We not only get to shape the experience of the learners on campus, but as

they move out into the broader world, we get to shape the broader social structures that they will impact.” Niemer explained how the mission of these DEI projects is to understand and assist individuals from various minority communities, which is necessary for our society to succeed. See DEI, Page 3A

ALEC COHEN/Daily Rachel Niemer, Director for Outreach and Access at the Centere for Academic Innovation, discusses the mission of the DEI projects at an event hosted by the Center for Academic Innovation in Palmer Commons Tuesday.

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criteria: past performance, state compliance, location and community interest. Each category would be worth a maximum of 25 points. Past performance points would showcase the business’s influence and historical relationship with the city. State compliance points would measure how well the business has followed the city’s regulatory laws surrounding marijuana. Location points would portray how strategic a company’s geographic positioning in Ann Arbor is, considering the demographics of neighboring residents as well as competitive stores. Community interest points would measure the potential demand for the business in the market. The city is planning to limit the number of permits available for marijuana micro-businesses to 28. See MARIJUANA, Page 3A

FACIAL RECOGNITION

New tech approved for use in Detroit

Software to come to police department amid controversy over bias SONIA LEE

Daily Staff Reporter

The Detroit Board of Police Commissioners approved a policy Sept. 19 outlining the use of facial recognition technology for the police department. The policy includes guidelines for how officers who abuse the policy will be punished and a prohibition from sharing the photos with private companies. The software has been used by Detroit police since July 2017, when the Detroit City Council approved the software purchase. In June 2019, Detroit Police Chief James Craig asked the City Council to approve its permanent use. Controversy surrounds the technology because of issues with the systems misidentifying people with darker skin. In a test done by the ACLU, Amazon’s facial recognition tool Rekognition falsely matched 28 members of Congress, disproportionately identifying them as people who had committed crimes. The false matches were disproportionately people of color, misidentifying six members of the Congressional Black Caucus. See SOFTWARE, Page 3A

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700 demonstrate on Diag, show solidarity for Israel October 10, 1973 A crowd of about 700 persons gathered peacefully on the Diag yesterday to express solidarity with Israel on the occasion of the latest outbreak of war in the Middle East. The demonstration began with a short statement in Hebrew. The introduction was followed by a short speech by Psychology Prof. Alexander Giuora. He claimed the Israelis were aware of Arab mobilization, but first move or risk being branded were counseled not to make aggressors in the court

of world opinion. Israel had been betrayed, he concluded, attacked in a weakened state on their holiest day, Yom Kippur. A BREAK in the speeches was provided by Jill Coliman, LSA, as she lead the crown in a song supporting life for Israel. The main speaker of the afternoon, History Prof. Arthur Mendel, next addressed the rally. making “I have addressed other rallies for other causes before, but this is the first time I’ve spoken for my people,” he said. “During my recent trip to Israel I

discovered my people and what they do mean to me.” The mood of the demonstration was far from militaristic. Speakers regretted that the bloodshed was taking place for any reason. Mendel emphasized that spirit when he said, “It’s obscene to rejoice in the destruction of our enemies, for in a fundamental sense they are our brothers.” He quoted Golda Meir as saying, “We forgive you for killing our sons. We can not forgive you for making us kill yours.” MENDEL concluded with

an appeal for help. “If you’re just here for a cheap thrill or a tingle running and down your spine, it would be better if you stayed home,” he said. “Let your actions speak for your heart.” A check at the United Jewish Student Appeal booth revealed that it was doing brisk business. After a prayer for peace by the Reverend Ed Edwards and a few more songs, the rally ended. The gathering was sponsored by the Coalition of Concerned Students and Faculty. The groups behind

the name are the local Hillel organization and the Israeli Student Organization. A spokesperson for Hillel added that in a larger sense the demonstration was really sponsored by the people of the community rather than any formal organizations. AS THE CROWD dispersed, the Arabs, who had been marching silently during the demonstration, began to chant slogans supporting their position in the Middle East. President of the Arab Student Organization, Ahmed Beshareh, stated that the

Arabs were there to show disagreement with what they termed the Israeli aggression. Beshareh said, “who started the war is immaterial. This is a continuation of previous hostilities and can’t be treated separately.” “We are not aggressors,” he continued, “we’re attacking land which is our own. We support the various United Nations resolutions which call for an end to Israeli aggression.” Following the afternoon demonstration, the Arabs left en masse.

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CLAIRE MEINGAST/Daily Kinesiology freshman Cella Vanheest and Nursing freshman Jolene Soriano speak with a representative for Courtyards Apartments during the OffCampus Housing Fair at the Michigan League Tuesday morning.

UM research team travels to Peruvian Amazon for drug development research

University’s Life Sciences Institute receives $45 million in funding from Biosciences Initiative

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land and to take samples out enjoyed the expedition and of Peru to bring back to the has high hopes for the results MAX MARCOVITCH and ETHAN SEARS U.S. However, Sherman said if of their research. Managing Sports Editors sportseditors@michigandaily.com “There are multiple benefits there is a commercial success The Life Sciences Institute Senior Sports Editors: Anna Marcus, Aria Gerson, Ben Katz, Mark Calcagno, Theo Mackie, Tien Le from the benefits of Peru’s that we as humans can get at the University of Michigan Assistant Sports Editors: Bailey Johnson, Bennett Bramson, Connor Brennan, natural products, then some of out of this work, but I think received $45 million in Jacob Kopnick, Jorge Cazares, Rian Ratnavale those benefits will go towards that whatever results we get funding to advance their ARYA NAIDU and VERITY STURM helping sustain the area of can also benefit the Amazon, research initiatives, as a result Managing Arts Editors arts@michigandaily.com especially in its critical times origin. of President Mark Schlissel’s Senior Arts Editors: Clara Scott, Emma Chang, Cassandra Mansuetti, Sam On the ground in Peru, right now, where we are losing Biosciences Initiative which Della Fera, Trina Pal Arts Beat Editors: John Decker, Sayan Ghosh, Mike Watkins, Ally Owens, Sherman was accompanied by about two soccerfields of the was announced in November. Stephen Satarino, Izzy Hasslund, Margaret Sheridan several members of his team, Amazon per minute,” Espinoza One of their largest projects various researchers from said. is the Expanding Natural ROSEANNE CHAO and JACK SILBERMAN Managing Design Editors design@michigandaily.com The Peruvian samples are National Geographic, Peru and Products Drug Discovery at Senior Design Editor: Sherry Chen Brazil, as well as educators due to arrive at the University the University of Michigan within the next week, and are and artists. Biosciences Synergy Initiative, ALEXIS RANKIN and ALEC COHEN “There were a number of expected to be available for led by principal investigator Dr. Managing Photo Editors photo@michigandaily.com David H. Sherman, medicinal other people there with us University-wide use within Senior Photo Editors: Alexandria Pompei, Natalie Stephens, Alice Liu, Allison Engkvist, Danyel Tharakan chemist and professor in the focusing on different aspects the next year. Ashootosh Assistant Photo Editors: Miles Macklin, Keemya Esmael, Madeline Hinkley, College of Pharmacy. of that habitat in the Amazon, Tripathi, director of Natural Ryan McLoughlin so we were there and it was Products Discovery Core, Utilizing their new funding, pretty much science heaven,” is a close colleag ue of Sherman and his team have ANDREA PÉREZ BALDERRAMA Statement Editor statement@michigandaily.com Sherman and helps lead the Sherman said. traveled around the world in The river, boiling for miles, Expanding Natural Products search of natural products that Deputy Editors: Matthew Harmon, Shannon Ors Discovery project. hosts bacteria a nd nat ura l Drug facilitate the creation Sudokucould Syndication http://sudokusyndication.com/sudoku/generator/print/ SILAS LEE and EMILY STILLMAN products t hat could hold Tripathi explained once the of new life-saving drugs, such Managing Copy Editors copydesk@michigandaily.com t he genomic key to new samples are in the lab, his Senior Copy Editors: Dominick Sokotoff, Olivia Sedlacek, Reece Meyhoefer life-sav ing medicines. team will work on isolating CASEY TIN and HASSAAN ALI WATTOO Rosa Ma ria Crist ina the microbes to expedite Managing Online Editors webteam@michigandaily.com Va squez Espinoza , a the process of further drugSenior Web Developers: Jonathon Liu, Abha Panda, Ryan Siu, David Talbot, Samantha Cohen Per uv ia n four t h-yea r related research. “Say if you have a drug chemica l biolog y st udent ELI SIDER MEDIUM on Dr. Sherma n’s tea m, target in mind, you can come Managing Video Editor video@michigandaily.com Senior Video Editors: Ryan O’Connor, Joseph Sim reca lled her experience to the center for chemical in a n inter v iew w it h The genomics, which is down the NA’KIA CHANNEY and CARLY RYAN Michigan in Color Editors michiganincolor@michigandaily.com stairs, and access the library Da ily. Senior Michigan in Color Editors: Lorna Brown, Samuel So, Ana Maria Espinoza explained produced from these microbes Sanchez-Castillo, Efe Osagie, Danyel Tharakan arriving at the portion and you can just screen it and Assistant Michigan in Color Editors: Harnoor Singh, Nada Eldawy, Maya of the river she was let us know and know that hey Mokh studyinging required we found these extracts that CATHERINE NOUHAN a trek. It was quite are active and what we will do Managing Podcast Editor is we will go deeper into it and inaccessible, she said. MADALASA CHAUDHARI and HANNAH MESKIN Managing Social Media Editors “To get there there was find the molecule associated Senior Social Media Editor: Allie Phillips no path at all — we actually, with it,” Tripathi said. Ultimately, the team is we had to get some of the locals to come at 7:00 a.m. hopeful about the implications one day and open a path for of their research, particularly MOLLY WU Creative Director us, so it was a very virgin in regards to the potential ZELJKO KOSPIC RYAN KELLY it has for further life-saving area,” Espinoza said. Special Projects Manager Sales Manager The g roup of natives drug development. ANITA MICHAUD ROBERT WAGMAN “What we’re really excited known as the Shipibo Brand Manager Marketing Consulting Manager have lived in this part about is when we find some of the A mazon for brand new compound and thousands of years and get that kind of opportunity,” The Michigan Daily (ISSN 0745-967) is published Monday through Friday during assisted Sherman’s Sherman said. the fall and winter terms by students at the University OF Michigan. One copy is team to navigate the © sudokusolver.com. For personal use only. available free of charge to all readers. Additional copies may be picked up at the CONFIDENCE IS KEY puzzle by sudokusyndication.com Read more at treacherous parts of Daily’s office for $2. Subscriptions for September-April are $250 and year long subscriptions are $275. University affiliates are subject to a reduced subscription the river. Despite the MichiganDaily.com rate. On-campus subscriptions for fall term are $35. Subscriptions must be prepaid. dangers, Espinoza Generate and solve Sudoku, Super Sudoku and Godoku puzzles at sudokusyndication.com! as antibiotics and anti-cancer agents, primarily in marine microorganisms. They scubadived their way through Costa Rica, the Red Sea and Papua New Guinea, and most recently traveled to the Boiling River in the Peruvian Amazon. Until its official scientific discovery in 2011, the Boiling River was thought to be a myth. The river reaches up to 200 degrees Fahrenheit with no apparent heat source, and maintains a culture of extremophiles and life in this extreme heat. Sherman was intrigued by the Boiling River because it is a sect of the Amazon River rich in biodiversity but virtually untouched by outside researchers. It took months for Sherman and his team to get the legal permits necessary to study the

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MARIJUANA From Page 1A Craig told The Detroit News after the approval the decision has been discussed for long enough and its purpose is to help the police department protect the community. “This is about the victims,” Craig said. “We took the community’s concerns to heart. I know some have felt we were not transparent during this process, but when we purchased this $1 million software, we had a conversation with City Council … so there was nothing secret about it.” LSA senior Hannah Agnew, president of the Student Executive Committee of the Prison Creative Arts Project, said the continued use of facial recognition technology will only increase the divide between civilians and police. “With a study the ACLU did, there were many issues with misidentifying Black folks and women,” Agnew said. “And with the way we already overpolice people of color, adding more surveillance is not going to help … People fear it and it creates distrust in the police system. We could be investing that money in services that let people prosper and that raises them up instead.” U.S. Rep. Rashida Tlaib, D-District 13, told The Detroit News she believed the software should be analyzed by only African Americans to avoid further misidentification of people of color. “Analysts need to be African Americans, not people that are not,” Tlaib said in a Detroit News video. “It happens all the time, it’s true — I think non-African Americans think African Americans all look the same. I’ve seen it even on the House floor, people calling Elijah Cummings ‘John Lewis,’ and John Lewis ‘Elijah Cummings,’ and they’re totally different people.” Craig told the Detroit News he believes Tlaib’s comments were insulting, adding all department officers and civilian employees receive bias training and should not be barred from jobs involving the software. “That’s something we train for, and it’s valuable training, but to say people should be barred from working somewhere because of their skin color?” Craig said. “That’s racist.” Law student Michael Goodyear, who is editorin-chief of the Michigan Technology Law Review, said though the controversy

MARIJUANA From Page 1A Marijuana micro-businesses cultivate up to 150 plants and process, package and sell cannabis products to adults over 21, retail dispensaries and consumption centers. Councilmember Jeff Hayner, D-Ward 1, said he voted for legalization in 2018 because he was a proponent of decriminalization, not because he wanted more facilities opening up in Ann Arbor.

surrounding the technology is valid, focus should be put on the software itself as opposed to those analyzing its results. “I think she (Tlaib) has a valid point, for sure, that visualization technology can be helpful, but it does have shortcomings that are particularly related to recognizing people of color,” Goodyear said. “That said, it is from a more technical standpoint, so it should mean reworking the algorithm, making sure the algorithm correctly identifies individuals, which obviously can have some biases from the coders themselves. But I think it is a maybe another separate move from what Representative Tlaib had said in those comments. So it’s not necessarily the person who’s using the algorithm, but the algorithm itself.” Facial recognition technology is used in everyday life through Facebook photo tagging, airport security and even in online dating applications. Goodyear pointed out it is also being used by other governments for more surveillance purposes but emphasized a need for regulation similar to Detroit’s in these situations. “The Chinese government has been using facial recognition technology to track the movements of certain Uighur groups in western China … that’s kind of the far, not great side of this technology,” Goodyear said. “The Chinese and Hong Kong governments have been using it in Hong Kong to actually track jaywalking in Hong Kong, which is maybe a little bit ‘big brother’. So it is important to — kind of like in what this ordinance is doing now — to draw boundaries of what’s acceptable behavior and what’s not acceptable.” If facial recognition technology were to be implemented in Ann Arbor, Agnew said it would have similarly detrimental effects on the community. “Anywhere you implement this it won’t have a good outcome because of overpolicing and over-surveilling,” Agnew said. “Ann Arbor likes to think of itself as a very liberal city, and this would be a way to police the already small numbers of people of color we have here.” If the software were to be implemented in Ann Arbor, Goodyear said he hoped it would be with clear regulations and limitations in part produced through community engagement. He pointed out Ann Arbor’s smaller size and said the roles of the Ann Arbor Police Department and the

University police would change how such technology could be implemented compared to in Detroit. “I think they’d definitely implement it in a different way,” Goodyear said. “But hopefully they’d do it in a similar way to Detroit, where they have public forums that allow things to be discussed publicly and actually create regulations to limit any sort of things might be going on like in China, or Hong Kong for example.” Deputy Chief of Police Melissa Overton of the University’s Division of Public Safety & Security said the department has not discussed using facial recognition technology yet. “We are always reviewing the latest technology that would assist law enforcement in solving crime, however, we have not discussed facial recognition at this time,” she wrote in an email to the Daily. The Ann Arbor Police Department did not respond to requests for comment in time for publication. With regards to the primary controversy surrounding the software, Goodyear believes the technology still needs improvement. However, he emphasized the facial recognition technology would not be able to solely be used to indict or imprison a suspect. “They should be going through and making sure that it’s absolutely accurate,” Goodyear said. “But … no one’s going to be arrested and thrown in jail, indicted, based purely on their picture. Facial recognition technology so far is one factor. So under standard evidence, you need to have a variety of different things that kind of show that someone did something. In this case, it would be good evidence, but in and of itself, it’s not enough.” Agnew argued there would be no positive outcomes from the continued use of the technology for both victims and those incarcerated. “With the criminal justice system we tend to disproportionately target people of color,” she said. “And that often doesn’t happen in a way that helps victims. They’re saying, ‘We’re going to use this system of surveillance to help victims.’ But how is it going to help victims? It’s not providing support or help to victims to deal with what happened, it’s just another way to police people.”

“I didn’t vote for Prop 1 to have 600 distribution and consumption facilities open in my community,” Hayner said. “And I have had people come up to me and say they have legitimate concerns about the placement of these, and legitimate concerns about large money flowing to the cities that do allow this use and it driving out other businesses that serve a broader portion of the community.” Current businesses in Ann Arbor that sell cannabis products have city permits they must renew on an annual basis. The new pointsbased application system will affect

how these already-established marijuana facilities comply with the city’s licensing rules as well as their annual renewals. According to the Marijuana Regulatory Agency, failure to comply with the department’s laws may result in nonrenewal of the business’s license. “A state operating license shall not be renewed unless the department has determined that the individual qualifications of each person required by the act and these rules is eligible, qualified, and suitable as part of the license renewal in accordance with the relevant licensing standards set forth in the act and these rules,” the Michigan Marijuana Regulatory Agency wrote in the policy statement. This shifting legal aspect of regulations will also impact businesses looking to enter into the Ann Arbor marijuana market. Once the policy is set, if the state starts to receive more license applications than the limit of 28, it will mean an increase in competition between the new cannabis businesses looking to set up shop in Ann Arbor. The decision of selecting applicants is at the discretion of the city, rather than the state, and according to McDonald, whether applicants are “best suited” to operate in the city will depend on the compliances of the Michigan Regulation and Taxation of Marihuana Act. Recreational marijuana businesses need a city permit in addition to state licensing to operate, with the annual city fee being $5,000. Michigan will start accepting license applications starting Nov. 1 of this year.

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FROM THE DAILY

Rethink privatizing mental health services

n an unprecedented move on Sept. 30, Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer vetoed line items in a budget of nearly $1 billion of state spending, including a provision to increase the privatization of mental health services. This provision is an effort to cut costs that involve pilot projects that combine Medicaid-managed care plans for physical health with the Medicaid-managed mental health system, which is regulated by 10 regional pseudo-public health plans . As Whitmer and the legislature reevaluate the budget and reallocate funds for state spending, there is much to consider about health care expenditures and what we as a society prioritize in terms of who should and who should not have access to care. In broad terms, privatization in health care is the involvement of a third-party sectors other than the government in providing and regulating healthrelated services. What started off as a mechanism to provide comprehensive health services to the public that the government cannot keep up with has slowly emerged as profitable, with private health care companies setting unrealistic costs that patients are forced to pay for coverage. The funding of mental health care is a multi-layered dilemma. Along with potentially propagating a dangerous stigma surrounding this class of illnesses, sometimes this discussion can take away from the patients receiving true, effective treatment. The implications of privatizing mental health care are endless. First, mental health is an umbrella term encompassing a host of illnesses, including suicidal ideation, substance abuse, depression, anxiety and bipolar disorder, among many others. Roughly 4.5 percent of adults in Michigan suffer from a serious mental illness. Of these individuals, almost half of them receive appropriate treatment for their respective conditions, with the other half battling cultural barriers and stigma. Privatizing mental health care will only exacerbate these barriers, as it limits access to those who can afford the potential premiums.

The lack of access for underserved populations can result in the mentally ill being untreated or even ending up in the prison system. This result can further perpetuate the stigma that the health care system strives to alleviate: that those who are suffering from mental illness have no hope, are undeserving of our attention and are inextricably linked with crime and incarceration. Public mental health facilities increase access and awareness.

The funding of mental health care is a multilayered dilemma. The current public-driven health care system acts as a safety net system, particularly for lowincome individuals, and operates with the incentive to offer as many services as needed. The Republicans’ proposed provision in the 2020 state budget bill pushes the Michigan health care system toward becoming more privatized, which has immediate consequences. First, there will be an initial 9-percent funding cut toward client-based needs. This would put more than 300,000 Michigan residents who depend on the current health care system at risk of losing many of the services they receive. These potential negative effects all stem from the fact that privatized health care services, while they may still offer relatively high

amounts of services for patients, will largely shape their services and infrastructure in a way that maximizes the amount of money being produced. This creates an incentive for them to cut back on services and raise their costs, which will only target low-income and rural families who already struggle under the current system. A popular argument for privatizing the Michigan health care system suggests that integrating mental and physical health services (as was proposed under the budget bill) is more efficient because it would better address overall patient health and could provide administrative cost savings. While it may produce administrative cost savings, those savings would be at a huge loss. Privatized Medicaidmanaged care plans aren’t typically structured with a focus on mental health services and could cut corners to save costs, which appears realistic considering it is profit-driven. Furthermore, integrating the two health services could potentially decrease necessary funding toward the mental health branch, which already is in desperate need of cash under the current state system. There have also been studies on the success of privatized health care systems, and the evidence largely does not support it. Marcia Angell, a contributing writer to the U.S. National Library of Medicine, stated that for-profit care is almost always more expensive and offers subpar treatment compared to public service. In a state lacking a comprehensive mental health system, the opportunity to rework a budget to allocate monetary resources is more crucial now than ever before.

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n light of the recent chaos of our political scene, movements bringing awareness to sexual assault survivors have gained more traction now than ever. The hashtag #MeToo was first coined in 2006 by grassroots activist Tarana Burke and truly paved its way into mainstream media two years ago. The movement urges women to write #MeToo to show the magnitude and impact of sexual assault. Alyssa Milano, an American activist and actress, tweeted, “If you’ve been sexually harassed or assaulted write ‘me too’ as a reply to this tweet” on October 15, 2017. A year later, a study by the Pew Research Center found that #MeToo was used over 19 million times on Twitter, and there were more posts around news events. The hashtag has undoubtedly enabled many women and sexual assault survivors to speak up and stand in solidarity with others, but it has also unveiled many other systemic problems that desperately needed to be addressed. Three years ago, Americans listened to our current president on tape say, “when you’re a star, they let you do it. You can do anything.” Two years ago, the #MeToo movement was kicked off after sexual assault allegations were brought against Harvey Weinstein. Just one year ago, we watched Brett Kavanaugh, another man accused of sexual assault, get confirmed as a Supreme Court justice. Now, more than ever, Americans want change. Over the past few years, many powerful men have had sexual assault allegations brought against them. News like this makes the headlines for a little while, but is soon superseded by something larger, allowing people like Kavanaugh to slip our minds momentarily. But people haven’t forgotten entirely, and events like the election of President Donald Trump, the #MeToo movement and the Kavanaugh hearings have helped lead a fundamental shift in how men in power, even in the government, are viewed by the American people. A study done by

Why report?

research firm PerryUndem shows that 49 percent of the people polled agree with the statement, “One reason Justice Kavanaugh was confirmed is because white men want to hold onto their power in the government.” Over the past few years, there has been fresh chatter about the balance of power in society, and partners at the firm believe people may be taking these thoughts to the ballot boxes. In another Undem poll, half of the voters thought about the implications of men having more power than women in government after the Kavanaugh hearings. When Dr. Christine Blasey Ford stood in front of an audience composed of mostly men and testified, her words and trauma were not enough to stop a man from being admitted to the country’s highest court of law. A feeling of overwhelming dread and helplessness was cemented into the minds of many Americans that day. It was clear that men held more positions of power, and that those men did not value justice for victims of sexual assault or harassment. Ford coming forward to reveal her trauma should have immediately changed the course of action taken by government officials. Imagine the sheer number of women who do not have the resources, time or support to ever come forward with information on their assaulter. The survivors who do come forward can never truly be vindicated. Yet, people still have the nerve and ignorance to ask why survivors do not want their names revealed and why they “wait so long.” Credibility is questioned, attempted political scams are assumed. Women and survivors are never just believed. Granted, everyone should be legally afforded the right to be assumed innocent until proven guilty, but we must do this by pressing for justice. Survivors deserve better. Women deserve better. Anyone who is sexually assaulted deserves better, and they deserve to live without

having to watch their assaulter sit in a position of power over other women. Everything starts with reporting. According to the University of Michigan’s Office for Institutional Equity, after #MeToo went viral in the fall of 2016, reports of sexual assault and sexual harassment increased by 62 percent on campus. However, of the 152 reports that fell under the policy, only 20 investigations were conducted and only 10 completed. In the end, only three cases found students to be in violation of the University’s policy regarding sexual and genderbased misconduct. This reminds us that change must be made at institutional levels and begins individually. To get anything into a legal review system, it must be reported first. The increased reporting of sexual assault or harassment is not inherently reflective of anyone’s improved confidence in the legal system – rather it reflects the confidence in the conviction that they will at least be heard. We must respect anyone who speaks up about sexual assaults. Creating a more inclusive environment for supporting survivors is imperative for destroying the contempt and uncertainty that inevitably arrive when someone comes forward with their story. Per the National Sexual Violence Research Center, sexual assault or rape is the most underreported crime in the country. Without formal complaints or reports to the police or authoritative figures, sexual assault perpetrators cannot be reviewed, much less brought to justice. College campuses must make it easier to report, bring and prove statements of sexual assault. Protecting survivors from the rigors of proving these claims and enabling trained professionals to understand the traumas of these individuals is essential for the breakdown of institutionallyprotected perpetrators. Brittany Bowman can be reached at babowm@umich.edu.

ZACK BLUMBERG | COLUMN

Trump’s assault on America’s geopolitical reputation

he United States often likes to tout the checks and balances in its governmental system, which exist for the purpose of constraining the power of various groups and individuals. Even under President Donald Trump, the checks and balances system has proved somewhat successful: Many of Trump’s most outrageous ideas have been stymied or watered down, preventing social and political catastrophes. However, there is a fundamental problem with the idea of checks and balances: It only functionally exists on a domestic level. With regard to foreign affairs, the president has almost unilateral power to act as he chooses. Unsurprisingly, Trump’s foreign policy has deviated from norms in dangerous ways as a result. Trump’s legitimization of autocratic governments, inability to respect multilateral diplomacy and American allies, and bizarre indecisiveness in the Middle East has left America weaker abroad. It has also enabled human rights abuses and tarnished America’s reputation as a strategic partner. To begin, the most glaringly problematic aspect of Trump’s foreign policy is his eagerness to bond with autocratic regimes, legitimizing and empowering their oppressive policies. Since taking office, Trump has abandoned the American policy of publicly condemning international human rights violations, instead choosing to praise autocratic leaders. This is most noticeable through Trump’s ties with Kim Jong-un of North Korea and Mohammed bin Salman of Saudi Arabia, two leaders with whom he has cultivated relationships. Trump has met with Kim three times, beginning with the 2018 summit in Singapore. Since then, Trump has talked about receiving a “beautiful” letter from Kim and earlier this year visited the North Korean border, making him the first sitting American leader to ever cross over. In his negotiations with Kim, Trump has focused almost exclusively on creating personal connections for the end goal of nuclear disarmament, a dangerous maneuver. Through this approach, Trump is legitimizing

Kim’s leadership style and normalizing North Korea’s heinous human rights abuses, which he has continually failed to call out, instead treating them as collateral in the disarmament negotiations. Trump’s relationship with Mohammed bin Salman, the Crown Prince of Saudi Arabia, has been quite similar. As with Kim, Trump has been more than willing to overlook Salman’s grotesque violations of human rights for personal benefit. For Trump, the value of Saudi Arabia’s friendship is largely financial. In 2017, the Saudi government signed a deal with the Trump administration to purchase $8 billion in arms. Even when confronted with the problematic nature of his relationship with Salman – via both a legislative bill blocking the most recent Saudi arms deal and a CIA report confirming Salman’s role in the death of journalist Jamal Khashoggi – Trump has remained unmoved. He vetoed the bill and ignored the CIA report. Through his friendship with Salman, Trump is not only implicitly supporting the oppression of Saudi people in Saudi Arabia, but also actively contributing to the ongoing war and humanitarian crisis in Yemen. Just like with North Korea, Trump’s fixation on personal gain in Saudi Arabia has legitimized their abhorrent human rights violations and undemocratic practices and lent credence to leaders whom the United States should not be supporting. In addition to bonding with autocratic dictators, Trump has also chosen to forsake many of America’s longstanding allies, shunning them in favor of right-wing populist leaders. Since World War II, the one constant in America’s oft-changing foreign policy has been support for NATO. However, Trump has attacked this relationship, criticizing many NATO members (particularly Germany) over their low levels of military spending. While disparaging America’s traditional allies, Trump has simultaneously built personal relationships with many rightwing strongmen with whom he sees himself as aligned. During his term, Trump has spoken about his “great relationship” with Philippines President Rodrigo Duterte,

ignoring Duterte’s inhumane and problematic drug policies, which include carrying out violent, extrajudicial attacks on drug users. Similarly, Trump has developed an overwhelmingly positive rapport with Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro, despite Bolsonaro’s unwillingness to protect native Amazonians, or the rainforest itself. While these are just two examples, the list goes on: Trump has worked to build positive relationships with many other populist right-wing leaders, such as Viktor Orban of Hungary. Lastly, Trump’s incoherent and indecisive politics in the Middle East have emboldened opposition forces and contributed to increased violence in the region. One of Trump’s first priorities as president was to remove the United States from the Iran Nuclear Deal, which he called “one of the worst and most one-sided transactions the United States has ever entered into.” However, his strategy since then has been completely incomprehensible; he took a hardline stance and placed crippling sanctions on Iran, then appeared completely unwilling to respond once the Iranian government lashed out against these sanctions. This flipflopping has emboldened Iran and lead to increasingly forceful attacks and risks inciting a larger conflict between the two nations. However, Trump’s approach toward negotiating with the Taliban in Afghanistan has perhaps been even more disastrous than his negotiations with Iran. Most notably, Trump impulsively ordered the removal of all troops from Afghanistan immediately at the end of 2018, a catastrophic idea which was vehemently opposed by former defense secretary Jim Mattis. Since then, Trump has been continually negotiating with the Taliban over the removal of U.S. troops and was unmoved by critics who said negotiating with the Taliban would empower the group and legitimize their violence as a form of opposition against the Afghan government.

Read more at MichiganDaily.com Zack Blumberg can be reached at zblumber@umich.edu.

Arts

The Michigan Daily — michigandaily.com

Wednesday, October 9, 2019 — 5A

STYLE NOTEBOOK

Recreating four of our favorite Fashion Month looks MARGARET SHERIDAN Daily Style Editor

TESS GARCIA

Daily Arts Writer

SOPHIA HUGHES Daily Arts Writer

SAM KREMKE Daily Arts Writer

Chanel stunned with classic silhouettes, Cecilie Bahnsen was nothing short of a textural dream and Valentino has us prepping our summer whites, and it’s only the Oct. 9. From Paris, Milan, Copenhagen to New York, Fashion Month was a whirlwind. To say that Daily Style is brimming with inspiration on the cusp of these shows would be an understatement. In the style of a brilliantly styled Man Repeller piece, Daily Style has decided to try our hand at recreating some of the runway’s most sought after moments. Easier said than done of course, considering especially the closets of college students and that we spend at least five days a week in and out of classrooms; not the most ideal runway. But, these limitations forced us to get creative, to extrapolate from the looks of fashion month, to build a new approach to getting dressed, to include more than just an elite group in a couture conversation. This exploration was a chance to rethink how we approach our closets, to mix and match, no matter how comical or far off the results may be. If nothing else, these recreations were an excuse to play dress up, and who would say no to that? — Margaret Sheridan, Style Beat Editor I can’t stress how difficult it was to choose a favorite look from Collina Strada’s sustainably-minded Spring Summer 2020 collection, entitled “Thank You Very Much for Helping Me,” but I settled on this one for the sense of urgency it conveys. The beige top, emblazoned with a childlike drawing of a globe and the show’s titular phrase, is an eerie reminder of what little time we have to combat climate change. A mesh bag replete with produce is slung over the model’s left shoulder, giving the impression that she’s hurrying home from the farmer’s market to toss locally-sourced potatoes into her energy-saving fridge (yes, she lives in Bushwick). Tied together with a billowing patterned skirt, thin beaded belt and chunky sandals, the look represents everything I want the fashion industry to become as it starts taking responsibility for its environmental impact. My recreation of this outfit is far from precise, but I tried to stay true to its central themes. Layered above my years-old turtleneck (and untucked for accuracy) is a graphic tee I screen-printed for September’s Global Climate Strike — I feel like it exudes a similar energy to the original look’s. My skirt is reminiscent of the slip style from the show only in that it contains the color orange, but I’m fine with that. A thin chain-link belt functions as my take on the beaded version, and my favorite pair of pink

NOWFASHION

COURTESY OF TESS GARCIA

platform Tevas felt right in the footwear department. But the aspect of my faux-Collina Strada look I’m most proud of is, by far, the bag of kale I brought out of my fridge for the occasion. — Tess Garcia, Daily Style Writer As I started pairing outfits together for this piece, I quickly found myself surrounded by the entirety of my closet on the floor, overwhelmed at the potential for new outfit anatomies. Not to say that any of the pieces I have selected exactly make sense together, in fact, this outfit walks a fine line between multiple seasons. At its core, however, this outfit is extrapolated from the key moments and pieces I saw on the runway. When considering my design icons, I looked no further than the Dries Van Noten Spring 2020 Ready-to-Wear collection, a landscape of florals, polka dots and damn good jackets. While my recreation of this look is far from accurate, I tried to center my iteration around the color and textural relationships at play between base layers and a power jacket on top. Drawn to the lavender billowing pants, I reached for a pair of thrifted lilac bermudas that tie at the waist. A Zara blouse — that I am shamelessly wearing backwards — attempts to embody the airy, high neckline slip seen on the model. As for a layer over these pieces, I went back and forth between my signature orange puffer and a blue faux fur number, ultimately deciding on the latter, given the way the texture of

VOGUE COURTESY OF MARGARET SHERIDAN

the jacket anchors the original look in the Van Noten show. Although the dusty blue coupled with the lilac is not nearly as dreamy as the lilac and neon orange moment that happened on the runway, the faux fur seemed like too much of a focal point to disregard. To top it off, I again reflected color in footwear, selecting a pair of subtly wedged minty green mules, their finish and hue coming close to the characteristics of those on the model. So, while my recreation makes it unclear as to whether I’m headed to bed, the beach or to brave a tundra, I certainly felt empowered while grappling through the curation of my outfit. That holds more weight to me than any designer coat. — Margaret Sheridan, Style Beat Editor Jean cut-offs (sometimes known as “jorts”) and a blazer have never stood out to me as two things that naturally fit together. The first I associate with hot temperatures in my native Los Angeles backyard and then the other I group with what I wear to an interview where my future is on the line: two very different states of mind. However, Givenchy proved me wrong this year, topping off their wide use of jorts with formalwear. According to W Magazine, Givenchy’s Artistic Director, Claire Waight Keller, was inspired by ’90s fashion after reading a book by Allison Yarrow titled, “90s Bitch: Media, Culture, and the Failed Promise of Gender Equality.” Therefore, Keller made ’90s fashion her goal but put a spin on it that she called “liberated femininity” in which she altered popular looks from these decades to appear more free, strong and a little bit grunge. With my own personal style being very casual and sticking to a single theme, this look was a little more difficult for me to get down. I decided to settle for a

THE CUT

COURTESY OF SOPHIA HUGHES

more casual tee as opposed to a professional button down shirt because besides being safer, it also channels what I see “liberated femininity” to be. I finished it off with high heeled black boots thinking it would exude the toughness that Keller was looking for. In my mind, my outfit illustrates that I don’t lose sense of who I am or my power in the workplace when surrounded by toxic masculinity. I am a professional and do my work, but I am not eager to please when it comes to sacrificing my morals. — Sophia Hughes, Daily Style Writer According to Fashionista, Marc Jacobs included a review of his Spring/ Summer 2002 show at his namesake label in this season’s shownotes. The show took place on the day before Sept. 11, 2001, and spoke of how the joy expressed in that collection eerily encapsulated an era before the panic, before the earth-shifting events that were to take place the very next morning. Closing out NYFW SS20 on Sept. 11, 2020, the inclusion could not be more appropriate. This collection, in his words, is “a celebration of life, joy, equality, individuality, optimism, happiness, indulgence, dreams and a future unwritten.” This review has only grown in accuracy over time, as the United States quickly evolved into a surveillance state led by fear and hatred after those tragic events. This collection was about taking a pause and celebrating life during a time that runs several parallels to the time that review was published. In a sociopolitical sphere that feels as though every day has to be a fight and turning on a news channel or simply tapping the twitter app on our phones can trigger an anxiety attack, allowing ourselves the space to feel the pulse that makes life worth living is absolutely vital. On days when I feel anxious and want to hide, I spend a little extra time on my appearance as a way to give myself that extra push to get through it all. This ridiculous sequin pantsuit and red mockneck combo brings me joy, I hope it does the same for you! — Sam Kremke, Daily Style Writer

VOGUE RUNWAY

COURTESY OF SAM KREMKE

DIY COLUMN

BOOK REVIEW

Cox’s Corner: DIY is an ‘10 Minutes’ is short of great expressive environment SARAH SALMAN Daily Arts Writer

RYAN COX

Daily DIY Columnist

I was catching up with a friend that I hadn’t seen in a while last week and we started talking about making music. Now, I’m a proponent for scenes to be supportive places for new artists to share their art, so when they expressed a desire to play at least one show by the time they graduated, I strongly encouraged them to. “But my songs aren’t very good … I’ve barely written anything,” they protested. They seemed to have this underlying fear that they shouldn’t be allowed to perform because they didn’t know how a sound system worked, or had only written a few songs here and there and had never really performed them in public before. I don’t know if you’ve ever been to a DIY show, but I can assure you, they are, and I cannot emphasize this enough, not full of virtuosos that are about to bring about the next Golden Age of Music. And that’s OK — they in no way need to be. This environment was created in order to give artists a platform that they normally wouldn’t have if they didn’t have a wealth of experience and connections. Sometimes, artists forget their chords, melodies or even lyrics when they’re on stage, and that’s part of the beauty of it. With DIY, perfection is in the imperfection. These shows are humble, intimate and full of opportunities to explore new artistic directions. I think that over time, these spaces, which stem from underrepresented people creating a space to call their own, started to shift into a more commercial environment that demands a certain almost polished sound at times. I’ve been at many shows where an

artist bravely stands in front of a crowd for the first time as their voice shakes because of how nervous they are, and while most of the crowd offers constant cheers and support, others sit towards the back and snicker. Not only does this reject the origins of DIY, but it discourages others from sharing their works — its intended purpose in the first place. You might say that it’s easy to just “forget the haters,” but as someone that has experienced the anxiety of sharing personal projects with an audience and still refrains from doing it too often, I know that that’s much easier said than done. Artists put not only a lot of time, but a lot of emotion into their work, and the thought of exposing themselves only to be laughed at and metaphorically pushed to the side is terrifying. Now, I don’t think that’s to say that criticism should be swapped with fluffy words of praise that lack substance. I think constructive criticism is absolutely essential for artists to grow and improve their art. If you know an artist well enough, giving them suggestions is a great way to promote their growth. But tweeting about, say, how bad the vocalist for PBR and the Rolling Rocks is, does nothing but emit negativity into the world. In case it wasn’t apparent, I think DIY is really special. The fact that people care enough about music and art that they could convert their basements into venues for lesser-known, possibly unconventional bands and artists to have opportunities they normally wouldn’t is exemplary of the passion that fuels the scene. It’s not about putting on shows with groups that have been around for years and years. DIY is about allowing new artists to come into their own, experiment, and share their experiences with an audience.

The fact that people care enough about music and art that they could convert their basements into venues for lesser-known, possibly unconventional bands and artists to have opportunities they normally wouldn’t is exemplary of the passion that fuels the scene.

“10 Minutes and 38 Seconds in this Strange World” begins with the end. Leila Afi — who had substituted the ‘y’ in her name to the atypical ‘i’ to change ‘yesterday’ for ‘infinity’ — is dead, strewn against a dumpster in an alleyway. Yes, physically her heart stops beating, but her brain hasn’t shut down yet — and it won’t be, not for another 10 minutes and 38 seconds. In those 10 minutes, the readers are taken on a journey into her heart-wrenching past — a past littered with picturesque memories from munching on sugarysweet wax with Leila’s aunt and mother to much more tragic moments that led to her eventually life as an Istanbul sex worker. Shafak goes all in with this set-up. We don’t just start at Leila’s birth, but at the moment of her conception. When Leilia’s mother was pregnant with her, she paid considerable care and made sure to take the necessary precautions. “She had not touched a single peach so the baby wouldn’t be covered in fuzz; she had not used any spices or herbs in her cooking so the baby wouldn’t have freckles or moles; she had not smelled roses so the baby wouldn’t have port-wine birthmarks. Not even once had she cut her hair lest their luck also be cut short. She had refrained from hammering nails into the wall in case she mistakenly hit a sleeping ghoul on the head. After dark, knowing too well that the djinn held their weddings around toilets, she had stayed in her room, making do with a chamber pot.” It’s difficult not to fall in love with Shafak’s prose. Shafak recognizes the significance of minute details. Sights, smells and tastes come unbidden. I felt like I was surrounded within the Turkish atmosphere and culture during the mid-20th century. Shafak treks the life of Leila,

using each minute to represent a milestone. She doesn’t stray from this methodolog y for the majority of the novel. In fact, she chronologizes historic landmarks alongside Leila’s growth. We learn of John F. Kennedy’s assassination and of Trotsky’s inf luence in Turkey. For the most part, this style works. One knows what to expect: Minute two is Leila’s adolescence and minute three is her hormonal teenage years. Spliced within this consistent technique are snippets of Leila’s friend’s perspective — the “five” as Leila so carefully dubs. The change in perspectives takes away from the f low of the narrative. At first, I faithfully read through each character, but then found myself skimming as I progressed deeper into the book. Some of Leila’s friends only appeared for a brief segment of the book — I couldn’t reconcile their significance to the plot with their random chapters. More than the style, it’s easy to be tired by Shafak’s cyclical narrative. Don’t get me wrong, I felt my eyes sting more often than not while reading “10 Minutes and 38 Seconds,” but soon, the plot became predictable. I really wanted to like this book, but I couldn’t muster the same level of empathy I had at the beginning. What once seemed like an apt way to shed a humanistic lens on the life of a sex worker in Turkey ends up holding a darker implication of romanticism. Shafak shies away from delving into the vulgar and vile aspects that come with the high-risk lifestyle. Continually, we circle around Leila’s way of life. We read about the musky smell of sex in the room, but not the sexual acts themselves. Instead, much of the plot is spent detailing the beauty encompassing Lelia’s brothel. While there are merits in highlighting the beauty in horror, “10 Minutes and 38 Seconds” is generally disappointing. With its topic, the novel could’ve done more to bring awareness to the exploitation of women in Turkey back then and now.

10 Minutes and 38 Seconds in this Strange World Elif Shafak Viking May 17, 2019

Arts

6A — Wednesday, October 9, 2019

The Michigan Daily — michigandaily.com

BOOK REVIEW

FILM REVIEW

Chaotic good: ‘Quichotte’ Don’t go ‘In the Tall Grass’ JOHN DECKER

Daily Book Review Editor

At its barest, Salman Rushdie’s newest “Quichotte” is a show of impressive needlework. From the get-go, Rushdie’s got his thread and his needle, poised to bind: His materials are several stories, wholly different plot-scapes and universes and dimensions, all constructed and ready to be sewn together. And Rushdie does just this. In his nearly 400-page epic, he lies out vastly distinct storylines — from a pastiche of “Don Quixote” to a modern take on a brother-sister relationship — and spends time wrapping them tightly together. By the end of “Quichotte,” it’s almost difficult to tell the stories apart. But this simplifies “Quichotte” to a degree almost disrespectful of the calculated, deeplyintentioned plot Rushdie has created. The novel principally follows a character under the homebrewed alias of Quichotte, a stable but delirious sexagenarian who, emerging from his habit of obsessive reality television binging, decides to pursue Miss Salma R, a talk show host he decides is, simply and indubitably, the one for him. He initiates a quest across the U.S. (which includes traversing the so-called “seven valleys”— think a fanatical pilgrimage) to pursue the admired. Along the way he imagines a son, Sancho, into existence. The two encounter extreme bigotry. They pass through a town where people turn into mastodons. A gun speaks. Absurdity saturates the trip. Embroidering efficiently and at full speed, Rushdie works in two stories that progress alongside the chapters of Quichotte’s adventures. There is Miss Salma R, the host Quichotte so desires, with her devastating past and her present opioid addiction. Then there is Dr. Smile, Quichotte’s relative and the corrupt architect of InSmile, an opioid product directed at those vulnerable to addiction. These stories drift on their own alongside Quichotte’s until they merge with the main character’s in the final chapters. Then, — yes, there is more — there is Sam DuChamp, the author penning Quichotte’s story in real time. He’s a moderately successful spy novelist leading a life moderately similar to Quichotte’s, save the delusions. As the tale of Quichotte’s universe gradually unravels, Sam’s story is told also. “Quichotte” is — not only at its inception, but constantly — overwhelming. Rushdie fits a story with the breadth of Donna Tartt’s “The Goldfinch” and the chaos of a Vonnegut novel in a relatively small space. Somehow, though, this insanity never

quite feels like disorder. Despite the tug-of-war between plots and several frankly unbelievable scenes, there is never a sense that Rushdie has lost control of his work. The reigns are secure. Rather, as one reads on, “Quichotte” manages to make more sense as themes reappear and the storylines settle into one another. Quichotte’s relationship to his sister and his concern for his son begin to line up with the diegetic author, Sam’s, story. By the end of the work, the two stories all but become one. This refrain of contestation (between the author’s life and his fiction; between Quichotte’s past and present) tempers “Quichotte” just enough. It also offers tastes of passages that, although bred in an environment of disarray, manage to foster intimate moments: “As the Trampoline (Quichotte’s sister) spoke, it was almost as if there were two Quichottes in the room, a version from the past as well as the present one, and that as the past was superimposed on the present it caused a sort of blurring, because the two versions were so unlike each other that it was difficult to see the Quichotte in the room clearly, as he now was, and he himself was a victim of the same confusion, not able to with any degree of ease to free himself from the trap of what he had once been.” In a book drowning in overarching political themes and a muddled plot, spaces like this are gasps of air above the waves. Rushdie can both continue the chaos and also make Quichotte — and his author — human and recognizable to readers. Rushdie pulls off his broad and absurdist plot, but something about “Quichotte” undeniably still falls flat of spectacular. The writing, while piercing at moments, curls too much into Rushdie’s run-on, detail-filled style. It makes the work, especially the first quarter and even some action-packed scenes (like that with the mastodons) draining to read. Then there’s Rushdie’s jab at the extremes of racism and Islamophobia in the United States, which, although revisited by Rushdie in an OK manner in the final chapter, feels mishandled. Rushdie lines up racial incidents one after another in the course of 20 pages and then forgets about them, a feat that feels like indecision between satire and genuine commentary. It’s the age of “anything can happen,” Rushdie so accurately declares throughout “Quichotte.” This is, after all, 2019. Anything, it seems sometimes, can happen, to both the writer and what is written. The daring literary foray into this modern wildfire of chaos has earned Rushdie a spot on the Booker Prize shortlist. If the judges have have a stomach for the absurd and extravagant, he may just win.

Quichotte Sept. 3, 2019

Call: #734-418-4115 Email: dailydisplay@gmail.com

Los Angeles Times Daily Crossword Puzzle

PROBATE

Edited by Rich Norris and Joyce Nichols Lewis

ACROSS 1 Washington’s Sea-__ Airport 4 Bubble bath spot 7 Model S and Model X electric cars 13 “Snowy” bird 14 “Movin’ __”: “The Jeffersons” theme 16 World Cup chant 17 Chinese chairman 18 Henry VIII’s sixth wife Catherine 19 Like an ideal situation 20 How some get across town 22 “I’m __ a robot”: phrase with captcha tests 24 Percussion pair 25 Sack opening? 27 Leg bone 29 Holly’s “Raising Arizona” role 31 Summer in Quebec 32 “Orinoco Flow” singer 35 Good scents 36 “The Giving Tree” author Silverstein 38 __ pal 39 Fire truck wail 40 Toronto-to-D.C. dir. 41 Handy 43 Lodge member 44 Guthrie at Woodstock 46 Walk-in health facility 47 City on the Rhône 49 Word with drum or trumpet 50 Distorts, as data 51 Do over 53 Royal Norwegian name 54 Let up 56 __-mo replay 58 “The Jetsons” son 61 Chanted phrase 63 Word on U.S. coins 65 Luau instrument 66 Consume

67 Personnel note 68 “Roth” savings plan 69 Political pundit Myers 70 __ Antonio 71 Street covering

DOWN 1 Grant’s __: NYC landmark 2 See 7-Down 3 1971 Kubrick film, with “A” 4 Big cheese 5 Article in El País 6 “Sick insult, dude!” 7 With 2-Down, type of zone in which parking is restricted 8 Nobelist Root 9 Declining in old age 10 Easy pickings, and a hint to the four other longest Down answers 11 Et __: and others 12 Dispatched 15 Clue character with a bow tie

21 “Yu-Gi-Oh!” genre 23 10% donation 26 Faux __ 28 Four-winged flier 29 Artistic stand 30 Deadpan 33 New Haven student 34 Smart fellows? 37 Yoga-inspired athletic brand 40 Closes forcibly

42 __ pool 45 Irish actor Stephen 46 Fiscal VIP 48 Brought home 52 Song section 54 In the thick of 55 Downfall 57 Small bills 59 Gumbo ingredient 60 Junior or senior 62 Had a burger, say 64 Actress Thurman

ANSWER TO PREVIOUS PUZZLE:

MUSIC: WHAT I’M LISTENING TO

For love and Gainsbourg Daily Arts Writer

Random House

Release Date: Wednesday, October 9, 2019

In the Tall Grass

MADELEINE VIRGINIA GANNON

Salman Rushdie

Classifieds

controlling the whole charade. Grass, also, is just not that scary. What is this evil force trying to For the Daily accomplish? There’s no reason for what it does other than to frighten people — and theoretically If someone fed a computer program all of the viewer — by luring them into an endless field. Ambiguity can be incredibly horrific when Stephen King’s novels, and asked it to write something using all it had learned, it would handled correctly. “It Comes at Night” and give us “In the Tall Grass.” All the stereotypical “Annihilation” are perfect examples of a tropes are there. There’s the deranged father and mysterious concept whose inexplicability is used hysterical mother of “The Shining,” the temporal to frightening effect. Those movies, however, shifting of “The Dark Tower,” and the Americana have screenwriters behind them who understand setting attacked by an inhuman threat from “It” concepts like subtlety, pacing and basic character (and most of his other novels). The problem is, “In development. “In The Tall Grass” just slings The Tall Grass” lacks the heart of even the most as much violence and surreal imagery at the mediocre Stephen King story. There’s nothing to viewer as it can. Instead of making things scarier, though, the deluge just becomes oversaturated. care about here, and even less to be scared of. There’s no buildup; it’s This movie struggles just a loose collection to make one care from of ineffective pieces. the start. A conversation Some attempts to in the opening scene be frightening end tries to introduce these up being brutally characters — a brother laughable. The and sister on a road trip villains sing, speak through the Amerian Netflix in rhyme and have heartland. However, it an obsession with only establishes bareChristian references, minimum, cookieall of which come cutter traits, and is across humorously and soon interrupted. The slaughter any sort of siblings are called into a tension. grass field by a little boy, The acting does not help, either. Patrick who says he is lost. These unfortunate siblings are soon thrust into a violent, otherworldly time loop Wilson (“The Conjuring”) does his best, but his that is never explained, even at the most basic of dedication is grating to watch when nobody else levels. Throughout this movie, the viewer is too is giving even half the effort he is. The other busy trying to understand what is happening to performances are straight out of an old episode of “Goosebumps,” with the dialogue to match. care about who it is happening to. Yet all it does is establish some unoriginal traits Characters give melodramatic, overindulgent that do little to entice the reader and are soon speeches that would’ve been cut from even ignored in favor of the horror plot. While Stephen the most atrocious high school Halloween King’s novels, and the best King adaptations, productions. The conversations also run on a inject even the wildest situations with a human track, like a haunted house ride — if one has seen enough horror movies, they could literally fill in core, “In The Tall Grass” is utterly cold. This film could have still been modestly the blanks. The final act is a tired retread of “The Shining,” enjoyable if the threat it spent all its screen time on was at least intriguing. Sadly, even that is too without any of the deep scares or existential much to ask. No matter how inventive the camera questions that made Jack Torrance’s story a work is or how creepy some of the set pieces are, classic. Even worse, this movie gives its female “In The Tall Grass” fails to be frightening in characters almost no sense of agency. They’re any memorable way. It is easier to let one of the tokens for the men to fight over, brutally attack main characters explain why: “It doesn’t make and threaten with sexual assault. “In the Tall Grass” is predictable, muddled and any sense.” None of it does. Not the grass, the grass people, or the giant rock that is apparently forgettable. Skip this one. ANDREW WARRICK

STATE OF MICHIGAN PROBATE COURT COUNTY OF WASHTEN‑ AW PUBLICATION OF NOTICE OF HEARING FILE NO. 19‑2049‑NC In the matter of Charles Earl Chism, Jr TO ALL INTERESTED PER‑ SONS including: whose address(es) is/are unknown and whose interest in the matter may be barred or affected by the following: TAKE NOTICE: A hearing will be held October 23, 2019 at 1:30pm at Washtenaw County Probate Court Ann Arbor, MI 48107 before Judge Patrick Conlin P56333, for the following purpose: LEGAL NAME CHANGE TO: KAMARI JONES Advertisement date: 10/09/19 PETITIONER: CHARLES EARL CHISM, JR 924 LUTZ AVE, ANN ARBOR, MI 48103

He may not have been terrifying, but his rap sheet is. His music inspires chills, but of a different kind — more soul-penetrating than spine-tingling. His eccentricity, while alarming, lends itself to good, old-fashioned rebellion and artistic chaos. The Vatican banned one of his songs. He had an affair with Brigitte Bardot — the literal personification of the French Republic’s La Libérte, Marianne (Bardot was the model for the bust of Marianne c. 1969). He once burned a 500-franc note on television to make a statement to his immense wealth. He talked endlessly to cab-drivers and the “common people” who were brushed aside in the day-to-day. His name was Serge Gainsbourg, a man of immense talent for music, show-biz flair and pearl-clutching shock value. One of the most prolific French artists of his time, Gainsbourg’s legacy continues to live on well after his passing in 1991. And now, I hope to contribute to the cultivation of Gainsbourg’s memory by introducing our readership to the man himself. But first: The song banned by the Vatican? “Je t’aime moi non plus.” Listen at your own peril. The Vatican, somewhat dramatically, banned the song for a reason. Keep your headphones plugged in for this one. Second: If you’re new to this worldwide worship of Gainsbourg, start with “La chanson de Prévert,” “Les femmes c’est du chinois,” “L’anamour” and “Couleur café,” to name a few. Now, I know what you’re thinking: “If one of his songs was so far out there that it got banned by the Vatican, how could I possibly know what I’m listening to? I don’t speak French! It’s too

risky.” Well my friends, have you heard of Google Translate? All jokes aside, part of the thrill of listening to music in another language is the mystery of the lyrics. Sure, you could always find a translation. But before that, you have the opportunity to experience the song in an incredibly pure form. One can appreciate the music, its composition, its instrumentation and the artist’s vocal inflection without the intrusion of lyrics. As for myself, I didn’t understand any of Gainsbourg’s songs initially — I fell in love with his voice before I discovered anything else about him. When pressed to name a specific album (and prove my musical street cred), Gainsbourg’s L’étonnant Serge Gainsbourg (1961) is a personal favorite. The album features a softer side to Gainsbourg’s notoriously “adventurous” reputation. Deep, buttery (I know how that sounds) vocals backed by beautiful orchestration are breathtaking. Featuring a mix of traditional French, jazz (“Les femmes c’est du chinois”), and classic 60’s “bops” (“Le sonnet d’Arvers”), L’étonnant Serge Gainsbourg has it all. Gainsbourg’s music also contains subtle touches of African and Latin stylistic flairs. It’s a good, fleshed out introduction to a musician whose career spanned decades, a man who walks the line between myth and legend. Hours, days, weeks (maybe years?) could be dedicated to writing about, to and for Gainsbourg. Unfortunately, I’ll be too busy listening to his music to write the epic he deserves. So for now, this will have to suffice. Take a listen to Serge Gainsbourg this week and fall in love (like I have) with a man whose life was just as exhilarating as his music is. It’s worth getting to know the man, not just his lyrics.

10/09/19

UNIVERSAL MUSIC GROUP

Sports

The Michigan Daily — michigandaily.com

Wednesday, October 9, 2019 — 7A

Former assistant, Haynes, making immediate impact at Maryland After two seasons at Michigan, Deandre Haynes is taking to his new role under Maryland coach Mark Turgeon DANIEL DASH

Daily Sports Writer

ROSEMONT, Ill. — When John Beilein shook the college basketball world with his sudden decision to leave Michigan in May, the impact was felt beyond Ann Arbor and Cleveland. Most of the country woke up to the news, with ESPN’s initial report coming before sunrise on the East Coast. After preaching a family culture throughout his decade-plus with the Wolverines, Beilein’s players and staff learned of his decision the same way everyone else did. It didn’t take long for the ripple effects to reach College Park. When Maryland coach Mark Turgeon heard of Beilein’s departure, he thought back to a phone call he received from Beilein two weeks earlier. After one of Turgeon’s assistants left for a head coaching vacancy at Morgan State, Beilein called him to put in a good word for his three assistants — Saddi Washington, Luke Yaklich and DeAndre Haynes. Knowing the trio was seasoned under Beilein’s lauded basketball mind, Turgeon’s interest was piqued. So when Turgeon first heard of his counterpart’s exodus, he phoned Washington. The two had a productive conversation, culminating in an agreement to check in again once the new head coach formed his staff. Just over a week later, Juwan Howard was hired as Beilein’s successor. It took him about a month to finalize his staff, but Turgeon waited patiently. Howard retained Washington as the lone holdover, while defensive mastermind Luke Yaklich left for an associate head coach position at Texas. Haynes, on the other hand,

was left in limbo. Shortly after, he connected with Turgeon. The first time they spoke, Turgeon knew he’d found his guy. In his two years under Beilein, Haynes coached the backcourt and plotted offensive strategies. Still only 35 years old, he most recently worked closely with senior point guard Zavier

Simpson and former Michigan guard Jordan Poole. With Terrapin guard Anthony Cowan Jr. returning for his senior season and junior guard Darryl Morsell looking to take the next step, Turgeon would’ve been hard-pressed to find a better fit. Since arriving at Maryland, Haynes has proven it. When Cowan was asked about

Definitely, as soon as he walked in, it clicked...

immediately. “With DeAndre, one thing Michigan had that a lot of people really don’t look at too in-depth is Michigan’s spacing was awesome. That’s what made their offense really good and that’s something that he’s helping me and helping us with.” For Cowan and Morsell,

... (Haynes) relates to his players really well.

KATELYN MULCAHY/Daily

Deandre Haynes served as one of the assistant coaches for the Michigan basketball team the last two seasons, and is now an assistant at Maryland.

Hallahan’s evolution as a player key to Wolverines’ success of late DREW COX

Daily Sports Writer

Jack Hallahan is an Energizer Bunny. On Sunday, the senior forward was all over the place. He pirouetted through defenders with ease, scrambled down field on numerous breakaways and dished out two assists, en route to a 3-0 victory for the Michigan men’s soccer team (5-2-3 overall, 2-0-2 Big Ten) over Northwestern (5-5-1, 1-2-1). From the onset, Hallahan made his presence known, terrorizing the Wildcats’ defenders with crafty footwork and dazzling speed. Opposing coaches have braced for facing Hallahan since he stepped on the collegiate pitch his freshman year in 2016. Since then, Hallahan led the team in points over his sophomore and junior seasons, notching nine and eight goals, respectively. And 2019 is looking no different. Now in his final campaign, Hallahan has already proven that he remains a force to be reckoned with. But his role has evolved. This season, the Wolverines deploy a 4-4-2 formation, as opposed to the 4-4-3 formation they ran in the past, meaning that Hallahan, a forward by trade, is playing further back, deeper into the Michigan midfield. No longer playing the true forward position, Hallahan’s role in the Wolverines’ offense has elevated from the team’s premier goal-scorer to a dangerous, multi-dimensional facilitator. By playing closer to the midfield, Hallahan is consistently swarmed on all fronts by opponents who attempt to stifle his eruptive style of play, opening up the field for his teammates. “There is a lot of attention on Jack Hallahan. (Teams) know who No. 11 is,” said Michigan coach Chaka Daley. “He’s

Haynes’ early impact at last week’s Big Ten Media Day, his eyes lit up. “That’s my guy,” Cowan said. “Definitely, as soon as he walked in, it clicked for us immediately. He’s definitely helping our team out tremendously and like I said, we clicked as soon as he got on campus and we started getting work done

MILES MACKLIN/Daily

Senior forward Jack Hallahan has evolved into a more-willing distributor.

finding other ways to impact the team. (And) other guys are benefitting.” The threat of Hallahan has allowed forward play to prosper, with graduate student Nebojsa Popovic and sophomore Derek Broche leading the team in goals, with six and three, respectively. While Hallahan recorded an impressive 15 assists in his sophomore and junior seasons combined, he already has six assists just over halfway into his senior campaign. Hallahan’s first assist on Sunday came at a much-needed time for the offense. After standing scoreless with Northwestern at halftime, the Wolverines built off mounting confidence carried over from the first half. Despite the score, stringent defensive play and numerous offensive opportunities fueled the team’s belief in its abilities. “We had some really good chances (in the first half ) and were competitive,” Daley said. “Defensively, we gave our chance to win the game that stayed contagious throughout the game.” Four minutes into the second half, following an arching corner kick from Hallahan, junior defender Jack Ragen headed the ball towards Carlos Tellez. The junior midfielder placed the ball

past Wildcat goalkeeper Miha Miskovic to give Michigan the lead, 1-0. Just four minutes later, Hallahan helped to facilitate the second goal of the day. Weaving through Northwestern’s defensive lines, Hallahan passed the ball off to Ybarra. Ybarra then hit Popovic in stride, who rocketed a shot past Miskovic. With only one goal thus far on the season, one might expect frustration to emerge from Hallahan given his goal-scoring pedigree. Quite the contrary. “It’s more about creating opportunities than putting it away at this point. For me, I got my goals last year,” Hallahan said. “It’s better for the team in a way. We’ve got two great goal scorers up top still.” Whether controlling the pace of the offense, eyeing up goal-scoring opportunities or pestering defenders with his agility, Hallahan has proven that his value on the field is greater than his goal-scoring statistics. “He’s trying to make the right decisions at the right times and pick out the right players for the right reasons,” Daley said. “He really is a selfless player. He works for the team. When you have a big time player like that, it’s very contagious throughout the group.”

Haynes’ personality has made all the difference. “The first thing I realize about (Haynes) is he seems like a great family man,” Morsell said. “He and his wife had their kids around, and that just shows you what type of individual he is and what he values. He’s been a great help for us. He’s like the coach I’ve never had since I’ve been in college. I’ve definitely enjoyed his time since he’s been (at Maryland). From the perspective that he played and had success while he was playing, he brings another dimension. He’s great with film. He’s a great coach all around.” Added Cowan: “Just as a person, (Haynes) relates to his players really well. I think he’s a player-person and a players’ coach. He’s someone that I really do trust in terms of basketball knowledge.” With fall practices in full swing, Turgeon has also taken notice of Haynes’ immediate impact. A former MidAmerican Conference Player of the Year, Haynes learned the rigors of leading an offense at Kent State from 2002-06. He returned to the Golden Flashes as a coach prior to spending a year at Toledo before joining Michigan’s staff. But that’s a figment of the past at this point. The same group of players he coached to the Sweet 16 a year ago has become his competition — and vice versa. Now, he’s making strong impressions in the early stages of his role on a new staff. “(Haynes) is a classy guy, he’s a family guy, he relates well to the players,” Turgeon said. “He’s a really good basketball coach, my players really like him. He’s really hard-working and he works smart, so it’s been a really good addition.”

‘M’ struggles in first road matches LANE KIZZIAH Daily Sports Writer

Facing top teams like Vanderbilt, Georgia and UCLA, the Michigan women’s tennis team had its first real opportunity to gauge its competition and itself, and they didn’t appear to be up to the challenge. The results from the fourday Women’s Collegiate Classic in Malibu were mixed. The Wolverines started strongly with wins in Thursday’s first round matches. Freshman Andrea Cerdan edged out No. 15 Christina Rosca of Vanderbilt in a close match, taking two of three sets by a slim margin, 6-4, 3-6, 7-5. While Cerdan stumbled in the second round — losing two consecutive sets 6-2 — the freshman’s ability to win against highly-ranked players makes her an integral part of Michigan’s program as the season goes on. Junior Alyvia Jones and senior Giulia Pairone also had solid wins on day one, but neither could translate these victories into momentum. Jones and Pairone had very similar performances in the second round, each losing the

first set by a large deficit and narrowly losing the second, 7-5. With these losses, the Wolverines spent the rest of the weekend playing consolation games in which they lost nine out of 12 matches. “We definitely need to get better,” said Michigan coach Ronni Bernstein. “We need to get fitter.” Michigan didn’t fare much better in doubles match play. Jones and Cerdan won handily against a Stanford duo, 6-1, but fell in the second round, 6-2, to California. Similarly, Pairone and senior Chiara Lommer beat San Diego only to be bested by California in the following round. “It was a long weekend and it showed on Sunday, where I didn’t think we were at our best,” Bernstein said. “It was our first trip (this year) and the first trip for (Cerdan). Definitely by the end of the week, they looked a little drained. We had a couple of

kids who were taking exams on the road and taking more exams (Monday). That is always challenging.” This weak performance may be a byproduct of the Wolverines’ transition to playing on the road. Last weekend, Michigan came away from the Wolverine Invitational in Ann Arbor with twelve singles and five doubles wins. Whatever the cause, Bernstein is far from discouraged. She views the weekend as the first data point in a long season. “I wanted to see how we match up,” Bernstein said. “You have 12 teams and probably eight of them are top-10 teams. We brought some of our top players there to see where we are at this stage, early October. “Clearly, we need to get better. Results-wise, we weren’t there. It is not always about results and we have a few months to clean some things up before we start dual matches.”

It was a long weekend and it showed on Sunday...

ALEC COHEN/Daily

Junior Alyvia Jones won her match on the first day of the Women’s Collegiate Classic, but lost the day after.

Sports

8A — Wednesday, October 9, 2019

Offense seeks more explosive plays THEO MACKIE Daily Sports Editor

While Jim Harbaugh stood in front of the media Saturday afternoon — and again on Monday — to declare that Michigan’s offense is “hitting their stride,” the numbers tell a different story. Unless this is the Wolverines’ stride, in which case there’s a different conversation to be had. That’s beside the point. What’s not is this: Josh Gattis came in with a plan to revolutionize Michigan’s offense and bring it into the modern era of college football. Through five games, the unit is down 51.7 yards and 7.2 points per game from a season ago, when it was roundly criticized as antiquated and inefficient. Among the keys to changing it all — according to fifthyear senior left tackle Jon Runyan, one of few players to acknowledge the struggles — is increasing the number of explosive plays. “That’s what this offense is all about, is being explosive,” said senior quarterback Shea Patterson, “and letting our playmakers go make plays.” And yet, despite Patterson himself saying the offense is “right where we want to be,” as he did Tuesday evening, those plays have been near-impossible to come by. According to defensive coordinator Don Brown, the Wolverines consider explosive plays to be runs of 12 or more yards or passes of 16 or more yards. In Saturday’s 10-3 win over Iowa, they had just two of each. “We pride ourselves on explosive plays, and we know that we have a quota that we have to get and meet,” Runyan said. “And we didn’t meet that this week when we had two explosive run plays and two explosive pass plays. And that’s not gonna cut it if we’re gonna

try to win against these teams.” As Runyan acknowledges, Michigan managed to “somehow” win anyway. That somehow is its defense. The Wolverines, though, know their defense isn’t going to bail them out every time. In September’s 35-14 loss at Wisconsin, that’s exactly what happened. The defense folded and the offense — billed as this team’s calling card all spring — managed just 14 points. Beneath it all was a pitiful, singular explosive play before the game was well out of hand late in the second half. By the final whistle in Madison, Michigan had five explosive plays. Zero came on the ground. “I feel like in the run game, explosive plays just come down to hand placement,” Runyan said. “Whether it’s by a guard keeping his block or myself or Jalen keeping our head inside the defender or where best we can find a seam.” The blame, though, goes well beyond the offensive line. While Patterson said Tuesday that he’s content with his play so far, the numbers tell the story of a quarterback who hasn’t found the same success

he did a year ago. When junior wide receiver Donovan Peoples-Jones was asked about the lack of explosive plays, he said: “When I have an opportunity to touch the ball, gotta make an explosive play.” In three games since returning from injury, he has just three explosive plays — all against lowly Rutgers. It all stands in direct contrast to Gattis’ grand offseason proclamations, when he told his team their 35.2 points per game wasn’t good enough and pointed out that the best teams in the country average at least 42, according to Runyan. This year, that was his challenge for the Wolverines. “And we did that against Rutgers,” Runyan said, before pausing. “Obviously didn’t do that against Wisconsin.” He paused again. “Or Army.” Another pause. “Or last game.” So, despite his confident proclamations, when Patterson was asked whether explosive plays can help Michigan reach “the next level,” he could muster only one word. “Definitely.”

ALEXANDRIA POMPEI/Daily

Offensive coordinator Josh Gattis’ offense has scored 7.2 fewer points per game and over 51 fewer yards than the group did last season.

The Michigan Daily — michigandaily.com

ICE HOCKEY

Wolverines’ penalty kill shows signs of increased aggression TIEN LE

Daily Sports Editor

The repeated sound of a stick clashing against the ice reverberated throughout Yost Ice Arena on Sunday. Clank, clank. Clank, clank. Noise had already filled the atmosphere — the roar of the crowd, shouts of the players, even the rattling of the glass as puck and body clashed against it. But the clanking of the stick pierced through it all. The clock on the screen that hung over the ice ticked down, informing all of the time left in the period. In one of the corners, another timer counted down. This one was for the penalty. As the penalty clock hit below 10 seconds, the Windsor goaltender started his tirade against the ice, letting his teammates know their power play was coming to a close. Clank, clank. Clank, clank. And soon after, the sound from the goaltender was muted, and a new set of clanking stick sounds followed. The skaters on the Michigan hockey team’s bench smacked their sticks against the boards, as if to give a round of applause to the penalty killing unit for successfully fending off a Lancer man-advantage. In the exhibition game against Windsor, the Wolverines held their opponent to zero powerplay goals on four attempts and put their new, aggressive penalty kill system on full display. “Our goals are to gain momentum for the team and spend as little time in our zone as possible,” said assistant coach Kris Mayotte, who has been handed the reins for the Michigan penalty kill. As the mindset on all penalty killing should be, the Wolverines hope to achieve success with a man down in

a different fashion than last year — adding aggressiveness to their defending. During the exhibition, Michigan didn’t allow the Lancers to get many open looks, constantly putting pressure on their passing game up top. As Windsor players passed the puck back and forth to each other, all four Wolverines on the penalty kill would find a player to put pressure on, creating high turnover rates in the defensive zone. “I thought that we did a good job of limiting their options like our D-core was talking about, it just didn’t seem like they had good opportunities to set up,” said senior defenseman Luke Martin. “And then once they did, I thought we had done a good job with our sticks, and body positioning.” And even before the puck entered Michigan’s defensive zone, the pressure was already on. Whenever they can, the Wolverines apply pressure by forechecking on the penalty kill. “It puts us in a good position to potentially end their plays before they even get into our zone,” Martin said. When the opposition gets into the offensive zone, Martin believes it would take a “good puck-moving power play unit” to break down their penalty kill. But with the amount of on-puck pressure given, moving the puck would be a tall task. The new-look penalty kill is heavily dependent on all four skaters and the goaltender being on the same page. If only one skater pushes forward, the effort

goes to waste, as the player being pressured can move the puck to an open teammate. But the team is responding well to the new system and being in-sync, learning when one goes, all go. “I think when we’re working in tandem,” Martin said, “it can’t just be one guy going, three guys watching. “... Every time we do it and go through it we’re looking better.” And the strength of the team in the system isn’t just the unity in its aggression, but also the sense of understanding and ease of learning. Mayotte pointed out that in a game, there will be moments few and far between that will go exactly as drawn up. “You’re going to get different looks that you don’t practice against,” Mayotte said. “It’s a much more fluid situation. Rather than we know how to kill against structure and things like that. It’s more of the hockey side of just playing when things don’t go perfectly.” The team saw moments throughout the penalty kills where bounces went in favor of Windsor. But the ability to improvise and work around broken plays allowed the Wolverines to successfully kill off any chances at the net. And when the opportunity arose, they pushed. “Because once that happens, then the execution becomes pretty seamless,” Mayotte said. “Even if it doesn’t feel right, or even if they do it right, they want to make sure it is done the right way, not just getting the result they wanted.”

Every time we... go through it we’re looking better.

Patterson, Harbaugh stick by offense as questions simmer after Iowa win ETHAN SEARS

Managing Sports Editor

Shea Patterson wore a pink bomber jacket and stood in the center of the circle. For the number of questions surrounding the Michigan football team he leads, for all the criticism and sarcastic comments, and — for that matter — for all the questions lobbed at the senior quarterback, his demeanor was remarkably low key. Three days earlier, Michigan coach Jim Harbaugh declared that the Wolverines’ offense was hitting its stride. Two days after that, Harbaugh doubled down. “In all areas,” Harbaugh said, when asked specifically where he saw that stride coming. “The run game, pass game, protection. Quarterback, receiver, running backs. They are, it’s an evolving, improving group and I’ve seen them be at a really high level at practice, consistently at a really high level in games. And getting that consistently high level in both games and practice is what I feel what I see coming.” Then he filibustered, going over a number of drives in the second half of Michigan’s win over Iowa, almost making you believe that there was some promise shown. Penalties killed one drive, a blown trick play killed another. A third, towards the end of the game, consisted of the Wolverines trying to kill the clock and let their defense win the game. Harbaugh credited Iowa’s defense, which, it should be noted, ranks ninth in SP+. Then his tone reached

an inflection point and, for the first time since he stepped to the podium an hour after Saturday’s game, it didn’t seem like he was just selling a line about the offense. “I feel with our team, the effort is great,” Harbaugh said. “Off the charts. At the highest level. And when you get that, then you can get everything else.” When Patterson took his turn the next day, though, he was left to deal with the reality. Michigan ranked 25th in offensive SP+ last year. It brought in a new coordinator, Josh Gattis. Through a month of the season, it ranks 66th in the same category. Pick whatever number you want — the Wolverines are probably down. As Patterson and others pointed out, they are 4-1, their fate still in their hands. But the numbers seem to portend things getting worse once the tough part of the schedule comes around. “When coach Gattis first got here, he was talking to us about how if we want to score more points, we gotta run more plays,” fifth-year senior left tackle Jon Runyan Jr. said Monday. “The best teams in the country are out here scoring at least 42 points per game and I think we averaged just under, maybe like 34 last year. So that’s something that we tried to do heading into the season. “And we did that against Rutgers. Obviously didn’t do that against Wisconsin or Army or last game (against Iowa).” So there was Patterson on Tuesday, trying to explain away the answer to questions that

I’ve seen them be at a really high level at practice.

And when you get (effort) then you can get everything else.

ALEXANDRIA POMPEI/Daily

Senior quarterback Shea Patterson has kept his faith in new offensive coordinator Josh Gattis, despite some statistical struggles to start the season.

will eventually play itself out on a football field against Penn State, Notre Dame and Ohio State. Is the problem on offense as minimal as Harbaugh made it out to be? And how does it get fixed? “I think that there’s a lot that you guys don’t see, that the fans don’t see,” Patterson said. “They make their adjustments on defense, we make our adjustments on offense. And we aren’t not trying to be explosive, but I do believe that there’s a lot left out there. And the sky’s really the limit for this offense. It’s just a matter of time.” He was asked to expand on what, specifically, people aren’t

seeing. “I could go on for days,” he said. He ultimately went on for less than 30 seconds. “I don’t know if you guys could fully dissect a defense but there’s certain things that they take away or have gameplans for. And we make our adjustments. But we’ll get it together.” Within the muddled nature of Michigan football’s message, the vague outlines of the problem came into focus. Patterson acknowledged that Gattis is experiencing growing pains, just as most people would in their first go around at a new job. He said the Wolverines could do more to amplify their talent at receiver — something

I think that there’s a lot that you guys don’t see.

the chorus of voices outside of Schembechler Hall has clamored for all year. He used the language of growth and positivity, just as Harbaugh did a day earlier, saying Michigan took what was there against a stout defense. Of course, that does little to change the reality of the season’s first five games. The Wolverines have struggled to move the ball in all but one of those. And, this weekend’s bout at Illinois aside, the schedule is about to enter an unforgiving stretch. It’s one thing to say that Michigan should use Nico Collins, Donovan Peoples-Jones and Tarik Black more liberally. It’s another to do it. “We believe in our coaches, we believe in each other,” Patterson said. “Just taking it day-by-day. First five weeks, we’ve played three of the top 20 defenses and we’re 4-1, so just gotta keep getting better.”

MICHIGAN’S OFFENSE

68.2

Plays per game, down from 69.0 last season.

3.5

Yards per carry, down from 4.8 last season.

7.6 Yards per Shea Patterson passing attempt, down from 8.0 last year.

28.0

Points per game, down from 35.2 in 2018.

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Editor in Chief Maya Goldman Managing Editor Finntan Storer

Contradicting economics, with economics BY ALEXANDER COTIGNOLA, STATEMENT COLUMNIST

hen I first started applying to colleges, I was often amazed by the number of choices available at every school. There were so many majors, so many classes, so many student organizations — the world seemed to be my oyster. Michigan seemed to dominate in this realm, and I came to school here for this very reason. However, it wasn’t just the sheer size of their programs; it was the fact that U-M was nationally ranked in seemingly every single one of them. They also had schools dedicated to special topics, such as the School of Information, whose classes usually would be tucked into a computer science major at another school. Although I knew I wanted a good combination of quantitative and qualitative elements — some math and some writing — I hadn’t settled on an exact field of study. I was a young student in the College of Literature, Science and the Arts, and I was comforted by its offering of 85 majors and more than 100 minors. There were also 14 other schools within Michigan that I could apply to, and with Michigan having strengths in both the sciences and humanities, there didn’t seem to be a bad option. However, this freedom of choice was just an illusion once put to the test. I soon realized that taking one class meant I couldn’t take another, and that going down one major path meant I blocked off a different route. Each of those 14 schools had prerequisite classes I had to take before I could apply. Even though I would’ve only applied to maybe three of them, that still meant at least three prerequisite classes for each school. There was no way I could fit those in my schedule, while also fulfilling distribution requirements, and still be on track to graduate on time. Given I was constrained with a “budget” of only 18 credits (about four classes) a semester, I had to figure out which classes within those 18 credits offered me the best balance of enjoyment, workload and need. I soon had to learn which classes I could afford to give up in order to take another, more interesting class. I couldn’t have my cake and eat it too; I had to make trade-offs between choices, and hopefully make the choice that gave me the greatest benefit. For example, math eventually became a situation where the skills I gained paled in comparison to the suffering it caused. I didn’t really have an interest

in taking math beyond upper-level calculus. When I first started, math offered me enough benefit (I could then major in Economics or other majors with math as a prerequisite) that it was worth the present sacrifice. However, at a certain point, the pain from taking math classes vastly outweighed the potential benefit that the cost outweighed the gain — the equivalent of negative marginal utility

y=mx+b^ 2^”All this time my intended major was staring me straight in the face, but i refused to recognize it.”c^ 2=b^ 2+a^ 2

in economics. Thus, I closed myself off to any potential math majors, as well as statistics. I also learned that I had no desire to write papers all day, as I had originally thought when writing my college applications. I wanted to be a historian or a diplomat when I was in high school, but after recognizing I would never learn another language — I had taken 14 years of Spanish classes without achieving fluency — I closed these paths off as well. My original wealth of options was getting smaller and smaller by the day, and the joy I felt in having

so many choices turned to anxiety. All this time, my intended major was staring me straight in the face, but I refused to recognize it. The mental calculations I kept making, the realizations I had, all pointed straight down the path of economics. I was already thinking like an economist with the daily internal machinations I conducted, and it was only a natural step to devote most of my coursework to it. I could also say it was destiny; my mother and sister were both economics majors (the latter at Michigan), and I grew up being quite familiar with terms like marginal cost, utility and scarcity. But, in economics parlance, the choice to follow my mother and sister’s footsteps also maximized the utility I received from picking a major. There would be a substantial math component, but also a chance to do plenty of writing, building both my analysis and data handling skills. While I wouldn’t learn another language, I would get to see how different countries interact in the international economy, and how their cultures affect their relationship with the rest of the world. I would get to learn plenty of history, but also mix it with a lot of data. In short, I would get the real-world application with the knowledge of theory I craved. Majoring in an LSA department also gave me the chance to have that full liberal arts experience I desired when I was in high school. I’ve had the chance to analyze paintings in my French art history class, read articles about what it means to be an empire, take (another) semester of Spanish, and experience my first real coding class. Because the economics major requires fewer credits than many of the other majors I considered, I also have the chance to enhance my degree with a minor. In the course of fulfilling distributions, I might also get the chance to study abroad, and therefore travel outside North America for the first time. In a field of study defined by making tough decisions between two options, majoring in economics at the expense of something else ironically didn’t create a trade-off for me. I could — despite the strict bounds of rational choice — have all the things I wanted in my college experience, and even get to explore all those choices which initially bedeviled me.

Wednesday, October 9, 2019 // The Statement

Modern Love: Do what you love and love what you do

3B 3B

BY HANNAH BRAUER, STATEMENT COLUMNIST

fter my high school graduation, I worked parttime as a Jimmy John’s sandwich artist. The title “artist” was always funny to me, as if cleaning up mayonnaise and throwing a slab of glistening roast beef onto a roll was a craft to be perfected. I would rarely be put on the cash register because of my social awkwardness, but one day my boss suggested I try it during the lunch rush to practice talking to customers. An older man came in near the end of the rush and paid for his $8 sandwich with a $10 and a $5 bill. I gave him his five-dollar bill back, thinking it was an accident, and he immediately became upset. “Do you millennials not know how to do math anymore? Fifteen minus eight is seven. Give me seven back.” He was in a full suit with a briefcase and was likely returning to his big-shot, nine-to-five job after eating his freaky-fast sandwich. I gave him seven dollars without a word. After he finished eating his #9 Italian Night Club — salami, capicola, cheese, onions, lettuce, oil and vinegar, in that order — I cleaned his table and read the sign posted on the wall next to it. It was titled “How Much Is Enough?” and featured a short story about a fisherman in Mexico who meets an investment banker from the United States. The banker, who had an MBA from Harvard, scoffed at the simplicity of the fisherman’s life and suggested he go into business selling fish and invest in bigger boats, which would require him to move to a big city and would earn him millions in 15 to 20 years. “Then what?” the fisherman asked. The banker responded that he could retire to a small fishing town and live a simple life. And thus marked the beginning of my quarter-life crisis.

A few weeks after leaving my job at Jimmy John’s, I started school at the University of Michigan. I chose to major in creative writing and communications, two of the stereotypical “unemployable” majors, despite my high school teachers telling me to pursue math to make life easier for myself. I was thrown into a culture that placed STEM and business fields above everything else. Most students had hobbies on the side, but the general consensus seemed to be “make the most money you can, however you can, so you can do your hobbies later.” I was recently served ILLUSTRATION BY SHERRY CHEN an ad on Facebook for the U-M Fall Job & Internship Fair with a caption that read, “Hey #UMichStudents, landing your internship or first job out of college can be an awesome feeling. But in order to land one, you have to make your job search a top priority while you’re in school. Here’s your chance to do that.” I could imagine the person writing this on the U-M social media team sitting in their office, looking at the clock to count how many more hours they had until 5 p.m., writing anything that came into their head. I know because I’ve been that person; I worked at an advertising agency after my freshman year making Facebook ads for car dealerships. And the summer after that, I did public relations for a health insurance company. I attributed my dislike for the agency to the fact I had previously worked for a non-profit and just wasn’t used to the new type of work, but working for corporate America also sucked the soul out of me. By the end of my internship at the insurance company, I knew I never wanted to work in those environments again. No one was passionate about doing good for the world, only making money and getting praise from their bosses. The offices were gray with harsh lighting that highlighted the bags under the employees’ eyes. I could see a cycle happening in front of my own eyes. Send out the Facebook ads, make a bunch of money for old white men who don’t need it, use that money to make more ads. Write a blog post about self-care, publish it on the insurance company’s Facebook, make people think they care and buy more insurance. Wash, rinse, repeat. When I saw this U-M Facebook ad, I was reminded of all of the networking events I’ve gone to out of obligation and left out of anxiety. I went to my first career fair during my junior year, though I didn’t recognize any of

the companies. There was an ambiguous air about every table; even the tables I went up to couldn’t quite articulate what they did and why it mattered. The representatives just talked at me for 20 minutes until I accepted their business card. The last table I went to was Yelp. I waited in line for over half an hour after at least three business students cut in front of me. When I reached the front of the line, the representative raised his eyebrows. “We have mostly sales positions, which means facing rejection a lot. Do you think you would be emotionally prepared for that?” he asked. The man’s face had the same robotic, condescending look in his eyes as the man who asked me if I knew how to give change in Jimmy John’s. The only real information he gave me was how much money he’s made in his position. He then told me to apply online, of course, as everyone does. I walked out after his spiel. I passed at least 40 more students coming into the fair on my way out, each dressed the same with that man’s exact look in their eyes. They were ready to become robots with his same programming. We live in an environment that creates gatekeepers for success. Either you pursue a field that makes you feel inferior, or you’re convinced you should sacrifice yourself to a company for the slight possibility of being happy. But I want to be a writer, which means I probably will never be “rich and successful” like my math teacher or a career fair representative would like me to be. In fact, I’m going to be the naïve kid they would make fun of for “following her dreams” into an unnecessarily difficult life. But if I’m going to be working for the rest of my life, why would I spend my energy fueling the same system that makes it impossible to be satisfied? Upon reflection, it’s clear the Harvard businessman is the antagonist of the “How Much Is Enough?” story. The fisherman knew what he was doing. Instead of sacrificing his sanity for a career that would bring him right to where he already is, he made a life for himself doing what brought him joy. It was that simple. He didn’t have to wait until retirement to fish, the same way I won’t have to wait until retirement to write. Ironically, next to “How Much Is Enough?” there was another sign in Jimmy John’s. It read, “If you do the things you need to do when you need to do them, then someday you can do the things you want to do when you want to do them.” I want to make an edit to this sign. Instead of separating “need” and “want,” I would say to do the things you want to do because you need to do them. Whether you’re a writer, an artist or a sandwich artist, cultivate love for your work. Listen to what comes easy to you. Figure out how to use the things you love to help yourself and the world. And please, whatever you do, don’t assume sandwich shop cashiers can’t do math. They probably know a lot more than you think.

4B Wednesday, October 9, 2019 // The Statement

Wednesday, October 9, 2019 // The Statement 5B

Péripatéticienne

MATHILDE GEANNOPULOS, STATEMENT CONTRIBUTOR

hunt for my Jordanian guilty pleasure in Meijer as my roommate looks for the Cholula. Of course, it’s not here. Every morning, Baba gave me a cornucopia of foods that aren’t typically consumed for breakfast. From ramen noodles, to oreos, carrots, to halloumi (the Arab equivalent of feta), Baba tried it all on me. Finally, one day he gave me “halawa,” a tahini treat that is surely 90 percent sugar. I devoured my portion every morning without giving it my usual second health-nut thought. Nope, not here. I keep looking as if I’m going to magically find it hidden behind 10 cans of chickpeas. It’s been a year since my semester in Jordan, and I really could use a reminder of what it was like to consume my interpretive breakfast every morning with Baba, peacefully watching the news and encouraging me to eat his carrots. Unfortunately, the “international foods” aisle has a way of confining the world to an empty shelf of chickpeas. Halawa isn’t even that exotic! At least it hadn’t been in Jordan. Looks like Margot finally found the hot sauce, promptly ending my moment of nostalgia. My dad always told me I had a chip on my shoulder. It was probably a combination of the lingering baby fat, remedial English classes and feeling like I never fit in. Being French meant that I got weird looks whenever my mom addressed me in a public space. It meant I didn’t get the cool snacks that all my classmates had. It meant I never understood the joke because I wasn’t adept enough at American culture, despite having lived in the United States my whole life. Ironically, these were all blessings. What I failed to understand as a child was the invaluable exposure I received, and the privilege I had in my ability to claim more than one identity. As a child though, it felt like I had no sense of belonging. The chips on my shoulder would gnaw at my brain like a faulty pipe constantly dripping, but my mother told me I needed to find a way to move forward. I might’ve taken her too seriously because I started walking. I envisioned going step by step, the movement inspiring some sort of emotion, and it stuck. Now, four years later and in the Michigan fall, I ask myself for the hundredth time why I chose to attend college in a state that doesn’t believe in springtime. Why walk to class when you can ice skate instead, right? No, Mathilde … not right. You hate this. I’d usually be listening to Michael Barbaro, my daily news informant, but I opt for a phone call with Mom instead. She recently watched a video about how French words carry different meanings depending on whether they’re masculine or feminine, and she brings up a word that piques my interest. Péripatéticien. Good god I can’t even pronounce that right. A pedagogue to the core, she instructs me on its masculine etymology, thoroughly unpacking this Aristotelian term. “So, it’s just someone who walks?” I ask. “Well, no Mathilde, it’s a man who wanders purposefully.” What is a purposeful wanderer?

“You know … someone who walks back and forth contemplating various philosophical questions, like Aristotle and his followers did.” “Donc, Je suis une péripatéticienne!” “So, I am a péripatéticienne.” I had almost forgotten the original conversation. My mom bursts into laughter, eager to share her newfound knowledge. Naturally, a female wanderer who walks back and forth on the street proposes a different connotation. But, by the looks of my empty wallet and clumsy winter movements, I am veritably not a prostitute. Interesting. I wonder if the same can be said for Arabic. I wonder if this is how the Jordanian men perceived me when I had the audacity to do the exact same thing that they were. hile the risk-averse State Department lectured my class on the penalties for marijuana usage, I visualized the potential feasibility of walking home. I was only two days into my semester in Jordan, and I was motivated to do something distinctive for my individuality, such as walking. Maybe this can be my alibi for skipping the gym. What felt like the perfect plan revealed to be the perfect storm, but Mike from the State Department was almost done with his monologue and I was too easily distracted by the recurring “What’s next?” mindset to give the idea of walking home much consideration. I traveled to Jordan after studying Arabic for three years, unsatisfied by my dose of cultural exposure and veritably hungry for more. I was set on walking. So, while my friends went to the gym, I resolved that I’d walk home with my best friend Stephanie. She conveniently lived two blocks away from my homestay. It worked out well because Baba adored Steph and felt more comfortable with my pilgrimages knowing that we’d keep an eye out for each other. If Steph was my right-hand man in Jordan, Baba was my left-hand man. My homestay father can be characterized by three things: the news, his jokes and the constant smoke permeating the square mile around him. A retired doctor for the Saudi royal family, Baba is an incredible man whose life is filled with as much laughter as coughing. He fed me more in one night than my grandmother, Petite Mam, had in 10 years and he loved me as much as my real dad does. Besides Stephanie, Baba grounded me. I walked through the door every day, only to see his sheer ecstasy in seeing that I arrived home. His unbridled smile was juxtaposed with my plastered one: mine being prompted by relief and often subdued by the trials of the past hour. often wonder how Baba is doing now that I’m back. I’ve sent him a couple of messages, but I haven’t gotten a reply. I try to put the worst thought out of mind, but it inevitably boomerangs right back. This daily meditation is clearly doing wonders. I can’t help but speculate if he “found out” about me. Does he know what my wardrobe actually looks like? Has he figured out that I drink alcohol? As long as he doesn’t discover how much happier I am now that I’m home, I don’t care what he finds out. Am I happier? God, I

don’t even know. Whatever. Baba always preached about my one-way ticket to Hell anyway. He often joked about how I embodied his favorite Nestle three-in-one: a liar, selfish and crazy! That was an inside joke between him, Steph and me. It didn’t make much sense beyond the fact that he loved to tease whoever was around. He could never say that without busting a quick smile; he loved me so much, and I really loved him too. I still do. I’m sure he’s just boycotting the computer, not me. Right? alking in Jordan kicked my adrenaline into gear. I often found myself side by side with the cars on the street while navigating my way through a country that didn’t value walking as much as my impetuous self did. Sometimes it was the massive plants that were clumsily placed dead center on the sidewalk, preventing me from walking without feeling like I was going through the jungle. Other times, I preferred hedging my bets against the cars rather than the men frequenting the cumbersome sidewalks. During my first time walking home, Steph and I had eaten a particularly heavy lunch that only Baba would’ve been proud of. In an attempt to compensate for the extra falafel, we opted to walk home. It was pouring rain, and mashallah (God willing) there must’ve been something in those chickpeas, because we could not stop laughing. In retrospect, the rain served as a shield, repelling all the men who would otherwise be on their usual prowl under the hot mid-sun day. In that moment though, Steph and I reveled in our fantasy. We were in a country where hospitality and generosity were paramount and rambunctious Arab family gatherings guided our social lives; the thrill of the culture shock was as deafening as rapturous, especially with Baba embodying Mr. Congeniality. Soon enough, I’d be laughing and coughing just as much as him. A pattern developed. I met Steph in the morning to take our usual cab ride to the building across from the British embassy. We’d fight with the cab driver about the price when he assumed we were impressionable foreigners, and oftentimes repel any advances he would make. “So, where are you beautiful girls from?” he’d ask. “Funny you should ask! We are part of an all-girls Canadian band going on tour,” I’d say. “Do you need a guide while you’re in Amman?” “No, thanks!” “Can I get your phone number, habibti?” “No” “Are you looking for a husband? Your eyes are mesmerizing” Hell. “No.” Steph and I would laugh uncomfortably the whole time. What else were we supposed to do in that situation? As foreign women in a man’s country, we couldn’t overstep. He drove the car. He was in control. Every day after classes ended, Steph and I would meet

to embark on our odyssey. The journey wore us down as the months progressed, but I refused to give it up. I had made a decision that I would walk every day, and like hell, I wouldn’t let my privileged discomfort stop me. In fact, I thrive on spite! I wanted to prove to myself that I was strong, that feeling weak out of vulnerability did not make me so, and that walking was my means of proving it. I gazed at the gorgeous mansions that left my mouth gaping, and then my eyes would wander to those of the armed men fantasizing about what could penetrate my unguarded wonder and gaping mouth. They repressed everything but their true souls, which were given away by the looks in their eyes. Could I say anything to them? No. They were pious men. I watched them pray with their guns still on their shoulders during lunch every day, so I knew this for a fact. They wouldn’t prey on me, not really. But if you could see what was in their eyes. If only you could understand that looking into their eyes meant inviting yourself into their fantasy of undressing you. I didn’t feel it physically, but in some ways, I felt it harder mentally. These men were armed with AK-47s. They wouldn’t do anything, but they could if they wanted. Powerless. I felt powerless. It was fucking scary. The roles had reversed since my first day of walking, and these men had exchanged my fantasy in the rain for their own erotic deviancy. It distressed me to feel no agency, to have no sense of control or ability to make them stop. Stop. Howling like an animal internally, but keeping to myself externally. I stopped looking at houses and kept my head down. I didn’t see the wonder, but I didn’t feel the pain either. I put one foot in front of the other and moved forward. They wouldn’t prevent me from walking because I wouldn’t give them the satisfaction of submission. I felt like I was undertaking a task of revolutionary cause, when in reality I fed their fantasies, adding myself to their repertoire of imagination and entertaining their repressed dreams. ow, I trudge through the snow in Ann Arbor, looking for safe places to step. I stroll through the Diag contemplating what I need to accomplish for the day, and incorporate ludicrous dance moves into my walk. I don’t even give it a second thought. I don’t mind the people around me, and I don’t feel insecure about who I am. I wear what I want; I eat what I want; and alhamdulillah (thank God) I no longer have a 10 p.m. curfew at the age of 21. But I still don’t feel in control or at ease. All the materialistic things I thought gave me agency just masked the assumption that I had authority over my life. I’m clearly quite impressionable. I’ve confused autonomy for equality and this mirage has recently been shattered. It’s easy to blend in when everyone looks like you. How does a hijabi feel walking around Ann Arbor? Does she get stared at as much as I did in Amman? How does she find a way to maintain her autonomy in a community of Western conformity?

PHOTO BY DANYEL THARAKAN

See PÉRIPATÉTICIENNE, Page 6B

Wednesday, October 9, 2019 // The Statement

From Page 5B

y mid-March, Steph and I knew the drill. We marched through the streets, stomping through the roundabouts and heedlessly injecting ourselves into the traffic. The cars surrounded us like in the movies, but it was exciting. The masochist in me lived for the thrill of potential danger. I liked going straight into that lion’s den. Maybe my amygdala is defective. The increasing normalcy of my life was comforting too. Our classes were invigorating and purposeful; I knew what I was doing in Jordan and I found solace in that. Studying the refugee crisis was characteristically heavy material, but walking gave me the ability to navigate through all that mental traffic. What omnipotent power had blessed me with privilege? Baba would say God. My dad would say karma. I’m jealous of their certainty; I can’t relate to that feeling. Steph was worrying about her future as a doctor as I savored in the uncertainty of what would be next. I would figure it out. Hopefully ... The fear of failure wouldn’t hit for months to come, when I’d start feeling the withdrawal symptoms of being aimless. What’s the point of walking if you don’t know what direction you’re going? I had a path in Amman. I knew the path like the back of my hand. I didn’t like unrequited attention, but I tolerated it. Women are gifted at tolerating things they shouldn’t. It became so much easier once our routine integrated the men’s harassment. I was scared but I didn’t understand why. I knew they wouldn’t lay a hand on me, but I still felt unsettled at the idea that I relied on their mercy for my safety. And that’s not only indicative of Jordan; that’s a woman’s reality. Their flagrant gazes tore down the neatly arranged curtain that had been hung up

PHOTO BY DANYEL THARAKAN

in front of me my whole life. I had spent my adolescence impulsively walking through Chicago at night, and I didn’t want that taken away from me. Safety precautions notoriously tarnish anything fun. Walking in Amman had me questioning my pedestrian experiences in Chicago. Maybe I just didn’t notice the unwanted ogling. Maybe, I was oblivious. Nonetheless, my routine in Amman fostered comfort, and with comfort came the desire to push the edge. Steph and I found our own means of staging mini coups. What better way to repel men than to dress more provocatively? We thought we were so clever. We were not. I say provocative like I wore mesh and ripped jeans, but provocative meant that I was wearing white, an ironically innocent color. Provocative meant that you could visualize my form as a woman. Provocative meant that my shoulders were covered but my arms weren’t; my legs were covered and my shirt was loose. Then one day, Steph got pissed. There had been a group of men who were around our age, acting seemingly harmless as usual. But they started following us, so we went into a store to throw them off. One of them clearly didn’t appreciate our defiance and went into the store with us. He followed us around and laughed at our fear. What do we do? We left the store and he emerged, right behind us. We tried going faster but still, he was there. Caught between my fight or flight instincts, I could hear my mom telling me I should act like the graceful woman she had raised me to be, and I could hear my muscles laughing at my delusion. Eventually, his friends made him back off and he disappeared. Thank God, because I could feel myself riding the line of cultural insensitivity, screaming crudely in the middle of the street.

We were fine. Of course. Steph and I always were. I always was. I was blessed enough that my recklessness never cost me my safety, and my risks had always paid off. But that was a risk Steph wasn’t willing to take anymore. So, I started walking alone. I couldn’t help but wonder when the day would come that I wouldn’t be so lucky as to have my imprudence be rewarded with the luxury of immunity. aybe I can find my halawa on Amazon. Will that make me happier? I thought that coming home would be liberating, but I feel stuck. I can’t seem to find motivation or purpose. What the hell am I doing? I learned and experienced so much, only to come back to Ann Arbor and sit on my couch, doing the exact same things I did before my semester abroad. I’m more of an outsider here than I was with Baba and Steph. I embodied my identity better when I was disguised as the good Christian girl Baba craved me to be. She doesn’t have tattoos. She doesn’t expose her shoulders. She’s a virgin. They knew a utopian version of me. Well, utopian for them. That version of myself felt pretty dystopic in my nightly water-filled eyes, but it somehow felt more real. Contradicting, right? Maybe it was the sense of purpose. I’m scared to lose myself, but I can’t even resolve which version of myself I’m hoping to keep. I don’t know what I want. What if I don’t figure it out? Seventeen dollars for a pound of sugar-free halawa. I want it.