Student Life | February 22, 2008

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Danforth eateries will be similar to Mallinckrodt’s BY BEN SALES NEWS EDITOR Washington University Dining Services met with students this week to determine food options for the Danforth University Center, which will open this coming August. The food court of the Danforth University Center (DUC) will have the same layout as the current Mallinckrodt Student Center cafeteria, but will include some changes to the menu meant to promote a more balanced diet. There will be four stations in the new food court: an American style grill with burgers and chicken; an Asian concept with several types of cuisine and sushi; an Italian station with pizza, pasta and Mediterranean salads; and a Latino station similar to the one in Mallinckrodt. The space now used for the Mallinckrodt Food Court will be set aside for another function when the DUC opens, though it is uncertain what that will be. In addition, Hilltop Bakery will probably be converted into a salad bar that also sells wraps. Student Union (SU) Senator Colin Towery says that SU determined from a survey that the most common request among students was for a greater diversity of eating options. “Students wanted a more complete meal with a main dish and a vegetable and starch on the side,” he said. “I’m not sure what the fi nal menu will look like exactly.” In addition to the food court, the DUC will include a café similar to Hilltop Bakery and a sit-down bistro with a wait staff and alcoholic beverages, including wine and beer. Towery said that he is not con-

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cerned about the University’s offering alcohol to students on campus, because the bistro is meant for an older population. “[Dining Services] fi rst started talking about putting a restaurant to be used more by faculty and staff,” he said. “It’s not the sort of place that college students prefer. The decision for wine and beer was a no-brainer.” SU President Neil Patel added that even if students do partake in consuming alcohol, he is not worried because they will be in a formal setting conducive to responsible behavior. “Students in the real world are going to be approached with many opportunities to drink,” said Patel. “To have it integrated on campus in a safe way is good for students. Social events based around safe drinking are good for the campus community.” Patel also said that he was pleased to see Dining Services respond to the concerns of the students, voiced in an SUsponsored poll sent out earlier this year. He added that the students’ desire for balanced eating options showed that the campus is placing an emphasis on a healthy lifestyle. “Students want to be involved in the process,” he said. “It complements the push for better fitness facilities.” Paul Schimmele, assistant to the director of operations for Dining Services, said that the students who spoke with Bon Appétit chefs at this week’s meeting agreed with the University’s vision for the food court. “I was pleased with what I heard the chefs from Bon Appétit talking about and with what the students agreed on,”

said Schimmele. “We got the chefs to sit with the students and talk. It was great how in sync they seemed to be.” Another determining factor in the layout of the new food court is the space available for each station. This aspect of the planning came into play when the University found that the DUC would not have enough space for a fast-food franchise. “[A franchise] is precluded by the design of the building,” said Towery. “We’re going to try to get a franchise in the new Wohl Center. We have been working with architects for some time. This is a very long process.” Patel is disappointed not to see a franchise in the DUC, saying that it was a high priority for students in the survey. “Students want to see a franchise in the DUC,” he said. “If it’s the same options transferred over [from Mallinckrodt], students are going to be frustrated.” Patel said that a franchise is valuable because it diversifies the students’ menu. “When it comes to future renovations and future construction, we should be bringing in more outside options,” he said. “I don’t think that Wash. U. specializes in good food options.” But Schimmele said that Dining Services will be making an effort to improve food quality with a focus on student feedback, especially regarding the Asian concept in Mallinckrodt. “Bon Appétit has really listened to the comments,” said Schimmile. “If you look at the products that were fi rst offered and what there is today, there are a lot of things that have been substituted.”

Marketing is recipe for political success, say professors in new study BY JOSH HANTZ CONTRIBUTING REPORTER Forget public policy and promises for a better tomorrow. It may be more important for Republican candidates to seem competent and trustworthy, and for Democrats to seem intelligent and likeable. This is according to a new study by Michael Lewis of the Olin Business School, an assistant professor of marketing. Lewis argues that political candidates are increasingly running their campaigns from a marketing standpoint, referring to the current presidential race in which Democratic presidential candidate Senator Barack Obama of Illinois represents hope while Democratic presidential candidate Senate Hillary Clinton of New York represents experience. “We’re seeing branding more and more, and we think a marketing-oriented approach might add a little bit of insight into how elections are deter-

mined,” said Lewis, who coauthored the study with JoAndrea Hoegg of the University of British Columbia. “The candidates listen to the people’s opinions and even run focus groups. It’s like marketing a brand of soap, and they want to see ideas from the perspective of the voters.” Lewis said people who follow campaigns closely will notice that the candidates’ messages change over time. “Behind the scenes, a lot of what they say is driven by marketing research,” he said. Lewis and Hoegg based their research on 112 congressional elections in 2000 and 2002. They asked the participants to judge photos of candidates on seven personality traits and to identify the candidates as Republicans or Democrats. Psychologists refer to this as “thin-slicing,” making splitsecond judgments about a person. The authors found that competence and trustworthi-

STAFF REPORTER The Washington University Mock Trial team continued their strong season by placing fi fth in the Marilyn Butler Mock Trial Tournament in Louisville, Kentucky, and winning a bid to nationals this April. “We’ve done well for many years. Our program is one of the [best] in the country. We’ve always had at least one team in the top National Tournament,” said Warren Davis, the faculty manager for the team. “Several people have done this for four years. It’s like lettering in football for four years.” The team has also recently garnered success from two of its award-winning members: freshman Diana Dickinson won an award for being a top witness and sophomore Maggy Randels won an award for being a top attorney on the regional level. The time spent at Mock Tri-

al practice can range from six hours to 15 hours per week, depending on whether there are any upcoming tournaments. But all the Mock Trial Team members said the large time commitment was worth it. “I enjoy traveling to the different tournaments with all the people. I did Mock Trial in high school, but collegiate Mock Trial is really different because there’s a lot more preparation and hard work. We practice so much together that it becomes a family atmosphere,” said Dickinson. Since the team spends so much time together, Davis says his favorite part of managing Mock Trial is the team bonding and the lifelong skills he learns as part of the team. “It hones one’s ability to organize and synthesize quickly. You learn to really think on your feet and react to things quickly,” said Davis. Mock Trial President Brandon Harper, a junior, also said that the large amount of time

Did you miss Gonzales’ speech? If you didn’t make it over to the 560 Building for the former U.S. Attorney General’s speech, you can read a full transcipt of his prepared statement online at www.studlife.com

devoted to Mock Trial will help prepare members for their future professional endeavors. “We get to develop speaking skills, along with public presentation, critical reading, people skills,” said Harper. “All of those will be used as you get older. We also have a lot of really good, talented competitors. We enjoy being together, and we get to travel around to different states.” Sophomore Caitlyn Clarke said she likes the reality of the competitions. “I think that Mock Trial is close to advocacy. The objections are real, the rules are real and the cases are based on actual cases,” said Clarke. Two of the University’s Mock Trial teams will be competing in Columbia, Mo. this weekend. The University Mock Trial members said they are confident for the tournament this weekend and for Nationals in April. “Wash. U.’s defi nitely the team to beat,” said Clarke.

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ness were associated more with Republicans, while intelligence and likeability more with Democrats. They also found that candidates received more votes in the actual elections when they matched these associations. “That’s the way voters look at it,” said Lewis. “They have preconceived notions of what a Republican should be and what a Democrat should be and then they see how well the candidates fit those stereotypes.” According to Lewis, elections do not feature liberal Republicans or conservative Democrats anymore, because they do not fit the stereotypes. “It’s a tricky result,” he said. “It’s puzzling at fi rst but when you step back and think about it, it makes sense.” Lewis and Hoegg looked at other aspects of political campaigns and found that spending has little benefit for incum-

EVAN WISKUP | STUDENT LIFE

A horse and buggy treks across campus Wednesday morning as a part of the Presidents’ Day Celebration organized by the Lock & Chain honorary. All proceeds from the celebration will be donated to Professor Bob Hansman’s City Faces service project. BY PERRY STEIN NEWS EDITOR In honor of Presidents’ Day, the Lock & Chain society organized a series of events this week celebrating the University’s namesake, George Washington. All proceeds from the events, which ranged from horse and buggy rides around campus to a red, white and blue benefit party, will be donated to Architecture Professor Bob Hansman’s service project, City Faces. “We’re trying to get the student body to show a little bit of school spirit and have everyone come together to celebrate our namesake,” said sophomore Lock & Chain member Scott Friedman. City Faces is a community arts program that offers drawing classes to inner-city St. Louis children. In its 104th year, Lock & Chain focuses on community

Bears to take on NYU, Brandeis The men’s and women’s basketball teams will be battling NYU and Brandeis this weekend on their quest for UAA dominance. Sports, Page 3

service and is the University’s oldest sophomore honorary society. Friedman said that the society chose Hansman to be its keynote speaker this week because he shares a similar goal of involving University students in service. “We were trying to find an engaging speaker who was somehow related to Wash. U. He is a professor here and has a wonderful service project that a lot of Wash. U. students are involved in,” said Friedman. In addition to Hansman speaking on Wednesday, the celebration included horse and buggy rides, navigated by Friedman dressed as Washington, throughout campus. “It was a nice fun way to celebrate Washington week and to get students’ heads turning and get them involved in the week,” said Friedman. “One student mentioned that it was really nice to have it to break up the monot-

INSIDE: Sports . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3 Forum. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4 Cadenza . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6 Classifieds . . . . . . . . . . . . 7 Scene . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8

ony of the day.” Other events in the week included photo opportunities with George Washington, cherry pie and birthday cake outside of Mallinckrodt. “We had signs for our later events there, it was really to try to get everyone excited about George Washington’s birthday,” said Lock & Chain member Amy Crumpler, a sophomore. Hansman said he hopes that students were able to draw their own connections between his speech about City Faces and the ideals of George Washington. “The connections are for other people to make. I find that each person sees it through his own filter,” said Hansman. “Every time you bring up founding fathers and principles, the next question is: are you following them.” Hansman also says he hopes

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STUDENT LIFE One Brookings Drive #1039 #42 Women’s Building Saint Louis, MO 63130-4899 News: (314) 935-5995 Advertising: (314) 935-6713 Fax: (314) 935-5938 e-mail: editor@studlife.com www.studlife.com Copyright 2008 Editor in Chief: Erin Fults Executive Editor: David Brody Managing Editors: Shweta Murthi, Mallory Wilder Senior News Editor: Sam Guzik Senior Forum Editor: Nathan Everly Senior Cadenza Editor: Brian Stitt Senior Scene Editor: Meghan Luecke Senior Sports Editor: Trisha Wolf Senior Photo Editor: David Hartstein Senior Graphics Editor: Rachel Harris News Editors: Perry Stein, Ben Sales, Puneet Kollipara News Manager: Teddy White Forum Editors: Altin Sila, Jill Strominger, Christian Sherden, Dennis Sweeney Cadenza Editors: Elizabeth Ochoa, David Kaminsky, Cecilia Razak, Michelle Stein Scene Editors: Lana Goldsmith, Kate Gallagher Sports Editors: Johann Qua Hiansen, Unaiz Kabani, Josh Goldman Photo Editors: Lucy Moore, Lionel Sobehart, Jenny Shao Online Editor: Scott Bressler Design Chief: Anna Dinndorf Design Editors: Dennis Sweeney, Zoe Scharf, Brittany Meyer Copy Chief: Brian Krigsher Copy Editor: Kat Zhao Designers: Jamie Reed, Kate Ehrlich, Kim Yeh, Susan Hall, Liz Klein, Niki Dankner, Alyssa Anzalone-Newman, Sophia Agapova, Evan Freedman, Chris Maury, Courtney LeGates, Mia Feitel, Joe Rigodanzo General Manager: Andrew O’Dell Advertising Manager: Sara Judd Copyright 2008 Washington University Student Media, Inc. (WUSMI). Student Life is the financially and editorially independent, student-run newspaper serving the Washington University community. First copy of each publication is free; all additional copies are 50 cents. Subscriptions may be purchased for $80.00 by calling (314) 935-6713. Student Life is a publication of WUSMI and does not necessarily represent, in whole or in part, the views of the Washington University administration, faculty or students. All Student Life articles, photos and graphics are the property of WUSMI and may not be reproduced or published without the express written consent of the General Manager. Pictures and graphics printed in Student Life are available for purchase; e-mail editor@studlife.com for more information. Student Life reserves the right to edit all submissions for style, grammar, length and accuracy. The intent of submissions will not be altered. Student Life reserves the right not to publish all submissions.

Despite polemics, no tension between campus political groups

Pulse Compiled by Sam Guzik

Friday, February 22

BY EMILY WASSERMAN CONTRIBUTING REPORTER

Avenue Q

For weeks before former Attorney General Alberto Gonzales came to Washington University, students organized to both support and protest his presence on the University’s campus. Before the speech began, the College Republicans prepared themselves for the large group of student protestors. Not knowing what to expect, some Republicans said they were pleasantly surprised. “The protestors seem to be behaving relatively well, and that was our biggest concern,” said College Republicans Public Relations Coordinator Brinton Callaghan, a senior, before the actual speech. Some members of the College Republicans were upset by the fact that during the speech three members of the audience shouted out remarks calling Gonzales a liar and perjurer before walking out. “This reflects terribly on the [members of] College Democrats and [Wash. U.] Peace Coalition because they assured the Student Union that they would not cause any disturbance, and now they went back on their word,” said College Republican member Helene Burks. “[Though] I don’t think its fair to make the link between these groups and those individuals.” Sophomore Phil Katz says that the fact that there could be protestors on campus reflected the country’s democratic ideals. “While I personally do not agree with many of the arguments made by the protestors, I fully support their decision to picket,” said Katz. “By that same token, I felt that Gonzales had the right to freely express his side of the story, and I was glad to see that even the most ardent protestors did not try to prevent him from exercising those same rights that they themselves were

The hit Broadway play Avenue Q will be performed at the Fox theatre this weekend. Friday’s performance will be at 8 p.m. and Saturday’s will also be at 8 p.m. with an additional performance at 2 p.m. Red Alert Basketball Both the Men’s and Women’s basketball teams will be battling for the No. 1 ranking in the University Athletic Association [UAA] against Brandeis. This Red Alert-sponsored event will be giving away free pizza. Members of the Lock & Chain honorary will be presenting awards at this game in honor of George Washington Week.

Saturday, February 23 A cappella competition An Intercollegiate a cappella competition will be held at 8 p.m. on Saturday night. Support the University’s own Mosaic Whispers and Stereotypes as they compete against the best a cappella groups in the Midwest. The event is hosted by the Amateurs. The competition will be held at the 560 Building on the Loop. The event is free for all Wash. U. students, and buses will be leaving from the BSchool to take students to the 560 Building. Fire and Ice The freshmen class’ Fire And Ice Ball will be held at 10 p.m. on Saturday night in the Gargoyle. Tickets are $10 at the door and the dress is semi-formal and fire or ice colors.

Sunday, February 24 She Stoops To Conquer She Stoops To Conquer, a Performing Arts Department production, will be today at Hotchner Theatre at 2 p.m. There will also be performances running from February 22 through March 2. Tickets can be purchased at the Edison Theatre Box Office and cost nine dollars for University community members.

If you’d like to place an ad, please contact the Advertising Department at (314) 935-6713. If you wish to report an error or request a clarification, e-mail editor@studlife.com.

exercising outside.” While the Republicans seemed torn between whether the protestors were a disturbance or peaceful, most of the protesters said they received overwhelming support from the University and St. Louis communities. “On the march to the protest, we had drivers honking and waving, and giving us thumbs-up and peace signs all the way up Big Bend and Delmar,” said College Democrats Treasurer and sophomore Eric Reif, who led the protest. “People haven’t forgotten the human rights abuses and the systematic destruction of civil liberties that he authorized.” Freshman Democrat Lucy Gellman said that she felt the need to protest. “To protest was never an issue of ‘if’ for me; it was an issue of ‘when.’ Protesting made me feel powerful, [but] I have nothing against those that chose not to protest,” said Gellman. But Gellman also says she believed that most University students are politically uninterested. “I am an ardent supporter of free speech, but unfortunately I think Wash. U. is a politically apathetic campus,” said Gellman. “I think having such a controversial, far-right conservative was a perfect way to exercise our fundamental right, and I pity those that are completely ignorant of the world around them.” Other student protestors voiced their beliefs differently. Sophomore Felix Dowsley chose to express his political opinions through music. “I participated in the protests with other musicians, and it was exhilarating,” said Dowsley. I jumped at the chance to rock for the cause. My friends and I played music from Rage Against the Machine and Bob Dylan—standard protest fare. The emotion of the protest was positive, and the discontent was peaceful but vocal.” Sophomore Erin Kane, who

LIONEL SOBEHART | STUDENT LIFE

Alberto Gonzales speaks to students Tuesday evening in the 560 Building. Gonzales was met with a mixed reception, with some in the community actively supporting his presence and others protesting his visit to Washington University. was unable to attend the protest, says that it was a positive development. “The pro-Gonzales students probably felt alienated, but I think the College Republicans anticipated protests and a general feeling of antagonism between the majority of the students and Gonzales,” said Kane. “The group of protestors were a really politically active and aware bunch of students.” Reif also expressed his support for free speech by both parties, even if he does not personally agree with Gonzales. “I don’t expect everyone to agree with my position, and students who support Gonzales’ politics shouldn’t expect everyone to agree with them,” he said. “The reason that this protest happened, and, quite frankly, the reason that Gonzales was invited at all is because we don’t all agree on everything.”

MARKETING v FROM PAGE 1 bent candidates but a large one for challengers. “Incumbents already have high awareness and challengers get more bang for their buck,” said Lewis. “But it’s a zero-sum game, and there’s an incentive to overspend. The goal is just to win.” The authors also looked at the effects of negative advertising and found that it hurts the incumbent and helps the challenger. “By putting the challenger out there, even for negative

WASHINGTON WEEK v FROM PAGE 1 students learn to use their individual passions to help the community. “Find a way to practice what you love so that other people besides you benefit from it,” said Hansman. According to Friedman, this week has thus far been a success; as of Thursday morning, Lock & Chain had raised $750 for City Faces.

FRIDAY | FEBRUARY 22, 2008

Mr. Wash. U., another fundraising event, is also donating proceeds to City Faces. Hansman said he is moved by all of the student support his project is receiving. “It’s touching almost beyond belief. It touches me very deeply that the students have said that this is something we care about,” said Hansman. “The Wash. U. student is our main

source of survival. They took it on; they initiated that connection.” George Washington week will culminate with a red, white and blue benefit party for City Faces on Saturday night in the Wohl Center from 9 p.m. until midnight. The event costs one dollar for attendees, Washington’s signature bill; participants may make additional donations. ®

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est,” said Gibson. “People see a quid pro quo relationship between those who give and the candidates’ policies.” In other words, voters think that candidates may modify their platforms to attract more contributions. Lewis said that all this research has many practical applications for politicians and voters. “It might suggest how to portray and select candidates, even based on appearance variables,” he said. “It also may help marketing campaigns devote resources more effectively.” He added that voters—and students in particular—need to be aware that what candidates say may be carefully crafted statements by marketing strategists. Lewis cautioned, however, that all of these results are based on congressional elections and may not apply to presidential elections in which everyone is more aware of what is happening. “You have to take a step back and realize what the marketing is surrounding the candidates,” said Lewis.

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advertising, it’s still doing advertising,” said Lewis. “Bullying also creates sympathy and makes the challenger more legitimate.” The professors’ reasoning is that if the incumbent is spending time and money on attacks, the challenger has credibility. However, running negative ads benefits the challenger because he gets himself into the “choice set” of candidates through comparison. Professor of government James Gibson published a related study in this week’s “American Political Science Review,“ analyzing the effects of attack ads, policy talks and campaign contributions on voter perception in judicial elections. “Since 2003, campaigns for judicial office have become dramatically more politicized,” said Gibson. “As a consequence, judges have started running attack ads.” His results showed that policy talks and negative ads have little to no effect on perception while campaign contributions have a large negative effect. “There’s a confl ict of inter-

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FRIDAY | FEBRUARY 22, 2008

STUDENT LIFE | SPORTS

3

SPORTS —Compiled by Rachel Metter

BASKETBALL

Bears welcome Brandeis, NYU in UAA showdowns BY JOSHUA GOLDMAN SPORTS EDITOR Both the men’s and women’s basketball teams of Washington University have a chance to guarantee a tie for first in the UAA at season’s end this weekend. Men’s Team The men’s squad (18-4, 9-2 UAA) holds a one game lead in UAA play over Brandeis University. The Bears and Judges square off Friday, ranked fourth and sixth respectively in the D3Hoops.com Top 25 poll. These Division III powerhouses last met on January 27 in Waltham, Mass. and the Bears escaped with a 71-69 win fueled by 25 points from senior forward and co-captain Troy Ruths. Ross Kelly, Tyler Nading and Danny O’Boyle also scored in double figures while Moss Schermerhorn and Aaron Thomson each made one shot. A win against Brandeis eliminate the Judges from capturing sole possession of the UAA title since Wash. U. would sweep the season series. The University of Chicago also trails Wash. U. by a game in the UAA standings and they host New York University on Friday before meeting Brandeis on Sunday. With the standings this close in UAA play, this weekend could decide the UAA title, turn the March 1 contest between the Maroons and the Bears into the UAA championship game, or force all three teams to scramble for a win on the final Saturday of

the regular season. “I would imagine that the way we beat them last meeting has left them wanting some serious revenge. I expect this game to be as intense as any we’ve played this season. They are a great team and we’re going to have to play well to win. They realize that if they win, they’re in a tie for first in the UAA, so look for this to be a huge battle. We will do our usual preparation during this week of practice to try to get ourselves ready to compete on Friday,” said O’Boyle, a senior and co-captain. Regardless of the result against the Judges, the Red and Green will need to handle NYU carefully on Sunday due to the closeness of the UAA. The Bears defeated NYU 57-50 in the Big Apple on January 25. “Regardless of the outcome on Friday, we know we don’t have an easy task in NYU on Sunday. They beat Rochester last weekend, so we know they will be playing with a lot of confidence coming in here. Hopefully another big crowd on Sunday will keep our intensity at a high level throughout the weekend,” stated O’Boyle. “A UAA title would mean the realization of our first goal of the season. From there, our goals are to get to the Final Four, and to win a National Championship,” added Schermerhorn. Women’s Team The Washington University women’s basketball team (17-5,

8-3 UAA) is also battling for a UAA title. Currently, the Lady Bears are in a four-way tie with No. 19 University of Rochester, Chicago and Brandies atop the UAA. Rochester will face Case Western Reserve University and Emory University this weekend before ending with Carnegie Mellon University on March 1 while Chicago, Brandeis and Wash. U. play each other and NYU in the same sequence as their male counterparts. With Rochester facing three teams that it has already defeated, which also comprise the bottom half of the UAA, it is likely that the Lady Bears, Lady Judges or Lady Maroons will need to win to tie Rochester, which split games with all three schools for the UAA title. Brandeis currently holds a slight lead over both Wash. U. and Chicago in the standings due to previous wins this season. The Lady Bears know how imperative it is to win on Friday, as Brandeis crushed the Bears 6648 on Jan 27. “While we are excited to get another chance against Brandeis, we are more excited to face the challenge of defending our UAA title. We know Brandeis. And they know us. It’s just going to come down to who has the determination and focus to carry out their game plan on the court Friday night,” said captain Jill Brandt. Brandt also admitted that the team needed to make a minor adjustment to reach the next level of play. “We try to prepare

each game the same, no matter the competition. Every game is a big game. However, our goal this week is to sharpen our focus on the court. There have been times in the past few games when we lost that focus and it caused a turnover or gave the other team another opportunity,” she said. Being at home should also help the Lady Bears this weekend. “It gives you that extra sense that you’re playing for something,” said sophomore Janice Evans. Evans has experienced a breakout of sorts recently, as she led the team in points during both games last weekend en route to recording her first career double-double. Freshmen Alex Hoover and Kathryn Berger have also made big shots this year and will likely play a major role in the success of the team. Following Friday’s contest comes another matchup with UAA rival NYU. “[This match is] not to be taken lightly. They’re coming here with a chip on their shoulder. We are treating them like any other team in our conference,” said Evans. “Winning the UAA is an incredible accomplishment, particularly because it is one of the best conferences in the country. It would be great,” added Brandt. “But, we realize that the UAA title is a long way away. We still have two weeks of basketball ahead of us, and a lot can happen in a short time in the UAA. We are just trying to take it all a day at a time and maintain our focus both on and off the court.”

SPORTS EDITOR This weekend doesn’t just bring great basketball games; it brings a lot of treats for sports fans as well. Friday’s games against Brandeis University are jampacked. The festivities begin with Domino’s pizza courtesy of Red Alert at 5:45 p.m. before the 6 p.m. tip-off of the women’s game. Red Alert is sponsoring a George Washington costume contest at the women’s game. “There are three Grants ($50 bills) for the winners, in keeping with the presidential theme,” said Red Alert co-president and senior Kristy Kramer. Contestants will walk out on the court at the beginning of halftime where they will be judged by a panel of experts. According to Trevor MacDonald of the Washington Uni-

versity Athletics Department, there will be an Olympic Table Tennis Competition at halftime of the women’s game. The Yao brothers, Justen and Alex, will give a table tennis exhibition. Fourteen-year-old Justen was named the 2007 Male Athlete of the year by the U.S. Table Tennis Association. The honor was approved by the U.S. Olympic Committee while his 12-year-old brother Alex was Champion for the U.S. Worldwide Open Tournament in the 13-year-old and 18-year-old groups. After halftime is over, the two brothers and their mother will host a free clinic in the Intramural Gym for additional demonstrations and competition. “Any person interested in table tennis whether they are an advanced player or just a beginner of any age is welcome to challenge for a serious match,” said MacDonald in an e-mail.

Members of the Wash. U. Table Tennis Club will assist in the clinic. “It’s definitely an exciting opportunity for Wash. U. in general,” said President of the Table Tennis Club and senior Xihui Lin. “It’s a great opportunity to let people know about our program at Wash. U.” The Athletics Department will also be handing out various promotional items such as T-shirts, foam fingers, posters and more from the Will Ferrell movie “Semi Pro” on Friday night. Sunday’s games don’t suffer from a lack of content as the Bears celebrate Senior Day while Thurtene, the junior honorary, celebrates the group’s annual Hoops Day. “Sunday is the last regular season home game for the Bears, and we hope to build as much support for the team as possible through the extra

“A wig because it reminds me of George Washington.” -Michael Martinez, Sophomore

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out, only vital plot points left completely unexplained and unexplored. Not unlike the reviewer’s peculiar blank Word document, might I add. I suppose I could take you back and explain a bit more, but who would honestly enjoy rehashing this thing again?

the reviewer was left watching the same 15 minute clip eight times in 90 minutes. The reviewer expands his theory. It wasn’t just a gimmick; it was a hindrance. Because of the short amount of time given to each “piece of the puzzle” (the reviewer also despises this cliché), the action got repetitive and it stopped surprising. The story fell from its pedestal, too, and the reviewer was forced to watch the President’s hokey trickery unravel like a plot from “According to Jim.” The different vantage points didn’t add to the mystery as much as they got rid of it. There weren’t any hints to the twists scattered through-

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VANTAGE POINT v FROM PAGE 6

attendance,” said Public Relations co-chair, junior Matthew Beckley. Thurtene will also have a T-shirt giveaway related to Hoops Day while supplies last and hold a raffle to enter a halftime contest where the winner will receive a mountain bike. To win, contestants must beat their opponents in a head to head bat spin and then lay up. Free pizza will also be given away to feed hungry fans. All of these events will help make the last homestand of the regular season a memorable one. “It’s hard to think that this is going to be my final two home games of the regular season,” said senior Danny O’Boyle of the men’s basketball team. “It’s a culmination of four years of hard work and dedication to the program. Winning both games this weekend is the way I want to go out.”

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“I would want it to be a panther because they are sleek and sexy.” -Alex Kiles, Freshman

Field House full of great games and giveaways this weekend BY JOHANN QUA HIANSEN

“A dolphin because they are the smartest animal.” -Rachel Bernard, Sophomore

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Senior Forum Editor / Nathan Everly / forum@studlife.com

STUDENT LIFE | FORUM

FORUM

FRIDAY | FEBRUARY 22, 2008

Our daily Forum editors: Monday: Christian Sherden Wednesday: Jillian Strominger Friday: Altin Sila ctsherde@artsci.wustl.edu jlstromi@artsci.wustl.edu asila@wustl.edu To ensure that we have time to fully evaluate your submissions, guest columns should be e-mailed to the next issue’s editor or forwarded to forum@studlife.com by no later than 5 p.m. two days before publication. Late pieces will be evaluated on a case-by-case basis. We welcome your submissions and thank you for your consideration.

STAFF EDITORIAL

New financial aid policy is a good first step Recently, Washington University announced that students from families earning less than $60,000 would no longer be expected to take out student loans to pay for their education. Instead, the University will provide those students with grants that do not have to be repaid. This decision affects both newly admitted students as well as returning students. The reason why Washington University is now prepared to make this additional financial commitment is because of the continued financial success of the University endowment. Over the 2006 fiscal year, the endowment skyrocketed from $4.75 billion to $5.66 billion. As a result, the University is prepared to spend the addi-

tional $2.5 million required to implement this new policy for the 2008-2009 school year, on top of the $60 million it already spends on financial aid. As Chancellor Wrighton stated in an interview with Student Life on Monday, “This is a part of our ongoing commitment to ensure that Washington University remains an institution that can provide an educational experience for students with moderate financial backgrounds.” Our first response to this news is to congratulate Chancellor Wrighton and the rest of the administration for working to make this possible. Making college affordable for low and middleincome students should be one of the top priorities of

this administration, and recent policies, such as the 4.9 percent tuition increase, have made it unclear whether the University is truly committed to this goal. Nevertheless, this is an excellent step in the right direction, and with the continued success of the University’s endowment, we expect the administration’s commitment to these students to grow. As we have stated, we believe that this new policy is just a first step. And while there is certainly a lot to like about it, there are two ways that it could be improved. First, we would like to see the scope of the new policy eventually be expanded. While this decision is similar to policies implemented

at Stanford University and Harvard University, it is also much less ambitious. Stanford University has agreed to give free tuition to undergraduates from families earning less than $100,000 per year. And Harvard University, which already gives free tuition to students from families earning less than $60,000, stipulates that families earning up to $180,000 must contribute only 10 percent of their income to pay for tuition. For obvious reasons, Washington University cannot afford to offer a similarly ambitious plan. Harvard University maintains an endowment worth $34.6 billion, and Stanford University has a $22.5 billion endowment. That said, we believe

that Washington University can work towards expanding its financial aid to include more middle-class students. The University’s new aid expansion is only a 4.2 percent increase in financial aid spending. The second step that Washington University could make is to admit more qualified low-income students. Currently, the University has a very poor record of recruiting and admitting qualified low-income students. The new financial aid policy will affect just 600 students. And according to the Institute for College Access and Success, just five percent of Washington University’s undergraduate students received federal Pell grants in 2005-2006. Federal Pell

grants, which are scholarships given to low-income students, are considered a good barometer of economic diversity on campus because they are typically given to students from families earning $40,000 or less. Without a long-term effort to increase the number of lowincome students who attend Washington University, this new policy will be little more than an empty gesture. But with all of this being said, we must once again state how impressed we are with the administration for making this commitment. This is indeed a big victory for low- and middle-income students. Now let’s work toward improving Washington University’s socioeconomic diversity.

Can reason save us?

RACHEL TEPPER | EDITORIAL CARTOON

BY DAVID BAUMAN OP-ED SUBMISSION

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teven Kazmierczak is the latest suicide murderer who bought several guns, dressed in black and blew away students at a university. We all ask “why” and fi nd some comfort in the fact that he had stopped taking his Prozac for about three weeks. Whew. At least our society is not to blame for this evil act. But if he had stayed on Prozac, would he have still pulled the trigger 30 times before taking his own life? I think he would have. Evil of this magnitude, though 27 bodies below Virginia Tech’s record, stretches our faith. I don’t mean faith in God, but rather our faith in a world without God. Running deep in secular academia is the fi rmly held belief that a world without any gods, a God, and especially this Jesus guy, will bow to reason and reasonable people. Anti-theist Sam Harris believes that without religion we can be reasonable. “It is the very nature of reason

to fuse cognitive and moral horizons. Reason is nothing less than the guardian of love.” What a great ode to reason! But can Harris’ faith in reason explain Kazmierczak? I believe it can, but not to a secularist’s liking. Reason is a tool and not an end in itself. We use reason to select which moral ends will guide our lives and use practical reason to determine how to follow those ends. But what standard does reason use to choose what is right and wrong? Harris assumes that people will choose the obvious goal of loving each other. Kazmierczak didn’t come to that conclusion and he chose the moral end of power. I base my highly speculative conclusion on the contents of a Valentine package Kazmierczak sent to his girlfriend. It contained two books—a psychopathology textbook and “The Antichrist” by Nietzsche. I believe Kazmierczak chose power as a moral end because of his obvious appreciation of Nietzsche’s insights. Note the

See BAUMAN, page 5

Thanks to everyone involved in the Alberto Gonzales event BY NEIL PATEL OP-ED SUBMISSION

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ccording to Wednesday’s St. Louis Post-Dispatch, the students who invited Alberto Gonzales to Washington University Tuesday night and the protesters who showed up to denounce the former Attorney General could agree on one thing: his presence helped revive political activism at the school. As the sounds of protest and dialogue subside, I want to offer a resounding thank you to students, administrators, the Washington University Police Department (WUPD) and the St. Louis

community. When it was announced in November that Gonzales would come speak here, I heard an array of responses from disgust to curiosity to excitement. Many students were in favor of hearing him speak despite their disapproval of his actions as Attorney General. I want to thank the College Democrats for their facilitation of constructive dialogue through roundtable discussions, a town hall meeting and a teach-in for law school professors to express their concerns about Gonzales’ past actions. Along with the Peace and Justice Coalition, they implemented a successful

protest that garnered national attention. In addition to having members create posters and wear orange jumpsuits to class, they provided their members with an opportunity to march to the venue and protest with local area groups. Protestors who chose to attend the speech did so respectfully and through their actions promoted freedom of speech on our campus. Across the aisle, I want to thank Ryan Winograd and the College Republicans for hosting a speaker that represents a minority view. By hosting Gonzales, they sparked significant dialogue and action on our sometimes-apathetic campus.

Winograd, the organization’s vice president and main organizer of the event, attended College Democrats meetings and participated in their discussions. The open communication and mutual respect exhibited by both Winograd and College Democrats’ President Ben Guthorn are remarkable given the national political climate. Their cooperation enabled a successful event on Tuesday, both inside and outside of the 560 Building. While student groups were involved in making the event successful, neither the protests nor the speech would have happened without the permission of the Wash. U. administration—

and I thank them for this. I understand that they were under pressure to kill the event. In addition, the security and logistical concerns could have easily caused the event to collapse under its own weight. Yet, they still supported our right to bring in a big name, controversial speaker despite the additional headache it would cause. This precedent is a step in the right direction for students and is something we can build upon. My final thanks goes to the Washington University Police Department for keeping the event safe, both for protesters and listeners. The Gonzales speech and protest had the potential to

be very dangerous. WUPD spent months coordinating with University City Police, the 560 Building management and student groups to ensure that protests could occur on the premises and that participants would be safe. Even though Gonzales’ speech was not profound, I believe his presence brought something out of many students. And as we prepare for the upcoming elections in November, I hope we continue our spirit of political activism. Neil is the president of Student Union. He can be reached via e-mail at president@su.wustl.edu.

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Senior Forum Editor / Nathan Everly / forum@studlife.com

FRIDAY | FEBRUARY 22, 2008

Wage inequality and pregnancy machines

TEMU BROWN | STUDENT LIFE

BY ZACHARY STEINERT-THRELKELD STAFF COLUMNIST

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espite progress in gender relations over the last 50 years, women still earn less than men, roughly 80 cents to every dollar men earn. This is an improvement, however, as women earned 62 cents to every male dollar in 1979. Unfortunately, this climb seems to have stalled and recent data suggests that the upward trend in female earning power has reached a ceiling. Economists suggest that the wage gap can be explained primarily by two factors. First, women tend to follow lowerpaying degrees and careers such as English and teaching. Though some critics argue that these professions earn less because of their feminine association and not because they perform less valuable services, that argument does not make sense. If true, women would also earn less than men in their same field, but that is not the case. Second, women have to take time off from work to have babies and raise them. During this period, their husbands continue to earn money and receive promotions. Aside from

the immediate costs of having a baby (hospital fees, diapers, extra food, etc.), the mother thus loses the income she would have earned working. The time spent out of the workforce then slows down the pace of promotion and lowers the gains of future wage growth. For women in higher paying fields, this opportunity cost can be very high (i.e. it costs a lot more for a lawyer to have a baby than for a waitress). And if a woman wants more than one child, she may face several years of withdrawal from the workforce. There is a large cost to having children and it explains a significant amount of the persistent wage gap. I can think of two solutions. The first is to offer paternity leave: If men miss an equal amount of work as women because of their children, then the wage difference should narrow. Since this would come from men having less earning potential (and women more), it is easy to see that many men may not like this idea. In addition, few corporations offer paternity leave. When I asked a Deloitte & Touche USA LLP representative, a firm which prides itself on its generous maternity leave, if it offers paternity leave, the man responded, in

surprise: “No. Why would you need that? When you are 28 or 29, we expect you to be pursuing your career.” Men should not be looked down upon for wanting to help raise their newborn child. Though further off, I think an equally practical answer is a pregnancy machine. Once the woman is pregnant, she would have the option of removing the fertilized egg and leaving it in the care of a machine that recreates the womb experience. After 38 weeks, the new parents could pick up their children at the hospital. Once we think about the strides in childcare made since the Industrial Revolution, the idea is not as crazy as it initially appears. For most of human history, those we consider children were not viewed as people, as viable beings, until they reached a threshold, often three to five years of age. Not until the creature survived the threat of disease and malnutrition did its parents view it as a child, a human being to which they could become attached. As technology and medicine progressed, we started to view children as viable from the moment they exited the womb, and invested them with the emotional care that is standard

today. But our view of children has been shaped by technological advances, not some ethical progression. Even now, babies born with fewer than 38 weeks of gestation can survive; the youngest birth recorded was at 22 weeks, almost half the anatomical requirement. My point is that technology will one day make babies viable at day zero, and women will have the choice to not go through a standard pregnancy and its requisite economic costs. I do not know when this will happen, and it probably will not be before we have children. But I am convinced that closing the wage gap requires overcoming the costs of pregnancy, and a machine which obviates the entire process will close any part of the pay gap not due to different choice of professions. It might seem cold and dystopic to us now, but in the future people may look back on us just as we do on our ancestors: as a society with repressed women and backwards attitudes toward children. Zachary is a senior in Arts & Sciences and a staff columnist. He can be reached via e-mail at zsteiner@artsci.wustl.edu.

My (brief) take on Barack Obama BY BRIAN PRICE STAFF COLUMNIST

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s recently as a month ago, there was only one major presidential candidate who truly scared me: Mike Huckabee. Fortunately, at this point in time the only thing that can save him is a true act of God. While Huckabee might actually believe this to be plausible, I’m pretty comfortable with saying that he won’t win the Republican Party nomination. You would think I would be satisfied now, but no. That’s because in recent days and weeks, I’ve noticed an increasingly alarming trend regarding a different campaign. It’s not so much that I’m upset with the fact that Barack Obama is exponentially gaining support; it’s how he’s doing it that bothers me. But before I go any further, let me make it clear that I’m not trying to attack Obama or anyone who supports him. I just want to make sure that if the American people elect him to be our next president (which seems to be more and more likely every day), that they do so for the right reasons. That’s the closest thing to a disclaimer that I can offer. Read on at your own risk. It’s time to get real: Barack Obama’s policies are virtually no different than those of Hillary Clinton or, for that matter, all of the Democratic candidates who dropped out of the race. They endorse most

things that are considered liberal ideas. Yes, there are some differences between the two: for example, Obama supports meeting with heads of state like North Korea’s Kim Jong-il and Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad while Clinton opposes such actions (at least in the first year of her presidency). Basically, though, if you support the Democratic Party, then your vote in the primaries should be (at least in my opinion) for who you think can enforce their policies best. Therein lies the rub. My problem with Obama used to be that he hasn’t been entrenched in the Washington political scene long enough to become commander in chief. Now, however, recent developments have me convinced that he is in fact too experienced in the field of contemporary politics. He’s seen how the typical campaign works, the one fi lled with promises that can’t be kept, mudslinging and self-aggrandizement, and he realizes that there is another way: you simply hide it all. You take the bad stuff, the boring stuff, the stuff which the average American doesn’t have time to follow (and even if they did have time wouldn’t care about) and you omit it from your speeches. You get rid of the tedious logic which defines your platform and you replace it with pure pathos. Tell the crowd that your campaign to get yourself elected isn’t actually about you, it’s about them. Instead of detailing your

plan with complex rhetoric and big words that you got from that top-notch university, find a rudimentary expression and use it as a message of hope that people will chant every time you pause to catch your breath (or if you’re really good, at any arbitrary time in the middle of your sentences). You do these kinds of things, I’ve found, and John and Jane Q. Citizen will truly believe you’re serious. They really will see you as the “Candidate of Change”, the “Unifier of a Nation,” and (if the recent string of people fainting at campaign rallies is any indicator) a genuinely messianic figure. Now, I realize that what I’m saying makes me look like a pretty big jerk (there’s actually a more appropriate word, but I don’t think I could put it in here), but I hope people will understand that it’s hard to express the way I feel in such a small space. I want to make it clear that I am not against all Obama supporters. On the contrary, there are plenty of people out there who do look at the issues and believe he has the best platform, or who really deep down inside think that Hillary Clinton’s past actions do not merit the honor of leading the free world. That’s perfectly alright. I don’t grade homework based on accuracy, only for completeness. My quarrel, if you’d call it that, is with the zombies who chant “Yes We Can” without any understanding of what it really is “we” can do, and

with the robots who wave their “Stand For Change” and “Change We Can Believe In” banners without knowing what “change” actually means. They’re out there, and they may very well give Obama the election, which to me is just as bad as (if not worse than) the superdelegates doing the same thing for Hillary. I’m not saying everyone needs to know everything (because I certainly don’t), but I just want to make sure that we make the right choice for the next four or eight years. Maybe that choice is Barack Obama, and maybe he truly will eliminate factions and corruption and unite this country under peace and harmony, but right now I haven’t seen enough practical solutions to go with that idealism (not to mention that the kind of national cohesion he’s talking about has never truly existed in the United States, but that’s a story for another day). Maybe you still say I’m wrong (and want to call me that word I said I couldn’t put in here) and that Obama really is going to bring about “change” and “unity” and that everyone who supports him is actually fully aware of just what it is for which he stands. If you do, then congratulations: you’ve just proved my point for me. Brian is a freshman in Arts & Sciences and a staff columnist. He can be reached via e-mail at brprice@artsci.wustl.edu.

STUDENT LIFE | FORUM

5

Dear Congress: Stay out of sports

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ver the past few years, our members of Congress have developed an odd habit of poking their noses into professional sports. It began in 2005 when Congress subpoenaed Mark McGwire, Jose Canseco, Rafael Palmeiro and others to testify about their use of steroids while playing Major League Baseball. When the Mitchell Report on the use of Altin steroids in professional baseball was released last year, President Bush personally commented on it. This month, Roger Clemens was subpoenaed to testify about his use of steroids in front of the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform. The event was a partisan spectacle; Democrats questioned Clemens tougher than their Senate counterparts had questioned Michael Mukasey during his Attorney General nomination hearing, and Republicans praised him as if he were a war hero. Also this month, Congress moved beyond professional baseball to football, when Republican Senator Arlen Specter of Pennsylvania demanded a personal meeting with NFL commissioner Roger Goodell to discuss the New England Patriots’ long history of cheating. Now, I personally care about these issues, because I’m a sports fan and I can’t stand cheating. (I even wrote a column on “Spygate” just two weeks ago.) But when I heard that senators and representatives were taking it upon themselves to investigate the issue, I couldn’t help but wonder if there were more important priorities for Congress. Of course, our elected officials in Congress have defended their inquiries. They claim that they are investigating the use of steroids among baseball stars because they are worried about the example it might set for children who look up to them. And Sen. Specter told the Associated Press that he was looking into the Patriots cheating scandal because “we have a right to honest football games.” Don’t be fooled. These aren’t the real reasons that our representatives in Washington are involving themselves in professional sports. Exposing baseball players as steroid users does nothing

but show young people that even the heroes they worship had to use steroids to succeed. And Arlen Specter cannot truly believe that not only do the American people have a right to watch honest football games but that it is his personal responsibility to protect that right. Our elected officials do this for pretty simple reasons: they want to be on television more often, they want to meet profesSila sional athletes and they simply want to become involved in the world of sports (which many of them most likely were kept out of as children). All of this can be seen in the way that members of Congress publicly dramatize the issue and gawk over the athletes like children at the ballpark. After Roger Clemens’ hearing, he signed autographs for congressional staffers, and Arlen Specter was more than happy to theorize to media outlets that the Patriots may have cheated against his hometown favorite Philadelphia Eagles in the Super Bowl and the Pittsburgh Steelers in playoff games. What has been accomplished by all of this? In any of these cases, has Congress succeeded in its mission to protect children or the integrity of the games? Their hearings and meetings are merely media spectacles that serve no real purpose. Why, then, is all of this necessary? With major problems such as war, America’s tactics in the war on terrorism, the slipping economy, poverty, the environment and countless others facing the country (and the world), how can this be such a high priority? And how are our elected representatives not held responsible for their extreme wastefulness of time and resources on these issues of extraordinarily minor importance? The questions of whether baseball players have injected steroids and whether the New England Patriots cheated in the Super Bowl ought to be left to sports writers and ESPN. It is not the job of the United States Congress to investigate these issues. Our representatives need to stop being fans and start acting like elected officials in the American legislature. Altin is a senior in Arts & Sciences and a Forum editor. He can be reached via e-mail at forum@studlife.com.

BAUMAN v FROM PAGE 4 well-reasoned opening to “The Antichrist”: “What is good? Everything that heightens the feeling of power in man, the will to power, power itself. What is bad? Everything that is born of weakness. . .The weak and the failures shall perish: fi rst principle of our love of man. And they shall even be given every possible assistance.” Nietzsche and Kazmierczak are not unreasonable because they defi ne their love of man as the perishing of the weak. How could we criticize this as unreasonable if that is his chosen moral end and reason has no standard for saying he is wrong? Some may argue that reason concludes that all people have dignity and should not be harmed. But that is another opinion based on our desire to stay alive. If our desires are reasons, then this moral end is fi ne for us, but don’t think that Kazmierczak is being unreasonable just because he had different desires. My main point is that believing that reason will deliver us from evil is an illusion. One would think that the Holocaust, enacted by scientists, doctors, politicians, philosophers and theologians, would have shaken us from our blind reliance on human reason for salvation. The problem and the solution is not reason, but rather what moral ends we choose. From a secular worldview, the choice is up to the individual. Am I going overboard about academic faith in reason? Consider this quote by Virginia Tech president Charles Steger writing to NIU. He laments, “We would like to think that institutions of learning and of rational thought would be

spared such madness. Sadly, this is not the case in today’s world.” It is sad that he has a misplaced faith in reason to stop the madness. But the madness will not stop with more rational thought because secular reason rarely addresses what gives meaning to our lives. Meaning fi lls the spiritual void that people like Kazmierczak often fi ll with power and pleasure. Psychologist Viktor Frankl wrote that the will to power and the will to pleasure “are mere derivatives of man’s primary concern, that is, his will to meaning.” Yes, some people need meds, but our deepest need is for meaning that goes beyond reason and scientific facts. Reason could be depicted as a ladle at the trough of meaning, but when a person’s trough is empty secular universities tell him to either medicate or distract himself with pleasure (sex week, alcohol) or power (politics, career). Then he can get busy studying the ladle which is what universities do best. If top universities won’t step up to the challenge of addressing both the minds and hearts of students, then we might as well highly medicate our society from birth (as we are rapidly doing to boys in particular) and buy kevlar vests for when they forget to take their pills. Reason will not deliver us from hollow men who fi nd power in hollow points. Love and meaning guided by reason has, can and will. David is a graduate student in philosophy. He can be reached via e-mail at dcbauman@artsci.wustl.edu.

6

Senior Cadenza Editor / Brian Stitt / cadenza@studlife.com

STUDENT LIFE | CADENZA

FRIDAY | FEBRUARY 22, 2008

n. a technically brilliant, sometimes improvised solo

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passage toward the close of a concerto, an exceptionally brilliant part of an artistic work

arts & entertainment

MOVIE REVIEW

It’s not the size but how you use it:

The Oscar-nominated live-action shorts BY MATT KARLAN CADENZA REPORTER Short ďŹ lms. Nobody watches them except the Oscar nominating comittee and yet we still wonder who will win that coveted award. Sometimes they can even lead to mainstream success; “In Brugesâ€? director Martin McDonagh won two years ago, and before that he was just a well-respected, award-winning playwright. Now he’s important. This year’s batch of Oscar-nominated shorts begins with “Tanghi Argentini,â€? a Belgian ďŹ lm following a jolly man who attempts to learn the tango in order to impress a woman he meets on the Internet. He seeks a coworker’s help and hijinks somewhat ensues. The plot is undoubtedly trite, so much so that the “surpriseâ€? ending does not have as much of an impact as it should. But it means well and one gets the opportunity to listen to Belgians for half an hour. They have such corrosive, standoffish accents, and yet they’re

always smiling and laughing. You would think natural selection would have brought their voices up an octave to match their buoyant personalities, but I haven’t taken a science class in a while so what do I know? A short ďŹ lm’s duration must be 40 minutes or under to be nominated for the Oscar. The Danish, “At Night,â€? was exactly 40. And yet it felt so much longer. The picture follows three cancer-stricken women in a lonely hospital ward from Christmas through New Year’s Eve. The ďŹ lm is certainly melodramatic, as are most Danish ďŹ lms, yet the acting remains affecting. The picture becomes exponentially more depressing as it continues and, never a good sign for a short ďŹ lm, runs far too long. But the Academy should love it because it dominates the rest of the ďŹ eld in the gravityof-subject-matter department. “The Substituteâ€? (“Il Supplenteâ€?) is an Italian picture that progresses in an intelligent manner without ever

being condescending (I’m talking to you, Juno). Although some jokes fall very at, a healthy majority of it is chuckle-inducing, occasionally to the point of guffaw. Its subtle commentary is surprising and appreciated, and it ends without overstaying its welcome, which is even more appreciated. It has likeability and, of the comedies nominated, the most substance. Therefore it could be a popular pick for younger, happier Oscar voters. The British enter the foray of the Western with “The Tonto Woman,â€? an adaptation of an Elmore Leonard story. The ďŹ lm may have beauty, but it lacks brains. It has more impressive cinematography than “3:10 to Yuma,â€? another Western this year adapted from a Leonard work. But at least “3:10 to Yumaâ€? had a screenplay. I guess the screenplay of “The Tonto Womanâ€? was mostly blank, with the occasional direction “mug for camera in strange accent.â€? The ďŹ lm attempts to make up for its lack of plot with

breathtaking cinematography and that works at times, but not enough. “The Mozart of Pickpocketsâ€? was French, fast-paced and funny. And it has no chance to win the Oscar. The picture’s topic seems pointless compared to the other more “importantâ€? subjects of the shorts nominated, and that will certainly damage its odds of winning. But the leads in this ďŹ lm are so mesmerizingly cute together that I entirely disregarded its frivolity. I laughed more and cared more for the characters than I did with any of the other shorts. And I didn’t mind the picture’s predictable nature because I had so much fun watching. If I had a vote this would win hands down, and that’s why I don’t have a vote. So in the end seeing these shorts was an exercise in why the Academy irritates me—and yet I will watch the Oscars with sweaty palms, anticipating the Academy to relay the word of God. So the Academy and I have a love/ hate relationship.

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‘Vantage Point’ offers no point or focus BY PERCY OLSEN CADENZA REPORTER Let me tell you a story about a humble reviewer. The reviewer kicks his door open. Blood drips down from his lips. He looks tired, maybe he’s limping. He’s deďŹ nitely stumbling. He walks toward his laptop, a movie fresh in his mind: It’s “The Parent Trap,â€? but only because Dennis Quaid was in both that movie and the one he just saw, “Vantage Point.â€? He thinks about the Pete Travis directed ďŹ lm. Who is Pete? The reviewer is not entirely sure‌hopefully a man with brown hair. His direction was pretty decent, but the story was disappointingly shallow. He wishes there had been more action, because that’s what the trailer seemed to suggest. In fact, he can’t remember a single action sequence in the movie. He tries, but all images of terrorist Javier (Edgar Ramirez), blowing stuff to hell have been replaced with the hilarious sight of Forest Whitaker trying to chase after a suspicious man while wearing  ip-ops. Who’d Whitaker play again? The reviewer starts typing. Maybe that will jog his memory. Howard Lewis, that’s his character’s name. And what was the point of his character? Ah‌he’s not sure. Looking back at it, he’s not sure why any of the characters were there. None of them had any personality. It’s easy to blame it on the tired dialogue. Far too easy. The whole movie had this neat “Rashamonâ€?esque videotape style rewind thing. That must have had something to do with the character development. The reviewer looks at his Microsoft Word document. Even though he’s been typing feverishly for the last 20 minutes, it’s blank. How come? Bring in the “whooshâ€? sound effect, and

I’ll take another look. The reviewer calmly opens the door to his dorm room. He takes a swig of his daily Hawaiian Punch. Glorious. He wipes some deliciousness off his lips. He trips over himself because he’s trying to take his shoes off without using his hands. He doesn’t want the Punch to stray far. Thinking about the movie, the reviewer remembers that Dennis Quaid was good, although he always looked angry and constipated. Of course, the script said he was a nut job, so maybe he played it that way based on the director’s wishes. The reviewer muses about Pete Travis, the (unfortunately) redheaded director of “Vantage Point.â€? The camera moved swiftly, but towards what? Every single kill is off screen, ďŹ tting the PG-13 vibe. The reviewer thinks that the few actual action scenes were also quite boring. Kent Taylor (Matthew Fox) had basically no screen time, except for, of course, the obligatory chase sequence at the end of the movie. The “disguisedâ€? terrorists were obvious from the get-go. Whitaker’s character seemed superuous to the whole story. His “chase sceneâ€? wasn’t exciting at all, and his “callingâ€? was to save a little girl he’d just met while all the other characters were trying to rescue the kidnapped President? Please. Whitaker just wasn’t worth it. The reviewer starts to type. None of the characters stood out and the reviewer may be getting to why that happened. Every scene boiled down to this: Character A would listen to Character B’s monologue of his life story in vague speciďŹ cs. Then Character B would shut up for a bit and let Character A say why he y’ar what he y’ar. The movie sacriďŹ ces breathing characters for the rewind gimmick, and

See VANTAGE POINT, page 3

BLACKS.� IOU IS HILAR “IT’S AS IF BILLMMOURRPRHAEYDAINNDTO

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STUDENT LIFE | SCENE

FRIDAY | FEBRUARY 22, 2008

SCENE The 2008 Mustang GT

Not your average pony BY RICHARD OCKERS SCENE REPORTER

First Impressions

When I fi rst walked up to the 2008 Mustang GT test car, I was unsure of what to expect. Admittedly, I had preconceived notions of older Mustangs with parts-bin interiors, squishy handling and only one redeeming quality: the engine. Needless to say, I was in for a surprise. The current generation Mustang is a gorgeously retro yet more sophisticated interpretation of the classic pony car. Believe it or not, there really is such a thing as a “pony car,” but unfortunately, it has nothing to do with frolicking ponies. In reality, the term “pony car” defi nes a class of cars inspired by the original 1964 Ford Mustang, which was an inexpensive, sports-oriented car with an emphasis on style. Thankfully, none of the traditions Ford inspired with the original Mustang are lost on the latest iteration. The exterior was aggressive and well-proportioned with sleek lines and a bold stance. Moreover, subtle styling cues such as the standard rear spoiler and 17” painted-aluminum wheels immediately set the car apart from the rest of the herd. My test car was black; however, available colors range

from Windveil Blue Metallic to Grabber Orange to Torch Red.

The Interior

The interior of the new Mustang is an impressive step above previous Mustangs, although it is still not up to the fit and fi nish of import competitors like the Nissan 350Z or the Honda S2000. I did, however, enjoy the retro styling cues, including the dip above the center console, the threespoke steering wheel and the large pods housing the speedometer and tachometer. When buying a Mustang, spring for the Interior Upgrade Package if at all possible, because it includes a leather-wrapped steering wheel with satin-aluminum spokes, a satin-aluminum-plated shift lever, a sixgauge instrument cluster with MyColor, and a host of other shiny trim pieces. The MyColor system is a bit gimmicky but I like it anyway. It allows the driver to change the color of the instrument panel to one of 125 different hues. I also enjoyed the ambient lighting system, a $395 option that illuminates all four footwells and the front cupholders in one of seven different hues. Furthermore, I liked having two power plugs, because the one in the armrest can charge a phone while the one at the top of the center console can run a radar detector (unofficially, of

Stepping The Blue Elephant 7816 Forsyth Blvd. Clayton MO 63105 314-862-0500 Price Range: $10-20

BY KATE GALLAGHER SCENE SPECIAL FEATURES EDITOR

T

he Blue Elephant is not your typical Thai restaurant. Each dish is a work of art; the chefs here demonstrate their culinary expertise through exquisite presentation. Their work has been recognized by publications across the country, including Chef Magazine, Food and Wine and the Chicago Tribune. Blue Elephant’s chefs have also appeared as guest chefs on national television shows, including shows on the Food Network. Though the presentation alone makes this restaurant a standout, the flavors are equally enticing. And the quiet, calm atmosphere provides for a relaxing experience. On a Monday night, my five

Rating:

friends and I were immediately seated. The restaurant was well occupied but not packed. Our friendly and efficient waiter quickly arrived to take orders. We decided to try two appetizers, the Thai Spring Rolls and the Snowbird Dumplings. The Thai Spring Rolls were neither fried nor crunchy. Fresh carrots, bean sprouts and egg were wrapped in thin rice paper rolls. The rolls were softer than I had expected and were large enough to be shared among several people. They were topped with a sweet brown sauce. The Snowbird Dumplings were the favorite appetizer, however, due to their wonderful presentation. Each dumpling was shaped like a small white bird complete with an orange beak and eyes. Not only was the presentation

course—radar detectors are illegal in many states). My tester came with the standard supportive bucket seats wrapped in Stampeding Horse pattern cloth. I enjoyed the standard six-way power driver seat with power lumbar and was quickly able to fi nd a comfortable driving position. I would recommend opting for the leather seats if you want to increase the quality feel of the interior. With regard to the back seats, I have only one thing to say—don’t put anything back there except your toolbox or your handbag-sized poodle.

The Sound System

The standard stereo in my test car consisted of an AM/FM radio, single CD (MP3 capable) and four speakers totaling 160 watts in power. The CD I listened to sounded decent on the system; however, if you enjoy music I highly recommend upgrading to the Shaker 500 Audio System that includes a six-disc in-dash CD changer, MP3 player input and eight speakers with a total of 500 watts of power. Now, if you want your Mustang to double as an air-raid siren on the weekends, then you must get the Shaker 1000 Audio System with an earth-shattering 1000 watts (1kW for all you engineers) of power. Awesome.

The Ride

I must admit that actually driving the Mustang GT was my favorite part of the process, mostly due to the strange connection that immediately formed between my right foot and my mouth. Every time my foot went down, my mouth turned up into a smile. The GT comes standard with a 4.6L V-8 pumping out an exciting 300 horsepower and 320 lb-ft of torque. In all the years I have been a car enthusiast, I can think of few engines I enjoy listening to more than a Mustang V-8, particularly when it has an aftermarket exhaust. My test car unfortunately (in my opinion) came with the five-speed automatic transmission, yet the spirit of the car was unadulterated. The transmission tried to play along by holding gears longer than many other automatics I have driven; however, it remained rather obstinate and uninterested in downshifting when I was exiting corners. Nonetheless, the car was remarkably composed through the corners and over rough railroad tracks. The interior did not squeak or rattle and the steering remained nicely fi rm albeit a bit numb for my taste and not as progressive as I might want in a sports car. The standard

Out

The Garlic Prawns and Sea Scallops dish makes for a delicious, and beautiful, entree.

KATE GALLAGHER | STUDENT LIFE

My name is Richard Ockers and I have been car-crazy since I was nine years old. Recently, I started masquerading as Wash. U.’s self-proclaimed premier automotive journalist (disregard the fact that no one else was competing for the title). Through the Scene section of Student Life, I will now be covering an automotive beat with reviews, commentary, Q&A and quick fi xes to common car problems. For today’s article, I went to the Lou Fusz Ford dealership to test drive a new Mustang GT. live rear axle is very good at transferring weight to the rear wheels for good launches from a standstill. Not that I ever did that on a backcountry road, or anything. All that pony-ing around comes with a price at the pump. The automatic transmission mated to the V-8 gets the worst fuel economy of the entire Mustang lineup with an

rant, someone inevitably has to try the Pad Thai. Always a popular choice, this Pad Thai was pretty standard overall, but two aspects set it apart. For one, unlike other Pad Thais that I’ve sampled in St. Louis, this one was not greasy. Secondly, the sauce was particularly tasty, both sweet and savory. The thin stir-fried rice noodles were mixed with pickled radish, bean sprouts and ground peanuts. The Blue Elephant offers other noodle and rice dishes, including Pad See-U (flat rice noodles with broccoli in a light soy sauce) and Healthy Choice Fried Rice (stir-fried brown rice with broccoli, egg and onion in a light soy sauce). Each of the noodle dishes can be topped with chicken, pork or beef. Jumbo shrimps can be added for an additional cost. Last but certainly not least, we tried the Garlic Prawns and Sea Scallops. This dish stood out most for its stunning presentation. Large sautéed prawns and fresh jumbo sea scallops were served atop a bed of fresh steamed broccoli. Beside this sat a glorious, bright orange fish. Carved out of a carrot, this fish was fully adorned with eyes, fins and scales, artistically rendered down to the most minute detail. The only complaint was that this entrée was a little on the cold side when it arrived. After dining at the Blue Elephant, it comes as no surprise that the chefs have appeared on the Food Network. I wouldn’t put it past them to have competed on the Iron Chef as official carrot carvers. The Blue Elephant is open for dinner from 5 p.m. until 9 p.m. most days (until 10 p.m. on Friday and Saturday). It’s open for lunch Tuesday to Friday from 11 a.m. until 2:30 p.m.

Mustang GT Deluxe Stats: Base Price (MSRP): $27,260 Engine: 4.6L SOHC 3-valve V-8 Power: 300 @ 5750 rpm Torque: 320 @ 4500 rpm Fuel Econ: 15 mpg city / 22 hwy EPA estimated 15 miles per gallon in the city and 22 on the highway.

Final Opinion

The new Mustang GT is a seriously quick car with a fun personality, a hot image with a long heritage and a host of fans the world over. For more information feel free to contact John Ream with Lou Fusz Ford at (636) 532-9955 or online at jream@fusz.com.

§ Maintaining mutual friends after a breakup BY NICOLLE NEULIST SCENE REPORTER

★★★★✬ impressive, but the dumplings were also delicious. The soft dough was filled with a uniquely flavored yet unquestionably tasty spiced chicken. The entrées were also remarkably presented and flavorful. The Cashew Shrimp dish included sautéed jumbo shrimp, red and green bell peppers, onions, mushrooms, roasted cashews, peanuts and almonds. The menu claims that it is served with a “spicy chili sauce.” I asked the waiter how spicy the sauce was and he said “medium.” However, I didn’t find it to be spicy at all. I also didn’t detect chili flavors. Nevertheless, the entrée was delectable. The food was wellprepared and served with a carrot carved into the shape of a flower. If you go to a Thai restau-

Welcome to the first car review ever written for Student Life.

“Highest Ranked Midsize Sporty Car in Initial Quality in 2007” – J.D. Power and Associates

N

o matter how amicably a breakup goes, it can be extremely awkward to see your ex soon after. But what can be even more uncomfortable is to see people who are close friends with your ex, especially if you’re also friends with them. You may wonder what your ex has been saying about you behind your back, and what these friends are thinking about the breakup. Running into friends of your ex is not usually that difficult if you were dating someone who wasn’t a part of your circle of friends on campus. One of the advantages of dating someone off-campus or outside of your circle is that if the relationship does not work out in the fi rst few months, you can break up without having to worry about divvying up your groups of friends. You also won’t need to worry about the awkwardness of seeing each other with that group of friends. Of course, if you date for a long time, you are going to have acquired some mutual friends no matter how far outside of your circle your ex was when you started dating. One important thing is to avoid making a point of asking what your ex is saying about you. It’s extremely tempting, especially if you have friends to whom you are both still very close after the breakup. If you keep asking what your ex is saying about you, it will seem like you’re playing your friends as your spy. You don’t want to do that because it will put them in a very uncomfortable position. Either they will feel obligated to tell you things that your ex may have told them in confidence, or they will feel strange around you because they are afraid of what you are going to push them to disclose about their friendship. It is better to leave things be. Your relationship with these mutual friends

will be smoother, and your friends will appreciate your maturity in not trying to trap them in the middle. Trust that if your ex is saying or doing anything patently disrespectful to you that your friends will be loyal enough to tell you, and to judge that behavior for themselves. Another important thing to keep in mind is not to get mad at your mutual friends if they continue to hang out with your ex after the breakup. Even if you choose to keep some distance from your ex, you can’t expect your friends to do the same. Your friends didn’t break up with your ex—you did. Your mutual friends know about the breakup. They are probably sad that it happened, especially if it was amicable. However, they are hoping that the breakup will affect their friendships with you and your ex as little as possible. Let your friends maintain their autonomy over their social life. Demanding that they pick a side after the breakup is the fastest way to lose all of your mutual friends. Just as they should have no fi nal say as to whom you choose to spend your time with, you should get no fi nal say on whom they choose to stay friends with. This goes back to trust. Trust that your friends will not be turned against you because they still want to spend some time with your ex. Remember that all of your ex’s good qualities as a friend have not been erased by the mere fact that you two are not dating anymore. If you keep these things in mind, you’ll have a smoother transition out of any relationship in which you and your ex share friends in common. Although a breakup is a decision made by the two people in the relationship, it affects other people as well. As the decision-makers, the burden is on the people who were in the relationship to make the situation as comfortable as possible for mutual friends.