Web Exclusive: Students spoke with President Kwang-Wu Kim about the need for student space during the second coffee date with the president. For the full story, check out ColumbiaChronicle.com.
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Dancers audition in Chicago for “So You Think You Can Dance”
Opinions: Colleges need to build
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The OFFICIAl news source of Columbia college chicago
Volume 49, Issue 21
Wearden named new provost Tatiana Walk-Morris Campus Editor Stan Wearden will take over as Columbia’s new senior vice president and provost starting July 1, according to a Feb. 26 emailed announcement from President Kwang-Wu Kim. After carefully considering Wearden’s academic credentials and feedback from the provost search committee and Columbia community, Kim chose him over Chris McCord, the other provost finalist, according to the email. In a Feb. 27 interview with The Chronicle, Kim said he made his decision based on the questionnaires the college community submitted following the candidates’ presentations. Based on the feedback, attendees questioned whether McCord’s mathematics background and lack of experience with an institution like Columbia would make him a good match, Kim said. “With Dr. Wearden, there was a much greater sense that … his approach would fit well,” Kim said.
“It really came down to a more gut level sense of which person would make more sense to our faculty and staff when they interacted with them.” Kim said Wearden’s experience with unionized faculty and his previous administrative experience would be valuable assets, adding that Wearden’s different area of expertise will make him a good partner for Kim. “He’s got lots of experience with faculty, [and] he brings experience with unionized faculty,” Kim said. “There were a lot of things about his experience that complement mine and make [us] a strong pair.” Wearden will leave his position as dean of the College of Communication and Information at Kent State University, where he doubled the professional advising staff and increased the freshman retention rate from 78 percent in fall 2011 to 81.6 percent in fall 2013, according to his curriculum vitae. Wearden holds a doctorate in mass communication research
xx SEE PROVOST, Pg.10
Administration announces new department, terminates employees Tyler Eagle Associate Editor The college fired more than half of the current employees in the Office of Institutional Advancement to make way for a new Department of Development. President Kwang-Wu Kim announced the terminations and restructuring in a Feb. 28 email to college staff and faculty. The new Department of Development will replace the current division of Institutional Advancement, which is the office responsible for fundraising and creating and maintaining connections in the community. In the email, Kim said the need for the new department required the termination of seven Institutional Advancement employees
to make way for an undetermined number of new positions. The department will see new positions and a new mission statement geared toward attracting more donations to the college. According to the college directory, there were only 13 employees in the Office of Institutional Advancement prior to the firing. The announcement comes a month after the Jan. 27 resignation of Patrick Sheahan, former vice president of Institutional Advancement, after he held the position for only four months, as reported Jan. 27 by The Chronicle. The statement said Kim and Warren Chapman, senior vice president and interim vice president
Carolina Sanchez THE CHRONICLE Stan Wearden, current dean of the College of Communication and Information at Kent State University, will begin his new job as Columbia’s senior vice president and provost on July 1.
Tax hike could fizz out soda sales Photo illustration Anthony Soave THE CHRONICLE Natalie Craig Assistant Metro Editor Trips to the vending machine between classes and frequent stops at gas stations will get more expensive if a new soda tax is passed in Illinois. The legislation would add a penny-per-ounce tax on sugary beverages sold in sealed containers to dissuade people from poor eating and drinking habits. If it passes, Illinois will become the third state to impose a tax on soft drinks, which could increase the cost of soda by up to 50 percent, said Mark Denzler, vice president of the Illinois Manufactures’ Association. Illinois Sen. Mattie Hunter (D3rd) introduced the proposal into the state legislature Feb. 14, claiming the measure would decrease child obesity. The tax is expected to
xx SEE BREAKING, Pg.10
generate more than $600 million, which would go toward funding chronic disease treatments, community nutrition and physical activity programs, said Sen. Heather Steans (D-7th), a co-sponsor of the bill. Soft drinks are the largest source of daily calories for children ages 2–18, and the caloric intake from soda contributes to rising levels of diabetes and obesity in children, Steans said. However, obesity rates have dropped 43 percent throughout the past decade in 2–5-year-old children, as reported by the New York Times on Feb. 25. According to a July 2012 Gallup poll, 48 percent of Americans drink at least one serving of soda per day.
xx SEE SODA, Pg. 40
FEATURE
SPORTS & HEALTH
CAMPUS
Ice artists frozen out as machines take over industry • pg. 22
Dishonesty, creativity linked in study • pg. 13
Joan Rivers cracks up Columbia • pg. 3
The Columbia Chronicle 2 • March 3, 2014
by Lindsey Woods
Editor-in-Chief
Congratulations, Chronicle staff! WORKING AT THE Chronicle is not easy. Ask anyone who’s been here. The pay is bad, the hours are long and sometimes the stress feels like too much to bear. Only a certain type of masochistic workaholic can stick around for more than a week or two. That’s why it’s gratifying when someone recognizes our hard work. The Illinois College Press Association named The Chronicle the best newspaper in its category in the state, and presented us with 16 other awards for various photographic, graphic, editorial and advertising content, as reported on Page 8. Overall, 12 current or former staff members were individually recognized for the work they produced in The Chronicle and I am incredibly proud of them. That’s the kind of stuff you put in your portfolio and take to the bank. I know from experience that every journalist, photographer, copy editor, graphic designer, ad team member, webmaster, multimedia editor and social media editor we’ve hired is capable of being the best in his or her field. Watching them work 40 or 50 hours per week on top of (mostly) keeping up with coursework, I know that all Chronicle staffers deserve an award.
But to me, the awards we won as a staff mean the most, including first place in the General Excellence and Special Supplement categories, second place for an advertising campaign, third place for our website and an honorable mention for headline writing. The staff awards are a testament to what we do collectively. As anyone who has ever worked on a group project knows, working as a team is much more difficult than working alone, but none of us could put together the paper you’re holding in your hands or reading online by ourselves. It takes a group effort, and although it’s usually a messy, chaotic and sometimes trying effort, the product always comes out better than I could ever expect. Going on my third year as part of this incredible staff, I can say with confidence that working on The Chronicle team is a lot like having a huge, dysfunctional, loud-butloving family. We’re sometimes cooped up together in the office for up to 15 or more hours at a time. When all of us are stressed to our limits and ready to break down or walk out, week after week we pick each other up when we get knocked down, talk each other off the proverbial ledge and pump out a kick-ass newspaper.
CAMPUS PG. 3
AEMM students head to South by South West festival • PG. 4 Student documentary highlights department diversity issues • PG. 6
SPORTS & HEALTH PG. 13
Researchers design termite-inspired robots for construction jobs • PG. 15 Innovative treatment may help heart attack patients • PG. 16
These awards are more than just a nice ego boost. They validate that all of the s--t we go through every week is worth it—that we’re doing something valuable, or at least something that people actually read and appreciate. The Chronicle staff should be proud of what we do every day, but the truth is, a lot of that pride gets buried under the weight of more immediate deadlines and work. These awards are a nice little push to keep going, so we can continue to bring the Columbia community award-winning, important Chicago area news. lwoods@chroniclemail.com
ARTS & CULTURE PG. 19
Folk musicians jam out at Canada-style Old Town School of Folk • PG. 21 Chicago dives into Mardis Gras celebrations and music • PG. 25
OPINIONS PG. 34
College faculty and staff needs merit-based pay raises • PG. 34 Chicago needs better plan for potential flooding • PG. 34
METRO PG. 37
Veteran’s suicides lead to awareness resolution in City Council • PG. 37 Gap between rich and poor widens in cities since recession • PG. 37
STAFF MASTHEAD
MANAGEMENT
Lindsey Woods Editor-in-Chief Emily Ornberg Managing Editor Kaley Fowler Managing Editor Sylvia Leak Ad & Business Manager Tyler Eagle Associate Editor Tatiana Walk-Morris Campus Editor Jennifer Wolan Assistant Campus Editor Katherine Davis Assistant Campus Editor Carleigh Turner Assistant Campus Editor
SPORTS & HEALTH
All text, photos and graphics are the property of The Chronicle and may not be reproduced or published without written permission.
2 • March 3, 2014
Letters to the editor must include full name, year, major and phone number. All letters are edited for grammar and may be cut due to a limit of space.
Views expressed in this publication are those of the writer and are not the opinions of The Chronicle, Columbia’s Journalism Department or Columbia College Chicago.
The Chronicle holds the right to limit any one person’s submissions to three per semester.
MULTIMEDIA
Charles Jefferson Senior Multimedia Editor Samantha Tadelman Asst. Multimedia Editor Nader Ihmoud Media Relations Editor
ARTS & CULTURE
ADVERTISING
Femi Awesu Senior Account Executive Jesse Hinchcliffe Ad Account Executive Myles Adams Ad Account Executive
WEB
Elizabeth Earl Opinions Editor
Kyle Rich Social Media Editor Sean McEntee Webmaster
METRO
OPERATIONS
OPINIONS
Editorials are the opinions of the Editorial Board of The Chronicle. Columns are the opinions of the author(s).
Anthony Soave Senior Photo Editor Carolina Sanchez Photo Editor Grace Wiley Photo Editor Angela Conners Photo Editor
Vanessa Morton Assistant S&H Editor Sarah Schlieder Assistant S&H Editor Matt McCall Assistant Arts & Culture Editor Nicole Montalvo Assistant Arts & Culture Editor Lorenzo Jackson Assistant Arts & Culture Stephen Hall Film Critic
The Chronicle is a student-produced publication of Columbia College Chicago and does not necessarily represent, in whole or in part, the views of college administrators, faculty or students.
Kayla Koch Senior Graphic Designer Keenan Browe Graphic Designer Aly Dodds Graphic Designer Donald Wu Graphic Designer
PHOTOGRAPHY
CAMPUS
Anthony Soave THE CHRONICLE Damon Williams, Chicago native and Comedy Central comedian, performs his stand-up comedy routine Feb. 26 in the Music Center, 1014 S. Michigan Ave. The event was hosted by the Black Student Union and The Office of Multicultural Affairs.
GRAPHICS
Maria Castellucci Metro Editor Natalie Craig Assistant Metro Editor
Brandon Smith Office Assistant
COPY
Chris Richert General Manager Jeff Lyon Faculty Adviser Stephanie Goldberg Assistant Faculty Erik Rodriguez Production Manager
Caitlin Looney Copy Editor Kyra Senese Copy Editor Abbas Haleem Copy Editor Mark Minton Copy Editor
Letters can be faxed to (312) 369-8430, emailed to Chronicle@colum.edu or mailed to: The Chronicle 33 E. Congress Parkway, Suite 224 Chicago, IL. 60605-1996
SENIOR STAFF
Main line: (312) 369-8999 Advertising: (312) 369-8984 Campus: (312) 369-8964 Metro: (312) 369-8966 Arts & Culture: (312) 369-8969 Commentary: (312) 369-8967 Copy: (312) 369-8976 Photo: (312) 369-8973 Sports & Health: (312) 369-8970 Permission/Reproductions: (312) 369-8955 General Manager: (312) 369-8955 Faculty Adviser: (312) 369-8903
MONDAY, MARCH 3, 2014
THE COLUMBIA CHRONICLE
Rivers delivers trademark snark to standing ovation TYLER EAGLE Associate Editor SNARKY JABS LACED with Hollywood wisdom flew as veteran comedienne Joan Rivers made a highly anticipated appearance at Columbia. Rivers’ Feb. 25 sold-out performance at Film Row Cinema in the Conaway Center, 1104 S. Wabash Ave., was the final act in the annual Conversations in the Arts series. Horatio Sanz, former “Saturday Night Live” cast member, appeared as part of the series in October 2013. Rivers entered Film Row Cinema to a standing ovation, setting her up for her first jab of the evening. “Sit down!” Rivers said. “Standing up and clapping at the start doesn’t mean a f--king thing. I don’t know why I’m here, [CITA] is serious.” Rivers told the audience that she agreed to perform at the college because several other actresses
were doing the same, jokingly pointing out fictitious tours by Winona Ryder, “It’s Better to Give Than Receive,” and Katie Holmes’ discussion of the film chronicling her marriage to Tom Cruise, “12 Years A Slave.” President Kwang-Wu Kim introduced Rivers to the crowd and said he was honored to have her speak as part of the CITA series. He said the college selected Rivers to promote and raise awareness for its new comedy studies program. “[CITA] gives us the opportunity to work with the best, which is always our goal,” Kim said. Rivers said she applauds the college’s comedy writing and performance program, especially because writing is an integral part of the profession. “Comedy writing is the game,” Rivers said. “It’s the name of the game. Comedy performing—eh. There are highs and there are lows.
If there is a low, there will be a high, and if there is a high, then there is really going to be a low. You’re going to have a rough ride.” Rivers said it took a long time for her to land on her feet after she left home and moved to New York City after high school, first as a student at Barnard College, from which she was graduated in 1954. She said she lived in her car for seven years while chasing success. “I don’t know a friend with true talent that didn’t make it,” Rivers said. “It will happen and you can never forget it. To those who say it won’t happen, it will happen.” Rivers said her opportunity came when Bill Cosby got her a spot on “The Tonight Show,” a job which later engaged her in a well-known feuds with longtime host Johnny Carson. “After the show, Carson said, ‘You’re going to be a star,’” Rivers said. “The next morning, I woke up and the world was different.”
Carolina Sanchez THE CHRONICLE Joan Rivers spoke to a packed room Feb. 25 at Film Row Cinema in the Conaway Center, 1104 S. Wabash Ave., about her career, life and the Kardashian family. Her appearance was the final discussion in the 2013–2014 Conversations in the Arts series.
Rivers later received her own show on FOX, which she worked on with her husband, Edgar Rosenberg. She was later presented with
the decision of firing her husband or losing the show. Rivers chose her
xx RIVERS, PG. 10
Columbia eases transfer process TO BETTER ACCOMMODATE incoming
transfer students’ credits, Columbia sent a statement of intent to the Illinois Board of Higher Education Feb. 25 asking to participate in the Illinois Articulation Initiative, a statewide program meant to ease the transfer process between participating institutions. The program is expected to begin in fall 2014.
The IAI program, which launched in 1998, sets an agreedupon core package of general education courses that are guaranteed to transfer between participating in-state colleges but does not guarantee course-to-course transfers. Columbia’s participation would save transfer students time and money, and make the overall process smoother, according to Patricia Mackenzie, assistant dean of the School of Media Arts and adjunct
transfer student origins 50
100
150
200
250
38% 11%
other states international
300
29% 3%
Information from Office of Institutional Effectiveness
AEMM changes name
58 % 27 % 14 %
TATIANA WALK-MORRIS
came from a two-year college
metro region illinois
xx TRANSFER, PG. 12
transfer rates by institution
19%
chicago
faculty in the Arts Entertainment & Media Management Department. “The world is complicated enough,” Mackenzie said. “The easier we can make it for students, the better. It’s a really generous, open package and it gives students the opportunity to delve right into their majors.” Mackenzie said it has been historically difficult for students to
Kayla Koch THE CHRONICLE
Assistant Campus Editor
Campus Editor
came from a four-year public college
came from a four-year private college
Aly Dodds THE CHRONICLE
KATHERINE DAVIS
THE ARTS, ENTERTAINMENT & Media Management Department will be transforming for the upcoming fall 2014 semester. In addition to adopting a new marketing major from the recently disbanded Marketing Communication Department, and adding several new majors of its own, the AEMM Department will be renamed the Business and Entrepreneurship Department effective April 7. Louise Love, interim provost and vice president of Academic Affairs, announced the change in a Feb. 21
email to the college community. Love said there will be no immediate changes to the curriculum and the name change will make the department more visible to students. “It really had to do with making the [majors] visible to prospective students ... so that the people who are interested in the program will be able to find it,” Love said in a Feb. 25 interview with The Chronicle. Current marketing communication students may choose to graduate with a bachelor’s degree in marketing communication with their existing concentration, or to switch
xx AEMM, PG. 12 March 3, 2014 • 3
The Columbia Chronicle 4 • March 3, 2014
AEMM students to tout talents at SXSW
KATHERINE DAVIS Assistant Campus Editor
THE ARTS, ENTERTAINMENT & Media
Management Department will send 90 students to this year’s South by Southwest film, music and live performance festival March 12–16 in Austin, Texas. This will be the program’s fifth year attending the popular film and media festival. Students who are currently enrolled in the AEMM Department’s five practicum courses will attend the festival to apply the skills they have learned in class, said Justin Sinkovich, assistant professor in the AEMM Department. Sinkovich, who has been to SXSW 15 times, said the number of students attending the festival has gradually increased throughout the past five years, adding that the trip has grown from 17 to 90 students since the first trip in 2009. “It’s spectacular that we’ve been able to bring even more students this year,” Sinkovich said. “Just seeing their reaction to it and how they get so much out of the trip with this
“
many students, that will be multiplied more than it has in the past.” Jerry Brindisi, assistant professor in the AEMM Department, said attending the festival gives students resources in their fields. “For a lot of [students], it’s the first time that they are really engaging in the industry on such a large scale,” Brindisi said. “To see this all kind of come together is really exciting. I think the students really enjoy it and it’s a really good experience for them.” Brindisi said for students to attend the festival, they must be enrolled in an Arts, Entertainment & Media Management Production practicum course, which require students to have at least 60 credit hours, meaning most students are juniors and seniors. He said there are five practicum courses within AEMMP that focus on different areas of music business, including digital distribution, music publishing, a talent agency and a record label. Brindisi said AEMMP Records, the student-run Columbia record label, has rented Bat Bar, a lounge in downtown Austin, so stu-
Just to see students engaging the music industry is really exciting.”
dents can hold an event showcasing their label’s artists on March 13. He said AEMMP has also been working with the Office of Alumni Relations to invite and collaborate with alumni for the Bat Bar event and throughout the festival. “Just to see students engaging the music industry professionally is really exciting,” Brindisi said. “This is their event that they are putting together. They are showcasing their artists [and] they are connecting with industry professionals who are down there.” Evan Paeth, a senior AEMM major, said he is working specifically with the rock division of AEMMP Records and is trying to showcase Columbia artists like the rock band Marina City. Paeth said he attended the festival last year to showcase artists from the Chicago area, while also discovering a lot of new musicians. “I’m beyond excited,” Paeth said. “Last year just gave me a preface for what this year is going to be.” Popular artists such as Kendrick Lamar, Coldplay, Keith Urban, Imagine Dragons and Pitbull are scheduled to perform March 12. Comedy performances by Bill Cosby, Seth Meyers and Sean O’Connor will take place throughout the festival at different venues in Austin.
- Jerry Brindisi
kdavis@chroniclemail.com
The Music Center at Columbia College Chicago 1014 S. Michigan Avenue
Music Department Events Monday March 3 Pop Rock Ensemble: Performance 1 in Concert R&B Ensemble: Performance in Concert
12:00 pm 7:00 pm
Tuesday March 4 Music Student Convocation Pop Rock Ensemble: Performance 2 in Concert
12:00 pm 7:00 pm
Wednesday March 5 Music Student Convocation Wednesday Noon Concert Series* at the Conaway Hip Hop Ensemble in Concert Thursday March 6 Pop Rock Ensemble Performance 3 in Concert Friday March 7 CUP Forum* Keyboard Forum at the Sherwood* Jazz Gallery in the Lobby* Jazz Forum* Pianist Elizabeth Newkirk in Concert at the Sherwood
SERVING BRUNCH EVERY SATURDAY AND SUNDAY 11 a.m. - 2 p.m. A Mimosa and Entree Special is available for $25
12:00 pm 12:00 pm 7:00 pm
7:00 pm
9:30 am 12:00 pm 12:00 pm 2:00 pm 7:00 pm
* Events with an asterisk do not give recital attendance.
4 • March 3, 2014
Courtesy EVAN PAETH Arts, Entertainment & Media Management Production, Columbia’s student-run record label, is hosting a showcasing event at Bat Bar on March 13 at this year’s South by Southwest Festival in Austin, Texas.
OFFERING 10% DISCOUNT TO ALL UNIVERSITY STUDENTS, FACULTY AND STAFF
March 3, 2014 • 5 Campus
c o l u M b i a c o l l e g e c h i c a g o D e pa r t M e n t o f c r e at i v e W r i t i n g p r e s e n t s
March 16 – 21, 2014
Cristina Garcia
public inFOrMatiOn:
Stuart Dybek
Phllip Roche
Michael David Sims
Roxane Gay
Preston L. Allen
Christine Sneed
Barry Gifford
Eric Charles May
Katey Schultz alfredo pelcastre
David Siegfried
Rick Kogan Adam Tinkham
With preston l. allen, Every Boy Should Have a Man, cristina Garcia, King of Cuba Stuart dybek, Ecstatic Cahoots; Paper Lantern, roxane Gay, An Untamed State, eric charles May, Bedrock Faith, donna Seaman, Booklist Senior editor, christine Sneed, Little Known Facts, and others in readings, conversations, panels, performances, book signings, and more
Melissa Pritchard
Justine Bursoni
Isabelle Selby
Free and Open tO the public
Donna Seaman
Valeria Luiselli
colum.edu/storyweek | 312-369-7611 Attention: Story Week attendees! Our host The Hotel Blake is offering special rates for all associated with columbia college and Story Week. call 312-986-1234 and ask for the columbia college preferred rate. This includes complimentary wireless internet access, breakfast vouchers, and two drink tickets for the bar blake upon arrival. Or, contact reservationist Gina Sacomani, 312-344-4950, gsacomani@hotelblake.com
This program is partially supported by a grant from the illinois arts council agency.
This program is made possible in part by a grant from the illinois humanities council, the national endowment for the humanities, and the illinois General assembly.
March 3, 2014 • 5
The Columbia Chronicle 6 • March 3, 2014
Comedian cracks jokes with students
JENNIFER WOLAN
Assistant Campus Editor DAN BAKKEDAHL STROLLED into a
crowded studio on the 15th floor of the Alexandroff Campus Center, 600 S. Michigan Ave., ready to crack dark jokes about his many life choices. He spoke to Columbia students Feb. 24 about his struggles as a rising comedian and actor. Bakkedhal is known for his role as a correspondent on “The Daily Show with Jon Stewart” from 2005–2007 and has recently appeared on TV shows such as “Veep” and “Legit,” and as the dentist in the 2013 cop comedy “The Heat.” After Bakkedahl, 44, graduated from Florida State University in 2001, he decided to pursue comedy in Chicago. Joe Keefe, adjunct professor in the Cinema Art + Science Department, said he trained Bakkedahl during his time as a director and executive producer at Second City. Bakkedahl made a stop to do an interview at Columbia because he was scheduled to perform at Second City later that night, Keefe said. Bakkedahl gave students advice about the television industry during the hour-long Q-and-A interview with students. “People like Bakkedahl are such a good example for television production [students] because he’s
Grace Wiley THE CHRONICLE Joe Keefe (left), an adjunct in the Cinema Art + Science Department, interviews Dan Bakkedahl (right). Bakkedahl spoke to students Feb. 24 about life on the road with “The Daily Show with Jon Stewart.”
been through the path students are just starting right now,” Keefe said. “Bakkedahl has done a little bit of everything in the television world, and his experience adds up to a huge amount for students.” Students asked Bakkedahl what his daily schedule is like and why he left “The Daily Show with Jon Stewart” in 2007. Bakkedahl said his schedule at the show was spo-
radic and he would not be busy for an entire week but would suddenly have to travel to different countries out of the blue to report. The show required a lot of his time, and he said he left because he did not feel he could express his humor there. “If you’re sitting at a place and saying, ‘I can’t do this,’ you’ve never been more right,” Bakkedahl said.
“That’s when you’ll have to leave.” During Keefe’s speed question round, he asked questions such as “Boxers or briefs?” and “Who’s your inspiration?” Although the speed question points Bakkedahl gained were not announced, his answers were swift and witty. Michael Niederman, chair of the Cinema Art + Science Department, said the college has been hosting
well-known television and film actors since before he came to Columbia 30 years ago. “It’s come in various packages and various shapes and sizes, but we’ve been doing it for forever,” Niederman said. Keefe said the department is always looking to expand and invite more guests to speak to students. Nicole Hoffman, internship coordinator for the Television Department, oversaw production for the interview, which is scheduled for broadcast on Frequency TV, Columbia’s student-run TV channel, in the future. “We will probably broadcast Bakkedahl’s interview [on Frequency TV] in small chunks,” Hoffman said. “It gives students more practice behind the cameras.” Christy LeMaster, student activities coordinator in the Cinema Art + Science Department and adjunct faculty member in the Interactive Arts & Media Department, endeavored to make sure the conversations run smoothly. LeMaster said there are more interviews to come, including a March 12 conversation at the Alexandroff Campus Center with Ira David Levy, executive producer and host of “Pedal America,” a TV series that encourages and inspires viewers to bike. jwolan@chroniclemail.com
Student doc targets diversity TATIANA WALK-MORRIS Campus Editor MORE THAN 50 people gathered Feb.
26 in the Conaway Center, 1104 S. Wabash Ave., to attend a third and fourth screenings of “Black Sheep,” a new documentary detailing the lack of diversity in the curriculum of Columbia’s Cinema Art + Science Department. After hearing complaints from black Cinema Art + Science majors, the Black Film Society, a student organization focusing on films that show the black perspective, created the documentary to expose the department’s lack of a diverse curriculum. According to the Office of Institutional Effectiveness, the college has more than 950 adjunct faculty members and more than 300 full-time faculty. Approximately 9 percent of full-time faculty and 8 percent of part-time faculty identify as black, from the same website. Approximately 34 percent of the college’s spring 2014 undergraduate students identify as an ethnic minority and 17 percent are black, according to the spring 2014 statistics. Dismissing people of color in the curriculum takes away from stu-
6 • March 3, 2014
dents’ learning, said Raina McKinley, president of the Black Film Society and a freshman Cinema Art + Science major. “A lot of people had been [telling] stories of how their peers hadn’t been treating them fairly or professors not showing film clips that reflected the diversity of the students,” McKinley said. Out of the 100 adjunct and full-time faculty in the department, 10 identify themselves as black, according to Bruce Sheridan, chair of the Cinema Art + Science Department. The department does not limit curriculum content, and no new proposal for a particular area of focus is automatically rejected, he said in an emailed statement. The Black Film Society screened the film for the first time Feb. 5 in the Wabash Campus Building, 623 S. Wabash Ave., and invited several administrators, including President Kwang-Wu Kim, Bruce Sheridan, chair of the Cinema Art + Science Department, and Mark Kelly, vice president of Student Affairs. Sandra Cuprisin, administrative assistant in the Cinema Art + Science Department, and two others from the department attended the first showing, and
Anthony Soave THE CHRONICLE The Black Film Society hosted a screening Feb. 26 to address the lack of diversity in the Cinema Art + Science Department. Andre Richardson Hogan II, a 2001 liberal arts alumnus, commented on the lack of diversity he experienced at Columbia during the post-screening Q-and-A session.
Kelly came for the Q-and-A session McKinley said. Kelly, Sheridan and Kim attended the Feb. 26 show. Kim said he thought the documentary was interesting, but he wished it included more faculty perspectives. He said he has heard similar complaints from students about lack of diversity, adding that the college will look into bringing in faculty members with different perspectives. Hiring faculty members of different ethnicities is only one part of creating a diverse faculty, Kim said. “Part of how you diversify curriculum is bringing people who have different experiences and different expertise,” Kim said. “[Diversity] has got to be built into the way we
set about creating hiring plans.” Andre Richardson Hogan II, a 2001 liberal arts alumnus, said he thought the film was informative, and without student organizations like the Black Film Society, finding an outlet for minority students’ voices are heard. Hogan said he encountered few black faculty members, and as an artist, he experiences a lack of diversity in the professional world. “When I took my playwriting courses, it was mostly white students,” Hogan said. “I felt like I didn’t get as [many] resources as I should … regarding finding an agent [and] script submissions.” Kloe Mallard, freshman music major, said she thought “Black Sheep” was a brilliant docu-
mentary, adding that she wished Columbia had more instructors like Jennifer Peepas, an adjunct in the Cinema Art + Science Department, who was featured in the film. Mallard said she came to Columbia expecting it to be more diverse, but found that she was one of few black students in her classes. She said she has not had many black professors. “I enjoyed tonight, and I think [Columbia] needs to have more nights like this,” Mallard said. “It’s not like I want to be surrounded by black students all the time … but I’d rather have teachers that knew how to accommodate me as a black student.” twalkmorris@chroniclemail.com
March 3, 2014 • 7 Campus
March 3, 2014 • 7
T HE C OLUMBIA C HRONI C LE 8 • March 3, 2014
Chronicle named best newspaper in Illinois Editor-in-Chief THE COLUMBIA CHRONICLE was named best in state and collected 18 other awards from the Illinois College Press Association Feb. 22. The Chronicle, which was categorized as a non-daily at a college with enrollment over 4,000, picked up five first place awards, including General Excellence. The Alestle, Southern Illinois University at Edwardsville’s twice-weekly student paper, placed second in the General Excellence category for non-daily newspapers with enrollment over 4,000. The DePaulia, DePaul University’s student newspaper, and The Chicago Maroon, the student newspaper of the University of Chicago, tied for third place. The Chronicle also won first place for its 2013 Sex Issue in the Special Supplement category. Previous Chronicle photographers Jon Durr and Kevin Gebhardt won first place for sports photo and spot news photo, respectively, and former Assistant Arts & Culture Editor Libby Buck won first place for Critical Review (other than film) for her September 2013 review of a Bone Thugs -N- Harmony concert. The Chronicle placed second, third
or received an honorable mention in 13 other categories that included advertising, graphics, editorial content, photography and web content. There were 29 college newspapers that competed for ICPA awards, 13 of which compete in the non-daily with college enrollment over 4,000 division. “We’re very proud of [The Chronicle],” said Nancy Day, chair of the Journalism Department. “I’m like a proud parent…. [The Chronicle] works very hard and they’re very professional.” Day said she has been pleased with The Chronicle’s progress in the 10 years she has been chair and has noticed a growing attention to diversity. Day said she was most excited about the photography awards because the department is trying to focus more on photojournalism by establishing a multimedia photojournalism major. The major is currently pending approval by President Kwang-Wu Kim. “I’m proud of everyone, but I’m particularly proud of the photojournalists, who often come to The Chronicle because that is a major venue online and in print for their work,” Day said. Robin Bargar, dean of the School of Media Arts, said he was “not sur-
First Place
Staff – General Excellence (Non-Dailies more than 4,000 students) Elizabeth Buck – Critical Review Other than Film (Open Category) Jon Durr – Sports Photo (Non-Daily more than 4,000 students) Staff – Special Supplement (Open Category) Kevin Gebhart – Spot News Photo (Non-Dailies more than 4,000) Kevin Gebhart – Spot News Photo (Non-Dailies more than 4,000)
Second Place Michael Scott Fischer – Promotional Ad (Open Category) Staff - Advertising Campaign Open Category Anthony Soave, Christine Fielder, Jon Durr – Photo Essay (Non-Dailies more than 4,000) Anthony Soave, Shoot Chicago Photo Competition
Third Place Lindsey Woods – Sports Column (Non-Dailies more than 4,000) Lindsey Woods – Column (Excluding Sports) (Non-Dailies more than 4,000) Jonathan Wilcox – Other Cartoon, Strip or panel (Open Category) Staff – Online News Site (Open Category) Heidi Unkefer – Graphic Illustration (Open Category) Emily Ornberg, Michael Fischer – Feature Story other than sports (Non-Dailies more than 4,000) Aiden Weber – Sports News Story (Non-Dailies more than 4,000) Carolina Sanchez, Shoot Chicago Photo Competition
Honorable Mention Staff – Headline Writing (Non-Dailies more than 4,000)
prised, but thrilled,” about the state awards as well as the two national awards The Chronicle was awarded last summer—Best Overall Newspaper in the Nation from the Society of Professional Journalists and a
Pacemaker Award from The Associated Collegiate Press. “This program is clearly being seen as an increasingly national player and that’s the goal, to have the Columbia Journalism Program
Kayla Koch THE CHRONICLE
LINDSEY WOODS
Columbia Chronicle 2013 Illinois College Press Association Awards
recognized by the other more famous journalism programs in the country … as a forward-looking journalism practice,” Bargar said. lwoods@chroniclemail.com
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Campus The Chronicle spoke to Faux about her goals, digital strategies and cyber lifestyle.
THE CHRONICLE: How did you become so social-media savvy? CHERYL FAUX: I basically grew up with computers. There were times when I was little and I was spending my entire day sitting at the computer, learning how to do stuff. I spent the majority of my time constantly learning information about how social media [and] advertising is changing. I’ve invested a lot of time in [social media] and I think it’s paid off. How did you become a brand promoter for Macy’s?
CHERYL FAUX sophomore marketing communication major Anthony Soave THE CHRONICLE Cheryl Faux, sophomore marketing communication major, tweets and monitors the Internet in search of trends she can use in her marketing strategies.
JENNIFER WOLAN Assistant Campus Editor CHERYL FAUX, SOPHOMORE marketing
communication major, became an Internet junkie when she started creating her Tumblr page, {365} by learning how to use Adobe programs like Photoshop to brand herself in a unique and professional way on the Internet. In September 2013, Faux worked on a brand strategy project for Macy’s, and she is completing a public
relations internship at Blue Pearl Consulting, an operations consulting firm that specializes in health care and manufacturing industries. Ever since she got her hands on a computer in middle school, Faux said she has been learning to use Photoshop to create eye-catching images for Twitter, Pinterest and Tumblr and to market projects for clients. She is also the creator of “S--t Columbia College Professors Say,” a Tumblr account that posts pro-
fessors’ quotes on top of completely unrelated photographs. Before transferring to Columbia from Indiana University in 2013, Faux attended an Indiana Hoosiers men’s basketball home game, where the crowd made a Harlem Shake video that reached more than 11,000 views on YouTube. Faux has recently created a student ad agency with fellow classmates. Although it’s a new idea, Faux said she expects it to be up and running soon.
[When] I was on the Internet looking for promotion internships and marketing internships, I came across this student promotions company called Fluent Group, and they were doing a promotion in Chicago for Macy’s. What my colleagues and I did was promote Macy’s around Columbia, more specifically in the South Campus Building, 624 S. Michigan Ave. We held a clothing drive that included clothes from many fashion shoots outside the buildings one day.
What is your dream job? I really want to work for an ad agency once I graduate. I want to become an account planner or a
strategist; those words get used interchangeably in the ad industry. What I would do as account planner is deal with the clients. Then there’s a creative [planner], who creates what the client wants, and what the strategist has to do is [fuse] what the client wants and what the creative is going to create. We have to figure out if this idea is going to capture the target market’s attention and make sure they see it, and [that] they want to participate in what the client is trying to sell them or get them to do. Specifically, I want to be a digital strategist. I like dealing with Internet campaigns, whether it’s on social media or banners—anything that requires technology. I’m not the traditional TV media strategist.
How did you think of “S---t Columbia College Professors Say”? Last semester, I realized my professors would say these really hilarious things during class, and why not do something cool with them? I realized that this became really popular on Tumblr and it was completely random.
Tell me about your student ad agency. It’s in the creative process right now. We only thought of it about three weeks ago. We already have a faculty advisor and are just getting excited about it. jwolan@chroniclemail.com
Need housing next year? o
Secure it for only $250 down! Starting February 24th through March 7th, Columbia College students can sign a contract to live on campus for 2014-2015. No need to fill out an application! Just come into the Residence Life Office, located at 731 South Plymouth Court, and choose the building and/ or room you want to live in next year. You will need to provide a $250 housing prepayment (or receipt of your prepayment) and proof of a current medical insurance policy. The Contract Campaign ends Friday, March 7th. If you miss this deadline, you will have to go through the regular housing application process. There are specific dates in which current residents and nonresidents can sign a contract. For a full schedule, and other important information, please visit:
www.colum.edu/contractcampaign DON’T FORGET!
March 3, 2014 • 9
The Columbia Chronicle 10 • March 3, 2014
xx PROVOST
Continued from Front Page
from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, according to his curriculum vitae. Improving retention rates at Kent State was a complex process that involved providing students with the environment necessary for success and admitting students who were properly prepared for college, Wearden said. Wearden said he is excited to be Columbia’s new provost and is eager to begin his new job. He said Columbia’s media programs caught his attention years ago, and his visit during the selection process further piqued his interest. “I have known of Columbia College Chicago for years because of the strength of its media program and the strength of your film program,” Wearden said. “Through every step of the [selection] process, I have felt myself drawing closer and closer to Columbia College Chicago
… and just feeling more and more like it’s a good fit for me.” Wearden said his first priority is as provost is to learn more about the college and its programs. Louise Love, Columbia’s interim provost and vice president of Academic Affairs, will continue to serve as provost until Wearden takes over on July 1, according to Kim’s email. Luke Crawford, a member of the provost search committee and a double major in AEMM and marketing communication, said he is excited about Wearden becoming Columbia’s provost. Crawford described Wearden as nice and easy to talk to but very structured. “[Wearden and McCord] have a lot of experience [and] both of them are very intelligent,” Crawford said. “Both of them would have been able to … thrive in this atmosphere, but I think [Wearden] is going to have a much easier time thriving in this community.” twalkmorris@chroniclemail.com
xx RIVERS
Continued from PG. 3
husband and the network canceled the show. Rivers said Carson blacklisted her from “The Tonight Show” because the comedy industry suffered after she left her show. Her husband committed suicide three weeks later. “It was like ‘Sophie’s Choice,’” Rivers joked. “I made the wrong choice. Children, learn from my mistakes—I was stupid. Stop your humanity. Learn how to stomp on your mother’s face.” Rivers said NBC’s ban continued into Jay Leno’s reign, until Jimmy Fallon invited her on Feb. 17 for his first night as the host of “The Tonight Show.” Rivers said she appreciated the gesture. “I think [NBC’s ban] was because I was a woman,” Rivers said. “I cried in the car on the way home [after Fallon’s show].” After NBC’s ban and the death of her husband, Rivers said she had
Continued from Front Page of Institutional Advancement, will immediately launch a national search to identify a vice president for the Department of Development. Chapman will continue to lead the remaining staff of Institutional Advancement while the college assembles a new staff, according to the email. Kim and Chapman did not return requests for comment on the changes or terminations as
ART S TA R T
of press time, nor did Michael Anderson, associate vice president of Institutional Advancement. Diane Doyne, associate vice president of Marketing & Communications, also declined to comment, citing a college-wide policy prohibiting administrators from discussing personnel issues. She declined to identify the employees who were terminated.
“As in most transitions, there are difficult choices,” Kim wrote. “This reorganization has resulted in the separation of seven college employees and a realignment of responsibilities for others. We thank those employees who are leaving for their service to the college and wish them well in their future endeavors.” teagle@chroniclemail.com
SUMMER ARTS CAMP
FOR YOUNG CREATIVES ENTERING GRADES 3-9
“
Stop your humanity. Learn how to stomp on your mother’s face.” - Joan Rivers
to start over. She began performing at smaller venues again, and she worked her way up to her own daytime show, “The Joan Rivers Show,” which won her an Emmy in 1990. “Don’t think you can do only one thing,” Rivers said. “When a window is shut, you go around it. Never turn down an opportunity as long as it’s related to the core thing you want to do. Your pride should be in your work, not yourself.” John Green, interim dean of the School of Fine and Performing Arts, said Rivers was funny and profound. Green said he thinks Rivers realistically portrayed post-college life, especially for comedy majors. “When you initially leave college, you come from the high of a college experience and suddenly you’re out in the world,” Green said. “The world doesn’t owe you anything.” Rivers stressed the importance of asking for help and discussed how her friends helped her when she started her line of jewelry for QVC, a home shopping network. “When you’re asked, there is one word—yes—to everything,” Rivers said. “You’re young. You can f--king learn it. I said I always wanted to do [QVC]. I didn’t know the first thing about it.”
Rivers poked fun at the Kardashians, particularly Kim Kardashian’s infamous sex tape. However, she did praise the family’s ability to take turbulent life events and make them prosperous, a characteristic she said is essential to success. “I’m not saying do porn,” Rivers said. “But learn how to take every little thing and spin it. You remember the ones who stand out.” Young performers cannot be successful if they focus on the negatives of the industry instead of the positives, Rivers said, likening it to reports of Princess Diana’s unhappiness. “She had a crown,” Rivers said. “If I had a crown, I would go back to the people from high school and say, ‘Check my hat.’” Rivers ended her performance with a call to appreciate the comedy industry, particularly for the students in the audience. “You’re all so lucky because you’re going into a profession and life that will never be boring,” Rivers said. “You should thank God for that, and if you’re lucky, [for] having a close, supporting family that lives in another state.”
RNALISM U O J : A L IN ATES SEMESTER NDERGRADU
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14
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10 • March 3, 2014
March 3, 2014 • 11 Campus
March 3, 2014 • 11
The Columbia Chronicle 12 • March 3, 2014
xx TRANSFER
Continued from PG. 3
transfer previous college credits into Columbia’s curriculum, but the college has been making strides toward simpler credit transfers for the past year and a half by analyzing LAS courses and finding matches for other participating colleges, which she said will decrease the burden of transferring. The college participated in this initiative once before, but the previous provost, Steven Kapelke, put a freeze on the IAI in 2006, according to Keri Walters, assistant dean of faculty advising in the School of Fine and Performing Arts. She said Louise Love, interim provost and vice president of Academic Affairs, recently lifted that freeze. “Shortly after the [freeze was lifted], the whole transfer initiative project started,” Walters said. “I’m really excited that we will be retuning to IAI.” Krista Jackson, IAI coordinator, said there are two levels of the IAI program and Columbia currently participates on the first level, which only allows students to transfer to Columbia using the credit package. She said the second level would allow students to easily transfer from Columbia to other participating colleges. Although Columbia is currently participating on the first level, they have the option to upgrade to the second level if they choose. Jackson said the only participation requirement for colleges is that they are Illinois accredited. She said there are many advantages for colleges that participate in the initiative because they are offering their students more options throughout their college career, which helps students graduate faster. “It’s good for students to know that if they’ve taken courses at one of the other institutions that participate in the program, the student will get credit for those courses,” Jackson said. Mackenzie said there are some exceptions as to when Columbia would not accept specific transfer credits, like when a student has earned a C or below in a class or if the class is not offered at Columbia. She said a committee decides which credits are transferable into Columbia’s curricu-
xx AEMM
One Week Only! March 11–16 800-775-2000 •
Tickets also available at all Broadway In chicago Box Offices and Ticketmaster outlets. Groups 10+: 312-977-1710
12 • March 3, 2014
Continued from PG. 3
their current concentration in Advertising, Public Relations or Marketing to their major, according to Love’s email. The department will also introduce new bachelor’s degrees including live & performing arts management, media management, music business, sports management, visual arts management, advanced management and international arts management, according to Philippe Ravanas, chair of the AEMM Department. The department is also launching concentrations in film business and design management and a minor in interactive media development and entrepreneurship, Ravanas said. The courses within these programs will be open to students outside of the Business and Entrepreneurship Department, he said. “All this transformation is seamless to the current students,” Ravanas said. “There’s a great amount of benefit in better presenting what [students] are doing.” The department changed its name to Business and Entrepreneurship after analyzing search results for the department and considering feedback from Enrollment Management. They are solicited feedback from prospective and current students, Ravanas said. The new title will better reflect the programs the department offers, he said. To gather feedback from current students, Ravanas said he spoke with students in AEMM classes to determine whether the name change would fit.
lum. The committee is made up of the educators from the Office of Degree Evaluation, the assistant deans in each of the three schools and faculty members from the departments that pertain to those particular courses and credits in question. Although many transfer students have historically been required to take the First Year Seminar course, Mackenzie said transfer students who have at least 24 transferable credits will now be exempt from taking the class. Corbin Merriman, a sophomore theater major, said he transferred to Columbia in fall 2013 from the University of Mount Union in Alliance, Ohio, because he wanted to participate in the comedy writing and performance program in the Theatre Department, a program his previous college did not offer. Merriman said only 25 of his 32 completed credits transferred because some classes he took at UMU did not correspond with Columbia’s curriculum. However, some of the credits that transferred are now useless to Merriman because they do not relate to his new major. “I was thankful that a lot of the credits transferred over,” Merriman said. “But once I realized that some of them didn’t count for anything unless I changed [my major], I just kind of sucked it up and did it.” Merriman said he supports the college’s decision to participate in IAI because it will make it more likely that students get credit for previous coursework. “I think it will be a lot easier,” Merriman said. “If they take this initiative to make it easier on transfer students, the word will get out that it’s not a pain in the a-- to transfer here.” According to Institutional Effectiveness statistics, the number of transfer students has decreased. In fall 2011, Columbia had 1,167 transfer students and in fall 2013 had decreased to 682, 256 of them coming from the metro region. Despite the decrease, there is still a substantial amount of transfer students and according to Mackenzie, the new initiative will invite more transfer students to the college in the future. kdavis@chroniclemail.com Aaron Hopgood, a senior AEMM major with a concentration in music business, said the name change is not surprising to him. Because he has a marketing minor, Hopgood said the marketing concentration will be a good fit within the Business and Entrepreneurship Department. The courses Hopgood takes are directly related to entrepreneurship in terms of branding and starting a sustainable business after college, he said. “I’m not too taken back by the name change at all,” Hopgood said. “It does describe what the program is about.” Justin Sinkovich, assistant professor in the AEMM Department, said students in his Self-Management & Freelancing course had mixed reactions regarding the name change. Students liked the department’s current name because it is familiar to them, but they agreed that the new name is easier to enunciate and fits the different programs the department offers, Sinkovich said. “If you think about all the disciplines that we teach here … we branch out into other areas,” Sinkovich said. “A lot of students were excited about not having to say ‘Arts, Entertainment & Media Management’ anymore.” Given that the marketing program is not within the arts or entertainment realm, the new name broadly encompasses its current program and allows room for future curricula changes if the department moves in a different direction, Sinkovich said. twalkmorris@chroniclemail.com
The Columbia Chronicle
Monday, MARCH 3, 2014
Dishonesty increases creativity, study says SARAH SCHLIEDER Assistant Sports & Health Editor SOCIETY MAY FROWN upon dishonest behaviors, but two related Harvard studies have found that lying may increase creativity. The studies conducted in 2012 and 2013 measured the relationship between dishonesty and creativity in people after they completed a series of activities that promoted dishonest behaviors and innovative ideas. Results showed an increase in creativity when the participants lied or cheated during the activities. Francesca Gino, associate professor of business administration at Harvard Business School, and Dan Ariely, professor of psychology and behavioral economics at Duke University, conducted the first study measuring dishonest behavior in creative people. Creative types are better at justifying their unethical actions with unconventional ideas, according to Ariely. Study participants were either asked to describe their level of creativity using three creative personality and behavior scales or they were assigned to a controlled scenario where creativity was not
promoted for all subjects. They then participated in five experiments that measured dishonesty. In each experiment, participants who identified as being very creative or participated in the creative mindset scenario showed higher levels of dishonest behavior in the subsequent tasks. Gino, along with Scott Wiltermuth, assistant professor of Management and Organization at the University of Southern California, revisited the idea that creativity and dishonesty are related in 2013. This time, the model was flipped, and creativity was measured in people who actively displayed dishonest tendencies. The study found participants who demonstrated greater dishonest behaviors were more creative in the required activities. “If you break a rule, if you start behaving dishonestly, that’s going to really free up your mind … therefore, you’re going to be more creative,” Wiltermuth said. In the 2013 study, participants performed similar activities to those in the 2012 study. The first experiment found that after participating in creative tasks, research subjects were more dishon-
Donald Wu THE CHRONICLE
est, corroborating the first study’s conclusion. The other experiments prompted participants to lie about their results after performing the different tasks before they completed an activity requiring creativity. Those who lied about their performance showed greater creativity, according to the study.
Money was used to encourage participants to lie about their performance following each task, Wiltermuth said. The more people lied, in general, the more money the research team gave them. Wiltermuth said money was used as an incentive because it is often valued by people in real-life situations.
According to Andy Yap, lecturer and post-doctoral associate at the Sloan School of Management at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, dishonest behavior is not something people engage in for fun, but rather in order to get something
xx SEE LIES, PG. 17
Gluten-free diets attract attention from wrong crowd ZAREEN SYED Contributing Writer FROM QUINOA CAKE mix to specialized
restaurant menus, the gluten-free craze that began in 2013 is making its way into American diets for its purported weight-loss benefits. Although gluten-free labels pop up on a variety of foods, nutrition experts say there is not enough attention to celiac disease, which can only be treated with a gluten-free diet. According to Rebecca Fertel, registered and licensed dietician and founder of Nutrition Fast Forward, gluten is the protein found in wheat, barley and rye. In other words, it is the glue in some of the most common dietary staples, such as bread, pasta, cereal and many
WEDNESDAY, MARCH 5
desserts. Gluten is an essential ingredient in most conventional baked goods because it creates the fluffy consistency of cakes and muffins, Fertel said. Carol Shilson, executive director at the University of Chicago Celiac Disease Center, said the hype surrounding gluten-free products is “a double-edged sword” because it may help raise awareness but does little to further the understanding that celiac disease can only be treated with a strict gluten-free diet, which is not a passing fad. As defined by the National Foundation for Celiac Awareness, celiac disease is an autoimmune disorder triggered by the consumption of gluten. When disease sufferers eat foods containing gluten, their immune
WEDNESDAY, MARCH 5
Chicago Wolves vs. Grand Rapids Griffins
Chicago Bulls vs. Detroit Pistons
Time : 6 PM Place : Allstate Arena Where to watch : The U-Too
Time : 6:30 PM Place : Palace of Auburn Hills Where to watch : CSNC
system responds by damaging the finger-like villi of the small intestine. The microvilli are relatively small, but their job is crucial. They are like sponges programmed to absorb all nutrients and vitamins from food. Without them, someone with celiac disease is left tired and vitamin-deficient, Fertel said. Left untreated, people with celiac disease can develop further complications, including other autoimmune diseases, osteoporosis, thyroid disease and cancer, said Shilson, who was diagnosed with celiac disease in 2005. According to the NFCA, an estimated one in 133 Americans has celiac disease. The only treatment for celiac disease is a completely gluten-free diet. For that reason, Dawn Jack-
THIS WEEK IN
SPORTS
son Blatner, a registered dietician and food and nutrition expert, said most people with the disease do not understand why others would choose to eat gluten-free without a medical reason. Celiac disease is also commonly referred to as gluten intolerance, an umbrella term for celiac disease, wheat allergies and non-celiac gluten sensitivity, Shilson said. Non-celiac gluten sensitivity is not as commonly understood as celiac disease, Shilson said. A person is considered to have non-celiac gluten sensitivity if they test negtive for celiac disease but their clinical symptoms resolve with the help of a gluten-free diet. According to Blatner, gluten sensitivity is a digestive disorder that
THURSDAY, MARCH 6
has nothing to do with the immune system or the microvillus. Blatner said the distinction between celiac disease and gluten sensitivity is controversial because there is currently no test available to diagnose gluten sensitivity, as opposed to celiac disease, which can be identified by a blood biopsy. Since having been misdiagnosed for 11 years and then finally being diagnosed as celiac in 2005, Shilson said being gluten-free is a complete lifestyle change. Not only is it overwhelming to locate foods that follow the strict guidelines, she said it can be socially awkward too. It makes things particularly uncomfortable when the dinner party
xx SEE GLUTEN, PG. 17
THURSDAY, MARCH 6
Northwestern Wildcats vs. State Nitteny Lions
Depaul Blue Demons vs. Butler Bulldogs
Time : 6 PM Place : Welsh-Ryan Arena Where to watch : BTN
Time : 8 PM Place : Allstate Arena Where to watch : CBSS March 3, 2014 • 13
The Columbia Chronicle 14 • March 3, 2014
FEATURED
IHMOUD’S MOODS Soccer has no borders ATHLETES ARE STUDENTS of the game
they play. Practice facilities serve as a classroom where they can learn and hone their craft, and, though it seems silly to say, no one’s safety should be in question as they travel to and from practice. Palestinian soccer players Jawhar Nasser Jawhar, 19, and Adam Abd al-Raouf Halabiya, 17, were returning from practice and meeting friends in the West Bank Jan. 31 when Israeli forces opened fire on them and subsequently released police dogs without warning. The young men were then dragged across the ground and beaten, according to multiple news sources. The two Palestinian players were taken to an Israeli hospital in Jerusalem where the bullets were surgically removed during multiple operations. Jawhar was shot 11 times. The two will be reevaluated in six months to determine if they will ever walk again. Neither of the two will ever play soccer again, said Jibril Rajoub, chairman of the Palestinian Football Association in an Inside World Football article Feb 14. According to an Israeli Border Police spokesman, the Palestinians tried to throw bombs at the policemen, a Haaretz article reported Feb. 3. The report also stated that the policemen sent a picture of the bomb to the organization. The men denied this in the same story. The Chronicle reached out to the Israeli Consulate for verification and comment but there has been no response as of press time. Israel’s security forces control
movement between the Gaza Strip and the West Bank. Palestinian athletes are frequently unable to travel freely between the separated territories. The Palestinian Football Association is a part of the Asian Football Confederation, meaning it will have more regional matches, but it has complained that Israel has gone so far as stopping players from a third country from entering the West Bank. Rajoub is seeking Israel’s expulsion from the Fédération Internationale de Football Association at the next Congress in June, according to InsideWorldFootball.com. Rajoub said he would not back down unless Israel eases travel restrictions on players and officials attending matches and practices, according to the article. Rajoub told Inside World Football that he has the support of Iran, Qatar, Oman, Jordan, Algeria and Tunisia. Joseph Blatter, president of FIFA, wants Palestine and Israel to sign a cooperation agreement at the FIFA Congress. However, Rajoub said he would only sign if Israel eases its brutality, but Israel is far from admitting its methods are illegal and do more harm than good. Rajoub, an official in the Palestine Authority and a member of the Fatah Central Committee, which has long protected Palestinian nationalism, has already met with Blatter and Israel’s Football Association President Avi Luzon. The two discussed the traveling restrictions put on non-Israelis traveling to and
ATHLETE
CORBIN MERRIMAN
Sport: Baseball
Team/School: Renegades
NADER IHMOUD
Media Relations Editor
from Palestine for soccer purposes; however, the recent attacks on Palestinians may have decreased the chances of the two sides coming to an agreement. If Israel fails to lift traveling restrictions, FIFA will have an easy decision to make. Soccer, the most popular sport in the world, should be accessible to all. Palestinians and Israelis should be able to play side by side, and having checkpoints and border patrol between villages does not promote a safe environment. The Palestinians are humans, too; they should be treated as such. Israel’s brutality and restrictions on Palestinian soccer players is an act of oppression, an attempt to bring fear to a community and put a stranglehold on their lives. FIFA recognizes both countries as full members, and rightfully so. If Israel is going to continue to harm the game in Palestine, the soccer organization in the world should stand up for all soccer players and consider severing ties with Israel. Nader Ihmoud is a PalestinianAmerican. Listen as he hosts The Benchwarmers Show Monday’s on WCRX 88.1 FM from 7–9 p.m. nihmoud@chroniclemail.com
Courtesy TOBY PECHNER
ABBAS HALEEM Copy Editor PERFORMING ON “SATURDAY Night
Live” has been a long-time dream for Corbin Merriman, and it is one of the reasons he chose to attend Columbia, but his decision ultimately came down to the college having a baseball team. Merriman, a sophomore theater major from Dalton, Ohio, came to Columbia because of the college’s comedy writing and performance program. Merriman has been playing baseball since he began t-ball at 4 years old. He is currently the starting catcher and one of the co-captains of the Columbia Renegades baseball team. The Chronicle spoke to Merriman about growing up in Ohio, moving to Chicago, studying comedy and playing baseball.
THE CHRONICLE: Where did you grow up? CORBIN MERRIMAN: I grew up in a very small town called Dalton, Ohio, and the town had less than 1,500 people. The thing about my town is, usually, once you’re in high school, you’ve peaked and then you went out and got a blue-collar job and made $30,000 a year and you lived vicariously through your children and had accomplished everything you could. I didn’t want to be one of those people that stuck around and just lived the American life with the white picket fence. I wanted to go out and see if I could make something of myself, have some sort of an impact on people’s lives.
How did you adapt to Chicago after growing up in Dalton?
Associated Press Chicago Bulls center Joakim Noah pulls down a rebound in the second half of a Feb. 25 NBA basketball game against the Atlanta Hawks in Atlanta. Chicago won the game 107–103.
14 • March 3, 2014
Going from Chicago to Dalton is night and day.... Everything is much faster here—people aren’t so simple. People back home wake up, [have] breakfast, go to their job, come home, feed the kids, go to bed, and then you just kind of do that every day. Here, people are always looking for the nightlife, and even the day life is incredibly fast-paced and everyone is doing something.
Why did you start playing baseball? I probably started because my parents put me in it, but I don’t blame them. I can remember when I was little, I’d always want to watch the Cleveland Indians play. I was dressed in Cleveland Indians gear in my baby pictures.
Who inspired you to keep playing? I don’t know if I had a specific person I played for ... I wanted to be the best—always. I always wanted to be the kid that hit the most home runs, the kid that threw the hardest, threw the farthest, ran the fastest. Growing up, I definitely played out of sheer selfishness ... but it became ... more meaningful to other people when they saw me play.
What is your favorite baseball position to play? Catcher, definitely. I’m the captain of the team, at least on defense. I see everything that’s going on.... I tell [people] where to throw the ball. I run what happens. I like having that power. I like having the responsibility. Sometimes I mess up and it all goes to hell, but it comes with the job and there’s nothing I can do about it—I love catching.
What is it like being a member of the Renegades? If I wasn’t on the Renegades, I would just be another college kid that sits in a dorm all day and watches Netflix until class. I’m glad there’s baseball here because it was kind of a big playmaker in me coming to [Columbia].
If you had to choose between being on ‘SNL’ and playing for the Cleveland Indians, which would you choose? I would play baseball. Baseball is just easier. Comedy is so hard. SNL is my dream job, but I’m still kind of lazy, so I’d probably just play baseball. It’s so much easier. ahaleem@chroniclemail.com
March 3, 2014 • 15
Sports & Health
Termite-bots building a future VANESSA MORTON Assistant Sports & Health Editor TERMITES ARE KNOWN for chewing
through the foundations of homes and buildings, causing homeowners and renters severe headaches, but the notoriously destructive bugs’ building methods could be the key to new technology used to build large-scale structures. These wood-eating insects create complex mounds despite working without a set plan or central leader through a technique called swarm intelligence. A new project titled TERMES, created by a group of scientists at Harvard University, uses the termites’ decentralized construction method to build termite-thinking machines capable of building large-scale structures without supervision. “[Termites] construct these enormous and complicated mounds built by millions of individual insects all acting independently, all with a very limited view of what’s going on, what they react to and what they encounter rather than planning ahead,” said Justin Werfel, research scientist at Harvard’s Wyss Institute for Biologically Inspired Engineering. “We read about that and we said that’s fantastic. It showed us that it could be done, so we wanted to build and program a swarm of robots to build things using those same principles.” Werfel and his colleagues, Kirstin Petersen and Radhika Nagpal, published their design Feb. 14 in the journal Science. The group crafted a design that
would use the robots in construction projects that are considered too dangerous for humans to attempt, such as in underwater research, disaster areas and space missions. “We imagine systems like this can be very useful for building in disaster areas; for instance, building a levy out of sandbags to protect against flooding,” Werfel said. “If you could have a team of robots doing that building for you then you can keep the people out of harm’s way.” Each robot must have its own sensors programmed with certain “traffic rules” that must be obeyed to create the intended structure. To do this, Werfel created different algorithms using the power of stigmergy, a process in which agents communicate indirectly by sensing the environment around them. “Rather than having a single brain coordinating the whole process, every robot is independent and decides what to do for itself,” Werfel said. “Each of them has only local information, so with the decentralized reactive approach, it doesn’t matter if some of the robots break, because the rest of them can just carry on and finish the job.” Each robot is about seven inches long and consists of internal metal gears that allow it to move forward, backward, turn in place and climb up and down elevated surfaces. The robots are intended to be minimalist structures and have four types of sensors, Petersen said. Each one has a pattern recognition system that includes a 6 pixel cam-
Courtesy ELIZA GRINNELL
era, which allows the robot to observe its location on the structure as it moves; an accelerometer to sense tilt, allowing it to know when to climb up or down; and five ultrasound sonar units to help the robots circle around a structure and detect other robots by sending out a lowvolume alarm signal. “The field of manipulation is complicated and the field of maneuvering is complicated and no one has ever really tried to combine the two into something that works reliably over a long sequence of steps and certainly not something that can actually build structures larger than themselves,” Petersen said. “It’s a proof of concept that we can do that and that we can do it very simply with onboard sensing.” In one of the demonstrations, one termite-thinking robot was programmed to build a 10-brick stair-
case 18 times the robot’s volume in 45 minutes, according to Petersen. While swarm robotics has been around for the past 15 years, the TERMES project is a promising step in taking the technology from the lab to real world scenarios because the researchers have the robots performing complex tasks based on simple guidelines, said Matthew Spenko, associate professor of mechanical engineering at the Illinois Institute of Technology. “I think what’s interesting about the Harvard project is the fact that they are using multiple robots to do small tasks to create one large task,” Spenko said. Although the group was able to create a “proof of concept,” establishing viability, the robots have not yet been used outside the lab. Spenko said some obstacles researchers face in implementing
the robots stem from working with robots in controlled settings, such as laboratories, rather than testing them in real world applications, where scenarios are unpredictable. “Once we see that breakthrough, we’ll start seeing some swarms, but it’s definitely there and possible,” Spenko said. “I don’t think it’s in the five-year horizon. I think it’s a little bit further off than that.” Looking ahead, the group said it hopes the idea will inspire robots that could build more complicated structures, such as overhangs or bridges, Petersen said. “The idea has never been to replace human construction workers, but to replace construction workers where it’s hard and dangerous for them to work,” Petersen said. vmorton@chroniclemail.com
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GADGET LAB
Stadium-goers can simply open the app to see which foods and concessions are available near them and use the filter feature to search for specific menu items. People can leave comments and share their findings with other users. Hungry Fan is compatible with all Apple devices and is free.— S.SCHLIEDER FEATURED PHOTO
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SINGTRIX IS A next-generation karaoke machine that allows rock stars of any skill level to show off their talent. Performers can sing along to songs from their personal libraries or choose from more than 13,000 songs with the Singtrix App. All users must do is select a song, turn the effects dial and begin singing. The device is compatible with
Courtesy SINGTRIX.COM
smartphones and desktops. Singtrix offers 350 effects covering every genre of music, such as an onmic “Hit” button that transforms the singer’s voice into a four-part vocal harmony. The creators of Guitar Hero developed the device, which costs $300, including the Studio, custom microphone and speaker system.— S.SCHLIEDER March 3, 2014 • 15
The Columbia Chronicle 16 • March 3, 2014
Heart failure meets its match SARAH SCHLIEDER Assistant Sports & Health Editor HEART ATTACK SURVIVORS may be able to better ward off heart failure with a new development in heart attack recovery treatment. According to a study published Feb. 19 in Science Translational Medicine, a pig heart that was damaged by a heart attack was able to heal itself after being injected with cyclin A2 genes, which control cell division in tissue development. After one last preclinical trials, the treatment can begin testing on humans. Gary Schaer, professor of medicine and director of cardiology research at Rush University Medical Center, is hopeful that this new development could be used to treat heart disease. He said heart disease is still the No. 1 killer in the United States, and heart failure continues to increase as the population ages. When a person experiences a heart attack, blood flow to the heart is obstructed, causing a portion of the muscle to die, according to Sandeep Nathan, associate professor of medicine at the University of Chicago and director of interventional cardiology at the U of C Medical Center. Cardiomyocytes, heart muscle cells, do not have the capacity to divide and multiply in order to
regenerate heart tissue, said Hina Chaudhry, director of cardiovascular regenerative medicine at the Ichan School of Medicine at Mount Sanai Hospital in New York. Chaudhry began researching new treatments for heart disease 15 years ago. She said she thought the cyclin A2 gene could regulate cardiac muscle cell division because it is the only cell cycle gene in a mammal’s heart that becomes dormant after birth. Testing of cyclin A2 on heart regeneration began in 2004 on genetically engineered mice designed to maintain the gene after birth, which allowed the cardiomyocytes to continue cell division, Chaudhry said. “This was the first time that mitosis had been demonstrated in mammalian cardiomyocytes well after birth,” Chaudhry said. A few years later, the team induced heart attacks in mice and injected their hearts with a virus containing cyclin A2 to see if the hearts could repair themselves, Chaudhry said. The mice hearts showed dramatic regeneration of heart tissue and cardiomyocyte mitosis, she said. The final step was to administer this treatment to larger animals to determine if the results could be applied to humans, Chaudhry said.
The team chose to use pigs because of the similarity in anatomy and physiology between pig and human hearts, she said. Chaudhry and her team used the same cyclin A2 virus on the pigs after inducing heart attacks. Again, the results showed regeneration of the damaged heart tissue, Chaudhry said. The team also found complete cell division of the cardiomyocytes, forming two fully-functioning heart muscle cells by looking at tissue samples with cyclin A2 using timelapse imaging, Chaudhry said. The cells were splitting into two daughter cells and the sarcomere—the muscle contracting unit in cardiac muscle cells—was preserved in each new cell. “We’re really excited about the results we’ve seen and really hopeful that this is going to work for human patients,” Chaudhry said. Current treatments for heart failure after a heart attack include medications that decrease the heart’s deficiency as a pump, Nathan said. Other therapies include shortand long-term heart pumps and, in severe cases, heart transplants, he said. “The most important way to reduce the burden of heart failure is to provide as much blood flow to the heart muscle as possible,” Nathan said.
Donald Wu THE CHRONICLE
Overall, the current treatments are effective, Nathan said. But he said timing is also important, which is why the new treatment is important for heart attack sufferers. Chaudhry said her treatment showed heart regeneration within six weeks of the injection, which may be fast enough to prevent heart failure in humans. “This is a promising leap in the direction of a novel therapeutic using a therapy model to simulate cardiac regeneration in damaged hearts,” said Scott Shapiro, associate professor of medicine at George Washington University Hospital and a member of the research team. “It may also be good for other
types of damaged hearts, not just ones that have been affected by [a heart attack].” Schaer predicted the treatment would need an additional 10 years of development before being introduced to the market. Chaudhry said the team is awaiting approval from the United States Food and Drug Administration to begin Investigational New Drug enabling studies before human trials begin “Preclinical research like this is very exciting,” Schaer said. “It’s … unleashing some of the potential of the heart to repair itself.” sschlieder@chroniclemail.com
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16 • March 3, 2014
March 3 , 2014 • 17
Sports & Health
Continued from PG. 13
they want. In the study’s case, participants wanted money. “They think it’s a game,” Yap said. “For some reason they’re not able to [get what they want] through honest means.” Wiltermuth said he thinks it is important to note that the research team is not suggesting people should lie more often, but the study results promote a rule-breaking mindset that may increase creativity. Yap also noted that the increase in creativity depends on the success of a person’s dishonest behavior. He said the effectiveness of a lie may be situational. In places where systems are in place to prevent lying and unethical behaviors, such as corporate settings and schools, it is more difficult for a person to lie effectively. Dishonest behaviors such as white lies are often easier to discern because people rationalize their behavior, Yap said. He also also discussed indicators that can expose someone’s dishonesty. Yap said when people lie, they try to suppress nonverbal behaviors. However, suppressing such behaviors actually creates what researchers call a nonverbal leak. This leak could involve changes in body language such as a pursing lips or hesitant speech, Yap said.
“Because you’re thinking about lying … and what’s going to happen if you lie, these [leaks] will actually reveal themselves,” Yap said. Lying can also have a significant impact on mental health, according to David Kroll, clinical health psychiatrist at Brigham and Women’s Hospital in Boston. He said in most people, dishonest behavior may make them anxious in certain situations. Increased anxiety levels can lead to more stress, which can contribute to serious medical conditions, Kroll said. “There are people who don’t get anxious when they lie,” Kroll said. “For those people, it wouldn’t necessarily cause them large scales of stress.” Dishonest behavior can also lead to social setbacks because people who get caught in a lie may lose their credibility and damage their reputation, potentially destroying relationships, Wiltermuth said. However, whether or not dishonest behavior should be avoided is situational and is ultimately a question of morality, Kroll said. “There are certain situations where avoiding certain uncomfortable situations by lying could help avoid a special encounter,” Kroll said. “Lying is a heterogeneous phenomenon because people experience lying in different ways and tell things to different people.” sschlieder@chroniclemail.com
xx GLUTEN
Continued from PG. 13
host is unaware that even a trace of gluten can trigger a reaction, Shilson said. For that reason, it is important for people to distinguish fad from necessity. While only 1 percent of the population is unable to tolerate gluten because they have a medical diagnosis, the percentage of households that purchased gluten-free foods reached 11 percent in 2013, according to the Association for Convenience & Fuel Retailing. According to Fertel, people are buying gluten-free products because they think it will help them lose weight. People with gluten intolerance tend to be naturally smaller and leaner because they may verge on malnourishment if they do not consume the nutrients elsewhere, Fertel said, which may be why it caught on as a weight loss diet. In fact, the craze might have originated with someone who tried a gluten-free diet and happened to notice weight loss. “You can probably talk to anyone who’s done it and they’ll say, ‘Oh my god, I feel so good,’” Blatner said. However, they do not feel better simply because they removed gluten from their diet. They feel less bloated and more energetic because they are eating more fruits and vegetables, lean protein and fewer processed foods, Blatner said.
GLUTEN-FREE DIET
AVERAGE DIET
SMALL INTESTINE
Donald Wu THE CHRONICLE
xx LIES
HEALTHY VILLI
The diet may have the opposite effect if dieters are not careful about which gluten-free products they consume. According to Shilson, most commercial gluten-free products contain more fat, calories and sugar and fewer nutrients and fiber than their counterparts. Blatner said some of her patients are grateful for the gluten-free trend. For people with celiac disease, gluten-free products are now much more accessible because of the increased demand.
VILLI DAMAGED BY CELIAC DISEASE
Having been on a strict glutenfree diet for almost a decade, Shilson said there is no question the taste and accessibility has improved. Popular culture, however, leads people to believe that a gluten-free diet is healthier, but Shilson said it is not healthy for people who do not need it. “There are no known benefits of going gluten-free unless you have celiac,” she said. zsyed@chroniclemail.com
March 3, 2014 • 17
The Columbia Chronicle 18 • March 3, 2014
FAVORITE recipes NOVICE
SOUS CHEF
GURU
Homemade French fries with special sauce
INGREDIENTS
3 large potatoes, peeled 1/4 cup canola or olive oil 1/2 teaspoon salt 2 tablespoon ketchup 2 tablespoon mayo
Anthony Soave THE CHRONICLE
JENNIFER WOLAN Assistant Campus Editor
INSTRUCTIONS
I KNOW, YOU’RE scared. You want
1. Cut each potato in half length-wise. Cut each half into thin slices. Set aside. 2. Pour oil large in frying pan and heat on high. 3. Heat potatoes for five minutes, or until brown. Flip. 4. Continue cooking for another five minutes. 5. Lay a paper towel on plate and transfer fries. 6. Let cool. Add salt. 7. Mix ketchup and mayo for sauce.
French fries, but you hate the calories and subsequent chubbiness. You’re scared because you really want to eat them, but you just don’t know how to make your own healthy fries. Luckily, I have been making homemade French fries since I was 12 and can teach you how to make a guilt-free version of your favorite fast food. This simple recipe may sound intimidating, but all it takes is three potatoes and some elbow grease to excite your taste buds. First, peel the skin off the potatoes. It is OK if you miss some,
FANCY A FREE WAX?
it will add to the taste in the longrun. Cut the skinned potato in half length-wise, then cut each half into thin, even slices and set them aside. Pour the oil into a frying pan. Depending on the size of your pan, you might have to add or subtract some oil. Just make sure the bottom of the pan is covered. Turn the heat on high and make sure it is sizzling before you add the potatoes. Be careful, because the next part is a little dangerous. Quickly slide the potatoes from your cutting board into the pan. The oil will be very hot and it can burn you if it sizzles. I’ve burned myself countless times doing this, so be cautious. After you step away and let the potatoes simmer, it’s almost time to eat. Take out your favorite plate.
You will need to lay a paper towel on the plate to soak up any extra oil. Dab the potatoes dry and add as much salt as you please. Voila! That wasn’t too difficult. Your homemade French fries are ready to be savored. One more thing: the sauce. When I was younger, my mom always wondered what the “secret sauce” was on McDonald’s Big Macs. She found the best dipping sauce for our homemade French fries while fueling her creative cooking aspirations at home. This may sound gross, but she mixed mayonnaise and ketchup together, and I have dipped my homemade fries in the stuff ever since. jwolan@chroniclemail.com
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18 • March 3, 2014
2/7/14 4:16 PM
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THE COLUMBIA CHRONICLE
Slaughter-free leather makes killer fashion LORENZO JACKSON Assistant Arts & Culture Editor ONCE AN INSTAGRAM photo of recording artist and actress Teyana Taylor wearing a red leather PRSVR jogging suit reached nearly 58,000 likes, Detroit natives Brandon Williamson and Jermaine Barnwell knew they hit it big. After the success of an app he made with Jermaine Barnwell called Sole Search, which aggregates sneaker boutiques in the city Williamson opened his store, Hours, 818 W. 18th St. in Pilsen, Jan. 25. “It’s set up like a super dope closet, with furniture, water, candy, Internet and TV,” Williamson said. “It’s set up to engage with people.” Hours carries clothes from the PRSVR label, which stands for “perservere” and offers slaughterfree leather. Hours is the first store to sell the PRSVR brand, which offers clothing and accessories for men, women and children. Williamson said slaughter-free leather is made from hides of animals that died of natural causes, instead of making leather from the remains of a slaghter animals. The line has jackets, pants, shoes and luggage, said PRSVR designer and Hours store manager Corey Williams. Williamson said the line’s acronym stands for passion, resilience, sacrifice, values and respect, which fits the store’s mission of striving for betterment while inspiring others, Williamson said. “We always make sure we’re advancing and excelling to something else,” Williamson said. “If we can get four people to believe that, we did our job.” Williams said the popularity of PRSVR’s leather apparel has attracted many notable celebrities within the music industry and popular culture.
According to Williamson, rapper Fabolous owns PRSVR luxury work boots, Nelly has the entire collection and Nicki Minaj has a custom pair of pink, ribbed track pants that she wore for a concert at Villanova University. Chris Brown also has articles of clothing from PRSVR. Slaughter-free leather was introduced to PRSVR by their manufacturer, Mahendi, which uses slaughter-free leather to honor Islamic traditions of avoiding contact with pigs, which are considered unclean, and refraining from the inhumane slaughter of animals inhumanely. “If you’re conscious of [being slaughter-free], then great,” Williamson said. “If you’re not conscious of it, it’s still better you just don’t know it.” Other apparel stores such as Leather 6410/Paul C Leather, 6410 N. Clark St., do not use slaughterfree leather because it is not customary in the industry. Paul Christensen, owner and leather fashion designer at Paul C Leather, said he knows of the biggest tanneries from Brazil to Chicago, but he has never heard of slaughter-free leather. “[Slaughter-free leather] really hasn’t become a popular thing,” Williamson said. “We haven’t had anyone to really care.” According to Williams, they only stock their brand in the store, but in the future Hours may bring in other brands. Despite the fact that slaughterfree leather dents easily due to the animal’s flesh weakening after it ages, the staff of PRSVR still manages to make fashionable garments with the leather provided. “We stick to the fact that we’re in a relationship with a factory that actually cares about the things we care about,” Williamson said. “[Even though] nobody wears leather pants everyday.” ljackson@chroniclemail.com
Photos Carolina Sanchez THE CHRONICLE Brandon Williamson and Jermaine Barnwell, fashion designers from Detroit, came to Chicago to open Hours at 818 W. 18th St. in Pilsen. They pride themselves in offering slaughter-free leather apparel, which is made from the hide of an animal that has died of natural causes. March 3, 2014 • 19
The Columbia Chronicle 20 • March 10, 2014
Friday, March 14
JIMMY WHISPERS
South by Suckfest
TUCKED AWAY IN a small club in Austin, Texas, last March, local rap collective the League of Extraordinary Gz performed a raucous and memorable set for a small crowd. Between rapping about getting arrested and trashtalking the police with their unique Texas twang, the emcees pogo danced while throwing pre-rolled joints to the crowd, according to a March 15 New York Times article. The indie rappers performed as part of South by Southwest, Austin’s annual music industry festival designed to give aspiring artists a stage to perform on in front of record labels in hopes of getting signed. However, for many, the show flew under the radar—most SXSW attendees were probably sacrificing the experience of hearing new music and getting showered with free
weed to wait in line for headliners Justin Timberlake, The Smashing Pumpkins or Prince. Since its 1987 inception, attendance at the festival has more than tripled and expanded to include film, interactive media and Lady Gaga performing on top of a 64-foot Doritos vending machine. Among the cornucopia of megaparties like the PayPal-Snoop Dogg soiree, such high-profile antics have the festival under scrutiny for its lack of focus on independent music. Just like every multi-million dollar music festival, SXSW’s massive growth is thanks to hefty corporate sponsorships and celebrity appearances that generate desperate social media buzz. The issue here isn’t that corporate hoopla is leaking into the live music scene—that’s unavoidable and necessary for live music to thrive— but the purpose of SXSW has been completely stripped. I mean, who would want to waste their time with some no-name baby band when they could see Jared “the Subway guy” Fogle promote his new line of Flatizzas instead? (Yes, that’s actually happening.)
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Apple is also hosting its iTunes festival in Austin during SXSW 2014, featuring performances by Coldplay, Keith Urban and Pitbull. Piggybacking on SXSW’s fans is like flirting with someone you know is easy. According to a March 14 Pitchfork article, indie-rock group DIIV’s Zachary Cole Smith did not enjoy his time in Austin. “F--k SXSW ... here, the music comes last,” Smith said. “Corporate money everywhere but in the hands of the artists at what is really just a glorified corporate networking party.... Branding, branding, branding. It’s bulls--t.” This year, 13,000 visitors are expected to turn out for the film section, and 30,000 participants are forecasted to attend the interactive conference. Here’s hoping at least some music will be celebrated.
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BLOOD Photos Anthony Soave THE CHRONICLE
MORGAN MARCIECA
sophomore interdisciplinary major
JOSH BROWN
freshman theater major
WHAT ABOUT BLOOD BALL GETS YOUR HEART PUMPING? WHAT ABOUT BLOOD BALL GETS YOUR HEART PUMPING? “I’m most excited about seeing my friends and dressing up.” “The music, but most of all finding out who is king and queen”
20 • March 10, 2014
B
EDITIONALL
DEVLIN MARCOTTE
ASSATA TERRELL
WHAT ABOUT BLOOD BALL GETS YOUR HEART PUMPING? “Seeing my friend win king.”
WHAT ABOUT BLOOD BALL GETS YOUR HEART PUMPING? “The fashion show. One of my friends is walking.”
senior theater major
sophomore fashion studies major
March 3, 2014 • 21
Arts & Culture
Canadian banjoist brings folk to Chicago NICOLE MONTALVO Assistant Arts & Culture Editor JAYME STONE IS proof there is still a place for traditional folk music in the modern world. Although it is encouraging that folk has found its way into pop music with the help of bands like Mumford & Sons, the culturally rich traditional art form should not be ignored. Jayme Stone’s Feb. 26 performance at Old Town School of Folk Music, 4544 N. Lincoln Ave., was a learning experience for folk newbies and enjoyable to its aficionados.
A part of World Music Wednesdays, a free event hosted every Wednesday night through Aug. 6, Jayme Stone and his accompanying trio took the stage with humble confidence. The formal, concert hall audience was composed of mostly white-haired men and women laughing at Stone’s jokes while drinking beer in an intimate space. However, the majority of the audience, some of the men in the group looked to be considerably younger because of their plaid shirts, tight jeans and full heads of hair. The group, which includes banjoist Stone, wind player Rob Mosher,
upright bassist Andrew Small and drummer Nick Fraser, have all studied folk music at universities. Frontman and award winning banjoist, Stone began his career in 2007. His latest album The Other Side of Air is an all-instrumental folk album primarily influenced by his travels and life as a new parent. The songs feature his banjo but highlights bass, drums and wind instruments as well with musically complex solos and duets. Playing both original compositions and covers of timeless folk
xx SEE FOLK, PG. 30
Photos Angela Conners THE CHRONICLE Canadian folk artist Jayme Stone (holding the banjo) and his band (from left to right) Rob Mosher, Andrew Small and Nick Fraser performed Feb. 26 at World Music Wednesdays at the Old Town School of Folk Music, 4544 N. Lincoln Ave. They played original songs as well as covers and improvised together.
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The Columbia Chronicle 22 • March 3, 2014
ICE CARVER vs. robot Written by Lorenzo Jackson, Assistant Arts & Culture Editor Design by Keenan Browe, Graphic Designer
IN A STUDIO THE SIZE OF A SMALL WAREHOUSE, the sound of whirring freezers echoes off of walls lined with chisels, saws and ironing plates as Danny “Hollywood” Rebholz prepares to turn a formless block of ice into art. Leaning over the 3 1/2-foot-tall block, Rebholz imagines the incisions and grooves that will eventually shape the cube of ice into a horse’s head. “It’s a unique artform: People still don’t know why you make it out of ice because it’s going to melt,” Rebholz said, digging his chisel into the ice. Rebholz is a master ice sculptor who has carved more than 5 million pounds of ice in his 25 years in the Alice Connelly, the owner of Ice Chicagoland sculpting community. He has attracted in- Crafters and executive secretary of the NICA, Scott Harrison, a Canadian ice carver and ternational acclaim to his Villa Park, Ill., shop, World considers competitions a big part of ice sculptClass Ice Sculptures, 212 W. Stone Rd., which can be ing culture, and Fairbank, Alaska, hosts one of high school culinary arts teacher, said he placed proved by every inch of wall space that is crowded with the biggest ice carving competitions in the world. first at the Lake Louise Ice Magic Festival in awards from international competitions and his hall- Connelly is a judge at this monumental event. 2006, which was his first time professionally comway decked with news articles from around the globe There are two main events: a single-block carving peting. He said there is a lot that goes into enterpraising his work. competition with 40 two-person teams and a multi- ing a sculpture. “It all comes down understanding your skill Although Rebholz is a skilled artist who has block event with 20 two-person teams. The associcreated sculptures for high-profile clients and ation also hosts a competitive event for the general set, understanding what you can produce in a time events such as Nike, the Olympics and Jay Leno, public. The single block in this competition is 8 foot frame that is reasonable,” Harrison said. “You new technology is threatening his profession and by 5 foot by 3 foot. For the multi-block, the carvers get design accordingly, making sure you’re not going ten blocks, each 6 foot by 4 foot by 3 foot. “Most of outside of your boundaries. If you can’t draw it, putting many handcarvers out of work. The community is tight-knit and cooperative the time it has a light blue tint to it,” Connelly said. you can’t carve it. A lot of people find it as a hurdle with the National Ice Carving Association based “And I just think it’s because of the way the light going in the very beginning when they’re ice carving.” Harrison said ice sculpting is a seasonal comin Oak Brook, Ill., having 400 members, and there through ice absorbs the color of the sky.” are dozens of carving conventions and merce. Businesses usually send most orders in December and January, and there are spikes of carving competitions worldwide. activity around holidays such as Valentine’s Day and Easter. During the spring and summer months,
Sketching/ Preparing
Top of page: IceCulture’s Mini-Cooper, a collaboration with Julian Bayley and his staff. Clockwise from left Above, two above-right: Robert Scott Harrison’s
sculptures for competition.
Courtesy ROBERT SCOTT HARRISON At right: Dan v sculpture, entitled “Pearl.” Courtesy DAN REBHOLZ
22 • March 3, 2014
Drawing the design is the easy part. Rebholz said he pulls inspiration from other sculptures, magazines, the Internet and everyday life. There are two methods that can be used, Rebholz said. Traditionally, sculptors use a subtractive method, marking the block of ice and working through it—slowly carving the ice until it is beautifully shaped. Another more modern method is to project the image digitally on the block using a projector, visualizing the areas that need to be carved to bring the idea to life. Rebholz said the older method is useful for fine details and when there are few power sources—such as working at outdoor competitions. The projector allows the sculptor to work faster and helps when there are time constraints.
March 3, 2014 • 23
Arts & Culture
Tools Ice sculpting uses a variety of tools, including chainsaws, chisels, saws, chippers and other instruments used to carve ice blocks of different sizes into various shapes. Many ice-sculpting businesses make their own ice blocks for carving. The freezers, called Clinebell Ice Makers, are standard in the industry, Rebholz said. They are designed to make clear ice blocks for sculpting in three to four days. The final product can weigh up to 600 pounds, and lifting it can be dicey—the crane that Rebholz uses for ice blocks can barely lift 1,000 pounds. Rebholz said he has a number of specialized tools, as well. He modified his icemaker to produce custom-sized blocks, and said he is especially proud of a rare Japanese saw given to him by the sculptor who first sparked his passion. Nestled high up on the wall full of saws, his tool shed resembles a hardware store, but he said he uses all the saws for very specific tasks and that he devotes four or five hours to sharpening his saws before he starts carving. Photos courtesy ICECULTURE Left: Julian Bayley and IceCulture creating the first movable ice truck with a battery that can function in bitter cold conditions. Right-top: Julian Bayley and IceCulture designed a bar for a wedding at Castle Oheka, Long Island, NY priced at more than $100,000. Right-bottom: Julian Bayley and IceCulture created an ice bridge built at Rockefeller Center NY for Disney.
ing about 13 years ago, he said. While Bayley said he most ice carvers earn their income sculpting ice understands the plight of handcarvers like Rebholz, for weddings and other formal events. the CNC routers make mass production possible “Most people with larger-scale business defiHarrison said he only operates his company and allow his company to meet consumer demands. nitely have CNC machines and use CNC maduring the winter. Teaching has become his main “You have to get the stuff out the door quickly,” chines,” Harrison said. “That is something I plan to source of income, so he considers his sculpting Bayley said. “A lot of carvers [can] carve [one] Vince acquire eventually for my business. I am still probabusiness a “professional hobby.” Lombardi trophy [for the Superbowl], but what do bly about five years away from that.” “Years ago, it was a hobby,” Rebholz said. “Now you do if somebody wants 50?” According to Harrison, a CNC machine can it has become a full-fledged industry with business Bayley said IceCulture Inc., once crafted a cost $7,000–8,000, especially if an ice business and business owners looking to use technology to 40-foot-tall ice castle in seven hours for the Disney decides to perform modifications since CNC maCorporation in Times Square for “Good Morning chines are not originally made to carve ice. It can do this stuff. I’m the last of the hand carvers.” The 1999 introduction of a new technology America” Oct. 17, 2012. Without computerized tech- cost $50,000–75,000 for a machine equipped to called Computerized Numeric Control made creat- nology, the job could not have been done in that time handle ice in large quantities. ing ice carvings more efficient, rendering hand carv- frame, he said. IceCulture Inc., which is 35 years old “Ice carving has really opened an extreme ing a slower, more expensive process that companies and has become one of the industry’s biggest inter- amount of doors for me,” Harrison said. “It really began to reject in favor of the new machine. Rebholz national players. When his company is faced with shows that people can commit to their passions said the company he worked for at the time CNC was tight deadlines, carving by hand is impractical beand produce things that are absolutely amazing.” introduced, Your Chef Custom Ice Sculpting, bought cause of the nature of the art, he said. CNC routers may pose a threat to the comone of these machines and subsequently laid him off. The technology makes large-scale sculpting munity, but Rebholz has begun teaching ice From then on, Rebholz sculpted independently. manageable, but budding businesses are at a discarving lessons to keep the artform alive. The machines may reduce the need for handcarvadvantage because they cannot always afford the Although his art may melt away, Rebholz ers, but they allow sculptures to be produced quickly. equipment. Harrison, who has owned IceMan said his passion for ice carving is permanent. Julian Bayley, owner of Canadian-based IceCulture Unlimited in Canada for one year, said obtaining “People constantly ask me, ‘Are you sad when Inc., owns three CNC routers that mass-produce a CNC machine is his goal. it melts?’ I [say] no because next year I get to sculptures to ship across the world. make a new one,” Rebholz said looking back at IceCulture Inc. was the first compahis finished product. “Art for the moment, there ny to adapt the CNC for ice sculptis something to be said for that.”
Delivery
According to Randy Hennen, owner and ice distributor with the Minnesota-based company, Sculpture Ice, the ice blocks ship nationwide by truck and trailer from Texas and California to Colorado. Working with business partner and ice carver Trevor Pearson, the two have shipped for businesses including World Class Ice Sculpture and events hosted by the National Restaurant Association. “It’s kind of a niche market,” Hennen said. “So I’m pretty busy [even though] it’s a small company.” The size and weight of the ice makes lifting it difficult, and the fragility means dropping it is not an option. Hennen recounts his story of a block falling on his hand one time, which broke his fingers. He said the ice block weighed 300 pounds and crushed three fingers on his right hand, which later required two surgeries to repair. “I usually take the time to make sure my forklift sat right,” Hennen said. “I had the angle of the blocks wrong and when I took one [ice block] off, the tray moved and it allowed one to fall off.”
Above and two at left: the first movable ice truck with a battery that can function in bitter cold conditions. Courtesy ICECULTURE Above-right: Rebholz melting many smaller blocks together so it can be sculpted as one big block. Courtesy DAN REBHOLZ
March 3, 2014 • 23
The Columbia Chronicle 24 • March 3, 2014
‘Pompeii’ overflows with disastrous clichés
stephen hall Film Critic
Even impressive explosions and wanton destruction cannot help some movies escape mediocrity. The new action-adventure film “Pompeii” by director Paul W.S. Anderson (“Resident Evil,” “Death Race”) has the perfect source material for a successful historical drama. However, an interwoven love story and a host of disastrous clichés will have audience members pining for the impending volcanic eruption simply so the film will end. The ancient city of Pompeii was a thriving Roman port and the film captures its complexity with tracking shots. Little context is needed because most should recognize the story of the Roman province destroyed by the eruption of Mount Vesuvius in A.D. 79. Like James Cameron’s modern epic “Titanic,” the ending in “Pompeii” is a foregone conclusion. Unlike “Titanic,” the journey to the inevitable destruction is what falls apart, while “Pompeii” tries to mask its narrative inadequacies with over-thetop special effects. “Pompeii” centers on Milo (Kit Harington), who is the survivor of a Celtic tribe slaughtered by a band of Romans led by Corvus (Kiefer Sutherland). Skip ahead 15 years and Milo is a gladiator known as
The Celt, a proficient killer who also happens to closely resemble an underwear model. Milo catches the eye of Pompeii noblewoman, Cassia, played by the expressionless Emily Browning (“Sucker Punch,” “Lemony Snicket’s A Series of Unfortunate Events”) on her way back to her home city after spending a year in Rome. The two instantly fall for each other and spend the film fighting for a love that is little more than a plot device. She appreciates his humanity because he mercifully kills an injured horse in front of her, and that is basically all the courting the film details. Milo and Cassia have only a few scenes together before they risk their lives for one another, making their affection more convenient than genuine. In an awful twist, Corvus, the same Roman who slaughtered Milo’s family, lusts after Cassia. Ancient Rome was a small world, it seems. The rest of the film writes itself with Corvus periodically laughing maniacally about power and hitting on a woman half his age. Milo eventually gets his revenge, and all seems well until the rumbling from that pesky volcano—the one the audience has been waiting for. An hour in, with barely any mention of Vesuvius, audience members may wonder if they wandered into the wrong theater. “Pompeii”
needed to get one thing right, the eruption, but the sequence is anticlimactic. It takes far too long to do any real damage to the city. Historians are divided on the actual event, but a quick Google search shows they agree on the immediacy of the disaster. However, this detail takes a backseat to the plot and the film loses its remaining credibility quickly. According to “Pompeii,” the volcano waited to fully erupt so a gladiator could act out a vendetta. Many scenes in “Pompeii” seem forced and at some points even stolen from other films of similar genres. The fight sequences, for example, look shot-for-shot like recreations of Ridley Scott’s “Gladiator,” going so far as to place actors in what look like the exact same costumes. Harrington, however, is not Russell Crowe, and the fights do not have nearly enough gusto to make them memorable. The movie even contains a historically inaccurate wall of water flowing through city streets a la Roland Emmerich’s “The Day After Tomorrow.” Apparently there was a massive clearance sale on computer-generated giant tidal wave effects after that film released because every disaster movie in the last decade uses one to destroy doomed cities. Narrative elements suffer from poor writing but also a lack of sin-
FILM REVIEW
IMDB
cerity. The film oversimplifies everything and offers no character development. Corvus even becomes a Roman Senator with the power to decide the fate of Pompeii’s financial future “because of politics.” No, really. That is the explanation given. The film does a meager job of hiding that the story is trivial. It does not help that the film’s budget was spent on elaborate costumes and sets rather than gifted actors. The cast consists of mostly TV show throwaways from current or cancelled science fiction/
fantasy TV shows such as “Game of Thrones” or “Caprica.” Even Sutherland, the only real performance standout, had his last major role on “24.” “Pompeii” is more an epic disappointment than the epic cataclysm it tries to be. The actors and the script are inadequate for what should be a riveting tale. In trying to combine or copy elements from more successful films, “Pompeii” lacks any identity or novelty. shall@chroniclemail.com
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24 • March 3, 2014 COLUMBIA CHRONICLE MONDAY, MARCH 3 5x8
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March 3, 2014 • 25 Arts & Culture
Mardi Gras lives in Chicago Story by Nicole Montalvo
Design by Kayla Koch
New Orleans Mardi Gras celebrations usually involve bright purple and yellow masks, beads, boobs and traditional New Orleans jazz, but in Chicago, it is the blues community that brings the spirit of Mardi Gras. Mardi Gras, which falls on March 4 this year, celebrates Fat Tuesday, the day before the first day of Lent, a Catholic fasting period during which followers give up something they enjoy for 40 days as a sacrifice to God. Mardi Gras was originally meant to be the last hurrah before the start of Lent. The spirit of Mardi Gras made its way up north to Chicago about 100 years ago through the power of music, according to Stan West, a Columbia professor who teaches Blues as Literature. There is a train called the City of New Orleans that began running in 1947 and still runs straight from New Orleans to Chicago, directly connecting the Crescent City to
the Windy City, West said. “I’m guessing a hundred years ago, as they came North with their [blues] music, they carried Mardi Gras with them,” West said. King Oliver, jazz cornet player and bandleader, invited Louie Armstrong, jazz trumpeter and singer from New Orleans, to Chicago to join his Creole Jazz Band, according to Encyclopedia.ChicagoHistory.org. It was through changes such as these that the Chicago Black Renaissance, a 20th century version of the Harlem Renaissance, was born. Local blues musician Tom Rezetko has observed many Chicago blues bands play accordion-filled, French creoleinspired Mardi Gras music to honor the historic holiday tradition. “The blues and Mardi Gras music are fairly close,” Rezetko said. “There is more blues in Chicago probably than anywhere else in the country. You have
Assistant Arts & Culture Editor
Graphic Designer
some [blues] bands that will play Mardi Gras music specifically this time of year.” Several Chicago blues venues will carry on the Mardi Gras tradition this year. The Beverly Arts Center, 2407 W. 111 St., is hosting a Mardi Gras concert for the first time this year and has high hopes for the event. According to Dan Sawyers, front of house manager, the center is featuring a blues band that will incorporate Mardi Gras elements for the night. “We do have a couple of places on the South Side that have their roots in the Mardi Gras tradition,” Sawyers said. “I think there is somewhat of a following, but it’s something that can be expanded upon.” The Chronicle compiled some of the city’s best bluesy Mardi Gras celebrations happening this year. nmontalvo@chroniclemail.com
Calendar Fat Tuesday Mardi Gras PartY
Beverly Arts Center 2407 W. 111th St. March 4 / 8 p.m. $13 Featuring the Smiley Tillmon Band, the celebration will offer free beads to everyone and Mardi-Grasinspired drinks for purchase.
Paczkis
Delightful Pastries 5927 W. Lawrence Ave., 1710 N. Wells St. and 131 N. Clinton St. March 4 / 7 a.m.–7 p.m. Delightful Pastries is a Polish bakery that has been around since 1998. They make thousands of Paczkis, the official Fat Tuesday donut, every year. The bakery offers popular items such as raspberry- and custard-filled flavored donuts. They also have specialty donuts, including “Drunken Paczkis,” which come in flavors such as Jameson whiskey, chocolate custard, vodka custard with Madagascar vanilla and lemon curd with Moonshine.
Buddy Guy’s Legends Concerts 700 S. Wabash Ave. March 1 Noon, 6 p.m., 9:30 p.m., 11 p.m. Noon show is free, night shows cost $10 Buddy Guy’s Legends, owned by famous blues musician Buddy Guy, will celebrate Fat Tuesday all day long with four different shows by Chicago-based blues musicians Mike Wheeler Band, Eric Noden, Steve Ditzell, Lil’ Ed & The Blues Imperials
Mardi Gras Bar Crawl Navy Pier 600 E. Grand Ave. March 1 / 2–8 p.m. $20
Crawl through Harry Caray, Billy Goat Tavern, Riva Crab House, Mystic Blue, Häagen-Dazs and Crystal Garden for a Navy Pier-style Mardi Gras celebration. In addition to drinks, there will be live music, games, face painting and a raffle.
Carnivale 2014
Zhou B Art Center 1029 W. 35th St. March 15 / 7 p.m. $65
Carnivale is an extravaganza with Louisiana-style cuisine, a cash bar, live band, two disc jockeys and a costume contest that offers a $250 prize.
March 3, 2014 • 25
The Columbia Chronicle 26 • March 3, 2014
We Love making it up as we go BRANDON HOWARD Contributing Writer DO YOU EVER just want to spend an afternoon in your best friend’s garage, basking in the glory of old 8-bit Nintendo games and listening to loud music on a sweet new stereo? If so, We Love You would be the perfect band to blast on that hypothetical boombox. The three-piece nerd rock outfit came together after a series of surprise circumstances, sort of like their sporadic, unpredictable music. All Ohioans, vocalist Derek Bish, guitarist Nick Lucius and drummer Matt Clamme met and formed We Love You in Chicago. Together, they developed a “loud, melodic dork rock” sound, according to Bish complete with improvised lyrics inspired by Bish’s prior improv training. Think of the music of early Weezer meeting Archers of Loaf and Cloud Nothings in a more modern way. Do not expect to follow them on any social media platforms; they are not that kind of band. All the members are working professionals in their early ‘30s to mid ‘40s, but their music has a carefree, youthful energy. Their latest EP, Demos 2012, is infectious, spacey and reverb-heavy. Bish’s distinct vocals provide a juxtaposing relaxation, at times half-enunciating the lyrics in an endearing, washed-out drawl or straining with strong intent to reach a note. After We Love You’s Feb. 8 show at Cole’s, 2338 N. Milwaukee Ave., in Logan Square, The Chronicle chatted with Bish about the band’s influences, Ohio roots and love of improv.
THE CHRONICLE: Is the whole band from Ohio? DEREK BISH: [Yes, but] we all moved [to Chicago] at different times. We had a bunch of mutual friends and our bass player, Nick, was playing
guitar in a really good band in Ohio and we were fans of theirs.... Matt didn’t know how to play drums originally, so I kind of had to talk him into learning, and then he got really good, so we decided to start a band…. I was personally drawn [to Chicago] because I used to do improv comedy.... I thought I’d come out here and try that. Then I didn’t really do it, I just started playing music.
Do you think doing improv has influenced your stage presence? Oh yeah, for sure. I don’t write down lyrics, either ... I’ll find words that I like, or a sentence or a phrase that I like for a melody, and then I’ll keep that, but then the rest of it is all kind of made up. I’ve been doing it for a while. That’s how I’ve played music for the last 10 years. I have faith that what I’m going to say is not going to be that bad.
How do you interact on stage? [Because] we’re only a three-piece [band], it helps to pay attention to what each other are doing…. Normally, I’ll look at Matt or Nick at parts we are supposed to change that we don’t have down yet…. We just play for fun. We’re going to try and do another recording this year, but we’ve gotten to the point where, in the last one to 2 1/2 years, we really developed a sound we like, and we’re kind of enjoying our songs quite a bit. We wouldn’t mind putting them out there. I think we’re going to try and record something this year. We’re looking to play more shows this year than we’ve played in the past, because, you know, we’re all older dudes.
What are you currently listening to? The early-to-mid ‘90s stuff. We’re all really big into new music, too…. It’s kind of hard to say what exactly. Sometimes you just listen to stuff
forever and then it gets in your head and influences the way you play. I’ve been listening to the first two Voxtrot EPs lately. They’re pop perfection. They’ve been seeping back in. I’ve been listening to Debt; they’re really good.
Do you expect to make money off of your music? We’re not looking to make money off this at all; I can’t imagine people paying. We’re not trying to promote ourselves. We just enjoy making music... We’re all really good at hanging out. chronicle@colum.edu
Photos courtesy WE LOVE YOU (Above) Guitarist and vocalist Derek Bish (left) and guitarist Nick Lucius (right). With We Love You’s nostalgic ‘90s rock sound and improv roots, the Ohio natives are gaining popularity in Chicago. (Below) posters from their previous concerts in the Chicago area.
Guilty pleasures Sarah Schlieder, Assistant Sports & Health A THOUSAND MILES Vanessa Carlton MY LIFE WOULD SUCK WITHOUT YOU Kelly Clarkson STRAIGHT UP Paula Abdul HEY THERE DELILAH Plain White T’s LEAVIN’ Jesse McCartney
LET HER GO Passenger JUST GIVE ME A REASON P!nk ft. Nate Ruess ROAR Katy Perry TITANIUM David Guetta ft. Sia SETTLE DOWN Kimbra
Maria Castellucci, Metro Editor
Natalie Craig, Assistant Metro Editor
NOT OVER YOU Gavin DeGraw IRIS The Goo Goo Dolls STORY OF MY LIFE One Direction BOYFRIEND Best Coast CLARITY Zedd
26 • March 3, 2014
Elizabeth Earl, Opinions Editor
I WANNA BE BAD Willa Ford
SHE DON’T PUT IT DOWN Joe Budden ft. Lil Wayne and Tank
KEEP HER ON THE LOW Mindless Behavior MEMPHIS Justin Bieber ft. Diplo and Big Sean TYPE OF WAY Rich Homie Quan
March 3, 2014 • 27 Arts & Culture
March 3, 2014 • 27
The Columbia Chronicle 28 • March 3, 2014
4.
5.
LADY ANTEBELLUM owns the night
1.
By Grace Wiley, Photo Editor PLAID SHIRTS AND cowboy boots were required when the Allstate Arena, 6920 N. Mannheim Road, went country Feb. 26 for the Take Me Downtown Tour featuring, supporting artist Kip Moore and headliner Lady Antebellum. This is Antebellum’s third time headlining a national tour, this time in support of their fifth album, Golden, released last May. Kip Moore opened the night with his hit, “Crazy One More Time,” and ended with “Somethin’ Bout a Truck” from his album Up All Night. Lady Antebellum got the crowd rocking when they began the show with “Compass,” strutting from the back of the arena, down the aisle to the main stage with fans flocking to their sides. The band’s set included hits off Golden and ended with covers of Avicii’s “Wake Me Up” and Anna Kendrick’s “When I’m Gone” during their three-song encore.
2.
3.
1. Charles Kelley, lead singer of Lady Antebellum, prepares the crowd for the start of “Compass.” 2. Kip Moore and his backing band jam out during “Reckless (Still Growin’ Up).” 3. Lady Antebellum performs “Our Kind of Love” off their sophomore album Need You Now. 4. The audience chimes in on the opening song as singer Hillary Scott, guitarist Dave Haywood and Kelley play. 5. Fans sing along with Moore during his hit song, “Beer Money.” 6. Scott and Kelley harmonize during “Better Off Now.” 28 • March 3, 2014
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February 3, 2014 • 31
Arts & Culture
Feared lost, original art of Wolverine debut found MATT MOORE Associated Press THE ORIGINAL ART for the first appearance of
Wolverine, a ferocious fighting mutant with a penchant for beer and cigars, will be auctioned in May as part of a sale to benefit the Hero Initiative, a group that strives to aid comic book creators in times of financial need. Heritage Auctions said Feb. 26 that the 40-year-old illustration for “The Incredible Hulk” No. 180 by Herb Trimpe was long thought lost until the person he gave it to in 1983 contacted them about selling it. Todd Hignite, Heritage’s vice president, said he was astounded to see the full-page art in pristine condition. “I went out and met with the owner and it wasn’t until I was there and actually saw it that I fully believed it,” Hignite said. “It’s a pretty amazing thing.” The owner, who asked not to be identified, received the art as a gift from Trimpe after he and his family had visited. A comic collector, he brought some issues drawn by Trimpe, hoping for an autograph, and Trimpe obliged. As they left, the artist told him to wait. “He ran back upstairs to his studio and he came with this page of artwork in his hands,” Hignite said of the ink and graphite drawing. On it was inscribed “Ben—Best Wishes Herb Trimpe.” As Wolverine’s appeal and popularity grew—first in Marvel Entertainment’s comics, then on animated TV shows and, finally, as played by Hugh Jackman in the ongo-
ing X-Men film franchise—issues featuring the character jumped in value. So, too, has original art. “[The owner is] aware that the market for comic art has gone up to such an incredible amount,” Hignite said of the piece. “He was just kind of nervous having the artwork.” Original art for other significant characters such as Superman and Spider-Man have commanded prices as high as six figures. The issue, written by Len Wein and called “And the Wind Howls Wendigo,” is valued at $400 in near-mint condition while issue 181, which is the first full Wolverine story, is valued at $1,800 in near-mint condition, according to the 43rd Overstreet Comic Price Guide. The May 16 sale will benefit the Hero Initiative with a majority of the proceeds going to the nonprofit. Since its founding in 2000, the group has given more than $500,000 to 50 comic book creators to help them with medical bills, housing and more. “I’m overjoyed to know that it still exists— and even happier that its sale will, in part, benefit the [comic book] industry’s own charity, Hero Initiative, on whose disbursement board I’ve sat since its founding,” said Roy Thomas, the editor-in-chief at Marvel when Wolverine was created and the issue came out. “Wolverine was never a do-gooder ... but this time he’s going to do some good in spite of himself. Take that, Logan!” chronicle@colum.edu
$15
STUDENT TICKETS WorlD-ClaSS ThEaTEr oN a WorK-STUDy bUDgET.
AvAilAble online for Any show At Any time. steppenwolf.org/students NoW oN STagE: Associated Press Marvel comic artist Herb Trimpe drew Wolverine’s long-lost first appearance 40 years ago for issue 180 of “The Incredible Hulk.”
February 3, 2014 • 31
The Columbia Chronicle 30 • March 3, 2014
xx FOLK
Continued from PG. 21
tunes, the group had a distinct, fast-paced style and enthusiasm. A bittersweet mix of dark tones, upbeat rhythms and emotional subtlety placed the audience by a crackling campfire in the woods. Smiles shone through the darkness in the small room, beaming from the faces of the crowd. In the tradition of folk greats such as Peter Seeger, Stone told powerful stories for each song before he started. Stone joked with the audience to keep the show from becoming too serious. Before playing a foreign traditional dance song, Stone said, with a tonguein-cheek attitude, “There’s plenty of room up here if anyone remembers the popular Bulgarian dance to this song.” Although Stone was the only one who talked directly to the audience, the joy of playing music was not lost on the smiling,
shaggy-haired wind-player Mosher and bassist, Small. The group began each song in its traditional form, but quickly changed the tone to reflect the individual sound of the group. These men are formally trained in their respective instruments and know how to transcend the binds of playing traditional music while still paying homage to it. Fraser’s optimism, however, became almost uncomfortable for the audience during his seemingly endless, indulgent drum solo. Eyes closed and mouth slightly open, he passionately hit the drums, making it feel like the audience was intruding on a personal moment. Emotion-filled sets are touching, but Fraser was getting a little too into it. Though each song lasted at least six minutes, the songs’ rich backstories and the group’s energetic, collective improvisation made each performance enjoyable. nmontalvo@chroniclemail.com
March 18–30 800-775-2000 TickeTs available aT all broadway in chicago box offices and TickeTmasTer reTail locaTions groups 10+ 312-977-1710 30 • March 3, 2014
Photos Angela Conners THE CHRONICLE (Top) Andrew Small (middle) studied music at Yale University and is now touring with Jayme Stone. (Bottom) Award-winning banjoist Jayme Stone began his career in 2007 and released his latest album, The Other Side of Air, this past month.
March 3, 2014 • 31 Arts & Culture
spring 2014
STUDY ABROAD FAIR
WHEN: Wednesday, March 5th from 11am - 2pm WHERE: Stage Two, 618 S. Michigan, 2nd floor
Photo taken by Liz Bobak, Ireland
colum.edu/StudyAbroadFair For more information, please contact: Catrina DeBord International Programs 618 S. Michigan, 1st Floor aiipoffice@colum.edu P 312.369.7726
Study abroad is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to travel, learn and live in a foreign country. You can earn college credit and use your Title IV (FAFSA) awards to help pay for approved study abroad programs.
March 3, 2014 • 31
The Columbia Chronicle 32 • March 3, 2014
TOP
5 Sarah Schlieder Assistant Sports & Health Editor
Vanessa Morton Assistant Sports & Health Editor
Elizabeth Earl Opinions Editor
NOT SAFE FOR WORK
CELEBRITY ENDORSEMENTS THAT DON’T SUCK
REASONS I’M BROKE
REASONS PEOPLE CAN’T GUESS WHERE I’M FROM
YOUR ONLINE TIME WASTERS OF THE WEEK
Alzheimer’s education: Actor and comedian Seth Rogen discussed Alzheimer’s disease before a Senate subcommittee Feb. 26. He helped launch Hilarity for Charity in 2012 to educate young adults about Alzheimer’s and has continued to actively promote awareness of the disease.
BLOG: How May We Hate You? The next time you go to a hotel, be nice to your concierge because they apparently hold grudges. This blog is run by two comedy writers forced to take jobs as concierges in upscale New York City hotels who tell stories of ignorant customers, hostile tourists and nasty coworkers. Stories are all across the board, and some are unbelievable. The two have an excellent sense of humor, and even if the stories are mediocre, they are hysterically told. Check it out at HowMayWeHateYou.com VIDEO: Comcast: “We Don’t Give a F--k”
In case you weren’t paying attention, Time-Warner Cable and Comcast are merging this year. The media has done a confusing job of painting how the merger will work and how viewers will be affected, but FunnyorDie.com is clearing that up with its neat explanation of why media giant Comcast is awful, including lists of ongoing lawsuits and customer horror stories of terrible customer service, among other problems. Littered with profanity, the video is sad because it’s true. Check it out at FunnyorDie.com
Michael J. Fox’s Foundation for Parkinson’s Research: Since its establishment in 2000, the Michael
J. Fox Foundation for Parkinson’s Research has funded more than $149 million in Parkinson’s research. The foundation is dedicated to finding a cure for the disease and developing improved therapies for those living with Parkinson’s. USA for UNHCR: This independent organization widely endorsed by Angelina Jolie funds the humanitarian work of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees. The organization supports refugee protection and relief programs around the world. Since its start in 1950, the UNHCR has aided more than 50 million refugees.
Mishu: I recently adopted an adorable, devilish kitten, and after a week of blissful motherhood, I’ve already spent more than $400 on my little feline. From litter to food and treats, she has become the most expensive investment I have ever made (beside college). Who knew motherhood would be so hard? Uber: Unbeknownst to me, this thing called Uber has been
around for quite some time. When I found out there was a system that allowed me to order taxi rides and track them on my smartphone, I almost peed my pants. Whoever created the application is a pure genius. However, its lower prices have added up—while I only began using it a week and a half ago, I have already racked up at least $100 in Uber rides. Beer: Why is it that the thing that understands me the most is one of the most expensive necessities? If I were smart, I would get creative and brew my own beer, but no, I am too lazy and impatient.
People for Ethical Treatment of Animals: PETA
consists of more than 3 million members including celebrities Pink and Alec Baldwin. The organization is dedicated to establishing and defending animal rights and focuses its efforts on factory farms, laboratories, the clothing trade and the entertainment industry.
Heating bill: Thank you, Chicago, for blessing me with
Feeding America: Feeding America, the United States’
Cafecito: This Cuban delight should really only be a
leading domestic hunger-relief charity, is endorsed by more than 20 celebrities including Ben Affleck and Jennifer Aniston. The charity’s mission is to feed America’s hungry through a nationwide network of food banks by supplying more than 3 billion pounds of food per year.
novelty, but who can resist the Jerk Chicken Sandwich? Plus, it’s right across the street from my office, so it’s almost daring me to walk over. I shamelessly endorse spending most of my leftover paycheck at Cafecito, which smells like Cuban coffee, spice and love.
the responsibility of paying the most expensive bill of my life thus far. Not only have you welcomed the polar vortex twice, you have forced me to blast my heat all day long, making my People’s Gas bill reach new heights.
My accent: I’m from a small ranching town in Northern Arizona, but I grew up in a small town in Eastern Tennessee and my relatives are British, so I say “y’all” as well as “lovely” when I’m speaking. Small-town shopping sucks: You get the most generic clothing available in pretty much every circumstance, and old habits die hard. In high school, it was common for two girls to be wearing the exact same outfit because we had a total of three affordable clothing stores for 40,000 people. Unless I wanted to drive the 100mile trip to Phoenix, my options were JC Penney, Sears and Dillard’s. I’ve traveled a lot: So far, I have been to 10 countries and 24 states. So if someone doesn’t really know where I’m from, I can drop the fact that I’ve hiked a mountain in the Philippines as well as waded through the Verde River in Arizona and leave them guessing. The Internet: The invention of the web has linked everyone to one huge cultural database. No longer is there a regional joke or foible that I can’t Google, find on Reddit or YouTube video anywhere, so I know what the accents and turns of phrase are. It’s the Midwest: Everyone in the Midwest assumes that everyone they meet is also from the Midwest. It’s a cultural phenomenon that I have chosen to think of as bubble syndrome. But part of the beauty of people being unable to guess my hometown is that I can think of myself as a local anywhere I go, so Chicago has become home for me, too.
Anthony Soave THE CHRONICLE Laganja Estranja, a contestant on the sixth season of “RuPaul’s Drag Race,” performs a lipsync rendition of Rasheeda’s “My Bubble Gum” on Feb. 26 at Roscoe’s Tavern, 3356 N. Halsted St. Six of the 14 contestants came out to promote the show’s season six premiere. 32 • March 3, 2014
March 3, 2014 • 33
Arts & Culture
“The Tonight Show” lip sync battle: Paul Rudd and Jimmy Fallon Paul Rudd’s performing Tina Turner’s “Better Be Good to Me” and Queen’s “Don’t Stop Me Now” may have beaten Fallon’s strong rendition of “Jukebox Hero” by Foreigner, but the viewers were the true winners of this Feb. 26 showdown. —M. McCall
“Mixology” series premiere This new comedy is more offensive than funny, with too many jokes made at the expense of women. Although I do appreciate the premise of the show—10 people looking for love in one night—the writing was too dreadful to tune in a second time. —M. Castellucci
Kanye is super odd, so when he shows up on “Late Night with Seth Meyers” and says his life is freeing, I love it. How can life be freeing? His weird points of view make him an incredible guest for one of Seth Meyer’s first shows. —J. Wolan
“The Wind Rises” In this beautifully animated film, director Hayao Miyazaki tells the tale of Jiro Horikoshi, a famous Japanese engineer. The movie is touchingly bittersweet and made me feel like a kid again. Jiro is an incredible character and the plotline is compelling. —M. Castellucci
Apart from the cover, which stabs my heart yet again, reminding me that Philip Seymour Hoffman is gone, this issue is pretty mediocre. The interview with Drake feels staged, and even Peter Travers’ Oscar predictions are limp. I usually agree with him, but this time—no. —E. Earl
Complex Magazine, March issue Complex Magazine featured Childish Gambino, also known as actor and comedian Donald Glover, as this issue’s cover story. With the magazine’s profile, Gambino proves to be a perplexing figure, sharing his vision for how kids shouldn’t follow the norm. —N. Craig
W Magazine, March issue W Magazine, how dare you pander to the disgusting world of tabloid celebrity? A Miley Cyrus feature written by the oh-so-prevalent Ronan Farrow? I did not expect you to ever sink so low. Why are you still forcing these nobodies down our throats? —C. Looney
“The Future of the Mind” by Michio Kaku Kaku’s writing is so engaging that I know I will devour the book after reading the excerpt. He explores new research about how the brain works less like a computer and more like an enormous corporation, adapting and changing. We really are amazing. —E. Earl
St. Vincent by St. Vincent If you’re not listening to St. Vincent’s new album, I don’t know what you’re doing with your life. Annie Clark is vicious and sexy and left nothing to be desired in this album. While I wish the whole thing was rock dance jams, the techno-ballads kept me engaged. —C. Looney
Helios by The Fray Who knew The Fray still existed? I didn’t and I think I was OK not knowing whether or not they still inhabited this mortal world. Their new album is full of gross music, which will echo through the empty strip-malls of America, making grandmas pray for an iPod. —C. Looney
”If It Wasn’t True” by Shamir The beat is dramatic, but the lyrics and vocals are laid back, which makes for an interesting pair. However, toward the end of the song, the beat varies more and the vocal pitch gets higher, making the song more difficult to listen to. —N. Craig
Burn Your Fire for No Witness by Angel Olsen Full of grace and sorrow, folk singer Angel Olsen delivers songs that echo a longing for happiness and personal revelation. This sort of cheerful loneliness manifests itself in twangy, electric tunes like “Hi-Five” that call you out of your life and into your head. —A. Dodds
Naming my kitten Hashtag I just got a new kitten. For the past week, his name has been a mystery because I couldn’t figure out what names fit him. I decided not to go with generic names like Simba or Garfield. Finally, my co-worker came up with the name Hashtag. —S. Leak
Waiting on spring Chicago, I know we’ve been through this before. Every year you lead me on and make me believe that I’m going to see your beautiful,warm summer face, and then you hit me with that ice cold winter. I can’t keep this relationship up if you keep teasing me. —J. Hinchliffe
Lebron James’ mask Lebron James wore a face mask Feb. 27 while playing the New York Knicks. James resembles a masked hero on the court. Some may even consider him one because he scored a gamehigh of 31 points for the Miami Heat, which won 108-82. —M. Adams
Having a job Although some days may be filled with boredom from the mind-numbing tedium of showing up to the same place every day, it is much better than having to budget and clip coupons to make it week-to-week. I’d rather be unexcited over unemployed any day. —T. Eagle
Rolling Stone, Feb. 27 issue
No– just... no.
Uhmmm, WTF?
Kanye West on “Late Night with Seth Meyers”
It’s whatever.
I can dig it.
EPIC! March 3, 2014 • 33
Monday, March 3, 2014
The Columbia Chronicle CAMPUS EDITORIAL
Bonus system could bridge college income gap
AS COLLEGE FACULTY unions fight
for realistic living wages, national attention has shifted to the income disparity found at universities. To address the growing gap between administrative salaries and faculty wages, the faculty union at St. Mary’s College of Maryland has proposed limiting the salary of the college president to no more than 10 times that of the lowest-paid staff member. The concept of tying staff and administrative salaries together, which has also been proposed at Brandeis University in Boston, sounds promising in theory but remains flawed on a number of levels. Because the roles of faculty and administrators within a college are inherently different, coupling their salaries is illogical. Faculty members interact the most directly with students, and while what they do represents the core of a college’s mission, administrators also play a key role
in ensuring smooth operations. This proposal could hinder recruiting administrators, which would negatively impact a college’s basic functions, such as increasing resources and raising funds—all duties of administrators. However, income disparity still needs to be addressed. Stories of adjunct professors being forced to use food stamps have emerged in the press within the last few years, provoking criticism of college employees’ wages. The most infamous example is that of Margaret Mary Vojtko, an adjunct professor at Duquesne University in Pittsburgh for 25 years before her contract ended, who died in extreme poverty, unable to afford cancer treatments, as reported Sept. 18 by the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. Although faculty members certainly need a raise, the solution is not to set an umbrella standard for faculty salaries, because determining a
cohesive pay scale for employees with a wide range of experience would be nearly impossible. Top college officials are usually highly qualified, so their salaries should reflect their credentials. Instead of deducting from administrators’ wages Robin Hood-style, a reasonable top-tobottom bonus system could close the pay gap without hurting the college’s ability to recruit talent. Negotiating a performancebased bonus system into faculty contracts, as President Kwang-Wu Kim has suggested he would like to do with Columbia’s faculty, would encourage better work quality and motivate college employees to improve their performance. Columbia’s full- and part-time faculty do not currently receive bonuses, according to Leonard Strazewski, an associate professor in the Journalism Department, but they can be negotiated in future contracts, although calculating
outstanding performance would be difficult. Teacher evaluations do not always reflect the caliber of performance and a “publish or perish” orientation might divert faculty attention from teaching, which has always been of primary importance at Columbia. However, difficulties like these should not deter the school from putting such a system in place. Faculty, staff and administrators routinely work together in committees and taskforces to accomplish the business of the school and this initiative is no different. Moreover, it would be enthusiastically received by faculty, who receive the same raises regardless of whether individual performance is outstanding or merely adequate. The college administration has a history of large bonuses, such as former President Warrick L. Carter’s $45,000 bonus in fall 2012, which was given despite falling
CITY EDITORIAL
enrollment, as reported Oct. 21 by The Chronicle. Administrators should be held accountable for specific indicators that gauge the overall success of the college, such as enrollment numbers, and the budgeting office should take those indicators into consideration. Income disparity in higher education is a systemic problem that is compounded by budget cuts and an unstable economy. However, tight finances are not a reasonable excuse to pay professors less than a living wage while many administrators live more than comfortably. Colleges are businesses that must answer to the bottom line when determining wages for their faculty and staff members, but they should be expected to provide all their employees with livable, functional salaries. Balancing performance with pay should solve the equation without causing unnecessary strain. EDITORIAL ILLUSTRATION
Snow melts, flood policy floats to surface A RECORD-BREAKING WINTER
snowfall that is steadily melting has left many streets flooded and clogged gutters citywide. As warm weather arrives and spring rains begin, flooding could become a serious threat and cause expensive property damage. Flood prevention is not the city’s most pressing concern, but it is one officials should start preparing for. Mayor Rahm Emanuel made an awkward overture during a Feb. 19 press conference, joking that the water commissioner should consult Noah to prepare for the next deluge. Although by definition no natural disaster is the city’s fault, Chicago could approach emergency response more efficiently by allocating resources to the most affected streets, mapping street flooding and requiring all Chicago tenants to purchase renter’s insurance. Since December, nearly 69 inches of snow and rain have fallen in Chicago, making this the fiercest winter on record since 1978, according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Association. The Chicago underground drainage system is filled completely and Editorial Board Members Keenan Browe Graphic Designer Maria Castellucci Metro Editor Tyler Eagle Associate Editor Elizabeth Earl Opinions Editor
the Des Plaines tunnel is filled up to 78 percent, according to a Feb. 21 storm update from the Metropolitan Water Reclamation District. The city has been working on constructing reservoirs to contain rainwater overflow since the 1970s, but they are not set to be finished until 2029, leaving the current floodwater with nowhere to go, according to the MWRD. Floods often affect students because many rent bottom-floor apartments in the city. Renters’ insurance should be a requirement in all lease agreements, particularly for garden and firstfloor units because most young people cannot afford to shoulder any necessary renovation costs if damage occurs. Many young renters may not have purchased insurance before, so the details of how to do so need to be included in the Chicago Residential Landlord and Tenant Ordinance. More than 55 percent of Chicagoans rent, but only 35 percent of renters have insurance, according to an August 2013 poll conducted by the Insurance Information Institute. Landlords do not require tenants to take
out renter’s insurance, but it is irresponsible not to invest in the affordable precaution. The city is responsible for widespread prevention, but every individual needs to take caution as well. The MWRD drafted changes in the stormwater management ordinance to prevent pollution in October 2013. As of May 1, development sites will be required to remove floodwater from surfaces that cannot absorb it. The ordinance also calls for more thorough floodplain mapping, which is overdue. The current Detailed Watershed Plan only identifies the general areas around rivers likely to flood. The city also needs to take sewer overflow into consideration for streets away from the river. The MWRD’s new ordinance shows that thought is being put into how the city handles excess water, but other agencies need to take steps to assure that the entire city is prepared to prevent and efficiently handle potential damage. An open discussion about flood plans could help steer Chicago toward a better and safer response plan.
Abbas Haleem Copy Editor
Tatiana Walk-Morris Campus Editor
Matthew McCall Arts & Culture Editor Kyle Rich Social Media Editor Sarah Schlieder Assistant Sports & Health Editor
Lindsey Woods Editor-in-Chief
Donald Wu THE CHRONICLE Did you catch a mistake, think we could have covered a story better or believe strongly about an issue that faces all of us here at Columbia? Why not write a letter to the editor? At the bottom of Page 2, you’ll find a set of guidelines on how to do this. Let us hear from you.
34 • March 3, 2014
—The Columbia Chronicle Editorial Board
March 3, 2014 • 35 opinions
Change policies with climate
BRANDON SMITH Contributing Writer ALL WINTER, THE Midwest and Eastern regions have faced glacial winter storms named after terrifying mythological Greek characters. The average temperature for Chicago this winter will likely be around 16–18 degrees, making it the third-coldest winter since records began in 1877, according to the National Weather Service. The miserable winter weather must mean that climate change isn’t real, right? Wrong. On behalf of every breathing human being, I wish that were the case, but the especially cold winter clearly indicates how gravely unprepared the world is for the realities of a changing climate.
People, particularly those in charge of making big policy decisions, can continue to argue whether they believe climate change is real, but bickering won’t halt its effects. They can bicker and disagree on carbon pollution’s impact on the atmosphere and the oceans, but that isn’t going to stop Manhattan from flooding. Denying the realities of climate change is only prolonging the road to proper legislation in this country, and the world needs to start solving this problem now. While icicles form on the tips of Chicagoans’ noses, people across the West and Southwest regions are dealing with the worst drought since the 18th century, according to data from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. The lack of water in those regions is the result of this season’s lack of snowfall, which is vital to farmers preparing for the dry summer months. State and national politicians are currently scrambling in California to come up with a solution to the water distribution problem. The state legislature has considered a number of bills that would reroute water from the northern part of the state to the lower part. In Southern California,
the drought is leaving farmers without any contingency plans and wondering whether or not they will have anything to harvest next season, as this season is already a lost cause. The result is just short of an all-out water war. President Barack Obama addressed the impending disaster to a number of farmers and community members Feb. 14 on farmland in Los Banos, Calif., according to White House records. “We’re going to have to stop looking at these disasters as something to wait for,” Obama said. “We’ve got to start looking at these disasters as something to prepare for, to anticipate, to start building new infrastructure, to start having new plans, to recalibrate the baseline that we’re working off of.” But Obama’s statement, however well-received or well-meant, is long overdue in the annals of politicians putting bandages on wounds that need stitches. The retroactive solutions conjured up to deal with immediate impacts such as freezing temperatures and a lack of water rarely leave anyone prepared for the next occurrence. Although these weather events are not direct results of climate change, the scientific consensus is that this kind of weather will
become the norm. A freakishly cold winter in Chicago does not invalidate rising temperatures. NOAA has 137 years of documented weather data, and despite the record-low winter, 2013 still made it into the top 10 hottest years for the entire planet, according to the annual data analysis at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Agency. Last year tied for fourth place with 2003 in the top 10 hottest years since 1880. The battle happening in California right now is exemplary of what is preventing a viable, longterm solution to a problem that will likely intensify as the 21st century rolls on. The southern half of the state is pointing fingers at the northern half, claiming a decision made years ago to route water to the coasts where salmon fisheries thrive has left the agricultural south and central regions barren. The north is arguing that even if the water gets diverted back to the south, it will not be helpful because the land and air are so dry—in short, the south just needs rain. The fact that California legislators are spending more time pointing fingers than finding long-term solutions is indicative of what is happening on a global level. Governments and citizens
everywhere have to deal with weather calamities that could be mitigated if everyone stopped blaming each other and started coming up with solutions. In the U.S., people do not have to cope with the thought of their homes sinking below an ocean. Island nations across the Pacific are dealing with that threat right now, and the world stands to lose entire nations to rising sea levels. Secretary of State John Kerry recently spoke in Jakarta, Indonesia, to a room full of Indonesian policymakers Feb. 16 as a part of a speaking tour discussing the impacts of climate change. Kerry said island nations would be the first to experience the harmful effects of rising temperatures and oceans, making them a testing ground for compensatory policies. People need to acknowledge these problems before irreparable damage is done so we as a planet will be poised to confront them when they inevitably escalate. The current generation has the power to do something and should be able to tell their grandchildren someday about how they saved the world, rather than apologizing for letting it die. bsmith@chroniclemail.com STUDENT POLL
Do you think college professors are paid enough? It doesn’t seem like too much. Considering all the work they have to go through to become a professor ... I don’t think teachers get paid enough as a group.
I guess in terms of teachers, [it’s] pretty average from what I’ve heard. I have never heard my professors [complain about their salaries].
Considering the amount I’ve seen the top people like the president get paid, I don’t think they get paid enough. They are the people that really drive this school.
Mjachaelob Craig freshman music major
Genevieve Brissette sophomore art + design major
Michael Lee freshman arts, entertainment & media management major
Colleges need to create dorm communities
MATT MCCALL Arts & Culture Editor NICHOLAS BARNES, A 20-year-old junior at the University of Chicago, was found dead in his dorm Feb. 15 after students complained about a smell coming from his room. He had been dead in his dorm room, unnoticed for several days. It had been eight days since Barnes used his university key card to enter his residence hall in the International House dorm. The cause of death is still unknown as of press time, but the Chicago Tribune reported Feb. 17 that there was no evidence of foul play. But the real question is, how can a student go missing and remain unnoticed for more than a week?
Barnes’ death is an extreme example that represents a larger problem facing college campuses nationwide: a lack of community within the dorms. If there were a stronger dorm community at U of C, it wouldn’t have taken days to find Barnes’ body. Students are achieving new levels of anonymity among their peers by retreating into private rooms and away from public lounge spaces, and residence hall systems put in place by colleges are failing to connect students the way they did 20 years ago. It’s no secret that college campuses can be lonely, isolating places. The grim consequences for a lacking sense of community on campus can range from depression to self-harm and suicide. For college freshmen, leaving the nest can be hard, and being separated from family and friends’ support systems can take a toll on young adults’ mental health. According to the American College Health Association 2013 National College Health Assessment, 7.5 percent of college students had seriously considered suicide in the last 12 months and 1.5 percent had attempted suicide. Additionally, 31.3 percent of college students
reported they “felt so depressed it was difficult to function.” While colleges cannot be held responsible for all students’ mental health needs, residence halls need to take the initiative to actively protect students from such isolation so that tragedies like Barnes’ unnoticed death do not continue. Increased social interaction can improve the overall quality of life students experience in the dorms, benefitting everyone. Unfortunately, Columbia is no exception to the trend of crumbling campus communities and needs to address the problem. The fifth floor of the 777 S. State St. dorm building features a pool table, a wide-screen TV, couches, chairs, vending machines and a pool that are seldom used. Areas like this are intended to promote community growth and provide opportunities for students to interact with other students from a variety of majors and backgrounds. At schools like Columbia, where diversity is increasingly important, an active lounge is indicative of a healthy community, something the college clearly needs to work on. Unfortunately, dorms often feel more like apartment buildings, and it is not unusual for students
to know only a few of the people on their floor. Twenty years ago, computer labs and lounge spaces were the only way to access the Internet, but today, students do not have to leave their rooms to do homework, be entertained or even to eat. Never straying from the well-beaten path between the elevator and the front door becomes all too easy. However, dorms are still the best venue to bring a diverse array of students together. Even if they find their niche inside the academic environment, students return to their dorms at some point. Colleges and Resident Assistants are responsible for promoting a positive, supportive community within student housing. While some RAs regularly check up on students, host engaging events and carry out their required duties, others shirk the responsibility, using the job to coast on free housing. Lazy student workers are one thing, but when housing can cost almost $16,000 per year for a private suite in the University Center, according to Columbia’s website, it is unacceptable for them to neglect dorm communities. In addition to ensuring apartments
are clean and safe, RAs should also be responsible for community leadership. Columbia’s Residence Life needs to create attractive communities students want to be a part of, which would also promote a better image of the college as a whole. A more in-depth personality questionnaire for dorm placement or the reinstitution of learning communities that group students by major would be a step in the right direction, and would also help students establish deeper bonds based on shared interests. This isn’t just a Columbia problem. Students across the country experience these feelings of depression and isolation, which could be offset by improving the quality of dorm communities. Barnes’ tragic death represents a legitimate fear many students have of slipping through the cracks and becoming strangers to the people who live closest to them. It is important to note that college is a time of transition, a new and often intimidating experience. Colleges do not need to parent students, but they should provide resources to make the transition comfortable and safe. mmccall@chroniclemail.com March 3, 2014 • 35
The Columbia Chronicle
36 • March 3, 2014
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Store Hours: M - F 11AM to 6PM 33 E. Congress Pkwy 1st Floor (entrance off Wabash) • 312.369.8622 computerstore@colum.edu We accept: *Must be a current student, staff, or faculty member of Columbia College Chicago to shop at the Computer Store. All offers valid while supplies last. No rainchecks or special orders. All sales final.
36 • March 3, 2014
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Monday, march 3, 2014
The Columbia Chronicle
Resolution combats veteran suicides MARIA CASTELLUCCI Metro Editor TO HELP PREVENT suicides among veterans, aldermen introduced a resolution to City Council on Feb. 19 that would require further studies on the causes of suicide and raise awareness of the issue. The proposal is in response to a January study released by the Veterans Health Administration, which found an increase in suicides among young male veterans ages 18–24 and in women of various ages. The resolution includes a mandatory hearing by the Committee on Human Relations to identify preventive strategies and create more programs to help veterans. According to the study, there was no significant increase in suicides among veterans in general from 2009–2011, with an estimated 40 suicides per 100,000 veterans. However, among male veterans ages 18–24, the suicide rate increased from 46 suicides per 100,000 veterans in 2009 to 79 suicides per 100,000 veterans in 2011. Alderman James Balcer (11th Ward), a Vietnam War veteran, sponsored the resolution and said
there needs to be more public awareness of veteran suicides. “I’m going to work with the city’s [Department of Public Health] on this to get more awareness about it and see what else can we do,” Balcer said. Caitlin Thompson, deputy director of suicide prevention at the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, said she applauds Chicago’s leaders and their efforts to raise awareness of veteran suicides. “I don’t think there is ever enough awareness,” Thompson said. “There always needs to be as much outreach and understanding as possible, especially about the services that are available and to promote the message that treatment works and getting care works if you’re feeling depressed or if you’re feeling in crisis.” The USDVA provides suicide prevention programs such as mental health care services and a Veterans Crisis line, which provides immediate assistance to struggling veterans and their families, Thompson said. Despite the availability of government programs, veterans often feel forgotten when they return
from war, said Alan Van Bladel, president of the Vietnam Veterans of America Chapter 311. Van Bladel said many Vietnam War veterans feel abandoned by the government after they return home. “I don’t think the government is doing enough as far as providing help for veterans,” Van Bladel said. “There are so many veterans out there that are in need and there just aren’t enough programs to help them along.” Brian Ngo, president of the Student Veterans Society at Columbia and a junior marketing communication major, said the resolution would help but suicides and mental illnesses such as post-traumatic stress disorder and depression occur among veterans because of the nature of war. Ngo said he served four years in the U.S. Marine Corps and when he was discharged in September 2012, it took him a while to adapt to civilian life because the army creates an environment of isolation from the rest of the world. “When you come out, the support structure is gone,” Ngo said. “The rug is pulled out from underneath you.… I remember when I first came
STOCK PHOTO
here, I didn’t get along with anybody just because no one understood my mentality.” Thompson said the transition from a war zone to civilian life is incredibly difficult. However, she said a majority of veterans do not suffer
from PTSD, thoughts of suicide or depression and successfully transition back to civilian life. Ngo, said he was 19 years old when he was deployed to Afghanistan. The
xx SEE VETERANS, PG. 40
Gap between rich and poor widens MARIA CASTELLUCCI Metro Editor IN CHICAGO AND other cities nation-
wide, the gap between the rich and poor is expanding as the economy slowly recovers from the Great Recession, according to a Feb. 20 Brookings Institution study. The study, titled “All Cities Are Not Created Unequal,” compared the highest and lowest household incomes in 50 of the nation’s largest cities, as determined by the U.S. Census Bureau. Chicago ranked as the city with the 8th highest income inequality, while Atlanta ranked first on the list, with its highest earners making more than $279,000 annually and the lowest earners making $14,000. Income inequality in major cities outpaces the national average, according to the study. Edwin Mills, a Northwestern University professor who specializes in urban economic development, said the Great Recession, which began in 2007, impacted the poor more than the rich and contributed to the disparity.
“This long, drawn-out recession has certainly favored income inequality,” Mills said. “Low-income people tend to get laid off and find it harder to find jobs.” Income inequality results in poor performing schools, lower city tax revenue and reduced employment and housing options for middleand low-income households, forcing them to leave the city, according to the study. It is becoming more common for city residents to migrate to the suburbs when faced with minimal job opportunities and unavailable homes, Mills said. In recent decades, suburbs have expanded, making room for more low-income residents than in the past, he said. “Traditionally, zoning has mitigated low-income people to leave cities because they got zoned out of high-income suburbs,” Mills said. “That seems to be breaking down as suburbs begin to extend farther and farther out, and area suburbs are not so discriminatory against lowincome people. Low-income people leave the cities but they don’t usually go out very far.”
Howard Wial, executive director of the Center for Urban Economic Development at the University of Illinois at Chicago, said income inequality can also lead to gentrification. Wial said factors such as tax rate reductions for the rich and the $7.25 federal minimum wage facilitate inequality. Wial said local minimum wages and the scarcity of sustainable jobs for people without a college degree lead to inequality because there are fewer opportunities for low-income residents. “Policies that help create … good jobs for people who don’t have bachelor’s degrees are helpful,” Wial said. “The efforts that are just getting started around here … could be helpful, but we haven’t had much of that in the past decade or earlier.” Wial said it was recently announced that the Digital Manufacturing and Design Innovation Institute will be established in Chicago, providing more job opportunities for people without bachelor’s degrees by making digital literacy
xx SEE INEQUALITY, PG. 40 March 3, 2014 • 37
The Columbia Chronicle
38 • March 3, 2014
ARE YOU THERE, RAHM? IT’S ME, TAXPAYER
NOTABLE
by Kaley Fowler Managing Editor
JACK NEWELL
Hooch ‘n’ cooch
Erik Rodriguez THE CHRONICLE
WHAT “WORLD-CLASS CITY” wouldn’t allow liquor in its strip clubs? Not Chicago, as long as the City Council approves an ordinance that would lift a decades-old ban on serving liquor in venues that offer seminude dancing. On Feb. 27, Alderman Scott Waguespack (32nd Ward) proposed legislation that would allow the
city’s adult entertainment clubs to start selling alcohol rather than require them to choose between strippers and booze, as they have historically had to do. The proposal is slightly risqué, but it certainly doesn’t tarnish the city’s reputation. Chicago’s bars and strip joints have been independent of each other since 1977, when Alderman Edward Burke (14th Ward) proposed the zoning restriction because the city’s strip clubs were hotbeds for misconduct. However, during a Feb. 27 Zoning Committee meeting, Burke said strip clubs don’t pose the same public safety threats they did back when he introduced the ban. “This was back when there was a flood of massage parlors that had opened in Chicago and one could not legislate against them based on certain Supreme Court rulings, but we could restrict them based on zoning,” Burke said. “Frankly, a world-class city like Chicago, in terms of entertainment, ought to have realistic kinds of adult entertainment venues that don’t create a problem in the neighborhood.” The legislation also closes legal loopholes. The city has been in legal battles with VIP’s A Gentleman’s
Occupation: Filmmaker
Club, 1501 N. Kingsbury, since 1993. VIP’s features female dancers clad in panties and pasties; because the women aren’t technically naked, VIP’s has been able to slide through the cracks, but the updated law would legitimize their doings. Some adult bookstores, movie houses and late-night bars have also been secretly showcasing strippers to reel in extra cash, but the updated zoning restriction would ban any business without a cabaret license from allowing employees to shed their clothes for tips. It’s time for the city to loosen up and strip its antiquated alcohol ban. Housing two sources of adult fun under the same roof is just a common-sense measure, and it shouldn’t rub people the wrong way. kfowler@chroniclemail.com
NATALIE CRAIG Assistant Metro Editor UNLIKE STEVEN SPIELBERG, Jack New-
ell was not running around making movies by age 8, but when his parents bought him his first camera after he graduated high school in 2000, he fell in love with the idea of being a filmmaker. He decided to study film at Columbia and graduated in 2004. Since graduation, Newell has explored the world with his camera at his side, hoping to inspire people through commercial films, narrative fiction productions and his new documentary adventures. Newell has recently been working on his first documentary, titled “How to Build a School in Haiti.” After an earthquakes struck Haiti in 2010, Newell said he became interested in making a documentary about three men who were working together to build a school. Newell spoke with The Chronicle about filming in Haiti, attending Columbia and filmmaking.
JACK NEWELL: Whatever you STOCK PHOTO
Whopping heating bills coming in March
MCT Newswire THE NEARLY 1 million natural gas customers in the Chicago area could see their monthly bills rise by $2.50–$5 a month next year if rate increases sought Feb. 26 by Peoples Gas and North Shore Gas are passed by regulators. More immediately, March heating bills could be, on average, more than $50 higher than in February as a result of colder temperatures that have increased demand on the systems, the two companies warned. Peoples Gas’ proposed rate adjustment filed with the Illinois Commerce Commission would amount to an average increase of $5 a month for residential heating customers, bringing an average monthly bill to $98, the company said. 38 • March 3, 2014
A portion of the increase is attributed to Peoples Gas’ $300 million infrastructure construction project within the city of Chicago. Peoples Gas supplies natural gas to about 829,000 customers within the city. Meanwhile, the proposed rate hike for North Shore Gas would be $2.50 a month, a lower sum because of the smaller customer base and the newer system. The increase would bring an average monthly bill to $94, if approved. North Shore Gas’ customer base totals about 158,000 homes and businesses. Both rate cases must go through the typical 11-month review process by the Illinois Commerce Commission. Extreme winter weather in the Chicago area caused a 26 percent increase in usage from November through February. That “huge
spike in demand,” along with transportation issues, translated to a per-therm increase of 41 cents at Peoples Gas and 31 cents at North Shore Gas, said Jennifer Block, spokeswoman for Peoples Gas. As a result, Peoples Gas March bills will be, on average, $57 higher than in February, while North Shore Gas bills will be $52 higher, based on typical March weather. Another dramatic temperature plunge could push bills even higher, Block said. “We’ve had to deliver more gas this year than any of the last 10,” she said. Both Peoples Gas and North Shore Gas partner with community groups to offer heating cost assistance to eligible customers. Payment plans are also available. chronicle@chroniclemail.com
Neighborhood: Uptown
Courtesy JACK NEWELL
THE CHRONICLE: What is the most beneficial thing you have learned about your career path?
MARY ELLEN PODMOLIK
native
put in, you are going to get out and then some. When you’re in school, it’s nice because you have people giving you deadlines, but when you are doing freelance filmmaking, you need to be a self-motivator. What I learned at Columbia is that it’s an attribute and an asset that you can motivate yourself and you can apply yourself.
How is the Haiti project going? I have been going down to Haiti since 2011. I got back two weeks ago and that was my seventh trip down, so I have been there many times. It’s a feature-length documentary about the construction of a single school in rural Haiti. The idea is that we follow the project from the planning stages through all of the construction and then beyond to see the impacts the school has on this poor community in Haiti. We are using it as a way to start communication about how America and developing countries do international economic development.
How did you come across this project? Statistics show that 50 percent of all American households gave to Haiti right after the earthquake in 2010, and I was one of those people. I texted $10 to the American Red Cross and didn’t think about it anymore. I was listening to the NPR podcast Planet Money, and they were going down to Haiti after the earthquake to follow up. They ended up finding this school and people who were listening to the podcast and gave money to the school to help them build. Six months later, the podcast followed up and the community who received the money tried to build a school but ran out of money before they could get anything past a foundation. Then Planet Money said, “You know what? We’re going to try and build a school.” When I heard that moment, I was struck by this overwhelming sense of purpose and duty.
What is the most rewarding part of this project? The lesson I have learned is we view people who are living in poverty as either being lazy or being this noble person who can withstand the horrible situation they live in. I have learned that they are trying to make a living, they have families, bills, hopes and dreams. These people are really like you and me. They are trying to get on with it. They are trying to make a living and trying to make sure their children have a better life than they do. People need to understand that these people aren’t that different. Yes, they speak a different language and they have different cultural things, but in the end, they want what you want.
What is most exciting about your job? The thing I like about doing filmmaking is that I am kind of ADHD and I like being able to bounce around to different projects. I was just in Haiti two weeks ago and last fall we were in Paris shooting for Open Tables, a feature film which is a romantic comedy. In a couple of days I will be in Minnesota shooting another project. ncraig@chroniclemail.com
March 3, 2014 • 39 METRO
Bond analysts: Chicago not Detroit
Hal Dardick MCT Newswire
National media outlets, opinion-
makers and financial analysts have taken to comparing cash-strapped Chicago to bankrupt Detroit, but a major bond-rating agency said that comparison may not be apt. Chicago may face ominous financial woes, especially when it comes to its government worker pension debt, but the city has the wherewithal to weather the financial storm that Detroit could not, according to Standard & Poor’s Ratings Services Feb. 27 report. “We believe Chicago can largely control its own fate, whereas Detroit cannot, nor will it be able to for some time. In our view, this may be the key difference between the two cities and may be what will allow Chicago to work through its problems,” concluded the report, titled “Will Chicago Suffer Detroit’s Fate?” Credit analyst Jane Ridley, the report’s lead author, said the decision was made to compare the cities after Detroit declared bankruptcy last summer. The comparison between the two former manufacturing powerhouses with high levels of debt and unfunded pension obligations became common. “We saw ... a comparison people were making [but] our criteria
made it look starkly different,” Ridley said. “People wanted to draw comparisons, where we didn’t necessarily think there were comparisons that made sense from a credit standpoint.” The report notes that Chicago has a much higher median per-capita income, higher housing values, a lower unemployment rate and a much slower rate of population decrease over the past six decades. It also points to the 22-year tenure of former Mayor Richard M. Daley and the city’s long-range financial plans, which it lists as signs of stronger management than the Motor City, where the entrance to the mayor’s office has been something of a revolving door in recent years. Chicago also set more money aside for financial rainy days, has more cash on hand and a far greater ability to meet its debt obligations, despite a reluctance to increase taxes. Both cities, however, are considered “very weak” when it comes to fiscal performance because in recent years each has spent beyond its means. That has lessened in recent years since Mayor Rahm Emanuel took office, but the problem persists, according to the report. Chicago and Detroit are also “very weak” when it comes to debts, both for money borrowed to oper-
Anthony Soave The Chronicle & stock Photo Chicago and Detroit both have exhibited a “very weak” fiscal performance, according to Standard and Poor’s Rating Services, but analysts believe Chicago is considerably better off than Detroit.
ate the cities and unfunded pension liabilities—the amount of money needed to bring pension funds up to adequate funding. “We’re expecting something to change because they do have such a significant burden on the pension side, but they’ve got those tools to make those changes, whereas Detroit was pretty much up against the
wall and didn’t have that flexibility,” said Helen Samuelson, another author of the report. The report notes that the agency has rated Chicago’s debt at A+, with a negative outlook, compared with a D rating for Detroit, saying, “Chicago’s overall credit quality remains much stronger than Detroit’s.”
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Civic Federation President Laurence Msall said the report is another reminder that state lawmakers need to pass pension changes for Chicago. “We should take little solace that we are not the largest bankrupt city in America,” Msall said. chronicle@colum.edu
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The Columbia Chronicle
40 • March 3, 2014
xx SODA
Continued from Front Page
“The purpose is to reduce obesity, particularly in kids, and to help keep folks healthier,” Steans said. The tax is projected to reduce consumption of the beverages by 23 percent in the first year and could result in new cases of Type 2 diabetes being reduced by 3,400 per year, Steans said. Denzler said educating people to help them make healthy choices is the only way to combat obesity and diabetes, not taxing them. “If you are going to get at the greater obesity problem, you’re not going to do it by taxing soda and sugary beverages,” Denzler said. “There are a number of other foods that are significantly worse or probably contribute to the problem more.” While Steans said soft drinks are the largest source of calories for young Americans, the soda industry accounts for 6 percent of Ameri-
cans’ calorie consumption, according to the United States Department of Agriculture’s National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey. The tax will cut middle-class jobs and would be ineffective in decreasing obesity rates, said Brian Rainville, spokesman for the Teamsters Joint Council 25, a Chicago labor union. A soda tax may reduce consumption but will also negatively impact the soda-manufacturing sector causing layoffs and drastic budget cuts, Denzler said. “The proponents claim it’s a $600 million tax hike,” Denzler said. “It’s interesting that their own economic study acknowledges that you will lose jobs.” Manufacturers would not be the only ones to experience job loss if soda consumption plummets with the implementation of the tax, Tim Bramlet, executive director of the Illinois Beverage Association, said. Corn farmers and those with jobs
in transportation would also suffer from layoffs. “It will have a very negative impact on the soda pop industry and all of those people who rely on it for jobs and income,” Bramlet said. “We believe that attacks of this magnitude would have an influence on [soda] consumption.” The soda industry has changed label practices on bottles and cans to depict the true number of calories and accommodate customers’ health concerns, Bramlet said. He added that some soda companies advocate for a healthy lifestyle and partner with community groups. “We have done so much community outreach,” Bramlet said. “[We have] built playgrounds for schools and invited funding for programs that help kids stay active. It’s all part of an education process to fight obesity and we think we are doing our part. A tax is a step backward.” The Illinois Manufacturers’ Association is working with a coalition of labor unions, retailers and individual manufacturers to educate them on the importance of Illinois’ food-manufacturing sector and the negative consequences if the pending legislation passes, Denzler said. “Reducing the amount of soda is not going to have any impact on obesity,” Bramlet said. “There are a whole lot of other things that can be done, and this is just negative economically.”
Photo illustration Samantha Tadelman THE CHRONICLE
ncraig@chroniclemail.com
xx VETERANS
Continued from PG. 37
rise in suicides among young veterans makes sense to him because of the military’s familiarity, he said. “It’s still a very unstable time in your life,” Ngo said. “You join at 18 and you adhere to a lifestyle for a certain amount of years and then you leave it. You leave everything that you have known every day.” Thompson said it is difficult for veterans and their families to identify depression or PTSD symptoms. To address this problem, the US-
xx INEQUALITY
Continued from PG. 37
training available to workers looking for employment. Although Chicago appears unequal, Wial said high inequality is to be expected because it characterizes the nature of a city. Cities offer both high-income jobs and minimum-wage jobs, which attracts a diverse demographic. “Even in the best possible world, where inequality was as low as you could ever imagine it could be, places like Chicago would still have more inequality than places like Peoria, Ill.,” Wial said. “The fact that Chicago looks relatively bad in terms of inequality is not necessarily Chicago’s fault and not necessarily a flaw in the functioning of the economy.”
DVA designed the Make the Connection campaign. The website is an online community for veterans who suffer from PTSD, depression or mental health complications. Balcer said he hopes the resolution will help veterans identify selfdestructive feelings and promote greater awareness of the programs and resources available to them. “I think many people recognize that there is something wrong, but they can’t put their finger on what exactly it is,” Thompson said. mcastellucci@chroniclemail.com Aileen Kelleher, communications director for Action Now, a local social justice organization advocating to raise the minimum wage to $15 an hour, said Illinois’ current minimum wage, $8.25 an hour, encourages income inequality because it is not a living wage, causing most minimum-wage earners to live in poverty. Kelleher said other Chicago initiatives, such as downtown development, exclude low-wage workers and force them to relocate to low-income neighborhoods on the South and West sides. “If the minimum wage was raised, there would be more jobs that paid closer to what people and contribute to closing the income inequality gap,” Kelleher said. mcastellucci@chroniclemail.com
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March 3, 2014 • 41
The Columbia Chronicle
42 • March 3, 2014
JACKSON ST. Angela Conners THE CHRONICLE More than 100 religious people joined in prayer Feb. 25 after signing a pledge urging the Illinois General Assembly to pass the Fair Tax Act, a law that would lower tax rates for low-income households and raise rates for high-income households, at the Chicago Temple, 77 W. Washington St. The event was hosted by A Better Illinois, a coalition that sponsors tax legislation that would support middle- and low-income households.
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A woman reported Feb. 24 that her debit card was stolen and used to make fraudulent purchases at Target, 1154 S. Clark St. She told police she went to her bank to make a transaction, but her account balance had been depleted at Target and Home Depot. The purchases were more than $900. She closed her account.
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A 29-year-old man was arrested Feb. 26 for heroin possession at the Roosevelt Red Line station, 22 E. Roosevelt Road, after an officer 9TH ST. saw him remove a Ziplock bag containing a white, powdery substance from his pocket. The officer approached the man, who handed over the bag and said it was heroin. The man was placed into custody.
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A woman reported her boyfriend pushed her out of his moving vehicle Feb. 24 on the 500 block of South Clark Street as he was driving her to Chicago Union Station after spending the night at his home. She sustained a bruised eye and a bloody nose. She was treated at Northwestern Memorial Hospital and pressed charges against her boyfriend.
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A police officer arrested a 17-year-old boy Feb. 25 after watching him pass through the turnstile without paying the fare at the Roosevelt Red Line station, 22 E. Roosevelt Road. 5 BALBO AVE . boy attempted to board a southbound The Green Line train before the officer detained 6 him and took him into custody. He was taken to the station for processing.
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A woman called police Feb. 25 after she got into a physical altercation with her boyfriend at her home on the 700 block of South Clark Street. The woman told police they were arguing in the bathroom when her boyfriend began to push her shoulders, forcing her legs against the bathtub, causing bruising. He fled the scene when she called police.
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A man reported a theft Feb. 25 after he noticed his spare tire was missing from the trunk of his car. The man told police he parked his 1989 black Jeep Wrangler at Peoples Auto Parking, 710 S. Wabash Ave., for several hours. When he returned, he noticed his tire was missing. He reported no other damage to the vehicle.
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March 3, 2014 • 43 BACK PAGES
COMICS FROM COLUMBIA’S BEST AND BRIGHTEST Edited by Chris Eliopoulos
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ARIES (March 21—April 20) When your partner finds a stain on your pants that isn’t from her, just blame your runny nose. email Chris Eliopoulos at
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you end up taking a shady route home and dodge a drive-by with your new windmill skill.
CANCER (June 22—July 22) There will be a “Ghostbusters 3” but it will be star Justin Bieber, Shia Lebouf, Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson and Johnny Depp.
LEO (July 23—Aug. 22) Don’t try to get your class absence excused on medical grounds because you were getting a flu shot at CVS. VIRGO (Aug. 23—Sept. 22) Hey Virgo, don’t be offended by the wind assaulting your face. Pull up your oversized, hipster scarf and suck it up. It’ll be spring soon enough. LIBRA (Sept. 23—Oct. 23) Balance is key for Libras this week, so be sure to balance out your bank account before buying that burrito from Chipotle.
SCORPIO (Oct. 24—Nov. 22) You’ll burn your tongue, you will get a little wet, but the season is still dry for you.
SAGITTARIUS (Nov. 23—Dec. 21) You’re in a rut. Try switching things up; type every-
thing in Curlz MT. CAPRICORN (Dec. 22—Jan. 20) Hot singles are in your area. They are melting on your sandwich.
AQUARIUS (Jan. 21—Feb. 19) Books will read themselves aloud to you, but in a language only comprehensible to cats.
PISCES (Feb. 20—March 20) Go to Panera on Tuesday and meet your one true panini. March 3, 2014 • 43
Events
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the city experienced a recordhigh temperature in 1974. For the first time in recorded history, the temperature reached 80 degrees that early in the year. The recordhigh temperature was not reached again until March 12, 1990, when the high was 81 degrees.
reported that the Writing/English Department would undergo a dramatic restructuring. The administration planned to change the department while the top two directors, Chairman John Schultz and Freshman English Director Betty Shiflett, were both on sabbatical.
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» Suspected members of the Nigerian Islamist group Boko Haram stormed a school in Nigeria’s troubled northeast region and killed at least 59 people, including at least 40 students, according to a Feb. 25 Al Jazeera America report. Boko Haram has frequently targeted schools during their recent uprising, resulting in thousands of deaths and efforts to establish a Muslim state in Nigeria’s northern region.
» Egypt appointed a new prime minister just a day after the announcement of the military-backed government’s resignation, according to a Feb. 25 New York Times report. The appointee, Ibrahim Mehlib, is the sixth to become prime minister since President Hosni Mubarak was ousted three years ago. Mehlib said at a news conference that he would name a new government in days.
» Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe issued a new Basic Energy Plan Feb. 25, which will result in the reactivation of dozens of nuclear reactors shut down after the Fukushima disaster three years ago, according to a same-day New York Times report. The public majority of Japan remain in opposition to the energy source. Japan’s nuclear energy plan is expected to be approved by the end of March.
The Chronicle team eagerly waits as the names are called for the winning catagories at this year’s Illinois College Press Association awards. By @CCCHRONICLE
» Chinese scientists likened the nation’s air pollution to the effects of a nuclear winter, which could jeopardize the country’s food supply, according to a Feb. 25 Guardian report. The air pollution has resulted in grounded flights, closed highways and a decline in tourism. Beijing’s air quality is about 20 times more dangerous than the safety level recommended by the World Health Organization.