The Phoenix

NOVEMBER 10, 2011 • THE CAMPUS NEWSPAPER OF SWARTHMORE COLLEGE SINCE 1881 • VOLUME 134, ISSUE 11

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PHOENIX

Inside: Number of alcohol-related incidents remains low First musical in eight years opens on main stage Fencing team off to a strong start

Bringing in New Color With Judith Butler taking

the podium at Bryn Mawr, The Phoenix contemplates how we can bring better speakers to Swarthmore p. 14

Download The Phoenix’s iPhone app, free at the iTunes store

The Phoenix

Thursday, November 10, 2011 Volume 134, Issue 11

The independent campus newspaper of Swarthmore College since 1881.

EDITORIAL BOARD Amelia Possanza Editor in Chief Menghan Jin Managing Editor Marcus Mello Managing Editor Adam Schlegel News Editor Patrick Ammerman Assistant News Editor Preston Cooper Living & Arts Editor Reem Abdou Opinions Editor Tim Bernstein Sports Editor Allegra Pocinki Photo Editor Peter Akkies Webmaster Eric Sherman Webmaster

Julia Carleton The Phoenix

This past weekend, the college’s Good Food club, the Co-op and the Swarthmore Sustainable Table hosted a series of events, including a hands-on farmer’s market of the Real Food Festival, to educate the community about sustainable eating and locally grown food.

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marketable. Susana explores the pros and cons of commercialism in covers.

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a cup or cone of delicious ice cream (or sorbet, or water ice). Jen sheds light on some of the best spots to do so.

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The merits and flaws of the Trade Organization A rundown of frozen des- World Olivia reflects on Russia’s joining in the Sukkah vandalism sparks sert options in Philadelphia World Trade Organizations and explains Even though November is well underway, how it would legitimize the WTO and ensome concern there’s no excuse not to travel to Philly for courage reforms within it.

The Sukkah that Swarthmore Hillel put up for the holiday Sukkot was damaged in an act of vandalism. While it’s likely that nothing serious was meant by the vandalism, some are concerned about the lack of respect shown by it.

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Sports

Sondheim’s ‘Company’ walks onto the LPAC Main Number of alcohol-related Club soccer beats TCNJ, incidents at Swat remains Stage Ben Ellentuck ’14 played single, thirty- falls to Stevens Institute something New Yorker Bobby in this clas- It was a split doubleheader for Swarthmore low sic Sondheim musical about love and marSwarthmore’s recent numbers for alcohol related incidents among students has been remarkably low for many years, and there are a wide range of students and administrators working to make those numbers even lower.

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Living & Arts Yellow Stocking Players to perform Night of Scenes

This coming weekend, Swarthmore’s Shakespeare Company will present selected scenes from six Shakespeare plays: “Twelfth Night,” “Antony and Cleopatra,” “The Taming of the Shrew,” “Macbeth,” “As You Like It” and “A Midsummer Night’s Dream.”

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On Mitchell and Ivanek: when good actors go bad

Johnny discusses some of television’s gifted actors whose talents have gone to waste performing on mediocre shows.

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riage for those on the brink of middle age.

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Rewinding back to their Swarthmore days: Thespian Women’s soccer exits playoffs, then ECACs to Zen Buddhist Their conference playoff run came to an

Dina Zingaro interviews Tonen O’Connor ’54, who after spending time in a Japanese Zen Temple pursued the Zen Buddhist tradition and is now the Resident Priest at the Milwaukee Zen Center.

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Opinions Deficit reduction committee predictably unsuccessful

Tyler offers an analysis of the deficit reduction supercommittee and proves how conservatives were right about its inevitable inefficacy.

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that would expose sanctions on it, would benefit the international market economy immensely.

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end Saturday with a tough loss to Gettysburg. On Wednesday, the women’s soccer season endedwith a 1-0 loss to Albright in the ECAC tournament.

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Fencers old and new stand out at individual event

Made in China: the imporBehind the covers we judge: tance of Chinese currency Harshil explains why building up the Chihow books are marketed nese economy, and striking down a bill The process of creating the cover for a book is a complicated one, with designers manipulating the details to make books more

Men’s Club Soccer, who were forced to turn right around after a convincing 6-2 win over TCNJ and play Stevens, to whom they lost 5-2.

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The Swarthmore fencing team is in rebuilding mode, having graduated 12 of 18 starters since last year. If their first-years’ performance at the Temple Open was any indication, however, the club shouldn’t miss a beat.

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Corrections

FROM THE NOVEMBER 3, 2011 ISSUE In the “Students push to establish Greek life for women” article last week, Ian Anderson was wrongly identified as part of the Class of 2014, when in fact he is in the Class of 2013.

November 10, 2011

STAFF Koby Levin News Writer Chris Nam News Writer Sera Jeong Living & Arts Writer Steven Hazel Living & Arts Writer Chi Zhang Living & Arts Writer Brad Lenox Living & Arts Writer Nolan Gear Living & Arts Columnist Jen Johnson Living & Arts Columnist Lauren Kim Living & Arts Columnist Vianca Masucci Living & Arts Columnist Susana Medeiros Living & Arts Columnist Johnny Taeschler Living & Arts Columnist Naia Poyer Living & Arts Artist Tyler Becker Opinions Columnist Danielle Charette Opinions Columnist Olivia Natan Opinions Columnist Peter Gross Opinions Columnist Shimian Zhang Opinions Columnist Harshil Shai Opinions Columnist Sam Sussman Opinions Columnist Sam Zhang Opinions Columnist Emma Waitzman Political Cartoonist Ana Apostoleris Sports Writer Paul Chung Photographer Simone Forrester Photographer Cristina Matamoros Photographer Elèna Ruyter Photographer Holly Smith Photographer Julia Carleton Photographer Justin Toran-Burrell Photographer Renee Flores Chief Copy Editor Sophie Diamond Copy Editor Conor Heins Copy Editor Taylor Hodges Copy Editor Margaret Lawlace Copy Editor Brian Lee Copy Editor Vija Lietuvninkas Copy Editor Shashwati Rao Copy Editor Allison Shultes Copy Editor BUSINESS STAFF Business Manager Ian Anderson Advertising Manager Paul Chung COVER DESIGN Amelia Kucic Background photo by Allegra Pocinki CONTRIBUTORS Victor Brady, Amanda Epstein and Yi-Wei Liu OPINIONS BOARD Reem Abdou, Menghan Jin, Marcus Mello and Amelia Possanza EDITOR’S PICKS PHOTOS COURTESY OF: (clockwise from top left) scenemetrospace.blogspot.com missfoodiesgourmetadventures.wordpress. com realwallpapers.eu apus-sustainability.com TO ADVERTISE: E-mail: advertising@swarthmorephoenix.com Advertising phone: (610) 328-7362 Address: The Phoenix, Swarthmore College, 500 College Ave., Swarthmore, PA 19081 Direct advertising requests to Amelia Possanza. The Phoenix reserves the right to refuse any advertising. Advertising rates subject to change.

CONTACT INFORMATION Offices: Parrish Hall 470-472 E-mail: editor@swarthmorephoenix.com Newsroom phone: (610) 328-8172 Address: The Phoenix, Swarthmore College, 500 College Ave., Swarthmore, PA 19081 Web site: www.swarthmorephoenix.com Mail subscriptions are available for $60 a year or $35 a semester. Direct subscription requests to Amelia Possanza.

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All contents copyright © 2011 The Phoenix. All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced without permission.

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News

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Events Menu Today On the Edge of Reason — Border Dynamics and the Spread of Violence Enlace and the Swarthmore Womyn of Color are bringing Macrina Cárdenas de Alarcón, a community activist and educator from Tijuana, as well as Mexico Solidarity Network representative Lindsey Hoemann to campus in order to speak on underlying factors behind increasing violence along the U.S.Mexico border in Kohlberg 116 at 4:30 p.m.

Sukkah vandalism sparks some concern

Tomorrow Summer Experience 2012 Still searching for that perfect study or work opportunity for next summer? Then head to Kohlberg’s Scheuer room to meet with college staff and students that will be presenting various research and internship opportunities, as well as summer study abroad and service programs from 12:30 to 2:30 p.m.

Womyn of Color Speak Up! Panel & Discussion Swarthmore Asian Organization (SAO) and Swarthmore Womyn of Color Collective (SWoCC) are jointly hosting a faculty panel and discussion in Kohlberg’s Scheuer Room at 5 p.m. in order to encourage women of color to speak up both inside and outside the classroom.

Jamaal May Poetry Join O.A.S.I.S. in welcoming award-winning poet and 2011 Stadler Fellow at Bucknell University, Jamaal May, to campus and listen to readings by him as well as your fellow Swatties at 7 p.m. in Paces Café.

Saturday, November 12 China Parlor Party Come to Shane Lounge at 8 p.m. to enjoy Liangpi noodles and learn about the variety of work and study opportunities available to English and Chinese speakers in China.

Sunday, November 13 All Fracked Up: A Movie Screening & Discussion with Fractivists Jeff & Jodi Andrysick Filmmakers and environmental activists, Jeff and Jodi Andrysick, will be screening their new documentary highlighting the fight to stop the spread of hydraulic fracking techniques for natural gas extraction in Sci 199 at 1 p.m.

Monday, November 14 A Call to Action: Lecture

by Nicholas D. Kristof Pulitzer-Prize winning journalist and New York Times Op-Ed Columnist, Nicholas Kristof, will be speaking on making a difference in the world by “leaping into a cause” and pursuing one’s passions through stories of his myriad experiences as a foreign affairs reporter in LPAC at 7:30 p.m.

Email submissions for the events menu to news@swarthmorephoenix. com.

Courtesy of Jesse Dashefsky

Members of Swarthmore Hillel stand before the intact Sukkah located behind Sharples dining hall in celebration of the Sukkot holiday.

By Yi-Wei Liu yliu2@swarthmore.edu Celebration of the Jewish holiday of Sukkot at Swarthmore was marred by the vandalism of the Sukkah, a temporary ritual structure built by Swarthmore Hillel, the college’s umbrella organization for independent Jewish student groups. The Sukkot is a biblical holiday for the Jewish people to give thanks for the year’s produce, often considered a “Jewish thanksgiving.”

This year’s Sukkot lasted from October 12 to October 21. Towards the end of the festival, on Thursday, October 20, a witness approached the Swarthmore Hillel with his report of the vandalism of the Sukkah.

Apparently someone had knocked over and tore a huge hole in the religious structure. That evening, Hillel surveyed the damage, took the Sukkah down and notified members of Swarthmore’s Dean’s Office the next day. They then filed a report with Public Safety on Monday, October 24.

Initial investigations conducted by Public Safety and the administration yielded no clue as to the identity nor the motivations of those responsible for the vandalism. Almost two weeks after Hillel had notified the administration of the incident, Dean of Students Liz Braun sent a campus-wide email about the incident.

In the email, Dean Braun shared a letter written by select members of Hillel to the college’s Jewish community that called upon all members of the college to support the Jewish community and its educational efforts currently being planned. After the incident, Hillel

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decided it was as good a time as any to start planning for a campus-wide teachin focusing on civility, inclusivity and good citizenship.

Current investigations by Public Safety and the administration still have no lead as to who vandalized the Sukkah and why it was done, though they welcome anyone who has information to report it immediately to Public Safety or the Dean’s Office. Many members of Hillel suspect the incident was the result of an act of drunkenness but believe that it still represents a serious issue.

“I suspect it was [a result of] drunkenness and a lack of knowledge about what the Sukkah represents. However, we shouldn’t discount the behavior as ‘random,’ and should understand that any similar act is disrespectful and can have serious consequences,” Rebekah Judson ’12, a Hillel member, said.

Although there is no evidence yet that the vandalism was an overt act of anti-Semitism, Hillel members believe the incident was highly disrespectful.

“Regardless of the motivations, the act of vandalism represents astoundingly poor citizenship. Student structures should be treated with respect by all members of the community. The fact that the structure was religious in nature makes this issue all the more important,” Daniel Cramer ’12, another Hillel member, said.

Because of the two-week delay between the first report of the incident and the campus-wide email by Dean Braun, Hillel members’ reaction to the administration’s response to the incident has been mixed.

“I wish that the incident had been brought to students’ attention earlier,

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but I understand that these situations are complicated, and it often takes time to determine the best course of action.

I appreciate what the Deans have done in response to the incident,” Judson said.

Yet others in Hillel believed that the administration could have handled the case more efficiently.

“I think that many of us at Hillel are slightly disappointed. To their credit, Dean Westphal and Tom Elverson have taken this investigation seriously.

However, we felt they were not doing enough to inform the entire campus about what had happened and what would happen going forward,” Cramer said.

In response to concerns over the delay, Dean of Students Liz Braun explained that campus-wide notices are sent only when there is a persistent or ongoing threat.

“This particular act of vandalism was an isolated incident that was reported to us the day after the event occurred and therefore did not necessitate the need for a a campus-wide notification,” Braun said.

The administration does support Hillel’s plans for a teach-in designed to celebrate good citizenship for all students on this campus regardless of religious affiliation.

Cramer stated that Hillel believes the incident represents an opportune moment to affirm the importance of religious and spiritual life on this campus.

Hillel members say that the date and specific activities of the teach-in are still in flux, as details on how to best promote awareness of good citizenship are still being worked out.

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Number of alcoholrelated incidents at Swat remains low

Week in pictures

ter will refer them to drug and alcohol counseling [but will not punish them],” Westphal said. “Our primary Alcohol-related incidents at goal is health and safety.”

Swarthmore have remained remarkTom Elverson ’75, Alcohol Interably low for the past few years, and vention and Education specialist, also this trend seems likely to continue. operates as a resource that can be According to the Clery Report, avail- used anonymously for students before able to all students from Public Safe- an incident occurs. ty, the number of liquor law arrests In addition, Elverson works with has been around 20 to 30 per calen- the Swarthmore Drug and Alcohol dar year, and the number of refer- Resource Team (DART) to assist sturals for liquor law issues, in which a dents on campus with alcohol-related dean speaks to the offender, has been issues. between 10 to 30 a year going back “I think the [Party Associate] and to 2008. The number of hospitaliza- DART programs have been very visitions for alcohol-related issues has ble and, from what students have told also been consistently around 40 per me, very supportive,” Elverson said. school year over the past few years, According to him, many students are according to Worth Health Center Di- encouraged by PAs, DART team memrector Beth Kotarski. bers and RAs to see him if they notice Myrt Westphal, Associate Dean for someone who is abusing alcohol or Student Life, recalled recently dis- substances. cussing these statistics with deans visThe ultimate goal of providing iting from other schools. “They were these resources is to educate the stuastonished at how low they were,” dent body and provide them resourcWestphal said. Compared to similarly es to further reduce the numbers of sized schools, Swarthmore’s num- alcohol-related incidents on campus. bers of citations and referrals due to “I and the DART team really extenualcohol consumption appear to be far ate education, vigilance — along with lower.

PA coordinators — in order to make However, Westphal was mind- that number smaller and smaller evful of the fact that that the statistics ery year,” Elverson said. available don’t give the entire picNumbers have again been low ture. “Focusing on numbers alone … this year. “At this point we have doesn’t tell you kept about 15 how severe each students [overof the cases are, night] and sent and the numI think the [Party out 5 from the bers don’t tell health center Associate] and DART you how many [to the hospital]. repeat people we programs have been very That’s on pace have,” she said. to be about 40 a Numbers that visible and ... supportive. year, which is aren’t reported usually what we Tom Elverson include students send,” said Kowho go to Worth Alcohol Intevention and tarski.

Health Center The recent Education Specialist who are deemed Halloween Party well enough to has historically stay overnight been a night without going to the hospital and when these statistics are high. “[The those students who are able to receive numbers] used to spike around the help before a major incident takes Halloween party … when it was in place.

ML, the students would be walking The anonymous nature of seeking back through the neighborhood and help at Worth Health Center while pick up people who were visibly inintoxicated is a unique feature of toxicated,” Elverson recalled.

Swarthmore’s support system. “A maThis year, thanks in part to the jority of colleges don’t have a service work of the 14 PAs and public safety where students can go to stay,” Kotar- officers patrolling outside Sharples, ski said. the party was kept under control.

“Even those places that do have According to Kotarski, there were overnight services don’t admit drunk two students sent to the hospital that students.” Other colleges and univer- night. However, Westphal is mindful sities have shied away from provid- that there are many potential cases ing overnight care for intoxicated that end up not becoming statistics students, but Swarthmore has main- due to the education and vigilance the tained that it is important for stu- Swarthmore community provides. dents to have somewhere to turn for “I think the environment that health concerns without necessarily Swarthmore has of taking care of risking a citation for their friends or people helps a lot. People will all help themselves. friends, because they know that the “If somebody gets to the health cen- ‘getting help issue’ is more important ter without a public safety report or than the ‘getting in trouble’ issue,” a police report, then the health cen- Westphal said.

By Patrick Ammerman pammerm1@swarthmore.edu

Allegra Pocinki The Phoenix

The Swat Dems host a “Tea Party” on Monday night in Parrish Parlors for students to discuss politics and enjoy tea and baked goods.

Allegra Pocinki The Phoenix

Sixteen Feet performs various arrangements of music (and a dramatic reading) at the 2011 Toejam show on Friday night in Sci 101 to a packed and enthusiastic audience.

Paul Chung The Phoenix

Swarthmore’s HAN hosts the annual O-Dang cultural event on Friday night in the Danawell trailer, offering Korean pancakes, dumplings and many other delicious foods.

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November 10, 2011

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Who are you going to be?

Graduate Studies

TCNJ | On Your Way

“I wanted to combine my interests in education and politics, my passion for community programs, and my academic background in economics. Educational policy is the perfect field for that combination.”

Take the right turn. Premier education ahead.

Jeremy Friedman

MS in Educational Policy, Class of 2011 Membership Associate Fight Crime: Invest in Kids Washington, DC

Join us for our Open House on

Saturday, November 19 The Warner School of Education at the University of Rochester offers graduate programs in:

Teaching Counseling Human Development Higher Education Educational Policy School Leadership Health Professions Education Part-time, full-time, and non-matriculated study available. *UDQWV DQG VFKRODUVKLSV DYDLODEOH WR TXDOLÀHG DSSOLFDQWV

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Find out more by visiting www.tcnj.edu/gs Or call 609.771.2300

Judith Butler Judith Butler November 7, 14 and 21 Bryn Mawr College

Judith ButlEr, philOsOphEr and gEndEr thEOrist, will dElivEr thrEE lEcturEs at Bryn Mawr cOllEgE On nOv. 7, 14 and 21, at 7:30 p.M. Judith Butler. European graduate school, www.egs.edu/, photograph by hendrik speck, www.hendrikspeck.com/, source: www.flickr.com/photos/hendrikspeck/

Seating is available in thomas Great hall for live simulcasts of Judith Butler’s Flexner lectures. thomas Great hall accommodates 300 guests and seating will be available on a first-come, first served basis.

Nov. 7

Examines how the right to appear challenges certain conceptions of the public sphere, and why gender and sexuality are crucial for thinking about what counts as public, and whose actions are considered political.

Nov. 14 “Bodies in Alliance & the Politics of the Street” Offers a way to think about political mobilization that does not stay restricted to the specific interests of a given identity.

Seating in Goodhart hall for the Judith Butler Flexner lectures has been reserved. Stand-by seating may be available on lecture nights.

Seating in Goodhart Hall: Will-Call and doors open at 6:30 p.m. Ticket holders will be seated until 7:20 p.m.

Open seating in Goodhart Hall will begin at 7:20 p.m. for reserved seats that are unclaimed. Unclaimed seats will be filled at the door on a first-come, first-served basis.

“Gender Politics and the right to Appear”

Nov. 21

“toward an ethics of Co-habitation” Butler argues that without the right to appear in public, populations become precarious, deprived of legal recognition and enfranchisement, but also subject to social and psychic forms of injury.

www.brynmawr.edu/flexner THE11165_BRMA_Butler_SwarthmorePhoenixAd_v1.indd PHOENIX

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November 10, 2011

10/18/11 1:59 PM

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Living & Arts

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Yellow Stocking Players to perform Night of Scenes By steven hazel shazel1@swarthmore.edu

If you’ve seen even one play, whether a professional production or the product of a high school’s drama class, you have likely seen a performance of Shakespeare. One of the most performed of all English playwrights, Shakespeare dominates the curriculum of English and theatre classes. From “Macbeth” to “Hamlet” to “A Midsummer Night’s Dream,” the storylines and themes of the Bard’s works have influenced writers and artists to present day.

One difficulty, of course, is that William Shakespeare’s nearly 40 plays are quite a lot to take in, with many productions lasting more than three hours.

One Swarthmore group is here to help. The Yellow Stocking Players, Swarthmore’s drama group dedicated solely to performing Shakespeare, will be performing The Night of Scenes this coming weekend in Upper Tarble Friday and Saturday at 7:30 p.m., as well as Sunday afternoon at 2 p.m.

The Night of Scenes, funded by Drama Board, involves the performance of selected scenes from various Shakespeare plays, rather than performing an entire play all in one. This gives actors more chances to focus on their character in a particular scene and gives the audience a wide spectrum of quick snapshots of different plays and some of the ideas therein.

“First of all, it reduces the burden on both actors and directors,” said Allison McKinnon ’13, who plays Lady Macbeth in “Macbeth” and is Publicity Manager for the Yellow Stocking Players. “While performing Shakespeare, it takes a huge amount of intellectual energy to decode and interpret the text, let alone clearly communicate with an audience. Doing just one or a few scenes allows the directors and actors to do that selection justice with a more modest and flexible rehearsal schedule.”

The group’s name comes from a scene in “Twelfth Night” in which yellow stockings are supposedly a signal

of love. “Twelfth Night” was the Yellow Stocking Players’ first production, in 2009.

“I liked reading Shakespeare, but despite being in almost every theatrical production in my high school, I had limited experience performing it” McKinnon said. “I signed up on Drama Board and ended up having a huge amount of fun. The cast decided to try to stick together for more productions, and we named ourselves after a particularly amusing moment in Twelfth Night, where Malvolio [played at the time by Harry Apostoleris ’12, and in this production by Glenn Stott ’12], is tricked into donning an outrageous outfit,” she said.

Although the Yellow Stocking Players sometimes perform whole plays and sometimes a collection of scenes, one factor remains constant: they always perform Shakespeare.

“We’re a group of Shakespeare players — and even then, we’ve certainly discussed doing some Shakespeare contemporaries or related literature. We did ‘The Complete Works of William Shakespeare (Abridged), and “Rosenkrantz and Guildenstern are Dead” could conceivably be in the works. But I think most people do other Drama Board shows as well,” Julia Cooper ’12, the technical director, said. “Shakespeare has such a distinct performance style and requires so much text work, it’s useful to have a group of people with a certain rehearsal system devoted to it.”

Shakespeare also has the benefit of focusing the entire group’s talents on a particular style, and building bonds between members that last more than the time it takes to rehearse and perform a single play. “Directors choose the play and the scenes, so they can incorporate their artistic vision while selecting for the very ‘best of Shakespeare,’” McKinnon said.

“Despite my deep and unquestionable love for the Bard, even I recognize that no play is consistently firstrate: even ‘Hamlet’ has some dodgy bits, and there are always parts that are too outdated to appeal to a modern

audience. Each director has relatively unfettered creative control over their scenes, and they only work with a few actors, so they have more room to experiment and play,” she said.

The Night of Scenes will include short performances of scenes from six plays, including selections from both comedies and tragedies: “Twelfth Night,” “As You Like It,” “A Midsummer Night’s Dream” and “The Taming of the Shrew,” as well as “Antony and Cleopatra” and “Macbeth.” “I’m an actor, so directing doesn’t come naturally.

But I try to let my love of the work, and the innate wit and energy in the scene, shine through,” said Dinah Dewald ’13, a director.

“The most rewarding part is not even when I see some direction implemented well — I love it when my actors get involved in the part and start suggesting things they would like to try, or different ways to interpret the text.

I’m really just an audience to tell them what works and what doesn’t,” Dewald said.

Each scene will highlight different actors and directors in a focused take on some of the most fascinating aspects of Shakespeare. “Directing comes with its own challenges, but coordinating a bunch of scenes directed by different people requires extra creativity and flexibility from everyone. Different directors have absolutely distinct styles, but I think we’ve worked hard to share advice and ask questions of each other to improve all of our rehearsal processes,” Cooper said.

The directors of the play include Holly Kinnamont ‘12 for “A Midsummer Night’s Dream,” Cooper for “Antony & Cleopatra,” Dewald or “As You Like It,” Chris Klaniecki ’10 for “Macbeth,” Amelia Dornbush ’15 for “The Taming of the Shrew” and Sara Morell ’15 for “Twelfth Night.”

“While a night of scenes may not provide the same depth and extensive character development as a full play, our production will give the audience the opportunity to see many talented actors playing an iconic character during an especially extraordinary scene,” McKinnon said.

On Mitchell and Ivanek: when good actors go bad

As any avid television fan knows, one of the most disheartening events in one’s life is realizing that a personally beloved actor has been Johnny Taeschler cast in a show that’s Viewer Discretion Advised simply not good. Over the years, I’ve watched this phenomenon happen several times. Whether due to cancellation, the show’s natural conclusion or the actor’s decision to prematurely leave because of “creative differences,” these people are forced to find new work or risk fading into obscurity. Since networks are releasing an increasingly high number of freshman series in the hopes that one or two will become breakout hits, the quality of these new shows is bound to be varied.

While some have succeeded, many others have failed miserably. Although these failures are usually due to the coalescence of several shortcomings, there are instances in which great actors just can’t elevate the shoddiness of the material. In this column, I will lament the fates of two such actors who, for different reasons, have found themselves trapped in series beneath their talents.

Best known for her role as the enigmatic Juliet Burke on ABC’s “Lost,” Elizabeth Mitchell spent four years on that show, providing her ambiguously defined

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character with enough strength, tenderness and intrigue around which a showrunner could have built an entire series.

While ostensibly a supporting character, Juliet could easily have taken the lead actress reins from the petulant and occasionally one-note Kate (We get it: she’s a fugitive with a heart of gold. Did we really need to see an entire flashback episode of her robbing a bank for a sentimental toy airplane to know that she’s not the coldblooded criminal she appears to be?). On the other hand, Ms. Mitchell’s phenomenal performance in the season three episode “One of Us” has to be one of the most emotional hours of television in the past five years, largely due to the marked contrast between flashbacks of Juliet’s hesitant submissiveness and her steely resolve in the present timeline. The final scene in which Ms. Mitchell’s expressions seamlessly transition from surprise to joy to regret while watching a video feed of her long-lost sister still has the power to make any cynic a little misty-eyed.

Unfortunately, she’s since been relegated to the cheesy alien invasion series “V,” also broadcast on ABC. While I didn’t expect it to rival a critical darling like “The Wire,” a reboot of the original ’80s series at least in theory sounded like an entertaining guilty pleasure. When the show eventually premiered, I realized how wrong I was. Any sense of humor was clearly left at the writers’ room door, as nearly every moment of the show became infused with such self-seriousness that no characters ever questioned the ridiculousness going on around them. If I were one of them I’d start with the question of how exactly does one of these aliens (who are essentially giant lizards disguised in human skin) manage to impregnate a hu-

man woman? They’re not even members of the same species! Even though Ms. Mitchell was given the starring role this time, she was forced to divide her screen time between playing the boring, no-nonsense leader of the underground alien resistance and the mother of a moody teenage son so disagreeable that viewers are compelled to wonder why she’s trying so damn hard to save the human race in the first place.

My second example is Zeljko Ivanek, a prolific character actor who has guest starred on numerous hit shows from “24” to “House” to “True Blood.” In the first season of “Damages,” initially broadcast on FX and now airing on DirecTV, he played Ray Fiske, a lawyer defending an Enron-type CEO who had defrauded his company before walking away with billions. While his role of the Southernaccented, closeted homosexual Ray could easily have slipped into caricature, Mr. Ivanek brought a subtle pathos to the part that, despite his obvious transgressions, genuinely made you sympathize with the character’s impossible dilemma. As a showcase of his acting abilities, I recommend the episode “I Hate These People” in which the lead prosecutor blackmails Ray into turning on his own client. I’ve never seen such a quietly desperate performance that has been able to elicit so much compassion for a character who essentially serves as one of the season’s primary antagonists.

More recently, however, Mr. Ivanek joined the ensemble cast of the NBC series “The Event,” which throughout the course of its first (and only) season must have accomplished some record for the most wasted performers on a network show. In addition to Mr. Ivanek’s vaguely

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sinister Director of National Intelligence, other talented actors, including Blair Underwood, Virginia Madsen and Hal Holbrook, briefly appeared only to have their storylines put on the back burner as the narrative continually jolted from its many loosely connected plotlines, making it increasingly clear that the showrunners simply had no idea as to where their story was ultimately headed.

Although “The Event” started promisingly with an interesting, high-concept pilot, it quickly devolved into an incoherent mess destined for cancellation after one season. At least Mr. Ivanek can finally look for a show whose definition of character development is a bit more nuanced than “squinting menacingly into the camera.”

It’s really a shame that these two fine actors must take work that is so obviously below their skill levels. While Mr. Ivanek’s career will probably be better off in the long run now that the network gods have freed him from his lackluster supporting role on “The Event,” Ms. Mitchell seems caught between choosing the lesser of two evils. “V” represents her first starring role on a television series (in effect, a promotion from her role on “Lost”), but in the process, she has found herself shouldering a creatively malnourished project. She has chosen to stay for the time being, but that decision in turn presents a difficult quandary for the loyal fan: suffer through the show’s mediocrity for the chance to see an excellent actor at work or stop watching entirely. Right now, I’m still in the first camp, but I can only take so many lizard babies before I finally decide to cut my losses and jump ship.

Johnny is a senior. He can be reached at jtaesch1@swarthmore.edu.

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Living & Arts Behind the covers we judge: how books are marketed swarthmorephoenix.com

A n y the book’s release date, the author is w e l l - s e a - asked to submit an “art sheet” that desoned book scribes character attributes, important is likely to scenes or anything that might help with have a few thinking about themes the cover should book cov- address. The art department (and this ers to its can vary, some smaller publishers may name: the not have in-house artists/illustrators, hardcover and so hire freelancers) usually doesn’t e d i t i o n , have time to read the book they’ve been the trade assigned. Cover designers will then paperback, provide multiple ‘roughs,’ à la “Mad Susana Medeiros the mass Men,” showcasing various cover ideas. market pa- These are shared with the Art Director, Four-Eyed Literati p e r b a c k , and at this time the author may be conthe movie sulted. Suggestions are made, designs tie-in and are tweaked, and voilà! A book is born. various foreign editions, to name a few. These artists are good at what they Every year marks a different chance to do. Just compare the cover of a tame re-imagine classic novels, so that Salin- romance with corset-ripping erotica, ger’s “Catcher In the Rye” is immediate- and you’ll see the difference in abs, abs ly remembered as the stark white Little and abs. Think about some of the most Brown edition with the rainbow corner, iconic, ubiquitous, eye-grabbing covor the maroon background embossed in ers of the past few years, and there’s a gold lettering, or the scarlet carousel reason why you turned around to check horse rampaging upon a park, or some the title of that book some woman was variation of Holden in his hunting cap. reading on the subway. Stephanie MeySomeone works behind the scenes to er’s “Twilight,” for example, with the sinful yet coy decide whether depiction of a the lettering is blood-red apple, embossed, what visual elements There’s a reason why you u n d o u b t e d l y marked a resurshould be incorturned around to check gence of miniporated, and, malist book most importhe title of that book covers, where tantly, who the some woman was bright symbolic book’s audience objects were is. Comparing reading on the subway. placed on stark an unrepresenbackgrounds. In tative and carthe years since toonish cover of the acclaimed Sci-Fi novel “Ender’s Meyer published her quartet, a flurry Game” with the classic black paperback of books have tried oh-so-hard to ride is an excellent example of the various on the saga’s success, both conceptually ways in which publishers (and their and artistically.

Marketing to a specific audience, marketing divisions) seek to portray the same book. Like any profitable com- however, comes with setbacks, namely, the stereotypes that come with targetpany, their goal is to sell a product.

Surprisingly, authors really don’t ing certain readers. Genre fantasy in have a whole lot of say about cover art. the 1970s and 80s was plagued by some About twelve or fifteen months before really tasteless cover designs: the girls

Courtesy of jezebel.com

The old (left) and new (right) covers for Justine Larbalestier’s “Liar.” The cover was changed due to controversy over the portrayed race of the protagonist.

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were generally large-breasted, wearing just a little bit of booty armor, wielding a staff or a sword or a willingness to be ravaged. To walk through a Barnes and Noble today, however, is not much different: be prepared to subject yourself to conspicuous marketing and thereby pass over books whose covers don’t necessarily match their stories. My personal favorite is the Chick lit package, by which everything is sold to me in a pink, frilly casing. If I’m twelve, there’s a tiara or a dress on the cover.

If I’m twenty, I’m enticed with cosmopolitans, handbags, boys and a cute little dog.

The most disappointing marketing trend has been, undoubtedly, whitewashing.

It seems hard to believe, but time and time again books with Protagonists of Color (POC) are portrayed as white on their covers. Sometimes this means hiring an Anglicized model, other times illustrating an obviously nonPOC. The practice isn’t new, and it happens frequently Courtesy of stepheniemeyer.com enough to make me regularly scream “Really?!” at my comsexuality shouldn’t be labeled as Latino, puter. Two notable and controversial Asian-American, Gay fiction, etc. All of incidents of whitewashing were Jus- these books should instead be seen as tine Larbalestier’s “Liar” and Jaclyn addressing universal issues of identity.

Dolamore’s “Magic Under Glass.” Both When we label a book as a “black book,” are Young Adult (YA) novels published we imply white is normative and only in 2009 by Bloomsbury with obviously a subsection of the population can idenwhite depiction of the protagonists, tify with the book’s themes, or find it though Magic’s POC is described as entertaining and enjoyable. That is unbrown and Liar’s as black. After a back- acceptable. lash that reached its peak in early 2010 I am an almost twenty year-old, (with media sites Salon and Jezebel single, straight, white, Latina and, for making the loudest noise), Bloomsbury good or ill, somewhere there is a book quickly retracted and reprinted the marketed to me. I have always been fasbooks with representative covers. cinated with advertising — a good billBloomsbury is not the only publish- board can make me double-take — and er to blame, and quite a number of au- I feel that book covers are a great asset thors have seen extensive whitewash- to fiction and nonfiction, enticing the ing in their books’ covers. Ursula K. Le reader with a promise.

Guin, Octavia Butler, and L.A. Banks, wAnyone who has ever wandered for example, have all found their POCs past bookstore or library shelves knows magically change color and/or race how even a book spine can grab you during their careers. Ms. Larbalesteir with its thick or thin girth, the bold or admitted on her website after the con- curlicue or Goosebumps font demandtroversy with “Liar” that editors have ing attention. Who can forget Daisy starfrequently told ing out of “The her they “won’t Great Gatsby,” take books with “Lolita”’s vinblack covers” I am an almost twenty tage script, “Farbecause they 451”’s year-old, single, straight, enheit don’t sell, and Burning Man, are often shelved white, Latina and, for good the monochroseparately from “A Clockor ill, somewhere there is matic more mainwork Orange” or stream, ‘white’ a book marketed for me. the tree in “To books. Some say Kill A Mockingthat a solution bird” where Boo would be to simRadley hid his ply not feature people on book covers, prized possessions? Who today doesn’t a fairly common practice in YA, where find “Freaknomics”’s orange in an 80% of books feature real or illustrated apple, Steve Jobs’ latest biography or representations of the protagonist. I Emily Donoghue’s “Room,” visually advocate this approach only as an aes- arresting? The cover’s promise is to thetic preference for simplicity and let- be everything you wanted to read and ting the words speak for themselves, more; that first glimpse into the heart of but I refuse to see this as an acceptable a story whose two-hundred or so pages solution for a marketing apparatus that will take you on an adventure to anoththinks readers can’t handle POCs. This er world. aligns with my mentality that books Susana is a sophomore. You can reach tackling themes of race, ethnicity and her at smedeir1@swarthmore.edu.

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A rundown of frozen dessert options in Philadelphia

Frozen and sweet and never out of season: Jen Johnson describes the local favorites Granted, ice cream is not the most seasonal dessert to be discussing in mid-November in the Northeast. Don’t w o r r y, Jen Johnson though; these local In-town, Off-Campus favorites are unlikely to go belly-up before the warm days occur, as far off as they might currently appear. Whether you prefer your frozen desserts in a cone or a cup, familiar or exotic, super sweet and creamy or with a Bifidus tang, Philadelphia has an option for you. Below is a collection of local favorites, including two suggestions that won’t take you further than Ridley or Media.

Bassett’s.

Begin at the beginning. Bassett’s was the first commercial ice cream company in the United States. They began churning in 1861, and opened their Reading Terminal Market location in 1885. It’s the original, and at lunchtime on a weekday, there’s always a line to the counter for a scoop. Bassett’s carries traditional flavors — chocolate, vanilla, and the like — and traditional blends: moose tracks, rocky road, fudge brownie, pralines & cream, etc. They do serve sorbets and frozen yogurts as well, but don’t come here looking for anything wilder than cinnamon ice cream or champagne sorbet. If you want mojito sorbet, go to Capogiro (see below). If you want history with your ice cream (or a cornucopia of lunch options within a stone’s throw), there is

a place for you at Bassett’s counter. 45 N 12th St, in Reading Terminal Market.

Capogiro.

There are several places in Philly to find good ice cream. For gelato, Capogiro is the standard bearer, and the only reason to eat any other gelato is price (with tax, $4.86 for a standard twoflavor small). The servers don’t skimp, though — with the mound, that little cup holds about twice its actual volume.

Capogiro makes all of their gelato fresh, constantly, and they have the business to support it. They also source many of their ingredients locally, including milk from Lancaster county creameries and cranberries from New Jersey bogs.

As a result, the flavors change with the seasons. As the owner put it recently on the CapoBlog, “We roast and grind nuts, we burn sugar, we melt chocolate, we candy rinds, we drive out to the farms and pick up raw milk from a single closed herd of grass fed cows. We make it by hand EVERY FREAKING MORNING! ANDDD.We do all this stuff in small batches. 1.3 gallon batches to be exact. Oh, did I mention that we stick to the seasons and refuse to buy crappy strawberries in February. Yeah. We do.” If you like to kill time by looking at pictures of baby animals online, check out their blog: http://capogirogelatoartisans.blogspot.com/. Capogiro also makes gelato cakes and carries some light lunch fare and other local confections; the location on the edge of the University of Pennsylvania is fully licensed. Three locations (excluding from Manayunk): 119 S 13th St. and 117 S. 20th St. (Center City); 1625 E. Passyunk Ave. (South Philly), 3925 Walnut St. (University City).

The Franklin Fountain.

The Franklin Fountain is getting a good sell in The Phoenix this semester.

This turn-of-the-(20th)-century-styled soda fountain & ice cream parlor is

Courtesy of wanderus3.wordpress.com

Customers wait in line at Bassett’s in Reading Terminal Market.

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mostly about the ice cream, but it’s also one of Philadelphia’s only sources for the sodas your grandparents drank, sold individually in their classic glass bottles with their old-school painted labels. Like Capogiro, Franklin Fountain uses only the best ingredients, sourced locally when possible. On a nice evening, the lines are lengthy, but friendly.

On a cold day, you shouldn’t have trouble browsing the menu board within the shelter of the small parlor. Bring a couple of friends and split one of the large sundaes ($10-$12), or enjoy a college ice ($6 for a small ice cream with one topping) with hot fudge sauce coating the bottom and drizzled on top. Just get something with hot fudge sauce on it. 116 Market St. Yogorino.

There are Asian frozen yogurt places, American “frozen yogurt” places, hip frozen yogurt places and knock-off frozen yogurt places in Center City, all within a mile of each other. Yogorino, an Italian company with a presence in (apparently) almost 30 countries, wins the battle for the hearts and dollars of Philadelphians with little contest. This is purist stuff: straight up, probiotic-full frozen yogurt — not too tart — professionally swirled into the classic softserve peak, and topped at your request with sauces, fruits, and many of the other usual suspects. The straciatella and toblerone sauces harden on contact with the cold yogurt, creating an arabesque of crisp chocolate reminiscent of the Dairy Queen dipped cones of childhood. A small will satisfy for under $5.

233 S 20th St, and now at 1205 Walnut St as well.

John’s Water Ice and Italiano’s.

Water ice is a mid-Atlantic cultural phenomenon, and South Philly might be its spiritual center of gravity. If you’ve never heard of it before (although chances are you have if you’ve spent at least one year at Swarthmore), the combination of water and ice and the addition of at least a touch of the South Philly accent, causing it to come out as something like wooder ice might lead an unsuspecting West Coast kid to think it was some regional perversion of ice water. In the oppressive heat of late August, ice water and water ice are both reasonable causes for excitement.

John’s and Italiano’s are both South Philly originals and South Philly favorites. Italiano’s departs from local competition by serving a firmer, more icecream-like gelati as an addition to their water ice. Piña colada is one of their most popular flavors. John’s Water Ice, at 7th and Christian near the Italian Market, doesn’t offer many flavors (four or five for water ice, four or five for ice cream), but it does them well, especially the pineapple. John’s Water Ice, 701 Christian St., Philadelphia; Italiano’s, 2551 S. 12th St., Philadelphia.

The most accessible place to find water ice at any time of year is just off of the Baltimore Pike, in Media, at the local branch of Rita’s Water Ice, an areaoriginal that has grown into a national chain. Ask someone from New Jersey or eastern Pennsylvania their opinion of Rita’s and what they recommend; by

November 10, 2011

Courtesy of boozedancing.wordpress.com

Capogiro, Philly’s standard gelato bearer, is not skimpy when it comes to servings.

most accounts, it’s not the most authentic. But on the first day of spring every year (March 20th in 2012), Rita’s gives away free regular-size water ices to anyone who comes looking. That, at least, is worth the trip. 220 S. Providence Road; also in Granite Run Mall, 1067 W. Baltimore Pike.

Nifty Fifty’s.

Nifty Fifty’s is a local chain, with a total of five locations spread across southeast Pennsylvania and southern New Jersey. The 1950’s diner atmosphere of this place is almost over the top: every inch of the interior of this burgerand-shakes joint is covered in chrome, white & black checks or red pleather except the smooth, white linoleum of the table tops. The kitchen is at the center, surrounded by a lunch counter, with booth tables lining the outside wall.

Which neon sign will you find yourself under? Nifty Fifty’s and the Franklin Fountain are separated by at least 40 years of nostalgia, but comparisons of their historical theme choices are the only ones you should draw. Nifty Fifty’s is closer (but you’ll need a car), cheaper, kitschier and more raucous. And a darn good time. If the walls could talk, they probably couldn’t remember how many college students have come here late at night, four in the back seat and two in the trunk of a friend’s hatchback. 1900 MacDade Blvd.

(For dairy-free options: Capogiro, Bassett’s and the Franklin Fountain all offer their interpretations of sorbet.

Fruit flavors of water ice are also typically dairy-free.)

For more information about train tickets, maps and directions, as well as more recommendations of places to eat, shop and explore, please visit In-Town, Off-campus on The Phoenix website at swarthmorephoenix.com.

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Real Food Festival shows ways to be sustainable

org indicated that when a consumer buys food in the supermarket, only 18 cents of every dollar goes to the grower.

If you happened to pass through the However, if consumers choose to buy open space across from the Swarthmore local food, their behavior can promote Co-op this weekend, you would have the economic stability of the family heard joyful music and seen children farms in the community and give these playing, parents collecting brochures farms incentives to continue growing and asking questions around different healthy, tasty food. tables or people shaking jars. Grow, At the event, aFewSteps.org also ofCook, Eat: A Hands-on Farmers’ Mar- fered tips about how to save energy. ket is an event that is part of the Real According to the organization, instead Food Festival organized by the Swarth- of storing frozen food, people should more College Good Food club, the Co- buy more real food ingredients because Op and Swarthmore Sustainable Table. cooking frozen food is a “three-fold enThis market provides participants with ergy hit”: processing the food, keeping more interactive learning experiences it in the refrigerator and reheating it on making food than the usual farm- all require the consumption of energy ers’ market. and electricity. “[The Real Food Festival] is all about Meanwhile, the organization ingetting information about sustain- dicates that people using tap water ability that relates to food,” said Marc have been proven to be more environBrownGold, the mentally friendly General Manager than those who of the Co-op. This buy bottled water. festival offers in- [The Real Food Festival] Each year, 47 milcentives for people lion gallons of oil is all about getting to buy locally and are used to proto motivate people duce plastic water information about to think about bottles. sustainability that their everyday The hands-on choices in food. farmers’ market relates to food.

Phil Coleman, of the Real Food Mark BrownGold the President of a Festival provided non-profit organivisitors with the General Manager zation — aFewSopportunity to Swarthmore Co-op teps.org, brought learn how to make information on flavorful food ushow energy is coning the ingredicentrated in food production and food ents from local farmers. processing and how people can reduce The butter-making process was disenergy. According to the panelists, most played on leaflets, as was the way to food products in the US are transported prepare all kinds of desserts, vegetables for an average of 1500 miles before they and salads. Blueberry cobbler, pumpare sold. Local farmers, however, are kin cake and broccoli with cream sauce able to offer fresh, high-quality pro- are all included in a recipe book by duce. Therefore, purchasing local food Irene Bown Harvey. This book is proshould be encouraged not just for its vided by Nancy Bernhardt, the owner taste and quality, but also for the sake of the farm Indian Orchards where peoof energy efficiency and the well-being ple can pick their own fruit in different of the future generation. seasons.

The panels displayed by aFewSteps.

The Greener Partners, an organiza-

By chi zhang czhang1@swarthmore.edu

Julia Carleton The Phoenix

Two children watch an apple peeler at one of the Real Food Festival’s many tables.

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Julia Carleton The Phoenix

A young girl enjoys a sample of bread at Saturday’s festival in the Ville.

To think about everyday food choice tion that also participated in the Grow, Cook, Eat event, displayed the way to seems like a trivial thing but can actumake healthy snacks using the vegeta- ally exert a great change on the envibles and fruits grown on their farms. ronment.

BrownGold quoted Wendell Berry, The farms also have a strong educaa well-known food writer: “Eating is a tional focus.

Jessica Cummings, the Americorps political act.” According to both Berry VISTA Development and Outreach and BrownGold, if one refuses to have Associate of Greener Partners, men- food that is negative to the environtioned one of their education programs ment, then other students will respond similarly.

This called Seed to effect can ultiSnack. In this promately pass to the gram, foods from their farms were Eating is a political act. whole community and cause a brought into elWendell Berry change. ementary schools BrownGold ofin the area to help Food Writer fered some sugstudents get a gestions on how sense of how variindividuals, espeous foods are procially college students, can contribute duced under local conditions.

The organization also worked with to sustainability in food choices. “You Swarthmore students last year through really start by asking questions: ask the the Chester Community Fellowship food service people what are they doing program in Lang Center for Civic and to promote sustainability, who are they Social Responsibility at the college. buying from, what are their resources, The fellows volunteered as farm work- how do they make their choices about ers in Greener Partners and learned suppliers and how they prepare the food. Ask these questions everyday.” about farming issues.

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CAMPUS PANACHE

Photos by Elèna Ruyter

Season of Scarves The days are getting shorter and the winter winds are a-blowing. Fortunately, Swarthmore students are prepared to cope and add a stylish twist to their everyday outfits. This week, Elèna has scouted the campus for chic and colorful neckwear.

Scarf styles range from solid colors to stripes, with some scarves even sporting the revered argyle pattern. So when you’re bundling up to trudge out into blustery mid-November, don’t forget to protect your neck!

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November 10, 2011

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Sondheim’s ‘Company’ walks onto the LPAC Main Stage By brad lenox blenox1@swarthmore.edu Saturday evening, Swarthmore College’s Drama Board hosted the first musical at Swarthmore in over eight years.

“Company,” a comedy-drama, tells the story of a ‘thirty-something’ named Bobby — a bachelor among couples — living in New York City.

The play’s music and lyrics were written by Stephen Sondheim, which were adapted from a book of the same name by George Furth.

For some members of the production, this is not their first time working with Sondheim.

Last year, a TriCollege producAllegra Pocinki The Phoenix tion performed Ben Ellentuck played Bobby in at Bryn Mawr Drama Board’s production.

College another Sondheim musical, “Assassins,” a production for which “Company” director Jonghee Quispe ç14 served as vocal director and producer Madeline Charne ’14 was also part of. She describes “Company” as “a concept musical about New York City and marriage, two very ‘charged’ topics.”

“Company” is both deeply funny and immensely serious. Its two primary concerns — marriage and New York — meet in the character of Bobby, played

by Ben Ellentuck ’14. After his 35th birthday party, Bobby contemplates the realities of marriage in his own life.

The story unfolds as a series of vignettes, which include a variety of musical numbers as well as dialogue between Bobby and his friends.

The performance took place on the LPAC main stage, with the physical space of performance extending deeper into the audience than it does in other plays. The actors were close to the audience in the area of the stage where the orchestra would normally play. Consequently, Ben Kapilow ’13, Company’s instrumental director and conductor, joined the pit orchestra onstage, performing behind a gossamer screen.

This curtain was also the backdrop for a projection of the New York City evening skyline.

The scenery was welllit but sparse, with only a handful of white cubes onstage. These served as both props and de-

vices; a box could be either chair or refrigerator. The minimalism allowed emotions to manifest themselves on stage and for the complex and touching music to be performed alongside the actors. Ana Apostoleris ’13, who played Bobby’s friend Jenny, said, “It’s not a show about things.

It’s a show about people.”

After the overture, the number “Company” included the whole cast in a chaotic and highly theatrical celebration of Bobby’s birthday. In a poignant touch, he blows the candles out on an imaginary cake. This scene quickly makes it apparent that the greatest source of both envy and pity for Bobby are his friends — that is to say, his married friends.

Apostoleris elaborated on the motivation Bobby discovers. “Bobby realizes he can’t keep living vicariously through his married friends,” she said.

Marriage is on every one’s mind throughout the entirety of the play and one scene in which Bobby, Jenny and David — played by Daniel Cho Allegra Pocinki The Phoenix ’15 — smoke a joint reAnna Ramos, Dinah Dewald and Ana Apostoleris performed a song in “Company.” minds the audience that THE PHOENIX

November 10, 2011

marriage is also about growing up. Sitting on a rug and giggling like the college students they used to be, this scene offers meditation on compromise, maturity and how those intersect in marital life. Bobby and David discuss whether Jenny was actually high or even “liked it,” which transitions to a musical number with the “husbands” of the cast. The lyrics of the song and the dialogue of the characters spoke about the changes and compromises one makes in growing old together.

Many members of the cast and production team noted that portraying such mature themes was a challenge.

“The nature and subject matter of the show make it almost unapproachable for college actors,” Quispe said. However, Quispe and other cast mentors — as well as many in the audience — were happy they took the challenge on.

Jackson Goodman ’13, who attended the Friday evening performance of “Company,” seemed to agree. “I was impressed by the ability of college students to play middle-aged characters going through things that they haven’t personally experienced while managing to seem completely genuine and convincing. The production highlighted Sondheim’s ability to be funny and incredibly poignant and moving all at the same time.”

The minimalism of the set highlights the colorful, eclectic and intriguing characters of the show. Many of Bobby’s friends, though a bit more so than Jenny or David, have a unique and often risqué backstory, the neuroses of which come out in conversation. Christina Aruffo ’13 shared her experiences playing one of those friends, Susan.

A southern belle of sorts, Susan begins the play married to Peter — played by Andrew Dorrance ’15 — though the couple soon divorces over the course of the performance.

This personal issue becomes a topic of slightly uncomfortable conversation with Bobby.

Coming from a dance background, Aruffo noted that Sondheim gives difficult parts to singers, which is evident from the first number. Each cast member must sing independent as well as harmonic parts in a cacophonous and overwhelming piece that sounds like ten phone calls to Bobby at once.

Charne, the producer of “Company,” further explained how the play, as a musical, posed a unique challenge in assembling a cast. Singing obviously was an integral part of performing “Company”. However, on the other hand, dance is less of a key musical element: “It’s dance light.” Charne spoke about one scene in particular, in which the cast dons top hats and canes for a chorus-line style performance, as “being in Bobby’s head.”

That being said, the performances — solo, duet or ensemble — were nonetheless spectacular, and the actors performed and sang wonderfully. Anna Ramos ’12, who portrayed hysteric bride Amy, was exceptional in her clear and steady diction as she spoke rapidfire to an imaginary wedding reception.

Kira White ’13, who attended Friday’s performance, noted this as a standout performance, as well as impressions of the other numbers. “I was surprised at the depth of the material but I thought it fit in well with the humor,” she said. The lyrics of Sondheim are often highly ironic and indeed almost darkly comedic — they speak candidly and openly about extremely serious topics.

“Company” was an excellent return for the musical genre to Swarthmore, and the cast and crew did a wonderful job in portraying a complicated and equally charming play. The authenticity of its actors and the almost mesmerizing austerity of scenery really allowed emotions to color the scenes.

Ana Aposteleris is a sports writer for The Phoenix.

She had no role in the production of this article.

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to-day life to not trap things in your preconceived notions, you will have frankly a much more interesting life.

Rewinding Back to Their Swarthmore Days

Thespian to Zen Buddhist

BY DINA ZINGARO dzingar1@swarthmore.edu After graduating with a double major in Art History and English Literature and a minor in French, Tonen O’Connor ’54 received her MA in Drama at Tufts University. Following this training, she explored the world of directing and acting, and also discovered her knack for managing theater companies.

However, after spending time in a Zen Temple in Japan, O’Connor pursued the Zen Buddhist tradition and became the resident priest at the Milwaukee Zen Center (of the Soto Zen school, which in the most basic sense, differs from the Rinzai Zen tradition in its practices in attaining Enlightenment). From a life invested in the theater, O’Connor immerses herself in a spiritual tradition where she considers the self and a lifestyle oriented outwards with a focus on helping others.

DZ: Your switch from a background in Art History into a world of theater after graduation — including your work at theatre companies in Boston, New Orleans and Cincinnati — to finally your work as the Resident Priest at the Milwaukee Zen Center is quite intriguing. Is there a shared underlying thread there between these chapters in your life?

TO: Often people do ask me how I went from the theater, which people often wrongly associate primarily with notions of glamour, into Zen Buddhism.

The key between these two worlds is empathy. In the theatre, it is all about empathy and trying to help your audience develop empathy for an experience on that stage with something they’ve never encountered before. In Zen, the focus is letting go of yourself and focusing on something else and that is what empathy is. Now, on the other hand, the study of visual art in art history at Swarthmore, which is the study of creativity, really attracted me and the theater was a place on many levels of different degrees of creativity.

In a way, merely my switch to an Art History major after my original hopes of becoming a journalist with intent on being solely an English Literature major (my high school yearbook read that I wanted to be a reporter for The New York Times, which was quite crazy for a young woman in the 1950s) is so emblematic. It reflects the number of turns in my life to do some things I had never expected and in some cases, never even

thought about. For me, around the time that I ended up discovering Zen (which is getting really into middle age), it might sound silly, but I discovered mortality.

There are certain periods in your life when you realize how quickly things are changing right then and you think you have to decide and do things right then.

Especially at that young age after college, that is a time when most people feel that something is slipping away. Thus, by entering the fast moving stream, and this is very natural, but I think instead of trying to abstractly pick and choose, it’s more important to follow your passion.

But really, there is either time or no time at all since we could die at any moment. There is only today and if you spend today worrying about tomorrow, then you’ve lost the day. If all of your time being fixed on, “Oh my, what will I do at 25,” well then you aren’t doing anything at 23 than worrying what you will do at 25. At that time I didn’t know anything about Buddhism, except that it vaguely existed. I wasn’t taking a spiritual path — people always ask me if I was a seeker … not really. I realized I’m not going to be here forever so I should just do it so I started reading a lot of Western philosophy and a vague attempt to find out what it was all about.

DZ: In your work both inside and outside the Center, including your visits to inmates at local prisons, you mentioned that you hope to free people from themselves and forget about the self. How can someone approach this lifestyle in a contemporary 21st century that is often quite over-indulgent and self-centered?

TO: Well, when I do retreat occasionally and spend days in Zazen services at a Japanese temple, those times allow you to slow down and sort of see who you are.

However, in general, the Buddha taught that we have what he called the “no-self” that exists outside the body and mind.

The self that we do have is hinged upon everything going on around it because of the interdependence of all things. Therefore, your self is a working response to everything that is going on around you.

Zen is about letting go of this self, which is possible in sitting meditation.

So, in other words, if I can just sit, which in the Soto practice is called “Shikantaza” or just sitting, then I can allow the stuff that comes up in my mind fall through. In that sense, you are not being attached to anything or being worried about what you are doing for the day and so on.

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The second way to let go is by simply thinking about somebody else. Helping somebody else turns you away. If I’m sitting in a pastoral visit at a prison or simply speaking to a member at the center and I’m thinking about what they are trying to tell me or the problem that we are together trying to get a handle on, then I am not thinking about myself.

Myself takes a rest. So the focus does not become, “Am I happy? Am I okay?” because then that is only solidifying the self. Your focus should be on something other than yourself.

DZ: Is this focusing outside of yourself strictly charitable work and such?

TO: It can be done through something as you studying Shakespeare, as you mentioned, for your seminar and simply interacting outside of yourself. See, we fabricate our world conceptually. It’s a fabulous talent — I write my life and you write your life, just as much as Shakespeare wrote sonnets. We interpret everything and we couldn’t live without it.

Many Buddhist teachings teach that what is real in a certain sense is not knowable because it exists outside of how we conceive of it. It is in and of itself. However, once when we start having rigid ideas or ideas based on notions, then our life becomes much more enclosed and perhaps not as workable.

DZ: So, Buddhism discourages preconceived notions?

TO: Exactly. Buddhist notions are about getting our fingers off of our preconceived notions and instead, getting me to open my conceptual hand to allow things to come. There is a famous quote in the Soto Zen school (my particular sect of Zen) where going out to meet or identify whole things is an illusion. Instead, one must allow all things to come and validate the self … this is Enlightenment. In other words, we should allow the world into who we are so it will expand the self. But, if I go out to fix or pin things on a map, it is fine, however I may not be seeing all that is there because I’m keeping it at arms length. So in meditational practice then, you are able to pull back from sensory assault — everything that happens in our lives — and you are able to sit down and how your conception of the things around you work. You will realize when you are sitting and looking straight at a wall, your mind begins to fabricate things.

Once you pair this “stepping back” with really trying to work with your day-

November 10, 2011

DZ: This philosophy of focusing on those around you instead of yourself seems to align with Swarthmore’s values as a Quaker school that fosters the idea of giving back to the community.

TO: Although during my time at Swarthmore, there was no terribly obvious presence of Quakerism. But, the idea that you would take whatever your interests were acquiring out into the world to do something positive with them is behind my work now visiting maximumsecurity prisons as part of the Zen Center’s program and also, my earlier work as one of the founders the non-for-profit theater movement in the U.S. Skimming through the alum magazine, I’ve noticed that although not all of the alum have gone into service professions by any means, for someone who has risen to the top — let’s say, a top banker — in addition to their success, there are all sorts of positive things they are doing whether in the baking system, community or volunteer work. There is a kind of approach to being helpful in the world that I believe came from Swarthmore. It’s not to say that you don’t have to go off and join Doctors without Borders, which of course would be a wonderful thing, but wherever you are, you must again, get outside yourself.

DZ: Did Swarthmore shape your character in other ways?

TO: When I look back at the years at Swarthmore, they really changed my life in a very big way because they opened up a whole world for me that I knew was there, but I didn’t know I could get to.

You have to work hard to fully appreciate something, so those years for me was a turning point in my life. I am grateful that we were encouraged — intend kicked in the butt — to think for ourselves. Specifically, the time I spent in the Honors program at Swarthmore — but I think this is true whether you are in honors or not — I learned that you really can find out anything if you try hard enough. And I wasn’t afraid to ask. So, when I worked as a manager for several theater companies, I was willing to call papers to spread word about upcoming performances and ask question, which most people would never be willing to do.

And the years at Swarthmore helped me be a kind of problem solver who could identify the problem and then put some effort in going after it. I remember being startled that a lot of people don’t do that. Though I adored the school, loved my professors and my friends, and all the material I learned in the classroom, becoming an avid problem solver was, in a sense, the great gift.

DZ: Were your specific territories of study at Swarthmore influential?

TO: Definitely. Especially my art history really taught me to respect many forms of art. For example, you don’t have to like Rubens, but you have to understand why he was a great artist. You need to recognize that there is something remarkable there.

And now, this is very reflective of what I advocate in an interfaith group.

It’s not hard for me to really respect other faiths. They may not be my personal choice, but kind of like Rubens, I can see what is valuable there. So, Swarthmore really was a turning point and a growing up point for me that has continued to impact my life.

THE PHOENIX

Living & Arts

swarthmorephoenix.com

Liangpi Noodles and Opportunities in China Parlour Party Saturday, Nov. 12 at 8 p.m.

Shane Lounge

Jamaal May

Award-Winning Poet

Friday, Nov. 11 at 7 p.m. in Paces Café

editor’s picks All Fracked Up A Movie Screening and Discu Discussion with Fractivists Jeff and Jodi Andrysick Sunday, Nov. 13 at 1 p.m.

Science Center 199

By Allegra Pocinki

Essence of Soul Concert

Saturday, Nov. 12 7:30 p.m.

Alice Paul Lounge

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November 10, 2011

THE PHOENIX

Opinions

swarthmorephoenix.com

Staff Editorial

Students should reign in more prominent guest speakers

Jonathan Franzen, Rita Dove, Junot Díaz — any bells ringing?

They might not. It’s been nearly two years since Dove came to campus, and even longer since the other two award-winning authors visited. The three are just a handful of memorable and famous speakers that have come to Swarthmore in the past several years. If asked to name a more recent speaker, you might be hard-pressed to even remember. While we frequently host professors and academics in various fields, it’s not all too often that we get to hear eminent writers, philosophers or thinkers.

With the buzz surrounding Judith Butler’s current talk series at Bryn Mawr, it makes sense that Swatties might ask where their Judith Butler is.

But the only people we can blame for that is ourselves. So few of us realize that the college offers students the very resources they need to bring speakers to campus. For starters, the Student Budget Committee, through the Forum for Free Speech, allocates ample funds to bring prominent speakers to Swarthmore. Syndicated journalists, Nobel Prize-winning economists, bestselling authors — these are the people students should be working to bring to campus. These are the people who could draw a full crowd to the Keith Room, the Scheuer Room or Science Center 101. Where one might see a scattering of eager Swatties at current small-scale guest lectures, sold-out events are almost unheard of.

With student resources such as the Cooper Series and the Forum for Free Speech, it’s easier than we might think to submit a proposal for an event that would offer us the opportunity to listen to and meet with anyone from Bill Clinton to Jonathan Safran Foer. In fact, it was the Cooper Series that allowed us to bring in speakers such as Dove and Díaz.

The processes for funding are simple and accessible, designed to encourage individual students, student groups and student communities to take the initiative to secure funds in an effort to expose ourselves to the ideas, experiences and advice of distinguished and influential figures. The Cooper Series application isn’t due until February, so we’ve all got a short while to draw up a couple proposals that envision Khaled Hosseini, Paul Krugman, Sandra Cisneros and maybe even Barack Obama himself in the Lang Performing Arts Center.

The rewards of inviting such speakers span across the intellectual and creative milieu. Not only does it allow us to come together, cross-cutting our many differences, but it also gives us a chance to learn and understand the world through people who’ve given back to society in the most instrumental and innovative ways.

Settling for several marginal speakers is not the same as inviting fewer esteemed academics, politicians and writers. Even better — if all of us used the money available to us through the Forum for Free Speech, we would have several remarkable speakers.

Who knows — at that rate, we might even need to submit a proposal to expand LPAC. Those interested in acquiring funds for a guest speaker, lecture, workshop or event should go to the Forum for Free Speech application (http://www.sccs.swarthmore.edu/org/ffs) and/or the Cooper Series application (http://www.swarthmore. edu/Admin/cooper/application_funding.php).

Emma Waitzman The Phoenix

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November 10, 2011

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An editorial represents the opinions of the members of the Opinions Board: Amelia Possanza, Marcus Mello and Menghan Jin. Please submit letters to: letters@swarthmorephoenix.com or The Phoenix Swarthmore College 500 College Avenue Swarthmore, PA 19081 Please report corrections to: corrections@swarthmorephoenix. com Letters, corrections and news tips may also be submitted online to the paper by clicking “Contact” on the Phoenix website.

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Opinions

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Deficit reduction committee predictably unsuccessful Less than two weeks from the deadline for Congress’s Joint Select Committee on Deficit Reduction to present its deficit Tyler Becker reduction The Swarthmore plan, there are no Conservative signs of a deal. Democrats insist that any deal requires tax increases and Republicans are only willing to accept revenue increases in the form of closing tax loopholes. Both sides know that any of the proposed cuts could be politically damaging.

The formation of the supercommittee sought to minimize the risk of this situation happening. When negotiations for a grand bargain on the debt deal went south over the summer, a proposal for two rounds of cuts relating to the debt ceiling increase made it into the final piece of legislation, the Budget Control Act of 2011.

The first round occurred immediately, with a $900 billion debt ceiling increase and a spending decrease of $917 billion from the baseline over the next ten years.

The second round allows the President to ask for a debt ceiling increase if more cuts and revenue increases are signed into law. The supercommittee was tasked with finding over $1 trillion

more in cuts in order for the debt ceil- programs (an incentive for Democrats to compromise). ing to be raised again.

Neither side is willing to comproAllowing a bipartisan committee to search for cuts and ways to increase mise, and now efforts are under way revenue became the most politically to thwart the sequestration and still viable option. Legislators did not have raise the debt ceiling when necessary. to vote on over $2 trillion in cuts and Senator Lindsey Graham (R-SC) has Republicans did not have to vote for proposed legislation replacing the drastax increases in order to increase the tic military cuts with more cuts on domestic spending and debt ceiling before congressional pay. the August 2 deadDemocratic member line. The bill passed of the House, John Gaboth houses of ConThe idea of the ramendi, said point gress. supercommittee blank that the sequesThe idea of tration will not occur. the supercommitworking out a grand Republicans made tee working out a deal was a a few concessions on grand deal was a Tuesday with regard complete fantasy. complete fantasy. to revenue increasMost Washington es. According to The politicians, RepubWashington Post, the licans and Democrats alike, do not seriously care about Republican plan would raise “overall reducing spending. If they did, the tax collections by $250 billion, mainly supercommittee would have never ex- by limiting the value of itemized deducisted. The debt ceiling would never need tions such as write-offs for home mortto be increased, and spending would be gage interest, state and local taxes and capped. This is all a political game. It is other expenses.” The plan also includes extending the Bush tax cuts, which not politically salient to cut programs.

Those behind the legislation knew Democrats oppose.

Even with this revenue concession, the insurmountable issues the supercommittee would face. This is where the committee is not any closer to a sequestration, better known as cuts deal. Members of the committee are still across the board, comes in. If the super- in a fictional world where they believe committee does not produce legislation, that they are going to be able to cut $3 Congress can still increase the debt trillion in a bipartisan manner.

Conservatives were criticized over ceiling another $1.2 trillion, which then causes sequestration to the tune of $1.2 the summer for risking the full faith trillion to occur. The sequestration cuts and credit of the United States over a would be devastating to the defense de- battle of tax increases. When all of the partment (an incentive for Republicans Republican presidential candidates to compromise) and for many domestic (with the exception of Jon Huntsman)

opposed the Budget Control Act, Democrats, including Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, accused Republicans of allowing the nation to go into default to prevent tax increases.

The reason I, along with many other conservatives, opposed the final piece of legislation had nothing to do with taxes. It was about the inability of those in Washington to get serious about reducing spending, and it was about a politically convenient idea cooked up in the back rooms of the Capitol to have this supercommittee. I could not see enough cuts being approved by the committee for the sequestration to not go into effect.

Now, what many conservatives feared is upon us: two weeks to go and still no deal — just obstructionism coming from both parties, absurdity coming from Washington politicians who cannot even agree to cuts that are not put into effect until fiscal year 2013 and scurrying to find some way to avert the cuts if legislation is not passed.

We all know what the next course of action for Congress will be: a delay in the release of the supercommittee’s proposed legislation. Congress will allow it, and we will continue on this path of more spending with no plan to pay for it.

While the media focuses on allegations against Herman Cain, politicians in Washington are pushing America along its path to fiscal ruin. And nobody is paying attention.

Conservatives were right: politicians cannot be trusted to cut spending.

Tyler is a sophomore. He can be reached at tbecker1@swarthmore.edu.

Symbolic space: Quakerism is good for Swarthmore

BY BEN GOOSSEN bgoosse@swarthmore.edu

Over the past few days I have heard many student and faculty conversations generated by Sam Zhang’s column “Why Quakerism at Swarthmore is counterproductive” in the 11/03/11 issue of The Phoenix.

While I would like to thank Sam for engaging this topic and for getting so many people talking, I will have to firmly and respectfully disagree with his assessment.

Quakerism at Swarthmore is an unequivocal force for good.

It is a vital tool for building community, fostering compassionate values and celebrating diversity. A more Quaker Swarthmore is a better Swarthmore.

While Sam’s criticism is well intentioned, it demonstrates exactly why Swarthmore should be more explicit about its Quakerism. “What is the difference,” he asks, “between embracing ‘Quaker values’ and individually recognizing peace, equality, simplicity and diversity?”

He wonders why Quakerism is important, given that we could all come to similar conclusions on our own.

OP-ED

Quakerism is relevant at Swarthmore precisely because it transcends the individual. It is a rich source for community engagement and shared values.

It is a platform for supporting peace, progressive social action and the liberal arts. In the midst of today’s global capitalist monoculture and its ideology of radical individualism, institutions like Swarthmore have a fundamental countercultural responsibility. Only community- and value-based systems like Quakerism hold the potential to offer a meaningful second way.

That said, I would like to respond to Sam’s two specific points in detail. His first argument is that Quakerism has transformed Swarthmore into a reticent haven of “Puritan perfectionism,” where students are always polite and restrained.

Like the simplicity of Quaker meeting houses, he suggests, Swarthmore is woefully “clean of culture.”

In answer, I would like to highlight the true vibrancy of campus life. Swarthmore has an incredibly diverse student body, as well as over one hundred active student groups. If you decide to stop any Swarthmore student on the sidewalk and ask about his or her passions, good luck getting away any time

THE PHOENIX

soon! And try talking about re- evance to minority groups nor straint after sitting through an demand the assimilation of honors seminar or attending a non-believers. Most Quakers do Paces party. not proselytize. Instead, the reBut if Sam does sense a lack ligion’s emphasis on individual of spontaneity and excitement efficacy and its adaptability to at Swarthmore, I would suggest new environments have allowed it is not the byproduct of our Quakerism to focus on buildQuaker legacy, but rather that ing coalitions between unlikely students are too wrapped up in partners. It is no accident that their schoolwork. From my per- contemporary Quakerism is a spective, re-privileging Quaker- global religion, represented on ism at Swarthmore would actu- every continent by any number ally make the college a more of culture groups. lively and interesting place. I At Swarthmore, Quakerism continue to believe that Swarth- provides a wonderful framemore’s work for primary promotmission ing dishould be Quakerism is relevant at vDeurrs ii tnyg. orie nted toward conversaSwarthmore precisely ethics tions genbecause it transcends and activerated ism, and

by Sam’s the individual. only secarticle, ondarily several toward internaacademics. In such an environ- tional students told me that ment, campus would come alive they came to Swarthmore speto a degree even greater than it cifically because of its Quaker already is. heritage and attendant peace Sam’s second point is that values. That the Quaker model as a religion founded by white has enough power to draw stuProtestants, Quakerism ex- dents from all over the world cludes minority voices. This and bring them together around is simply untrue. The cultural commonly held beliefs speaks to specificity of Quakerism’s ori- its ability to build community gin does not preclude its rel- without compromising diverNovember 10, 2011

sity.

This admirable trait is built into the very structure of Quakerism. The traditional practice of consensus, for example, fosters engaged decision-making without silencing dissent. Consensus incorporates diverse opinions better than any other form of politics, including democracy.

Another tradition, Collection, is a time when all people come together to celebrate commonalities and learn about difference.

I propose that Swarthmore College make its historic and ongoing relationship to Quakerism more explicit. Increasing education and awareness of Quakerism will help erase misconceptions about the Society of Friends and move activism and peace witness at Swarthmore in more productive directions.

Quakerism offers a symbolic space for dialogue across seemingly irreconcilable boundaries.

I find the Swarthmore Meeting House, where student groups of widely divergent persuasions and backgrounds often prepare and share large dinners, to be an appropriate physical manifestation of this symbolic space.

Quakerism is a catalyst, a metaphor, an opening. It is the future of Swarthmore.

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Opinions Made in China: the importance of Chinese currency

swarthmorephoenix.com

Some feel that this structure would many domestic firms would start to help the nation, in that weaker, less-sol- outsource at an even higher rate, leadvent companies would be forced to exit ing to further unemployment.

It is clear where such a bill is trying the market, giving rise to newer, more stable ones — a long term investment to aim. China’s malpractices are both in the Chinese economy. However, this unfair as well as detrimental to many leads to all sorts of moral dilemmas, U.S. businesses nationwide. However, like whether it is morally upstanding a domestic legislation hoping to eradito allow weaker firms to die just so that cate an international issue seems a bit far-fetched. newer ones Perhaps a can be born. proposal to Sadly, such a World phenomenon A domestic legislation hoping the Trade Ormay be just to eradicate an international g a n i z a what China (WTO) needs. issue seems a bit far-fetched. tion would be Returnaping to Amer- Perhaps a proposal to the WTO more propriate. ica’s plans would be more appropriate.

Such an efto impose fort would sanctions force China on nations to adjust to like China, it may not be in our best interest to do standard currency rates at the threat so either. If such a bill is passed, China of losing their entire export industry. may consider exporting to other na- This would allow nations besides the tions at better exchange rates than sim- U.S. to benefit.

After the onset of China’s currency ply readjusting their entire currency.

This would threaten the U.S. economy, adjustment (as mandated by the WTO), as we would need to rely on domestic the EU may even revamp its trade with businesses to make up for a loss in Chi- China. Chinese business would be pronese imports. Such an effect would in- vided with much-needed consumers, crease prices substantially as a result improving the Chinese economy and of higher production costs and wages. bringing the ever-familiar “made in Domestically speaking, with an unem- China” goods back to nations worldployment rate of nearly ten percent, the wide.

Harshil is a first-year. He can be U.S. would not be able to afford higher prices. In an effort to reduce prices, reached at hsahai1@swarthmore.edu.

When’s the last time you saw something that read “made in China”?

Not too long ago, eh? However, we may see a Harshil Sahai lot less of Conservatively Liberal such items in the near Economics future. A recent bill has been passed to Congress imposing sanctions on foreign trade partners that “manipulate” their currencies. In recent years, China has allowed its currency, the yuan, to rise almost thirty percent.

This led to American producers having to pay more for goods, and thus, higher prices for consumers like us.

Yet what may seemingly lead to an end of such “manipulative” policies may in fact have a huge impact on the Chinese economy and a great loss of exports to America.

China’s economy, dominated by its massive exports, has recently come across a few obstacles. One, for instance, is the recent European debt crisis. As a result, China has lost significant sales from the EU — a large portion of its export market. This has

led to many mid-sized firms declaring bankruptcy and exiting the market, finding it difficult to maintain their businesses.

However, domestic problems within China have also created concerns.

Firms, in general, require two entities to maintain financial stability: customers and capital. If the firm cannot cover operational expenses with capital, it cannot survive. Likewise, if a company cannot sell its products to consumers, it cannot incur profits.

The recent lending bubble in China offered solace from the shock waves of the 2008 financial crisis, but has now created many internal problems. For one, many businesses are starting to default on loans and losing solvency.

They cannot pay back banks and are forced to declare bankruptcy. Secondly, such a massive lending bubble has led to inflation. The Chinese government has put pressure on banks to cut down lending in order to offset inflation — leading to a loss of credit for many companies.

Such an effect has left no method for weak, small to mid-sized businesses to stay on their feet. These firms have suffered losses due to a sudden lack of customers (as a result of the EU credit crisis) and need to shut down factories and layoff workers due to an inability to borrow from banks (as a result of a “credit crunch” within Chinese banks forced by the government in order to curb inflation).

Russia is likely to join the World Trade Organization ( W T O ) this week — or even on the day of this column’s publicaOlivia Natan tion — after nearly The World At Large 18 years of talks.

Though perhaps the nation would have joined sooner if not for their brief 2008 war with Georgia (as a WTO member, Georgia has a right to veto any new ascension to the organization, as all WTO decisions are made by consensus).

This development is significant for the world economy. Though Russia is no longer the superpower of the Cold War era, its economy still comprises over two percent of the global total.

However, though Russia will be the largest economy to join the WTO since China joined in 2001, is the WTO still a relevant institution? In a world of seemingly never-ending smaller trade agreements, I would argue that it has largely been both ignored by the creation of trade barriers and integrated into norms of international trade. This ascension will have huge implications for Russia and its trading partners —

especially since tariff reductions could the WTO is to promote free trade, but help the Russian economy grow by as clearly this is not achieved. Nonethemuch as eleven percent, according to less, the WTO retains some teeth in its World Bank estimates. ability to sanction members, though Following World War II, the WTO this system is deeply flawed in its inwas created in 1947 as the General ability to correct for inequitable distriAgreement on Tariffs and Trade bution of resources among members.

(GATT) in order to avoid the unhealthy (South American countries filing a protectionism that followed the first suit against the EU’s agricultural poliWorld War. In 1995 the GATT became cies only won because the U.S. put its the WTO and expanded its members. weight and resources behind the case.)

At the same time, the European Union Perhaps this failure of effectiveness was created — a development that was and legitimacy is for the best, though. almost antithetical to the WTO’s pur- A discussion of the merits and flaws pose of lowering barriers to interna- of free trade, which could fill several tomes, is nectional trade.

The preponessary. As any Intro to derances of In this slow global economy, good regional trade Econ student knows, trade agreements any discussion of raising (RTAs), which combarriers to trade seems out promotes petitive advancreate smaller tage, which alfree trade arof place and inadvisable. lows for more eas such as the efficient alEEC/EU and location of rebilateral trade agreements, such as the recent agree- sources. In a perfect environment, free ments between the USA and South Ko- trade ensures that each country would rea and between the U.S. and Panama, produce what they produce best. Very suggest that the aims of the WTO are few economists would argue for protectionism (in the form of overt tariffs), certainly not being considered.

Bilateral trade agreements provide which has repeatedly led (with the expreferential treatment to the two coun- ception of pre-1854 Japan) to stunted tries involved, directly contradicting growth and recession. the concept of giving all WTO member However, the case for a lack of trade barriers is not settled. In recent years, states “most favored nation” status.

Additionally, non-tariff implicit scholars of globalization have come to barriers to trade persist, such as in the differing conclusions about the continabsurd agricultural subsidies of the ued lowering of trade barriers. Dani U.S. and EU. So the primary purpose of Rodrik insists that openness and its

The merits and flaws of the World Trade Organization

16

November 10, 2011

unclear link to growth do not provide an adequate substitute for measures directly promoting development. Martin Wolf and Tom Friedman are more staunch believers in free trade, but even they caution against complete removal of trade barriers. This indicates that a completely enthusiastic approach to free trade is not tenable among academic heavyweights of any ilk.

Removing competition-impeding barriers to Russian trade is not objectionable in and of itself. There is no reason Russia should continue to languish not a “most favored nation” in its trade (a status which would be granted with WTO membership), and its growth should positively impact other countries. However, in this slow global economy, any discussion of raising barriers to trade seems out of place and inadvisable.

Accordingly, Russia’s ascension should be cause for renewed discussion of WTO reforms and the integration of RTAs into WTO policy. It may even be cause for an expansion of the scope of policy covered by the WTO to include more environmental issues and to work towards eliminating unfair barriers to trade such as the subsidies given to agriculture in rich countries.

These changes — including Russia and broadening the range of policy areas — would increase the WTO’s legitimacy, which would in turn increase the WTO’s ability to enact greater changes.

Olivia is a junior. She can be reached at onatan1@swarthmore.edu.

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Sports

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Club soccer beats TCNJ, falls to Stevens Institute

Courtesy of Isaac Opoku

(Clockwise, from left) Maher Shaban; Co-captain Josh Bloom; Maher Shaban (10); Michael Fishman; Bloom (9) and the rest of the club. by timothy bernstein tbernst1@swarthmore.edu

Swarthmore Men’s Club Soccer split a doubleheader this Saturday, hosted at Haverford College. The team opened the day with a decisive 6-2 defeat of The College of New Jersey (TCNJ), but was forced to turn right around and play the strong club from Stevens Institute of Technology. That 5-2 loss brought Swarthmore’s record to 2-2 on the year, good for second place in its division in the Live Futbol League.

Swarthmore jumped out to a quick lead on TCNJ. Jessi Velasco ’13 opened the scoring on a strike into the bottom left-hand corner of the net from the top of the 18-yard box. Soon after, Isaac Opoku ’14 found the bottom right corner of the goal to make it 2-0 off an assist from Duke Yeboah ’13.

TCNJ refused to go down without a fight. Immediately after they had cut Swarthmore’s lead in half on a successful penalty kick, Swarthmore’s Elan Silverblatt-Buser ’12 got tackled from behind, giving TCNJ the ball at midfield. In control, the TCNJ offense moved quickly, getting the ball to their rightwing midfielder who played it off the post and in for the equalizer.

“I think we might have slacked off a bit,” Maher Shaban ’13 said of the shift in momentum. “We went

up 2-0, and relaxed, and suddenly they scored two goals, and we thought ‘Hey, we might actually lose this game, and if we lose we’re definitely not going to make the playoffs.’”

With the score now tied 2-2 and the club’s playoff hopes in jeopardy, it was up to Swarthmore to take control of the match. They responded beautifully with four successive scores, regaining the lead on Velasco’s second goal of the match. The shot came out from about 25 yards, deflecting off the cross-bar and over the goal line. Soon after, Ian Anderson ’13 added his first of two goals off the TCNJ goalkeeper’s rebound to make it 4-2. Sam Tomlinson ’15 scored off an assist from Alex Cannon ’14, followed quickly by Anderson’s second goal, this one off a pass from Velasco, that turned out to be the last goal of the match.

Unfortunately for Swarthmore, the tight schedule of the day’s matches gave them little time to enjoy their victory. Minutes after the win over TCNJ became official, the club had to begin its match against Stevens, a team considered to be one of the toughest in the league.

“We got maybe ten minutes to get a drink, then get back out there,” Anderson said, “We had just played TCNJ, now we were playing Stevens, probably the best team in the league, who was completely fresh.”

As Swarthmore had against TCNJ, Stevens jumped

out to an early lead against the fatigued club. Swarthmore was unable to break through until the second half, when Opoku drew the goalkeeper toward him, then hit Shaban, who made it 3-1. After Stevens had gone back up by three goals, Dan Stuart ’14 made it 4-2 off a penalty kick for what would be Swarthmore’s final goal of the afternoon. Stevens added a garbagetime score late in the game well after the outcome had been determined.

Among the injuries to the team was a broken ankle for captain Josh Bloom ’13. Overall, four in-game injuries against Stevens tested the club’s depth.

“I think in club soccer, players are a lot less in control,” Shaban said by way of providing insight on the rash of injuries. “Stevens is pretty big, and so many guys in club soccer are not properly coached in the first place.”

Swarthmore hosts its last league games of the season this Saturday. The club will play TCNJ at 1 p.m. and Haverford at 4 p.m.

“If we beat or tie TCNJ and Haverford, then we will qualify for the playoffs, which are held in the spring,” Bloom said.

Field location is still being determined.

Disclaimer: Ian Anderson is the business manager for The Phoenix. He had no role in the writing of this article.

Garnet IN ACTION

SATURDAY, NOV. 12 Cross country at NCAA Regionals Held at DeSales University, 11:00 a.m.

Swimming at Franklin & Marshall, 2:00 p.m.

THE PHOENIX

November 10, 2011

TUESDAY, NOV. 15

Women’s basketball at Widener, 6:00 p.m.

Men’s basketball at Widener, 8:00 p.m.

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Sports

swarthmorephoenix.com

Women’s soccer ousted from playoffs, then ECACs of 2-0 to capture their seventh consecutive Centennial Conference title.

On the back of their regular season success, the Garnet On a frigid Baltimore Saturday evening, the offense of earned a bid to the Eastern College Athletic Conference the Swarthmore Garnet women’s soccer team could never (ECAC) South regional tournament as the number three quite heat up, as they fell to Gettysburg 1-0 in the Centen- seed. nial Conference semifinals.

Swarthmore began ECAC play on Wednesday hostEntering the tournament with five consecutive victo- ing Albright. Prior to last ries as the number three seed in the Conference after fin- year’s absence from the ishing the year at 12-5, 7-3 against Centennial opponents, tournament, the Garnet the Garnet outshot the second-seeded Bullets 11-7 over the had won three consecutive course of the match. But a first-half goal from Gettysburg’s ECAC South championMolly Phillips on a corner kick proved the difference as ships without surrendering the Bullets defeated the Garnet by one goal for the second a single goal in any of their time this season. nine matches.

After a slow first half in which the Garnet struggled to Anckaitis was confident By sam sheehan maintain extended possession, the team began to dictate that the team wouldn’t enbrowndailyherald.com, play midway through the second half, constantly switch- ter the tournament with October 27, 2011 ing fields and working towards the corners. any sense of complacency.

It’s a pretty popular “The first half wasn’t great. The soccer wasn’t very “It’s been two years since good for both sides,” head coach Todd Anckaitis said. we’ve been to the ECAC, so storyline this year that we “In the first half of tournament games, you expect it to our previous results don’t have entered a “golden age be helter-skelter because everyone is excited. But we gave impact this team at all. We of quarterbacking.” Defensthe ball away a lot and if not for that corner-kick goal, we have a lot of confidence es are getting lit up. So the would have been in good shape. But we were in a hole at because we know the level quarterback talent level the half.” at which we are capable of must have reached staggering new heights, right?

In the final 15 minutes of play, Swarthmore had three playing.”

Well, no. That’s what solid chances to equalize, but a Haley Most ’13 cross and Added Brock, “We are Aly Passanante ’14 corner were sent away by the orga- excited about the oppor- makes the current quarternized Bullets defense and a Megan Brock ’14 pass just tunity to keep playing. At back phenomena so intereluded Garnet’s leading scorer Emma Sindelar ’15 at the this point, we have to win esting.

There simply aren’t top of the 18-yard box in the 86th minute as Gettysburg to keep playing...it’s an opheld on for the win. portunity that not a lot of enough franchise-caliber “I thought when we put three in the back in the final teams get and we want our quarterbacks in the NFL. 15, we became more dominant with that sense of urgency,” season to continue.” Enter- Every team is burning Anckaitis added. The game plan going in was to look to ing Wednesday, the Garnet through their revolving change fields through possession and go endline. In the had not lost consecutive door of players, desperately second half, we started to possess more and that gave us matches since the opening looking for the guy that success. ” weekend of the season. But will stick. If you think your Alexa Ross ’13 felt that the team’s formation became it was the visiting Lions team can win right now, spaced out during their match. “ I think that it is usually jumped on the scoreboard you go out and a get a provhard for us to keep a solid structure for 90 minutes and first 17 minutes into the en veteran.

Sometimes this works, that’s when we lose the ball and end up chasing, so I think match as Erin Hand found like it did for the Arizona that is the biggest thing that we want to improve on com- a loose ball in the box. ing out of Saturday.”

Later in the period, Em- Cardinals with Kurt WarThe top seed in the Centennial Conference, Johns Hop- ily Coleman ’12 was taken ner or the Minnesota Vikins, undefeated on the season and ranked No. 4 in Divi- down in the penalty area kings with Brett Favre in sion III, defeated Gettysburg on Sunday with a final score but with no whistle as Al- 2009. Other times, it backfires horribly, like with the Jacksonville Jaguars’ signing of Luke McCown or any team that has acquired Donovan McNabb since his Philadelphia Eagles days.

If you are stuck at rock SR., SWIMMING, SWARTHMORE, PA bottom and have some time before your team will be a serious contender, the other option is to go young and WHAT HE’S DONE: hope you can get a guy who Brevart, a senior, set a pool rewill be around for a while cord in the 50-yard freestyle this and become an institution weekend at McDaniel.He also for your franchise. Examwon the 100-yard freestyle in the ples here include Aaron same meet.

Rodgers, Matt Stafford, Phillip Rivers and even FAVORITE CAREER MOMENT: Manning. by victor brady vbrady1@swarthmore.edu

bright led 1-0 at the half despite Swarthmore outshooting the visitors 13-2 through the opening 45.

The second half saw similar domination from the Garnet but the Lions defense never broke. Even with a 7-2 shots advantage in the second half, Swarthmore couldn’t find the equalizer as the Lions finished off the 1-0 upset.

Swarthmore concludes the season 12-7.

Around HighEr Education

The search for a quarterback

Garnet athlete of the week

Tim Brevart

“Witnessing Kate Wiseman break the McDaniel’s pool record in the women’s 50-yard freestyle with me following to break the men’s pool record in the 50 moments later.”

The point to all of this is that, at the end of the day, not all of these guys have the talent to be legitimate NFL quarterbacks. Personally, I think there are only eight quarterbacks playing right now that are proven guys: Manning, Rodgers, Rivers, Tom Brady, Drew Brees, Ben Roethlisberger, Michael Vick and Tony Romo. I wouldn’t hesitate to give any of these guys four-year extensions, because even if any of them are injury-prone or entering the twilight of their careers, the impact that they would have on the game is clear and tangible.

There are also guys who are lurking on the outskirts. Matt Schaub had a fantastic season last year, Eli Manning shows flashes of brilliance, Matt Ryan makes things happen and the healthy Stafford certainly seems like the real deal. Even Jay Cutler, whom I mocked viciously last year, has impressed me with his tough play behind what is arguably the worst offensive line in football.

The problem is that there are still question marks about a lot of those guys, and I wouldn’t count on them to have the caliber of game I would ask those previous eight for.

Instead, teams are now accounting for this lack of reliable guys to put under center by bringing back the “game managing” quarterback.

This is a nice way of saying they are kind of bad, but other aspects of their team

­ like the defense and run — game — are good. At that point they are told to play conservatively and just not mess anything up too bad.

Guys like Joe Flacco, Mark Sanchez and Alex Smith are great examples of this technique. The bad news for them is that this hasn’t worked since Brad Johnson and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers won in 2002.

At the end of the day, though, McCown, Matt Moore, Tavaris Jackson, A.J. Feeley, John Beck, Rex Grossman, Colt McCoy and Kyle Boller have all started for an NFL team at some point this season, and only so much of that can be blamed on injuries.

The only reason these guys should be on a professional football field is to perform the national anthem with their newly-formed a capella group, “The ThirdStrings.” Moore probably sings in a gorgeous baritone.

Talented quarterbacks make the league fun. No one wants to watch Moore overthrow Brandon Marshall all afternoon or to see McCoy and Charlie Whitehurst try to out-terrible the other en route to a 6-3 final score.

I want these rookies to blossom into the franchisesaving messiahs that their fans hope they can be, because the NFL needs good quarterbacks. And until we get them, we are going to be stuck watching Curtis Painter every Sunday.

And not even his mom wants that.

WHAT HE WANTS TO DO: “See time drops and improvements consistently throughout the season and then have a strong showing at conferences, ideally placing 1st overall.”

THE WORST ADVICE A COACH EVER GAVE HIM: “Don’t kick.”

Julia Carleton The Phoenix

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Courtesy of nflpassers.com Going from Brett Favre to Aaron Rogers, the Green Bay Packers haven’t needed a transition between franchise QBs.

November 10, 2011

THE PHOENIX

Sports Fencers old and new stand out at individual event swarthmorephoenix.com

Teams who participated included the University

BY TIMOTHY BERNSTEIN of North Carolina, Clemson University, University of tbernst1@swarthmore.edu Virginia, New York University, Haverford, the UniAt an event this weekend at Temple University, versity of Pennsylvania and Temple. coach Marshal Davis got the chance to see what the Although there was little pressure on the team to individual members of the Swarthmore fencing team post a good result, Swarthmore saw its members excould do against a range of competition. Davis was not cel across the board. Co-captain Kevin Buczkowski ’13 cited the team’s relaxed mindset as one of the reasons disappointed. for success.

“We just graduated “[Coach Davis] made twelve of eighteen starts sure that it was a nolast year,” Davis said. event for us, un“The team is very young The team is very young right now. pressure like our team events, and right now. But we have But we have a great [first-year] he just told us to have fun a great [first-year] class, and do well,” Buczkowsand a lot of them succeedclass, and a lot of them ki said. ed [this past weekend].”

Participating fencThe event was the succeeded [this past weekend]. ers must go through two Temple Open, an indiCoach Marshal Davis rounds in order to qualividual event held on fy for direct elimination Temple’s campus this (DE) bouts. Once there, past Saturday and Sunplay functions as a sudday, which pits players from competing teams against each other based on den-death elimination tournament.

Several members of the team, particularly from the weapon they use, whether it be foil, epee, or sabre. the first-year class, exceeded expectations by reachThe results do not count toward team competition.

“I was pleasantly surprised by how Swat did, es- ing the direct elimination level.

A standout among the first-years was sabreist pecially our [first-years],” co-captain epeeist Morgan Sulerzyski ’12 said. “Though most of them had no ex- Catherine Martlin ’15, who defeated an opponent in a perience fencing prior to college, more than half of direct elimination contest.

“I was really excited and really nervous,” Martlin them made it past the cut into the direct elimination said. “The best parts of the tournament had to be near round.”

The Open consisted of roughly 30 teams ranging the end of each day’s fencing, once we had reached the from Division I to Division III, to which Swarthmore direct elimination rounds. By that point there were only a few of our fencers still in rounds and the way belongs.

that it worked out most of the team ended up watching one fencer finish their bouts.”

“A large number of fencers from the Swat team did well in their first pools and made it to the DE rounds,” club president and epeeist Valentina Garcia ’14 said in an email. “Despite having woken up at 5 a.m., everyone was so enthusiastic while watching the handful of Swat fencers who made it past the first round of DEs.” It was Buczkowski who made the furthest run in the tournament, outlasting a tough opponent only to fall in the fourth round of direct elimination.

“I went 3-1 in the first round of pools, and 4-0 in the second round. Going into direct elimination play I was seeded 15th out of 100 sabre fencers,” Buczkowski said. “I got a bye in the first round of DEs, in the second round I beat the 50th seed. In the third round I fenced a really good player from Cornell, who I beat 15-14.”

In the fourth round, I faced the number two seed overall from UNC. He beat me 15-14, one point. I would have made it to the top eight.”

Buczkowski finished 14th overall.

The women’s fencing team will have a tournament in early December hosted by the National Intercollegiate Women’s Fencing Association.

The next team event will be held at Air Force Academy in early January. With the exception of Swarthmore and University of Florida, the event will consist entirely of Division I fencing programs.

“I’m looking forward to seeing how our team will perform as we face varsity competition at Air Force over winter break,” Sulerzyski said. “Our team is young but full of potential.”

The Swarthmore fencing team in practice on Tuesday, November 8. The team will next compete at Air Force Academy in January.

THE PHOENIX

November 10, 2011

Simone Forrester The Phoenix

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Sports

swarthmorephoenix.com

Swimming beats Widener, McDaniel to open season by ana apostoleris aaposto1@swarthmore.edu

Coming off a 2010-11 season in which both teams achieved a third-place showing at the Centennial Conference championships, the Swarthmore men’s and women’s swim teams roared into the 2011-12 campaign last week, retooled and ready to take on the conference.

Boasting a high percentage of returning contributors and an impressive crop of first-years, the Garnet men and women took a pair of meets each in the opening week, besting 320 rival Widener (111-79 M, 107-98 W) and Conference competitor McDaniel (57-38 M, 58-37 W).

“The kids are swimming absolutely terrifically,” head coach Sue Davis said. “These wins [are not] as easy as they could be, [but] every time we’d get behind ... the kids dug down and pulled it out.” Coach Davis is in her 37th year with the women’s team and 28th year at the helm for the men.

The season-opening meet at Widener featured fast swims across classes on both the men’s and women’s sides.

Supriya Davis ’15, in her first collegiate meet, won three events to lead the Garnet women, recording the secondfastest times in Swarthmore history in two of them. Her 1000 freestyle time of 10:54.75 trails only a 2007 record set by Anne Miller ’10; her 200 freestyle, a fast

1:55.93, is just six-tenths of a second off of Claire Arbor’s ’00 1997 record.

Kate Wiseman ’15 took both sprint freestyle events (25.08 and 55.44), continuing the Garnet’s first-year onslaught; Becky Teng ’14, one of last season’s breakout stars, was also a double winner, taking the 200 IM (2:16.50) and the 100 backstroke (1:04.18). 2011 Conference silver medalist Erin Lowe ’14 touched first in the 100 butterfly (1:01.91) to cap Swarthmore’s individual wins on the women’s side.

“The general team atmosphere is a great motivator to swim fast,” Davis said. “In high school the emphasis was on the individual and individual times ... [Swarthmore’s] stronger emphasis on the team as a whole is probably the biggest change for me.”

On the men’s side, Tim Brevart ’12 swept the sprint freestyle events (21.88 and 49.32) in the first of two sweeps of the week, and the Garnet class of 2014 dominated the rest of the meet, as four different Swarthmore sophomores finished first in their events. Brian Nadel ’14 won the 1000 freestyle (10:42.87), John Flaherty ’14 took the 200 IM (2:05.17), Peter Ballen ’14 led the field in the 500 free (5:05.64), and Zach Gavin ’14 touched first in the 100 breaststroke (1:05.96).

Sam Bullard-Sisken ’12 won the 100 butterfly in 55.62.

“Sophomore men are really stepping

Nick Sohn practices a start before Saturday’s meet.

up; senior men are really stepping up,” Coach Davis said. “We have some outstanding swimmers in the freshman class — [the depth] is what makes us so good.”

Neither team let up in the Centennial Conference opener against the McDaniel Green Terror, as the men and women combined to break five of McDaniel’s pool records. A Swarthmore record also fell as Wiseman sped to a 24.56 in the 50 freestyle, breaking a four-year-old mark held by Sarah Cotcamp ’07. Her 54.11 in the 100 freestyle was the second-fastest time in program history and the fastest ever at McDaniel.

Davis set the women’s third pool record of the meet with a 2:13.51 in the 200 IM. She scored a repeat victory in the 1000, as well, taking a close race in 10:59.58. Her 500 free, a 5:18.55, was over nine seconds ahead of her closest competitor.

Lowe won both the 200 freestyle (2:04.00) and the 100 butterfly (1:02.09).

It was the seniors’ time to shine for the men, as Brevart set a pool record.

Brevart’s 50 freestyle (21.55) was just three-tenths of a second off of his own program record.

The sophomores once again finished the work started by the record-setting senior, as Ballen, Flaherty and Cyrus

First-year Pooja Kumar before the meet; Frederick Toohey, Tim Brevart and Neil Palmer relax at the end of the pool.

THE PHOENIX

November 10, 2011

Courtesy of Gerardo Limon

Nasseri ’14 all scored individual wins of their own.

“It definitely feels good to get a couple of wins under our belts right from the get-go,” Brevart said. “I was a little anxious as to how the team would look compared to the rest of the conference, but our younger guys have really stepped up.”

Not only are the Garnet swimmers winning, their wins are bringing in times that Coach Davis referred to as “unheard-of” for so early in the competition schedule.

Although the season is barely a week old, records have already been broken, and several more are poised to fall by the wayside as the athletes gain strength throughout the year.

The swimmers point to out-of-water adjustments as major contributors to the team’s early success.

“Proper dieting and cross training has really paid off,” Brevart said. “I feel stronger than I’ve ever felt ... I’m ready to push harder and dig deeper from now until February and then hopefully beyond.”

“We’ve had multiple ‘Swimmers of the Meet’ every time so far,” Coach Davis said. “It’s dedication and determination that’s made these first two meets a success.”

Courtesy of Gerardo Limon for The Phoenix

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