Opinion

Our first president, an unintentional literary pirate?

Proposed newsletter should be opt-in

The Tufts Community Union (TCU) Senate has recently discussed publishing an electronic newsletter and sending it out to students via email. One purpose of the newsletter is to keep students informed about the Senate's current projects, thereby allowing the Senate to get student feedback more easily. A regular newsletter informing students of Senate projects as well as other campus happenings is certainly a sound concept, but there is currently controversy about whether students should opt in to the newsletter or whether it should be sent to all students automatically with recipients having the option to opt out.

Empathy - A false hope for integration!

The oppression of women throughout both history and current societies is an utter disgrace to us all. I, however, will not express empathy for your cause. I believe empathy to be weak and instead attempt to not only educate myself, but also abstain from discourse that is both unproductive and touches on issues that I am more or less ignorant of. While Ms. Cox was both witty and inflammatory, her Nov. 17 op−ed "With empathy and perspective for us all" attacks me specifically. As a result I shall conclude that my main topic of racial inequality was just a bit too much for her to handle. She in fact says, "Why is it, exactly, that his oppression as a man of color is somehow more valid and worthy of a voice than my oppression as a woman?"

Letter to the Editor

Dear Editor,

Prashanth Parameswaran | The Asianist

W hen Hawaii−bornU.S. President Barack Obama famously declared himself America's first "Pacific President" in a speech in Tokyo two years ago, the audience was charmed by his references to green−tea ice cream, childhood visits to Japan and boyhood years in Indonesia.

You don't know what you've got till it's gone'

I had been dreading the approach of my brother's birthday because it meant I should send him a package. I had not yet figured out how to send mail at Tufts University or where this was done, and so I tried not to worry about it while I assembled his present. Finally, though, the day came when I had to go out and find the post office. I looked it up and then began my walk to the post office conveniently located in Curtis Hall by Brown and Brew. Now, I am one of those people who is not very knowledgeable about mailing things, and I was a little nervous. I walked into the cozy little room and approached the available counter. I clumsily muttered that I had to mail something and the woman behind the counter beamed at me, asking me what it was. I set my brother's present on the counter, and I noticed that part of the card I had made was falling apart, and so the woman provided me with tape. While I fixed the card she weighed the gift, explaining the fastest, cheapest and safest ways to ship it.

Angad Bagai | Whole New World

Boy meets girl. Boy falls in love with girl. Boy loses girl. Boy comes up with a way to get girl back. They get married in a huge, lavish ceremony. In between, there's a trip to Europe or South America and about five or six songs with dance numbers, which often involve going round and round a tree. This is the cliched description of what a Bollywood film is comprised of, and it certainly is the case for a number of movies. Regardless of this, Bollywood is the main cinema watched in India, and the love and the worship the actors receive is unparalleled. If one were to ask a random person on the street to name a person from India, I can assure you that the name you'd be most likely to hear (aside from maybe Gandhi) is Shah Rukh Khan.

Poorly written prohibition

Administrators have done everything they can to show they're serious about enforcing the ban on the Naked Quad Run (NQR). Dean of Student Affairs Bruce Reitman yesterday sent out an email to the student body — and, to our chagrin, parents and guardians — informing them that anyone who attempted to run NQR in violation of the ban would face a one−semester suspension from the university.

Corrections |

The Nov. 9 article "Holocaust survivor shares story of escaping concentration camps" incorrectly stated that John Saunders was liberated from Auschwitz. He was actually liberated by the U.S. Army on May 5, 1945 from Mauthausen−Gusen I concentration camp. His liberation by the 11th Armored Division of the U.S. Army prompted him to join the U.S. Air Force and fight during the Korean War.

Opinions | With empathy and perspective for us all

When I first read the Nov. 1 op−ed entitled "What happens when integration and assimilation fail?" I was upset and puzzled by some of the questions and intense statements, but I decided that it was a legitimate attempt to stir up campus debate on the subject of race. However, after the second Nov. 8 op−ed, "Empathy + assimilation = fail!", I cannot help feeling that Samuel Murray has started to take things to an unproductive place. I would like to start out by asking Samuel, genuinely, about his "cordial" invitation to the next meeting of the Association of Latin American Students. I am truly curious as to what kind of reception I, as a member of the so−called "majority," would receive should I choose to accept this invitation, because, to be frank, the language in Samuel's articles has been neither cordial nor inviting. Why is it that he wishes ostracism upon me because of the color of my skin? Interestingly Samuel chose to close his first article with Martin Luther King, Jr. saying he dreamed of a land "where men no longer argue that the color of a man's skin determines the content of his character," yet Samuel has passed judgment on the majority of the individuals on this campus based on the color of their skin.

Parental email reflects lack of trust

Many students' cell phones were abuzz yesterday afternoon with calls from their parents or guardians. Other Jumbos checked their inboxes and were greeted by not just an email from Dean of Student Affairs Bruce Reitman but also one sent by a concerned — or in some cases, amused — parent or guardian.

Amanda Johnson | Senior Moments

When I visited The Tufts Daily website yesterday, a headline instantly caught my eye: "Tufts admissions revamps outreach, website" My imagination galloped. Had the university decided to adjust its policy to rein in students from the forgotten stretches of America? Had we chosen to terminate legacy considerations, actively seek students of need and increase our yearly quota of Nebraskans? Was Tufts forgoing another trip to Exeter in order to sprinkle in some visits to meetings of Future Farmers of America and pro-life rallies?

Evaluate this: in print or online?

Sitting in the office of the Department of Drama and Dance, I couldn't help but smile as I stuffed course evaluation form after course evaluation form into old, crumbling manila envelopes. This Thanksgiving season, I couldn't be more grateful that our university continues to stand up for the time−honored tradition of hard−copy course evaluations. After all, I enjoy stuffing envelopes. And what better use of department time and resources than coordinating the complex process of organizing, distributing and collecting thousands of pieces of scribbled−upon paper. If there is one Tufts tradition our new president should strive to protect from the modern age of technology, it is paper course evaluations.

Free Bieber indeed

The sight of pre−haircut Justin Bieber locked behind bars is a shocking one, and it's the Photoshopped image FreeBieber.org has decided to use to publicize the fight against a new, potentially draconian copyright bill. In recent months the Commercial Felony Streaming Act, or bill S.978, has been making its way through Congress. The bill proposes to elevate the penalty for streaming pirated content to a felony.

Prashanth Parameswaran | The Asianist

Last month, I had the distinct pleasure of hearing the Vietnam National Symphony Orchestra (VNSO) perform at Boston Symphony Hall in its first ever visit to the United States. They did not disappoint. The orchestra, led by its animated Japanese music director and principal conductor TetsujiHonna, put on a spirited performance with a unique blend of Vietnamese folk music and classic compositions from the West. The very best of Vietnam was on display, from the vibrant colors of the aodai national costume to the graceful hand movements of award−winning violinist Le Hoai Nam and then melodies of legendary Vietnamese composer Dam Linh. The historic performance was also a product of cultural exchange diplomacy between the United States and Vietnam. VNSO's "First Harmony Tour to the USA 2011" reciprocated the New York Philharmonic's first ever visit to Hanoi in 2009, where it performed at the Hanoi Opera House, home of the VNSO. Tran Nhu Son, the Deputy Consul General of Vietnam in San Francisco, was quoted in the concert program: "This is a very significant and great opportunity to strengthen cultural exchanges between Vietnam and the United States, making the people of the two countries more understanding of each other's contemporary music life". And Mr. Honna himself told me that performing in the United States had been a long−cherished wish for the VNSO and struck an emotional chord for many of the Vietnamese musicians. The exchange also embodies the overall trajectory of U.S.−Vietnam relations. Just 16 years after the normalization of ties, Washington and Hanoi have managed to overcome the bitter past of the Vietnam War and forge one of the most important partnerships between the United States and Southeast Asia today, exemplifying the very peace and tolerance between peoples the VNSO emphasized as its performance theme. Cooperation has taken off in politics, trade, culture and even the military realm with an agreement signed on research collaboration and exchange in military medicine earlier this year. Key differences persist — particularly on human rights — but they are increasingly becoming the exception rather than the norm in the relationship. If Vietnam continues to be one of the fastest growing emerging economies and concerns about a rising China persist, both countries may be able to strengthen their "strategic partnership" even further in the coming years. Indeed, when former U.S. President Bill Clinton, who presided over U.S.−Vietnam normalization, mistakenly told an audience at Tufts University earlier this month that Vietnam was America's "most important ally in Southeast Asia" (a term usually reserved for formal U.S. alliances such as those with Japan or Thailand), it could have been as much a Freudian slip as it was a minor gaffe. Discussions between U.S. and Vietnamese officials these days, including those going on this week at the Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation meeting in Honolulu with Mr. Clinton's wife, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, tend to focus boldly on how to "take the relationship to the next level." That might seem ambitious at first glance. But so might the idea of a strategic partnership between Washington and Hanoi 16 years ago. Or the notion of the VNSO playing in Boston Symphony Hall decades ago when it was weathering through financial and psychological national struggles after the Vietnam War. And yet they happened. Much like an orchestra, various instruments eventually cohered to produce a harmonious outcome with the aid of an able conductor.

Hannah Furgang | The Tim Tam Slam

I compiled a bucket list of sorts of things I need to do before the end of freshman year. I set the deadline for the end of freshman year and not the end of college, because this is the year in which I can do the most stuff. I'm not doubled up on lab sciences yet, so I still have something resembling a life, and there are three years of school left with which to cushion my GPA. Basically, freshman year is the year to do whatchu want.

An unfortunate, but constitutional ruling

Smoking is bad. These days, it's almost impossible to escape this truth.

On satellite campuses, Tufts gets it right

I'm wearing leggings as pants and it's awesome

As I sit here musing on some of the content I've just encountered in the Daily in an article entitled, "Why, leggings, why?" do you know what I'm wearing? Go ahead, hazard a guess. They're not pants but right now they're functioning as such. They are lined in fleece. (FLEECE, for god's sake!) It's lovely. They are forgiving and can be pulled on and off with ease — I never have to waste time unbuttoning and zipping. My butt is the size of Jupiter so why not drape it boldly in some tight Spandex? Please look at my childbearing hips. Yes, I am wearing leggings as pants right now. I wore my leggings to CVS today to buy toothpaste. I flaunted my way around the Mayer Campus Center and I think a lot of people could see that I have legs and thighs. I ran into my friend Sadie, and she was wearing leggings as pants too. It warranted a high-five.

Prashanth Parameswaran | The Asianist

hen President Barack Obama pledged to seek "a new beginning" between the United States and Muslims in Cairo two years ago, he received a standing ovation.