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Trash this Euro movie

February 19

Do you enjoy incest, Hitler jokes, and dated stereotypes? Do you have the mental capacity of a five year-old? Are you longing for a savagely bad film with massive plot holes? Even if you circled D) All of the above, you still will not like Eurotrip. In case anyone has ever wondered what would happen if you took one of the producers of Road Trip and Old School, teamed him up with a group of hackneyed writers, a first-time director (Jeff Schaffer), and a group of unproven actors, Eurotrip has an answer: 92 minutes of agony. Scotty (Scott Mechlowitz, whose name was left unchanged presumably to avoid confusing the young actor) has just graduated high school in time for his girlfriend to dump him and reveal that she has been cheating on him. As if that weren't bad enough, at the graduation party that night he is subjected to a song, all about how unperceptive Scotty is, sung by the girl's new punk rocker boyfriend (Matt Damon, who probably was paid in cash.) Scotty stumbles home and, in a moment of drunken foolishness, replies angrily to the latest e-mail from his German pen-pal; the next morning he discovers that his pen-pal is not, as he had thought, a guy named Mike, but a gorgeous girl named Mieke (Jessica Boehrs). Mieke, after receiving the angry letter, blocks Scott's e-mails, and decides to go pout. Instead of creating a new e-mail account to get back in contact with Mieke, Scott decides to fly to Berlin with his wisecracking pal Cooper (Jacob Pitts) from Oberlin College, where they now go to school. Despite knowing almost nothing about Mieke, including where in Berlin she lives, he goes to visit her. At Cooper's suggestion, the duo fly first to London, where they narrowly escape death by miraculously guessing the Manchester United fight song (?!?) then make it to Paris, where they meet up with twins Bert (Nial Iskhakov) and Jenny (Michelle Trachtenberg). Road Trip, the 2000 movie of which Eurotrip is a spin-off, worked in part because everything that happened was in some way related to the central plot of getting to the girl. Eurotrip feels as if one writer (there are four here actually, never a good sign) would pitch an idea to the others, be told that it didn't fit into the script, then yell "Who cares!?" and write it in anyway. One also gets the sense that a young child with scissors attacked the final cut of the movie, removing large chunks. Within those chunks might have been humor and a cohesive plot. Neither is apparent in the final product. What remains are a series of loosely-related misadventures, usually in bad taste, and always completely implausible. If you are intending to see this film, skip the next sentence ... although, if you are intending to see this film you probably cannot read or write anyway, and therefore will be unaffected. The climax of this movie, or more accurately the merciful end, comes when Scotty opens his dorm room door to discover that Mieke has somehow applied and gotten into Oberlin College, about six months after the deadline, in the two months since they met. Adding insult to injury, Mieke, being mistaken for a male, has been assigned to be Cooper's roommate. (!?!) Whereas usually you have to reflect upon a movie hours after seeing it to notice plot holes, Eurotrip defies the norm. The movie is reminiscent of Grady Little's managing; the audience notices problems as the debacle unfolds. How did our hero manage to track down his pen-pal without her last name, phone number, or address? Why didn't Scotty just fly directly to Berlin? Who agreed to make this movie, and why? Fred Armisen (of Saturday Night Live) does his best to inject this listless movie with some humor, but again the writers fall short. His brief appearance is as funny as it is unexplained. It is unclear why he decides to make sexual advances on the group, and equally unclear why he gives up. I would suggest that you take your young children to Eurotrip to be amused by the colors and noise; however, I doubt most of this paper's readers have young children ... and there's also the matter of the gratuitous full-frontal male nudity. Do not see Eurotrip, even when it is released on video. If your friends try to drag you to see it, find new friends. If you are forced in at gunpoint, bring a book and a flashlight.

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News

Frechette gives advice on reconstruction

February 19

Keeping order in conflict-torn countries is much more complicated than simply devising a plan of action. Deputy Secretary-General of the United Nations Louise Fr‚chette addressed an audience at the Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy last night on the difficulties and imperatives involved in peacekeeping and nation-building. Her speech was the keynote address at Fletcher's Conference on Innovative Approaches: Rethinking Interdisciplinary Action in Conflict. The first annual conference will continue today with a number of panels discussing the latest theories and ideas addressing global conflict. Fr‚chette said the conference was especially timely with the world's attention currently focused on peacekeeping efforts in Iraq and Afghanistan. Thorough knowledge of local dynamics and customs is essential for U.N. personnel in order to succeed on missions, according to Fr‚chette. As much time as possible should be "spent listening to the widest cross-section of society," she said. Without "the local language and knowledge of local communities, [U.N. personnel] cannot hope to take root in communities like local forces," she said. Fr‚chette discussed the difficulties of maintaining order in countries with nation-building efforts. "Nothing is possible without security," she said. "The perils of inadequate military presence are all too obvious." She said that there are often difficulties in finding funding, recruiting, and in building cohesion among the ranks when developing local security forces. Fr‚chette said the recent international tribunals in the former Yugoslavia and Rwanda have linked systematic rape and media propaganda to genocide. She warned, however, that pressing for accountability too soon could undermine rebuilding efforts. International donors rarely focus aid on redeveloping states' infrastructures -- a necessary facet of restoring normal life, Fr‚chette said. "No country can do without security, legal, and regulatory services." Other priorities, she said, include the installation of democratic systems and decreasing unemployment. She warned that short-term foreign investment is unlikely to be high and recovering economies are unlikely to quickly stabilize. Even if the priorities Fr‚chette identified are dealt with, international peacekeeping efforts still face serious difficulties. "No matter how well-meaning, no matter how many resources," she said, missions cannot be successful without a deep understanding of the situation. Peacekeeping forces should "not impose their own ideas and visions on societies emerging from conflict." The speech was followed by a question and answer session, moderated by Fletcher Professor Jeswald Salacuse.

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News

Tufts to face Trinity and Craig Coupe in first round

February 19

The men's basketball team will get a second shot at former teammate Craig Coupe and the Trinity Bantams in the first round of the NESCAC championships on Saturday afternoon at 3 p.m. in Hartford, Conn. Aiding the team in its playoff conquest will be the momentum gained from last night's win at home over Clark, 78-75. "This win helps a lot," coach Bob Sheldon said. "We talked about playing hard here and going into Trinity on a good note. We outplayed them, and it's a good way to be going into the playoffs." The victory over Clark is one that certainly can inspire confidence in the Jumbos ability to take down difficult competitors. Clark is currently ranked first in the NEWMAC, another conference in the New England area. "It is nice to see that we can beat the top teams in other conferences," Sheldon said. "It was also a nice way to send the seniors out." For senior co-captains Eric Mack and Deyvehn East, it was the end to their career home games in Cousens Gymnasium, as well as regular season play. "I couldn't picture a better way to go out," East said. "They were a good team with good individual players. Our guys made the shots and played good defense... This is the way we wanted to go into playoffs." However, last month's trip to Trinity was not as fruitful as the Jumbos would have liked, as the Bantams defeated Tufts by a 22-point margin. The Jumbos were able to keep up with Trinity for the first 12 minutes of the game, forcing them to take poor shots and turn the ball over. Eventually, however, Trinity started to break down the Tufts defense and get open shots from all around the court. The Jumbos have an advantage this time around with their knowledge of Trinity's strengths and weaknesses. The Bantams have a tough inside-outside game with sophomore leading scorer Tyler Rhoten and junior tri-captain John Halas. The two lit up the Jumbos for 36 points and 11 boards the last time the two teams met. While Rhoten accounted for 26 of those points shooting 12-23 from the field, Halas nailed three out of six three-pointers, often at key points in the game, to quell Tufts' runs. Senior co-captain Deyvehn East and junior forward Reggie Stovell will be assigned the tough task of containing Trinity's top two threats. Unlike in the previous contest, Stovell will be back at full strength for Saturday's bout with the Bantams after recovering from a stress fracture that has plagued him for the better part of the season. Jumbo senior co-captain Eric Mack will have to be at the top of his game on Saturday against Trinity junior point guard Jesse Farrell. Farrell is extremely effective at dictating the fluid Trinity offense and distributing the ball to Bantam shooters, mainly Halas and Rhoten. Farrell is one of the top point guards in the conference and Mack will have to put pressure on him in the backcourt and contain him at the top of the key for Tufts to have success. The two-headed monster of sophomores Dan Martin and Blaine Lay will be assigned to contain former teammate junior center Craig Coupe. In their last meeting, Martin and Lay kept Coupe pointless and forced him to commit four fouls in just 19 minutes of play. However, Coupe was effective in doing the intangibles for the Bantams, grabbing eight rebounds and dishing out four assists in those minutes. Perhaps the X-factor in Saturday's game will be sophomore forward Scott Armstrong. Armstrong has been hot of late, most recently against the Williams College Ephs' junior forward Tucker Kain. Armstrong torched Kain for 14 points making five of 12 shots and shooting 2-3 from behind the line. He also held holding Kain to just seven points. The Maryland native is third on the team in scoring with 9.2 points per game and has chipped in 3.9 rebounds per game as well. A good game from Armstrong will give the Jumbos a much better shot at dethroning the NESCAC's second seed. If Tufts comes out victorious, it would effectively be the second seed in the tournament and face the winner of tomorrow's game between Amherst College and Wesleyan. "Hopefully now we can go in there and beat Trinity," East said.

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News

Swimmers focused on top five finish

February 19

For the women's swimming team, an entire season of work has come down to one weekend. The team headed to Connecticut yesterday to participate in the three-day NESCAC championship meet hosted by Wesleyan College. The Jumbos, who finished sixth at NESCAC's last season, look to uphold the goal they set for themselves in November of breaking into the top five. While the first three positions will most likely be taken up by Williams, Middlebury, and Amherst, Tufts is capable of eclipsing last year's fourth and fifth place squads, Hamilton and Bates, to break into the top four. "There's a lot of competition, so we're hoping to do well and finish within the top five," freshman sprinter Dierdre Cannell said. "We also want to do well individually and swim the fastest we've swam this season." The Jumbos have been preparing exclusively for NESCAC's for the past two weeks with a completely different practice format than earlier in the season when the team prepared for dual meets. "We've been tapering since last Monday, which means we have backed up off training and rested more both in and out of the water," senior tri-captain Amanda Bloom said. "Our main goal these two weeks was to keep relaxed, but motivated." The team veered away from the traditional practice style of working on fitness and stamina by swimming hundreds of laps. During this two week stretch, the Jumbos instead worked on precise fundamentals with the intention of shaving crucial seconds off their times. "Our practices were really short and focused," Bloom added. "We worked mainly on timing and specific techniques to get us really focused and thinking about races." Swimming aside, one of the Jumbos' major goals is to be the most spirited team on the deck. "We had a team meeting about our goals for the meet, and regardless of times or finishes, we want to go into the meet together as a really supportive team," Bloom said. "We want to be the loudest, most supportive team, and always have girls behind everyone swimming." Adding to the excitement will be the fact that the Jumbos have an excellent shot of sending multiple women to nationals for the first time since 2001. Senior tri-captain Mika Sumiyoshi will likely qualify for nationals in a myriad of events, including the 200 yard individual medley (IM), the 400IM, and the 200 yard backstroke. This would be Sumiyoshi's fourth consecutive season qualifying. Freshman Alaina Thiel has already made the national B cut and looks to shore up her place along with Sumiyoshi in both the 50 and 100 freestyle events. "Alaina has blown away all her own records this week," Bloom said. "She's already made national B cut, and has a good chance of going to nationals. We just don't want to say that because we don't want to put individual pressure on her." In addition, the 400 freestyle relay team of Sumiyoshi, Thiel, Cannell and sophomore Katie Mims has a good shot of advancing. For senior tri-captains Bloom, Sumiyoshi, and Kierstyn Thayer, along with classmates Bridie McElroy and Beth Wecksell, this weekend marks the final NESCAC meet of their four year careers as Tufts swimmers and divers. "NESCAC's is a huge buildup every year regardless of age," Bloom said. "Just the fact that it's [our] last one it puts a lot more into it. There is a lot of emotion but [we] really have to put that in the back of [our] heads and swim for [ourselves] and the team and try not to focus on the big picture."

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News

Berube leads team to success after just two seasons

February 19

As the Dallas Cowboys discovered with Bill Parcels, sometimes all it takes to turn a program around is a new coach. In just her second season at the helm of the women's basketball team, coach Carla Berube has led her squad to a 17-5 record going into tonight's final regular season game at MIT, and has guided the Jumbos to a first round home game in the NESCAC championship tournament for the first time in Tufts' women's basketball history. Before Berube arrived for the start of the 2002-2003 campaign, the team failed to make the playoffs in two of the previous three years. It also finished dead last in the NESCAC with a 1-8 mark against league opponents in 2001-2002. "I brought in my style of basketball and my style of coaching," Berube said. "[That included] instilling a work ethic and a belief in playing your hardest at all times. [We want] to be a powerhouse in the Boston area and get up to the top of the NESCAC." Two seasons later, these hopes are beginning to become a reality. With its 7-2 league mark at the end of this season, the Jumbos finished tied for second in the league. Due to a stroke of bad luck, however, Tufts received the fourth seed in the tournament and will host number five Williams -- a team it beat last Saturday on the road, 59-37 -- in a quarterfinal game in Cousens Gym. "We're very excited," Berube said. "Basically what we were working for all year was to get a first round playoff game at home, and to finish second in the conference is quite a feat." In taking a floundering program from the conference cellar to a tournament first round home game, Berube took inspiration from her alma mater, the University of Connecticut. Berube was a crucial role player in the Huskies' 1995 NCAA Division I national championship run, and the squad had a dominant 132-8 record over Berube's four year career. As a senior captain, she led her team to a 33-1 record in the 1996-1997 season. Her 1,382 career points are 17th all time at UConn and her 138 games played in a Husky uniform rank second on the all time list. Though Berube coached as an assistant for two years at Providence College, she derives her coaching style from that of UConn. "She models herself after [UConn] coach [Geno] Auriemma," sophomore point guard Julia Verplank said. "She pushes us really hard and expects a lot." "A lot of who I am now [comes from] what I picked up [at UConn]," Berube said. "The style of play, what it takes work ethic wise, how intense and competitive practices need to be; it seems to work there, so I thought I could try it out here." Berube's intensity and Div. I attitude are in direct contrast to former head coach Janice Savitz' approach to coaching Div III basketball. "[Savitz] was complacent," senior tri-captain Maritsa Christoudias said. "She didn't push us and also didn't meet up to the high levels of passion that were on the team." This gap in fervor for the sport between coach and players has disappeared since Berube arrived on the scene. "A lot of people have this notion that in Div III it's not going to be as intense," freshman Taryn Miller-Stevens said. "But [Berube] expects the most out of us. Just the way she talks about basketball shows she's passionate about the sport and about coaching. We feed off that and it filters into the way we play." The future looks bright for Berube's Jumbos. Her first recruiting class has made substantial contributions to the squad this season and will continue to help Tufts in coming years. Berube's success and reputation could help lure even more talent to play at Tufts down the road. "She definitely was a big appeal for the school," Miller-Stevens said. "I'm from Connecticut and went to her games. I knew she was coming from a good program and had good coaching along the way." Tomorrow's playoff game against number five seeded Williams will kick off Berube's second playoff run as a coach. The squad lost at Bates in the first round last year, and the team expects a hard fought match against an Ephs team that was not in top form when Tufts beat it last weekend in Williamstown. "We all know it's going to be a really tough game," Miller-Stevens said. "Williams didn't shoot very well last week and they are a great shooting team. We have to come ready to play, bring our A game, and leave it all on the floor." The Jumbos will look to take full advantage of playing at home in front of rowdy fans. "The fans have been great all year," Berube said. "[Against] Bowdoin it was incredible; it was just a great atmosphere to play college basketball. The fans are our sixth man, they definitely help. Hopefully they will come out for our biggest game of the year. It's going to be a good time."

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News

Injuries, trades mark beginning of regular season climax

February 19

It's crunch time in the NHL. With the trade deadline just three weeks away, teams have begun the seasonal search for that missing piece of the puzzle that could mean the difference between an early exit from the playoffs in April or a surge of success into June. The most surprising thing about the league right now has to be the lack of close competition for the final playoff spots. If I had to predict the 16 playoff-bound teams right now, I wouldn't make any changes to the current standings, save perhaps for the crowded Western Conference, where the Nashville Predators (65 points), St. Louis Blues (64 points), Los Angeles Kings (65 points), and Dallas Stars (66 points) are competing for the last three spots. The most interesting battles will probably take place at the top where division leaders within only a few points of each other scramble for hegemony. The Eastern Conference race should make for an especially exciting stretch run. The Philadelphia Flyers (78 points), who have been atop the conference for much of the season, continue to lead the other division leaders -- the Toronto Maple Leafs (76 points) and the Tampa Bay Lightning (72 points) -- but the tide might finally be turning. The Flyers have come back from the All-Star break looking less than primed for a playoff run. They've lost their last two games and newly acquired goalie Sean Burke gave up a combined ten goals in the losses. Burke was picked up from the Phoenix Coyotes after Robert Esche, who had worked all season making a name for himself in Philadelphia, injured his knee and veteran back-up Jeff Hackett was diagnosed with vertigo (don't ask) and retired. In addition to these odd goalie circumstances, Philadelphia's leading-scorer, Jeremy Roenick, might have played his last NHL game last Thursday when he was hit in the face with a puck that broke his jaw. According to Roenick (who has been surprisingly talkative to the press when one considers that his jaw is wired-shut), the concussion that resulted was the ninth of his career and a good reason for the 34-year old to contemplate retirement. The Leafs, on the other hand, seem to be on the rise. The problem is, the highly competitive Northeast Division tends to magnify any mistakes -- Toronto is currently tied in points (76) with the streaking Ottawa Senators and the red-hot Boston Bruins are only trailing by one point. Toronto expects forward Alexander Mogilny back from hip surgery this week after the prolific scorer missed a full three months of action. The squad has also seen surprising production from defenseman Bryan McCabe, who has 25 assists, and 37-year old Gary Roberts, who has a team-leading 22 goals this year after playing only 15 games last season due to injury. The team's only major concern is goaltending, with Ed Belfour still listed as day-to-day with a back injury and replacement Trevor Kidd struggling to keep the puck out of the net in the absence of "The Eagle." The often-overlooked Lightning, though not likely to move up the standings, are probably the most comfortably situated team in the entire league. They lead the lowly Southeast Division by a ridiculous 17 points, assuring them the third playoff spot in the East. Winger Martin St. Louis is quietly having an MVP-caliber year for the Bolts, ranking fourth in the league in points with 63. The Quebec-native has scored five goals in the last four games, including one on Tuesday night during his team's 5-2 victory over the Flyers. In the West, the Predators seem to be poised to make their first playoff appearance. From the looks of the team's recent off-ice activity, the Nashville management seems to realize the opportunity at hand. On Monday, they acquired the Chicago Blackhawks' leading scorer, Steve Sullivan, for two second-round draft picks. Sullivan has been a consistent scorer throughout his nine-year career, and could very well act as a spark plug for the team's inconsistent offense. In fact, Sullivan scored three goals in his first game with his new squad, taking down the San Jose Sharks 7-3. In other late-breaking news, the Senators picked up Peter Bondra from the Washington Capitals yesterday for prospect Brooks Laich and a second-round draft pick in 2005. Ottawa hopes that the five-time All-Star can help them overtake Toronto for the division lead. The Flyers, not to be out-done, traded for Blackhawk captain Alexei Zhamnov yesterday. Vancouver Canuck All-Star Markus Naslund, the NHL's leading scorer, is out for at least a week with a concussion. The injury came on what the Canucks are charging was a dirty hit from Colorado Avalanche forward Steve Moore. No penalty was called on the play, but this new influx of bad blood between the already bitter division rivals will make their last two games against each other (March 3rd and 8th) considerably more intriguing. The prevalence of significant injuries has come to define this season for many teams. Whether or not the playoff contenders can stay healthy down the stretch, and whether or not they can make savvy late-season player additions without disturbing the team chemistry, will be the major factors in determining the viability of a run for the Stanley Cup (read: close like Kerry, not Dean).

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News

Just a little piece of my heart

February 18

Tales of war, rape, trust and loss are uniquely recounted in the Department of Drama and Dance's production of "A Piece of My Heart," which opens tonight in the Balch Arena Theater. Directed by Professor Sheriden Thomas, the production highlights the unusual and often overlooked experiences of women involved in the Vietnam War. The play is based on a collection of memoirs published under the same title and centers on the experiences of six women in Vietnam: four nurses, one woman serving in the Red Cross, and one military officer. The play follows the women through their experiences in Vietnam and how they subsequently deal with the aftermath of the war after returning home. Though the story opens in present-day America, the stage soon shifts to mid-1960s Vietnam. The themes explored by "A Piece of My Heart" are particularly relevant today, as the show sheds light not only on the experiences of women in Vietnam, but also on the common causes of war and as its effects in American society. The performance itself is active and moves rapidly, its quick pace physically tiring for the actors and a challenge for the technical staff. There are numerous voiceovers and musical interludes. The ultimate production leaves its audience with a feeling that they have just witnessed something really great. Sophomore stage manager Emily Wharton said that the intensity of the depicted experiences gave the cast the opportunity "to do some amazing things." She especially noted the performance of Kasey Collins, who plays the part of Martha, stating that "she is phenomenal." The production itself underwent continual transformation, according to Norris, as "the play was constantly evolving" throughout its rehearsals. The small cast of ten (which was actually stretched from the original script's seven characters) become very close. Despite minor difficulties in the production, such as the month-long winter break and the hassle of arranging everyone's schedule to fit in 20 practice hours a week --as most of the scenes include almost every cast member -- all the involved participants do their best to take their characters to heart. "This is a show that's so much bigger than all of us," senior Lisa Birnbaum stated. "'A Piece of My Heart' brings the audience back to Vietnam to the often overlooked veterans: the nurses." Dealing both with war's experiences and aftermath, the encompassing issues of both the physical and psychological impacts of warfare are very dear to our hearts, and deserve both the time and grace that "A Piece of my Heart" allows."

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News

Are they kidding?

February 18

Once again I was shocked at how this administration can pat itself on the back for something so blatantly negative ("Changed Alcohol Policy leads to More TEMS use" Feb. 17). They congratulate themselves on having almost 50 percent more students having to use TEMS for alcohol related incidents in the fall semester as compared to all of last year. This administration lauds its own changing of the disciplinary policy as the only reason for this increase rather than considering the fact that they have pushed drinking further into dorm rooms where hard liquor is easier to sneak in and students are drinking in smaller groups. It seems the administration thinks this is an acceptable replacement to the crowded fraternity parties where students are in large groups and have to force their way through crowds to get one beer every half an hour. I, like many others, thought there would be an increase in TEMS calls at the beginning of the year for the reasons mentioned above, not the ones presented by Veronica Carter and Bruce Reitman. In my four years at Tufts I have never seen this campus so quiet on weekends, as more and more students are heading into surrounding neighborhoods and to other schools instead of hanging around on the Hill. I know of no one who views this as a positive, and as we seniors get ready to leave in a couple months this past year is going to leave a lasting impression. The academics here are incredible and combined with an active extracurricular and social life they mold our four years into something we will, hopefully, remember fondly as we receive those donation cards in the mail. This administration has all but ignored the social desires of their students and in doing so have neglected an important facet of what shapes us as students as well as human beings. While these statistics aren't conclusive of anything, this administration should spend more time looking into how to make students happier and safer rather then praising themselves in the newspaper for how they "successfully" oversaw fourteen more students call for emergency help. Michael Tonelli LA '04

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News

Don't conform, except on gay marriage

February 18

"I don't believe in gay marriage!" I said aloud to a group of students scattered around the large television in Hotung watching the legislative proceedings on the single-sex marriage amendments one afternoon. I was prompted by one student, who offered Hershey's kisses to all those who believed in single-sex marriage. I did not shout; I simply raised my usual quiet voice a few octaves so that those watching with me could hear. Indeed, they did hear my statement, but were in utter disbelief. I watched blood drain from their pasty faces, their mouths gape, and their eyes widen as a terror-stricken look crept over their faces. Based on their reaction, one might think I said, "Hitler was a great man!" or worse, "I support George W. Bush!" It was liberating, though. I felt emboldened. So this was freedom of speech. Or so I thought. After all, this is one of the finest educational institutions in the nation. Tufts is a community of individuals from around the country and globe, with diverse racial, ethnic, religious, and socio-economic backgrounds, genders, values, and political ideologies. And so, I admit my naivet?© in believing that my Tufts brethren would welcome my view and willingly engage in a bit of friendly banter and dialogue. Unfortunately, I was rudely awakened from that dream by the response of one of these individuals. "...Well then, women shouldn't marry...and minorities, well they're okay..." Now you tell me what you think that means. Frankly, I find the comment comical. The best response that this individual could give was that since gays shouldn't marry, women shouldn't either. All feminists reading this, do you think Elizabeth Cady Stanton and Susan B. Anthony would equate the women's suffrage movement to the single-sex marriage movement? Furthermore, I think he would have extended this rule to exclude minorities as well, but stopped short. After all, we must adhere to the commandment, "thou shalt not take the minorities' name in vain." But if we could exhume and animate Martin Luther King, Jr.'s corpse, would he coordinate another march on Washington for the Adam and Steve's of the world, who can't wait to don matching Vera Wang dresses and be pronounced "man and man?" Let's hope that in the heat of the moment, logic took a backseat to anger and that he is not usually this irrational. I don't think it was racist or even sexist, but stereotypical; however, I leave that to you to decide. My aim here is not to tackle the debate over the morality or constitutionality of single-sex marriage. I have far too much to say on the subject and far too little space with which to say it. I simply aim to point out to those on campus who seem to think that anyone who does not agree with single-sex marriage has two heads, four tails, claws, fangs, and is a card-toting member of the Republican Party. For those of you who know me, I only fill one criterion (member of the Republican Party). I am an enigma; a black, female, conservative, naturalized, middle-class citizen. I am the exact opposite of the white, male, southern, rich-boy, legacy stereotype that is perpetuated of Republicans. Indeed, I am a non-conformist. I do not adhere to the role that society seeks to caste me into based on my gender, race, and background. Strangely, though, instead of being celebrated by fellow non-conformists -- as so many students here at Tufts would like to believe they are -- I was ostracized. He must have wondered how I, of all people, a student who should understand and sympathize with the plight of marginalized individuals, think this way? For him and those who share this view, this deviation from the norm is simply unheard of and unacceptable. It's insubordination among insubordinates. It's a non-conformist, not conforming. For them it's simply unheard of! Thankfully, not all of campus is closed-minded, for the same student offering the chocolate delights, personally brought a handful over to me as a gesture of kindness and consideration. To this student I applaud your civility. However, to those with stereotypical views, be careful of the preconceived notions you espouse and brash statements you make. For indeed, you cannot always judge a book by its cover! Patrice J. Lee is a senior majoring in Economics and Political Science.

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News

MSPCA clarification

February 18

I am writing to clarify a few things stated in the article on Tufts University School of Veterinary Medicine's canine bone healing research ("Grafton campus community deals with aftermath of controversial animal deaths" Feb. 9). When the research protocol began to gain attention, we strongly encouraged the students and the University to work together and to explore carefully all alternative options. The Massachusetts Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (MSPCA) did not participate in any way with any evaluation of the merits, value, or scientific aspects of this project. The MSPCA believes in the "3 R's" -- Reducing the numbers of animals in research, Replacing whole animals with other methodologies whenever possible, and Refining protocols to reduce any stress or pain involving animals. And thus the MSPCA believed that extensive discussion about all non-lethal options to gain the knowledge intended to be derived from this experiment needed to take place. And we know that Tufts has a history of progressive use of alternatives. In the article, I was quoted as saying this experiment was "appropriate" and that has been taken by some to imply that the MSPCA supported or approved of this research. That is not the case. My comment was intended to refer to the fact that it appeared as if no laws were being broken and the University had complied with existing regulatory requirements, and that it was appropriate for students to address their concerns with the appropriate Tufts committees that deal with research involving animals. We do believe and hope that the discussion about research protocols that has arisen from this project is very important and will ultimately benefit the animals and the University. Carter Luke Vice President MSPCA

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News

Table tennis team rallying success

February 18

The Tufts PingPong Club's unsuccessful trial semester three years ago seem to doom attempts to have a team for tennis' more space-efficient little brother. The team recently revived itself, however, under new tutelage and bearing a new name. The Tufts Table Tennis Club is going strong -- and competing as a club sport against other schools -- as one of the University's fastest growing athletic and student groups. "We're averaging one to two new players each week," sophomore captain and founder Mike Sparandara said. "There are at least 40 players on our team, and regularly at each practice we get at least ten players for our two tables." Through Sparandara's efforts, the co-ed team recently acquired two new competition tables for its practices, which take place bi-weekly in Cousens Gym. Sparandara is also confident more equipment will be on the way. "We have made it through our one-year probationary period," Sparandara said of the his club's completion of Tufts' required trial period for all new student organizations. "Now, we can apply for a real budget, which will hopefully mean a lot more funding, which means more possibilities." The new tables and practices have produced returns for the Jumbos who, just two weeks ago, dropped Brown in league play in their first spring semester tournament at Harvard. The team went 1-2 at the tournament and has compiled a 4-7 record on the year, a notable improvement from the Jumbos' 1-6 performance last season. "The players we're getting now are pretty good," Sparandara continued. "Tufts is drawing a lot of international students, and more are coming out for our practices. [The foreign students] usually have a better understanding [of] the sport." The change from a pingpong club to a table tennis one is more than just a change in name. Traditional American pickup pingpong rules do not apply in table tennis. For instance, official table tennis matches are played to 11, not 21, in best of five sets. Also, serves cannot be hit out of the players' hands; they most be tossed with an open palm six inches into the air before being struck. In addition, the player may not position his body over the end of the table. Team tournaments are organized similarly to team tennis match-ups; the team's top four players are ranked and play in the first through fourth positions as singles. The fifth and sixth positions play a doubles match, and players may not be played out of order. Unlike tennis, at any given tournament a team will face off against anywhere between two and five other schools. A win in each event counts as one point for the team. The Jumbos are in the New England division of the National College Table Tennis Association (NCTTA) -- an organization created because the NCAA does not recognize table tennis as an official varsity sport -- has over 15 schools, all competing at Harvard's Malkin Athletic Center. At their recent February tournament, the team faced off against league-competitors Brown, Boston University and Northeastern University, and this season have played against other rivals such as Wesleyan and MIT. For the purpose of encouraging interest in the sport and for attracting competitive players, the team holds a bi-annual pingpong competition on campus. For familiarity purposes, pickup pingpong rules are used; games are played to 21, although the winner must take the best of three matches. "It's a way for us to recruit for our team," Sparandara said. "After the tournament, we usually get five to ten new players. It creates excitement for the sport here at Tufts." The team had 71 entrants in last fall's tournament. Sparandara insists, however, that the team is not exclusive, and that players of all calibers can still be involved. For that reason, the team is divided into two sections -- players who want to compete in NCTTA league play, and those who simply enjoy playing pingpong.

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News

Men rev up for final home game

February 18

In what was originally a game to prepare for the NESCAC conference but is now serving as a game to prepare for the playoffs, the men's basketball team will take on Clark tonight at 6:30 p.m. at Cousens Gymnasium. This final home game of the season was originally scheduled for December 6 but was postponed due to inclement weather. While tonight's non-conference match-up has no bearing on the NESCAC playoff picture as it is now situated, Tufts does have the opportunity to improve its overall record, which is currently a dismal 7-16. Tonight's game also could help build momentum and test out some new strategies for Saturday's quarterfinal game against Trinity. "We implemented a few new offensive plays," senior co-captain Deyvehn East said. "We run a zone, but switched to a 2-3 offensive zone. It's good that we're playing Clark to test it out against another team rather than just against ourselves in practice." Clark currently has a 13-9 overall record and is 8-3 in its conference, the NEWMAC. Those 13 wins include two over the Wheaton College Lyons. The Jumbos lost at home against Wheaton 75-67 on January 20th. Clark, on the other hand, claimed its latest success against the Lyons in a 91-77 blowout. Both teams were also common competitors against the MIT Engineers. Tufts earned a big 72-56 win over MIT earlier this season, while Clark split games with the Engineers, the most recent contest resulting in a 74-65 loss on February 10. Additionally, both squads lost to Amherst, Trinity, and Springfield College. With the home court advantage, this should prove to be a winnable game for the brown and blue. However, in order for Tufts' regular season finale to be a positive one, Tufts will have to shut down Clark senior point guard Dave McNamara. McNamara earned NEWMAC Player of the Week recognition after averaging 19.7 points, 4.0 rebounds, and 2.7 assists in Clark's three game stint two weeks ago. Both WPI and Wheaton each allowed him to score 22 points, while NESCAC competitor Trinity held him to 15 points. This is the second time this season McNamara has earned such a title, the first being for the week of January 19. This season McNamara has averaged 19.2 points per game, third highest in the NEWMAC. However, he is not the only Cougar to average in double digits. While watching McNamara on the perimeter, Tufts will also have to stop the attack from under the basket, namely in the forms of senior forward Trevor Walker and sophomore center Tim Dutille, who average 15.3 and 13.7 points per game, respectively. Thursday most certainly will be the last home game of the season for the Jumbos, as the seventh seed in the playoffs does not bring with it the benefit of home court advantage. On Saturday, Tufts will travel to second-seeded Trinity to play in the quarterfinal NESCAC round. Earlier this season at the same location, the Bantams dealt the Jumbos a 52-74 loss. The only way Tufts will play Cousens again this year is if it and eighth seed Middlebury both advance to the conference finals. Thus, this will likely be the final home game for senior co-captains Eric Mack and Deyvehn East as the Jumbos try to run their home record to 7-4. "It's going to be a little disappointing being the last [home] game," East said. "But the younger guys will try to play hard so [the seniors] can be sent off with a win."

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News

Piercings and tattoos a form of self-expression

February 18

Sophomore Kyle Jacobson uses his six piercings as a form of personal expression. "It's not about fitting into some subcategory of people anymore; it's a personal choice and something that has expressive meaning and significance to me," Jacobson said. "And I don't feel like I should be confined by what is socially acceptable." An avid punk fan, Jacobson initially got his ears pierced not only because he liked how it looked, but because it fit "the look" of a stereotypical fan of punk music. However, since then, his decision to get additional parts of his body pierced has had more to do with doing what he wants. "It's about being an individual," sophomore Kyle Jacobson, who has six piercings, said. "Everyone has the right to do with [his or her] body what they will." Tattoos and piercings have continued to increase in popularity the past few years. Whether on campus, in Davis Square, or walking around Harvard, it seems that everyone -- from the polo-wearing freshman to the punk rock fan -- is adorning themselves with some form of body art. For some students, going to college gives them the freedom to get pierced, something that they couldn't necessarily do during high school. Sophomore Mary Humphreys, who had her nose pierced at the beginning of her freshmen year, said she wanted the piercing before college but her high school forbade her from getting it done. "I went to a private school for high school so I couldn't have any facial piercings," Humphreys said. Sophomore Sheena Townsend got her belly button pierced because it was a rebellious thing to do. "My parents didn't want me to, and my mom still doesn't know," she said. Those who have tattoos, body piercings, or other taboo forms of body art are often scrutinized by others. Many say they feel they are being judged strictly on their physical appearance. Humphreys agreed that people often associate body art with negative images. "My parents friends are really conservative and they look down on [piercings]," she said. "People sometimes think that it's trashy." Rebellious teenagers aren't the only ones who get piercings. Sophomore Deepali Maheshwari got her nose pierced largely for cultural reasons. "I got it done because it's an enthic thing, its part of Indian culture," Maheswari said. "My parents weren't necessarily for it but they didn't object because my aunts have it, and it's part of the culture." It's not just a trend among teenagers and college students -- adults are getting pierced and tattooed as well. Gil del Castillo, the owner of Chameleon Tattoo in Harvard Square, estimated that about 65 percent of his clientele are 21 and professionals, veterans, and older women make up the other 35 percent. This demographic is rarely considered as people who often get tattoos and piercings. "We just did a tattoo for a 78 year old lady," del Castillo said. Chameleon Tattoo aims to counter the stereotypical "dirty" tattoo parlor with a clean facility and professional staff. "We know the baggage that comes with a tattoo," del Castillo said. "So we always advise people who are getting their first tattoo to reconsider its placement so they can cover it up when necessary." According to del Castillo, over the last three years that tattoos have been legal in Massachusetts he has done mostly Kanji and Tribal tattoos, which customers can select from books of designs in the store. There are also a large number of original designs that his customers have come up with themselves. "It's no longer a question of rebellion," del Castillo said. "Now it is a matter of style and a form of personal expression that isn't just limited to young kids."

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News

Gantcher to host New England Fencing Championships

February 18

Having spent the entire season on the road up to this point, the Tufts women's fencing team is looking forward to hosting Saturday's New England Championships, and the chance to finally compete on its home turf. The all-day event, which begins at 9 a.m., will take over Tufts' Gantcher Center. Roughly 180 athletes from across the region will converge to fight for the team title and to jockey for individual fencers' rankings as the NCAA National Fencing Championships approach. Fourteen women's teams and 15 men's teams are scheduled to compete. On the women's side, MIT and, to a lesser extent Brandeis, are stacked with strong fencers, making them heavy favorites going into the team competition. Brown and Boston College should also finish near the top. Coach Jason Sachs estimated that Tufts is the favorite to take fifth after those squads, followed by Wellesley College. Tufts will aim to place between third and sixth. "We're still a young team," Sachs said. "We need to be competitive and we need to continue to improve." Tufts will certainly have its sights set firmly on Wellesley, a squad that dealt the Jumbos an unexpected and frustrating 14-13 loss two weeks ago at the New England Women's Fencing Conference (NEWFC) Championships. Prior to that meet, Tufts had defeated Wellesley twice earlier in the season. "I think we have a certain score to settle," Sachs said. "So as long as we finish ahead of Wellesley, I'll probably be satisfied." At the NEWFC Championships, Tufts rebounded from the Wellesley match and won its next four matches, to finish with a .500 conference record (5-5). Many schools from the NEWFC will be among those fencing at Gantcher this weekend. With so many schools competing, it will be a long, exhausting meet for the fencers, both physically and mentally. "The challenge is, you fence school after school, so if you lose some bouts, you just have to shake it off and keep your cool the whole day long," Sachs said. "It's about keeping your focus." Several different titles will be up for grabs on Saturday. The meet will begin with team fencing in the morning, where each school will enter three athletes in the sabre competition, three in foil, and three in epee. The squad that amasses the best record across all three weapons will receive the overall team crown, but separate sabre, foil, and epee team titles will also be given out. Of Tufts' three weapon squads, the sabrists have the most realistic shot at a team title. Tufts enters that competition as defending champions, but sophomore Katherine Zouein is the only returnee from a squad that Sachs said "destroyed everyone" last year. Zouein won the individual sabre crown at the New England Championships last year and will fence in the "A" sabre slot, while her sister, freshman Louisa May Zouein is fresh off of a 38th-place finish at the Junior Olympics last weekend and will fence in the "B" slot. Freshman Tiffany Tran, though less-experienced and perhaps overshadowed by the Zoueins will provide strength and depth in the "C" slot. Sachs predicted that Tran will win several bouts, but said that a win would depend most heavily on the Zouein sisters. "Kat and Louisa would have to be perfect all day long," Sachs said. The Tufts foil squad should also turn in some strong performances, and hopes to place well. Sophomore Julia Shih will fence in the "A" slot, which means that she will fight the top foilests from other teams, including left-handed fencers from MIT and Brandeis who will likely serve as her toughest bouts of the day. "But Julia's hard to hit and she can surprise some people," Sachs said. Sachs also sees senior foil captain Christina Zahara as a dark horse fencing in the "B" slot. "I don't think anyone's really paying attention to Christina, so I think she could really come out and do well and surprise some people," Sachs said. Tufts' epee team is its least experienced, so Sachs will be looking for some quality bouts and individual successes, as opposed to any sort of overall dominance or a high finish as a squad. Freshman Lora Lingrey notched her first collegiate epee victory just last week, against Dartmouth at the NEWFC meet, and classmate Elisabeth Sibley is another new epeeist who has enjoyed some victories, but still lacks experience. Senior epee captain Talia Alexander will fence in the "A" slot, and according to Sachs, her goal is to be among the top nine "A" epeeists, which would land her in the final pool of competition that determines individual championships after team bouts have been completed. Shih and Zahara have a good shot at making the final pool of foilests, and both Zoueins should not only make the final sabre pool, but wind up at or near the top of the individual competition. According to Sachs, Katherine Zouein stands a good chance of repeating as individual New England sabre champion, but she will probably run into some sibling competition. "Louisa May will want to win it too," Sachs said. "Her sister's going to be pushing her. It'll be interesting to see how that plays out."

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News

Embracing my bitterness

February 18

"Now I'm not gonna do what you all think I'm gonna do, and just FLIP OUT!" - Jerry Maguire These immortal words of Tom Cruise have no place in this column. I've listened to everybody be rational about all of the A-Rod stuff, and quite frankly, I've had enough. I know everything will be OK. But I'm angry. And I want to break something. And quite frankly, I just might flip out. Since the whole A-Rod-Yankees talk started, just about once every fifteen minutes or so I've found myself stricken with an overwhelming need to puke. And I definitely soiled myself after that press conference yesterday. Watching Derek Jeter and Alex Rodriguez talk about themselves as the dynamic duo is not something I ever, ever wanted to see. If there was ever a moment when the universe should have spontaneously imploded, it was when A-Rod said that he wanted to see Jeter with ten world championships. Apparently it takes a bit more though. Maybe when Steinbrenner picks up Nomar next year to play second. Maybe then the universe will implode. Because isn't that the next logical step? What else is left for this guy to buy? I bet he's seriously thought to himself on more than one occasion, "Ya know, if I buy every single team in baseball, then there will be no possible way for me to ever lose anything again." That's probably why he fainted this winter. The thought of always winning everything for the rest of time just made him so giddy he fell over. Of course the thing that really steams my cabbage is that the Yankees did this whole deal in about three minutes. The stupid Red Sox spent two months talking about how freaking hard it was to make a deal involving this much cash, but good old George just reaches into the coffee jar on top of his fridge and gets everything done in like two seconds. This has been the most frustrating turn of events since they stopped making DunkAroos. And what made it so frustrating was the way it all happened. This whole trade scenario was the entire history of the Red Sox franchise in microcosm. Everybody got all pumped up about something absolutely awesome happening, to the point where we were certain it would happen. It was just a mere formality, a matter of dotting some i's and crossing some t's, and A-Rod would be here. Then, before the smiles even left our faces, it's all over, and the stupid Yankees come in and ruin everything. I think I'm gonna go throw up again. I hate this. Hate hate hate. I know it's not the end of the world. It's not even the end of the baseball season. I can't wait for the season because I love the team the Red Sox have. Plus it's just the silly nature of a Boston fan to get all giddy and googly eyed as soon as pitchers and catchers report. But something about all of this is making me chug bottles of Pepto. Spin this thing any way you want, and it still boils down to one simple fact -- they got him and we didn't. And it's pissing me off. And it's not like the Red Sox didn't try. Oh they tried. And they could have had him if they had wanted to pony up the dough. But they didn't. Maybe that was smart, maybe it wasn't. But the facts remain; now A-Rod's a Yankee, and I no longer have control of my bowels. And he's not even gonna play shortstop! This is just silly. I bet the conversation between Brian Cashman and George Steinbrenner went just about like this: Cashman: Hey Boss, Aaron Boone's down and Drew Henson's a quarterback. What should we do at third? Steinbrenner: Hmm, well who's the best player in the world? Cashman: Well Alex Rodriguez, but he costs $252 million and he's a... Steinbrenner: PERFECT! I'm so bitter it's disgusting. I reek of bitterness. If you walk down the street and smell something bitter, it's me. I have bitter overflowing out of my pockets. And it only makes sense that the player that would put just about any other franchise in financial handcuffs for the rest of time is barely even a blip on the Yankees' radar screen. And don't you hate Tom Hicks? This guy's dumber than a sack of bricks. Only Tom Hicks can actually save money by paying a player $67 million not to play on his team. What an absolute moron. And he still has no pitching. I hate this. Why did this have to work out so well? I wish there was something in this deal that made absolutely no sense, but it all works. It was perfect. Seamless. The Rangers free up about fifty bajillion dollars, and get a 40/40 man in Soriano, and the Yankees get the best player in baseball with a $252 million contract and only add $750,000 to their payroll. I think I might cry. I know that this doesn't guarantee the Yankees anything. I know this. The Red Sox have better pitching. The A's have better pitching. And the Cubbies could pretty much out-pitch anyone even before they picked up Greg Maddux. But that's not the point. The point is I'm pissed. And how about every Yankee fan that hated A-Rod two months ago for trying to back out of his contract just so he could go to a winning team? Where are all of those complaints now? I'm sorry, could you speak a little bit louder please? Of course they're not complaining anymore, because Yankee fans are the most hypocritical group of morons in the world. Man am I bitter. So to answer your questions, no I don't think the Yankess are going to win the World Series. Yes I do still think that the Red Sox have a better than average chance. And yes, I do plan to sit here and piss and moan until the season starts. And Alex Rodriguez looks dumb in pinstripes.

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News

Who is Spike Lee?

February 18

Director, writer, producer, and actor Spike Lee was born Shelton Lee in Atlanta in 1957, and grew up in Brooklyn. His films are often intended to provoke discussion of such issues as race relations, sex, and historical figures. Lee first started making student films in New York University's Tisch School of the Arts graduate film program, and now considers himself an independent filmmaker who works within Hollywood. Lee co-starred in his first commercial success, She's Gotta Have It. In Mo' Better Blues, Lee first worked with actor Denzel Washington, with whom he would collaborate on many other films including Malcolm X, for which Washington received an Oscar nomination for portraying the civil rights figure. Lee is now the Artistic Director of the graduate division of the Kanbar Institute of Film and Television at the Tisch School of the Arts. He is also working on a new film, She Hate Me. In addition to his films, Lee is famous for his fanatical devotion to the New York Knicks, and his relationship with actress Halle Berry.

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News

President discusses continuing community service work

February 18

Over 100 faculty, administrators, students, and community leaders gathered in Ballou Hall yesterday to discuss the improvement of University-community relationships. Sponsored by the University College (UC), the "Symposium for Student Volunteer Service in Tufts' Host Communities" focused on the creation of sustainable community partnerships. During the discussion, community leaders emphasized that the university needed to develop infrastructure that would allow UC projects to continue in their host communities after the four years Tufts students are here to contribute. President Larry Bacow acknowledged the transient nature of the student body would always be an issue but he challenged participants to look beyond that issue. "We aren't going to be able to solve these problems, but we all need to dedicate ourselves to managing them," he said. Bacow added that the success of the University's various programs would be measured in decades, not years. "Every year we have students who have new ideas and that's great," Director of Community Relations Barbara Rubel said, "but we also need to balance that with maintaining the partnerships we already have." Leaders agreed that faculty and administrators need to develop a framework for projects to continue with shifting personnel. David Moy, Director of the Boston Chinatown Neighborhood Center, said he had "very low expectations for concrete results" coming out of year-long student-community projects. He added that academics need to come into the community willing to listen to social groups already committed to the area for the long term. The UC is increasingly building its curriculum around existing affiliations. This fall, two program coordinators were hired from the Chinatown and Mystic River Watershed communities to manage UC programs in those areas. "Instead of just placing people in a location, [the UC] is bringing people in who already part of that community," UC Scholar Mary Smith said. This year, the UC Scholars kept this year's active citizenship projects focused in areas where the school has already formed partnerships, Smith said. Members also discussed the need for increased communication between the university and outside groups. Community representatives expressed difficulties in locating the right resources within the Tufts community. The University, however, is developing additional methods of outreach to connect Tufts with outside organizations. The Office of Community Relations is developing a website which would contain information regarding community and student organizations. The university is also considering publishing monthly ads in the Somerville Journal and Medford Transcript to publicize on-campus events, Bacow said. He suggested newspapers could serve as forums to advertise available services. However, the conference concluded that the duties were not one-sided. Participants emphasized that community groups also need to reach out and communicate with the university. In his opening remarks University College Dean Robert Hollister said that the school has made progress in encouraging active citizenship in the year since the first symposium was held. According to Hollister, successes included the first Tufts Community Open House, the hiring of two new program coordinators and increased faculty initiatives. After a skit by UC Director Molly Mead, the conference members broke into groups to debate questions relating to active citizenship. The concerns raised were then shared with the whole conference during discussion facilitated by Bacow. These discussions again emphasized the importance of building relationships. The symposium ended with a brief speech by former Massachusetts Senate President Tom Birmingham, who reminded attendees not to forget the larger social forces which guide how services are offered. "I am not making a partisan appeal," he said. "I am suggesting that we ought to recognize these situations have a political component." He encouraged those involved in active citizenship to take an active role in the decision making process.

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News

The uncertain nature of the A+

February 18

Every now and then, exceptionally hardworking students are greeted by a grade of A+. But due to problems of grade inflation in colleges and universities across the nation, the GPAs of students receiving the grade are not as high as one would think. While A+s appear as such on students' transcripts, the assigned GPA value for this highest grade is the same as a flat A: 4.0, the top of the University's GPA scale. Dean of the Colleges James Glaser said that the University's GPA scale is "easily interpretable [and] I don't think it would be wise to change it." On the other hand, Department of Biology Chair Harry Bernheim said that A+s' translation to a 4.333 on the grade point scale "at first blush seems reasonable to me." Many Tufts professors, such as the Department of Drama and Dance Chair Laurence Selenick, never give out A+s. "A, in my view, means 'superlative'. You cannot heighten a superlative -- it's like saying 'the most bestest,'" Selenick said. "I give [flat] A's to undergraduates only when their work is exceptional. Other professors harbor no qualms about giving A+ grades but do emphasize that they are granted only to those students that truly deserve them. Department of Economics Chair Gilbert Metcalf said that he has given "fewer than ten A+s" throughout his ten-year teaching career. "I view an A+ as a grade to be given to that extraordinary student who comes along very rarely and who has done work that is simply so much better than that done by otherwise superior students that some mark of distinction must be given," Metcalf said. Bernheim agrees. He only gives A+s to Biology students who meet a very high standard. "These criteria are rarely met but when they are, I feel that the student should be recognized on their transcript with an A+," he said. To some students, the prospect of receiving a 4.333 could serve to motivate. Sophomore Lane Howitt earned two A+s first semester freshman year, but was unhappily surprised when she found out it would not enhance her GPA in any way. "When I saw the A+s, I kind of felt like my hard work [had been] worthwhile," Howitt said. "Then I saw it wasn't worth any more than an A and realized that I didn't have to put in nearly as much effort to get the same ultimate payoff... if you put in the extra effort, why is there no acknowledgement?" To students such as Howitt, Glaser said he "can't imagine a student would ease off [his or her] studies because there wasn't a grade-point incentive." International Relations Program Director Christiane Zehl-Romero warned that "if a student falls into 'apathy' because he or she does not have a chance to get extra grade points he or she might miss out on the [flat] A as well." Though students' GPAs may not distinguish between an A and an A+, their rare presence may be impressive to anybody outside Tufts looking at a transcript, Zehl-Romero said. Zehl-Romero said that A+'s are also taken into consideration when students are still undergraduates. When she is considering recommendations for summa cum laude and other academic and International Relations Department honors, she pays attention to students who have A+'s on their transcripts because "it does indicate special achievement." This 'value' can be of a somewhat personal nature as well. "It's symbolic, but like many symbols, it's meaningful to the person who receives it," Glaser said. Glaser said that most institutions in the United States follow the same policy as Tufts. This includes Brown, Yale, Harvard and Dartmouth. There are others such as Cornell, Stanford and Columbia, however, that calculate a 4.333 into the GPA's of students who earn A+s. Princeton University used to grant 4.333s until 2000, when they adopted the same policy that Tufts uses as part of a larger effort to combat grade inflation on the campus. Only 11 percent of grades are below a B- at Princeton, according to The Daily Princetonian.

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News

Spike Lee is the right thing for Lecture Series

February 18

Famed director Spike Lee is returning to Tufts as the Spring Lecture Series speaker, at a cost that depleted Lecture Series funding. Lecture Series just recently secured the engagement with Lee, which will take place in Cohen Auditorium on March 10 at 9 p.m. Tickets for the program, "An Evening with Spike Lee", will cost ten dollars and will be sold exclusively to members of the Tufts Community. Tickets for the event will be sold online, the date for the sale will be sent out via e-mail to all Tufts students. Further information regarding tickets will be sent to the student body via e-mail this week. Lee has directed such films as Bamboozled (2002), Malcolm X and Do the Right Thing. He has also written and produced much of his work. To better acquaint the campus with Lee and his work, Tufts Film Series will be showing 25th Hour on the weekend of March 5-7. While Cohen auditorium seats 620, only 585 seats will be available to the student body, a small percentage of Tufts' five-thousand-plus undergrads. The Lecture Series Board expects tickets to be in very high demand "due to the speaker's fame and his reputation as an entertaining and provocative lecturer," Lecture Series Board Co-Chair Jillian Rennie said. Lecture Series is a TCU Senate-sponsored organization and part of the Programming Board. The group presents two speakers each school year, one per semester. The organization began discussions with Lee's agent before winter break, but only recently finalized the contract after securing additional funding. Obtaining means to pay for Lee's lecture has been one of the most difficult aspects of the process this semester. Lee's bill tips the scales at $29,640.25, which includes $25,000 for the hour-long lecture plus first-class airfare from Los Angeles, hotel, food, and transportation to and from the airport. Lecture Series needed more than $2500 in additional buffer funding to cover Lee's costs. The organization originally planned to charge seven dollars a ticket. "The main reason we wanted to do so much buffer funding is to keep student ticket prices down, because we feel as an organization that you already paid your student activities fee," Lecture Series Co-Chair Dina Vaynerman said. However, the TCU Senate allocated only $1580.75 in buffer funds towards the lecture. The Senate cited budget shortages as a reason for granting fewer funds than requested. "While we do like to keep ticket costs low, there just isn't enough money in the TCU to give everyone what they want," Allocations Board Chair Andrew Caplan said. Despite the high ticket prices, Lecture Series is thrilled to have secured the lecture. "Overall, we are tremendously excited to be bringing Spike Lee to campus," Rennie said. "We have been working incredibly hard to gather the funds needed to make this event a success and have been obsessing over the details to make the day of ticket sales and the night of the event go as smoothly as possible." It seems the enthusiasm is shared both ways. "Mr. Lee has visited Tufts before, so we believe his willingness to appear again here is an indication of his feeling toward the campus," Rennie said. The process of choosing a speaker is a lengthy one for Lecture Series. "The members of Lecture Series are... people that are very committed to putting on great events, and they have definitely been putting in the hours," Rennie said. The first step in bringing a speaker to campus is a group brainstorming session. Lecture Series members first meet to decide on a group of people they'd personally like to hear speak. After creating the "dream list," price quotes and availability of the proposed speakers are investigated. The group then gradually narrows down the "dream list" to a single name. "We discuss the strengths and unique points of each candidate, then we start rounds of voting until a speaker gets a clear majority," Rennie said. "We decided on Spike Lee from a very diverse and intelligent group of speakers, including authors, journalists, and entertainers." Last school year the fall speaker was Kurt Vonnegut, with the Daily Show's Mo Rocca in the spring. Ben & Jerry's cofounder Ben Cohen lectured this fall. "This lecture compares in magnitude to the Kurt Vonnegut lecture last fall," Rennie said.

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News

Painting the square red

February 18

Harvard Square is perfect when you're too lazy to make the trek into Boston but not lazy enough to stay at Tufts, which is exactly how we were feeling last Saturday night. My best friend (visiting from Villanova), housemates, and I refused to spend Valentine's Day just eating cookies and watching movies, but we weren't exactly in a rush to get out of our PJs and into Boston. Instead we braved the Harvard nerds and took the Red line to... the Redline. Formerly a dive bar known as The Crimson Sport Bar and Grille, the spiffed up Redline is now home to, well, just about anyone and everyone. The bar attracts a very diverse crowd, from baseball cap-wearing college kids and the "just came from work, so I'm still wearing my suit" set, to wannabe Euros and Cambridge locals. As with all Harvard bars, there are also lots of Harvard kids. The last time I was at the Redline, I had two "altercations" with Harvard students; one with a group of guys to whom I spiritedly (or hopped up on spirits, whichever you prefer) said/shouted: "Tufts is F-ing awesome! Harvard sucks!" The other encounter was with two alumni, who were confused as to how their o'l pit, the Crimson (the previous name of the Redline), had turned into a now pseudo-classy establishment. Upon discovering their ages, I exclaimed, "You're 27! You can hire us after graduation!" Needless to say, I will not be invited to any Harvard Finals Club parties anytime soon ... Oh, lushes say the darnest things! Inside, a modern red and black d?©cor attempts to imitate a classy ambiance. There are plenty of places to sit -- the leather banquette or heavy wood furniture-- and take a breather from the center dance floor. The booths in particular are great for chatting with friends. The music, as my friend called it, was "straight up hip hop" without any deviations into bad music hell. On the dance floor, we ran into other Tufts ladies enjoying a jaunt into Cambridge, along with some guys who couldn't dance a lick but looked like they had fun trying. If you need a visual, just imagine someone who is so blindly into their own dancing that they don't realize they resemble an epileptic seizure. But an "A" for effort, right? As far as mingling with other bar-goers, the Redline's casual, even upscale, atmosphere lends itself to polite meet-and-greets-this is far from a meat market. The guys were harmlessly aggressive, but just in case, my companion used the playful, yet effective "actually, I'm a lesbian" response. (The dude backed down.) The drinks were delicious, but not exactly cheap. I recommend the Raspberry Kamikaze; it's as smooth going down as a regular Kamikaze shot but with a flavorfully sweet kick. The shots cost $6 each and the beer around $4.50. It's not a bad deal considering the cab situation adds up to around $11-15 (and cheaper after you split it with your friends), and the bar closes at 2 a.m., which certainly beats the 12:45 last call in Davis. We didn't find Mr. Right or even Mr. Right Now, but the nearby location was key, the drinks were yummy, and the crowd was fun (or just funny to watch). The cutesy couples on Valentine's Day didn't make me lose my lunch... but unfortunately, I did lose my dinner. Note to self: soup doesn't count as a meal on a night of heavy drinking.

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