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The Setonian
News

Middlebury sneaks by men's soccer in double OT, 3-2

August 31

The men's soccer team lost an exhausting, 3-2 game to the visiting Middlebury Panthers on Saturday in the opener of the NESCAC season for the two squads. In the third minute of double overtime (11:38 on the clock), Panthers' midfielder Andrew Stewart rebounded a deflected shot and drilled it in from ten yards out to give his team the victory. Stewart's goal abruptly ended 65 minutes of scoreless play that extended back to the first half. Tufts midfielder Brian Mikel had a tally with 2:35 left in the first half, a goal that turned a 2-1 Jumbos' deficit into a 2-2 ballgame entering halftime."In an overtime either team can steal a victory, and they did," coach Ralph Ferrigno said. "But it's a long season."Echoing Ferrigno's sentiments was Mikel, who stood to be a hero prior to Stewart's score. "Both teams were really tired from working the whole game," Mikel said. "It wasn't anybody's fault. It was just kind of unlucky. We fought hard and came up on the short end."The 65-minute scoreless drought overshadowed a high scoring first half which saw numerous shifts in momentum. The Jumbos opened the scoring in the eleventh minute when senior forward Pat Brophy notched a goal off a centering pass by junior midfielder Nathan Fash. Middlebury quickly evened the score in the 18th minute when Nathaniel Schoaff put one past Jumbos' freshman goalie Scott Conroy on a free kick from 30 yards out. The Panthers' attack continued in the 28th minute when David Seeley retrieved a ball that had been cleared and promptly centered it for Rusten, who notched his second goal of the contest."It was a good game between two well matched teams," Ferrigno said. "We did a good job early but then when they equalized it put them into it."Late in the first half, Mikel retrieved the ball from a botched free kick and scored. Mikel, stationed on the left side of the goal, beat his man and drove a shot towards the near post where it veered past the keeper."I think it really helped out the team. We had fallen down 2-1 and tying it up really helped," he said.Unfortunately for the Jumbos, Mikel's goal did not have quite the impact that the team might have hoped for. Instead of propelling Tufts to a goal-filled second half that would have put Middlebury away, the Jumbos attack frequently looked lethargic. Conroy, however, was under constant pressure. "I think [Conroy] played really well," Mikel said. "He wasn't at fault for any of the goals. It was really big of him to step up in only the second game of his collegiate career."While the Jumbos offense wasn't clicking in the second frame, that did not stop the team from maintaining its aggressive approach. Throughout the game there was an exorbitant amount of physical contact between the two teams, as players were constantly hitting the ground. The contact reached a climax with 9:59 left in the second half, when sophomore defender Jesse Dinner was assessed a yellow card following a slide tackle. The call was a questionable one, as it appeared that Dinner was going after the ball.Despite looking less polished than they had in the first half, the Jumbos still had opportunities to put the game away. Late in the first overtime, senior tri-captain Brad Stitchberry appeared to have a breakaway chance, but his attack was thwarted as he approached the Middlebury defense."We knew there were less than 30 second left," Ferrigno said. Stitchberry "maybe tried to do something difficult when he had other options - but I wouldn't fault him."One area that Ferrigno hopes to improve on is corners, as Middlebury had 13 corner kicks as compared to only seven for the Jumbos. Interestingly, while Middlebury dominated corners, Tufts managed to outshoot the Panthers by an 11 to ten margin."If you look at shots, it was even," Ferrigno said. "They were dangerous at corners."As is to be expected following a loss, neither the coach nor the players were particularly pleased with the outcome. But they weren't overly distressed by the defeat, either."It's early [in the season], so a lot needs to be improved. But we are stressing that whether you win lose or draw, you put it behind you and look towards the next game," Ferrigno said. "A lot of players did quite well. I don't know if one player was a standout but they all did well."The Jumbos continue their season with a non-conference home game against MIT on Wednesday at 4 p.m.

The Setonian
News

Senators pushing for early release of lottery numbers

August 31

The stressful process of finding housing may be made easier in coming years, with members of the Tufts Community Union (TCU) Senate working to negotiate an early release date for housing lottery numbers. Senators are meeting with administrators, including officials from the Office of Residential Life, to respond to student concerns about the high costs and low availability of off-campus housing. While no formal committee has been formed to address the lottery numbers release system, senators Josh Belkin and Jill Bier met with Associate Dean Jean Herbert earlier this month to voice concerns about the current process and discuss possible solutions, such as releasing lottery numbers earlier in the year. Bier said that "year after year, it has been an issue" and that students have pressed the Senate to address the problem. According to Belkin, Bier, and Herbert, generating numbers is a relatively easy process. The Office of the Registrar maintains a list of enrolled students and when notified by the Residential Life Office, the registrar releases the list to Information Technology Services (ITS). ITS generates a list of random numbers and sends it to Residential Life. While releasing numbers as early as this fall is unlikely, according to Herbert, the process is simple enough to be done earlier in the spring. Some rising juniors are concerned about securing housing and said they would welcome an earlier release date. Sophomore Mike Stevenson signed a lease this September to make sure that he would live close to campus next year. If students got lottery numbers earlier, he said, "there wouldn't be so much stress worrying about getting a good place to live." "You'd know right away whether your best option was to live on-campus or off-campus, instead of having to guess about it," he said. Another problem the senators want addressed is incorrect class standing information that occasionally affects lottery number assignments. "What interested me is that there is a need to know people's class standing for making sure the lottery is correct," Herbert said. Errors in determining class standing usually result from misinterpreting the number of credits a student has earned. Engineers and students in five-year programs, such as Tufts' joint degree program with the New England Conservatory, may carry extra credits. The registrar may also incorrectly determine class for students with enough Advanced Placement (AP) credits to qualify for advanced standing. Following their meeting with Herbert, Belkin and Bier met with Lorraine Toppi, acting director of residential life on Oct. 11. Toppi, who declined to comment on the meeting, has since spoken with Herbert about the likelihood and possible restrictions of releasing lottery numbers early. Herbert said that preemptive actions could be taken as early as the fall semester to avoid problems about incorrect class standing. One such solution may be to e-mail students "to check SIS Online and see what we have," she said. Such efforts would help "avoid frustration" and make "the lottery go much more smoothly." Belkin and Bier are scheduled to meet with Dean of Students Bruce Reitman today. They are hoping to familiarize him with the situation and discuss their next step in getting lottery numbers released earlier.

The Setonian
News

Alumni go back to school

August 31

Every Tuesday and Thursday this semester, Marty meets Helen outside of Braker Hall after class. But Marty and Helen are not your usual Tufts students. They are not allowed to write papers or take exams. They take only one class each and they don't receive credits or grades. They are also married. And as alumni in their mid-60's, they are a part of Tufts' past as well as witnesses to its present. Martin (Marty) Santis and his wife Helen take classes through the Community Audit program, which is part of the Graduate Special Student program of the University. The program is open to Medford and Somerville residents and teachers, senior citizens, and Tufts alumni of all ages. As auditors, Marty and Helen take classes for their own enrichment and personal fulfillment and do not receive a transcript with grades or credits. "At our age, it's a very exciting place to be- bright students, marvelous and admirable professors," Helen said. Marty graduated from Tufts' undergraduate program (LA '58), and attended Tufts Medical School. Helen, a graduate of Simmons College, attended the Tufts Dental School (DDS '61) and has served as a faculty member there. The Santises, who are now retired, met through a mutual friend when Marty was in his first year of medical school at Tufts. They married soon after Helen's graduation from dental school. As medical students, Helen and Marty missed out on taking humanities classes, and are happy to be studying the liberal arts during their current Tufts careers. "We're catching up on parts of our lives that we've missed, enriching ourselves in culture, arts, and humanities," Marty said. Things have changed since Helen attended dental school as the only female member of her class. When she graduated, less than one percent of women in the country were dentists. "There were no role models," she said. Helen joined the faculty of the Tufts Dental School in 1968, when she and Marty returned to Massachusetts. She is a clinical professor emerita, and during her 30 years on the faculty at Tufts, she has been the acting department chair of the department of oral pathology and a faculty advisor for the Student Women's Dental Association. Throughout her years at the University Helen was "very active in working with women in the dental school." The class Helen is taking this semester is very much a part of her own life - "History of Women in Twentieth Century America (HIST 93)." "It's exciting, coming from dentistry, an all-male profession, learning how women came along themselves," Helen said. Despite the many changes to the campus over the years, Marty and Helen still find the school attractive and enjoy its "campus spirit." "I'm having the campus experience I didn't have," Helen said. "I love it!" Simmons College, where Helen was an undergraduate, was an urban school whose campus consisted of one major building. According to both, the University was "more rigid" when they attended. "The faculty is a lot more casually dressed now. The professors, mostly male back then, wore jackets and ties," Marty said. "There were also no room phones or TVs," Helen added. There were also no study abroad programs and virtually no transfer students. And, Tufts had stricter policies for class attendance. According to Marty, there was a limit on absences allowed for a class, and students were forbidden to miss class right before a vacation. Like many universities at the time, Tufts had Saturday classes. "The weekend began Saturday at noon," Marty said, recalling his 8 a.m. Saturday classes as an underclassman. "Almost everyone had Saturday classes, especially the freshmen! It was difficult to avoid." Tufts also looks quite different now than it did 40 years ago. "There were much fewer dormitories and more space," Marty said. The residential quad that students are familiar with today did not exist. When Marty was a freshman, Carmichael had just been built and opened to students, and Olin, Miller, and Houston Halls had not been built. The school bookstore was located in Bendetson Hall with the admissions office, and Eaton was the library the undergraduate library. East Hall was once a dormitory that complemented West Hall, and Hodgdon was a dorm for women. And at the time, Crane Hall housed the Crane School of Theology, a graduate school of religion. As an undergraduate at Tufts, Marty experienced what he refers to as a "grind." "As a pre-med student, there wasn't much time for activities," he said. His major, chemistry-biology, which many pre-med students of his day majored in, no longer exists at the University. Marty was a commuting student who traveled from Brookline to Tufts each day on the MBTA. He was also a brother of the fraternity, Alpha Epsilon Pi. This semester Marty is taking "Reason and Revolt," which gives him a chance to interact with current Tufts students. "I'm very impressed with the students. I find them to be very bright and articulate, and forthright," Marty said, comparing confident students of today with his peers, which were part of what was he calls the "silent generation." As auditors of the class, Marty and Helen pay a "modest amount of money" to attend classes, and feel that "it's [the students'] class, and their place, but we both feel very welcome in our classes." There are some restrictions to the program, however. For example, people in the program are not allowed to use the gym facilities and while they are allowed to use the library, they cannot check books out. And as retirees, Helen and Marty feel they luxury of time to truly enjoy what they learn. "It's wonderful, we savor what we're reading and hearing in class," Helen said. "We can be very focused and get an enormous amount from the class." This is Marty and Helen's first semester participating in the Community Audit Program, and they are both "very satisfied" with it. They conveniently found two classes at the same time in buildings across from each other. They also plan to continue taking classes this spring semester. "We're planning our vacation around spring break," Marty said. Marty and Helen have been married for 40 years and have three children and four grandchildren. Marty practiced dental medicine for 31 years in Concord before retiring this past summer. Having struggled with serious health problems, Marty feels that at his age he has a "carpe diem" sense about life. "You enjoy things more, and sweat things less," he said. The couple encourages students to savor their time here, and to adopt the kind of attitude that they have towards life. "Enjoy it. Enjoy your education. It is such a privilege to be here," Helen said. "We feel privileged to be in this environment."

The Setonian
News

Election blunder leaves ELBO in precarious position

August 31

Continuing a tradition of irresponsibility and incompetence, the Tufts Community Union (TCU) Elections Board (ELBO) botched its first assignment of the year last week when the scheduled freshmen Senate election was not held due to a lack of communication within the body. The ELBO has taken great strides to change past trends. This semester, in an unprecedented move, the Board announced plans for online voting, a shift that could increase the traditionally anemic voter turnout and reduce incidents of election fraud that have plagued student government elections in past years. The ELBO, along with the TCU Senate, the Committee on Student Life (CSL), and the TCU Judiciary, is one of the most significant and influential student organizations on campus. But it is Senate, which allocates the $1 million-plus Student Activities Fee each year, that is suffering the backlash of ELBO's election blunder. In response, the Senate and the Judiciary have called for the resignation of ELBO's three remaining members. While many are pointing fingers at both bodies for Friday's debacle, the blame should fall entirely on former-ELBO Chair Shane Mason, who has demonstrated a lack of both leadership and competence. The Senate, in calling for the resignation of all ELBO members, took its reaction a little too far. Mason, who claimed responsibility for all mishaps, took the appropriate step of resigning his post. He defended his former-ELBO colleagues, Adam Mueller and Valentino Caruso, saying they should not be held responsible for what Mason modestly called the "worst job ever" of running a freshmen election. Despite Mason's mea culpa, Mueller resigned. Caruso, meanwhile, will fight to stay on the Board when his case is heard before the CSL. The CSL should take note of Caruso's dedication and persistence and allow him to continue his work on ELBO. If he is willing to fight for such a thankless job, chances are he will not allow a collective failure to happen again. While Mason has given Tufts students little reason to have faith in their government, the Senate and Judiciary are working towards change by mandating formal training for new ELBO members and creating a structure that would force ELBO members to report to an administrator in the Office of Student Activities (OSA), likely Director Jodie Nealley. These steps are long overdue, and will provide the guidance ELBO obviously needs. With these regulations in place, Caruso would be an appropriate and enthusiastic head for the otherwise defunct body. The menacing gaze of the OSA and the Senate will assure Caruso follows through with his task. In the future, however, the student government should market ELBO along with other student government positions. The student body needs to know the value of this organization, which ultimately controls the fate of the students' representative government. The TCU government must approach students across campus to be representatives of their peers and students should feel a responsibility to participate in their government.

The Setonian
News

Ever ask a zombie to dance?

August 31

How does one describe a show with the evocative title of Zombie Prom? "It's like Romeo and Juliet," says director Mike Robb, "only Romeo dies at the beginning of the play and not at the end." With that in mind, and with the drama department's actual production of Romeo and Juliet on its way, Zombie Prom - this fall's major production by Tufts' student-run musical theater organization, Torn Ticket II - should prove an interesting departure from more traditional musical fare. Auditions concluded this past week.Zombie Prom takes place in the 1950s in a small suburban town. It is the story of a typical high school girl, Toffee (Kat Mulready), who falls in love with an out-of-town bad boy, Jonny Warner (Scott Doty). Of course, neither Toffee's parents nor the rest of the town approve of their relationship. But the twist comes when something suddenly causes a high school boy to turn into a zombie. "I discovered the play through Napster," Robb says. How? He was looking for music and simply liked the names of the songs. Despite having never seen or heard a production of the show, Robb had a vision nonetheless. "I picked it because it made me laugh. Lyrically, it is a lot wittier than most classic shows." It's a rock 'n roll musical satire, vastly different from any previous show performed by Torn Ticket II - despite such varied past productions as Jesus Christ Superstar, The Wizard of Oz, and A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum.Zombie Prom won't come to the Balch Arena Theatre until November, and there's a lot that needs to happen in the meantime. From the moment audience members enters the lobby, they will be transported into a 1950's world of preppy perfection, complete with the wide-eyed smiles of the show's characters. According to Robb, "from the second people step in they will be bombarded with sights and sounds of that era." What kind of work actually goes into a musical production like Zombie Prom? For Robb and the cast, it means long hours, working three to five nights a week until about three weeks before the show. "That's when it pretty much becomes your only social life," he explains. "But it's worth it. The people you work with become your best friends." Robb directed last year's orientation show, You're a Good Man, Charlie Brown, which most musical buffs are at least familiar with. But why something as obscure and untraditional as Zombie Prom? One of the main reasons Robb chose the show - along with musical directors Yeechin Huang and Erik Moskowitz, stage manager Amanda Berkowitz, and choreographers Tali Paransky and Kalani Hawks - is exactly because most people have never heard of it. The audience enters without any expectations or ideas about what's going to happen. Of course, such a production is a hard one to gauge - if no one knows the show, what will convince them to go? According to Robb, if not for the many talents of the performers, directors, choreographers, set designers, costumers, and many others, students should see the show because "it is unlike any musical that they have ever seen. It really is the funniest show that I can recall coming across in recent years." And after all, "who wouldn't want to see a show with a name like Zombie Prom?" 'Zombie Prom" will be performed in the Balch Arena Theatre in the Aidekman Arts Center, November 15th through 17th . Watch the Daily for further coverage as the production approaches.

The Setonian
News

Van Natta sparks 68-60 victory over Wheaton

August 31

The men's basketball team continued its winning ways Saturday, taking down Wheaton College in a 68-60 victory. Despite posting their worst field goal percentage of the season, the Jumbos were able to hold off the visiting Lyons, and improved their record to 5-3 on the season. With the loss, Wheaton fell to 5-4. Tufts shot just 29 percent from the filed in the first half and finished the game shooting 34.5 percent, by far the team's worst performance of the season. Despite such lackluster shooting in the opening frame, Tufts was able to keep pace with the Lyons, thanks to 50 percent shooting from three-point land and 12-18 shooting from the free throw line. Wheaton junior Luke Gordon paced the Lyons in the first half, scoring 12 of his game-high 18 points in just nine minutes on the floor. The Jumbos, meanwhile, were led by junior forward Kyle Van Natta, who chipped in nine of his team-high 16 points in the first half. Van Natta shot 50 percent from the field and sunk two three-point attempts to keep the Jumbos close. Yet despite his strong play, the shooting woes of the Jumbos allowed Wheaton to enter the break with a 37-35 advantage. "We moved Kyle from the three to the four from last year," coach Bob Sheldon said. "I think it's taken him some time to get comfortable, but he's starting to produce." Wheaton did not skip a beat coming back into the second half, as the Lyons rolled off four unanswered points to start the period. But junior Brian Shapiro kept the lead from growing, sprinting the length of the court to swat away a Wheaton fast break layup. A subsequent foul shot and Wheaton lay-in left the score at 42-35 with 17:49 remaining. Responding to the Lyons early run, sophomore Phil Barlow shot two free throws and a Van Natta hit another three to slice the deficit to 42-40. Tufts kept the score close and a tip in by freshman Craig Coupe off of a Van Natta miss cut the Wheaton lead to 53-51. Shapiro, who finished with 14 points, gave the Jumbos their first lead of the half with an NBA range three with 9:10 to play that made the score 54-53. Wheaton did not regain the lead from this point on, as the Jumbos played hard and were tough on the boards. Coupe was tenacious under the basket, collecting 12 rebounds to go along with his 11 points. A Shapiro three with 4:55 remaining effectively put the nail in the coffin for the Lyons, putting Tufts up 65-57. The Jumbos would add three more points on free throws, and walked away with the 68-60 win. "At the half I just told the guys, we've got 20 more minutes, let's go as hard as we can and get a win, and lets go to vacation," Sheldon said. In what has been a continuing trend during the last four games, Tufts attempted fewer than 20 three-point attempts. An offense that had planned to rely heavily on the perimeter game seems to be finding a more balanced attack as of late. "Part of it is we're going inside a little bit more," Sheldon said. "People are starting to take away our outside shot, so we're going to go in, and I think it will eventually balance out." A slight area of concern for Sheldon and the Jumbos is the consistency of the lineup. Saturday's game featured eight different players who played ten minutes or more, and two starters who played only eleven minutes of the first half. "We're playing a lot of guys, so we have to cut that down a little bit," Sheldon said. "We want to get a solid rotation going, and we want to play hard all the time. Playing so many guys, we kind of get out of sync." Sheldon and his staff will look to find an answer to this issue, as the Jumbos head into a month-long hiatus. Tufts does not face another opponent until Jan. 4, when the Jumbos square off against Cazenovia in the Union invitational tournament in Schenectady, NY.

The Setonian
News

Unity Bash a success

August 31

The fraternities weren't the only places where students partied this weekend, as Friday night's Unity Bash brought them together for music and dancing as well as charity. The event, which was organized by the International Club, was meant to rally student support for victims of the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks. Students paid $5 to attend the party, and all of the proceeds from the Unity Bash have gone to the Red Cross. The International Club wanted to keep the operating costs of the event low so as to maximize the donations, according to executive board member Ligaya Tichy. Father David O'Leary offered the use of the Catholic Center for the party, which was co-sponsored by the Catholic Community at Tufts. The club was also able to find a DJ who did not charge for his services. According to Tichy, the Unity Bash achieved the goal that the club had set: supporting a good cause while also throwing a great party. After to the recent tragedy in New York and Washington DC, the International Club was looking for a way to support the World Trade Center relief effort for its first official event of the year. Tichy said she was pleased that students recognized the importance of attending the party to support the relief effort. "It's really hard for an organization at Tufts to throw a successful party on campus because a lot of students, especially upperclassmen, probably think that a party like this is going to be lame," she said. The crowd was mainly freshmen, but many felt that it was still diverse. Sophomore Sarah Sliwa said that the vast ethnic representation was one of the best aspects of the Unity Bash. "It was really nice to go and meet people that I normally wouldn't see on a night out. That's why I was looking forward to going," Sliwa said. International Club President Eli Levin-Goldstein served as the DJ, and students commented that he did an excellent job of combining various musical genres. The music included reggae, hip-hop, Latin music, house, and trance. "Everybody's tastes were catered to," sophomore Bobby FitzPatrick said. FitzPatrick said that the turnout was great and the people were even better. "[The Unity Bash] probably had the most diverse group of people of an party at Tufts," he said. Beyond supporting the terrorist attack relief effort, the goal of the Unity Bash was to bring together people who supported a common cause. "I was really pleased with the turnout, and we raised a lot of money for the Red Cross," Levin-Goldstein said.

The Setonian
News

Lottery long delayed is housing denied

August 31

The Tufts Community Union (TCU) Senate is advocating a popular issue by pushing the administration to release housing lottery numbers earlier. In this case, Tufts should listen to the Senate, as the bureaucratic change would remove a burden from the shoulders of sophomores and juniors, for whom finding housing is as stressful as any academic challenge. Just a few years ago, upperclassmen were drawn to off-campus apartments by the lure of independence and a comparable price tag to Tufts dorms. But urban sprawl having sprawled from Boston and Cambridge into Medford and Somerville, local rents are skyrocketing. Upperclassmen determined to live with their friends have no choice but to shore up off-campus housing in the fall, without knowing if they had a good enough lottery number to secure a suite in Hillsides or Latin Way. If students knew their numbers in the fall, there would be less competition for off-campus apartments and fortuitous numbers would play a decisive role in students' residential fate. As it stands, students who want to live together cannot gamble on the housing lottery, as a bad number would force them into an expensive, distant apartment. Releasing the lottery numbers early would benefit upperclassmen who realize it's far more expensive to live off campus, which in addition to high rent, landlords, and heating bills, lacks high-speed Internet and proximity to classes. Students will spend the rest of their lives dealing with these adult complications - there's no cause to rush the experience. Yes, living off campus has a sense of adventure and is imbedded in the upperclassmen culture, but this culture was created at a time when rents were far more reasonable. To compensate for the gradual migration of upperclassmen to campus, Tufts should make immediate adjustments, including building the proposed new dorm, which was heavily discussed last spring. The building should not match South Hall in its capacity, since high-occupancy dorms generally cater to younger students. In addition to increasing beds on campus, Tufts should renovate Wren Hall so the uphill dorm comes to be known for more than its bugs infestation. Another possibility would be to expand the operation of Walnut Hill Properties, a University-operated real estate agency, which owns off-campus houses and rents them primarily to faculty. If more houses were purchased, the University could keep rents low and incorporate the spaces into the housing lottery. But either way, as rents continue to rise, students will want to stay on campus, and the University should encourage this transition by releasing lottery numbers in the fall. Tufts, which has an exorbitant price tag of its own, should be cognizant of this trend and protect its customers from the exorbitant price tags of local real estate owners.

The Setonian
News

One Tufts janitor speaks about students, administration

August 31

Once a charming, bustling village, Lynn, Massachusetts is a town that many people would say has fallen by the wayside. Forty years ago, Lynn was home to General Electric and had a large port that serviced much of the metropolitan area. Since then, the city's decline has been slow and steady. And according to an MIT report published for the Department of Urban planning, the outlook in Lynn is bleak. "Water currents deposit silt that prohibits large modern vessels and makes the harbor practically useless as an industrial port," the report reads. "The disappearance of factories has left the [working class] with rising unemployment rates. Developers and investors have not found Lynn an attractive investment." According to a statistic from the State Department of Education, Lynn has a school dropout rate of 9.4 percent. Its downtown looks like a battered fighter trying to get up even when he knows he should stay down. Yet inside one Lynn house, the mood is not pessimistic. To OneSource employee Irlanda Jimenez, the world is filled with promise. "I came here eleven years ago, because it was impossible to make it in Santo Domingo," Jimenez said. "When my daughter was three I divorced my husband. I was working at a radio station not making enough money, and I had moved back in with my mother, I had to do something to earn more money." Jimenez made the trip from Puerto Rico to New York and then eventually to Boston in hopes of a better life. The details and difficulties of moves such as Jimenez's are common stories today - immigrants who live without proper papers, without medical insurance, and with one dead-end job after another. In her search for a home, Jimenez has met corrupt officials, cold landlords, and fought the same realities that all immigrants struggle against. "Once you have children it is impossible to think only of yourself," Jimenez explained, but her story is much more complicated than that. Jimenez's sacrifice and struggle has nothing to do with her own gain. "Things back home are not safe," she said. "My brother was a taxi-driver in Santo Domingo. One night someone called his apartment and he let him up. He opened the door and they shot him and left. It is much safer here." Jimenez views difficulties and obstacles as things to be overcome. Nothing is impossible. Her attitude has led to her involvement to get a new contract with OneSource. "I need medical insurance because I know how hard it is to live without work," Jimenez said. "Without sick days we don't have the chance to provide for our children. I had an operation and I had to go without working for five weeks. I managed to borrow some money from a friend, but when your children depend on your paycheck and you still have to pay rent..." Jimenez trailed off as she gazed to her daughter sitting quietly doing her homework. "I want to become a Tufts employee... so that they can get the help and benefits of such a good university," Jimenez said. The University has so far stated that they will watch the negotiations without becoming involved. "I read in the newspaper the other day that they want to offer University employees ESL lessons," Jimenez said, referring to proposed English language classes. "Well, until the University recognizes us as staff, we won't be able to go. And since most of us work six days a week for eight hours a day, how are we going to find the time to study?" Yet the University's position in the matter has not affected Jimenez's view of Tufts students. "I love the students of this school, so much," she said. "They are so kind. I love being around people from all over the world and many of them are so helpful, I have had students help me lift heavy bags without hesitating. They are the best part of this campus."

The Setonian
News

Redskins hope to rebound from opening season loss

August 31

Washington Redskins(0-1) at Green Bay Packers(1-0), tonight at 9.pm. After a horrible week one loss to San Diego - a 1-15 team in 2000 - the Redskins desperately need a big win if they have any hopes of staying competitive. Last week, quarterback Jeff George struggled to find receivers, running Back Stephen Davis could not find any holes to run through, and the defense let the Chargers run all over them. If the Redskins have any chance against Green Bay tonight, they must improve their play offensively. After going 8-18 on his passing attempts with two interceptions, George was replaced by Tony Banks early last game. Despite his disappointing play, however, coach Marty Schottenhiemer insists that George is his starting QB. To remain in the game, George will need to be much more efficient this week with his passes. Stephen Davis also needs to get many more touches at the ball. As the Redskins' greatest offensive threat, the outcome of the game may rely on his play. Defensively, the Redskins face a harder task than they did last weekend. Offensively, Green Bay looked brilliant in its season opening win against Detroit. Quarterback Brett Favre seemed to return to his 1996 MVP form, completing 22 of 28 attempted passes - two for touchdowns. The story of the game, however, was running back Ahman Green. Bailing out Favre on several third and long situations, Green averaged 9.2 yards per run on his 17 carries. The Packers looked just as strong on the defensive side last week, with three sacks from defensive end Kabeer Gbaja-Biamila. Considering that George does not handle pressure from the defense well, Biamila will be instrumental in throwing off the Redskins offensive attack. Overall, the Packers' play was reminiscent of the team that won back-to-back Super Bowls in 1995 and '96. Strong on either side of the ball, if they continue such play they should be a favorite to win the NFC. But in the short term, it is hard to predict how the two-week layoff will affect either team; if the Packers can pick up where they left off, they should be able to defeat the Redskins. Washington won't go down easily, however. The Redskins feature a strong defensive line, and if George and Davis can get in sync, they should be a much stronger team than they were in Week One. Watch tonight on ABC as Favre goes for his 143rd consecutive NFL start, hoping to lead his team to victory.

The Setonian
News

Jumbo's legacy is larger than life

August 31

The freshmen who were present at the "Celebration of the Class of 2005" at the Gancher Sports Center during orientation will long remember the excitement they felt during the fireworks display and candle lighting ceremony that marked their initiation as the next class of Tufts University. Neither will students forget a more light-hearted part of the night - the slide projector video commemorating Jumbo the elephant, Tufts' beloved mascot. Students and historians alike have long been awed by the history of the famous mascot. "Having a story behind Jumbo makes it more interesting than something randomly assigned to our school to be the mascot," junior Kathryn Price said. In the summer before her freshman year, Price watched a special on the story behind Jumbo on the History Channel. "As a pre-frosh, I was really excited to see my school's mascot on TV. My dad called me into the living room and I remember sitting there and feeling proud that my university's mascot had that kind of a story behind it." The story of the noble pachyderm is worth remembering for any who may have forgotten. In 1884, master showman Phineas T. Barnum donated $50,000 to build Barnum Hall - now home to the biology department - intending it to become the largest and most well known natural history museum on the East Coast. Barnum was an original trustee of Tufts through its association with the Universalist Church, of which Barnum was a member. In 1882, the London Zoo sold Jumbo, an elephant that had been born wild in the Sudan in 1859, to Barnum for $10,000. The elephant, which had been famous for his impressive size and mild temperament at the Zoo, became the main attraction at the Barnum & Bailey Circus. Jumbo was billed as the largest animal ever to be held in captivity, and his reputation spread throughout America. While on tour in 1885, Jumbo attempted to save a smaller elephant walking over train tracks from being hit by an oncoming locomotive and met his death. Barnum then commissioned what was widely considered the world's largest taxidermy job ever performed, and he soon toured the world with his stuffed elephant as the show's centerpiece. Four years later, Jumbo's stuffed remains were donated to Tufts, while his skeleton was given to the American Museum of Natural History in New York. Jumbo became the Barnum Museum's main attraction and was surrounded by the other specimens donated by Barnum. In 1939, the history museum at Barnum became a student lounge area, but Jumbo was left standing next to a small albino elephant and a display dedicated to his life. It was during this time that it became customary for students to place a penny in Jumbo's trunk for good luck on their exams. Not long after, a dispute began over ownership of the stuffed elephant. In 1949, the University of Bridgeport laid claim to Jumbo based on the fact that the University had been home to Barnum & Bailey circus. They argued that Barnum only owned half of Jumbo and thus could only bequeath half of the animal to Tufts. Tufts President Leonard Carmichael countered that since Barnum Hall had housed Jumbo for so many years, it would be Tufts that would determine which school got which half of Jumbo. When Carmichael stated that Tufts would keep the front half of the elephant, Bridgeport dropped its request. In a gesture of goodwill, Tufts donated the albino elephant that stood beside Jumbo in the Barnum Museum to Bridgeport. A fire in Barnum Hall in April 1975 reduced Jumbo to ashes, leaving only the charred remains of the elephant's tusks. Thanks to the quick thinking of then-athletic department administrative assistant Phyllis Byrne, a peanut butter jar now holds Jumbo's ashes, which are currently housed in the office of the Athletic Director. Athletic teams occasionally rub the peanut butter jar before a big game, hoping it will bring them luck and lead Tufts to victory. Campus sports teams are often reminded by their coaches that Jumbo's name comes from the Swahili word jumbe, meaning "chief." Today, a smaller version of Jumbo stands between Barnum Hall and the Dana Biology Lab to commemorate the animal, who became the Tufts mascot because of his long affiliation with the University. While other NESCAC schools that Tufts competes against have stories behind their mascots, University students agree that Jumbo's legacy is far more interesting. "Other universities make fun of our mascot, including our rivals Amherst, who are the Lord Jeffs. But at least people know what a Jumbo is," sophomore James Meyers said. Sophomore Taylor Shaunn agreed that being the Jumbos is also better than being, say, the Williams Purple Cows. "The story behind Jumbo is a good one, and I always found it cool that that P.T. Barnum was a founder [of Tufts]," Shaunn said. Some don't think the mascot is fitting, however. "The problem that I have with Jumbo is that an elephant doesn't exactly inspire passionate fighting," sophomore Josh Pressman said. "Jumbo isn't a symbol of aggression or ferocity." Freshman Danny Gold agreed. "I think Jumbo is a little weak because it doesn't have a ring to it," he said. "The 'Fighting Jumbos' would be better." But would a more ferocious name for the mascot inspire Tufts' teams to play harder? Sophomore Jen Dorfman disagrees about the importance of Jumbo to sports. "I don't really know the story behind Jumbo, but that has no bearing on my school spirit," she said. "I'm on the rugby team and in our cheers we always say 'Go Tufts.' It's never 'Go Jumbos.'" Other students are perfectly satisfied with the mascot just the way he is. "I like our mascot because Jumbo is really unique - there are a lot of schools with bears, but there aren't any other schools that are elephants," freshman Melissa Diracles said.

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Public Safety sends advisory to students

August 31

Sophomore Colin Stewart awoke to a loud knocking on his door. Still in his boxers, he walked into the common room on his Wren Hall suite to find police officers hovering over a pile of white powder on the floor. "There was police tape all around the common room," Stewart said of last Tuesday's incident. "I had no idea what was going on." What was going on was a police response to a call like hundreds of others occurring across the country over the past two weeks. A custodian had found white powder on the floor of the suite, and fearing the substance might be anthrax, had phoned the police. But Stewart and the officers, including TUPD Captain Mark Keith, soon identified the powder as Stewart's Gold Bond medicated foot powder. King said that the police response was appropriate. "They took a little time to evaluate, instead of going with a knee-jerk reaction," he said. "We were able to resolve the issue without any unnecessary disruption to the residents of Wren Hall. I thought it was a little ridiculous that the 510 suite of Wren was considered a viable terrorist target. But better safe than sorry." As concerns about anthrax spread across the country, Tufts officials are taking precautions by informing students about the disease and providing free rubber gloves to the community. The Department of Public Safety sent a safety advisory e-mail to on-campus students last Wednesday. According to Director John King, the department was "receiving some calls from members of the community asking for guidance.""We felt it would be prudent for the University to issue guidance to its community," he said. Anthrax, which has recently claimed the lives of three people and infected at least nine others nationwide, can infect the skin, gastrointestinal system, or the lungs through contact with bruised skin, ingestion, or inhalation. Inhaled anthrax is the most dangerous, although no forms of the disease are contagious. The disease can be prevented with antibiotics or treated effectively soon after exposure. The University's advisory gave instructions on handling potential anthrax threats, such as not opening suspicious mail and how to react to a possible anthrax presence. In New York, Washington, DC, and Florida, investigators have discovered several cases in which the disease was sent in envelopes through the mail, prompting the US Postal Service to provide rubber gloves to its employees. At Tufts, rubber gloves were recently sent to the Hill Hall mailroom, but according to one student who works there, none of the workers are using them.Public Safety has given away 100 additional pairs of rubber gloves to students and faculty for opening mail."We have sent to all the mail outlets a copy of the advisory from the center of disease control and a copy of the advisory from the US Postal Service," King said. Besides sending the e-mail and the advisories, public safety has been preparing for an anthrax-related crisis. "I have talked with the supervisors of all our departments on all of our campuses," King said. TUPD has been trained in dealing with possible anthrax cases. Officers were instructed to collect information before arriving at the scene and to carefully evaluate the circumstances. If presented with a legitimate concern, officers will contact the local fire department, which would then contact the local government Office of Hazardous Materials Safety (HAZMAT).Some students were grateful for the advisory. "It gave information in a clean way - it was easy to understand," said sophomore Karyn Blaser, who forwarded the advisory to her father. But freshman Melissa Ventura felt the advisory exaggerated any possible threats to campus. "I was surprised when I got it," she said. "It made it seem like there is more of threat here than I had thought." Other students say that those in prominent positions - not college students - should be concerned. "Let's just say I'm not too worried, because I'm not a senator or the head of CBS, so I don't think I'll get [anthrax]," freshman Leah Knobler said. Although sophomore Adam Stahl said he probably would not be targeted for an anthrax attack, he still plans on taking precautions with mail. "With our current level of paranoia, if I received an unmarked envelope, I'd be sketched out," he said, though he added, "if people would just stop and think logically about the situation, they'd realize there's no danger." A public safety official has also been in contact with the Boston and Medford postal offices. Although the police and the public safety department have taken several precautions, King said that the Tufts community should not overreact."All of our community members need to be aware of the facts and exercise good judgment and take precautions," he said. "It is too easy to panic, and there is no need for panic." Links to the Centers for Disease Control, the US Postal Service, and the Massachusetts Department of Public Health were also included in the advisory and are now available on the Tufts University Department of Public and Environmental Safety website at www.tufts.edu/central/pubsafe. "We ask the community to stay calm and be aware," King said.

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Female counterpart to Viagra puts women in the mood

August 31

When Viagra was introduced as a male sexual stimulant, it took the world a little while to get used to the concept. These days, however, it's an accepted part of life - even Bob Dole endorses the pill. Lately, the spotlight has turned to female sexuality, and with that comes HerTurn, the first product for women that claims to create sexual desire in less than four minutes. According to the makers of HerTurn, the product is "an all-natural, topically applied, physician developed, clinically tested, no secondary effects, no prescription needed product." HerTurn enhances sexual responsiveness and produces sexual arousal to increase and enhance the enjoyment of intercourse. In addition, the feeling and stimulation of the female sex organ is heightened dramatically as the result of using HerTurn. This seemingly simple female sexual stimulant is sophisticated in its construction. The cream contains a multitude of ingredients, each responsible for a certain function. The drug contains L-Arginine, an amino acid and the basic building block of the Nitric Oxide Pathway. L-Arginine stimulates the clitoral tissue, which results in increased blood flow and dilation of the blood vessels in the clitoral area, further resulting in intense sexual arousal. Another amino acid, L-Histidine, is responsible for mental focus and concentration. L-Histidine, when converted to histimine, is the chemical responsible for triggering an orgasm. Histimines play a major role in regulating ejaculations and orgasms. Histimine is also a vasodilator, which allows blood flow to the genital area. Damiana leaves are essential to the cream, which acts as an aphrodisiac. In the ancient Mayan civilization, Damiana was used for mood enhancement. Damiana is an energy tonic, a stimulator of muscle contractions that helps ease the effects of hot flashes. Pregnelone, known as "the grandmother of all steroid hormones," is also included in this product. The body uses it to make hormones such as testosterone, estrogen, and progesterone. With age, the levels of these hormones decline, so to keep hormones at youthful levels, Pregnelone is necessary. Lastly, menthol USP is designed to give what is described as a "cool warming" sensation to the genital tissues. Once applied, there is an almost immediate warm feeling and tingle, which heightens the pleasure during intercourse. A senior, who asked to remain anonymous, has used a similar cream, called Viacreme. She said that whenever she had trouble having an orgasm the cream was successful. "The cream remedies that right away, it makes my climax almost effortless," she said. The makers of HerTurn say the cream is better than the pill. Since the medically developed cream is offered in tube-form, it allows the user to more precisely control the strength of the dosage, and to pinpoint the areas of the female sex organ where heightened arousal is desired. In most cases, HerTurn works in less than four minutes. Cases of arousal and desire have been reported in less than one minute as well. Once applied, the effects of HerTurn are prolonged. Median lasting time of arousal is between 15 to 30 minutes. One junior said he wouldn't feel threatened if his partner used the sex-enhancing cream. "It's definitely a plus. It's less work on the guy to satisfy the girl, and I'm sure any girl would love multiple orgasms," he said. Female viagra is stemming into other medical genres other than medical creams. There are several alternatives to pills and creams that can be used to enhance sexual experiences. One enhancer is Yohimbe bark, which has been used as an aphrodisiac in many cultures. Yohimbe dilates blood vessels, intensifying sensual tactile responses. Ashwagandha is another aphrodisiac, which has been used for 300 years. Often called "Indian ginseng," it contains withanolides, molecules that resemble steroids in their action and appearance. Ashwagandha supports the immune system and promotes general good health. Another alternative is Royal Jelly, which worker bees use to feed the queen. The queen's only food, Royal Jelly contains all essential amino acids as well as vitamins. It stimulates the adrenal glands and has a positive effect on mood and sex drive. A side benefit may be fewer skin wrinkles. Guaran is another common natural enhancer. It is primarily grown in a small area in northern Brazil. Guaran contains Guaranine, which is similar to caffeine, and is used to stimulate the central nervous system and boosts energy. Whatever the method, research is making many things possible. With the ongoing developments, sexual pleasure for women, which may have been difficult to achieve, is more effortless to attain.

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Hillel dinner celebrates African Judaism

August 31

Have you ever used the words "Jewish" and "African" in the same sentence? If not, you are not alone. Many people are not aware that there are Jewish communities in Africa and African Jews throughout the world. The Jewish and African communities at Tufts came together last night at Hillel to learn more about this intermingling of cultures. The evening began with a bicultural dinner featuring a variety of African and Jewish foods. Sampling everything from plantains and peanut soup to challah and matzah ball soup, curious students discussed ingredients and origins. Musician and journalist Jay Sand, who has lived and researched Jewish communities in different parts of Africa, showed a slide show of his travels. Sand first gave an overview of the African connection to Judaism. He explained that Israel and the surrounding areas, the birthplace of Judaism, served as a gateway between Africa and the continent of Asia. Peoples entering and leaving Africa passed through the area and interacted with one another.Sand also explained that Ethiopian Jews consider themselves to be one of the 12 "lost tribes" of Judah - scattered in biblical times. Although their practices may be slightly different than those of Western Judaism, Ethiopian Judaism dates back several hundred years. "With the foundation of Israel in 1948, there was much 'discovery' of these lost tribes," Sand explained. "Politically and practically, they could come and settle in Israel as citizens." During turbulent times in Ethipian history, he stated, tens of thousands of Ethiopians were airlifted to Israel and have been living there for many years. During his travels, Sand developed an especially close connection with the Abayudaya Jewish community of Uganda and its rabbi, Gershom Sizomu. Rabbi Sizomu's father and grandfather were both rabbis, but he is the first to study at a Western rabbinical school. Sizomu is studying at a Yeshiva [rabbinical school] in New York. Rabbi Sizomu spoke briefly about his community's history tonight, and will be giving a longer presentation tomorrow night. The Abayudaya community, now a group of about 200 people, was founded in 1919 by a man named Semei Kukangulu, who "was convinced by Judaism after realizing that the [Christian] missionaries did not preach circumcision, yet it was emphasized in the Bible," said Sizomu. Kukangulu "saw in the Ten Commandments true guidelines for life. He wanted to be a part of the Children of Israel; the 'chosen people' of God." Kukangulu, along with a group of about three thousand men, circumcised himself and began observing Shabbat [the Jewish Sabbath] and other Jewish customs. When asked how the surrounding non-Jewish community reacts to the Abayudaya, Sizomu replied that "the group is only different in practice. There is also religious freedom [in Uganda], so they are accepted. [They] have something to offer their neighbors. They work for non-Jews, and there is some intermarriage." The Abayudaya community now has a Jewish high school which is named after its founder, Kukangulu. It also has five synagogues, and books and prayer shawls have been donated by other Jewish communities from around the world. It has its own "kosher" [blessed by a rabbi and made in traditional form] Torahs [the Jewish holy book], and observes Jewish holidays in much the same way as Western Jewish communities. Sand also spoke about Jewish communities he visited in Ghana and Zimbabwe, and mentioned that some people in Zimbabwe "view Judaism as a Pan-African statement. Christianity was taught to them by the [foreign] missionaries during colonialism. They believe Judaism was lost [in Zimbabwe] for thousands of years, and now it is something they want to be doing again... an anti-Imperialist statement." Sand also stated that Nigeria, Burundi, and Rwanda also have groups with connections to Judaism. Organizers of the program were glad to see such a sizeable turnout. "One reason it's important to learn more about Jewish communities in Africa is because it breaks down stereotypes of who's Jewish and who's not," said Rabbi Jeffrey Summit. This is a time when it's so important to get beyond stereotypes and see how diverse our world is." Adwoa Asare-Kwakye, a sophomore and Public Representative for the African Student Organization (ASO) said that she and liaisons at Hillel started working on the event in September, and were "glad to be able to do this. These are two different cultures, and to link the two makes people aware of differences and similarities." The event took place at Hillel, and was sponsored by The Arts, Sciences, and Engineering Diversity Fund, the Music department, Hillel, the African Student Organization, the Pan-African Alliance, the Sociology department, the Africana Center, the German/Russian/Asian Languages Department, and the Office of the President. The event continues tonight with "Two Communities, One Shabbat" at Hillel beginning at six.

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Students turn to prescription drugs

August 31

Maybe you had a 15-page paper and an exam due the next day and were falling asleep at your computer. Maybe you were drunk and wanted to see what all your friends had been talking about. Whatever the situation, if you've ever used someone else's prescription drug, you're not alone. A recent boom in prescriptions for such drugs as Ritalin and Aderol has left more and more students dependent on the substances to get them through work and play. According to the federal Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), the amount of methylphenidate - the active ingredient in Ritalin - manufactured increased more than 800 percent from 1990-1999, and production of Aderol has increased 2,000 percent over the same period. Methylphenidate is a stimulant that enhances the flow of dopamine in the brain and increases impulse control and attention span. The drug is often prescribed for those suffering from Attention Deficit Disorder (ADD) and is used to "stimulate" the under-active part of the brain to control hyperactivity. Ritalin produces stimulant effects such as appetite suppression, increased attentiveness, and euphoria. It can also increase heart rate and blood pressure and is capable of producing severe psychological dependence, according to a report in the New York Times ("New campus high: illicit prescription drugs" 3/24/2000). The DEA considers Ritalin a Class II controlled substance, the same schedule category as cocaine. Aderol, an amphetamine, is also a stimulant used to treat ADD and has a high potential for abuse and addiction.One Tufts sophomore, who asked to remain anonymous, recently had a prescription for Aderol and distributed the drug freely. "Unfortunately," he said, "nobody ever bought it. I just gave it out to my friends." The sophomore said he didn't feel guilty for supplying the drug, since the doctor who wrote his prescription told him that there were few side effects and little or no evidence that it caused death or strokes. "As long as you give it out for free, it's okay," the student said. "I'm not a drug pusher."Occasionally his friends would seek out the drug when they had a lot of school work to do and needed to stay awake, but for the most part, they mixed it with alcohol and other drugs. "Whenever anyone had to stay awake, I'd offer it to them," the sophomore said. "But most of the time, it was when they were drunk and they were looking for something else, I'd be like, 'I have Aderol.' But I tried to let them know it was better for staying awake." For the most part, the sophomore didn't abuse Aderol himself, taking it as prescribed and when he needed to stay awake. "Since I have insurance, it gives us a 50-year supply, so I had more than I would ever need in my lifetime," he said.But occasionally he would also mix it with alcohol. "I didn't think it was healthy but you go through those stages where you see how many substances you can put into your body," he said. Although he has stopped handing the pills out, there was no dramatic end to his distributing days. "Most of the time, there haven't been any side effects. When I was home, I gave a ton of it to my friend and I don't think it's addictive, but he developed a psychological addiction," he said, adding that it made his friend thirsty and caused some signs of withdrawal when he stopped taking it. Another sophomore has experience with taking prescription painkillers for fun. In the past, he has taken Vicodin, Percocet, and "some sort of anti-depressant." Vicodin is a class III substance, while Percocet is class II, a more potent painkiller. Percocet is a mixture of narcotic and acetaminophen (tylenol), the narcotic element making the drug addictive. "I'm not taking any now - I'm all out of them," he said. He is unsure about the name of the anti-depressant he took, but he remembers the experience. "That was a bad one. That one made me black out and send creepy instant messages to my ex-girlfriend," he said. Other than that, however, he never had a bad experience with prescription drugs. The student used the prescriptions to enhance his partying experience - whether it be drinking or getting high. For him, taking the prescription drug wasn't as "bad" as taking other drugs, such as ecstasy, cocaine, or heroin. "I don't think it's as bad as that just because painkillers have the same effects as alcohol. For me, it just enhances being drunk."What they couldn't provide him was the heightened concentration that medicines like Ritalin provide. "They aren't effective study aids," the sophomore said. "When you take painkillers and stuff, it enhances whether you're drunk or high for a while, but after a little while you just want to go sleep because it makes you so relaxed. It's not a good thing to do if you want to stay up."Although he said that he had been taking other people's prescriptions about once a week, he's slowing down. "Right now, I'm trying to cut down on everything. I took my last one on Friday because it was my birthday," he said. His decision stems from overall discontent with the practice of taking the drugs. "There is the issue that I'm completely out of them, but that's not really why I'm stopping. I'm getting pretty bored with not sleeping ever and feeling [horrible] on the weekends," he said.He does not feel that he was putting himself in too much danger, however, with his recreational use. "I think it'd be kind of dangerous if you got addicted and you blew out all your pain receptors," he said. "But in moderation, it's probably no worse than drinking." However "safe" he feels these drugs are, he does feel that they can be a gateway into illicit drugs. "I think it could be, just because it's something that's different than just drinking alone, so it makes you more curious about other things."The students' misconception that mixing alcohol with certain drugs is "safe" greatly concerns Alcohol and Health Education Director Armand Mickune-Santos. "The scary part of students sharing prescriptions is the deadly combination of mixing alcohol with these prescriptions because it's dangerous and life threatening," he said. "We are socialized to believe that alcohol is harmless when used in smaller quantities." Mickune-Santos added that feelings of thirst induced by these drugs often cause users to consume more alcohol.The recent prescription drug craze has not been without its consequences. In March of 2000, Trinity College senior Josh Doroff died from a lethal combination of several prescription drugs, which was an eye-opening event for many universities. According to the Times, Doroff had mixed Ritalin with alcohol as well as other drugs. While his is an extreme case, his death raised many questions about the safety of young adults in a world where these drugs are readily available. "I have talked with students who snort Ritalin and use other students' prescriptions for recreational purpose. Students' use of other people's prescriptions is very common and continues to become more popular with more prescriptions being written today than years past," Mickune-Santos said. "Yet, many students go beyond recreational use and slide down the slippery road of substance abuse by seeking out specific prescription drugs."

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Shelton resigns from Senate

August 31

In a week rife with student government fumbling, the Tufts Community Union (TCU) Senate lost one of its most prominent members. Failed presidential candidate and former treasurer Michele Shelton resigned from the Senate on Thursday, citing a "priority change." In an e-mail sent Thursday afternoon to members of the Senate's executive board, Shelton told the Senate leaders that she was resigning her post - effective immediately. Shelton, who was responsible for balancing the student activities budget last year and work to improve classroom technology during her term as treasurer, said she will refocus her energies on her paid position as the programming assistant for the Office of Student Activities (OSA). She said her time-consuming work at the OSA handicapped her ability to serve as an effective senator. "I've been thinking about it for a while," Shelton said. "Being a senior, I have a lot of other things going on. I realized that Senate wasn't high on my priority list." Shelton said she spoke with friends before making her decision, which she said was an emotional process. "I had trouble hitting the send button for the e-mail," she said. "I had to get a friend to talk me through it." But Shelton said that despite her reservations, she could no longer responsibly fulfill her duties. "I didn't think it would be fair to the Senate or student body to have someone on Senate who was not fully committed to it," she said. Politics, however, were what Shelton disliked most about the Senate. Her failed presidential run last year played a large role in her decision to resign. "If I had won the election, the Senate would have been my highest priority, and maybe I wouldn't have taken the OSA job," Shelton said. "Since [the presidency] didn't happen it gave me the leeway to decide for myself what I wanted to do this year." A member of the TCU Senate since her freshman year, Shelton said that she enjoyed working with the treasury and interacting with other student leaders. Of her accomplishments, Shelton says she is most proud of her successful effort to allocate funds to student groups without risking a deficit. "Balancing the budget felt really good," Shelton said. "That was a big deal for us last year and I'm very proud of that." Though she says she will continue her involvement with the Culture Coordinating Committee (CCC) and the Culture, Ethnicity, and Community Affairs (CECA) committee, Shelton says her focus will now turn toward her future, including plans to attend graduate school. "I want to go into higher education," Shelton said. "It's a priority for me right now." Though student government leaders say Shelton's presence will be missed, they do not believe that her resignation will hurt Senate morale. "It was good to have her voice to help," TCU Senate President Eric Greenberg said. "We will miss her." Senate Vice President Melissa Carson said she understands Shelton's decision. "Her presence will be missed, but people understand that was what was best for her," Carson said. "It's just a sad thing that a strong senator is gone." Shelton says she is content with her decision. "It was a good three years, I'm glad I did it," she said. "I'm very happy I ran for president and I'm happy that I'm leaving now." Under the TCU Senate constitution, the Elections Board has 15 days, as of Friday, to hold an election to fill the vacancy. But the Elections Board's future is uncertain; three of its four-member board resigned over the weekend. If no senior runs for Shelton's seat, it will be open to juniors, then underclassmen. In TCU politics, it is common for failed presidential candidates to resign after the election. Last year, Anoop Swaminath resigned after he failed to secure a nomination for the presidency. Vivek Rampogal resigned and ran for a trustee representative position when he lost his presidential bid two years ago.Veronica Aguilar contributed to this article.

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Kerry speaks at Tufts, addresses anti-Muslim sentiments

August 31

Seconds after the first tower of the World Trade Center collapsed last Tuesday, Usam Farmam, a Pakistani Muslim, was knocked to the ground by a cloud of dust and debris rolling uptown. A Hasidic Jewish man approached Farman, looked at the pendant around his neck inscribed with an Arabic prayer for safety, and read the words aloud. "What he said next, I will never forget," Farman wrote later in an account of the experience. "With a deep Brooklyn accent, he said: 'Brother, if you don't mind, there is a cloud of glass coming at us. Grab my hand, let's get the hell out of here.'" The two escaped safely. US Senator John Kerry (D-MA) referred to Farman's account yesterday when speaking to more than 200 students, faculty and local Muslim leaders at a Fletcher-sponsored discussion on the treatment of Muslims since last week's events. While those two men were able to overcome their religious differences, albeit during extraordinary circumstances, some Americans have been less understanding. Not long after 5,000 people were killed in the attack, a new wave of violence spread - but this time claiming Muslim victims at the hands of angry Americans. Kerry visited Tufts as part of an ongoing government effort to condemn and quell the xenophobic retaliation. Since officials named Osama bin Laden, a Saudi Islamic extremist, as the prime suspect in the US investigation, Muslims, South Asians, and Arabs around the country have reported incidents of harassment and violence. Authorities suspect that the incidents, including killings, were racially motivated, despite the fact that almost all Islamic countries have criticized the strikes. "[The terrorist's] acts are outside of any religious preaching altogether," said Kerry, a senior member on the US Senate's Foreign Relations committee. "Islam is a peaceful religion." Boston-area Muslim leaders and Muslim college students also criticized the terrorists' actions yesterday, saying they were as shocked as other Americans. But after Tuesday's strike, Muslims around the country, often in traditional dress, have received death threats and been subject to verbal abuse, and mosques have been vandalized. Police in Dallas, TX are investigating the killing of a Pakistani grocer on Saturday and in Mesa, AZ, an Indian immigrant with a beard and a turban was shot to death at the gas station he managed. According to CNN, the FBI has launched 40 hate crime investigations in the past week. "How disgraceful that any American thinks they are being patriotic with such acts of violence," Kerry said. "At a time like this, there are no hyphenated Americans. No Irish Americans, no French Americans... no Israeli Americans," although he remembered America's internment of Japanese Americans during World War II. Numan Waheed, the president of MIT's Muslim Students Association, said that students feel less secure when they leave campus. But colleges have not been isolated from anti-Muslim sentiment. At MIT, xenophobic messages like "go home" appeared on a banner intended for written expressions of student grief. At Tufts, no hate incidents have been officially reported, but Muslim students said they know of instances of verbal abuse. "Those people causing harassment are not much better than the people who committed the attacks because they are invoking fear in people's lives," said Usman Khan, the former president of the Muslim Students Association. On Monday, US President George W. Bush toured a mosque in Washington, DC to express concern about anti-Muslim retaliation. Kerry's visit to Tufts was an opportunity for him to publicly condemn anti-Arab sentiment and listen to concerns from college students in his home state. Even though University administrators addressed such potential backlash during forums last week, attendees, especially Muslims, said yesterday's discussion was necessary. "The President's message will only reach a certain segment of society," said Stevie Hamilton, a second-year Fletcher student who has decided to adopt Islam as his religion. Kerry's visit, he explained, is part of a trickle-down process toward the grassroots. He estimated that it would take one or two months for the recent surge of anti-Islamic sentiment to subside entirely. But some Americans' attitudes toward Muslims might need more than just time to change. "People are led to believe that Muslims are barbarians," said Sophia Hassan, a public elementary school teacher, referring to how children are taught the history of events like the Crusades. She represented the Society for Islamic Brotherhood in Roxbury at the event. Hassan and other speakers said that Muslims need to begin a public relations campaign of sorts to make Americans more aware of their religion. "Muslims need to move forward and define themselves," she said. "We need all of you in the Muslim world, you must join in the effort [against terrorism]," Kerry said. "Make it clear where you stand." Kerry also challenged Muslim leaders to reassure people of "what is going on behind the scenes... to diminish the hatred," and added that children as young as five and six can be instruments of hate. Although the event was intended to address the issue of anti-Muslim sentiments, Fletcher is a training ground for future government decision makers, and attendees eventually began asking the Senator about US responses to the attacks. Kerry, apprehensive about "Wild West jargon [currently] being thrown around," said the US needs to proceed carefully, without resorting to terror. Even though bin Laden is the only named suspect and many other countries have expressed their support for the US, the ruling Taliban government has stalled on a Pakistani ultimatum to turn over bin Laden or face military action. The government has warned Afghan citizens to prepare for a holy war. But Rina Armiri, a Fletcher student born in Afghanistan, disassociated herself from the totalitarian movement that overtook her country five years ago. "The Afghan population is not the Taliban," she said. "They are the Taliban's first victims." Another attendee tried to explain the Taliban's response, saying that once the US provides concrete proof of bin Laden's involvement in the attacks, the Taliban would willingly extradite him. An undergraduate said that because bin Laden was instrumental in ridding Afghanistan of the Soviets, the Taliban would have to be absolutely sure he is guilty of terrorism before turning him over. But even if the US proves bin Laden's guilt, the Taliban said it will only extradite him for trial in an Islamic court, and Kerry said the US would probably not agree to such a compromise. "The crimes were committed here," he said. "The victims' families would feel that it is a cop out." That could leave decision makers with no choice but to attack. Kerry conceded that the US could not guarantee, even with a surgical strike, that innocent lives would not be lost. No one, it seems, can come up with an alternative solution.

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Men's team hopes to bring home NESCAC title this weekend

August 31

The cross country team's All New England lineup took time off this past weekend as the rest of the squad competed Saturday in the Saratoga Springs Invitational. Down its top seven, the abbreviated Jumbos squad missed its goal of finishing in the top three, tying for fourth place with Vassar College. Though the course was particularly hilly, runners were not able to wear spiked shoes to help themselves along the terrain, due to large areas of pavement. "The course took a toll on some of our performances," sophomore James Lamoureux said. The absemce of the top seven was evident, as Tufts' leading scorer, junior Yee-Juan Chen, finished 21st among all runners (27:16.91). The other teams competing at Saratoga raced their varsity lineups. "It gave us a serious evaluation of how those kids stood up to the challenge of that kind of performance," coach Connie Putnam said. "The answer to that is that they were ready for it." The race afforded the runners who will not compete in the upcoming NESCAC championships the chance for one last meet before the postseason gets underway. It also gave Putnam one more look at his runners before finalizing his NESCAC championship lineup. Along with the seven runners that competed at All New Englands, Putnam will add five more to compose the 12-man lineup allowed in the NESCAC meet. After last week's race, in addition to the All New England junior varsity race, the coach decided to add juniors Yee- Juan Chen and Adam Sharp, sophomores John Rosen and James Lamoureux, and either freshman Ryan Phil or Aaron Kaye to his lineup. While Putnam would like to run Phil, he awaits an injury report on the rookie before cementing his lineup. The seven who sat out this past weekend and will compete at NESCACs are seniors J.R Cruz, Ben Smith, Jason Mann and Justin Lewis and freshmen Nate Brigham, Brian McNamara and Michael Don. Winning the NESCAC title is the team's goal this weekend at the Bowdoin College-hosted championship. While the Jumbos were able to defeat each Div. III team at the Oct. 12 All New England race, they enter the NESCAC championship wary of their tough competition - Bowdoin finished one place behind Tufts at New Englands and will have the benefit of racing at home this weekend.Still, the Jumbos are confident. "If you're faster as a team, the course shouldn't make a difference," senior co-captain Ben Smith said.The Jumbos have practiced hard this week in preparation for the upcoming meet. During the All New England meet, problems with pack running concerned Putnam. To correct this problem, the team has run fartleks - simulations of race situations in order to force the habits of running together and group pacing - all week."Packing it up is going to be a big part of NESCACs," Smith said.Though Bowdoin may have the advantage of knowing the course better, no team entering the meet will be able to sport a lineup with as much depth as Tufts."Hopefully it'll come down to the top five and our fifth man will finish way before all of the other teams' fifth men," Smith said.While the new additions to the varsity lineup are coming off a meet weekend, the top seven hope that a week of rest will not dull their sharpness on race day. Putnam said his team is physically prepared for the race and that he will spend the week focusing his men on the mental aspect of the game."Every athlete going into the race is going to be motivated," Putnam said. "If we have more motivation and spread it out over all five miles then that will be the key to winning it."

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Sociologist discusses globalization and gender

August 31

American University sociology Professor Esther Ngan-ling Chow did not have it easy growing up in China. "I was brought up in a blue collar family... I worked as illegal child labor, 12 hours a day, seven days a week, for four cents an hour and 50 cents a day," Chow said at a lecture at Tufts on Friday sponsored by the Women's Studies Department. When she developed an ulcer that sent her to the hospital before the age of ten, Chow was forced to stop working and return to school. "I told myself when I was younger that I must write something about this," she said. And she did. Chow has published several books about her research on women, East Asia, gender, and social inequality. In her lecture, Chow used a combination of statistics and biographical anecdotes to illustrate how "globalization... the compression of the world in spatial and temporal terms" has benefited large corporations but has forced others, notably women, into low-paying jobs with poor working conditions, leading to wage dependency and depression. "Every time [I have been] to China since 1993, I have seen the living standard increase... but who's paying for it, at what cost?" Chow asked. "Globalization is not just a social process, it is also gendered... [and it] perpetuates men's domination and women's subordination." Globalization has created jobs for working-class women in East Asian countries, Chow said. A female assembly line worker making Happy Meal toys might find a degree of personal autonomy in the absence of men. But globalization prevents women from getting better jobs, she said. Women are forced to keep low paying, long hour jobs far from their homes, which drives them into the bottom ranks of the social hierarchy. As a result, throughout the world, women are seen as workers instead of people, families are broken apart when women leave children and husbands at home, and gender based violence against women is on the rise. Chow stressed the negative effects of a social structure that places women on the bottom and said that awareness is the first step towards social change. Many in attendance at the speech said their views on globalization changed after hearing Chow's lecture about the changing world and its effects on women. "I found her definitions of globalism the most interesting - how feminism plays a role in the global process," said senior Shayla Donald, who attended the lecture as part of her Women's Studies class on feminist research. Her "big point is about global forces being gendered," said Susan Ostrander, a professor of sociology at Tufts. "We live in a global society... I think that gender is a critically important piece of that society." Emphasizing the importance of recognizing that our daily lives are affected by the labor of people in other countries, Chow showed pictures of the factories and workers in Taiwan and China that she has researched over the last decade. She used the images to relate women's personal struggles to the effects of a changing world. "You pay $115 for your dress here," she said, "guess how much the seamstress gets paid?" Laborers in East Asia are mostly young women, some of whom send a part of their meager weekly wages home to children and husbands. Others send money home to parents, who help their daughters save to open small businesses. The biographies of these workers can be heart-wrenching, Chow said. In one focus group Chow worked with, everybody started to cry and it took 15 minutes to calm them down. Chow has spent much of the past decade researching in China and Taiwan and gathering information from large factories and the women who work and live nearby. One study of a factory in southern China took a year and a half to complete. Chow and her assistants spent days surveying thousands of workers, and then between 1.5 to three hours in individual, follow-up interviews. "They took the time to tell me their stories," Chow said.

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Tufts must get offensive against Amherst

August 31

Ask coach Bill Samko how he will attack Amherst's defense, the best in the NESCAC, and he gives his usual answer. Ask Samko just about anything about adjusting strategy, and he gives his usual answer. "Nothing special." With the Lord Jeff defense coming to Medford on Saturday for homecoming and the prospect of going against a unit that has surrendered a total of six points in five games, the last thing Samko would do is change. "We're top ten in the country in running the ball," Samko said. "Our starter is in the top twenty in the country, and our second string tailback rushed for over 100 yards against Williams. We're not doing anything different." It couldn't be simpler for Amherst if Samko wrote its defensive coordinator a letter explaining the Jumbos' offensive game plan. The Lord Jeff defense will see run, run, and more run. And Samko has every reason to be confident in his running attack. Through five games, Jumbos' backs have averaged 267.6 yards on the ground, tops in the NESCAC. Tufts has also run for 12 touchdowns, ten more than they did all of last season. The bulk of the production has come from junior Keven Kelley, who is averaging 141.4 yards per game. Kelley, who is actually a year older than most seniors, but took a post grad year before college and a year off in the middle of college, is a bruising 230-lb. back that can push a pile. Though Williams appeared to hold the junior to a number of short gains, he still averaged four yards per carry. The good news is that even when Kelley's on the sidelines, he has support from his backups. Junior Chuck McGraw saw his most substantial time of the season last Saturday against Williams, and responded with 108 yards on 17 carries, including a 59-yard touchdown on the second play from scrimmage. Tufts also boasts senior Renato DePaolis, who has been used sparingly - only 14 carries in five games - but still has two rushing touchdowns. But will all of these impressive numbers matter against the best defense in the conference? Samko tends to think so. Though Amherst boasts a stronger defense than Williams, the Ephs are still amongst the stingiest in the league, and the Jumbos had success with them. "We took the ball and shoved it up their ass," Samko said. "Our two tailbacks combined for 37 carries and 188 yards. I'd say we ran the ball effectively." Though Tufts was able to move the ball against Williams, the offense could not capitalize on its opportunities. Quarterback Scott Treacy threw an interception inside the Williams ten, and Kelley fumbled in the same area. Both mistakes came in the fourth quarter, but neither concerns Samko a great deal. "Kelley never fumbled that ball, it was a bad call," Samko said. "And Scott's pass was not one iota his fault. He threw the ball where he should have." Despite that, Samko realizes that these mistakes cost the team the game. "We can't make critical mistakes," he said. "But we didn't back off. It would have been easy to back off after that bad call, but we didn't." In fact, it was Tufts' ability to compete the entire game that impressed the coach. "The final result is not our main goal," Samko said. "I would have felt better if we won, but I'm more concerned with how we compete. We can't control a lot of things in the game, but we can control how we compete from the first to last play." The intensity Tufts showed last Saturday will have to be matched, if not increased, at Homecoming, as the Lord Jeffs pose at least as great a threat as the Ephs. But if there is one way to neutralize a defense, it's on the ground. With healthy dosages of Kelley and McGraw, Tufts hopes that it can keep the Amherst defense on the field long enough to tire them out. Additionally, a mammoth effort will be required from the offensive line to both open holes and provide time for Treacy to throw the ball. If there is any team in the NESCAC that can grind the Lord Jeffs down, it's Tufts. It will be important for the Jumbos to get Kelley into a rhythm early in the gam, and establish the one-two punch of Kelley and McGraw. While Kelley is a bruising, between-the-tackles runner, McGraw compliments him with more speed and agility. "I am going into this game thinking we can win," Samko said. "Amherst is very good, but in a game that is fairly even-steven, like it was last week, the team that makes fewer mistakes and capitalizes on chances will win." Tufts versus Amherst commences at 1 p.m. on Saturday, and while the day is a special one, don't look for anything different from the Tufts offense.

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