Archives

News

Tufts silences Williams, 2-0

August 31

As the crowds poured into the Ellis Oval for this year's Homecoming festivities, the women's soccer team was picking apart a Williams team that, earlier this year, was ranked first in the nation. With the all-important seeding for the NESCAC tournament on the line, Tufts, after a ten-year drought, defeated the Purple Cows 2-0 in both teams' last game of the season, marking the team's first victory over Williams since 1990. "It was a perfect day to beat them," senior tri-captain Carmen Mikacenic said. "We've had an amazing season, and we topped it off by beating a team that we hadn't beaten in the seniors' four years here." "I'm just psyched that it happened my senior year," tri-captain Randee McArdle said. "I really couldn't have asked for anything better. It's a dream come true. We've wanted to beat them for four years now, and it happened at Homecoming, which was great." The winning goal came with just 27 minutes remaining in the match. Freshman striker Jess Trombly took a feed from the midfield and broke up the right side. Utilizing her breakaway speed, she maneuvered around a Williams defender to push the ball upfield. With a two-on-two situation developing, another Williams back cut over to help defend Trombly, leaving junior Lynn Cooper open in the center of the field. As the two backs approached, Trombly sent a perfect cross to Cooper, who drove into the box and fired a shot around the charging Williams keeper to net her fifth goal of the season. "The first goal was awesome work," Mikacenic said. "Trombly worked hard and was unselfish, and Cooper was so composed in front of the goal." "It was a great play by Jess," Cooper said. "She drew the two defenders, and then I was all by myself. I was scared I might be offsides, but I wasn't." Tufts' confidence grew after it had established the one-goal lead, and the team began to dominate play, keeping an almost-constant attack on the Williams defense. The second goal came somewhat unexpectedly after Tufts' third corner kick. Sophomore Katie Kehrberger fired the ball towards the net, where it hooked, curved over the Williams keeper and directly into the net. The goal was Kehrberger's first of the season, and made the Jumbos' lead virtually insurmountable. Minutes later, Kehrberger almost repeated the play, but the ball banged off the crossbar and was cleared out by the defense. Tufts continued to generate scoring opportunities down the stretch, including a shot from Cooper that bounced off both posts before it was covered by the goalie. Williams, on the other hand, struggled to find the offense that had powered them through the opening period, and could not cut into the 2-0 lead. Williams opened the game with much stronger play than Tufts. The Purple Cows' size and speed gave them an advantage over the Jumbos, allowing them to move the ball effectively and win most of the 50-50 balls. While Williams controlled play for much of the first half, however, the Tufts defense, as it has in so many games this year, held firm, denying Williams any legitimate scoring opportunity. The two teams left the field after the first half with the scoreboard still reading 0-0. "The first half, we came out a little nervous, a littl flat," senior tri-captain Randee McArdle said. "But then our halftime talk really picked things up for us. It was a complete turnaround the second half of the game. We dominated play the entire half." "They were pounding us in the first half," senior tri-captain Sara Yeatman added. "We sat and thought about what it meant to us before the second half, and how important this was. It turned the game around." The Jumbos stepped up their play in the second half, overcoming physical disadvantages to overwhelm a Williams team that was unable to keep up the first half's rigorous pace. The win puts the Jumbos at 12-2 on the year, heading for a team record for most wins in a season, and 7-2 in NESCAC competition. Tufts ended the season with a perfect 7-0 mark at home, fulfilling one of its main goals for the year. Willams, meanwhile, fell to 9-5 on the season, with all five losses coming in conference games, and dropped to sixth place in the NESCAC. McArdle was spectacular in goal, making six saves en route to her fifth shutout of the season, the 20th of her career. The shutout pushes her past coach Martha Whiting (19) on the all-time list, placing her in a tie for the number-one spot with Ellen Corliss. McArdle will look to make the record her own as Tufts enters the NESCAC tournament, which will determine the conference's sole representative in the NCAAs. The Jumbos will host the opening round game against Bates this Tuesday at 1 p.m. Tufts defeated the Bobcats 2-0 earlier this year. "[The win] was great. We're riding high," Mikacenic said. "Williams went down, and we love it. The win will carry through, and we'll have a lot of spirit going into the playoffs." "It's just such a great feeling to have come out here and beaten Williams," Yeatman said. "It's always been just a really, really hard-fought battle. It's great for our momentum. Coming off a win makes all the difference."

---

News

Fraternity president attends court hearing

August 31

A Somerville District Court granted the president of the Theta Delta Chi fraternity (123), Morgan Carney, a one-year continuance on two counts of contributing to the delinquency of a minor. Carney, who was charged after underage students were served alcohol at a 123 semiformal on Sept. 30, is the second fraternity president to be held legally responsible for activities that took place in a fraternity house. The court decision stipulates that the charges will be erased if Carney commits no similar offence within the next year. The case was meant to serve as a general warning against unregulated parties, and could only haunt Carney if he is personally accused of another violation for legal violations at a future party. "This case was filed against Morgan, but it doesn't mean that if 123 has another violation that it will affect him," Tufts University Police Department (TUPD) Captain Mark Keith said. The hearing's result was similar to the resolution of a case involving Sigma Phi Epsilon (Sig Ep) President Eric Feigenbaum's and brother Chris Albert last month. The two were brought to court on the same charges Carney faced and were told that the incident would be erased from their records if they stay out of court for a year. Both Keith and the fraternity presidents say that their run-ins with the law have changed the way parties are held at Tufts. Keith said that the fraternities have taken more control of their parties in recent months and that the TUPD has not had to break up many parties because of excessive noise, activity, or presence of alcohol. "Things seem to subside anyway after the first few weeks of school. This is normal," he said. Because of liability issues concerning what occurs at parties on campus, administrators and students are working on a plan to station detail officers at fraternity parties next semester. The proposal would arrange for three detail officers each weekend night to work at the door of fraternity parties and ensure that they remain under control. "I think [the court case] will ultimately lead to a unified way of holding parties on campus - the only kind of middle ground with the fraternities and the administration, " Carney said. There has not been a party at the 123 house since these charges were filed, and Carney said the case is one explanation. The charges against Carney stem from an incident that occurred late last September. The TUPD entered the 123 house on the night of Sept. 30 after receiving three requests for medical assists in a ten- minute period from students who said they had been drinking there. Two of those medial requests resulted in hospitalization. A male student was found to have a blood alcohol content (BAC) of .366, while a female student had a BAC of .30. "Both are very high levels, and so this could have been very dangerous," Keith said. "Drinking and serving people to that alcohol level is not responsible drinking - that's what we want to try to prevent." Although the charges against Carney and the members of Sig Ep were identical, the details of the cases differed significantly. "There was no bartender, no one we could directly accuse, and so we felt that Carney was legally responsible for the actions of the house," Keith said. "No one was actually being served alcohol in our presence; the brothers claimed that they had already run out of beer. With Sig Ep, however, I actually viewed a brother serving the alcohol, and so both him and the president of the fraternity were charged." Carney admitted that TUPD's decision was necessary. "Since there wasn't actually a bartender to blame, there was no choice but to bring me to court," he said. While underage drinking at fraternity parties is not a new issue, this is the first time the University's Department of Public Safety chose to seek legal action through the court system. Actions are still pending against the 123 fraternity with the Dean of Students office.

---

News

Urban Gourmet vs. Espresso

August 31

College students love to complain about dining halls. "The food is awful," they say, or, if the food is actually good, "the lines are too long." It's little surprise, then, that so many students at Tufts choose to get food delivered by off-campus eateries. From wraps to wings to congealed cheese, there are far more options to be found via the telephone than in Carmichael. With so many options and varieties of food, however, the hardest decision of the day is often whom to order food from. This week, the Daily puts two popular food spots head-to-head: Urban Gourmet in Somerville and Espresso Pizza in Medford. Between their pizzas, calzones, sandwiches, and assorted specialties, there's plenty to soothe starving animals both uphill and down. Our scoring should make it clear which one should be on your speed-dial, and which should pack itself out past Waltham.Selection At first glance, Espresso has a slight edge, with 32 varieties of pizza versus Urban's 25. The loss of such toppings as artichoke hearts and anchovies at Espresso, however, is outweighed by Urban's more exotic options such as shrimp, sea scallops, and chorizo sausage. Espresso also pales next to Urban's superior calzone selection. The buffalo chicken calzone - available in three levels of spiciness - is not soon forgotten (though you might wish you could when it goes straight to your thighs). Urban matches or surpasses Espresso in everything else. Particularly noteworthy are the pasta dishes - with sauces like shrimp and lemon grilled chicken - and the full dinner entrees - fish, steak, pork, or chicken dinners, complete with salad and a side order.Advantage: Urban Gourmet Quality Urban Gourmet's pizza features excellent toppings and a crispy edge, but its sauce is uninteresting. Espresso, however, fails to improve over this standard formula and has a weak, thin crust and slippery cheese. The debate over the calzones is nothing but vicious, but the proof is in the leftovers - Urban Gourmet's fare turns into a cold breakfast, while day-old Espresso's cheese becomes mouse bait. Urban sandwiches clearly stomp upon their Medford counterparts, with better breads and fillings. The dinner entrees are the most impressive; what other restaurant could pull off "Grilled Atlantic salmon" for delivery?Advantage: Urban Gourmet Price This can be a hard one to judge, since not all of the dishes match up exactly. Espresso certainly has the edge in pizza, with small and large pies checking out at up to $1 less than Urban's. The price advantage changes when it comes to calzones... but Espresso calzones are significantly bigger. A roast beef sandwich from Urban will set you back 50 percent more than one from Espresso. Finally, Urban's advantageous wide selection comes with a price: its full-size dinners start at $9.95.Advantage: Espresso Tufts Points High prices may not seem to matter much when it doesn't seem like you're spending real money. Tufts Points are even worse than credit cards when it comes to impulse purchasing, but the thrifty (or meal-plan bound) student wins either way; both Urban and Espresso's take points in lieu of cash if you order after 7 p.m.Draw Speed You can blame Tufts for some of the delays in local deliveries. Since points are only valid at places like Urban Gourmet and Espresso after 7 p.m., there's a huge backlog of orders by 7:15 p.m. No matter what they may tell you on the phone, a Friday-night delivery from Espresso or Urban can take as much as an hour and a half. Weekdays are little better, with typical waits of up to an hour. It helps to live in a well-populated dorm like South, where there are probably other orders en route. If you live far away from campus (or in Stratton Hall), it might be a while before the restaurants get enough orders to make your delivery worth the hike. Espresso gets the green light here, though, solely on merit of its proximity. If you're willing to pay cash rather than points, you can walk down to Boston Avenue and get served a little more quickly. Good luck finding anyone willing to walk to Ball Square for an Urban Gourmet order.Advantage: Espresso Hours No one's going to call these places up for breakfast or lunch. When it comes down to the wire, you need to know whether you can get food in the wee hours, be it after a party or eight hours before a midterm. No room for argument here: Urban Gourmet closes at midnight, Espresso's at 1 a.m.Advantage: Espresso Final Score: It comes down to the little things and ultimately, Espresso edges out Urban Gourmet, 3-2. Great food can't beat low prices and a prime location. Sorry, Urban, thanks for coming out. You could have been a contender. Maybe if it moved somewhere closer - like the campus center.

---

News

There's no place like the Balch Arena Theater

August 31

There are other worlds than these. Some of them are on paper. Some of them require a physicists' explanation. Some of them are in the mind. One of them is in the Balch Arena Theater this weekend. Torn Ticket's fall major production, The Wizard of Oz, is an experiment in transformation. Senior Brian Finkelstein is seeking to bring an extraordinary vision to life, turning a single theatrical venue into a fantasy world where giant trees loom ominously and yellow bricks line the street. "The Arena is a wonderful, wonderful space. Most people don't use it to its full potential. There is an opportunity with Oz to do more technically in order to create a separate world," says Finkelstein. "I want to present a series of beautiful images on stage. I hope it turns out that way." Armed with the most experienced arena set designer in town, senior Heather Edwards, and a production staff of nearly 30, this production has recently taken over the Theater. At every possible moment, the Oz staff is painting, building, climbing, and testing - all in the attempt to create quite a spectacle under Finkelstein's direction. Finkelstein has been involved with Torn Ticket since his freshman year. From lighting design to stage management, he has tackled nearly all positions in technical theater. Most recently he produced Jesus Christ Superstar, a show that sold out the mammoth Cohen auditorium for two nights in a row. After organizing and realizing the dream of The Rocky Horror Picture Show in Dewick for Halloween 1999 - a joint effort of Torn Ticket's and Film Series' complete with audience participation and risqu?© floorshow - Finkelstein took an interest in reuniting the Rocky crew for a major production. "Originally, the director wanted to do Evita, but I said 'nuts to you. We're doing JCS'," he fondly recalls. Further seeking to push his creative envelope, Brian sought to bring his vision of Oz to life. The ambitious director claims that part of the challenge of creating this world of Oz is that he is concocting a new vision of the familiar tale. The Wizard of Oz is a story that permeates popular culture in every possible way. In this retelling, the cast and crew have built something more modern and relevant to this day and age. Torn Ticket veteran Anastasia Kousakis faces the formidable task of portraying Dorothy, that quintessential victim of circumstance. Plucked from her ho-hum life in Kansas and thrust into the stimuli-saturated world over the rainbow, the story's heroine is part audience member. "Oz is largely seen through Dorothy's eyes," says Kousakis. "It's her perception of the real people she knows." "We've taken the story and changed its commentary to convey something different," says senior Matt Bargoot, who plays the Cowardly Lion. "Just enough, though. It's the original idea, the fantasy of Oz with a twist." Does this modernization and adaptation of the text work? "Absolutely," confirms Bargoot. "The reason Oz has been so popular is that it strikes a common chord with everyone. We all need our own way of escaping. That's where Oz comes in." Of course, the cast faces the unique challenge of discovering characters that differ from their archetypal counterparts found in the famed movie version of the story. Finkelstein's direction has been important in this process. "We've taken the characters and reinterpreted them according to the theme of this production," he says. "It's still a fantasy and has a floaty feel, but we've maintained a grittier quality." "The cast is tremendous, and have really started to own each individual character," said Finkelstein. Kousakis did not initially see herself as a potential Dorothy. The draw to audition was the desire to work with Finkelstein and be part of his strong vision for the production. "Brian is original and capable of doing something that no one has seen before," she claims. And as a first time director, he has risen to the challenge, especially in working with actors. "He always has an answer, and if not, he'll take his time and find one." Kousakis feels affection for Dorothy's character. "I believe in her. Dorothy's certainly one of the only people in Kansas that is alive," she muses. "I think she learns that you shouldn't always settle for things the way they are just because it might be too hard to change them." Senior David Hartnagel, director of last fall's successful A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum, reprises his role as producer of a Torn Ticket major. "This may sound clich?©, but Brian really works outside the box. He throws the rules out the window and isn't afraid to take risks," he says. "For example, no other director would have attempted the poster design," says Hartnagel, referring to the strikingly minimalist posters that have popped up all over campus. Presenting The Wizard of Oz on stage, particularly on a college campus, means facing a certain ambiguity in the target audience. Hartnagel reflects that "we have done a bit to let families in the community know that the show is appropriate for children, but adults will be able to take away a new appreciation of the story." Finkelstein expects a younger audience for the show's matinee. This is not necessarily true of the evening performances, though. "Everyone can relate to these themes, particularly college students, who will be forced to rethink their understanding of a fantasy they grew up with." Ostensibly, The Wizard of Oz is sure to be a different kind of production than Tufts theatergoers are used to, and a special treat that can only come around once in an academic lifetime. And when it's over, all it will take is three clicks of the heels to get home again.

---

News

Rising tuition costs put burden on students, financial aid office

August 31

The steady increases in Tufts' hefty price tag each year causes many students to turn to the Office of Financial Aid for help. With tuition and associated fees currently estimated at $34,000 a year and rising at a rate of about four percent a year, Financial Aid is forced to continually hunt for funds to meet the needs of students. But Tufts' guarantee that it will meet all demonstrated financial need coupled with the small size of the endowment makes funding students' education an arduous task. Although Tufts is a private institution, it receives a large portion of its financial aid from the federal government. The Department of Education budgets a certain amount of money each year that Tufts administers according to the government's guidelines. As a result of this, the Federal government can attach strings to the money and force the University to conform to some of the its standards. Last year, Tufts doled out nearly $39 million dollars in undergraduate financial aid through Federal grants, outside scholarships, and University funds. Of the $39 million, $24.1 million were grants and scholarships that came directly from Tufts, $10.7 million came from Federal, state, and local governmental agencies, and the balance was made up by funds from private sources, according to Director of Financial Aid Bill Eastwood. Many of the governmental and private funds on which Tufts relies do not keep pace with inflation and the rising cost of tuition, which means that Tufts must increase its financial aid budget even more to compensate. Work study is another form of aid that is administered through the University. Many on-campus jobs are reserved only for work-study students because the federal government pays for 75 percent of a student's wages under this program. Of the nearly $1 million a year in wages that is paid out each year to Tufts work study students, less than one-third of it actually comes from the University budget. "The idea behind work study is that students can work a small number of hours a week, while making enough money to cover their day to day expenses," Eastwood said.Through the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA), students' eligibility for work study, as well as other governmental grants, and loans is determined. Tufts' aid is almost entirely need-based, which makes it different from many other schools that try to attract high-caliber students with large merit-based aid packages. The University meets the entire demonstrated need of students, as determined by the calculations of the Financial Aid office. Although the admissions process admittedly is not 100 percent need blind, Eastwood characterized the policies as "very, very close to being completely need blind." The same formula is used each year to determine the need of all students. This sets Tufts apart from some schools that offer large amounts of financial aid to incoming freshmen while knowing full well that the amount of aid will drop sharply as time goes on. This year, 39 percent of freshmen who enrolled at Tufts were given a financial aid package The Office of Financial Aid is often criticized when students' financial aid packages are reevaluated, as there is a prevailing perception that aid goes down from year to year. Sophomore Sharon Milewits had her package cut because of a change in her family's financial circumstances. "Last year I was pretty satisfied with my aid, but I also had a sister in college. This year my aid went way down, because my sister graduated. I'm worried that it might go down even farther next year," sophomore Sharon Milewits said. However, Eastwood said that decreases in financial aid are not the norm. "In the vast majority of cases, the aid package goes up every year," he said. The rising costs of living and attending Tufts drive tuition up every year, and financial aid rises proportionally with these increases. Improving Tufts' financial aid situation is the number one priority of the University, according to, Budget and University Priorities Committee co-chair Masoud Sanayel. The committee's job is to work with the administration to determine how to best apportion Tufts' budget. It faces the nearly impossible task of deciding how to adequately fund the university's top three priorities: financial aid, campus maintenance and construction, and faculty compensation. While funds for these expenditures traditionally come in large part from a school's endowment, Tufts' meager resources force the committee to use a portion of the Arts and Sciences budget to cover the expenses. "We struggle to strike a balance between the need for quality students with diverse backgrounds, the need for a functional campus, and a top notch faculty. Even with the low endowment, we are still doing well with careful planning," Sanayel said.

---

News

Alumni fueling a booming University development fund

August 31

Homecoming is a time for festivity and nostalgia, with Jumbos past and present converging to party hearty and reminisce about parties of yesteryear. However, as many alumni flock to campus, they come knowing that they may leave on Sunday with vivid memories of heavier wallets. On the eve of one of Tufts' most massive annual fundraising events, administrators are reporting that the University's efforts to increase alumni donations are proving very fruitful. "The University absolutely thinks about [Homecoming as a development event]. Any opportunity to bring alumni to campus and to see students is a very important part of fund raising," said Eric Johnson, deputy director of the capital campaign. Alumni have long been the main source of the University's development efforts and, in recent years, they have done so quite generously. At the gala opening of the Gantcher Center last year, University President John DiBiaggio announced that Tufts Tomorrow, its current fund-raising drive, reached had its fundraising goal of $400 million well ahead of schedule. The capital campaign was therefore extended until 2002, and the bar was raised to $600 million. Since that point, the fund stands at just over $473 million, and efforts to build on this will continue for another 18 months. "We are almost to the $500 million dollar mark, so we're in really good shape in terms of meeting that capital campaign mark. A lot of exciting things have been happening as result of this fund raising," Alumni Relations Director Tim Brooks said. Because of historic problems with fund raising, Tufts' total endowment remains significantly smaller than those of its benchmark schools, but recent fundraising efforts have yielded promising results. Tufts ranks 27th - two spots higher than its overall ranking - among national universities for alumni giving, according to the US News and World Report college listing. "Each year, approximately 30 percent of Tufts alumni make financial contributions. Over the course of the Tufts Tomorrow capital campaign, over 60 percent of Tufts alumni have made a contribution," Vice President of Arts, Science, and Technology Mel Bernstein said. According to Johnson, the $85 million that Tufts raised last year is "extremely good for a comparable-sized school." University officials attribute much of their success to the school's close relationships with its alumni. "In a way, we feel like doing events like this is a way to keep alumni connected to the institution and make them feel appreciated, and to give them a feel for what the campus is like today," Brooks said. "If we do Homecoming really well, and the alumni who come back feel terrific about their time here, nine times out of ten they'll want to do something to give back to the University, such as volunteering to recruit students, leading one of our regional support clubs, or supporting the institution with a financial gift." In addition to the wide base of support the Development Department enjoys, it has recently been able to secure some truly monumental donations. "During the past year, Tufts has been fortunate to attract a number of significant donations from alumni and friends of the University," Johnson said. Board of Trustees member Bernard Gordon gave Tufts' largest single gift ever last fall when he donated $20 million to the engineering school. The new University College of Citizenship and Public Service is also benefiting from a $10 million gift from e-Bay founder Pierre Omidyar (LA '88) and his wife Pamela Kerr Omidyar (J '89). There have also been a few smaller multi-million dollar donations. "Past parents Gary and Karen Winnick (LA '79P) donated $2 million for financial aid... Last November, we celebrated the creation of the Arthur Jr. and Lenore Stern Chair in American History, which was made possible by a $1.5 million gift from trustee James Stern (E '72)," Bernstein said. Younger alumni, however, say that giving is often difficult, especially right out of college. "Younger classes, say since 1990, tend to have lower participation than older classes. There are a number of reasons for this. These young men and women are usually either in graduate school or just starting their careers," Bernstein said. Many times, the more socially oriented students - who are documented as the most likely to give - have the most trouble because they take community or government positions that keep them on tight budgets. Vivek Ramgopal (LA '00), a transition member of the Alumni Association who has given to Tufts, noted, however, that the not everybody has to have their own dot-com to have an impact. "I think that a common misconception is that you always have to donate a large amount. I know that with the US News ranking, it's a percentage, so if every Tufts senior gave one cent, the number would go up," he said.

---

---

News

Jumbos fall 1-2 to Middlebury

August 31

Despite outshooting the Middlebury Panthers 14-8 on Saturday, the women's field hockey team dropped its second consecutive one-goal game, by a 2-1 count. The death blow came on a three-on-two goal with just over seven minutes to play in overtime, courtesy of the fiberglass stick of Middlebury's Kristen Behr.

---

News

Infestations bugging students

August 31

You are sitting in your room, munching away on a brownie recently snuck from Dewick. You hear a noise and look up from your paper, only to see a mouse scuttle across your floor. It just ran across the floor and under my roommate's bed," said Caitlin Stone, a junior living in Latin Way apartments. "We called the TUPD [Tufts University Police Department] because that's what someone told us to do. They came and set traps." She and her roommate have not seen the mouse since. The rodent problem at Tufts, although annoying to some, is not yet considered an epidemic. So far this year, Facilities has received 45 complaints of mice indoors on campus. Most have been in residences, but a few have been in other buildings such as Paige and Ballou. Facilities fields phone calls from students and then sends out an exterminator from Ecolab, who is on campus three times a week. "We give him his orders and send him out," said a receptionist at Facilities.The exterminator generally sprays with a rodenticide in the areas where signs of mouse habitation can be found. These include fresh teeth marks and mouse droppings. Although the exterminator sprays areas where evidence of rodents is present, this does not always solve the larger-scale problem. "Sometimes, students don't want their room to be treated," the receptionist said. "It makes it difficult to get rid of a mouse because it will stay out of the treated room, but start living in the untreated one." Many students are worried about the ways mice can enter their rooms. Matt Schuman, a junior living in Latin Way, reported a mouse in his room. "It could get in really easily under our door, so if it becomes a problem, we are going to buy traps or glue boards," he said. The exterminator takes measures to close any holes that rodents could squeeze through. According to the Institute of Agriculture and Natural Resources, closing up these holes is extremely important because mice can squeeze through holes a quarter of an inch wide or bigger. That means if your window screens do not fit or your door does not make a tight seal with the threshold, mice can get in. Another problem on campus this semester has been bugs, especially spiders and roaches. Mike, a Hodgdon resident, said his entire hall was full of spiders. "We would vacuum the room and three days later there would be webs all over the place," he said. "You could see [the spiders] while walking down hall. One night, I was so grossed out by the spiders on my bed that I went to my sister's house to sleep." One of his hall mates called Facilities, who sent the exterminator. For the most part, the spiders have been taken care of, though they're not completely eradicated. "One of my hall mates saw a spider today," Mike said. In addition to the rodent and spider sightings, Facilities has received 22 complaints this semester about roaches. To combat the pests, the exterminator usually puts pesticides in the cracks where the roaches live. Roaches tend to be a problem wherever people live, mostly because they are so hardy. According to the University of Delaware's College of Agriculture and Natural Resources, roaches will eat anything from milk, to postage stamp glue, to human fingernails and toenails while the owner sleeps. They only need to eat about once a month, and drink about once a week. For those who wish to remove roaches on their own, www.eHow.com suggests scattering boric acid where the roaches are usually seen. The acid sticks to the insects' legs, and when the roaches clean themselves, they ingest the boric acid, which kills them. Boric acid, although soothing to the eyes, is also deadly to humans if ingested, so don't use it around food. Another suggestion eHow gives is to mix baking soda and powdered sugar in equal parts, and then leave it out for your uninvited guests. Roaches love sugar and will ingest the fatal baking soda along with it. However, this may have the undesired side effect of ants or other bugs if left out too long.

---

News

A rude awakening

August 31

For those of you that haven't been paying much attention to the presidential campaigns up until this point, the debates of Tuesday night were probably a rude, but revealing awakening. While Al Gore kept to the issues, clearly explaining his positions, George W. Bush spent more time mudslinging than he did actually informing the voters about his stance on the issues. Al Gore clearly came off as the more likable candidate, at one point even saying that he would not respond to Bush's personal attacks with counterattacks of his own, while Bush came off as a badgering candidate and generally rude person. In a recent visit to Tufts, Matt Bai, a Tufts alum and political columnist for Newsweek magazine, said that these debates are "largely a test of George W. Bush." This was a test Bush failed miserably on Tuesday night. The strategies of the two candidates during Tuesday's debate were quite obvious. While Gore sought to inform the voters about his stance on the major issues, George W. Bush attempted to tie Gore to "the last seven years" as much as possible while also attacking Gore's character. Bush's mudslinging quickly degenerated into generalizations that were outright wrong. Apparently Bush never took a philosophy or communications course while he was pulling C's at Yale because he failed to form proper arguments several times during the debate, and instead elected to make more groundless attacks on Gore. For example, Bush said about half way through the debate, "Sounds like the vice president is not very right tonight." As if a man that says "'at risk' children means they basically can't learn," has a right to criticize! In fact, Bush is the one that wasn't very right through much of the debate, and when he was wrong, he just refused to answer the question. Take the issue of abortion, for example. Although both candidates have said abortion will not be a litmus test for who they appoint to the supreme court, Gore admitted that his view of appointing justices who support the idea that the "constitution should be a dynamic document that changes with the times" would most likely mean that he would appoint justices that support Roe v. Wade. However, in response to Gore's argument that Bush's rhetoric was code for the fact that he would appoint justices who would overturn Roe v. Wade, Bush simply said that he supported strict constructionists of the constitution, failing to give an honest answer to Gore's query. Apparently, he assumes that we, the voters, are all stupid and that we don't know that strict constructionists would overturn the Roe decision in a heartbeat. Additionally, Bush failed to answer Gore's question as to why he would spend more on a tax cut that benefits the wealthiest one percent in America then he would on health care, education ,and social security combined. Instead Bush responded, "the man [Gore] is practicing fuzzy math, folks." Oh, George W. Bush, what a profound statement! How about you justify that accusation instead of making blind attacks? The pinnacle of Bush's mudslinging came near the end of the debate when the candidates were asked how their moral character should affect people's vote. Bush, once again, did not answer the question. Instead, he made an attack on Gore saying, "I feel like this administration has turned the phrase 'the buck stops here' into 'the buck stops at the Lincoln Bedroom'." Is this mudslinging politician really the kind of person you want running this country? Someone who cares not about his fellow man or about public service but is content with making a mockery of the process? I hope not. Clearly Gore took the high ground in this debate. Using a combination of mudslinging rhetoric and non-answers to some very important questions, Bush demonstrated his utter inability to lead this country. The obvious holes in Bush's policies and in his intellect were revealed in this debate. Bush made it eminently clear that he was governor of the second largest state in the union during the debate. What he didn't tell you is that the Governor of Texas is granted very little power in the state's constitution. I say George W. Bush should stick to what he knows - being a weak governor of one of the largest states in the union. Justin Krypel is a freshman who has not yet selected a major. He is a member of the Tufts Democrats.

---

News

Hoops doubleheader at Cousen's Gym tonight

August 31

The men's and women's basketball teams will each take the floor at Cousens Gym tonight for the final time this semester in a doubleheader extravaganza beginning at 6 p.m. The women's squad will tip off first against Regis, while the men will take on Babson in the latter half, starting at 8 p.m. On the women's side, the Jumbos come into the contest at 2-1, having just topped Lasell in an 81-66 blowout at Cousens on Sunday. Freshman guard Marista Christoudias contributed a team-high 23 points to go along with nine steals, while sophomore center Emily Goodman, last week's NESCAC Player of the Week chipped in 22 points and eight rebounds. Regis (1-3), fresh off its first win of the year, will attempt to hand Tufts its first loss at home of the young season. The Beacons were anything but lucky their first three outings, losing the first two games by a combined total of three points and then falling to MIT in a 78-55 rout last Thursday. But then on Saturday, everything finally clicked as the visiting Regis toppled Fitchburg in convincing fashion, 78-66. The Beacons attack is led by junior Christa Wirth, senior Laura Trimboli, and freshman Nicole Healy. The Tufts men's team is looking to extend its two-game winning streak against Babson, a team that it beat to the tune of 60-50 last year in Waltham. The Jumbos have looked strong in both of their match-ups since Salem State dealt them an 84-70 setback in the season opener last Monday. Springfield was Tufts' most recent victim, as coach Bob Sheldon's team led from the start en route to a 91-66 victory on Saturday night. The squad was again on fire from three-point land, draining 41.7% of its attempts. As a team, the Jumbos have shot 34.7 percent from downtown to date. Babson currently sports a 3-2 record, having also suffered defeat against powerful Salem State. The Beavers came up short against the Vikings on Saturday, 83-71, which also halted Babson's two game win streak. The visitors will look to a trio of scorers: junior forward Brian McCarthy, sophomore guard Joe Colleli, and freshman guard Jeff Hines, to avenge last season's loss to the Jumbos.

---

News

Professional women's soccer league on the way

August 31

The spring of 2001 may bring professional sports to campus, as the Boston Breakers of the newly created Women's United Soccer Association (WUSA) are strongly considering using Tufts' Zimman Field for home games. The main competition for Breakers' games is Foxboro Stadium, which currently hosts the New England Patriots of the NFL and the Revolution of MLS. But for the team to play at Tufts, Zimman Field might have to undergo major changes, such as expanding the seating capability so that it could support a professional sporting event. While Tufts may be willing to make such changes, the city of Somerville must also approve the plan. Parking and traffic issues must be considered by the city before the team can declare Zimman Field its home. Despite these reservations, it Tufts is one of the front-runners for landing Breakers games, according to the Associated Press. If the team is not able to play at Tufts next season, it will settle for Foxboro Stadium. Playing at Foxboro would create the possibility of men's and women's soccer doubleheaders, featuring the Breakers and Revolution. Where the Breakers will play is one of the many unfinished details about their season: the roster and schedule remain unfinished as well. But the team does have part of its roster settled. Superstars such as Brandi Chastain and Mia Hamm will be members of the new league. Chastain will be playing for the San Francisco team, while Hamm will be donning a Washington uniform. The Breakers will feature German Olympic Bronze medallist Bettina Wiegmann and Maren Meinert, who were selected in Monday's foreign allocation draft. Both are considered strong and versatile players. Jay Hoffman has been appointed as the Breakers head coach for next season. Hoffman enters the league with a good deal of experience that he gained serving as the assistant coach for the US Women's National Team from 1998-2000. In 1999, he helped lead the team to the World Cup Championship. Most recently, Hoffman has served as a scout for the 2000 men's Olympic team. The performance of the women's national team has led to a rising American interest in the sport. As a result, an investment group headed by John S. Hendricks, chairman and CEO of Discovery Communications Inc., decided to form the WUSA. The league will initially feature eight teams, located in Atlanta, Boston, New York, Philadelphia, San Diego, San Francisco, Washington DC, and Chapel Hill, North Carolina. Boston's team name was decided by a "name the team" contest which brought in over 1200 entries. The contest was open to all, and a board voted on the entries. In the end, 15-year-old Laura DeDanato's choice of Breakers garnered the most votes. The women's soccer team will not be the first Breakers in Boston. In 1983, the Boston Breakers were the area's USFL football team. But, unable to secure a better stadium within the city, the team owner opted to move them to New Orleans. Boston fans hope that the new version of the Breakers finds a permanent home in the Boston area, possibly Tufts, unlike their USFL predecessors.

---

News

Iranian Film Festival at MFA continues with 'The Day I Became A Woman'

August 31

The Day I Became a Woman

---

News

Renting and Recounting

August 31

The presidential cliffhanger has presented a formidable challenge to the media as we try to convey the constitutional processes at work without boring our readers and viewers. One way has been to scare the bejeezus out of people by proclaiming that the legal wrangling will end up destroying the earth. In the words of one pundit, "All this legal wrangling will end up destroying the earth." Even Congress is running scared, because it knows that without a president members will actually have to do something. According to Senate Majority Leader Trent Lott, "For the love of God get us a President, anything to take the public's eye off of what we are doing here. I can't kill campaign finance reform with you people looking at me. Go away. Cover the Department of Housing and Urban Development or something...." Instead of bringing you the supposedly enlightened views of pundits and observers, this journalist took it upon himself to dig deeper and personalize the Florida recount. I volunteered for the Florida Recount Effort (FRE) and headed to the Sunshine State as a non-partisan participant who happens to be a member of the Democratic Party. Upon arriving at the Palm Beach International Airport I rushed over to the Avis Rent-A-Grandparent counter and got myself a nice old man, much more agreeable than the mean elderly woman who I rented last Spring Break. I hugged him (it is part of the rental agreement) and said, "Grandpa! I am so happy to see you! Come on, let's get my bags, we're gonna be late!" (Another component of the rental agreement is you have to pretend that you are the rental's grandchild, since they are old and will believe anything.)He looked at me for a moment with his one good eye and said, "You gotten so big, I can't believe it. Wait till Mildred sees you! My car is outside. Have you eaten today? The food they serve on the plane is just atrocious. That is why whenever I fly I take a bag of raisins with me, and sometimes, I sneak a knish onboard and have the young lady heat it up." So "Grandpa" and I headed to downtown West Palm Beach in his DeVille. Unfortunately, the 20-mile trip took an hour and a half when he took a wrong turn down Clematis Street. (Note to readers: There actually is a Clematis Street in West Palm Beach). "No Grandpa, we want Main Street, not Clematis." "Chlamidya, what? Where did you learn such things?""No, turn down Simons Ave. and then we'll be golden." "You have syphilis too? Does your mother know about this?" Upon reaching the elections board I sent my new family member into the nearest dialysis center/deli and headed in to start counting. Outside the elections commission building was a row of street vendors selling everything from Electoral College T-shirts to chads. A chad is basically the punch hole from the punch card ballot; it is the bit of paper that is displaced from the punch. The problem is that on Election Day some of the cards were not completely punched, so the machine didn't read them, and the hand-counters, like myself, have to interpret the partially punched ballot. "Get your chads heah! All types of chads! We got your hangin' chad, your pregnant chad, and a dimpled chad for the ladies! Get your chads heah!" the vendor shouted. After pushing my way through a throng of reporters from all over the world, including 18 live reporters from CNN who were each reporting on where the other reporters were located, I made it to the counting room. I was shocked to find just one person, an elections board intern, recounting all the votes. "Hi, I'm Mike. I go to college down here. I'm glad you came, I've been expecting someone. Everyone else is out in court fighting over whether we should be recounting at all," he said. Mike explained to me the way things have been going, and told me to settle in for a long and boring experience. "Settle in for a long and boring experience," he said. "We have started the recount ten times, but each time we have been stopped. The Republicans don't want us to recount because they think that Gore will pick up votes, so they are coming up with excuses," he continued. "When they hear that we have started counting again they call and mess us up. Watch what happens." I sat and watched Mike for two hours as he counted half a precinct. Just as he was about to write down his total, the phone rang. He put it on speakerphone: "Three, no, four, no, 3,395," the female voice said. "Divide everything by two, then multiply by five, and take the square root of that. Oh, and this is not the Florida Secretary of State calling," and with that she hung up. "Damn, I lost count again," Mike said, as he threw the ballots down.In his frustration Mike let me have a go at the ballots. I held them up to the light like I had seen on TV. I poured water on them to see if they leaked like you do with a suspect tire. I even lit a few of them on fire to test their heat response. My results: an overwhelming majority of Palm Beach County voters voted for someone with the last name "Erog." Mike told me that was probably wrong, so I tried again, this time taking over six hours before I came back with the result of "What number comes after 5,999 again?" "Screw it," Mike said. "Let's just call the county for Gore, with a few votes for seceding from the Union." We agreed and headed out for a night of media interviews. The questions I received were a little strange. For example, CNN Legal Analyst Greta Van Sustren (known by the acronym GVS) asked me the leading question: "Which has been better for my career: the current electoral crisis, the Elian Gonzalez case, or the OJ Simpson trial?" While chatting it up on CNN's Talk Back Live I was informed that my hard recounting work was all for nothing. CNN summarized the legal wrangling that had taken place while I was counting. CNN said that a Florida State Court judge had ruled that the hand recounts were not going to be accepted, but that judge was then overruled by another judge who said they could be accepted, but only if the Secretary of State agreed. Then the Republican Secretary of State said 'no,' but a Federal judge said 'yes,' to which the Secretary of State invoked the rarely used "no times infinity" clause, at which point the US Supreme Court had no choice but to release a statement saying, "We just can't compete with that." So, I left the next morning, satisfied that I at least tried to make a difference. As for my Rent-A-Grandparent, he says he accidentally voted for Proposition 5 for President, but that he doesn't care at this point. "I meant to vote for Prop four, but it is fine. As long as one of them wins, I don't care. I am just trying to leave the world a better place for you. I love you," he told me as he drove me back to the airport.

---

News

Tune in, turn on, fail finals

August 31

Classes are just about over, which means it's time to say goodbye to this semester and move on to bigger and better things - otherwise known as finals. It's not like you really needed another reminder of the stress to come in the next two weeks, but we at the Daily figured we'd help you find ways to procrastinate with a few of this weekend's new movie releases. Don't worry, you can thank us later.Proof Of Life Director: Taylor Hackford Starring: Russell Crowe, Meg Ryan, David Morse, David Caruso, and Pamela Reed There's nothing like a suspense flick to get your mind off the horrors of a chemistry final. Proof Of Life tells the story of Alicia (Meg Ryan), a distraught wife who enlists the aid of professional negotiator Terry Thorne (Russell Crowe) in tracking down her husband, an engineer who has been kidnapped by anti-government guerrillas in South America. Meg Ryan does a lot of growing up in this movie, shedding her Sleepless In Seattle skin and proving her skills as an actress capable of being more then the helpless and hopeless female. Russell Crowe is already a favorite with men and women alike, thanks to a stellar performance in Gladiator and those mysterious blue eyes. A perfect balance between special effects and real acting, Proof Of Life is bound to make you feel a little less guilty about taking a two hour break from your textbooks. Vertical Limit Director: Martin Campbell Starring: Chris O'Donnell, Bill Paxton, and Robin Tunney If Meg Ryan just isn't your cup of tea, but you're still in the mood for an action-packed, heart-racing good time, don't give up hope just yet. Vertical Limit just might interest you.. Those of you planning ski trips over winter break, be forewarned - this is probably not a movie you want to see. Most of the action takes place atop K2, the second highest mountain the world, where Elliot Vaughn and Annie Garrett (Bill Paxton and Robin Tunney) are buried in an avalanche. While they fight for their lives, Annie's brother Peter (Chris O'Donnell) puts together a group of volunteers and sets out to save them. It may be slightly reminiscent of The Perfect Storm in that natural-disaster-flick kind of way, but you can't get too picky when you're looking to procrastinate.

---

News

Senate and TCUJ candidates square off in election debate

August 31

Last night's Tufts Community Union (TCU) Senate and Judiciary debates were reminiscent of a pi?±ata contest, with participants stabbing blindly at a hidden prize. Some made direct hits, while others seemed to be swinging with lots of gusto but little aim.

---

News

Late rally falls short for Jumbos in 27-20 loss to Trinity

August 31

A fourth quarter comeback from a 17-point deficit was too little, too late for the Jumbos on Saturday in Hartford, as they fell 27-20 to the Trinity College Bantams. The loss dropped Tufts to .500 (2-2) on the season, while propelling Trinity (3-1) into a five-way tie atop the NESCAC. The Jumbos, who played with senior running back Brian Holmes back from injury but were missing quarterback Scott Treacy, gave up two touchdowns early in the fourth quarter to find themselves in too deep a hole. Just over a minute into the final frame, Tufts quarterback Todd Scalia had a pass picked off by Trinity linebacker Andrew Wertz and returned to the Jumbo six-yard line. Bantam quarterback Greg Ward then found David Mogan in the end zone to put Trinity up, 20-10. Scalia was intercepted again two plays later, this time by safety Gavin O'Reilly, who ran 28 yards for another Trinity touchdown, making the score 27-10. The game marked Scalia's third start of the season and saw both high and low points for the sophomore quarterback. He threw three interceptions on the day and completed 12 of his 29 passes, but also notched the first two passing touchdowns of his young college career, to go with a season-high 149 yards. "I'm obviously disappointed," Scalia said. "I'm just going to keep trying." Scalia rebounded from the interceptions to engineer a comeback that just fell short. Howie Rock's 30-yard field goal with eight minutes remaining narrowed the margin to 14, and five minutes later Scalia capped a lengthy drive with a 21-yard touchdown pass to senior wideout Brett Cicchillo, making the score 27-20. It was Cicchillo's first touchdown of the season, and one of three passes he caught on the day. The touchdown came with just over two minutes remaining in the game, and the Jumbos almost had a chance for another scoring drive. The Tufts defense forced Trinity to punt with 1:27 remaining, but was called for a personal foul penalty on the punt, giving the Bantams time enough to run out the clock. "I thought they were pretty good," Scalia said afterwards. "But we could have beat them." Scalia's first touchdown pass came on a 44-yard strike to sophomore Bryan Pitko, giving Tufts a 7-6 lead early in the second quarter. It would prove be the Jumbos' only lead of the game, though, as Trinity struck back with a 12-yard, 75-play drive led by five Ward passes. The quarterback finished it with a five-yard touchdown pass to Mike Indelicato that put the Bantams up 13-7 heading into the locker room. The Jumbo defense, led by 11 tackles apiece from defensive back Greg Devine and linebacker Mike Marino, held Trinity scoreless in the third quarter, while Tufts tacked on another three points with a 40-yard Rock field goal to make the score 13-10. But the Jumbos dug their own grave with the two costly interceptions in the fourth quarter. "We played hard," sophomore offensive lineman Andy Dickerson said. "But we made some mistakes that cost us the game." Saturday marked the first time Matt Cerne did not lead the team in receptions and receiving yardage, as the freshman and two-time NESCAC Rookie of the Week caught two balls for 48 yards. Instead, it was Pitko who had a breakout day for the Jumbos, gaining 68 yards on four receptions. "He's a really good receiver," Scalia said of Pitko. "He stepped it up on Saturday, and he's just barely scratching the surface of what he can do." Senior Brian Holmes, who sat out last week's game with a hamstring injury, returned and led the team with 84 rushing yards, while sophomore Chuck McGraw got just seven carries and totaled 31 yards on the ground. Unlike in previous weeks, the Jumbos went to the pass nearly as many times as they went to the rush. Trinity was led by freshman tailback Tom Pierandri, who ran for 103 yards off the bench. The Bantams totaled 131 rushing yards, more than any of Tufts' other three opponents combined this season. But this Saturday's opponent, Williams, has rushed for 681 yards on the season, led by David Kinsley and Fred Storz. The final four games of the season arguably bring the team's toughest four opponents of the season, particularly Williams (2-2) this weekend and an Oct. 28 date with Amherst (3-1). Middlebury topped Williams 28-14 this weekend, so next weekend's Tufts Homecoming match will pit two teams coming off of disappointing losses. Despite Saturday's loss, the Jumbos remain just a lone game out of first place in the NESCAC and still very much in contention. The Ephmen traditionally dominate the Jumbos, but the graduation of several key players from last year's team, including quarterback Sean Keenan, have put a huge dent in the team's roster that it has been surprisingly unable to overcome. A Tufts win on Saturday could actually anchor Williams' record below .500. "They've been struggling," Scalia said of the Ephmen, "but they're always a tough team to play." As usual, it remains uncertain whether Scalia or Treacy will get the nod at quarterback. Saturday's game kicks off at 2 p.m. on Zimman Field.

---

News

Students express political discontent

August 31

Despite rain and cold temperatures, students from a Tufts contingent ventured down to Fort Benning, Ga. from Nov. 17 to 19 to protest the US Army School of Americas (SOA), a training ground that teaches combat, counter-insurgency, and counter-narcotics tactics to Latin American soldiers. Fifteen Tufts students were arrested during the demonstration, according to event coordinator sophomore Roger Winn.This demonstration and vigil is held yearly to honor the anniversary of the assassination of six Jesuit priests, their housekeeper, and her teenage daughter in El Salvador in 1989 by SOA graduates. Over 10,000 people took part in the vigil, according to SOA Watch at www.soaw.org, and 2,100 of these protesters were arrested for crossing the border into SOA property. Tufts took 32 students by van, including Wesleyan University and Museum school students, through the Coalition for Social Justice and Nonviolence. For those arrested, the consequences were minimal - they are not allowed to step foot on the base for five years. For Winn, who was among the arrested, this was a small price to pay to make a bold statement. "The more people that cross the line, the louder the protest - I used [crossing the line] to make my voice louder," Winn said.Winn and others from the Tufts contingent find the actions and mere existence of the SOA insufferable. When senior Ariana Wohl was abroad in Chile last year, she heard first-hand accounts of acts of terror that occurred during dictator Augusto Pinochet's rule - realities that were made possible, in part, by SOA graduates. A large number of Pinochet's army and intelligence staff consisted of SOA grads, according to websites such as the National Catholic Reporter and www.derechos.org. Wohl, who also went to the protest when she was a sophomore and assisted in coordinating the trip this year, became further involved after her experiences in Chile. "After studying in Chile, I was further energized to take a stand against this school because I talked to and became friends with so many survivors of Pinochet's reign. I remember hearing horrible things about [acts such as] rape and electrical torture," she said. "I feel a personal duty to my friends and teachers there." Wohl also got her friends involved in the cause, such as junior Sarah Marcus, who attended the vigil for the first time this year. "I heard it was a really powerful protest that attracts all different types of people and everyone comes together for the cause - and that's how it was," Marcus said. "There were college students, older people, Veterans for Peace, families with little kids." SOA grads have been responsible for some of the worst human rights abuses recorded in Latin America. According to SOA Watch, the school's 60,000 graduates include infamous dictators such as Manuel Noriega and Omar Torrijos of Panama, Leopoldo Galtieri and Roberto Viola of Argentina, Juan Velasco Alvarado of Peru, Guillermo Rodriguez of Ecuador, and Hugo Banzer Suarez of Bolivia. Events associated with the SOA continue to plague Latin America. According to Wohl, a recent massacre orchestrated by SOA grads slaughtered 400 people in El Solado, Colombia just this February. "The school has always been this arm of the US government and army, a way [for the US] to have a hand in foreign politics to undermine popular uprisings whenever they're [about] to occur," Wohl said, adding that SOA protesters are currently focusing on human rights violations in Chiapas, Mexico and Colombia. "The areas where the SOA has been active have been areas where the US has had certain political and corporate interests." Awareness of the violations committed by SOA graduates has recently seeped into the US consciousness. Even at Tufts, the number of protesters doubled from just 15 last year. "[Awareness of the SOA is] definitely a national trend," Wohl said.However, Wohl blamed the news media for insufficient coverage of the vigil. "There were very small blurbs in [The New York] Times and [The Boston] Globe. [The stories] only mentioned people who were arrested, not the number in attendance," she said, adding that this does not address the size, and therefore, the importance of the protest.The number of protesters at the event may be one of the most important factors when it comes to affecting change. "The only people who can do anything are the legislators," Marcus said. "[The protest] shows the government there are enough people who want to shut down the school and we're going to keep coming down there."The protesters' actions were also significant in regards to the cause that they seek to promote. "Nonviolence is critical to this experience because it's antithetical to answer violence with violence. Most people participating in this movement feel strongly [about] nonviolence," Wohl said.In the future, Wohl's personal convictions will keep her involved in the SOA cause until action is taken. "Just as a human being I can't stand to willingly go along knowing that my government and my tax dollars are training people to decimate their own people," she said, adding that she hopes to start a letter writing campaign and possibly participate in the April SOA demonstration in Washington, DC.With such an awareness of the SOA, Winn also feels that he cannot tolerate such violations. "Without showing up [to the vigil], I'm accepting the status quo and accepting the methods used today that don't account for human rights," he said. "I value human life and any time it's disrespected and people suffer, I need to speak out against it." Wohl added that there are other schools like the SOA at other sites around the world, but the one in Georgia receives the most attention because of its immediacy. "This school has been targeted because it's here, it's in our backyard," she said.However, Marcus felt removed from what she heard about the SOA until she attended the vigil. "I wanted to make the sacrifice to miss what was going on at Tufts that weekend and drive 40 hours to see how it would be for myself. It's easy to hear about something and distance yourself from it, but I wanted to go down and show my support in a more active way," she said.

---

News

Tired, hurting Jumbos third at Keene State Invitational

August 31

Keene State and UMass-Lowell battered the depleted Tufts men's cross country team on Saturday at the Keene State Invitational in New Hampshire. Keene State won the meet with 19 points, while UMass-Lowell gained 65 points to finish a surprising second against a reeling Tufts squad. The Jumbos, who finished with 74 points, competed without the services of their number four runner, junior Jason Mann. Mann, who has been the Jumbos' fourth runner for the whole season, injured himself during practice last Tuesday. While working out, Mann stumbled and fell, breaking his right wrist and ending any chance that the Jumbos may have had to beat Keene State. "We took an ass kicking," coach Connie Putnam said. "I don't like to get beat by a team that we already beat (Lowell), but with Mann out of the picture we have a pretty good excuse." Doctors fitted Mann with a small cast that ends just below his elbow, and, after taking this weekend off, he intends to return to competition next week. "I'm definitely going to run [this weekend] with it," Mann said. "It is going to affect me but I don't know to what degree." Even with Mann, the Jumbos would have needed strong showings from their top four runners and a stellar performance from their fifth runner in order to have any chance against the mighty Keene State. The lack of a solid fifth runner has plagued the team all season. "To have beaten Keene State would have taken a perfect effort and not having him there was a blow to our team," senior co-captain Adrian Wilairat said. "We need Mann." Mann's injury forced Tufts to run without a top runner in both the fourth and fifth positions. Freshman James Lamoureax tried to fill the gap as best he could, finishing fourth on the team and 25th overall (27:45). Junior Justin Lewis, who was on Lamoureax's tail throughout the race, placed fifth for the Jumbos and 27th in the meet (27:48). Usually the gap between Jason Mann and the fifth runner is approximately one minute. However, with Mann missing, the hole became even more magnified as the large delta was between the third runner, junior Ben Smith (26:34 and 11th overall) and Lamoureax. Other than Smith, only junior J.R. Cruz (26:04 and fifth overall) and senior co-captain Dave Patterson (26:14 and eighth overall) had impressive races. While the loss to Lowell was discouraging, it was especially upsetting to Mann. "It's even worse watching your team lose then actually losing," Mann said. "There is no worse feeling than standing on the sideline knowing I could do something if I was running." With Putnam expecting Mann to return for the All-New England Championships on Friday, Lamoureax and Lewis should slip back into a competition for the fifth spot with Wilairat and sophomore Adam Sharp. More important than their battle with each other is their fight with the clock to improve their times before the big meets at the end of the season. At these meets, the fifth man will have to be on the tail of the fourth runner in order for the team to have any significant success. Throughout the season both Putnam and his runners have emphasized the importance of developing a strong fifth runner. With the Jumbos entering the second half of their season on Friday, the team realizes that now is the time for one or more of the challengers to emerge. "Our performance [on Saturday] tells us it is time to get rolling," Wilairat said. "The meet was a wake up call. It's getting towards the middle of the season and the bottom line is that we won't improve if our 5-8 runners don't start running faster. Myself included." "I feel I have an important role," Lamoureax said. "I'm going to try to live up to what they need me to do." In spite of Mann's injury and the Jumbos' inability to find a fifth runner, the team remains surprisingly upbeat. "All you can do is work hard in practice and give it your all in a race," Mann said. "By the [New England] qualifiers I believe we will have a fifth guy. The minute you start to get discouraged you are beating yourself." The pressure continues this weekend for the struggling Jumbos as they head to Franklin Park on Friday for the All-New England Championships, which features many of the best Div. I, II, and III teams in New England. "This meet is very reminiscent of how the D-III National Championship goes," Putnam said. "It's a good rehearsal." "It's an opportunity to run with the top dogs," Wilairat said. "There will be a lot of adrenaline running through our veins."

---

News

Women's cross country finishes seventh in NESCAC

August 31

The women's cross country team performed as expected in Saturday's New England Small College Athletic College (NESCAC) championship at Amherst, placing seventh out of 11 teams. The team was led by senior co-captain Leslie Crofton, who took second place overall in the meet. Crofton, who has been the consistent first place finisher for the team this season, crossed the line with a time of 18:46, only two seconds behind overall first place finisher Jessica Johnston of Middlebury. Johnston was the defending champion at this race as well as being one of the top distance runners in New England. "I had a strategy before the race to stay right with the Middlebury girl," Crofton said. "Leslie ran exactly as planned," coach Kristin Morwick said. "It was a tough course. She ran a perfect race." Crofton's second-place run was the highest Jumbo finish in the NESCACs in recent memory. Last season, the Jumbos' top runner, '00 graduate Cindy Manning, placed eighth overall. Crofton crossed the line in 28th place a year ago. Crofton's performance in this race shows how strong her chances of qualifying for nationals are. The top nine individuals from non-qualifying teams in the NCAA regional qualifier win a spot in nationals. The only runner to beat Crofton in this race was from Middlebury, a team that is virtually assured of a national berth. "The focus is to try to all come together to get the team to nationals," Crofton said. "Either way I want to go, but I'd much rather go with the team like last year." Despite Crofton's success, the team's chances for qualifying for nationals are getting smaller and smaller. Besides Middlebury and Williams, the team was beaten by Amherst, Connecticut College, and Wesleyan, all of which are teams that the Jumbos were gunning for. Only the top four teams in the New England region will clinch berths in nationals. Amherst, Conn. College, Wesleyan, and Tufts are in direct competition for those spots as well as Colby and Brandeis. Colby finished ninth in the race but was missing some of their top runners. Brandeis is not a member of the NESCAC and therefore did not race on Saturday. They will be a threat in the regional qualifier. "We are in a tough conference with five teams ranked nationally," Morwick said. "We are a young and inexperienced team. This is a rebuilding year for us, new coach, new system, new team. I'm not sure we are ready to represent the region at nationals." While Crofton may not have her team running with her at nationals, she may have the company of her teammate junior Heather Ballantyne. Ballantyne finished the race in 20th place, second place for the team, with a time of 19:44. Ballantyne has been consistently racing to the second best time on the team this season. Though she placed 20th in the race, most of the runners ahead of her were from Middlebury, Williams, and Hamilton. Middlebury and Williams will most likely qualify as teams for nationals and Hamilton is not in New England and therefore not a member of the region. Of the runners who are vying for spots individually, Ballantyne finished seventh. She will have to step it up at the qualifier however where there will be more women in competition for those nine spots. "Ballantyne has a chance to qualify," Morwick said. "She is racing better every week, and she looks good in workouts. It is great for the team." The team needs all the help it can get, especially since it is now dealing with the leg injury of sophomore Mary Nodine. Nodine has done a lot to support the team this season, typically finishing third for the team. However, this weekend still feeling the effects of the injury, she finished seventh for the team in 74th place with a time of 21 flat. "This is a setback." Morwick said. "It forces us to rely on our freshmen. It is hard with such a young team. If one thing goes wrong, we are scraping to get it together." The freshmen did step it up on Saturday. Freshmen Lauren Caputo (47th, 20:22), Katie Mason (62nd, 20:43), and Lauren Dunn (70th, 20:51) finished in the third fourth and sixth places for the team respectively. Senior co-captain Jennifer Edelmann took the fifth place finish for the team in 63rd with a time of 20:44. This weekend the Brown and Blue will host the ECAC Division III championship race. The second seven runners will compete in this race, while the top seven runners will prepare for regionals the weekend after.

---

News

Reality in the Middle East

August 31

In her viewpoint "Where is all this dark Israeli hatred coming from?" on Oct. 17, Dina Karam discusses what she views as excessive Israeli force in response to the recent outbursts of Palestinian violence. She states, "The only explanation I can derive, unless someone can explain another convincingly to me, is that 'You often hate those you wrong.'" I would like to offer another explanation.Karam says that the PLO and the Arab nations are no longer challenging the existence of the State of Israel, and "Even if they did not acknowledge this, it is an obvious fact they could not do anything about it." Perhaps it is obvious to us, watching the situation from our comfortable homes far away from the conflict, but to the Palestinians living in the Middle East, the war for Israel's right to exist is far from over. The Palestinians Karam defends so passionately are fighting for their homeland; just as the Israelis claim entitlement to the land, so do the Palestinians. Like Karam, I do not attempt to generalize about all Israelis or all Palestinians, but this is a war that has been going on for centuries; the history of Israeli-Arab relations is a history of bloodshed and hatred. Karam claims, "The Palestinians did not want to fight against the Israelis simply because of some instinctive, bigoted, inexplicable hatred they have always felt for the Jews for no reason." This is partly true: they have always felt that way, but it is not for no reason, and it is not a one-sided hatred. The current Israeli culture breeds intolerance, as does the Palestinian culture of the 21st century. Children there grow up learning to hate each other because their families instill this feeling in them. Those Palestinian children throwing rocks that Karam refers to were brought by their parents to "peacefully protest." An angry mob capable of brutally murdering two officers is hardly a peaceful protest. Karam thinks the "...Palestinians, or any Arab for that matter, [haven't fought with] the Jews during the past few centuries when they lived side by side." This is also a false statement. Jews and Arabs have been fighting for years. The Middle East is in a constant state of unofficial war. In Israel, there is always the threat of terrorist activity, and there are constant attacks on security, if not from Lebanon and the other surrounding Arab countries, then from terrorists groups within the country. In 1967, during the Six Day War, the holiest of cities was finally reunited. Anyone who has studied Israeli history knows the famous words of Uzi Narkiss, then head of the Israeli Defense Forces' Central Command, "Har habayit beyadenu." -"The Temple Mount is in our hands." These three Hebrew words caused Israeli soldiers to throw down their guns and kiss the ground around the holy land, the same land they are still struggling to keep. The sticking point in the peace talks this summer was the status of Jerusalem. Although it is currently the Israeli capital, the Palestinians want it to be re-divided, and to have East Jerusalem designated as their capital. The Palestinians are fighting for something that they hold very dear to them, just as the Jews are. The Palestinians, however, have been staging protests and attacks by angry and unregulated mobs, throwing rocks and being extremely violent. It is impossible for Israel to control these "demonstrations" without using some type of force. Israel has learned from history not to stand by passively, that they must show their force and make sure that others are aware of the strength and seriousness of their security. The United Nations, or "the rest of the world" as Karam deems it, sees Israel as using excessive force. It is no surprise then that Prime Minister Barak does not want an investigation done by the UN. He has offered to let the United States, which abstained from the vote, perform such an investigation. The Palestinians did not agree to this. Maybe that is because they know the US will see that Israel is only taking the steps it deems necessary to controlling a violent group of citizens whose own leaders cannot control them.If Arafat actually condemns the violence, will the Palestinian people heed his request? In order to truly comprehend the situation in Israel, one has to be aware of the mindsets of both sides. Both are extremely proud people who hold religion extremely close to their hearts. The Palestinians were exiled from their homes, forced to become refugees in Jordan and Lebanon and other territories, so naturally they are going to feel violated and threatened. Violence, however, is not the way for to get a point across. They should realize that a peace settlement with Israel would help them both economically and socially. Palestinians would be able to take advantage of many new benefits if there is peace. On the flip side, the Israelis are not going to give up their land without a fight. The Israeli people are much more patriotic than we Americans are. For so many years, the Jews were persecuted and expelled from or killed in most of the countries of Europe and Asia. It took a mass genocide of six million to wake the world up to the need for a Jewish State. From the very start of her existence, Israel has been attacked from every side by her neighbors. Although there is peace with Egypt and Jordan, it is a superficial peace, reminiscent of America and the Soviet Union during the Cold War. If war was to be declared between Israel and one of her Arab neighbors, one has to wonder which side Egypt and Jordan would take. Almost all Israeli teens know someone who has given his or her life so that they may live in Israel. They all serve in the army after high school, and are proud to defend their country. Israeli adults can still remember all that has happened to establish the State of Israel, and do not take it for granted. We have tried giving up land: Gaza, the West Bank, and numerous other settlements. These have not brought peace. We have tried negotiations and peace talks and summits. These have not brought peace. One can see why the Jews are skeptical of a real Arab interest in peace, when they very vocally state that they do not want us in "their land" in the first place.It is horrible that there is violence between the two people that are in essence fighting for the same thing: religion. Did God really intend for this to be? One has to wonder, based on the number of people dying in His name these days in the Middle East. Did the Palestinians really believe that by attacking Israeli soldiers and unarmed citizens they would be aiding their cause? It is hard to imagine they thought these actions would not elicit a response. Tensions have been building up under the guise of calm for some time now. While I pray for peace, I see a holy war looming on the horizon. Some call for more peace talks, but I find it hard to believe solutions to issues that have been unresolved for so long and caused so much bloodshed can suddenly be found now. War seems inevitable, and war is not what either side wants. So if the Israeli army uses a little force in order to subdue provocative demonstrations that could only lead to violence, understand that they are trying to keep the peace. Or what little is left of it.Florice Engler is a freshman who has not yet chosen a major.

---