Friday, April 13, 2007 by The Brown Daily Herald

THE BROWN DAILY HERALD F RIDAY,

Volume CXLII, No. 50

RIL 13, 1 3, 2007 2 007

Since 1866, Daily Since 1891

UCS asks for end to Banner pre-registration enrollment caps BY CHAZ FIRESTONE AND ROSS FRAZIER SENIOR STAFF WRITER AND NEWS EDITOR

Chris Bennett / Herald

Construction of the Walk will force the relocation of some plots in the community garden outside the Urban Environmental Lab.

Part of UEL garden will be relocated to make way for Walk BY TARYN MARTINEZ STAFF WRITER

Student and community gardeners’ fears that the Urban Environmental Lab’s community garden would be threatened by the construction of the Walk were assuaged Thursday night as Facilities Management ofﬁcials presented a plan to them that would relocate — not destroy — some plots. Relocation of the garden will be necessary to make way for the Walk’s path from Lincoln Field to the Pembroke campus, The Herald reported last fall. At the time, there were worries about the future of the UEL and the garden. Under the plan presented to about a dozen gardeners last night, the UEL building will not be moved but some of the garden’s plots

will relocate from their current location to the opposite side of the building. “The idea of the Walk is to really create a series of green spaces in between Pembroke campus and the main campus,” said Michael McCormick, assistant vice president for planning, design and construction. But “the garden right now kind of sticks out into the space,” he said. “We’d like to relocate and recreate some existing beds,” said David Laplante, program manager for Facilities Management and head of the project. Laplante said the planting beds’ soil could be stockpiled or barreled until it could be relocated into the new beds. Among other improvements in continued on page 4

The Undergraduate Council of Students, convening in special session Thursday evening, demanded that University ofﬁcials publicly address student concerns about Banner by passing a resolution calling for an end to enrollment limits in pre-registration for next semester. In related news, UCS President John Gillis ’07 and Vice President Tristan Freeman ’07 told The Herald that after meeting Tuesday with President Ruth Simmons, they felt optimistic the University would print a Course Announcement Bulletin. “She was very responsive to issues like not printing the CAB,

and I wouldn’t be surprised if they change that and end up printing it,” Gillis said. “We’ve been following up with her ofﬁce on that.” However, Gillis said that after meeting with Simmons, he felt administrators don’t place the same importance on the transition to Banner that students do. “She didn’t feel like Banner was going to be a signiﬁcant academic change, so she didn’t seem to think a change to course restrictions would affect things either way,” Gillis said. UCS members stressed in their session last night — attended by about 35 students —that Banner’s continued on page 4

Plans for a new dorm, renovations still in the works BY SCOTT LOWENSTEIN SENIOR STAFF WRITER

The high number of upperclassmen living off campus has University ofﬁcials talking about creating new and better housing to entice upperclassmen to stay on campus. Though no speciﬁc plans have been prepared, administrators have been “considering seriously” the possibility of building new residence halls for undergraduates and improving older structures to make them more attractive to juniors and seniors, said Russell Carey ’91 MA’06, interim vice president for campus life and

student services. “We are not housing enough students on campus,” Carey said. “We are a residential university … and we think we are not providing the on-campus experience to enough of our students.” Currently, the University only houses about 80 percent of undergrads on campus, a proportion lower than its peer institutions, Carey said. “This level is not where we should be institutionally,” Carey said. The University would have to increase the number of residence hall beds by 600 to reach its goal of 90 percent oncampus residents, he said. “As a goal, increasing the

amount of on-campus housing has resonated well with students that we have talked with,” Carey said. But students aren’t simply concerned about the amount of available housing. “We are largely planning these dorms with upperclassmen in mind,” Carey said. “We know that what upper-class students want — like apartments, singles and suites with common space — we just don’t have enough of,” he said. In addition to new buildings, the University is considering upgrades to existing dorms. “We are looking very hard at continued on page 4

Nobel laureates praise prof’s superconductivit superconductivity theory Two-day symposium celebrates BCS theory’s 50th anniversary

SPOKEN WORD

BY CHAZ FIRESTONE SENIOR STAFF WRITER

Chris Bennett / Herald

Sarah Kay ’10 is among the performers in spoken-word poetry group WORD!, which is performing on campus this weekend. SEE ARTS & CULTURE, PAGE 3

INSIDE:

3 ARTS & CULTURE

SPRING SALE The Spring Arts Festival on the Main Green Saturday will feature edible art and musical performances

www.browndailyherald.com

Never say never — or for that matter, “insoluble.” That’s the philosophy of Professor of Physics Leon Cooper, whose theory of superconductivity — once thought to be an insoluble, or impossible to solve, phenomenon — revolutionized the world of physics and earned him the Nobel Prize in Physics in 1972. Cooper, the “C” in the renowned BCS theory of superconductivity, was the keynote speaker in a scientific symposium held Thursday and today to honor the 50th anniversary of his theory’s publication. As part of the symposium, six eminent physicists with five Nobel prizes — including three of the last six given in the field — assembled Thursday for a discussion panel and two lectures in Salomon 101. Though the other Nobel prizewinners do not research superconductivity specifically, the entire twoday symposium is dedicated to BCS theory, which Vesna Mitrovic, assis-

NOT SO OPEN AND SHUT The University is reevaluating advising programs after a University-led survey of CAMPUS NEWS open curricula at various colleges

Chris Bennett / Herald

Six physicists — including ﬁve with Nobel prizes — sat on a panel Thursday to honor the 50th anniversary of the BCS theory of superconductivity.

tant professor of physics and a coorganizer of the event, called “the most beautiful and influential theory of the 20th century” — even more so than Einstein’s famous theory of relativity. Superconductivity is a physical phenomenon where current flows through a supercooled metal — or superconductor — without any loss in energy. Normal metals partially impede the flow of electric current and cause some energy to be released as heat. But superconductors, which must be cooled hundreds of degrees below freezing in order to exhibit their special characteristics,

11 OPINIONS

195 Angell Street, Providence, Rhode Island

POINT/COUNTERPOINT Sean Quigley ’10 and Michal Zapendowski ’07 debate whether or not the campaign John McCain is running is the true McCain

allow current to ﬂow unimpeded. Dutch physicist Heike Kamerlingh Onnes ﬁrst observed superconductivity in mercury in 1911, but explaining the phenomenon stumped scientists. Even Albert Einstein couldn’t establish a theory of superconductivity when he tried in 1922. “What we had that Einstein didn’t was a quantum theory of metals,” Cooper said. Using quantum theory, Cooper came to the conclusion that electrons, which usually repel each

12 SPORTS

continued on page 6 RUGGERS READY The men’s and women’s rugby teams are hosting the Ivy League tournament this weekend in Portsmouth

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WE A T H E R

Chocolate Covered Cotton | Mark Brinker

TODAY

TOMORROW

cloudy 49 / 36

partly cloudy 52 / 37

SHARPE REFECTORY

VERNEY-WOOLLEY DINING HALL

LUNCH — Cappellini with Broccoli, Clam Bisque, BLT Sandwich, Comino Chicken Sandwich, Italian Roasted Potatoes, Oregon Blend Vegetables, Apple Dessert Pie, Smores Bars

LUNCH — Vegetarian Chick Pea Soup, New England Clam Chowder, Chicken Fingers with Sticky Rice, Vegan Garden Chili, Sugar Snap Peas, Smores Bars

DINNER — Basmati Rice Pilaf, Vegetable V Stuffed Peppers, Coconut Tilapia, Steamed Vegetable Melange, Meatloaf with Mushroom Sauce, Pumpkin Pie

FRIDAY, APRIL 13, 2007

WBF | Matt Vascellaro

DINNER — Salmon Quiche, Cheese Ravioli with Sauce, Roasted Herb Potatoes, Carrot and Garlic Medley, Asparagus with Lemon, Focaccia with Rosemary, Pumpkin Pie

SUDOKU Fill in the grid so that every row, every column and every 3x3 box contains the digits 1 through 9. Hi, How Are You | Alison Naturale

Deo | Daniel Perez ��

CROSSWORD ACROSS 1 Miss with ambition? 6 Certain line crosser 10 Flurry of activity 14 Graveyard shift hr. 15 Corn __ 16 1963 role for Shirley 17 Before about 1984, popsingerwise? 19 The Everly Brothers and others 20 Balkan War participant 21 Legendary flier 22 Finishes off 24 Patter song genre 27 Teen’s room, perhaps 28 Moseyed 31 Puts down 33 Abe’s role in “The Godfather” 34 Plumed heron 36 Parade entries? 38 7-Eleven beverage 40 Heaviest naturally occurring element 43 Jacob’s first wife 44 English assignment 46 Grp. that’s pleased to aim? 47 Us competitor 49 Bordered (on) 51 Copier of a sort 53 Fellini work that won the first non-honorary Best Foreign Film Oscar 55 Cheat 57 Daze 58 Napper’s spot 62 Subtle help 63 Sell a pop singer? 66 Quechua speaker 67 Touching sport? 68 “Glengarry Glen Ross” Pulitzer playwright 69 Pound, notably 70 Roadside grazer 71 With a wink, perhaps

DOWN 1 Suddenly asks 2 Pertaining to 3 Will of “Jeremiah Johnson” 4 Be frisky 5 Sumac with a wide range 6 Tracker’s trail 7 Yield 8 Ex-Texas governor Richards 9 Humdingers 10 Fries, e.g. 11 Tie up a pop singer? 12 Folding line 13 Hoarse 18 Coat, as with flour 23 Paraded 25 See-through device 26 Roman emperor who completed the Colosseum 28 Fool 29 Teen hangout 30 Depressed pop star? 32 Kafka’s “__ Landarzt” 35 Staggers

37 “You bet!” 39 Adam Smith biographer John __ 41 Devastate 42 It facetiously calls its regular writers “the usual gang of idiots” 45 Release 48 Hid, in a way 50 Our Gang member

51 TV monitoring device 52 Tough cloth 54 “Today” regular 56 OR order 59 Sportscaster Dick Enberg’s trademark cry 60 Sense 61 Pretentious 64 Gibbon, for one 65 Logos, e.g.: Abbr.

Deep Fried Kittens | Cara FitzGibbon

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Cloudy Side Up | Mike Lauritano

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4/13/07

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‘Prep’ author Sittenfeld reads at Brown Bookstore BY JOY NEUMEYER CONTRIBUTING WRITER

Curtis Sittenfeld, author of the bestselling novel “Prep,” read from her latest work, “The Man of My Dreams,” Wednesday evening at the Brown Bookstore. After eliciting laughter and praise from a supportive crowd, Sittenfeld took questions and signed books for a group of about 20. “Prep,” Sittenfeld’s ﬁrst book, earned a fan base ranging from young adolescents to adults upon its publication in 2005 and quickly rose to the top of best-seller lists. Named one of the “Best Books of 2005” by the New York Times, “Prep” recounts the experiences of a teenage girl from small-town Indiana at a privileged Massachusetts boarding school. Paramount recently optioned the ﬁlm rights for the book. “The Man of My Dreams,” released in paperback Tuesday, follows the life of a young woman over the span of 16 years. After an introduction by the bookstore’s event coordinator, Susan Schlesinger, an interim supervisor for cashiering, Sittenfeld read two selections from her new book. “Her name is Hannah, and basically, she’s socially awkward,” Sittenfeld said in introducing the excerpts. The description of Hannah’s anxieties over college social life while at Tufts University drew compassionate laughter from listeners. Before the reading, Sittenfeld told The Herald that she felt drawn to portray the loneliness and unhap-

piness frequently overlooked in media portrayals and social myths of college life. “I do think that college students are a signiﬁcant portion of my readers,” she said. Sittenfeld, whose sister attends the Rhode Island School of Design, said she was eager to visit Providence on her book tour. Lee, the main character in “Prep,” chose Brown as her top choice when applying to college. Sittenfeld, who attended the Massachusetts preparatory academy Groton School, said she applied regular decision to Brown and was rejected. She later reapplied and was accepted as a transfer student from Vassar but opted to attend Stanford instead. “Brown held this sort of mystique” for both her and Lee, Sittenfeld said, describing her initial impression of Brown as having an “aura of coolness.” “Now I get to come read here. It’s as good as a degree,” Sittenfeld joked. After the reading, Sittenfeld took several questions from the audience. When asked about her next book, she replied that though she has begun writing, she prefers not to discuss its details. “It’s like a delicate orchid or something that can’t be exposed to air or light,” she said with a laugh. Sittenfeld’s lighthearted commentary on her writing — such as her remark that “obviously I think neurotic young women are just fascinating” — was met with warm continued on page 6

Spring Arts Festival brings music and edible art to the Main Green BY LYDIA GIDWITZ ARTS & CULTURE EDITOR

The colorful posters advertising the Spring Arts Festival — made with bright markers and featuring a stylized yet childish drawing of a hallway — aptly convey the enthusiastic fun and inclusiveness of the third annual event, which will transform the Main Green into a public carnival for the arts Saturday from 1 to 6 p.m. The festival boasts an afternoon filled with creativity and art-filled frivolity. The festival “will be a day for the arts on Main Green,” said Jessica Chaney ’07, head of the Student Creative Arts Council, the student group that organized the event. “Basically, the SCAC throws different events to bring all of the arts together.” This year’s festival boasts a henna artist, portrait and caricature sketch artists from Brown and the Rhode Island School of Design, silk screening, a West African dance workshop and a performance by a leading hammer dulcimer player. Bands The Trolleys and Cult Sleepover will set the ambience with their music. And there will even be a chance to eat art. “We are going to bake a canvas-sized cookie and people can decorate it with icing. They can eat their work,” said Chloe Malle ’08, who will head the SCAC next year. Student artists will have the opportunity to sell their work at the first annual Student Art Sale. “The

art sale is really important,” Malle said. “Everyone — even people who have never taken an art class or don’t consider themselves artists — can bring whatever they want to sell and can pick their price.” “Our main goal is to involve all students,” said Lydia Denkler ’07, a member of the SCAC. Indeed, including all students is one of the main goals of the SCAC, a group started three years ago by Professor of Visual Arts Richard Fishman. The heads of various art departments form the Creative Arts Council, which is complemented by the student branch, said Anna Hermann ’08, a member of the SCAC. “We want to create forums to foster connections between different art (forms),” Malle said. “Eventually, there will be a creative arts center at Brown,” Chaney said. “Our ultimate goal is to blend the arts. Currently, there are visual art and physics (cross-registered) classes. We want to expand that.” With the Spring Arts Festival, the SCAC hopes to involve all students, even those not particularly interested in art, to experiment with their creativity and bond with the Brown community, Chaney said. “Because it’s in such a public space, it’s important not just for people who are interested in art but (also for people who) are excited to be on the Main Green on a Saturday,” Malle said.

Chris Bennett / Herald

Phil Kaye ‘10 is among the performers in spoken-word poetry group WORD!, which is performing at Rites and Reason Theatre this weekend.

Spoken-word poets perform on campus and HBO BY SUSANA AHO STAFF WRITER

Campus spoken-word poetry group WORD! is performing three shows on campus this weekend at Rites and Reason Theatre, beginning last night. Sarah Kay ’10, one of the performers, said she has been involved in slam poetry since she was 14 years old, when she saw the ﬁlm “SlamNation” and was “blown away by the idea that poetry and theater could somehow be combined.” Kay said she has always had “crippling stage fright” and loves theater “as long as I don’t have to act.” But spoken word, she said, “despite the fact that it terriﬁes me … is also the thing that inspires me.” Spoken word is “like a drug when you learn how easy it is to make connections,” Kay said. “When someone says, ‘For one moment, I was right there with you’ … that’s what makes slam poetry.” Kay and Paul Graham ’09 both participated in the National Poetry Slam competition in Austin, Texas, last August, and were featured on episodes this season of HBO’s

“Def Poetry,” a series that showcases spoken-word performances by slam poets, artists and celebrities. Graham said he began participating in slam competitions last year when he arrived at Brown. He won a spot on the Providence Youth Slam Team, which made its way to the Brave New Voices poetry festival in New York last April. There, Graham performed a group piece, “Black Irish,” with Eamon Mahoney, a member of the Providence team. A producer from “Def Poetry” attending the festival asked the two to send a video of the piece to HBO. Graham described the taping of “Def Poetry” — and being in New York with guest celebrities — as “pretty surreal,” not to mention nerve-wracking. Graham and Mahoney’s piece was originally three-and-a-half minutes long, and they were asked to cut it down to two minutes. That was frightening enough, “not to mention that you were going to be on HBO with a lot of people watching,” Graham said. The poem Graham and Mahoney performed was inspired by violence Mahoney has seen in Ireland, Graham said, and the vi-

olence in Graham’s hometown of Newark, N.J. Graham said he often writes about “inner-city youth, just because that’s something that hits home for me” and that he tries to place these youth “in a light where people can understand … and not be so quick to judge.” Kay said it was “bizarre” to get to the Hollywood-like “Def Poetry” studio, after being used to “small, dark, grungy New York City bars,” but that it was exciting to meet the guest poets on the show, especially those who had been a part of “Def Poetry Jam” on Broadway. Graham said he loves to write poetry and always will, but he is planning to attend law school after concentrating in Africana studies and political science. Kay “wants to do everything” when she’s older but particularly loves ﬁlmmaking because she has “an appreciation of the mix” of visual art and words. The spoken word community at Brown is a very different environment than the one Kay is accustomed to in New York, but she said it’s been a “nice change,” where she’s found “a wonderfully talented bunch of people who are humble and inspired.”

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Part of UEL garden relocated to make way for Walk continued from page 1 the works are new perimeter fencing, a path in the garden that would connect to the Walk and a row of fruit trees selected by the gardeners, Laplante said. The UEL’s community garden was established in 1983, and though its original purpose was to produce the maximum amount of organic food the small space allowed, it also fostered interactions between Brown and the Providence community. “The way it works is, people from the community each get their own plot and grow whatever they want, as long as it’s organic,” said Jeremy Forster ’07, one of the UEL’s student gardeners. “They don’t have to be associated with Brown at all — that’s a big misconception — although there are professors, there are grad students who also garden.” Laplante told the assembled students and gardeners that the Walk project could be a boon for the garden. “The (new) plot square footage is comparable,” he said. “If we go with tighter bed space, I think

you can get more usable space for your beds.” The presentation was followed by a question-and-answer session in which gardeners were able to express their concerns, including the increased shade caused by the Walk’s trees. Participants in the meeting emphasized the need for cooperation among Facilities Management, the gardeners and the architect team responsible for the Walk. Laplante suggested that the gardeners create a small group to collaborate directly with the landscape architect and design the garden’s layout. “It’s really a blank slate,” Laplante said. “We’re willing to work with you. If you folks want us to put down good soil and sod and walk away, we can do that.” The ﬁrst phase of the demolition plan will begin on April 16, though Laplante said it will focus on the area immediately next to the garden. The second phase, which will affect six beds, begins Sept. 1. The gardeners can either use only the untouched beds or utilize all of the beds but harvest the crops before demolition begins.

Laplante said the timetable is rushed because construction of the Walk was moved up to coincide with the installation of an updated high temperature hot water and cold water piping system this summer. “We would have liked to have done this in a more timely manner,” Laplante said. “But we have the time to work with the designers … so you’re ready to plant your new garden next spring.” The gardeners attending the meeting were generally positive about the relocation plan. “It’s been a gift from the University,” said Deb Newton, a community gardener. “It’s not just a garden, it’s a community, and it’s great to have the opportunity to include these new features.” “I think the plan is going to end up being a much nicer, pleasant space for everybody,” said Professor of Biology Osvaldo Sala, director of the Environmental Change Initiative. “We’re going to have the same area of garden, but surrounded by a much nicer environment.” The new garden will hopefully be ready for planting in spring 2008, Laplante said.

FRIDAY, APRIL 13, 2007

No action yet on new dorm continued from page 1 the condition and quality of our current residence halls. Students want more housing, but all of those conversations involved a discussion of the quality of existing housing,” Carey said. Such renovations would include physical improvements like modernizing bathrooms, heating and lighting, as well as aesthetic improvements to rooms and common spaces, said Richard Bova, senior associate dean of residential life. Residential Life staff “frequently visit buildings around campus and hear about problems from the Residential Council on a weekly basis. We know what needs to get ﬁxed, what is ugly and where repeated problem areas are,” Bova said. Renewal efforts would concentrate on such trouble spots, he added. No speciﬁc plans for a new dorm or major renovations have been set, Bova and Carey said, noting that student input will be solicited as the project’s planning phase moves forward.

Since last fall, “we went on a broad and wide ‘road-trip’ across campus to provide an opportunity for students, faculty and staff to voice their opinions on the issue (of undergraduate housing),” Carey said. Over 20 meetings were held, including open forums, discussions with various student groups, a discussion with ResCouncil over what a new dorm would look like and a presentation to the Undergraduate Council of Students, Carey said. Students interviewed by The Herald were generally positive about the possibility of new dorms and renovations to existing residence halls. “I think that if (the University) builds a new dorm, it should have the feeling of an apartment, so that people feel like they have a place of their own,” said Dan Hudner ’08, who currently lives in Young Orchard Apartments but is moving off campus next year. “It would be nice if social life was more centered around campus,” which could be brought about by a new dorm, he added.

UCS increases pressure over Banner continued from page 1 enforcement of enrollment caps is a significant deviation from current registration policies, but their proposal to end enrollment limits during pre-registration is intended to delay these changes and not to solve the problem entirely. The resolution proposed that if enrollment limits are exceeded after pre-registration ends, professors will be notified of students who pre-registered for their course, and all students will have their registration in the course canceled. Students will then require an electronic override from the professor to take part in the course. “This is not intended as a final solution. This is intended as a way of opening up dialogue on this issue,” said Matt Gelfand ’08, who, though he is not a UCS member, helped author the proposal. Whether UCS’s proposal is technologically feasible remains unclear. Prompted by questioning from Mocha co-creator Daniel Leventhal ’07, UCS Appointments Chair Drew Madden ’10, an author of the resolution, noted that students who worked on the resolution have not met with Banner’s implementation team to discuss feasibility.

The resolution also asks that Provost David Kertzer ’69 P’95 P’98 and Associate Provost Nancy Dunbar, who is the Banner project owner, publicly address student concerns. UCS Webmaster Jake Heimark ’10 told The Herald that calling for response from Kertzer is UCS’ way of recognizing Dunbar’s limited ability to affect change to Banner. “The way Nancy Dunbar has painted this issue is that it’s done and there is nothing we can do about it,” Gelfand said in the meeting. “She comes to these forums with the intent of educating rather than hearing comments.” “People have been watching out for the technological issues, but no one has been watching out for the academic side,” Gillis said in the meeting. “Nancy Dunbar’s job has been to implement the software.” The attitudes of senior University ofﬁcials toward the transition to Banner have been somewhat of a mystery, as Dunbar has almost fully represented the University’s response to student concerns about Banner. UCS’ focus on Kertzer, Gillis and Freeman’s discussion of Banner with Simmons marks an attempt to shift the issue to Brown’s highest levels of decision-making. Freeman told The Herald that

in his meeting Tuesday with Simmons, she “seemed kind of disturbed to hear” that students didn’t feel involved in the transition to Banner. “In general, I don’t think the administration has realized the changes to Brown’s academic atmosphere that these so-called small changes will have,” Gillis said. Beyond questions of logistics, the main concern among members was whether the proposal was “an action resolution or a discussion resolution,” said UCS AtLarge Representative Martin Bell ’10, who co-sponsored the resolution but pulled his support before the vote, telling The Herald that the resolution “lacks a little meat to it.” Various members insisted the resolution is focused on policy change, prompting Gillis to ask for the creation of a UCS task force to quickly represent student interests over the remaining weeks until pre-registration. “The question now is how potent is our action plan going to be?” Gillis said after the meeting. “The more resistance issues like this, the more students get involved, and that’s where UCS gets its power.”

CAMPUS N EWS FRIDAY, APRIL 13, 2007

NEWS

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BRIEF

CCC discusses course evaluation forms, Banner At its meeting yesterday, the College Curriculum Council reviewed a pilot program to standardize course evaluation forms throughout the College and discussed concerns about Banner’s effect on enrollment-limited courses. “It’s really exciting when the work of the committee results in a concrete decision, and it’s even more exciting when the results get moved into action,” said Dean of the College Katherine Bergeron of her hopes to have the course evaluation form ready for the end of the semester. Currently each department designs their own course evaluation forms, which are typically handed out to students at the end of the semester for feedback. The initiative aims to introduce a single course evaluation form that could be used throughout the College and could possibly be incorporated into Banner. Some departments would participate in the pilot program this semester using the generic form designed by the council. Concerns were raised over the large number of quantitative questions versus those asking students to provide written answers. Luther Spoehr, a council member and lecturer in the Department of Education, said the committee was looking at “a balance between how many questions you have but also the extent to which they’re overlapping.” Two versions of the form — a second draft incorporating more qualitative questions and a revised version of the current form — will be reviewed at the council’s April 24 meeting. The council also discussed strict numerical limits placed on courses with a previously undefined “enrollment-limited” label. The limits were applied for the College’s upcoming use of Banner registration, as courses within Banner need to be capped at a defined size to qualify as enrollment-limited. Members of the Council expressed concerns that students would only pre-register for enrollment-limited courses, hedging their bets on the assumption that they would be unable to join the course the next semester. “There’s a certain aspect — a big aspect — of experimentation,” said University Registrar Michael Pesta. “I do think that there is some need to structure. These are things perhaps that the departments had been frustrated with all along. There has to be dialogue (between students and the administration).” Bergeron stressed the non-binding aspect of pre-registration. “The number of students who pre-register is pretty consistent with the number of students in a class at the end of shopping period — it’s just different students,” she said. The council also approved non-Banner-related course enrollment limits and course creation proposals agreed upon at the body’s screening subcommittee meeting. Bergeron also announced at the meeting that the Task Force on Undergraduate Education would hold its first meeting Thursday, April 19. —Evan Boggs

Forum showcases scientiﬁc collaboration BY KRISTINA KELLEHER SENIOR STAFF WRITER

The fi fth-floor rotunda of the Rhode Island Convention Center was alive with discussion of molecules, oceanography, politics and even toys Thursday at “Expanding Rhode Island’s Research and Development Capacity Through Collaboration,” a one-day forum presented by Rhode Island’s Experimental Program to Stimulate Competitive Research and the Rhode Island Science and Technology Advisory Council. The forum included a discussion with Kathie Olsen, deputy director and chief operating officer of the National Science Foundation, and a brief visit by Rep. Patrick Kennedy, D-R.I., as well as presentations from researchers at Brown, peer institutions and from Rhode Island industry leaders. During Kennedy’s appearance at the conference, the congressman talked about his work in Congress to bring research money to Rhode Island. “Brown is the second-largest recipient of grant money in the nation from the National Institute of Mental Health,” Kennedy told the audience. Kennedy also discussed Brown’s earlier program in association with NASA called “Mission to Planet Earth” and stressed the need for NASA to continue and expand its work in the life sciences. “We ought to be using space for understanding our own planet,” he said. “Not putting more people on the moon.”

Kennedy also praised URI’s program in environmental science and oceanography, pledging to keep advocating for increased funding for the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration from his seat on the House appropriations committee. The forum’s first session of the day focused on the need for collaboration — particularly in such a small state as Rhode Island — and how Rhode Island’s approach to collaboration is leading the way for the nation. The second session focused on helping researchers take a targeted approach to communicating their projects. “It’s not just about getting media clips, but rather getting that message to the congressional delegation in Washington and local legislators here in Rhode Island,” said Andy Cutler, spokesman for the event. The third session of the conference demonstrated the benefits of collaboration in action, as researchers from Brown and URI presented their joint work. Brown Professor of Orthopaedics Joseph Crisco described his work with other faculty on College Hill and in hospital affiliates of Alpert Medical School, as well as with those in industry. Crisco described a project in which researchers are examining enhancing occupational and physical therapy for children with brain conditions such as cerebral palsy — a collaboration including Khipra Nichols, associate professor of industrial design at the Rhode Island School of Design, and Karen Ker-

man, clinical assistant professor of clinical neuroscience at Brown. To create these toys, which had to be specially designed for research purposes, Nichols and Crisco co-taught an industrial design engineering course where students had to come up with ideas for toys. One such toy is a remote-controlled car specially designed for children who do not have the ﬁne motor control necessary to operate a traditional remote-controlled car. Students in the course frequently visited Meeting Street School, where students were treated to a showcase of the toys and given time to try them out. “Rhode Island has unique resources for this project, including Meeting Street and Hasbro Children’s Hospital,” Crisco said in his presentation. Jeff Seemann, co-chair of both the Rhode Island STAC and the Rhode Island EPSCoR committee, spoke to The Herald about recent collaboration between Brown and the URI. “We’ve had a lot of success with Brown and URI getting together. I don’t think it’s happened historically, but we’ve had a lot of success with it happening now,” said Seemann, who is dean of the College of the Environment and Life Sciences at URI. The Experimental Program to Stimulate Competitive Research is a nationwide program run by the National Science Foundation. It aims to improve research infrastructure in states that have historically received low amounts of NSF research and development funding.

Teagle-funded study takes on College advising BY EVAN BOGGS STAFF WRITER

Advising at Brown is under the microscope following the release of a University-led report investigating open curriculum programs at several colleges. The report — a working group white paper titled “The Values of the Open Curriculum: An Alternative Tradition in Liberal Education” — critically examines open curriculum programs, including Brown’s New Curriculum, at eight colleges to better deﬁne the concept and the future goals of such programs. The study was funded by a $100,000 grant from the Teagle Foundation, an organization that funds liberal education initiatives, and surveyed programs from Amherst, Antioch, Hampshire, New, Sarah Lawrence and Smith colleges and Wesleyan University in addition to Brown. “We didn’t do a numerical thing. It was really more philosophical,” said Robert Shaw, executive associate dean of the College and one of the four members of the administration involved in the report’s production. He added that the report sets a path for “what it is we should be doing next.” While discussing critical components of an open curriculum, “what kept coming up over and over in our discussion with students and faculty and each other was advising,” Shaw said. According to Shaw, what came next was a study of the College’s advising programs to discover “best practices.” The study should culmi-

nate by the end of the semester. “I think it’s not so much the white paper, but the discussions around it,” Shaw said of the impact of the Teagle report. “There have been a lot of different complaints about the weaknesses of those different (advising) models and also about the ratio of students to faculty in those programs,” said Sara Damiano ’08, chair of the Undergraduate Council of Students academic and administrative affairs committee and a history concentrator. In surveys organized for the best-practices paper, Shaw said one major weakness in the advising program stood out: “Sophomore advising is not as strong as it should be.” Shaw said Brown’s performance in advising “depends on who you compare us to. Small colleges — that’s a no-brainer.” But “if you compare us to other Ivy League schools, we do pretty well,” Shaw said. “What we ﬁnd is that in the ﬁrstyear advising, we actually tend to do better than most of the other schools that we like to compare ourselves to,” Shaw said. Parents and friends are also new targets for the advising program at Brown, as a survey within the University found that students are most likely to turn to these groups for advice, Shaw said. “We’re trying to spend more time talking to parents … to help them help their students,” Shaw said. UCS is also undertaking its own efforts to improve advising, Damiano said.

“I think the most direct thing that UCS is doing is trying to support departmental undergraduate groups,” she said. “They consist of concentrators who are committed to their concentration and knowledgeable about their concentration. This year we really encouraged (these groups) to help sophomores who’re declaring concentrations to plan out (their course of study).” “My adviser’s been really helpful with me in terms of picking courses I might be interested in,” said Michael Li ’10. “But I’m a bio person, and she’s a bio person, so we sort of fit.” Another outcome of the Teaglefunded study, Shaw said, was the possibility of a study comparing open curriculum programs to other approaches to undergraduate education. But the investigation was scrapped because of the inherent difficulty in comparing different approaches with different goals. According to Shaw, the study will serve as a clarification tool for faculty and has been circulated among University committees, including the College Curriculum Council. The report’s release has led other schools participating in the program to also initiate their own selfstudies and review their own practices. “What the schools are trying to do is look at the white paper, look at the goals we defined and see how to implement that on campus,” Shaw said. Representatives from all of the schools that participated in the study will meet at Brown on April 23 to discuss the report’s findings.

THE BROWN DAILY HERALD

FRIDAY, APRIL 13, 2007

Immigrant cabbie emerges as hero in Duke case

Nobel laureates praise U. prof’s BCS theory of superconductivity

PAGE 6

BY PETER WHORISKEY WASHINGTON POST

DURHAM, N.C. — Long before the case against three Duke University lacrosse players collapsed in public, a soft-spoken Sudanese immigrant knew something wasn’t quite right. When asked, he told the truth: One of the players had been in his cab that night — and nowhere near the alleged sexual assault. But as soon as Moezeldin Elmostafa, 39, a Durham cabbie, became known as a key alibi witness, his attorney says, Elmostafa fell victim to Durham District Attorney Michael Nifong’s rough-and-tumble tactics. He was arrested. “I was afraid,” he recalled at his attorney’s ofﬁce Thursday during a break from driving. “I’d never been in handcuffs, I’d never been in the back of a police car, but there they were taking me away. ... In Sudan, when you are arrested, it might be months before you seen the sun again.” He was later freed and found not guilty of the two-year-old misdemeanor. But even as this city moved on Thursday from the news that the Duke lacrosse prosecution would be dropped — and that Nifong issued an apology, some pointed to Elmostafa’s ordeal as an example of the kind of intimidation and bluster that had allowed the prosecutor to pursue the case so far. Elmostafa is “one of the great heroes of this case,” Jim Cooney, a defense attorney in the Duke case, said at a news conference before a phalanx of cameras Wednesday.

“He told the truth. He put it under oath, exactly the way we expect a citizen of this country to do. And what did that get him from Mike Nifong? They served a two-yearold warrant on him with no basis, and tried him for a bogus shoplifting charge to see if they could intimidate him.” Elmostafa, a lanky balding figure with a shy smile and a civil engineering degree in his home country, came to the United States from Sudan in 1999. He landed in New York, but a friend soon convinced him to come to Durham. He now has a wife and three young children. “He said the weather looked like Africa — hot — so I came,” he said. On the night of the alleged rape, Elmostafa picked up Reade Seligmann, who would later be charged with rape, and a friend. He drove them to an ATM, to a takeout restaurant and to the campus. Cellphone records, ATM receipts and other pieces of the paper trial would confirm that Seligmann was in Elmostafa’s cab from about 12:19 a.m. until 12:45 a.m. The fare was $17. “The young men paid me $25, so I received a nice tip,” according to Elmostafa’s written account. After he swore an affidavit for the defense team, he came to the attention of the news media and the prosecution. Within a few weeks, he said, two detectives came to talk to him about the case. He recounted the same story. A few days later, they returned with a warrant for his arrest. In the car ride, the two detec-

read this herald share this herald recycle this herald so it goes.

tives asked him again about the rape case. “They said, ‘Are you still talking to the media?’ and I said ‘No.”’ he recalled. “Then they explained why I was arrested.” More than 2 1/2 years before, Elmostafa had taken a woman in a cab to Hecht’s, waited for her, and then took her away from the store. She would later plead guilty to shoplifting five pocketbooks valued at $250 on that trip. Elmostafa was accused of aiding and abetting misdemeanor larceny. “He had no idea what she was doing inside the store,” said his attorney, Tom Loflin. A former Hecht’s security officer testified that after the woman got into Elmostafa’s cab, he sped away even before the woman could close the door. But a surveillance tape showed that the cab did not start moving until the door was closed. A judge acquitted him. The district attorney’s lead investigator, Linwood Wilson, told the Raleigh News and Observer that the case “has nothing to do with putting any kind of pressure on him.” But if it didn’t, Loflin asked, why did the same detectives working on the lacrosse case come to arrest him? Why didn’t police officers serve the warrant, instead of the lacrosse detectives? Why did they wait two years before picking him up on what would prove to be a very weak charge? “It seemed strange that this was happening in America,” Elmostafa said. But “I have no bad feelings about anybody. ... I still have good feelings about the justice system and this country.”

continued from page 1 other, pair up in a superconducting metal and exhibit a weak attractive force. Now called Cooper pairs, these pairs formed the basis for the BCS theory Cooper developed with colleagues John Bardeen and John Schrieffer. BCS has had signiﬁcant implications. Superconductors have been used to build fMRI technology — now a mainstay of medical treatment — and maglev trains, which use superconductors to levitate over magnetic tracks while traveling at over 350 mph. “It is as though we set out to build a car and on the way invented the wheel,” Cooper said of the theory. In his keynote speech yesterday, Cooper emphasized the need for a shift in attitude toward problems considered insoluble. “Could the medieval astronomer have imagined that all of the complexities of planetary motion would follow as a consequence of two postulates?” he said, referring to Isaac Newton’s laws. “What seems impossible one day becomes ordinary the next.” Cooper, who also has expertise in neuroscience, said the greatest problem facing science is explaining how mental states arise. “ ‘All of our sorrow is real, but the atoms of which we are made are indifferent,’ ” Cooper said, quoting philosopher George Santayana. “How do we construct real sorrow from hypothetically indifferent atoms?” Cooper’s lecture followed a speech on the applications of superconductors by Alexis Malozemoff, a physicist and both chief technical ofﬁcer and executive vice president of superconductor supplier American Superconductor. Malozemoff spoke about integrating superconductors into the electric power grid, which he said is in dire need of reform. Investment in energy transmission has declined despite continuous increases in energy consump-

tion, he said, and superconductors — with their higher electric load and lossless transmission of energy — may be the best solution. Malozemoff pointed to high temperature superconductors, which can function at a balmy 135 K or -217 degrees (low temperature superconductors must be cooled to 4 K or -452 degrees) as the future of superconductivity’s applications. Malozemoff held a thin material in his hand, which he called a “generation-two” HTS wire. The “generation two” superconducting cables can support over 150 times the current of a standard copper cable at a fraction of the size. This technology could lead to a decreased load on urban energy transmission infrastructure, which Malozemoff said is currently “so dense that there is no room for more.” Because superconductors can carry current without costs in energy, they are ideal — and have already been used — for energy storage, Malozemoff said. In between the two lectures, Malozemoff, Cooper and four other Nobel prize-winning physicists fielded questions on a discussion panel. Frank Wilczek, who won a Nobel in 2004 for his work with tiny particles called quarks, praised BCS theory and its applications in fields considered far removed from superconductivity. “In our theories of elementary particles, we’ve postulated that empty space as we see it is actually one big cosmic superconductor,” he said. Anthony Leggett, winner of the 2003 Nobel for work in superfluidity, was asked if a room-temperature superconductor might ever be found. “I personally am not very optimistic about that,” he said. “Nature doesn’t make many materials. She’s not very creative that way.” The discussion concluded after one student asked the prominent physicists about their advice to aspiring scientists. “Find a question that really intrigues you, and follow it,” Leggett said. “The areas of physics that can be most exciting in the near future will be those that, in some way or another, combine physics with other disciplines.” “Physics is very hard work,” Cooper said. “The trick is to make very hard work fun and love what you are doing.” The symposium will continue today within the Department of Physics, but the remaining programs are not intended for public attendance.

Sittenfeld speaks at bookstore continued from page 3 laughter from audience members. The author jokingly professed worry over whether she was “doing a good job selling (The Man of My Dreams).” “I haven’t gotten my banter down yet,” Sittenfeld laughed. While waiting for Sittenfeld to sign her books after the questionand-answer period, Lizzie Baron ’10 said she had enjoyed both novels. “I think it makes everyone who reads them feel a little less neurotic,” she said. Schlesinger noted that Sittenfeld’s visit drew an enthusiastic crowd and was a success. “It’s great to have that kind of support for the author,” she said.

WORLD & N ATION A FRIDAY, APRIL 13, 2007 FRIDAY

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THE BROWN DAILY HERALD

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BRIEF

Contaminated pet food may still be on store shelves WASHINGTON (Los Angeles Times) — Tainted pet food may still sit on the shelves of America’s stores, federal officials on Thursday told lawmakers looking into the contamination scare that has killed at least 16 pets and sickened thousands of others. The problem prompted a recall by several companies of about 100 brands of pet food in recent weeks, and Food and Drug Administration officials testified at a Senate subcommittee hearing that more recalls may be ahead. They also said they have no clear idea how many animals have been affected. “This is one of the largest pet food recalls in history, if not the largest,” said Steven Sundlof, director of the FDA’s Center for Veterinary Medicine.“Pet food is generally ... a very safe product. This is quite disturbing because it’s so unusual and we’re dealing with a substance we’ve never encountered before.” The hearing highlighted gaping holes in the system to ensure pet food safety. Pet food manufacturers are not regularly inspected and there are no penalties for a firm’s failure to promptly report problems to the FDA. Also, the federal government has no authority to recall a faulty food product intended for humans or pets — instead, it must rely on voluntary compliances by the private sector.

Estate of Simpson’s ex-wife wants to bid on book LOS ANGELES (Los Angeles Times) — The estate of Nicole Brown Simpson is seeking a court order for permission to bid on the rights to O.J. Simpson’s book “If I Did It” when it comes up for a sheriff’s auction Tuesday in Sacramento. In the book, the former football star explains how the murders of his ex-wife and her friend, Ron Goldman, might have been carried out. Greg Hafif, the attorney for the Nicole Brown Simpson estate, said the estate wants the judge in the case to allow it to take a portion of the nearly $20 million civil judgment won from O.J. Simpson and use it as a “credit bid” on the book during the auction. He added that the goal would be to “make sure this book is never published.” Hafif called on Fred Goldman, Ron’s Goldman’s father, to join with them in making the bid. But David Cook, the attorney who won a court order in February giving the Goldmans the rights to the book, objected to the maneuver by the Nicole Brown Simpson estate. Cook noted that the Goldmans have spent the past decade trying to collect their own civil judgment from O.J. Simpson — which has grown to $38 million — and criticized the Brown estate for coming in so late. Maybe the estate has “a beef with their lawyers,” Cook said, “but they didn’t have the savvy or the intelligence or whatever to go out and do this.” He added: “We all share the tragedy for the Browns and they have lots of tears, and our tears are their tears, but they have to stop crying and move forward.” Last month, Los Angeles County Superior Court Judge Gerald Rosenberg ordered the auction, specifying that all proceeds from the sale and any profit from a resulting book be given to the Goldman family. In November, HarperCollins canceled the book’s publication amid protests and fired Judith Regan, the editor who had shepherded the project. Sacramento was chosen as the auction site because it is the California headquarters of HarperCollins. Yale Galanter, the attorney for O.J. Simpson, said: “We want the book dead. We are very happy with the fact that HarperCollins said they never want the book to see the light of day.” He noted that Simpson has been paid $890,000 for the book.

Researchers decode rhesus genome (Los Angeles Times) - An international team of researchers has deciphered the genome of the rhesus macaque, one of the most widely used primates in medical research because it is susceptible to many of the same diseases that attack humans. Coming only two years after the sequencing of the chimpanzee genome, the feat, reported Friday in the journal Science, provides new insight into what makes humans human. “It allows us to learn what has been added or deleted in primate evolution from the rhesus macaque to the chimpanzee to the human,” said geneticist Richard Gibbs of the Baylor College of Medicine, who led the team. “Comparing our genome with the genome of other organisms is crucial to identifying what makes the human genome unique,” added Francis Collins, director of the National Human Genome Research Institute, which sponsored the project. The macaque genome joins a growing list that now includes not only humans and chimps, but also mouse, rat, dog, cow, honeybee, sea urchin, roundworm and yeast genomes. The human and chimpanzee lineages diverged only about 6 million years ago and their genomes are 99 percent identical. With just the two genomes to study, it has been difﬁcult to tell which human genes have been conserved through evolution and which have changed since the split.

Drug-resistant gonorrhea spreading rapidly BY ROB STEIN WASHINGTON POST

WASHINGTON — Antibiotic-resistant gonorrhea is spreading rapidly across the United States, federal health officials reported Thursday, raising alarm about doctors’ ability to treat the common sexually transmitted infection. New data from 26 U.S. cities show the number of resistant gonorrhea cases is rising dramatically, jumping from less than 1 percent of all gonorrhea cases to more than 13 percent in less than five years, the Atlanta-based Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported. In response, the CDC advised doctors treating gonorrhea to immediately stop using ciprofloxacin, marketed as Cipro, and other antibiotics in its class, which have been the first line of defense against the disease, and resort to an older class of drugs to ensure patients are cured and do not spread the stub-

born infection. “We’ve lost the ability to use what had been the most reliable class of antibiotics,” said John Douglas Jr., who heads the CDC’s division of sexually transmitted disease prevention. “This is necessary to protect both public and private health.” The development is alarming, Douglas and other experts said, because gonorrhea tends to develop resistance to antibiotics quickly, and doctors will be powerless to treat it if that happens with the remaining class of drugs. “We still have one effective class, but now it’s the only one we’ve got,” Douglas said. “This raises the possibility that we may slip into a situation where we have no highly reliable remedies.” The emergence of resistant gonorrhea marks the latest common pathogen to have shifted from an easily treated infection to a resistant form that is suddenly far more

dangerous. “Gonorrhea has now joined the list of other superbugs for which treatment options have become dangerously few,” said Henry Masur, president of the Infectious Disease Society of America. Gonorrhea’s resistance was probably caused by the same problem that led to resistance of other organisms — the casual use of antibiotics in the United States and overseas, which causes pathogens to mutate, Douglas and others said. “People will take these drugs for many reasons, like if they just have a cold, stimulating resistance to bacteria they don’t know they have,” Douglas said. The emergence of resistant gonorrhea and other disease-causing agents comes as efforts to develop new antibiotics are ﬂagging because of a lack of interest by continued on page 9

Abortion debate heats up over informed-consent laws BY STEPHANIE SIMON LOS ANGELES TIMES

The most intense battleground in the abortion debate these days revolves around a simple question: What do women need to know before they terminate a pregnancy? South Dakota lawmakers want to compel doctors — under penalty of a month in jail — to tell women that the abortion they seek will kill a “whole, separate, unique, living human being.” South Carolina is on the verge of requiring women to review ultrasound images of their fetus with a physician before consenting to end the pregnancy. In Mississippi, women must be given a chance to listen in as the abortion doctor checks the fetal heartbeat. To anti-abortion activist Leslee Unruh, such laws represent protection. Unruh had an abortion decades ago and has mourned that decision ever since; she believes she can save other women similar anguish by making sure that they

know precisely what they’ll be losing if they end a pregnancy. “I was told (the fetus) was just a blob, nothing more. When you’re in a crisis, you want to believe lots of things,” Unruh said. She later came to see the “blob” as a baby who should have been her child — and says she hears similar stories every day at her counseling center in Sioux Falls, S.D: “The women come to us saying they weren’t informed.” Informed-consent laws are not new or unusual — 32 states have them. In their most basic form, they require women to be offered pamphlets explaining fetal development and describing alternatives to abortion. Increasingly, however, anti-abortion activists have been pushing for women to receive more detailed — and more emotionally charged — information. Legislators last year introduced 92 bills to expand informed consent laws, according to the Center for Reproductive Rights, which opposes such legislation.

Abortion-rights activists consider informed consent a sham — a not-so-subtle means to scare, mislead or shame women into backing out of a decision they’ve made after careful consideration. The most contested of these laws is South Dakota’s, which was tested Wednesday in federal court. The law sets out a long list of warnings that abortion doctors must read to each patient, pausing to make sure she understands and signs each page of the form. The woman must be told that having an abortion could make her suicidal; subject her to “psychological distress;” put her at risk for infection, infertility and even death. She must be told that the abortion will terminate a human being’s life and end her “existing relationship” with her fetus, described in the statute as an “unborn child.” Patients must be given at least two hours to ponder this information before their abortion. Doctor continued on page 9

Two accused of being al-Qaida commanders deny 9/11 role BY JOSH MEYER LOS ANGELES TIMES

WASHINGTON — Two men accused of being top al-Qaida commanders have denied playing any role in the Sept. 11 attacks or other terrorist plots, and one of them has told U.S. military ofﬁcials that he deserves leniency for providing “vital information” in the U.S.-led counterterrorism campaign in the four years since his capture in Pakistan. Ali Abdul Aziz Ali, also known as Ammar al-Baluchi, is accused by U.S. authorities of being a close associate of Sept. 11 mastermind Khalid Shaikh Mohammed in various terrorist activities and of helping him arrange ﬁnancing for at least one of the hijackers. Ali admitted to having a close working relationship with Shaikh Mohammed, who is his uncle, while he was living in the United Arab Emirates and, later, in Pakistan, according to a transcript of his closed military hearing that was released Thursday by the Pentagon.

But he insisted throughout the 86-minute hearing that all of his ties to the al-Qaida operations chief were harmless, and based on family and business connections. Ali told the military commission that he has been a secret weapon who has been helping the CIA and other U.S. authorities in their efforts to capture terrorist suspects around the world. “The United States has beneﬁted from the vital and important information I supplied by foiling alQaida plans and obtaining information on al-Qaida personnel,” Ali said during the March 30 hearing at the U.S. military base at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba. “So, is it fair or reasonable ... that I be considered an enemy combatant?” CIA spokesman Mark Mansﬁeld said the agency had no comment on Ali’s claims of cooperation. The Pentagon also released the transcript of another Combatant Status Review Tribunal hearing, for Riduan Isamuddin, who is accused of being al-Qaida’s point man in Southeast Asia until his capture in

August 2003. The two men are among the 14 “high value” terrorist suspects who were held at secret locations by the CIA before being transferred last September to Guantanamo. Military ofﬁcials there are now holding hearings to see if the men were properly designated as enemy combatants and eligible for a military trial. At his April 4 hearing, Isamuddin, also known as Hambali, denied being a member of al-Qaida or being the terror network’s liaison to the militant group Jemaah Islamiyah in Southeast Asia. He also said he had nothing to do with many terrorist plots and attacks that U.S. ofﬁcials have attributed to him and the group, including plots against U.S., Australian and British embassies in Singapore and deadly church bombings in Indonesia in 2000. Although U.S. authorities have publicly accused Isamuddin of helping orchestrate the 2002 bombing of a nightclub in Bali, Indonesia, that killed at least 187 people, he was not asked about that during the brief hearing earlier this month.

THE BROWN DAILY HERALD

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FRIDAY, APRIL 13, 2007

Some e-mails sent by presidential adviser Rove may be missing BY TOM HAMBURGER AND RICHARD A. SERRANO LOS ANGELES T IMES

WASHINGTON — The growing controversy over White House recordkeeping and disclosure swirled around presidential adviser Karl Rove on Thursday, as congressional Democrats said they were told some e-mails that Rove sent from a Republican National Committee account are missing. Following a meeting between RNC lawyers and congressional investigators, Rep. Henry Waxman, D-Calif., said he learned that Rove might have deliberately deleted them himself. A Washington lawyer retained by

the Republican National Committee, Robert K. Kelner, wrote Waxman’s committee later Thursday saying the statement “mischaracterizes the brieﬁng” because the RNC’s search for the missing e-mails is not yet complete. As demands for documents escalated, other Democrats suggested Thursday that the White House has withheld potentially embarrassing information, a charge the administration vigorously denies. “I am beginning to wonder whether the White House has any interest in the American people learning the truth about these matters,” said Sen. Patrick Leahy, D-Vt., chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee, after announcing that the panel had

authorized use of subpoenas to obtain information about the dismissal of eight United States attorneys. He said on the Senate floor Thursday that a teenager could find the lost White House e-mails. “They say they have not been preserved. I don’t believe that,” Leahy told the Senate. “You can’t erase e-mails, not today. They’ve gone through too many servers.” At the White House, spokeswoman Dana Perino rejected those comments, telling reporters “there is not an indication” that any crimes were committed in the lost e-mails, and saying that the White House Counsel’s Office is trying to retrieve them. “We don’t have an idea on the

universe of the number of e-mails that were lost,” she said. “Truly we just don’t know enough yet.” But she also said, “I will admit it. We screwed up, and we’re trying to fix it.” She denied contentions from Leahy that the administration does not want to turn the material over. “He’s wrong,” she said. The massive e-mail inquiry originated from once-separate congressional probes into the politicization of executive branch functions by the Bush White House. The House and Senate Judiciary Committees, for example, uncovered the use of the RNC e-mail addresses by White House staffers as it investigated the firing of eight U.S. attorneys. Waxman’s staff found the RNC addresses as they read e-mails during the investigation of convicted lobbyist Jack Abramoff. Additionally, Waxman has probed efforts by Rove’s office to communicate Republican electoral priorities to political appointees at federal agencies. Some of the e-mails were sent by the White House over special electronic communications links established by the RNC to handle political matters. Using government computers for such e-mails could violate federal laws governing presidential records and could threaten White House claims of “executive privilege” to shield internal documents from congressional scrutiny. Rove, a political strategist who has become among the most influential presidential advisers in recent history, has encouraged Cabinet agency political appointees to pay close attention to electoral politics in making policy and other decisions, and his role is at the heart of the investigations being pushed by congressional Democrats. Immediately after Kelner briefed investigators Thursday, Waxman sent a letter to every Cabinet secretary asking them to preserve all

e-mails received from any White House official who used accounts maintained by the RNC or any “other non government account.” Leahy and Sen. Arlen Specter, RPa., the ranking Republican on the Senate Judiciary panel, wrote a letter to White House Counsel Fred Fielding asking that the White House establish an “objective process for investigating this matter, including the use of a mutually trusted computer forensic expert.” Also Thursday, Rep. John Conyers Jr., D-Mich., chairman of the House Judiciary Committee, and Rep. Linda Sanchez, D-Calif., chairwoman of the panel’s administrative law subcommittee, wrote to Robert Duncan, chairman of the Republican National Committee, demanding “prompt delivery” by next week of all e-mails stored by the RNC related to the firing of the eight U.S. attorneys. For example, they want to see e-mails from an account used by J. Scott Jennings, special assistant to the president and deputy director of political affairs in the White House, with an address of “gwb43.com” that the RNC maintained. That address showed up in email communications about how to replace U.S. Attorney H.E. “Bud” Cummins III of Arkansas to make room for Timothy Griffin, a protege of Karl Rove, in such a way to “alleviate pressure/implication that Tim forced Bud out.” Another Jennings e-mail using the RNC account requested that Department officials meet with a prominent New Mexico Republican who wanted to “discuss the U.S. Atty situation there,” an apparent reference to former U.S. Attorney David Iglesias, who was fired after feeling pressured by Republicans in Congress, he has said, to be more aggressive in pursuing corruption charges again Democrats in that state.

CROSSWORD EXTRA ACROSS 1 Lotto kin 6 Delivered 10 Some prosecutors, briefly 14 For this project 15 Majestic 16 Spanakopita ingredient 17 Keeps an open mind 20 Skater Midori 21 Land parcels 22 “Buy you a __?” 23 Number for one 24 Gab 26 Hospitable garland 27 Committed people pass it 32 Artistic case 33 12 oz., in troy weight 34 Many a computer 36 “Buried” treasure found in 17-, 27-, 44- and 59Across 37 Not slouch 41 Bother 43 Red in the middle 44 The earliest surviving one, made in 1932, features the Philadelphia Orchestra 50 Play (with) 51 Titanic message 52 Corrida yells 53 Play area 55 Not up 56 Fleur-de-__ 59 Commitment 63 Navel discovery 64 Julia of “The Addams Family” 65 Black 66 Just beat 67 Help with the job 68 Parson’s abode DOWN 1 Denpasar is its capital 2 Revise

3 “Yeah, right, of 35 Edward G. 47 Element #27 course” Robinson’s “Little 48 First name in 4 “As if!” __” fashion 5 Largely nocturnal 36 Sculls 49 Offset cat 38 Half a drink 54 Memo 6 Words on a 39 Coffee hour aid 55 Hot and cold fits “greatest hits” 40 Tool-hanging 56 Boxer Spinks album thingy 57 Ramadas, e.g. 7 Goes (for) 42 Besides 58 Eye problem 8 Pinar del __: 44 Clip alternative 60 Swing __ Cuban city 45 Really hot 61 Arrest 9 Dayton-based 46 Checking out 62 Second deg.? technology co. 10 Yonder ANSWER TO PREVIOUS PUZZLE: 11 “I Spy” TV studio 12 Sorry sort 13 Registered 18 Agnew’s plea, in brief 19 Detroit duds 23 SWAT team member 24 Disappeared 25 “Where the Boys __” 27 Canada’s smallest prov. 28 Parlor initials 29 Einstein ending 30 Up from Méjico 31 L.A. roller derby team 4/12/07 xwordeditor@aol.com

4/12/07

FRIDAY, APRIL 13, 2007

Abortion debate heats up over informed-consent laws continued from page 7 who fail to follow the law are subject to criminal prosecution. In the hearing Wednesday before the 8th Circuit Court of Appeals in St. Louis, attorneys for Planned Parenthood argued that the law violates physicians’ right to free speech and substitutes ideology for science. In particular, they’re concerned about doctors being forced to call a fetus — even at the earliest stages of gestation — a “human being.” State Attorney General Larry Long said he sees no problem with that term: “The women know their pregnancy isn’t a monkey, or a German shepherd. Why is it so offensive to tell them it’s a human being?” But abortion providers — and some outside legal experts — disagree. “If a patient asked our doctors, ‘When does life begin?’ they would respond that there’s no scientiﬁc answer to that. It’s a religious, spiritual, personal (question) that women have to answer for themselves,” said Sarah Stoesz, the chief executive for Planned Parenthood afﬁliates in South Dakota, North Dakota and Minnesota. “This isn’t neutral medical infor-

mation. This is saying, in so many words, that abortion is murder of a human being,” said John Seery, a political scientist at Pomona College who studies abortion politics. The South Dakota legislature passed the informed-consent provision in 2005, but Planned Parenthood sued to block it. A district court judge ruled that the law could not take effect until the suit was resolved. The state appealed that decision to a three-judge panel of the 8th Circuit — which ruled in October that the law should remain blocked. In an unusual move, the circuit court then voted to hear the case again before the entire bench of 11 judges. That was the hearing that unfolded Wednesday morning — both sides described it as animated and intense, and both declined to predict an outcome, saying the judges appeared to be closely divided. As anti-abortion activists await the ruling, which could take months, they continue the push to expand consent laws, often supporting their position with stacks of afﬁdavits from women who have had abortions and say the procedure harmed them psychologically or physically. At least four states require doc-

tors to perform ultrasounds on all patients and give women the option of viewing those images. South Carolina would be the ﬁrst in the nation to require women to see pictures from inside their wombs. The bill passed the state House overwhelmingly and is moving through the Senate. Missouri recently introduced a similar bill. Another emerging strategy is to require doctors to talk to their patients about fetal pain — and in some cases, to offer anesthesia for the fetus. Several states, including Minnesota, mandate such discussions, at least for late-term abortions. Minnesota is also among several states that compel doctors to inform women that abortion may be linked to breast cancer, even though national cancer experts have found no such connection. Until recently, Seery said he would have considered the drive to expand consent laws a winning strategy for the anti-abortion movement. But he says he now thinks laws like South Dakota’s may provoke a backlash from abortion-rights supporters and perhaps the judiciary. “Aggressive legislators may overplay their hand,” Seery said. “Let’s just see whether the court will let this stand.”

Drug-resistant gonorrhea spreading rapidly continued from page 7 the pharmaceutical industry, he noted. “We’ll have a major problem on our hands if we don’t develop new antibiotics,” Douglas said. Gonorrhea is the second-mostcommon sexually transmitted disease in the United States after chlamydia, infecting more than 700,000 Americans each year. The highest reported rates occur among sexually active teenagers, young adults and African Americans. If untreated, the disease — which usually does not produce symptoms until the later stages — can lead to sterility and potentially life-threatening complications. Resistant strains of the bacteria that cause gonorrhea were ﬁrst detected in Asia. Resistant gonorrhea then apparently spread to Ha-

waii and California, before emerging elsewhere around the United States, first among gay men. In response, the CDC recommended doctors stop using Cipro and other drugs in its class, known as fluoroquinolones, to treat gonorrhea in California and Hawaii, and among gay men nationwide. The agency expanded that recommendation to everyone nationwide after daetecting a sharp rise in resistant gonorrhea among heterosexual males. The rate increased from 0.6 percent of all cases in 2001 to 6.7 percent in the first half of 2006 — an 11-fold increase. The resistance appears to be widespread around the country, with particularly sharp increases occurring in some cities. In Philadelphia, the rate jumped from 1.2 to 26.6 percent. In Miami, it increased from 2.1 to 15.3 percent. At the same

time the rate continued to rise rapidly among gay men, increasing from 1.6 percent to 38 percent of all cases. The news comes as the rate of new gonorrhea infections has started rising in some Western states. Public health experts warned that the recommendation to change the standard care will make it more difﬁcult to stem the spread of the disease because the main weapon is to diagnose and treat patients quickly before they can infect someone else. The CDC is recommending doctors use a class of antibiotics known as cephalosporins, in particular the drug ceftriaxone, which is given by injection, making its use more painful and complicated. Many doctors do not typically stock the shots. And patients who are allergic to penicillin often cannot use the drugs.

Baseball’s backstop opens up about calling games, Ivy play continued from page 12 wind chill of 22 (degrees). It’s unsafe and uncomfortable to be out there when it’s that cold because it’s tough to loosen up and some guys would get hurt. Do you think MLB should start the season later to avoid the cold weather that has been canceling games? (Major League Baseball) pretty much starts around the same date every year. I think it’s been abnormally cold for this time of year. It’s been cold everywhere. Hopefully, it’s just a cold spell. What is the toughest part of being a catcher? In the Ivy League, we play 23 games in three weeks and I usually catch all of them. It’s very physical day in and day out. We often play four games in a weekend and we never have a break. It can wear you down mentally and physically. As a catcher, is it confusing to watch a game on television from the pitcher’s vantage point?

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THE BROWN DAILY HERALD

It’s not hard to watch a game but there is nothing like playing in a game. When I watch a game, it can seem so slow, but when your playing there is a lot of mental preparation, a lot of dialogue and a lot more going on than what you see. How do you determine which pitches to call? Our head coach, Marek Drabinski, was a catcher in college. He calls the pitches a lot and then I relay them to (the) pitcher. But when I call a game I pick up on the little tells of each hitter. They more or less give you a clue to which pitch is best for them, depending on the way they stand, the way they swing, the way the ball comes off the bat, the way the ball fouls off the bat, where they hit the ball on the ﬁeld. The biggest difference between freshman year and senior year is that calling pitches seems more of a second nature and less forced now. Which MLB team is your favorite? I’m a Braves fan. It’s (difﬁcult to win 14) consecutive division titles (as the Braves did from 1991-2005), but I think last year there was bad man-

agement. They didn’t want to put a lot of money into the team. How are the divisions split up in Ivy League baseball? There are two divisions. Dartmouth, Yale, Harvard and Brown are in the Red Rolfe division while Columbia, Penn, Cornell and Princeton are in the Lou Gehrig Division. We play each team in our division four times while we play twice against teams in the other division. The two teams in each division with the best records move on to play for the Ivy League championship in a best of three series. Over the past 10-12 years Harvard and Princeton have won all of the Ivy League Championships. When was the last time you got hit by a pitch? I actually got hit this weekend in the back when I went 7-for-7. During my ninth plate appearance, they didn’t want me to get another hit. The pitcher had pretty good control all game and hit me in the middle of the back. It didn’t get black and blue. Sometimes you can see laces (imprinted on your back), but not this time.

High Notes: No Dice on Wednesday for Red Sox continued from page 12 her forehead. She couldn’t have been more than 5-feet-4, but she booed with genuine hatred. I kind of felt bad for Ichiro. What had he done to her? All I can tell you about the first pitch is that it was a strike. I read a report online that said it was a curveball, but I don’t know how anybody would know that with all those flashbulbs going off. I’m surprised Daisuke could locate the catcher, let alone see. Second pitch, swing and a miss. Strike two. Everybody in Fenway was still standing since before the start of the game, chanting “San Shin” louder than you can imagine. I’m pretty sure that “San Shin” means strikeout in Japanese. Daisuke lets three straight balls rip before Ichiro taps a ball back to the mound for the first out. Other than a harmless single, he gets through the first inning unscathed. At that point everyone finally sat down, even the old woman next to me, who was still glaring at the Mariners dugout. From what I heard, the Mariners starter, some kid named Felix Hernandez, wasn’t supposed to be too bad either. He seemed pretty good, retiring the first three Sox batters without too much difficulty. Then in the second inning, Matsuzaka stumbled, giving up a single, a double and a sacrifice fly to give the Mariners the early lead. Hey, nobody’s perfect. And the crowd was sympathetic. I mean it wasn’t like he was go-

ing to shut everyone out all year. Someone was going to get lucky once. Then, after Daisuke had retired the first two batters in the fi fth, the guy in front of me turned around and said, “So whaddya’ think of Dice-K so fah?” If there’s one rule I go by in baseball, it’s never applaud a pitcher’s performance before he’s out of the game. A double, sacrifice fly and throwing error later, and the Sox were down 30. Meanwhile, Felix still hadn’t given up a hit. The game kept speeding up. It was barely two hours old when the seventh inning stretch rolled around. Finally, in the eighth inning, J.D. Drew lined a grounder into centerfield to break up the no-no Felix had going. If you were standing outside, you’d have thought we had won the game by the roar of the crowd. For Boston fans, nothing gives us greater joy than spoiling someone else’s accomplishment. The game ended about 10 minutes later, both offenses acting like they wanted to get done in time for “Lost.” I wonder what all the hype was about. That guy Ichiro didn’t get a hit in five atbats. And Daisuke? He seemed all right, but three runs in seven innings is nothing extraordinary. If you ask me, seeing your team commit more errors than hits is pretty humiliating. But hey, that kid Felix looked pretty good. Ben Singer ’09 can’t wait to try Dunkin’ Donuts in Japan.

Rugby teams roll into Ivy League Tournament continued from page 12 ularly important opportunity for us to earn some respect from the other Ivy League teams.” Head Coach Jay Fluck ’65 founded the tournament in the early 1980s and is excited to see it return to Rhode Island this spring. He will be stepping down as coach for the weekend in order to administer the tournament. Brown is seeded fi fth in this weekend’s tournament and would face the winner of the Dartmouth-Columbia game should it advance past Yale. On the other side of the coin, the women’s team will treat the invitational as a tune-up for nationals the following weekend. “We should win (this weekend),” said Head Coach Kerrie Heffernan. “We are clearly the favorite. We were ranked fi fth in the country, but we have slipped a bit because we are at a disadvantage in the early spring due to the (inclement) weather in the Northeast.” Bruno will look to its two captains for leadership this weekend. Jen Hustwitt ’07, a forward flanker and member of the U.S. Under-23 National Team, will lead the offense. The backs will run behind co-captain Emilie Bydwell ’08, who also plays for Atlantis, a development program that feeds into the national team. “This weekend we will be looking for strong efforts from everyone,” Hustwitt said. “We have

something to prove to ourselves and (want) to live up to our talent. We need to prove that the struggles this season are making us a better team.” The women’s team is also the fi fth seed in the tournament, and it will open up with a 10 a.m. match against Princeton on Saturday. The winner will advance to face the victor of the Harvard-University of Pennsylvania match in the semifinals. In addition to participating in the games this weekend, the women’s team will screen their documentary film for the other women’s teams on Saturday night. The film examines women’s rugby in Uganda through the experiences of teams the Bears played while traveling through the country. This weekend, both of the University’s rugby teams are looking forward to hosting the Ivy tournament in what will be the squads’ seniors’ last local competition. Though Brown is unable to provide transportation for spectators, directions to the fields are posted on brownrugby.com and fans are encouraged to attend and support the culmination of the home rugby season. “I think we really stand a chance to do well this year,” Margulies said. “We are proud of all our hard work and we would love to see it come to fruition on the pitch this weekend. We appreciate the support of the Brown community and we hope to see them out at the tournament this weekend.”

E DITORIAL & L ETTERS THE BROWN DAILY HERALD

PAGE 10

FRIDAY, APRIL 13, 2007

STAF F EDITORIAL

Diamonds and coal A diamond to Justin Glavis-Bloom ’07 for holding Brown students’ maturity in such high regard when he declared that “most college students are smart enough not to room with their significant other.” We’re actually convinced that most college students are just that dumb, but we’re charmed by your surprisingly relevant use of the word “hetero-normative” outside of a gender studies seminar. Coal to the fact that most UCS races will be uncontested. Though some of the races technically have more than one candidate, McCain can’t be expected to pull many votes. Five diamonds to the Brown professors who were awarded Guggenheim fellowships. Sure, we’re really excited about the research you’ll be doing in women’s choirs in Syriac tradition and structured visual object recognition, but mostly we’re happy that we have as many Guggenheim awardees as Harvard. Coal to the “likely letters” the Admission Office sent out to the cream of the 2011 crop. First-years do not need another thing to brag to each other about during Orientation — that PLME thing is enough. A diamond to Russell Carey’s “road trip” across campus to learn student views on undergraduate housing. Whatever it takes to justify that red Residential Life minivan. 753 diamonds to all those groups who put themselves through the grinder of this year’s housing lottery. Whether you landed that perfect suite or ruined some friendships, take a deep breath, and be glad it’s finally over. But remember — it’s never too early to start talking about next year’s lottery. A cubic zirconium to the Rhode Island Foundation for giving Camia Crawford ’08 a $5,000 fellowship to study the medical beliefs of the Bajau indigenous sea-faring people in South East Sulawesi, Indonesia. As if there’s anything we don’t already know about that. A brazen diamond to Friday the 13th. There’s no reason to believe that just because the calendar changes … wait, what? A UCS debate during dinner tonight at the Ratty? A diamond to the Persian language GISP that is in the works for next year. That will come in pretty useful when the United States declares war against Iran. Coal to Yale’s flag burners. Playing with fire while inebriated often leads to disaster, but next time at least refrain from flagging down the cops for directions in the midst of your getaway.

ROXANNE PALMER

LETTERS All political views should be respected at Brown To the Editor: The column by Justin Elliott ’07 (“Ruth Simmons’ new boss, patron of the Right,” April 12) is so reckless, and so offensive on so many fronts, that it is hard to ﬁnd a starting point. Are we to assume that philanthropy — the University’s quest to extract money from every alum with a pulse — “and a few without” — is a bad thing? This is an insult to the Brown giving community, without whom there would be no need-blind admissions, and probably no University. Brown’s Chancellor, Tom Tisch ’76 P’07, supposedly supports “abhorrent politicians and organizations” — such as Israel, Sen. Joseph Lieberman, IConn., and the American Jewish Committee. For the

record, Mr. Tisch, a ﬁne and decent human being, is a marvelous choice for chancellor and will prove so in the coming years. Are we to assume that the Brown Corporation should meet on the College Green (rather than “behind closed doors”)? Or that Brown is not open to hearing opposing views (“our supposed bastion of liberalism”)? All views, right, center, left and everything in between, should be and are respected at our University, even Mr. Elliott’s — misguided as they may be. Martin Granoff P’93 April 12

A diamond to Kurt Vonnegut. So it goes.

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CLARIFICATIONS In an article in Thursday’s Herald (“12 undergrads targeted by RIAA, lawsuits may follow,” April 12), a press release from the Recording Industry Association of America was quoted as stating that 21 universities received pre-litigation settlement letters as part of a third wave sent this year. The RIAA later corrected the press release on its Web site to clarify that 22 universities received the letters. An article in Thursday’s Herald (“U. considers gender-blind housing,” April 12) referred to Robin Peckham ’10 as male. Peckham prefers to be identified as female. CORRECTIONS POLICY The Brown Daily Herald is committed to providing the Brown University community with the most accurate information possible. Corrections may be submitted up to seven calendar days after publication. COMMENTAR Y POLICY The staff editorial is the majority opinion of the editorial board of The Brown Daily Herald. The editorial viewpoint does not necessarily reflect the views of The Brown Daily Herald, Inc. Columns, letters and comics reflect the opinions of their authors only. LETTERS TO THE EDITOR POLICY Send letters to letters@browndailyherald.com. Include a telephone number with all letters. The Herald reserves the right to edit all letters for length and cannot assure the publication of any letter. Please limit letters to 250 words. Under special circumstances writers may request anonymity, but no letter will be printed if the author’s identity is unknown to the editors. Announcements of events will not be printed. ADVER TISING POLICY The Brown Daily Herald, Inc. reserves the right to accept or decline any advertisement at its discretion.

O PINIONS FRIDAY, APRIL 13, 2007

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John McCain: Good for conservatives or bad for liberals? Give the Maverick at least 4 years A man like Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., occupies a unique position in American politics. The bases of both parties are suspicious of his principles and unpredictability, and the ill-defined centrists who bemoan the “disappearance” of so-called political moderates generally find him acceptable — especially for a Beltway politician. Misconceptions about his politics abound. Accordingly, I sincerely hope you approach this column with an open mind, conceding at the very least that the presidency could benefit substantially from a man like McCain, who approaches virtually every problem with a measured, rational analysis. A miserable social conservative myself, I am not overly thrilled about the prospect of a McCain presidency. Nevertheless, for varying reasons, I feel McCain would be an agreeable president for social conservatives, yet still maintain an appeal for social liberals. For instance, a President McCain would not, as President Bush did, push for a Federal Marriage Amendment — as evidenced by his decision, while in the Senate, to vote against the proposed amendment. Rather, he would encourage people who oppose homosexual marriage to take their battle to the state level. I would think both sides could tolerate this view. On pro-life issues, McCain is admittedly conservative. He has committed himself to appointing federal judges with judicial philosophies at odds with Roe v. Wade. However, people with pro-choice views should not be completely turned off by this stance — a pro-choicer could oppose Roe v. Wade simply because it is a constitutional extrapolation. But, even if the case were overturned, he would assent to its legality if it were subjected to the democratic process in each state, meaning that states with a majority of the population who support the practice could preserve it. Unfortunately for pro-lifers, McCain defected from the pro-life side of the aisle when he voted for a bill that would allow federal funding of embryodestructive stem-cell research. This view, though, is amenable to those on the left — it is certain that, had McCain been in office, he would have signed that piece of legislation, instead of vetoing it as Bush did. Social conservatives balk at this stance, but many on the left should be ecstatic about a Republican who supports this legislation. Concerning immigration, McCain is surely not a nativist. I do not mean to unfairly criticize conservative approaches to immigration policy, but many of them are so draconian and unfeasible that I almost think my immigrant ancestors are going to be exhumed and shipped back to Ireland. Liberals then should view McCain’s position on this pressing issue as quite enlightened, seeing as he has repeatedly expressed his support for both a guest worker program and a policy whereby illegal aliens can work toward citizenship. In regards to economic issues, McCain has a history of moderation. He has never voted for a general tax increase. However, he did vote against Bush’s tax cuts, citing their unequal distribution throughout the population, in favor of the rich, and their questionable prudence. In 2002, the Cato Institute, a libertarian think-tank, gave McCain a 100 percent rating on

free-trade issues. McCain has proved that he feels genuine concern for the consumer and is not beholden to either the protectionist right or the let’s-keepjobs-in-America left. The newest cause of the left, global warming, also has an ally in McCain, who would like to address it with market-based solutions. He said that if president, “I would reafﬁrm my commitment to address the issue of climate change and greenhouse gas emissions.” With a Bush presidency that has only recently acknowledged the existence of global warming, I believe that many liberals and independents could warm to a man like McCain. Most importantly, McCain has been a strong, yet measured, advocate of the global war on terrorism in general, and the war in Iraq in particular. McCain understands that success in Iraq and against Islamic radicals across the globe is absolutely essential, and more than any other contender for the presi-

Will the real McCain please stand up? The presidential campaign of Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., has been sinking in the polls faster than the Titanic. The metaphor is particularly accurate given that just a few months ago, the McCain boat was considered unsinkable. It dwarfed the other candidates in the ﬁeld — the mainstream media were already talking of “inevitability.” Bookies were giving him favorable odds, and fellow Republicans were lining up behind him with endorsements. Politicians only endorse fellow politicians who they believe are going places — once a train gets rolling, everyone wants on for the ride. The recent disappointing disclosures of McCain’s fundraising totals — placing him sixth in the presidential pack behind Democratic Sens. Hillary Clinton, D-N.Y., Barack Obama, D-Ill., and former Sen. John Edwards and Republicans former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney and former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani — have only cemented the fate of a faltering campaign. Now that “the unsinkable” is clearly sinking, look for the passengers onboard — fellow Republican politi-

SEAN QUIGLEY OPINIONS COLUMNIST

POINT COUNTERPOINT MICHAL ZAPENDOWSKI OPINIONS EDITOR

dency — whether Sen. Hillary Clinton, D-N.Y., Sen. Barack Obama, D-Ill., Rudy Giuliani or Mitt Romney — he has displayed his steadfastness in this most worthy pursuit. Yet McCain has also bucked the party line on this issue, demonstrating his genuine independence on several occasions. For instance, he has been a strong critic of Bush’s detention policies and the existence of Guantanamo Bay. If president, he has stated, “I would immediately close Guantanamo Bay, move all the prisoners to Fort Leavenworth (an army base in Kansas) and truly expedite the judicial proceedings in their cases.” With McCain as president, the citizens of this country can be assured that our nation would be under excellent leadership. We would have a leader who, albeit a conservative, appeals to both sides of the aisle. We would have a leader who could truly unite the people in the direction of progress. We would have a presidential president. Vote McCain.

Sean Quigley ’10 would vote for the Maverick even if he were inverted.

cians — to start jumping ship. The interesting question is: What was McCain’s iceberg? When he ran in 2000 as a maverick campaigning against the Republican establishment and called for the GOP to free itself from “agents of intolerance” such as apartheid-supporter and “Moral Majority” founder the Rev. Jerry Falwell, many independent-minded Republicans (and Republican-minded independents) fell in love with him instantly. We all know the outcome of that campaign. McCain, who wanted to restore some semblance of principle to the party of small government that had throughout the Culture Wars transformed into the party of government surveillance, won a surprise upset victory in the New Hampshire primary, calling into question the “inevitability” of a man named (most luckily) George W. Bush. The Bush campaign took on McCain in the South, accusing him of fathering an illegitimate, interracial child, referring to the daughter McCain and his wife had adopted from the impoverished nation of Bangladesh. In the end, enough narrow-minded voters believed in the Bush attacks on McCain — Enough to give us the narrow-minded presidency we have today. That is when the story turns from troubling to tragic. Faced with the prospect of

never winning his party’s nomination because he could not appeal to Republicans the way Bush had, McCain decided to become Bush. He flip-flopped on every issue. He praised Jerry Falwell at Falwell’s Liberty University in Virginia, where the “agents of intolerance” he once decried indoctrinate the nation’s youth. He embraced every position he had disagreed with and kowtowed to his party establishment in order to become a Bush Republican and win the endorsement of a president whose campaign once insulted his wife and daughter. Interested readers should go online to YouTube, and look up the aptly named spectacle of self-contradiction — “McCain vs. McCain.” It is never a pretty sight to see a politician contorting himself to win an election, to see the moment when a man’s ambition causes him to discard his principles. But this is a particulary painful spectacle when the politician in question is John McCain. McCain, the man whose name once meant “maverick,” who was willing to stand up for what he believed in even when it went against his party line. McCain, the son of a Navy admiral, who once endured years of solitary confinement in North Vietnam because he refused to be released earlier than his fellow POWs. The John McCain of today wants the presidency so badly and was so scarred by his defeat in 2000, he is convinced he must become a typical Bush Republican to win the presidency. By trying to become something he is not, McCain has only become what voters despise — a flip-flopper. Ironically, had he stuck to his principles, he might have become the successor to Bush. Republican voters are currently telling pollsters that Giuliani is the new GOP frontrunner, despite the fact that he disagrees with Republicans on a series of important issues — including abortion. Giuliani is willing to defend his positions and for this reason comes across as genuine. Apparently, Republicans like a principled moderate better than a fake conservative. Let us not forget either that John McCain has been almost as ardent a supporter of the Iraq war than Bush himself. Chief of its many flaws, the current executive has been dragged down by its foreign policy, which has always bordered on the delusional. I secretly believe that most Republicans know this is the case but are unwilling to abandon their president and his war because they are so heavily invested in both. The Republican Party, more desperately than even America as a whole, needs a leader who can lead it out of its Iraqi quagmire. The old John McCain — the principled maverick — may have been the man to lead his party out of such a mess, and reconnect it to the American people. The John McCain of today, who champions the “troop surge” as a quick fix to Iraq’s ethnic problems, is stating openly to voters that his presidency would be a continuation — or, indeed, an escalation — of Bush in foreign policy. Just last week, McCain was in Baghdad claiming that victory in Iraq was around the corner. Historians have a phrase for that kind of thinking — it’s called “bunker mentality.” Allow the idea of four or eight more years of self-delusion in Iraq to sink in for a moment. Even assuming that McCain stopped his flipflopping once in the Oval Office, even assuming that all his self-contradictions were just an act he was putting on to get elected, his presidency would still mean another four years of Bush’s foreign policy. It is for that reason that John McCain will not have my vote, nor should he win the trust of any independent voter.

Michal Zapendowski ’07 cried when he threw away his collection of John McCain ﬁgurines.

S PORTS W EEKEND FRIDAY, APRIL 13, 2007

Baseball’s games vs. Dartmouth at home after N.H. snowstorm

No Dice on Wednesday for Red Sox BOSTON — From the moment I walked into Fenway Park Wednesday night, something felt different. Unfortunately, it wasn’t the temperature. Over in centerfield, there was the same ol’ Dunkin’ Donuts sign, complete with its signature coffee mug and purple and orange font. Only I couldn’t read Benjamin Singer High Notes it. But that didn’t matter, so long as consumers in Japan could. For those of you who don’t follow baseball, the Red Sox spent a Steinbrenner-esque sum of money this offseason to acquire this pitcher from the Land of the Rising Sun — Daisuke Matsuzaka. During the 1998 Koshien (a high school baseball tournament in Japan that draws as much attention as March Madness does here), he threw 250 pitches in a 17-inning victory, pitched in relief the next game and threw a no-hitter in the final. Did I mention he was the MVP of last year’s World Baseball Classic? This guy is kind of a big deal. As I sat down in my seat with my $6 Fenway Frank, it became more apparent that this wasn’t your typical Red Sox game. Maybe it was that everyone was wearing Dice-K bandanas with Japanese characters around their foreheads. Maybe it was that the Legal Sea Foods stand was selling sushi. Maybe it was that the kid who was supposed to say “Play ball” instead went with “Yankees suck.” Okay, so that last part might not have happened. Still, I can’t remember the last time I’ve seen so many flashbulbs go off during pregame warm-ups. Finally, the game actually started. There’s this other guy from Japan who plays for Seattle. His name is Ichiro-something. Everybody got really excited about seeing him in the batter’s box against Matsuzaka, but I don’t see what all the noise is about. I heard the guy struck out three straight times in his first match-up with Daisuke in Japan. I mean, how good can anyone be if he can’t even get his last name printed on the back of his uniform? Well, he must have done something right because as soon as he got into the batter’s box, everybody started booing. Even this little old woman next to me who had a Dice-K bandana wrapped around continued on page 9

The baseball team’s four-game set with Dartmouth, scheduled for this weekend, has been moved from Hanover, N.H., to Providence because of snow. The teams will play doubleheaders on Saturday and Sunday starting at 12 p.m. at Brown’s Aldrich Field. The Big Green will still be designated as the home team in all four games. The opening weekend of Red Rolfe Division play is a crucial one for the Bears as they try to keep pace with Harvard atop the standings. Brown carries a 5-3 league record into this weekend, identical to Harvard’s. Dartmouth sits at the bottom of the conference standings at 2-6. Harvard hosts Yale, 3-5 in the Ancient Eight, this weekend. — Herald staff reports

Ashley Hess / Herald File Photo Devin Thomas ’07 will look to maintain his Ivy League-leading .483 conference batting average in four games versus Dartmouth this weekend.

W. CREW: vs. Boston University, Marston Boathouse, 5 p.m. W. LACROSSE: at Cornell M. TENNIS: at Cornell W. TENNIS: vs. Cornell, Varsity Tennis Courts, 2 p.m. SOFTBALL: vs. Dartmouth, Softball Field, 3:30 p.m.

Baseball sweeps Ivy Pitcher, Player of the Week awards After dominating performances against Columbia and the University of Pennsylvania last weekend,

James Cramphin ’07 and Devin Thomas ’07 have been named the Ivy League Pitcher and Player of the Week, respectively. Cramphin shut down Columbia in the second leg of the teams’ Saturday doubleheader. He allowed just four hits and one run while striking out 11 in 8 1/3 innings of work and improved his record to 2-1 in the process. The senior’s only loss came at the hands of No. 4 University of South Carolina, but since then he has had a 4.30 ERA in three appearances. He also leads the team in strikeouts with 28. Thomas hit home runs in three out of four games over the weekend and went 7-for-7 versus Columbia. The catcher leads the conference with a .483 batting average, 16 RBIs and three home runs in league play. On the season he has slugged six homers and 32 RBIs from the third spot in the Bears’ potent lineup. —Peter Cipparone —

Baseball’s backstop opens up about calling games, Ivy play BY MARCO SANTINI SPORTS STAFF WRITER

For the past four years, baseball Head Coach Marek Drabinski has cobbled together a vast number of lineup combinations. The one name Drabinski has penciled in almost every time is Devin Thomas ’07. Of the 147 games the Bears have played since the beginning of 2004, Thomas has been behind the plate for 144. He has seen action in every one of them. This week, Thomas was named Ivy League Player of the Week after going 10-for-15, with 12 RBIs and

three home runs as the Bears took three of four games from Columbia and the University of Pennsylvania. On the year, he is tied for the team lead in hitting with a .337 average and 32 RBIs are also tops on

ATHLETE OF THE WEEK the team. For that performance and his Iron Man-like status behind the dish, Thomas was selected as The Herald’s Athlete of the Week. Herald: How did it feel to go 7-for-7 in two games against Columbia? Thomas: I just got some pitches

to hit at the plate. I put some good swings on them, but I don’t think about my numbers going in. But when you get to your fi fth or sixth at-bat, it might hit you. In other games, I just haven’t gotten a lot of pitches to hit. What was the best part of this weekend? Definitely going 3-1. It’s nice to do well, but when your personal success helps your team, that’s the biggest satisfaction. It’s good to be tied for first place with Harvard in our division.

What has been the most surprising part of the season? There were a lot of question marks coming into this season. We lost a lot of guys last year and we had a lot of younger guys coming to ﬁll roles. You never quite know what you are going to get with young guys but they responded well. Has the cold weather been affecting your team’s play? It’s been tough. Our game on Sunday against Penn got canceled because it was 32 degrees with a continued on page 9

Rugby teams host Ivy League Tournament BY KATHLEEN LOUGHLIN SPORTS STAFF WRITER

This weekend the men’s and women’s rugby teams will host the Ivy League Rugby Tournament at Glen Farm in Portsmouth. The tournament will feature the eight Ivy League teams at the same venue for the ﬁrst time this season. Competition for both teams will begin at 10 a.m. Saturday morning, with the men’s team facing Yale and the women taking on Princeton. Coming off a 51-0 win last weekend against Connecticut College, the men’s team will look to continue its success against more difﬁcult competition this week.

SPORTS SCHEDULE FRIDAY, AY APRIL 13 AY,

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THE BROWN DAILY HERALD

M. LACROSSE: vs. Penn, Stevenson Field, 1 p.m. SOFTBALL: vs. Dartmouth, Softball Field, 1 p.m. M. TENNIS: at Columbia W. TENNIS: vs. Columbia, Varsity Tennis Courts, 12 p.m. M. & W. TRACK: at Brown Invitational, Brown Stadium, All Day W. WATER POLO: at Queens

SATURDAY, AY APRIL 14 AY,

SUNDAY, AY APRIL 15 AY,

BASEBALL: vs. Dartmouth, 12 p.m., Aldrich Field M. CREW: at Harvard M. GOLF: at New England Championships, Triggs Golf Club, Providence, 8 a.m. W. GOLF: at Dartmouth/Harvard Triangular

BASEBALL: vs. Dartmouth, 12 p.m. M. GOLF: at New England Championships, Triggs Golf Club, Providence, 8 a.m. SOFTBALL: vs. Dartmouth, Softball Field, 12 p.m. W. GOLF: at Dartmouth/Harvard Triangular

The women’s team, ranked in the top 10 nationally after its strong showing last fall, has thoughts of winning the whole tournament. It is the women’s side’s last tournament before nationals, which features the top 16 teams in the country. For the men’s squad, their biggest rival of the weekend will be Yale. Tough match-ups might also come from Harvard and Dartmouth. “We are aiming for the big prize, especially on our home turf,” said Tom Flaherty ’08. “Our goal is to win and put our heart and soul into it and beat Yale in our ﬁrst match.” The Bears need strong contributions from Captain Rob Neville ’08, inside center Jeff Margulies ’07, wing Jon-Michael DaVirro ’07, outside center Hugh Livengood ’07 and hooker Simon Salgado ’07. The team has had a relatively healthy spring, avoiding the signiﬁcant injuries that have hampered the team in the past, so the full squad will be in action this weekend. “The Ivy League tournament is what we train for all spring,” Margulies said. “This is a particcontinued on page 9

Ashley Hess / Herald File Photo The men’s and women’s rugby teams both open their Ivy League Tournament with games Saturday in Portsmouth.