Phoenix 1-20-2011

JANUARY 20, 2011 • THE CAMPUS NEWSPAPER OF SWARTHMORE COLLEGE SINCE 1881 • VOLUME 133, ISSUE 14

PHOENIX Inside:Dining Services cancels weekday ML breakfast

Six sophomores named Lang ScholarsGrammy nominated flutist performs

NEWS YOU CAN TRUST. DELIVERED TO YOUR INBOX. THURSDAY MORNINGS. SUBSCRIBE AT: WWW.SWARTHMOREPHOENIX.COM/HEADLINES

St. Vincent&

Mayer Hawthorne

Saturday’s Large-Scale Event boasts indie and up-and-coming artists, p. 8

NewsWeekday Mary Lyon break-fast cutBeginning this spring, Dining Services hasremoved the weekday continental breakfastat Mary Lyon residence hall, replacing itwith a Sunday hot breakfast option. PAGE 3

With grant, Bayer seeksmore diversityAssistant Professor of Economics, AmandaBayer, has been awarded a pedagogy grantby the Consortium on High Achievementand Success. PAGE 4

Six sophomores namedLang Opportunity ScholarsSix sophomores were named Eugene M.Lang Opportunity scholars, receiving up to$10,000 to fund a service project of theirdesign. Meet the scholars and read abouttheir projects. PAGE 5

Living & ArtsSwat music professorfounds choir, aids ChesterAssociate Professor of Music John Alstonfounded a choir that has inspired a prom-ising arts school, Chester Upland School ofthe Arts. PAGE 7

Multi Grammy nominee performs at Lang HallCarlos Nakai, known for his mastery of theNative American flute, performed adiverse set of arrangements at LangConcert Hall on Tuesday. PAGE 8

LSE hosts artists MayorHawthorne and St. Vincent This year’s Large Scale Event (LSE) willhost artists Mayer Hawthorne and St.Vincent Saturday the 22nd in LPAC at 7:30p.m., in a combination of motown andalternative/indie music. PAGE 8

The Green Hornet is overstuffed, underdone Michel Gondry’s latest movie, featuringSeth Rogen, does not live up to his previousworks. Instead, it plotlessly lumbersthrough 108 minutes. PAGE 9

One of the last originalshows hangs by a thread Fringe is sci-fi’s true Lost successor, fea-turing geeky fun and parallel universes aswell as excellent acting. PAGE 10

Alum gives life to non-profit“theatre laboratory” Theatre major graduate Jon Stancato ’02founds PlayGround, a new theater initia-tive appending his Stolen Chair TheaterCompany. PAGE 10

New year, new threats:keep your information safe Remember that comment you left on some-one’s Live Journal eight years ago?Probably not; but the Internet does. AllowSteve Dean to teach you how to protectyour information. PAGE 11

OpinionsPrivatize liquor stores butretain workers’ rights Governor Corbett and the State Legislature

should proceed with the sale of state-ownedliquor stores in order to lessen the statedeficit but should add provisions to retainliving-wage jobs. PAGE 13

Eva: No place I’d rather beblack than in AmericaEva compares current attitudes towardsrace in the US to expatriates of the 1920’s,concluding that the US retains the poten-tial to reach racial equality and tolerance.PAGE 14

SportsExploring the bondbetween fan and athlete Hannah takes a look at the connectionbetween fan and athlete and argues thatsocial media has contributed to this com-fortable relationship. PAGE 15

Swimming looks to build onpromising first halfAfter returning from their annual PuertoRico trip, the swim teams are looking tocontinue with their successful seasons.PAGE 15

Back from break, Garnetwomen drop twoThough the women’s basketball teampicked up four wins over break, it lost itstwo most recent games to Gettysburg andHaverford. PAGE 16

Men’s basketball loses torival Haverford, 74-52The Garnet could not pick up a second con-secutive win against the Haverford Fords,dropping to 5-11 on the season. PAGE 16

Thursday, January 20, 2011 Volume 133, Issue 14 The PhoenixThe independent campus newspaper of SwarthmoreCollege since 1881.

EDITORIAL BOARDCamila Ryder Editor in ChiefMarcus Mello Managing EditorMenghan Jin News EditorAdam Schlegel Assistant News EditorSusana Meideros Living & Arts EditorDina Zingaro Living & Arts EditorOlivia Natan Opinions EditorPaul Chung Photo EditorAllegra Pocinki Photo EditorJulia Karpati Graphics EditorPeter Akkies Director of Web DevelopmentEric Sherman Director of Web Development

STAFFJeff Davidson In-Depth ReporterNavin Sabharwal News WriterSera Jeong Living & Arts WriterTimothy Bernstein Film CriticSteve Dean Living & Arts ColumnistAlex Israel Living & Arts ColumnistAriel Swyer Living & Arts ColumnistNaia Poyer ArtistBen Schneiderman Crossword WriterTyler Becker Opinions ColumnistEva McKend Opinions ColumnistEmma Waitzman ArtistAna Apostoleris Sports WriterDaniel Duncan Sports WriterRenee Flores Sports WriterTimothy Bernstein Sports ColumnistHannah Purkey Sports ColumnistRenee Flores Copy EditorLauren Kim Copy EditorSusanna Pretzer Copy EditorJakob Mrozewski PhotographerEric Verhasselt Photographer

BUSINESS STAFFIan Anderson Director of BusinessDevelopmentPatricia Zarate Circulation Manager

GRAPHICSJulia Karpati Cover DesignParker Murray Layout Assistant

CONTRIBUTORSPatrick Ammerman, Renu Nadkarni

OPINIONS BOARDCamila Ryder, Marcus Mello, Olivia Natan

EDITORS’ PICKS PHOTOS COURTESYOF:(clockwise from top left):http://pressthat.wordpress.com/2007/10/,http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=175935162442359, http://www.swarthmore.edu/x27080.xml, http://school.discoveryedu-cation.com/clipart/clip/pizza2.html

TO ADVERTISE:E-mail: [email protected] phone: (610) 328-7362Address: The Phoenix, Swarthmore College,500 College Ave., Swarthmore, PA 19081

Direct advertising requests to Camila Ryder.The Phoenix reserves the right to refuseany advertising. Advertising rates subject tochange.

CONTACT INFORMATIONOffices: Parrish Hall 470-472E-mail: [email protected] phone: (610) 328-8172Address: The Phoenix, Swarthmore College,500 College Ave., Swarthmore, PA 19081Web site: www.swarthmorephoenix.com

Mail subscriptions are available for $60 ayear or $35 a semester. Direct subscriptionrequests to Camila Ryder.

The Phoenix is printed at Bartash Printing,Inc. The Phoenix is a member of theAssociated College Press and thePennsylvania Newspaper Association.

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

2 January 20, 2011 THE PHOENIX

Allegra Pocinki Phoenix Staff

Jordan Federer hits a free throw in the Garnet’s “White Out” game against rival Haverford. The Garnet lost 74-52.

Page

16

News

tHe PHOenIX January 20, 2011 3

swarthmorephoenix.com NewsTodayNinjaGram Interest MeetingGet involved with NinjaGram

2011: Love Takes You By Surprise bydelivering, making and sellingNinjaGrams for this Valentine’sDay. Come out to the interest meet-ing in the Parrish Parlors at 7 p.m.

TomorrowNationalism, Anarchism, Reform:Understanding Political Islamfrom the Inside OutHistory professor at the

University of California, LosAngeles, James Gelvin, will beholding a lunchtime talk that willaim to lay out a framework forunderstanding a political anddiverse Islam. His talk will beginat 12:30 p.m. in Sci 101.

Tu B’shvat SederJoin members of Hillel in Bond

Hall at 7 p.m. as they celebrate TuB’shvat Seder, the JewishBirthday of the trees, and rejoicein the abundant gifts of the naturalworld. A variety of fruit, nuts andchocolate will be provided;Shabbat dinner will follow.

Saturday, January 22ndSPC 2011 KickoffThe Swarthmore Progressive

Christians are kicking off the yearwith food and fellowship in BondHall at 5:30 p.m. Come to shareWinter Break stories and learnabout upcoming SPC events.

LSE ConcertThe Fall Large-Scale Event pre-

senting Mayer Hawthorne and St.Vincent will be held in LPAC.Wristbands will be distributed inParrish Parlors starting at 6 p.m.on Saturday and LPAC doors openat 7:30 p.m. Food, drink and largebags will not be allowed inside.

Sunday, January 24thJob Searching in a ChallengingEconomyNeed help finding a job for post-

Swarthmore? Career services willbe available at 12:30 p.m. in Sci 199for seniors who want advice aboutthis process.

First Student Council MeetingCome and listen in on the first

Student Council meeting of thesemester at 8 p.m. in the ParrishParlors. Snacks will be provided.

Monday, January 23rdSwarthmore College Passport DayThe Philadelphia Passport

Agency invites all students, facul-ty, and family members to submitan application for a U.S. Passporton campus. No appointments arenecessary. To participate, headover to the Swarthmore Off-Campus Study Office in theCunningham House on Mondayfrom 1-3:30 p.m.

E-mail submissions for theevents menu to [email protected]

events menu Weekday Mary Lyon breakfast cut

BY ADAM [email protected]

“Imagine the tagline, ‘Great rooms,private bathrooms, minimal critters’... and then add ‘not suggested for any-one hungry in the morning,’”Jonathan Gluck ’12 said in an e-maildiscussing the recent removal of theweekday continental breakfast pro-gram at the Mary Lyon residence hall.Beginning this semester, Dining

Services has discontinued the week-day continental breakfast program atthe off-campus Mary Lyon dorm,replacing it with a weekly Sundaybreakfast option (in addition to keep-ing the already popular Saturdaybreakfast). Citing a continual decline in the

number of breakfast attendees inrecent years, members of both DiningServices and Residential Life havestated that the weekday program is nolonger a viable dining option.“Numbers went from around 40 peo-

ple to less than five people on manydays,” Assistant Dean for ResidentialLife Rachel Head said. “Every day wewere seeing food go to waste.”This is not the first time that the

Mary Lyon breakfast program haschanged. Prior to 2008, there weredaily hot breakfasts at the residencehall every morning from Monday toFriday. However, due to a reduction inthe number of students attending

weekday breakfasts, Dining Servicesreplaced the hot breakfast with a con-tinental-style breakfast during theweek.Many reasons have been attributed

to this steady decline in the number ofweekday breakfast attendees, includ-ing the increased reliability of shuttleservice to and from the dorm and theswitch from the 20 to the 17 meal planin 2008.With the shuttle service’s increased

reliability, it is not as difficult as itonce was for Mary Lyon residents toreach on-campus dining options forbreakfast during the week. “As shortas three years ago, the shuttle wasincredibly inconsistent — I receivedcomplaints every day,” Head said.Additionally, starting in 2008,

incoming freshman were being placedon the 17-meal plan rather than the 20-meal plan. Head inferred that this totalreduction of weekly meals may, too,have been a contributing factor inoverall decline of weekday breakfastappeal at the dorm.Compounding these issues, the

weekday breakfast program startedlater in the semester than planned thisyear due to a number of logisticalobstacles involved in coordinatingfood delivery to the residence hall.“With the difficulty we had getting

food delivered at the beginning of theyear, many of my friends and I didn'thave time to work weekday ML break-

fast into our schedules. By the time wegot regular breakfast, we already hada routine,” Remy Donahey ’13 said.Nonetheless, Dining Services Board

Plan Administrator Lynn Grady andFront House Manager Therese Hopsonmaintain that the decline in breakfastattendees has been steady over thepast few years due to a cultural changeamongst students.“Had the need been there, nothing

would have changed,” Hopson said. “Ifthe students change their culture, thenthe weekday program will definitelybe reinstituted.”For now, the change remains in

place, with all of the dining resourcesfor Mary Lyon now allocated towardsweekly hot breakfast on Saturday andSunday. New supplies have been purchased

to support this weekend hot breakfastprogram, including toasters, wafflemakers and knife sets.Both Grady and Hopson expressed

their desire and willingness to accom-modate students’ breakfast needs.Through the addition of Sunday break-fast, they hope to preserve the MaryLyon breakfast tradition without wast-ing resources. Sunday breakfast atMary Lyon will be the college’s onlydining option open before 11 a.m. onSundays. “Let the culture grow again. We

hope that it will eventually changeback,” Grady said.

Paul Chung Phoenix Staff

The Mary Lyon breakfast room has grown increasingly unused during weekdays over the past few years, resulting in repeated cutbacks of the dorm’s breakfast program.

4 January 20, 2011 tHe pHOeniX

News swarthmorephoenix.com

Week in pictures

Eric Verhasselt Phoenix Staff

The main serving room in Sharples received a makeover during break, welcoming stu-dents and faculty back with warm colors and a vibrant atmosphere.


Students and faculty gathered in the Scheuer room for several events on Monday toobserve Martin Luther King Jr. Day.


Campus is covered in a blanket of snow, bringing about smiles for some and dread forothers.

Bayer seeks diversitywith CHAS fundingBY NAVIN [email protected]

Assistant Professor of EconomicsAmanda Bayer has received a peda-gogy grant from the Consortium ofHigh Achievement and Success(CHAS).

Developed in 2000, theConsortium on High Achievementand Success is composed of 25 liberalarts colleges and universities seek-ing to promote achievement, satisfac-tion and leadership among studentson their campuses, emphasizingdiversity on campus.

Bayer intends to use the funds tocreate a wiki that promotes excellentteaching practices in economics, par-ticularly those which will assist andencourage women and underrepre-sented minorities to explore thefield. She hopes that the wiki willserve as a convincing and easy-to-usesource for departments and facultyto discover new ways to improve theinclusivity of the field. “I figured awiki might be the best way to get usall talking,” she said in an e-mail.

“It can...encourage thoughtfulreflection on why inclusivity anddiversity are important to the futureof economic theory and policy-mak-ing and on how our choices asinstructors and gatekeepers affectstudent participation and achieve-ment,” she said.

“Women and people of color areseverely underrepresented in eco-nomics, as undergraduate majorsand at all stages in between,” shewrote in the application for thegrant.

She went on to cite how less than10 percent of professors are womenand how two percent are AfricanAmerican or Hispanic, and men-tioned that this is even less thansuch ratios in science and engineer-ing.

Bayer explained that whileresearchers have a sophisticatedunderstanding of the causes of thisunder-representation, there is oftenlittle awareness of this issue and thedeleterious impact it has on the dis-cipline.

Bayer will create and organize thewiki, in addition to serving as itssenior editor. Moreover, she plans toemploy numerous students to helpwith literature reviews, content cre-ation and editing. “It's… excitingthat Professor Bayer will involve stu-dents in this work,” said EllenMagenheim, chair of the economicsdepartment.

Once this basic framework hasbeen established, she intends onincluding contributions from eco-nomics professors and experts inother fields, “with the wiki servingas a new venue for researchers toshare their thoughts and to publicizetheir findings,” she said.

Her project and vision for the fieldof econonmics are admired bySwarthmore’s faculty. “In the eco-nomics department, she has raisedour awareness of the fact there areimplications associated with how we

teach and what we teach. … Her wikiis a great idea,” said Professor ofEconomics Phillip Jefferson. “I amhopeful that a larger number of stu-dents will ultimately benefit fromher efforts.”

Bayer also participated in aNational Science Foundation pro-gram on “Improving IntroductoryEconomics by Integrating the LatestScholarship on Women andMinorities” and was a panelist on“Integrating Race and Gender intothe Introductory Economics Course”at the American EconomicAssociation Annual Meetings.

At Swarthmore, Bayer teaches aclass entitled “Race, Ethnicity, andGender in Economics” which focuseson analyzing the causes of economicdiversity and determining the role ofrace, ethnicity and gender in eco-nomic policy.

Students laud this unique classand Bayer’s teaching style. “Itshowed another side of economicswhere we can use the tools welearned in the classroom to apply tooutside, everyday...realities that peo-ple face, [such as] discrimination[and] how women earn lower wagesfor the same amount of work,”Angela Meng ’12, an econ major, said.

“What I really like about her isthat she is really engaging [and] gen-uinely interested in helping youunderstand the material,” Mengsaid. “She is my hero. She is reallyfierce and awesome.”

Bayer has an optimistic viewabout the future of Swarthmore’sincreasingly popular economicsdepartment. “I think our popularitystems from the many intriguing eco-nomic issues out there in the world,”she said. “The economics depart-ment at Swarthmore is strong andhas a nationwide reputation forexcellence, based in part on the qual-ity of our graduates--so we, and youall, must be doing something right.”

Eric Verhasselt Phoenix Staff

Assistant Professor of EconomicsAmanda Bayer wishes to attract morewomen and underrepresented minori-ties to the field of economics.

News

THE PHOENIX January 20, 2011 5

swarthmorephoenix.com

BY PATRICK [email protected]

Over the winter holiday, the EugeneM. Lang Opportunity Scholarship wasawarded to six members of the class of2013: Ariel Finegold, Nick Allred,Victoria Pang, Maria Gloria Robalino,Avilash Pahi and Sonja Spoo. Thescholarship gives each student theopportunity to apply for up to $10,000 tofund a community service project oftheir design. Out of a large group ofapplicants, these six sophomores wereselected based on their project propos-als. They will finish planning theirprojects over the summer and imple-ment them over the next few years.Scholars who complete their projectscan be eligible to receive up to $10,000over two years for graduate school ifthey choose to attend one.

Nick Allred ’13With his project, Nick Allred hopes

to help high school students seeking tofurther their education by offering

them assis-tance inapplying forfinancial aidand scholar-ships. “Ifound that alot of stu-dents weres t rugg l ingwith finan-cial aid,”Allred said,

referring to his work with the CollegeAccess Center of Delaware County, anon-profit group that helps studentswork through the college applicationprocess. “Each [financial aid form] isdifferent, unlike the Common Appwhich is highly standardized,” he said.Allred plans on working one-on-onewith college applicants to help themapply for various financial aid optionsand scholarships. In the past, he hasassisted students with the college appli-cation process and knows that forsome, it is a serious challenge gather-ing the required components for suchcomprehensive applications: “[Forsome], due to custody situations, socialsecurity numbers or papers … the doc-umentation doesn’t exist,” he said.Allred hopes that working one-on-onewith college applicants will help themnavigate the required paperwork forfinancial aid.

Ariel Finegold ’13For her project, Ariel Finegold plans

to create a financial literacy and coun-seling program in Chester, PA. As an

economicsm a j o r ,F i n e g o l dsees finan-cial growthand securityas essentialin helpingunderprivi-leged neigh-b o rh o od s ,especially inC h e s t e r .

Finegold hopes that by helping adults

find ways to better manage difficultfinancial situations such as resolvingpoor credit through classes she planson setting up, she will be able to helpthem “make progress in their financiallives,” she said. “If they complete a cer-tain number of classes, they will get anamount of money.” The LangScholarship award will provide thefunds for these monetary incentives.Finegold hopes that her project willhelp those involved in the program“take positive steps for their financialfuture.”

Avilash Pahi ’13Avilash Pahi plans to use his schol-

arship to build five new libraries with-in the next three years in his home-

town ofC a l c u t t a ,India. Theproject willbe a continu-ation ofPahi’s worklast summer,in which hebuilt al i b r a r ylinked to aschool for

children in Calcutta suffering fromautism, dyslexia and other disabilities.“I’ve been working with these childrenfor the past four or five years; justmeeting them, playing with them, andfinding out what needs they have,”Pahi said. “They simply don’t havethat many resources, especially in aplace like India.” Pahi also plans toestablish an inter-library loan programbetween the five libraries, as well asthe one he built last summer, based onthe Tri-Co system. Pahi is currentlyworking with several schools for chil-dren with learning disabilities inCalcutta to finalize the locations of thenew libraries.

Victoria Pang ’13After helping students in the

Chester Upland school district throughthe Chester Services group last sum-mer, Victoria Pang plans to continue

her out-r e a c hefforts tothese youngpeople withher $10,000fund fromthe LangC e n t e r .Based onher experi-ences, sheplans on

introducing “a unique project struc-ture” for her program to best servestruggling students in Chester. Herproject’s aim is to give high school stu-dents the chance to help younger chil-dren in the community by creating amentoring system for older Chesterstudents to help younger students inthe Chester school system. Mentorswho have lived in Chester will betterbe able to relate to younger students,creating an experience which will ben-efit both mentors and mentees. “What’smissing is a structure for Chester high

school students to mentor young stu-dents, so that they can offer guidanceto one another,” Pang said.

Maria Gloria Robalino ’13“Letters to the Past and Future” is

the name of Maria Gloria Robalino’sLang Scholarship project. It is designed

to helpH i s p a n i cpeople whohave immi-grated tothe U.S.r e connec twith lovedones whoare still liv-ing in theirnative coun-tries. “They

don’t see each other for five or eightyears,” Robalino said. “[This project]will help them connect again.” Withspecial interests in speech. language,film and philosophy, Robalino wants touse letters specifically to reconnectimmigrants with their families. Shebelieves that letters “are a mediumwhere you can actually think and con-nect with your feelings better.”Robalino plans to encourage adults inher program to join English languageprograms, and by writting the lettersin English she hopes that the letterswill help better their proficiency in the

language. Robalino also plans to basethe program, which Robalino will fin-ish planning this summer, in New YorkCity.

Sonja Spoo ’13Spoo’s goal for her project is to cre-

ate a GED tutoring program in down-town Philidelphia for women who have

been the vic-tims ofhuman traf-ficking ands e x u a lexploitation.“[Educationis] a solidstep to build-ing confi-dence and astep toaccess eco-

nomic opportunities,” Spoo said. Withfunding from her Lang Scholarship,Spoo hopes to raise awareness ofhuman trafficking and modern dayslavery around Philadelphia andamong Swarthmore students. Spoobelieves the issue of human traffickingis “something that Swarthmore stu-dents really engage in,” she said. Shehopes that her project will be able tospark interest in modern day slaverywithin the Swarthmore communityand get others interested in takingaction to stop it.

Six sophomores awarded $10,000 grant for projects

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6 January 20, 2011 the PhoeniX

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e-book sales slowly increase on Pitt campusaround higher education

BY GWENN BARNEYPITTNEWS.COM, JAN. 13, 2011

After a lackluster sales per-formance last semester in theUniversity Book Center, eBooksare slowly becoming more popu-lar at Pitt. The Book Center hassold 100 more electronic booksthis semester than it had at thispoint last semester, managerDebra Fyock said. But Fyocknoted that, despite this increase,the electronic form still countsfor less than 1 percent of thetotal books, both new and used,purchased so far during thespring term.

The low sale levels comeeven as electric readers becomemore popular among tech-savvyand green-minded consumers,and the meager figures repre-sent a potential difficulty for theBook Center to address as itseeks to redefine its image andservices on campus.

Still, Fyock is confident thateBook sales will increase asmore students learn about theoption over time.

“I would have to say that[eBooks] have not really caughton yet,” Fyock said. “But I dothink that students are more

aware that the Book Centeroffers this option.”

EBooks have been availablein the Book Center since thestart of last semester. The digi-tal books work through a codethat students can buy from thebook store and use to downloadthe text onto a computer.

The eBooks offered at theBook Center are also currentlycompatible with iPads andiPhones, but not with Kindles orNooks, other popular electronicreaders.

The store’s inventory of digi-tal books is supplied primarilythrough textbook providerCourseSmart, which offers 90percent of all core textbooksused in higher education today,according to its website.

Student Government BoardPresident Molly Stieber — astrong advocate for bringingeBooks to campus — said itmight be too early to tell if thepoor sales for this semestertruly reflect student interest inthe alternative textbooks. Shecited the large number of stu-dents who wait to purchasetheir textbooks until after theadd/drop period as a possibleexplanation for the small pur-

chase percentage eBooks repre-sent.

They’ve found out whetherthe professor is actually going touse the book, or they’ve decidedto stay enrolled in the class, shesaid.

But John Burns, textbookmanager for the Book Center,hasn’t seen a surge of purchasesafter that date in the past.

In general, most of the pur-chasing is done before theadd/drop period ends, he said.

Stieber said students’increasing tendency to buybooks from other places besidethe Book Center might alsoaccount for the low percentageof eBook sales.

“We need to see more trafficin the Book Center,” she said.“Pitt students should want tosupport our Book Center. Thestore is here for students.”

Junior Gina Zidek agreedwith Stieber.

“I only trust the BookCenter,” she said, blaming heraversion to outside book sellerson a bad experience with anonline retailer.

But while the Book Centercomes with a promise of integri-ty for some, other students are

wary of the cost.Christina McDonald’s par-

ents advised her to get the ISBNnumbers of the books she had tobuy in order to get them online.

The sophomore biologymajor said she saved about $100,calling the Book Center “over-priced.” She said she didn’t pur-chase any eBooks.

Stieber believes more stu-dents entering the bookstorewill lead to more students com-ing across eBooks and conse-quently purchasing the alterna-tive textbooks.

“This is the future,” Stiebersaid. “EBooks are the future.”

The Book Center worked inconjunction with Stieber toform a student advisory com-mittee last semester. The groupof students was created to sug-gest ways the Book Centermight attract students and getthe word out about new offer-ings, including eBooks. Thestore crafted a plan in the fall toincrease eBook sales by provid-ing a larger selection of thebooks. This semester, the storeoffered 210 more textbook titlesthan last semester. Despitethese efforts, student responseremains mixed.

Yash Patel, one student whoopted to go digital, is happy withhis decision. Patel began buyingeBooks last year. He estimatesthat he’s saved $200 since thattime through his digital text-book purchases.

“I can pretty much get all thebooks I need for my classes,”said Patel, an information sci-ences major.

Lower pricing is the princi-ple benefit associated witheBooks. Fyock said that, onaverage, the digital books cost40 percent less than their papercounterparts.

Students who favor eBooksalso said they appreciate theirmobility. One laptop or iPad caneasily hold the weight of anentire backpack’s worth ofbooks.

In the paper camp standsfreshman Jake Schwartz, whosaid he hesitated to buy eBooksfor a reason common among stu-dents: “I really have no ideahow to use them.”

Schwartz also said the factthat his professors haven’t men-tioned anything in class aboutdigital alternatives influencedhis choice to go for the paperoption.

Corbett sworn in as Gov.BY LAURA NICHOLSCOLLEGIAN.PSU.EDU, JAN. 18, 2011

HARRISBURG -- Pennsylvania’searliest history was recalled at Gov.Tom Corbett’s inaugural ceremonythis morning as Corbett placed hishand on a Bible once owned byWilliam Penn and was sworn in as thestate’s 46th governor.

Corbett continued to recognize thememory of thestate’s foundingin opening hisspeech, sayingthat this “newchapter inPennsylvania’shistory” must bemet with a “dedi-cation to civildiscourse” thatwas presentmore than 300years ago.

Before sup-porters and protesters alike — all ofwhom stood in the freezing rain —Corbett addressed some of the biggestproblems the state is facing.

Fiscal responsibility was a focalpoint of his speech — even though ded-ication to work is somethingPennsylvanians are known for, toomany residents are still jobless, hesaid.

“Small businesses can’t hire. Largeemployers can’t invest,” he said.“Government has spent beyond itsmeans and individual corrupt actshave eroded an essential element ofleadership: the public’s trust.”

But, the new Republican governorsaid, he knows what is so special aboutPennsylvania and added that he, alongwith his new Lieutenant Gov. JimCawley, has no plans to be deterredfrom setting the state on a new coursethat people can believe in.

“Together, we are dedicated to lead-ership that is responsive to fiscal real-ities; leadership that takes on financialburdens rather than passing those bur-

dens on to thenext generationand leadershipthat can seebeyond today’sturbulence andinto tomorrow’stranquility,” hesaid.

Corbett had amessage for theaforementionednext generation,too. He talkedabout how

important it is for Pennsylvanian stu-dents to be able to compete not onlynationally with other students, butworldwide as well. It will take time, hesaid, “but we must embrace innova-tion, competition and choice in oureducation system.”

The governor said he is confidentand that he believes in Pennsylvaniabecause he believes in the people,adding that those people need a gov-ernment they can trust now, more thanever.

“We need good government. Thepeople demand it. And they deserveit,” he said.

“Together, we are dedicat-ed to ... leadership thatcan see beyond today's

turbulence and intotomorrow's tranquility.”

Tom Corbett

PA Governor

Living & Arts

THE�PHOENIX January 20, 2011 7


BY SERA [email protected]

Just as Swarthmore students leadbusy lives, so do their professors. As amember of the Swarthmore communityfor over 15 years, Associate Professorof Music Dr. John Alston is a directorof both the Swarthmore College Chorusand Chamber Orchestra. However, inthe Swarthmore tradition, he alsodemonstrates a passion for serving oth-ers and actively engaging in communi-ty work.During his early teaching years at

Swarthmore, Alston envisioned a choirand later a school for the Chester com-munity, which echoed his own partici-pation at the Newark Boy’s Choirgrowing up. Later, Alston pursued hispassion for music, receiving his B.M.from Yankton College, his M.M. fromthe University of Northern Iowa andhis D.M. from Indiana University.With Alston’s vision, Vice President

Maurice Eldridge’s coordination andthe financial support of an anonymousdonor, the Chester Children’s Chorusbegan with its first seven male mem-bers. 17 years later, there are now over100 boys and girls in the choir.Operating as a summer program, thechorus incorporates teaching childrenabout both vocal and academic learn-ing.In a video interview by Jillian

Smith for The Philadelphia Inquirer,Alston explains that his work to estab-lish the Chester Children’s Choir great-ly influenced the founding of theChester Upland School of the Arts. “Foryears when I had the ChesterChildren’s Chorus I always wished thatI could build a school for them becauseI wanted them to have the same oppor-tunities as the most affluent and privi-leged children in the United States,” hesaid.Residents of Chester have an aver-

age median household income that issubstantially lower than that of theaverage Pennsylvanian. Unfortunately,schools in the Chester district tend toperform in the bottom percentile of the501 school districts of Pennsylvania.In 2008, the Chester Upland School

of the Arts officially opened.Financially disadvantaged childrengain admission through lottery for thechance for exposure to the arts. Theirrigorous academic program includesthe study of dance, visual arts andmusic. Beginning in 2011, the schoolnow serves students from pre-K to thefourth grade, with hopes to serve stu-dents up to the eighth grade in thefuture.In an e-mail interview, Eldridge

explained that modeling the school ona Public-Private Partnership ratherthan a charter would be most benefi-cial to the Chester district. “Our part-nership adds money and value to ourschool and does not take money out ofthat financially strapped district ascharters do,” Eldridge said. SinceChester Upland School is a publicschool, it ensures great accessibilityfor local children. Also, the ChesterFund for Education and the Arts pri-

vately funds the school.Through the project, Alston express-

es his passion for music and remains adriving force for the establishment andthe continued successes of the chorus,school and fund. “He inspires not onlythe children but the community volun-teers who serve on the two boards andthe many donors of dollars and time,”Eldridge said.As a Chairperson for the Chester

Fund for Education and the Arts,Eldridge has an integral role in thisprogram and has an appropriate musi-cal background. Previously, Eldridgeacted as a member of the ChesterChildren’s Chorus Advisory Board andserved as a former Principal of DukeEllington School of the Arts inWashington, DC.Through the Sing-to-Learn program,

the Chester-funded arts programsmaintain a presence in three other ele-mentary schools in the district.Currently, the in-class program hasover 300 participants as schools trans-form classes into choruses thatrehearse songs during class time.Songs feature educational lyrics assome even address academic subjectareas such as science. The programbroadens Alston’s visions since it isinclusive of Chester children who donot have access to either the CCC orCUSA.According to the Chester Fund web-

site, the fund envisions CUSA studentsgraduating both high school and col-lege to “become highly educated pro-

fessionals who will return to repairtheir city.”In addition, the website also fea-

tures several testimonials of pleasedstudents.One student, Laurian, explained her

excitement. “I don’t come to CUSAbecause I have to come to school. I lovescience and the creative projects I getto do.”

As one of three Chester schools toobtain an Adequate Yearly Progressstatus, under the No Child Left BehindAct by the US Department of Educationlast year, the CUSA curriculumappears to be delivering results.Both the music and arts serve as

means to instill the importance of edu-cation, confidence, culture and charac-ter for Chester students.

Swat music professor founds choir, aids Chester

c a r t o o n b y n a i a p o y e r

Courtesy of http://tiny.cc/q6diu

Alston works with the children of the Sing-to-Learn Program with the hopes of instillingconfidence and a passion for learning.


Living & Arts swarthmorephoenix.com

BY DINA [email protected]

This year’s Large Scale Event(LSE) will host artists MayerHawthorne and St. Vincent Saturdaythe 22nd in LPAC at 7:30 p.m.With Hawthorne’s Motownsound and St. Vincent’s alter-native/indie pop music, theartists will bring their verydistinct styles to the widelyanticipated annual concert.Each year, the LSE com-

mittee is responsible forselecting and inviting per-formers to Swarthmore forthe student body in an eventthat is typically hosted in the fall.This semester, LSE committee mem-ber Ashley Vogel ’13 believes theselection of Mayer Hawthorneand St. Vincent reflects the com-mittee’s desire for the show “tobe all about the music.” She said,“Girl Talk was essentially just anartist standing at alaptop and there-fore heavilyrelied on the-atrics … Wewanted some-thing thatwould be areally greatlive per-f o r m a n c ehighlighting

the talent of the artists.”A self-taught instrumentalist,

Mayer Hawthorne never anticipated amusic career. However, his self-attest-ed “hanging-by-a-string falsetto” andimpressive breakbeat (a drum pattern

with a syncopated beat that is elec-tronically looped) have captured audi-ences. Stones Throw Records released

Hawthorne’s first album, “AStrange Arrangement” in 2009,which The New York Timesdescribes as “a breath of freshair.” A fan of Hawthorne,Nancy Liu ’13 describes theartist’s voice as “smooth andretro.”

Listening to radio tunes inhis father’s car, thisMichigan-born singer,producer and multi-instrumentalist wasinspired by thesounds of rich souland jazz. AsHawthorne draws

inspiration from artists such asAmerican soul and R&B singer-song-writers Smokey Robinson and CurtisMayfield, his music belongs to the“retro” genre, echoing recordingsfrom 1966 to 1974.

Never formally trained,Hawthorne is much more than amere classic soul throwback. “It’ssoul. But it’s new,” Hawthorne saidon his Myspace site. “MayerHawthorne sounded like magic: anew-school soul sensation whosesweet crooning revels in retro,while break beat riffs inspired byyears spinning vinyl revived thelegends of Motown,” a reviewersaid on The Getty Center website. Saturday’s concert will also show-

case the young artist Annie Clark whoperforms under the moniker St.Vincent. After debuting her album“Marry Me,” Clark has since capturedthe attention of publications such asThe New York Times magazine, andpopular Internet publications such asPitchfork and Spin. After winning thePlug Awards’ Female Artist of theYear in 2008, Clark secured a yearworth of international touring.Acclaimed for her mastery of alter-

native music, Stereogum named herthe #2 “Indie Rock Crush” in 2009. Afan of the artist, Vogel said, “I lovewhat she does with instruments andsound. Not only does she have a gor-geous voice, but the arrangements ofviolin, flute, drums and guitar ignore

all the traditional rules of music.”Prior to her first album release in

2007, Clark opened for both thePolyphonic Spree and Sufjan Stevens.Recently, she released her secondalbum, “Actor” in May of 2009 andanticipates dropping her third albumsoon.For those attending the show, Vogel

said, “People can definitely expect tosee real talent. Nothing is better thana great live show, and these two artistdefinitely will put on one.”

LSE hosts artists Mayer Hawthorne and St. Vincent

“Nothing is better than a greatlive show, and these two artists

definitely will put one on.”Ashley Vogel ’13

Multi Grammy nominee performs at Lang HallBY STEVEN [email protected]

On Tuesday, the Lang Performing Arts Center hostedR. Carlos Nakai, an eight-time Grammy nominee whoperformed at the Lang Concert Hall, as part of a series ofappearances in the Philadelphia area. Renowned for hismastery of the Native American flute, Nakai releasedmore than 30 albums over the course of his career, andworked with composers such as Phillip Glass.Although he originally trained in the classical trum-

pet as a music major at the University of Arizona, Nakaitook up the traditional Native American flute when hesuffered an injury after a car accident and could not playthe trumpet as well as he had before. “I determined Iwouldn’t let this instrument get lost to museums and pri-vate collections,” Nakai said. “I applied my discipline ofbrass to the [flute] and found that it worked and now Iunderstand [the Native American flute] from that per-spective.”After developing his skill with the flute over the

years, Nakai is now one of the world’s most skilled play-ers of this ancient instrument. In 1994, he received theBest Traditional Folk album of the year award for‘Ancestral Voices,’ and in the past decade, he won multi-ple Grammy awards including Best New Age album toBest Native American album of the year. Also, popularfilms such as “Geronimo” feature Nakai’s tracks.In addition, Nakai dedicates time to educating others,

most notably through his authorship of the book, “TheArt of the Native American Flute,” which attempts topass down skills to the next generation of flutists. “Theunderstanding of one’s own ancestry is critical to edu-cation,” Nakai said. “I find that in [the United States],which is a multicultural community, there are very fewpeople who know their heritage and everyone, of course,inhabits more than two heritages.” Though much of his work draws from stories about

Native American life and traditions, it is broadly acces-sible and the music remains both thoughtful and sooth-ing. On his website, Nakai explains that he hopes toretain the influence of his Navajo-Ute heritage whileemphasizing that imagination and innovation are criti-cal for keeping music alive. He said that “having a goodunderstanding of what your ancestors have done beforeyou is a road map that allows you to choose your careertrack and motivates you in your study.”Having begun his career in 1983, Nakai continues to

perform and release albums. His traditional, yet dynam-ic style maintains a national presence as several stu-dents anticipated Nakai’s performance. “What’s intrigu-ing about this concert is the combination of Jewish andNative American music that I’ve never heard mixed. [R.Carlos Nakai]’s work is a great chance to expand mymusical horizons,” Brent Stanfield ’14 said.Nakai coupling of both a traditional Native American

instrument and the Native American culture with othermusical heritages is quite unique. Collaborating withthe Japanese group The Wind Travelin’ Band, he pro-duced an album entitled “Island of Bows.” With per-formers from Nepal to Hawai’i, Nakai produced surreal,original mixtures of music that both intermingle andtranscend culture. His influences prove eclectic, especially since he also

trained in classical music. “I listen to just about any-thing. My iPod has music from folk singers to Vietnamto classics to New Age from the 80s and 90s,” Nakai said.Most recently, he worked with Udi Bar-David, anoth-

er member of the Philadelphia Orchestra, to produce“Voyagers,” which is a unique combination of NativeAmerican with Jewish and Arabian music. A graduateof the Julliard School, Bar David has performed solo per-formances around the world, including Spain.His focus is on international music and the merging

of cultural parallels. In 2007, he produced a series of per-formances, “Middle Eastern Cultures in Perfect

Harmony,” as well as created the Arab Jewish Musicaldialogue, which facilitates the collaboration of musi-cians from both groups. Nakai explained that his goalsare “to demonstrate the versatility of our own culturalinstrumentation, whatever it might be. Bringing allthose different voices together at once is the primary[objective].”In his performance on campus, Nakai performed

diverse number of arrangements, using instruments likethe Native American flute and also drawing from bothArab and Jewish influences from his most recent musi-cal collaborations. “After having seen Yo-Yo Ma and theSilk Road last year, my interest in international musicthat is rarely recognized has spiked,” Frank Mondelli ’14said, in considering his past experiences. “As such, see-ing R. Carlos Nakai and Udi Bar-David is musically avery valuable and insightful experience on the samelevel.”


The music of Nakai transcends cultural boundaries tocelebrate diversity.

Courtesy of http://tiny.cc/p3jz4

Annie Clark, also known as St. Vincent,pleases audiences with her electricstage presence.

Courtesy of http://tiny.cc/occl23

Living & Arts

THE�PHOENIX January 20, 2011 9


Name: Stephanie ChiaYear: 2013From: Pleasantville, NYCurrent Residence: Willets

What She’s Wearing:Chia is wearing chestnut-colored Etienne Aigner

leather boots from Macy’s, coupled with a dark gray shirtdress from Forever 21. Around her neck she layeredstrings of turquoise beads along with a white scarf fromH&M. Her vintage leather handbag is “some weird hand-me-down from [my] mom,” Chia said. For the wintryweather, she bundled up in another one of her Macy’sfinds — a cute fuchsia coat with a belt that buckles in thefront.

How She Describes Her Personal Style:“It really does vary a lot, but I guess most of it is pret-

ty simple,” Chia said. Her wardrobe is grounded in a lotof basics, and she tends to wear flowy and form-fittingpieces. Chia feels that “when it comes down to it, [mystyle] is what feels good.” She believes that stylish iswhatever makes an individual feel confident, regardlessof the “genre” of his or her clothing. “Someone should saywhen they try something on, ‘This is right for me’,” Chiasaid. “You get a feeling when something is not yourstyle.”

Where She Shops:Chia’s favorites are H&M and Forever 21, where she

found her white scarf and cute shirt dress, respectively.Often, Chia finds herself shopping at various storesonline. She said, “Anthropologie is a guilty pleasure —it’s a little too expensive for me.” With a college budget,Chia rarely purchases online from stores that are toopricey.

Fashion Influences / Inspirations:For Chia, her inspiration comes from home — her

mother. “I love looking through her old albums and theclothes she wore because they were somewhat ridiculous,

but also pretty cool,” Chia said.Her words ring true in the selec-tion of her mother’s old brown andblack leather side bag.

Favorite Item in Her Closet:“These Etienne Aigner boots — I

wear them all the time and witheverything,” Chia said. With theexception of the blistering summerheat, she wears them throughout theseasons and often pairs them withanything from dresses to sweaters.

Wardrobe Staples:“Definitely shirt dresses,” Chia

said. “I don’t think I could do withoutthem.” Though a winter accessory forChia, scarves are another staple in herwardrobe. Also, for the low tempera-tures, she relies on Mike Duffy sweatersto keep her warm. However, when it getsa bit warmer, she returns to spring dress-es.

Favorite Fashion Era:Chia is comfortable exactly in the pres-

ent, instead of wishing to retreat to the fash-ions of a previous time period. “When Ithink back to other time periods, a lot ofclothes were very modest for women oruncomfortable as they catered to some sort ofidea of beauty — this is what women wear,this is what is classy, this is what is attrac-tive,” she said. In the 21st century, she appre-ciates the absence of a restrictive definition ofwhat clothing is stylish and embraces the greatnumber of choices of clothing for someone to beconsidered stylish. Chia said, “So, a ‘well-dressedwomen’ could wearing so many different types ofthings.”

Do you think you (or aprofessor) have great style? Then submit a photo

of you in your best outfit to [email protected]. Pleaseinclude your name and contact information.TEXT AND PHOTO BY DINA ZINGARO

SwatStyleSnapshot

BY TIMOTHY [email protected]

“The Green Hornet” answers thequestion of whether a movie can feelboth overstuffed and underdone. Basedon a TV series that was based on filmserials that were based on a radio show,the movie is filled to the brim with …something. Many things, in fact. Yet thefilm is perilously lacking in certainother areas in which expansion mighthave proved useful. Plot and character,to name a couple.Seth Rogen plays newspaper heir

Britt Reid, the titular hero’s “by day”identity, as a retread of his characterfrom “Knocked Up,” minus about 30pounds and plus an inherited fortune toslack off in style. This is not in and ofitself a bad thing — Rogen, for lack ofrange, has always possessed a natural-ly likeable screen presence. However,his and everyone else’s characterbecome casualties of a screenplay thatis interested in supplying them with aslittle dimension as is sufficient beforemoving on to other things. Namely,bloated stretches of dialogue that gonowhere and rarely generate as muchlaughter as they intend to.In honor of the script’s priorities,

here is the story recounted with simi-lar economy: Reid is an aimless L.A.partier living off his father’s moneyuntil said father (Tom Wilkinson, labor-ing to keep his British accent under

wraps) is pronounced dead from a mys-terious bee sting. Afterwards, Reidmeets Kato (Taiwanese music star JayChou, playing the part Bruce Leeplayed on TV), his father’s incrediblyoverqualified mechanic, takes one lookat Black Beauty, a car with machineguns in the door frames, and decidesapropos of almost nothing that hewants to dedicate his life to protectingthe city.Standing in their way is a crime lord

named Chudnofsky (Christoph Waltz),who could be called a con-tradictory character,except that he’s barely acharacter of any kind.Chudnofsky gets wind ofthe Green Hornet and hismysterious masked side-kick, posing as villains,and plots to nip the compe-tition in the bud. Waltz,who made cheerfulness so hypnoticallymenacing in “Inglourious Basterds,”plays Chudnofsky with neither cheernor menace but as a fatuous, insecurebuffoon who frets over his inability toscare people in a suit and tie. At thesame time, though, we’re told that hesingle-handedly controls all the crimein Los Angeles. When is this recon-ciled? When the script loses interestand moves on. The remainder of thefilm paves the road to a face-off betweenhero(es) and villain, and if you can’tguess how that ends, there are better

choices than “The Green Hornet” foryour first-ever movie-going experience.As it turns out, one of the culprits is

the star himself, who co-wrote thescript with Evan Goldberg. This is thesame team that put the dialogic setpiece to effective use in “Superbad” andless effective use in “PineappleExpress,” but the approach is a misfirefor a superhero movie, particularly anorigin story where plot should reignsupreme. Here, the plot peeks its headin every once in a while to see if Reid

and Kato are done reflect-ing on their importance tothe city or fighting overReid’s attractive secretaryLenore Case (CameronDiaz, stretching to playbubbly) long enough tosqueeze a little more ofitself through the door.The film is directed by

Michel Gondry, who seems unwilling(or unable, but which is worse?) to reinin the overlong dialogue scenes and theoverlong fight scenes, or provide anysort of cohesion to the proceedings.Noted for his visual innovation,Gondry (“Eternal Sunshine of theSpotless Mind”) takes a disappointinglyhands-off approach here, in mysteriousdeference to the straightforward, work-manlike conventions of action movieswith less distinguished directors.Occasionally, he gives us a glimpse ofvisual subversion (a sequence shown in

fast-forward here, a surreal flashbackset over blooming flowers there), butthe attempts come off as self-conscious-ly needless, as if Gondry felt he neededto put a stamp on the film that wouldmake it “his” and satisfy those in theaudience nostalgic for his collabora-tions with Charlie Kaufman.So … is there anything good to speak

of? Believe it or not, there is. If nothingelse, Gondry and Co. should be creditedwith avoiding the “Rush Hour” trapand not letting the comedy take a back-seat to the action as the film progresses.Rogen’s geniality goes farther herethan one might expect; he and Choudevelop a relaxed, lived-in rapport thatworks nicely before it veers intooverkill in the second half. Some of theminor comedic touches also prove sur-prisingly deft: Kato updating hisresume after a presumptive falloutwith Reid, Reid name-checking“Cocoon” to refer to Case’s advancedage (she’s thirty-six), and an amusingJames Franco appearance provide briefhighlights.However, the problems come when

these touches get stretched over 108overstayed and underwhelming min-utes, and the resulting effect is nothingmore than a couple of nice punctua-tions in an otherwise directionless slogfull of sound, fury and talking — lotsand lots of talking. In the end, it all sig-nifies, if not quite nothing, then notvery much at all.

The Green Hornet is overstuffed, underdone

Movie Review

Rotten TomatoesRating: 45%


swarthmorephoenix.comLiving & Arts

Ever since “Lost”became a giant televisionphenomenon (and ultimate-ly a giant disappointment),producers and networkexecs across the countryhave been desperately try-ing to find another “Lost.”

Such efforts began in2005, just a year after thegiant phenomenon pre-miered, with such quicklyforgotten fare as “TheInvasion” and “Heroes, ”and has continued to thepresent day with theincreasingly ludicrousofferings of

“FlashForward” and “The Event.” Clearly, none of theseshows are doing as well as their network backers hoped.

One possible reason that they’re not working is that,despite whatever buzz you may hear about the next big“Lost”-style show, is that the true successor to “Lost” hasalready been found. It was created by “Lost” creator J.J.Abrams, is entitled “Fringe,” and you can catch it Fridaynights on Fox or Saturdays on Hulu.com.

I suppose it’s actually fairly uncharitable to call“Fringe” the next “Lost” since “Fringe” is actually waybetter than its sci-fi predecessor. It would be more accu-rate to call “Fringe” the next “X-Files,” as its freaky-case-of-the-week structure, combined with an overarchingstory, is very similar to “X-Files,” if you only substitutedaliens with parallel universes. I should also stress that thequality of acting and storytelling on “Fringe” is equiva-lent with the early days of “X-Files,” not the post-DavidDuchovny downward spiral.

“Fringe” centers around a team created by FBI agentOlivia Dunham (Anna Torv) investigating a set of myste-rious happenings knows as “The Pattern,” which includesanything from plane crashes to killer viruses to planecrashes caused by killer viruses. Assisting Olivia are

agent Phillip Broyles (a magnificently surly LanceReddick from “The Wire”), junior agent AstridFarnsworth (the underutilized Jasika Nicole), and thereal heart of the show, Dr. Walter Bishop (John Noble), abrilliant scientist just out of a mental institution, alongwith his son Peter (Joshua Jackson). These five scientistsinvestigate the events of the Pattern in a series of tightlyplotted, completely disgusting episodes. Seriously, thegore on this show gives “The Walking Dead” a run for itsmoney.

While the cases of the week are great — and accessibleenough to allow non-addicts to tune in on a week-by-weekbasis — the going really gets fun when the show kicks intogeek mode and the mythology of the parallel universe isexplored. You see, in the “Fringe” universe there is bothour universe and the parallel universe, which is ratherlike ours in some ways and different in others.

Technology in the other universe is considerablymoreadvanced, while civil liberties are … not so much. In addi-tion, the other universe is at war with ours due to someserious space-time continuum problems, which they areexperiencing due to an intrusion into their universe bynone other than Walter Bishop.

This parallel universe mythology is exciting, andallows for some spectacular moments; the scene in whichthe Other Side, as it is called, is revealed as one of themost jaw-dropping reveals in recent memory. The truegreatness of the Other Side, however, is that it allowsevery actor on the show to play two different versions oftheir characters (well, except Joshua Jackson; for reasonsthat I’m certainly not going to spoil here, Peter only existsin our universe).

Here, I refer to Nina Dobrev of “The Vampire Diaries”who has the breathtaking ability to play both Elena andKatherine. If you take such an ability and multiply it bythe entire cast, you have “Fringe.” The show is really atour-de-force of acting talent.

Everyone on the show is a good actor; in addition tothe previously mentioned main characters, great support-ing characters include Blair Brown’s steely, mysteriousNina Sharp and Michael Cerveris’ creepy bald Observer.

However, the real star of the show is John Noble. Now,everyone who remembers Noble’s engrossing turn as thebatshit Denethor in “Lord of the Rings” knows that theman can play crazy, but while Denethor’s crazy came inthe form of serious megalomania and hatred for his son,Walter’s crazy megalomania is interspersed with adorablechildishness, an insatiable sweet tooth and an occasionalrant about delicious, strawberry-flavored death. Plus,rather than hating his son, Walter loves Peter like crazy;in fact, he loves him so much that he was willing to ripapart universes for him on multiple occasion.

However, for as wonderful as Walter is, Noble is some-how even better when playing his Other Side doppel-ganger, cleverly known as Walternate. This doppelgangeris equally brilliant, but also more ruthless than ourWalter, and has managed to become Secretary of Defense,which is a position granting him serious Big Brother-stylepowers and a sweet office in the head of the Statue ofLiberty. Noble is adept at switching between Walter’sgood-natured childishness and excitement andWalternate’s cold, steely authority.

There are myriad other reasons to keep watching“Fringe”: the unexpected jolts of humor, the insanelyclever sci-fi solutions to the team’s cases, and Leonardfreakin’ Nimoy as William Bell who is Walter’s formerresearch partner. Though, the real reason to watch“Fringe,” is that it is simply one of the best shows on tele-vision right now.

Yet, Fox is on the verge of cancelling it, after just hav-ing moved it to the Friday-night slot where the networkalso sent “Dollhouse,” “Terminator: The Sarah ConnerChronicles” and “Firefly” to die. So, I’m asking you towatch “Fringe,” and watch it somewhere where it countsin the ratings; if you can’t manage to see it on TV, at leastwatch on Hulu.com or Fox.com.

If you don’t, one of the best, most original shows of thelast decade is likely to fade away. Although you neverknow ... in the alternate universe, “Fringe” may be themost popular series on television.

Alex is a senior. You can reach her at [email protected].

One of the last original shows hangs by a thread

Pencils Down,

Alex Israel

Pass the Remote

BY SUSANA [email protected]

Starting a theatre company is not typ-ically the first thing on a graduate’s to-dolist. However, theater major graduateJon Stancato ’02 co-founded the StolenChair Theatre Company in 2002. StolenChair is a non-profit “theatre laboratory”based in New York City and dedicated tooriginal works.

With nine years under its belt, theStolen Chair Theatre Company hostedthe second year of its CommunitySupported Theatre (CST) initiative,named PlayGround, after a pilot season.Drawing from the ideology ofCommunity Supported Agriculture(CSA) where members invest in a farmfor a season’s share of produce,PlayGround’s members invest in a StolenChair production for a season’s worth of“creative harvests.” This provides aninside peek into the creative processbehind original theatre. In addition, the-atergoers can enjoy other thespian treatssuch as guest speakers, movie nights, athemed Valentine’s Day party and cultur-al field trips.

“We’ve been working to adapt thebusiness model of community supportedagriculture, or CSAs, to the theatre,”Stancato said in an interview for theEconomic Revitalization for PerformingArtists at the unveiling of PlayGround in2009. “Stolen Chair’s goal is, essentially,to do for the theatre what CSAs do forfood — to provide an alternative model oftheatre going where it’s no longer about

purchasing your ticket, plopping downanonymously into a seat and seeingwhat, if anything, a show has to offer toyou,” he said.

During its first year, PlayGroundinvested in Stolen Chair’s original pro-duction of “Quantum Poetics: A ScienceExperiment for the Stage.” The CSTmembers enjoyed a great variety ofevents from a lecture entitled “Scienceand Theatre: What Can They Teach EachOther?” to previews of the production’sscript development and rehearsalprocess to a game of Quantum B-I-N-G-O,which features theatrical and scientificbuilding blocks from the show’s creation.Members could also participate in a webforum and media portal, which offersexclusive photos, rehearsal footage andnotes from the creative team.

For this season, Stolen Chair invitesCST members to join in supporting thecompany’s 14th original work, “Cut PasteCorset Perfect,” which is a play inspiredby the Victorian art exhibited at theMetropolitan Museum’s recent “Playingwith Pictures.” Events for membersinclude both making and sharing photocollages online, and sampling Victorianperiod pieces at various movie screen-ings. At the show’s world premiere inJune of 2011, PlayGround members willreceive VIP admission to the play, alongwith a special post-show panel.

Stancato hopes these ideas will “solvesome of the financial and logistical prob-lems that have been facing companieslike Stolen Chair.” Stancato, along withsupporters and others, is optimistic

about the project.Hoping to recruit 75 members at a $175

membership rate and reap $11,000 in prof-it for the 2010 initiative, as reported inthe Chronicle of Philanthropy,PlayGround did not reach its goal.

Unfortunately, only 35 prospectivemembers attended the preview ofPlayGround 2011. But in spite of financialdifficulties, PlayGround has been posi-tively profiled in American Theatre mag-azine and the Center for SustainablePractices in the Arts (CSPA) Quarterly.

PlayGround’s pilot season was alsothe focus of the documentary and thebook, “We Are No Longer Strangers.”Referring to Stancato’s belief that thenature of theater as a business requires arevamp, the Chronicle of Philanthropyrecently named the CSA initiative one of“6 Creative Ways to Manage anUncertain Economy.”

Looking back, Stancato considersSwarthmore a significant influence onhis career. Swarthmore’s AssociateDirector of Communications AlisaGiardinelli reported in an interview withStancato that he and his fellow co-work-ers — media manager Aviva Meyer ’01and co-artistic director and resident play-wright Kiran Rikhye ’02 — feel theirexperiences at Swarthmore influencedthe development of both Stolen Chair andPlayGround.

“After graduating, we had troublefinding a niche for the obsessivelyresearched and intellectually playful col-laboratively developed work that ourtime at Swarthmore inspired us to cre-

ate,” Stancato said. “So we created ourown niche with the PlayGround, a com-munity organized around the values wefondly recalled from our days inProfessor of Theatre Allen Kuharski’stheater history seminar and directingworkshops.”

In an effort to nurture and financetheatre companies founded by alums, theSwarthmore Project in Theatre has pro-vided support for Stolen Chair. In addi-tion, Stolen Chair was one of the recipi-ents of WNYC's *STAR* Initiative in2006. They performed on AlumniWeekend Spring 2007.

The “diverse fundraising strategy,” asHeather Rees of NYC VenturePhilanthropy Fund called it, hopes tocreate a new medium in which small,independent theatre companies interactwith the audience.

Alum brings life to non-profit “theatre laboratory”

Courtesy of www.stolenchair.org

Stacato shares his knowledge of the the-atre with CST members in PlayGround’spilot season.

Living & Arts

THE PHoENIX January 20, 2011 11


Happy holidays to oneand all. Who would liketo join me in a toast tothe new year? This onegoes out to your mother.I hope she’s in goodhealth. What was hermaiden name again? Ohyes, great family, greatfamily. This next toast isto your best friend, JohnSmith. Remind me whatstreet it was that hegrew up on? Ah, right,that was a great neigh-borhood, wasn’t it? Oh,and by the way, I now

have enough information to break into your bankaccount. Thanks! Happy New Year indeed!

The year 2010 has been truly wonderful to thetech geek inside each of us. We have hundreds ofthousands of new apps available for our smart-phones, Facebook has overtaken Google as thenation’s most popular website, and most of us nowhave our Facebooks linked to many popular web-sites so we can easily “like” anything that ticklesour fancy. Social networking is a fact of life, andwhether it’s through daily tweets, advanced track-ing cookies, or the increasingly infectious habit ofgeotagging everything we see and do, we simplycannot escape the danger that projecting our livesonto the Internet for all to see entails. Even if you’rea Facebook abstainer trying to ignore technology atall costs, I can assure you that technology has notignored you. No one is completely protected fromthe myriad security vulnerabilities throughout theworldwide web, and with the start of this new year,I present you with some new strategies for keepingyour defenses up. Let’s make this a technologicallytrouble-free 2011!

For starters, I’d like you to go towww.spokeo.com or www.123people.com and type inyour name, email address, phone number or any ofthe usernames you’ve ever used before. What thesesites can churn out — for free — can be quite horri-fying. Remember that comment you left on some-one’s Live Journal eight years ago? Probably not;but the Internet does, and the aforementioned siteswill make that painfully apparent. Did you manageto locate your name? Were you surprised to see thatit also lists your family members, your familyincome, your race, your hobbies, your online shop-ping history, and any photos of you available on theInternet, along with a bird’s eye view of your house?And, if you pay a nominal fee of $2.95, you can viewan in-depth report of virtually all information avail-able about you on the Internet. Let me be more spe-cific: anyone can see the information you’re seeing,and anyone can pay that $2.95 fee in order to see allthe information about you. Still feel comfortableabout your relationship with technology in 2011?

I do not intend to frighten you, but rather to keepyou informed on exactly how much of your infor-mation exists out in the cloud. Most social network-ing websites do have privacy settings that you canquickly adjust in order to hide most of the pertinentinformation about you, but if you are anything likeme, you probably created many of these accountslong before security was even a thought, and soyour settings may be far more lax than you wouldprefer. I highly recommend that you treat sites likeSpokeo.com not as the enemy, but as a barometerfor exactly how much you want anonymousstrangers (including potential employers) to be ableto find out about you. A simple Google search foryour name, phone number, etc. can also go a longway toward revealing this type of personal informa-tion.

Now that I have covered the information aboutyou that is available to any amateur stalker, I turnto the information that can be gleaned by the moreadvanced bad guys. Let’s start with the passwords.Most email and bank accounts don’t even requirethat you use eight characters including at least onenumber and one capital letter as they do at

Swarthmore. Furthermore, they use traditionalsecurity questions such as “What is your mother’smaiden name?” After your visit to 123people.com,do you really think that some-one wishing to steal your pass-word would find it impossible(or difficult at all, for that mat-ter) to determine such basicinformation about you? No.My advice, therefore, isto revamp all your secu-rity questions on allyour important sites.You could even justmake up a random wordand have that be theanswer to all your ques-tions, regardless of whatthe question is asking. No oneever said that your made upsecurity answers had to be accu-rate. As for passwords, the daysof 8 characters are over. Today’spassword hacking programs can decodea traditional 8-character password as easilyas your computer can spell-check an email.

Go for 10-12 characters minimum, and includespaces, symbols, and even ASCII characters like §, ∆or π if you’re bold (or neurotic) enough.

My final piece of advice is to beware (or, atleast, be aware) of websites that automatically

log you into Facebook so that you can “like”their photos, posts, etc. Your Facebook cre-dentials may be relatively safe when youtype them into Facebook.com, but anytime

you need to type those credentials into anon-Facebook website, you are no

longer dealing exclusively withFacebook’s security apparatus, andyou should therefore pay special

attention to the quality and reputa-tion of the website requesting thosecredentials.

If you take a mature, informed,and aggressive approach to handlingyour publicly available data as wellas your sensitive credentials, youshould have little to worry about in

the long run. Here’s hoping that yournew year remains free of fear!

Steve is a senior. You can reach him [email protected].

Life Tips from a Dean

SteveDean

New year, new threats: keep your information safe

ACROSS

1. Smidgens6. Southeast Asian cuisine10. Poodle’s bark13. More than a twitch14. Pre-euro money in France15. Sun speech16. Swarthmore coach who givessigns18. Luggage inspection org.19. The “et” of et cetera20. Follower of Swarthmore. orHaverford.21. Canadian brewing company23. Summer in France24. Swarthmore coach who uses afungo27. Willy from “Death of a Salesman”30. _____-friendly (green)31. Dynasty after the T’ang32. Refusals34. Sporty car roof37. Sydney’s state: Abbr.38. Swarthmore coach who calls theplays42. Q’s point value in Scrabble43. Fat in a can44. Steel part of a boot45. “Othello” villain47. Yahoo! competitor49. Puccini opera53. Swarthmore coach who mightuse his head57. Setting for many a joke58. Like an “eeny, meeny, miney, mo”selection59. By way of61. Calc. prerequisite62. Firefighter’s tool63. Swarthmore coach who mightcall a timeout67. The Indians or Browns, on ascoreboard68. “Oliver Twist” thief69. Pop singer Lavigne70. Prefix with plunk or plop71. Make out, to Harry Potter72. Ten-_____ (long odds)

DOWN

1. Tel Aviv’s land2. Not dismissive of, as suggestions3. Bicycle for two4. Enzyme suffix5. Captain Hook’s henchman

6. _____-la-la7. Laugh syllable8. Site for a monitoring bracelet,maybe9. Glacier climber’s tool10. Element between polonium andradon on the periodic table11. “Have no fear”12. Concentration of student housingoften found in college towns14. High-pitched woodwind17. MP3 holders22. “The Fresh Prince of _____-Air”25. Followed, as an impulse26. Less harsh alternative to ground-ing28. Raggedy _____29. Christmas carol33. It has a very large bed35. Grain in Cheerios36. Baptist or Methodist, in short38. Differential gear’s spot39. Amtrak employee

40. Race for hot rods41. Keanu’s “The Matrix” role42. Men’s closet accessory46. The fourth-most-common mentaldisorder, for short48. Ira who wrote “Rosemary’sBaby”50. Italian fast-food chain often seenin airports51. Kind of radio show52. Diamond-shaped pattern54. Devours, with “down”55. “You’re _____ One, Mr. Grinch”56. What a “swish” basketball shotdoesn’t touch60. Like _____ out of hell64. Freudian concept65. Halloween wear66. Recently released Sprint smart-phone

BY BEN SCHNEIDERMAN

For the solution to this week’s puzzle, see The Phoenix’s online edition atwww.swarthmorephoenix.com.

Crossword

Naia P

oyerThe P

hoenix

p o l i t i c s p u b l i s h

12 January 20, 2011 THE�PHOENIX

By Susana Medeiros

editor ’s

p e r f o r m p h i n e a s

Small Craft Warnings Reading

A Showing ofthe Hit

Comedy Film

Phineas says:“Squack!”(Be there.)

Nationalism, Anarchism, Reform:Understanding Political Islam fromthe Inside Out with Professor James Gelvin

“How can theU.S. identifyits ‘true enemies’?”

Saturday Jan. 224:30p.m. - 5:30p.m..

Kitao Gallery

Sunday, Jan. 23Parrish Parlors

9 p.m.


Friday, Jan 21Sci 10112:30 p.m. – 2 p.m.

Phineas Pizza Party

P ICKS

Come as you are.Friday, Jan. 21Science Center 101

8 - 10 p.m.

Though Pennsylvania Governor Tom Corbett, a Republican, was only sworninto office this Tuesday, he already faces the state’s daunting $5 billion budgetdeficit. He was elected in a strongly anti-Washington and anti-establishment mood

that carried his message of budget cuts and no tax increases to Harrisburg.Following through on one of his campaign promises, Corbett plans to close partof the budget gap by selling Pennsylvania’s state-owned liquor stores.Corbett is the third Pennsylvania Governor to attempt to privatize the state

stores. Previous attempts were met with opposition from a coalition of theunion representing the state liquor store workers, anti-alcohol groups and anti-drunk driving groups. Now, though, with unified Republican state legislature and strong anti-gov-

ernment sentiments, Pennsylvania could finally see its liquor stores sold forrevenue. Public opinion on the privatization is also positive. A Quinnipiac University

poll conducted in December 2010 showed that a majority of Pennsylvania resi-dents supported selling the stores to help with the budget deficit.Selling the stores would not only be a desperate measure to help lessen the

deficit. The quality and efficiency of the Pennsylvania stores is far worse thanliquor stores in other states. A recent New York Times article highlighted the plight of Pennsylvania

Liquor Control Board (PLCB) store #5801, which perpetually had too littleliquor, not enough variety and limited hours.Similar problems plague other stores. Their prices are marked up by the

PLCB, so that prices in Pennsylvania are often higher than prices in surround-ing states. The price difference and the problems with quality, availability andselection cause what is known as border bleed. Pennsylvania consumers often go to New Jersey, Ohio or Delaware to pur-

chase their alcohol, which gives potential Pennsylvania tax revenue to otherstates. The state-run store in Media faces such problems. Some Swarthmore stu-

dents buy their alcohol in Delaware, where the selection is better, beer, wineand hard liquor are sold in the same location, and prices are lower because offewer taxes.House Majority Leader Mike Turzai (R-Allegheny County) drafted a bill set

for discussion in the House in 2011 that would eliminate the 621 state stores andsell 850 new liquor licenses. The bill takes the state out of a business in whichit has no legal basis, and has a conflict of interest in both owning and regulat-ing the stores. Turzai’s bill provides that the current PLCB 30 percent price markup would

be eliminated, and that the current liquor taxes would be replaced with taxationby the gallon, as is the practice in most states. Furthermore, the bill would movethe sales tax paid by restaurants and bars to the final purchase by the consumerand eliminate the per-bottle handling tax on liquor.The bill provides stipulations for the current employees, offering incentives

for new store owners to hire current employees, education credits, and assis-tance in applying for other jobs with the State of Pennsylvania. Additionally, the bill has requirements for enriching law enforcement, such

as employee training programs and ID scanners. The new liquor stores wouldhave to be in an area dedicated to the sale of wine and hard alcohol separatefrom other retail areas.Turzai’s plan cites the meager average of $90 million in profits from the

stores as poor reason to keep the stores in state hands as a source of revenue.Critics of the plan say that these profits should not be removed from the state’sincome, but the data suggest that state revenue after the auction of the liquorlicenses would increase. The $376 million in sales and liquor taxes currently collected would stay the

same, or even increase with decreased border bleed. The state’s annual revenuewould sustainably increase with increased tax revenue and the fees collected onliquor licenses, and the sale of the stores would help close the current budgetgap.Other criticisms from anti-alcohol groups and advocacy groups like Mothers

Against Drunk Driving purport that the privatization of the stores wouldincrease alcohol consumption and drunk driving incidence. However, a December 2010 study conducted at Duquense University found no

connection between the level of state control of liquor sales and the number ofDUI-related deaths. Selling the state stores would affect the patterns of alcoholpurchase but not affect the patterns of alcohol consumption.But particular criticisms, especially the argument for the $100 million in

state-run store revenue, do not comprehend the urgency of the $5-billion deficit.Pennsylvania should sell its liquor stores to lessen its budget deficit withoutcutting other essential programs and services. However, the bill presented by Turzai needs several adjustments before it can

reach the House floor. The objections raised by United Food and CommercialWorkers are legitimate. If the stores are privatized, the new owners coulddestroy the 4,500 family-sustaining jobs currently held by PLCB employees. The proposal needs to include more protection for the workers, such as a

guarantee that they will be able to organize under the same union to protecttheir jobs after the sale of the stores. The last thing the state needs is a greater

welfare and unemployment burden.Though the state desperately needs the money from the sale of the stores, the

bill should include provisions for longer-term economic and fiscal sustainabili-ty. Changes in the tax structure for liquor and the fees from the liquor licensesare a feasible way to provide more government revenue than the stores cur-rently do. It is time for Pennsylvania to get out of the business of selling liquor.

Privatizing the state stores would ease the pressure of the budget deficit,improve the quality of the stores and, with the right provisions, save jobs.

Opinions

tHe PHOeniX January 20, 2011 13


Letters, opinion pieces and onlinecomments represent the views of theirwriters and not those of The Phoenixstaff or Editorial Board. The Phoenixreserves the right to edit all piecessubmitted for print publication forcontent, length and clarity. ThePhoenix also reserves the right towithhold any letters, op-eds or com-ments from publication.

All comments posted online and allop-eds and letters must be signed andshould include the writer’s fullname.

Letters are a minimum of 250 wordsand may not exceed 500 words. Op-edsare a minimum of 500 words and maynot exceed 750. Letters and op-edsmust be submitted by 10 p.m. onMonday, and The Phoenix reserves theright to withhold letters and op-edsreceived after that time from publica-tion.

Letters may be signed by a maximumof five individuals. Op-eds may besigned by a maximum of two individu-als. The Phoenix will not accept piecesexclusively attributed to groups,

although individual writers mayrequest that their group affiliation beincluded.

While The Phoenix does not acceptanonymous submissions, letters andop-eds may be published without thewriter’s name in exceptional circum-stances and at the sole discretion ofthe Editorial Board.

An editorial represents the opinions ofthe members of the Opinions Board:Camila Ryder, Marcus Mello andOlivia Natan.

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The PhoenixSwarthmore College 500 College Avenue Swarthmore, PA 19081

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Letters, corrections and news tips mayalso be submitted online to the paperby clicking “Contact” on the Phoenixwebsite.

Letter, OP-eD anD cOmment POLicy

Privatize state liquor stores but retain workers’ rightsStaff Editorial

Emma Waitzman Phoenix Staff

14 January 20, 2011 The PhoeniX

Opinions swarthmorephoenix.com

Eva: No place I’d rather be black than in AmericaIn 2009, Attorney General

Eric Holder called America“a nation of cowards” when itcomes to dealing with issuesinvolving race. He was metwith a firestorm of criticismfrom conservatives whobelieved his comments weredivisive and alienating. “Even as we fight a war

against terrorism; deal withthe reality of electing anAfrican-American, for thefirst time, as the president ofthe United States; the need toconfront our racial past andto understand our racial

present, and to understand the history of African peoplein this country — that all endures,” the Attorney Generalsaid. Although matters of race occupied a considerableamount of political coverage, Holder argued convention-al discourse among everyday Americans continued toshy away from our historical reality.Two years later, Holder’s remarks are still difficult to

digest. Although we are at a time of perceived racialequality, America seems to be regressing. Look no fur-ther than the current site of intolerance that is Arizona.The state has banned ethnic studies in public schoolswith a particular emphasis on rooting out the possibilityof Latino studies programs. As Sheriff Clarence Dupnikof Pima County appropriately concluded from thismonth’s horrific Tucson massacre, “The anger, thehatred, the bigotry that goes on in this country is gettingto be outrageous and unfortunately Arizona … hasbecome the capital — the Mecca for prejudice and big-otry.”At this time of political unrest, I think about the peo-

ple of color throughout history who moved elsewhere inattempt to escape American racism. I can’t help butrecall the black expatriates of the 1920s who soughtrefuge in Europe. Home to artists like Josephine Bakerand Langston Hughes, the Parisian district ofMontmartre was affectionately deemed Black Paris. In

the 1960s, there were also a number of black visual artistswho relocated to the continent. Artist Mildred Thompsoneventually immigrated to Germany after she was metwith severe racial discrimination in the US. Art historian David C. Driskell wrote in the 1978

American Quarterly article “Bibliographies in Afro-American Art,” “While the vast majority of Afro-American artists contributed in their own way to theblack revolution, many felt the social pains of segrega-tion and cultural apartheid heavilyenough to choose to work inEurope.” It was “a form of culturalexile over expatriation, hoping for abetter day to come.”Some would argue that such

racial hatred is not yet a distantmemory, and, although I agree,there is no place I’d rather be blackthan in America. I’ve traveled toevery continent in the world withthe exception of Antarctica and the United States is notunique in its racial bias. In fact, it seems out of our own frustration, some

Americans have wrongfully projected this mythicalsense of racial utopia on every country except our own.Though Europe may once have been a place where blackartists were able to gain moderate success, I am not con-vinced that it is the haven that it once might have been.It certainly did not meet my expectations of racial pro-

gressivism when I studied abroad in London last year. Ihad anticipated a wider representation of blacks in themedia and a more inclusive understanding of standardsof beauty. When I approached a young British-Ghanaianstudent to ask her about her perceptions of race in thecountry as part of my radio show, The Politics of Race inLondon, she voiced her frustrations with not seeing dark-skinned women that looked like her in magazines. Americans are convinced that the UK is better at just

about everything and the English have successfullymaintained this image. It is a convenient narrative touphold considering the British Empire colonized whatfeels like almost every country in the world. AlthoughEngland has become home to many disillusioned black

Americans throughout the years and shows like “SisterAct: The Musical” gained a backing not initially garneredin the US, it would be a mistake to conflate fortuitousoccurrences with this idea of total racial harmony.Over the winter break, I spent three weeks in

Australia and did not see one black person on a singlevisual advertisement unless it was for UNICEF or anAIDS relief organization. There was a similar absence ofdiversity in television. No black actors. No black news

reporters. No mention of theAboriginal people. When I spoke to one black

Australian, he said he could nevercomfortably refer to himself asblack in the company of whiteAustralians. He even went so faras to say that it might take anAmerican like myself to improvetheir contorted condition. Oneindigenous woman living in the

Aboriginal Tent Embassy, an activist tent communitystationed on the lawn of the Old Parliament House in theAustralian capital city of Canberra, similarly noted thatshe believes it was international interest in the racialinjustice in the country that led to improved conditions. As we approach Black History Month in America,

many of us realize there is still a lot of work to do. We area country that refuses to let go of the archaic notion thathuman beings should be referred to as “illegal” despitethe evidence that it contributes to a hateful and danger-ous atmosphere. It is our great nation that continues touse the criminal justice system as an instrument of tor-ture — mercilessly imprisoning poor blacks like the Scottsisters, only suspending their draconian double life sen-tences on the condition that one sister donate a kidney tothe other. However, we are also a nation of great promise.

America is the only Western country that can proudlysing Young Jeezy’s “My President Is Black” and, formany successful Americans of color, their story could notbe conceivable in any other country in the world.

Eva is a senior. You can reach her at [email protected].

According to Eva

Eva McKend

around higher educaTion

Tragedy exposes problems in media, politicsBY ANDREW SHEPERDwildcat.arizona.edu, Jan. 17, 2011

While it’s now clear that political rhet-oric had nothing to do with last week’stragic shooting of Rep. Gabrielle Giffordsand 19 others, this incident and the cov-erage surrounding it generates an oppor-tunity to reflect on national issues dis-cussed in the media. Hours after the news broke last

Saturday, Pima County Sheriff ClarenceDupnik ignited a firestorm by claimingArizona is the “Mecca for prejudice andbigotry” and suggested the shooting wasinfluenced by the country’s increasinglynasty political dialogue. His commentswere unprofessional and not based onany evidence. However, the mainstream media

jumped on the sheriff’s statement andbegan to discuss the impact of the bittertone surrounding political debates.Pundits on the right immediately wenton the defensive, rushing to point outexamples of people on the left usinginflammatory language and seizingevery opportunity to bash the so-called“liberal media.”On Wednesday, Sarah Palin released a

video stating that “within hours of atragedy unfolding, journalists and pun-dits should not manufacture a blood libelthat serves only to incite the very hatredand violence that they purport to con-

demn.” It’s easy to understand Palin’sanger. As over the top as her rhetoric canbe, it’s safe to say she never wished phys-ical harm on her political opponents. However, this statement represents all

that is wrong with modern politicaldebate. It wasn’t journalists who insistedthat people like Palin, Rush Limbaughand Sean Hannity had blood on the theirhands, it was liberal commentators likeKeith Olbermann, Paul Krugman and EdSchultz. By mixing true partisans with profes-

s i o n a lj ourna l -ists, Palinand otherconserva-tive com-mentatorsare able tospin theargumentto make itseem likeany discussion surrounding politicalrhetoric is an attack. Instead of simply denying the absurd

insinuation that rhetoric from the rightcaused this terrible tragedy to occur, shetook it a step further and decided to playpolitics.According to a national television

news reporter in town covering theshooting, the criticism coming from the

right “speaks to a problem that reportersare facing in recent coverage.” Thereporter, who asked to remain anony-mous, said “when you report somethingfrom someone who’s a partisan, youcome across as endorsing that position.” By moderating a discussion on the

possible impact of political rhetoric, jour-nalists are being accused of spreading thepartisan views held by those they areinterviewing. Ultimately, this makes reporting on

any issue incredibly difficult and dividesthe coun-try evenf u r t h e r .The truthis that peo-ple must beable tothink forthemselvesw h e nwatchingor listening

to partisan personalities. Americansmust fight against attempts by charis-matic, yet agenda-driven commentatorsto herd them (like mindless sheep) into acertain political corral. Perhaps the mainstream media

should have resisted the temptation todiscuss the possible impact of politicalrhetoric on Jared Loughner. After all, it’sobvious now that it had none.

However, to claim that the media pur-posely sought to assign blame to the rightside of the aisle is just as ludicrous asclaiming that Glenn Beck inspiredLoughner to do what he did.One of the biggest problems currently

facing our democracy is how peoplereceive their news. Unfortunately, opin-ionated television shows and truth-dis-torting talk radio remain more popularthan traditional, balanced news sources. As long as this is the case, and people

continue to cling to every word spokenby people like Beck and Olbermann, it’simpossible for the politicians in thiscountry to agree on anything. This tragedy initially brought people

from all sides of the political spectrumtogether. However, after a week of bitter-ness coming from commentators on theright and naïve statements about theneed for more gun control and regulationof political speech coming from the left,it’s safe to say that the country is just asdivided as usual. Perhaps people willbegin to wise up to the damage caused byagenda-driven commentators. It’s one thing to be passionate about

an issue and to disagree, but hopefullyAmericans will realize that the constantback and forth coming from certain par-tisans and the inability to see the meritsof other points of view do nothing tomove the country forward. In fact, theyonly hold it back.

Unfortunately, opinionated televisionshows and truth-distorting talk radioremain more popular than traditional,

balanced news sources.

Although we are at atime of perceived racialequality, America seems

to be regressing.

Sports

the PhoenIX January 20, 2011 15


exploring the bond between fan and athleteA recent OpEd in the

New York Times by RobinDunbar, a professor ofevolutionary anthropolo-gy at Oxford, arguesagainst the widespreadbelief that social mediahas allowed us to havemore friends than wouldhave otherwise been pos-sible.

Although Facebookand the Internet in gener-al allow individuals toreach many more peoplein a limited time, we all

have an innate cognitive limit that restricts the num-ber of friends we can have that is not overcome byaccess to better technology, according to Dunbar.Instead of creating new friends online, we simplyform an online group of friends that are disconnectedin the offline world — what he refers to as the elec-tronic village.

He expands on this in his book, How Many FriendsDoes One Person Need, and puts a finite number on thepeople we can truly have a relationship with, no mat-ter the number of “friends” one has on Facebook. Thisnumber, called Dunbar’s number, is only 150. Dunbarbest defines this group as the people whom, if you raninto them at the airport lounge at 3 a.m., you wouldfeel comfortable, or even obliged, to say hi and have aconversation with. “You wouldn’t need to introduceyourself because they would know where you stood intheir social world, and you would know where theystood in yours,” she wrote.

You are probably asking yourself right about now

what all this has to do with sports. I’m getting there;don’t worry. My immediate response after reading theOpEd piece was one of deep, intellectual thought: Itried to compile a list of what my 150 people wouldlook like.

However, I ran into some difficulties even fitting inall of the people I interact with on a daily basis. Afterlisting the entirety of the current San Jose Sharks andSan Francisco Giants rosters, there was barelyenough room for all of my family members.

It may seem ridiculous to include two entire sportsteams on a list of people I call “friends,” but the truthis sports allow you to defy the limitations of Dunbar’snumber, and modern technology is a large part ofwhy. These days, you can find out everything aboutyour favorite players with a click of a mouse, fromhow Eric Staal feels about picking his brother in theAll-Star draft to Keith Ballard’s failed prank attemptsin the Canucks’ locker room. When you spend all ofyour free time watching them on the ice and readingabout them off the ice, professional athletes often canfeel closer than the person sitting next to you in class.

Some may question whether the bond between fanand athlete would actually constitute a “friendship,”but for the faithful, professional athletes often fulfillall the same duties of a friend. They stick with youthrough good times and bad, cheer you up whenyou’re sad and provide their fair share of good gossipand entertainment. And the relationship is a two-waystreet. If you don’t believe me, see how long a sportsfranchise can last without fans.

Sure, maybe players can’t name every one of uslike we can them, but NHL teams are well aware ofthe importance of their team’s loyal followers, andshow it every chance they get. Take the San JoseSharks for example. Long-time season ticket holders

for the Sharks actually have their tickets personallydelivered by Sharks players at the beginning of theseason.

But sports not only create connections betweenfans and players, but also with other fans. Fans of thesame sports team are allied, even if they have nevermet each other. They share a common history of thepain of loss and the sweetness of success, and thatlinks them in a way akin to friendship. The fan-to-fanconnection can even meet Dunbar’s 3 a.m. airport def-inition. If I walked into an airport lounge and sawsomeone wearing Sharks or Giants paraphernalia, Iwouldn’t be embarrassed to go over and say hi.Instead of Dunbar’s “How are you? Haven’t seen youin ages!” it would be “Why is that when one Bay Areateam does well, the others have to have completebreakdowns? It’s like we always have to have at leasta little torture!” It’s practically the same thing.

Just like Dunbar says is true of our 150 friends, Iwould be happy to lend a fellow fan a “fiver” if askedor buy them a beer, because, without even having asingle conversation, I know they share a love of JoeThornton and a hatred of all things associated withthe Anaheim Ducks. If friendship is based on similarinterests, I can’t imagine anything more importantthan a shared interest in booing Ducks players.

Sports give you an instant network of friends thatare not accounted for in Dunbar’s number. I may notbe able to tell you exactly who they are, but we wouldcertainly have more to talk about in an airport loungethan I would with that girl that sat two rows ahead ofme throughout high school.

Hannah is a senior. You can reach her [email protected]. For links to blogs and arti-cles, check out Hannah’s column on The Phoenix web-site.

The Purkey Perspective

Hannah Purkey

Swimming looks to build on promising first halfBY ANA [email protected]

Tanned and rested from winter breakand a week-long training trip in PuertoRico, the Swarthmore Garnet swimteams return to action, looking to buildon impressive first semesters of competi-tion from both the men and the women.

The women, led by a strong core ofhighly talented first-years and veterandistance swimmers, enter Saturday’smeet against Cabrini boasting a 3-2record, including a 3-1 mark in theCentennial Conference.

The men, aiming to capture their firstCentennial Conference title, made asplash earlier inthe year bydefeating thedefending cham-pion Franklin &M a r s h a l lDiplomats for thefirst time in fouryears, andremain undefeat-ed coming out ofthe break.

R e t u r n i n gfrom sabbatical to lead the Garnet ishead coach Sue Davis, entering her 27thseason at Swarthmore’s helm. Thoughshe hasn’t officially been coaching forthe past semester, she has kept close tabson the team — which has been temporar-ily run by assistant coach Casmera Wick— and she has liked what she has seen.“I think they’ve swum fantastic,” Davissaid. “And I’m expecting more fantastic[in the second half].”

The team itself is recovering fromtheir trip to Puerto Rico, during which“anyone who was abroad or generallyloafed around over break [was] returned

to peak physical condition,” according tosprinter Tim Brevart ’12. “[We had] twoexhausting practices every day with anhour's worth of dry training betweenthem.”

Daniel Duncan ’13 agreed. “I think itreally helps us to get in shape,” he said.“We did double the amount of training asduring the school year. [It] also gave metime to work on my stroke and make it abit more efficient.”

Davis, who accompanied the team ontheir trip, acknowledged, “They workedvery, very hard. They were up at 5:30every morning, and a lot of them were inbed by 8 at night.”

In spite of — or perhaps because of —the gruelingnature of the trip,Brevart also com-mented on itscapacity as ateam bondingexperience. “Theteam itselfbecomes a closercommunity afterhaving lived insuch close quar-ters for the length

of the trip,” he said.The extended break and the training

trip — plus the return of Davis — havethe Swat swimmers and coaching staffback in gear for the second semester ofcompetition. “We’re [spending] the nextthree weeks working very hard,” Davissaid. “Everybody is very focused on theConference [championship] meet and onthe dual meets in preparation forConferences. I always tell them thatevery time you race, you need to race,because you learn something from everyrace you swim.”

“I think a lot of [swimmers] are look-

ing good,” Duncan said. “We're all reallyexcited to get back into meets.”

Brevart is focused firmly on thefuture, but sees much cause for opti-mism. “There is still much work thatneeds to be done over the course of themonth,” he said, “but if our team alltapers successfully then there is a highchance that Swat could finally claim the

conference title.”On Wednesday, the women’s team

crushed Bryn Mawr with a 125-72 score. The men kick back into action on

Saturday, as both teams will take onCabrini at Ware Pool, beginning at 2 p.m.

Daniel Duncan is a sports writer forThe Phoenix. He had no role in the pro-duction of this article.

“I think they’ve swum fantastic ... And I’m

expecting more fantastic[in the second half].”

Head Coach Sue Davis

garnet athlete of the week

What he’s done:

the sophomore posted a game-high 19points as the Garnet defeated thedickinson Red devils on saturday after-noon. Gates netted 15 of those points inthe second half. Gates also grabbed fiverebounds, four of which were defensive,and added a steal and a block. he nowhas 304 points on the season.

FavoRite caReeR moment:

“having 31 points and 17 rebounds in ourfirst win of the 2009-10 season and of mycareer.”

season Goals:

“to come back and make a run at the play-offs ... and to beat haverford of course.”

FavoRite nFl team:

“the indianapolis colts.”Olivia Natan Phoenix Staff

William Gatessoph., Willseyville, mi.

BY DANIEL [email protected]

Despite some excellent individual per-formances, the Swarthmore men’s basket-ball team struggled to find wins during win-ter break. The Garnet (5-10, 2-6 CC changeafter Haverford) lost consecutive games bydouble digits until Saturday’s 73-59 winagainst Dickinson. The win snapped a sixgame losing streak that dated back toDecember 8.The Garnet traveled to New York for the

NYU Holiday Classic, playing two verygood teams, MCLA and NYU. Three play-ers, led by a 27 point explosion from WillGates ’13, reached double digits in scoringagainst MCLA. Unfortunately, that wasn’tnearly enough, as the Trailblazers shot ablazing 57 percent from the field to cruise toa 99-78 win.Gates had another big night against

NYU, scoring 26 to lead the Garnet. In anotherwise close game, the Violets had twobig runs to close the first half and begin thesecond that put the game out of reach forthe Garnet. Out-rebounded 45-33, theGarnet fell 73-58.After his monster scoring display, Gates

was named to the all-tournament team.Upon their return from New York, the

Garnet returned to their CentennialConference schedule at then #13 Franklin &

Marshall. The team fell 85-46 against a verystrong opponent. The team shot only 27.9percent from the field, with Jay Kober ’14and Gates leading the team with 15 and 12points, respectively. The Garnet struggledon defense, allowing four Diplomats toreach double-digits on 59.6 percent shoot-ing.Continuing their road trip to

Gettysburg, things failed to improve for theGarnet. Shooting 28.8 percent and out-rebounded 44-25, the team gave the Bulletsa comfortable 59-43 win. There was a lightat the end of the tunnel though, as theGarnet closed the game on a 15-3 run. Gatesand Kober again led the offense, with Gatesachieving his third 20-point effort in fourgames.Hosting their first game in the new year,

the Garnet fell to Johns Hopkins 67-53. Ledby Kober’s 19 points, the Garnet offense wasmuch more efficient, and the reboundinggap was much closer than previous games.The defense let the game get away though,letting the Blue Jays shoot over 50 percentfrom the field.Last Saturday, things finally clicked for

the Garnet, as they emerged from thedepths with a 73-59 victory over Dickinson.The offense was on fire all night, shooting50 percent from the field, including 7 of 14three pointers. Gates led a balanced attackwith 19 points, while Jordan Federer ’14,

Jordan Martinez ’13, and Kober were also indouble-digits.While the offense knew what it was

doing, the Garnet still struggled withdefense and rebounding. The struggle was-n’t as profound as previous games though.The defense held the Red Devils to 42 per-cent shooting, the lowest of any opponentthe Garnet had faced this winter. Onrebounding, the Garnet and Red Devilswere dead even.Kober said the win over Dickinson was

“huge,” adding that, “The losing streak wasdefinitely a tough pill to swallow.” Hethinks the win showed, though, that “weare able of playing with anybody.”Andrew Greenblatt ’12, who studied

abroad last semester, also added that theDickinson win “lifted our confidencebecause we beat a good team without doinganything special. We executed our offenseswell, something that shouldn’t be very hardto do against Haverford,” Greenblatt said,in an e-mail, before last night’s game. On Wednesday, the Garnet could not add

another win to its record, losing toHaverford 74-52.The Garnet now turn to the road, travel-

ing to Ursinus on Saturday in a rematch ofan early-season win for the Garnet. In lastsemester’s game, Ryan Carmichael ’11scored the three-pointer in the last 9.8 sec-onds of the game, clinching a win against

Ursinus. “[Ursinus] must be pretty fired up about

Carmichael’s buzzer beater against themfrom the first semester. I’m looking forwardto showing them it wasn’t a fluke and tak-ing it to them with a more decisive victory,”Greenblatt said. Gates ’13 added in an e-mail, “A big difference is going to be thatJay Kober won’t be a secret to them thistime, but hopefully he can come up hugeagainst them again.” Tip-off is at 3:00 p.m. at Ursinus.

Men’s basketball loses to rival Haverford, 74-52

Sports swarthmorephoenix.com


BY RENEE [email protected]

The Swarthmore women’s basketball team has madean impressive showing over the past month, winningfour out of six of the games during the break, now stand-ing at 10-6 (6-5 CC).During the break, the team lost only to Franklin &

Marshall (F&M) by a score of 68-48 and Johns Hopkins bya score of 48-37.Head women’s basketball coach Renee DeVarney was

proud of the team’s performances against NYU and NewYork City Tech (NYU Tech) in the NYU New Year’sClassic, held in New York City. Kathryn Stockbower ’11had 22 points and 17 rebounds in the second half againstNYU. “It was an amazing performance, one of the best I’ve

ever seen in all my years coaching and it was our key tovictory against a very good team,” DeVarney said. Theteam agreed that this was the highlight of the break. “Itset the tone for what we wanted over break,” GinnyLaFouci ’14 said.The loss against Franklin & Marshall came as result of

bad decision making, something the team has struggledwith in the past and is working on improving with eachgame against every opponent. The team’s 30 turnovers,due to a lapse in offensive play with the Diplomats’ ablerally 15-1 to take the lead, gave F&M the lead they wouldkeep for the rest of the game.The break showed a major up in defensive play. In the

game against Johns Hopkins, the Swat women limitedthe Blue Jays to 15 points in the second half, caused 20turnovers for their opponents and managed nine steals.Despite being out-rebounded 43-27, the team managed toprevent the Blue Jays from achieving an overwhelmingdefeat.“The last 10 minutes of the game, we played very

inspired and very aggressive ball so it was a learningpoint,” DeVarney said, emphasizing that if they want tobeat the tough opponents, they have to stay consistentand keep improving every day. “The tough losses [againstF&M and Johns Hopkins] are nothing impossible tobounce back from. We just had to reevaluate and movepast it quickly,” Nicole Rizzo ’12 said.The Garnet defense led the team to a comeback against

the Dickinson Red Devils, winning 62-46 and holding theDevils to a 25 percent shooting — the second time in arow the Garnet defense has held its opponent below its

season shooting percentage.“Defense is just a mentality. You tell yourself, ‘I am

going to stop my opponent, I am going to be in my posi-tion.’ It’s a mental toughness, and when push comes toshove, defense is what wins games,” Rizzo said.The Swarthmore defense kept the Devils at bay, while

the offense stole the lead in the first half 22-17. Leadingscorer Stockbower netted 13 points and grabbed 14rebounds in the game, recording her 75th double-doublein her career. In the second half, LaFouci scored the bas-ket that gave the team a 20-point lead. The Garnet led inrebounds 50-37, and finished the game with a 16-pointlead.“Our league is really balanced so there aren’t things

that are considered upsets. On any given night anybodycan win,” DeVarney said in response to the losses overthe break. DeVarney realizes the challenges of playing inthe Centennial Conference, which is becoming more andmore competitive each year.

“Of course, we’re hoping to win, to get an importantwin and move up in the rankings, so we can play in theChampionships,” LaFouci said.The Garnet ladies entered the game confident that if

they gave it their all, they would come out victorious.However, with the home court advantage, the GettysburgBullets ultimately dominated the game. The Bullets beatSwat 72-47, taking the lead early in the game and holdingonto it for the duration of the game.In the game, Stockbower recorded her 76th career dou-

ble-double, just three shy of the NCAA Division III record(79). Along with Stockbower, first-years Katie Lytle andKayla Moritzky played strong offense with eight pointsapiece. On Wednesday, the Garnet dropped yet another con-

ference game. Playing from Tarble Pavilion in front of acrowd of Swarthmore fans wearing white for a “WhiteOut” game, the Garnet lost by 21 points. ThoughStockbower notched her 77th double-double, theHaverford offense was too strong for the Garnet, scoring62 points. Poor shooting plagued the Garnet; while theFords shot 46 percent from the field, the Garnet shot only22 percent.Before the game, Rizzo acknowledged the Garnet

would have to play hard in order to be victorious.“[Haverford] is a building program. They have good first-years, a young team. But they are not a team to go in com-placent about. They will be going out there and fighting,”Rizzo said.

After such an impressive showing over the break, theteam is using those victories as motivation to keep mov-ing forward, aiming to keep up its intensity in futuregames.With a defensive plan and offensive strike in its arse-

nal, the Swarthmore women’s basketball team is aimingfor the Centennial Conference Championships inFebruary.“It’s one of the things in the back of our minds. We’re

making up our minds to get better every day. We knowwhat we have to do, we just have to execute,” LaFoucisaid.The Swarthmore women’s basketball team returns to

action Saturday, Jan. 22 in an away game at Ursinus. Thegame is scheduled to begin at 1:00 p.m.

Back from strong break, Garnet women drop two


Members of the Garnet and Fords go for a free ball. TheSwarthmore women’s basketball team lost by a score of62-41.


Will Gates goes for a jumper as the Garnettook on rival Haverford on Wednesday.

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Phoenix 1-20-2011