whitman college pioneer - spring 2010 issue 2

12
WHITMAN COLLEGE Walla Walla, WA Volume CXXVI Issue 2 whitmanpioneer.com F , anks to assistance from state and fed- eral funds, Whitman has been able to of- fer all students the opportunity to work regardless of nancial need. Aer June 2010, however, the college may be forced to discriminate which students it allows to occupy campus jobs. Whitman students will lose over $400,000 in funding if Governor Christine Gregoire’s proposed state budget, which calls for the suspension of the Washing- ton State Work Study and the Washington Scholars programs, is nalized by state legislators in upcoming weeks. In December 2009, Gregoire was re- quired by law to submit a balanced bud- get with no new revenues in reection of Washington’s $2.6 billion budget gap. While initial cuts to the Need Grant pro- gram were partially restored in January 2010 as part of Gregoire’s supplemental budget, the Washington Work Study and Washington Scholars programs are still in jeopardy of being dissolved. Gregoire introduced her January 2010 supplemental budget with a personal state- ment, “Rebuilding our Economic Future,” in which she expressed her displeasure with the proposed cuts, explaining that they are a necessary evil because the state can no longer aord to nance its higher education system at pre-recession levels. “I fully recognize that what I recom- mend cutting today may not be restored for many years, if ever,” Gregoire said in the document. “While I am required to submit a budget with no new revenues, my work is not done. e reductions I propose are too hurtful and damaging, and do not represent my values or the val- ues I know most of our citizens hold.” However conciliatory, Gregoire’s re- marks cannot disguise the nancial dis- tress that may be in store for nearly 500 students at Whitman who benet from state-funded nancial assistance. In ad- dition to the $240,000 it receives in work study funds, Whitman is reimbursed 65 percent of students’ wages, which allows the college to hire many more students than qualify for the work-study program. O-campus employers such as Heart to Heart, YWCA, the Red Cross, Campre and many non-prot organizations are also subsidized by the state for employing Whitman students. State work study in jeopardy by JOCELYN RICHARD News Editor Planning to work out at the Baker Ferguson Fitness Center last week- end, sophomore Yonas Fikak arrived at the $10 million, 38,000-square- foot fitness facility only to find its doors closed. This semester the col- lege has curtailed weekend hours at the center, which contains fitness and training equipment for all students, faculty and staff as well as for nearly 35 varsity and club athletic teams, in an effort to reduce spending. “I went to the BFFC on Saturday to work out and I was surprised to see it closed,” said Fikak, who considers exercising a “basic need” that the col- lege is obligated to provide. The Baker Ferguson Fitness Cen- ter, which was open on Saturdays from 10 a.m. until 9 p.m. during the fall 2009 semester, is now open from 8 a.m until noon. On Sundays the gym opens two hours later than it did last term, operating from noon until 10 p.m. rather than from 10 a.m. until 10 p.m. Junior Heather Nichols-Haining was one of the many students dissat- isfied by the cutbacks. “[I was] annoyed and a little frus- trated to see that the gym is closed for a big portion of the weekend,” she said. It is especially bothersome because Saturday afternoons and Sunday mornings are considered by Nichols- Haining and other students to be “prime gym times.” “It would make more sense to do . . . noon to 6 p.m. on Saturdays,” said junior Brian Wakefield. “Only having BFFC open in the mornings on Satur- days is a little ridiculous . . . Working out hungover is no fun, and most stu- dents wouldn’t be up that early any- way on a weekend morning.” As Fitness Center Director Michele Hanford points out, however, both the BFFC and the Sherwood Center are open 88 hours per week. “Our survey responses indicated that students tend to like late hours while staff and faculty appreciate the Ben Moore ‘11 and Justis Phillips ‘12 rehearse a scene for “The Ride,” the one!act submission written by Mimi Cook ‘10. The one-acts show on the Freimann Stage from Feb. 10 through Feb. 14. Student writers struggle, thrive with one-acts Gym hours complicate weekend workout by ROSE WOODBURY Staff Reporter Missionaries extend win streak Whitman women’s basketball team ÀJKWV WKHLU ZD\ LQWR SOD\RII FRQWHQWLRQ WOMEN’S BASKETBALL, page 11 Transit tax vote to occur Tuesday BULLION FENNELL by MEHERA NORI Staff Reporter Based on an ancient Greek tradition of theatrical competition, Harper Joy theater’s annual One-Act Play Contest will open next Wednesday, Feb. 10. A committee of readers selects three students’ one-act scripts from a larger pool of submissions. ese students then have the opportunity to produce their one-act with a student director, cast and crew. e audience members rank the plays and the winner of the contest receives a cash prize. is year, the committee chose scripts by sophomore Mi- chaela Gianotti and seniors Mimi Cook and Galen Cobb to compete in the contest. Gianotti’s “at Chair Is Empty” centers around the ONE-ACT CONTEST, page 5 BFFC, page 2 Citizens of Walla Walla will vote on a sales tax increase to fund the Valley Transit system this Tuesday, Feb. 9. e vote will be the end of months of hard work on the part of the Campaign for Valley Transit, which began its ght to stop service cuts last fall. Barbara Clark, a member of the Val- ley Transit Board who has also served as the head of the steering committee for the campaign, is hopeful that the mea- sure will pass. “A lot more people have become aware of the crucial role Valley Transit plays in our community and our economy,” she said. In order to preserve the transit system as is, voters will have to approve a sales tax increase of .03 percent. Clark believes that Valley Transit is an important part of Walla Walla, and that it’s in every citizen’s best interest to keep it running. “A public transit system is a piece of basic infrastructure in the community,” she said. “It’s important to employers. It’s important to businesses in town. It’s important to schools.” Mark Brotherton, who is also on the campaign’s steering committee, agreed that bus service is important to Walla Walla. He drives Dial-a-Ride buses which serve handicapped and senior citizens. “I work there, so I have a stake in it,” he said. However, Brotherton says his work for the campaign is about more than his job. “If I could give up my job and ensure a win, I would do it,” he said. “It’s more important to the community. It’s a re- source that’s here and shouldn’t be given up on.” e ballot measure is the last chance to raise additional revenue for Valley Transit without facing signicant service cuts. Dick Fondahn, the general manag- er of the system, says that compounding nancial problems have pushed the sys- tem to the breaking point. In 2000, a state repeal of a motor vehicle tax led to a 53 percent decrease in revenue. Although fares were raised and services were cut at this point, it wasn’t enough to sustain the system in the long run. However, if Walla Walla’s VALLEY TRANSIT, page 3 by RACHEL ALEXANDER Staff Reporter BULLION The food service company is encouraging students and em- ployees to cut down on waste in Whitman’s dining halls. Students, guided by daily food waste tallies, decreased waste last week compared to the week before. Inside the kitchen, Bon Appétit is opti- mizing the amount of food it prepares to limit leftovers. Bon Appétit cuts waste KWCW listeners tune in from the state penn Five weeks away, Whitties go wild with their vacation plans JAILHOUSE ROCK SPRING BREAK 2010 International cuisine, American style: Café 66’s spin on global dining FIRE AND SPICE page 6 page 5 page 4 THIS WEEK in OPINION “If the Ameri- can democratic experiment is to succeed, then those we elect must be allowed to govern.” “People in China see the lifestyle they’re supposed to have—what we already have here in the United States.” “Transfer students inhabit the strange middle ground be- tween sopho- mores and first-years.” “How do you write a story about a product that has two years of hype behind it when you haven’t even seen it?” - Ami Tian page 9 - Gary Wang page 8 - Russ Caditz-Peck page 8 - Blair Frank page 9 WORK-STUDY, page 2 page 3

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The second issue of the spring 2010 semestser

TRANSCRIPT

Page 1: Whitman College Pioneer - Spring 2010 Issue 2

WHITMAN COLLEGEWalla Walla, WAVolume CXXVI Issue 2whitmanpioneer.com

F!"#$%#& ', ()*)

!anks to assistance from state and fed-eral funds, Whitman has been able to of-fer all students the opportunity to work regardless of "nancial need. A#er June 2010, however, the college may be forced to discriminate which students it allows to occupy campus jobs.

Whitman students will lose over $400,000 in funding if Governor Christine Gregoire’s proposed state budget, which calls for the suspension of the Washing-ton State Work Study and the Washington

Scholars programs, is "nalized by state legislators in upcoming weeks.

In December 2009, Gregoire was re-quired by law to submit a balanced bud-get with no new revenues in re$ection of Washington’s $2.6 billion budget gap. While initial cuts to the Need Grant pro-gram were partially restored in January 2010 as part of Gregoire’s supplemental budget, the Washington Work Study and Washington Scholars programs are still in jeopardy of being dissolved.

Gregoire introduced her January 2010 supplemental budget with a personal state-ment, “Rebuilding our Economic Future,”

in which she expressed her displeasure with the proposed cuts, explaining that they are a necessary evil because the state can no longer a%ord to "nance its higher education system at pre-recession levels.

“I fully recognize that what I recom-mend cutting today may not be restored for many years, if ever,” Gregoire said in the document. “While I am required to submit a budget with no new revenues, my work is not done. !e reductions I propose are too hurtful and damaging, and do not represent my values or the val-ues I know most of our citizens hold.”

However conciliatory, Gregoire’s re-

marks cannot disguise the "nancial dis-tress that may be in store for nearly 500 students at Whitman who bene"t from state-funded "nancial assistance. In ad-dition to the $240,000 it receives in work study funds, Whitman is reimbursed 65 percent of students’ wages, which allows the college to hire many more students than qualify for the work-study program. O%-campus employers such as Heart to Heart, YWCA, the Red Cross, Camp"re and many non-pro"t organizations are also subsidized by the state for employing Whitman students.

State work study in jeopardyby JOCELYN RICHARD News Editor

Planning to work out at the Baker Ferguson Fitness Center last week-end, sophomore Yonas Fikak arrived at the $10 million, 38,000-square-foot fitness facility only to find its doors closed. This semester the col-lege has curtailed weekend hours at the center, which contains fitness and training equipment for all students, faculty and staff as well as for nearly 35 varsity and club athletic teams, in an effort to reduce spending.

“I went to the BFFC on Saturday to work out and I was surprised to see it closed,” said Fikak, who considers exercising a “basic need” that the col-lege is obligated to provide.

The Baker Ferguson Fitness Cen-ter, which was open on Saturdays from 10 a.m. until 9 p.m. during the fall 2009 semester, is now open from 8 a.m until noon. On Sundays the gym opens two hours later than it did last term, operating from noon until 10 p.m. rather than from 10 a.m. until 10 p.m.

Junior Heather Nichols-Haining was one of the many students dissat-isfied by the cutbacks.

“[I was] annoyed and a little frus-trated to see that the gym is closed for a big portion of the weekend,” she said.

It is especially bothersome because Saturday afternoons and Sunday mornings are considered by Nichols-Haining and other students to be “prime gym times.”

“It would make more sense to do . . . noon to 6 p.m. on Saturdays,” said junior Brian Wakefield. “Only having BFFC open in the mornings on Satur-days is a little ridiculous . . . Working out hungover is no fun, and most stu-dents wouldn’t be up that early any-way on a weekend morning.”

As Fitness Center Director Michele Hanford points out, however, both the BFFC and the Sherwood Center are open 88 hours per week.

“Our survey responses indicated that students tend to like late hours while staff and faculty appreciate the Ben Moore ‘11 and Justis Phillips ‘12 rehearse a scene for “The Ride,” the one!act submission

written by Mimi Cook ‘10. The one-acts show on the Freimann Stage from Feb. 10 through Feb. 14.

Student writers struggle, thrive with one-acts

Gym hours complicate weekend workoutby ROSE WOODBURYStaff Reporter

Missionaries extend win streakWhitman women’s basketball team

WOMEN’S BASKETBALL , page 11

Transit tax vote to occur Tuesday

BULLION

FENNELL

by MEHERA NORI Staff Reporter

Based on an ancient Greek tradition of theatrical competition, Harper Joy theater’s annual One-Act Play Contest will open next Wednesday, Feb. 10. A committee of readers selects three students’ one-act scripts from a larger pool of submissions. !ese students then have the opportunity to produce their one-act with a student director, cast and crew. !e audience members rank the plays and the winner of the contest receives a cash prize.!is year, the committee chose scripts by sophomore Mi-

chaela Gianotti and seniors Mimi Cook and Galen Cobb to compete in the contest.

Gianotti’s “!at Chair Is Empty” centers around the ONE-ACT CONTEST, page 5BFFC, page 2

Citizens of Walla Walla will vote on a sales tax increase to fund the Valley Transit system this Tuesday, Feb. 9. !e vote will be the end of months of hard work on the part of the Campaign for Valley Transit, which began its "ght to stop service cuts last fall.

Barbara Clark, a member of the Val-ley Transit Board who has also served as the head of the steering committee for the campaign, is hopeful that the mea-sure will pass.

“A lot more people have become aware of the crucial role Valley Transit plays in our community and our economy,” she said.

In order to preserve the transit system as is, voters will have to approve a sales tax increase of .03 percent.

Clark believes that Valley Transit is an important part of Walla Walla, and that it’s in every citizen’s best interest to keep

it running.

“A public transit system is a piece of basic infrastructure in the community,” she said. “It’s important to employers. It’s important to businesses in town. It’s important to schools.”

Mark Brotherton, who is also on the campaign’s steering committee, agreed that bus service is important to Walla Walla. He drives Dial-a-Ride buses which serve handicapped and senior citizens.

“I work there, so I have a stake in it,” he said. However, Brotherton says his work for the campaign is about more than his job.

“If I could give up my job and ensure a win, I would do it,” he said. “It’s more important to the community. It’s a re-source that’s here and shouldn’t be given up on.”!e ballot measure is the last chance

to raise additional revenue for Valley Transit without facing signi"cant service cuts. Dick Fondahn, the general manag-er of the system, says that compounding "nancial problems have pushed the sys-

tem to the breaking point.In 2000, a state

repeal of a motor vehicle tax led to a 53 percent d e c r e a s e in revenue. Although fares were raised and services were cut at this point,

it wasn’t enough to sustain the system in

the long run. However, if Walla Walla’s VALLEY TRANSIT, page 3

by RACHEL ALEXANDER Staff Reporter

BULLION

The food service company is

encouraging students and em-

ployees to cut down on waste

in Whitman’s dining halls.

Students, guided by daily

food waste tallies, decreased

waste last week compared to

the week before. Inside the

kitchen, Bon Appétit is opti-

mizing the amount of food it

prepares to limit leftovers.

Bon Appétit cuts waste

KWCW listeners tune in from the state penn

Five weeks away, Whitties go wild with their vacation plans

JAILHOUSE ROCK SPRING BREAK 2010International cuisine, American style:

Café 66’s spin on global dining

FIRE AND SPICE

page 6 page 5page 4

T H I S W E E K

i n

OPINION

“If the Ameri-can democratic experiment is

to succeed, then those we elect

must be allowed to

govern.”

“People in China see the

lifestyle they’re supposed to have—what we already

have here in the United States.”

“Transfer students

inhabit the strange middle

ground be-tween sopho-

mores and first-years.”

“How do you write a story

about a product that has two years of hype

behind it when you haven’t even

seen it?”

- Ami Tianpage 9

- Gary Wangpage 8

- Russ Caditz-Peckpage 8

- Blair Frankpage 9

WORK-STUDY, page 2

page 3

Page 2: Whitman College Pioneer - Spring 2010 Issue 2

2 NEWS February 4, 2010February 4, 2010

With ski season in full swing, Whitman will continue to o!er free bus trips to Blue-wood Ski Resort every Saturday morning throughout the month of February. So many students signed up for multiple trips last year that the Outdoor Program, which helps coordinate seating, decided to o!er sign-ups on a per-trip basis.

"e bus service, which is entirely funded by ASWC, was inaugurated in 2009 by ju-nior Carson Burns a#er he discovered that many Whitties were unable to pursue their interest in skiing and snowboarding be-cause they had no transportation to local ski areas.

“When I came to Whitman I was shocked to hear that a place like Whit-man didn’t have a ski bus, especially since so many Whitties I knew skied. So when I was elected as a sophomore Senator, I took charge with Mike Scigliano in starting up and coordinating the ski bus program.”

“Spring semester 2009, the ski bus was a resounding success, and it was $lled al-most every time,” said Burns, adding that students were o#en too enthusiastic when scheduling their ski trips.

“Our only problem was that students who signed up a month in advance some-time wouldn’t show up. Last year, the OP helped minimize that issue by encouraging

students to just show up in the morning to hop on the bus.”

Students can begin signing up for a spot on the bus, which seats 14 people, starting on the Monday of the preceding week be-fore each Saturday’s departure. "e bus be-gins its one-hour journey to Bluewood at 9 a.m. and returns at 5 p.m.

Senior Allie Rood, who co-heads the Whitman Backcountry Ski Club, drove the ski bus on Jan. 30 and hopes the college will sponsor more events at the Dayton, Wash. ski resort in the future. She commented that the resort o!ers slopes for skiers and snowboarders of all skills levels.

“Bluewood is an amazing mountain to learn how to ski [on],” Rood said. “I myself switched over to Telemark skiing last year and had a great time with the transition. It is a small and intimate ski area. "ere are never lines and there is plenty of opportu-nity to get better fast.”

Rood noted that the Jan. 30 bus was mostly attended by $rst-years, and hopes upperclassmen will take advantage of the service as well. She stresses it is not neces-sary that students sign up in groups, as it is usually easy to $nd someone else on the trip who shares the same interests.

“"ere was a girl in the bus who was getting some extra practice in for her Tele-mark ski class; there were people on the bus from Colorado and people who were rent-ing equipment from the rental shop at the

mountain,” Rood said. “"ere were groups of friends and others who were alone. Someone mentioned, ‘Are there always that many Whitman kids at the mountain?’ and I said, ‘Yes. "ere is a great community of Whitman kids up there that even if you are alone, you will be sure to $nd someone to ski with once there.’”

If students are unable to ski on Satur-days, Rood added, e-mailing the listserv is a good way to team up with people car-pooling to the mountain on other days of the week.

Burns hopes the ski bus will continue to operate a#er he graduates, and plans to pass on his management duties to another Senator. "ough many skiers have cut back on ski trips due to the poor economy, Burns hopes the ski bus will make it possible for Whitman students to continue skiing.

“I understand the poor economy might deter some potential new skiers from hit-ting the slopes this winter, but I hope the ski bus might just be their answer,” Burns said. “"ey could save money by borrow-ing a friend’s skis, hopping on the free ski bus, and just paying the student ski ticket price. "ey’d have to remember their Whit-man ID!”

“I haven’t ridden it before, but I think it is a great idea and I de$nitely plan on using it this semester!” said senior Allison Arm-strong. “It’s so nice that students without cars have a way to get to the mountain.”

Ski bus program renewed

“We’re pretty rare here at Whitman College. Most colleges only allow eligible work study students to work—it’s really unusual for a college like Whitman to al-low all students to work. It’s pretty amaz-ing; we’re very lucky,” said Marilyn Ponti, director of $nancial aid services.

“Whitman spends a lot of money on their payroll for students,” Ponti contin-ued. “What may happen as we tighten our budget is that it’s possible only stu-dents with work study eligibility will be able to work. We want the students who have the most need to be able to get jobs, and that’s really our priority.”

For many students, taking part in the work study program is an important part of $nancial aid. If the budget is approved, it will be di%cult for Whitman to o!er jobs to everyone because the college will not take away scholarships and grants from students who already receive them.

“Hopefully, the goal with Washington State Work Study is to pay the students a little bit more and give them a great work-ing opportunity,” Ponti said. “When we mail $nancial aid packages out, we may grant them, say, $2,000 in work study. If they can’t $nd a job, it’s pretty di%cult. We don’t just take the $2,000 and put it on their account; they have to work.”

In the event the budget is $nalized, a number of students may not be able to attend Whitman at all.

“We have a number of students on campus who receive a Washington Schol-ars scholarship, and that enables those students to be here,” said Ponti. “For a lot of those students, if they lose that money they may not be able to stay.”

Junior Tessa Carlson echoed Ponti’s forecast.

“I’m a recipient of a Washington Scholars grant, and without it, I can con-$dently say I would not have been able to a!ord coming to Whitman,” she said.

“If that money disappears next year, it is going to make paying Whitman’s tuition a huge burden to deal with during my senior year.”

“Because I only have one more year at Whitman, I wouldn’t transfer,” continued Carlson. “But it would make senior year a lot more di%cult. I haven’t had to take out that much money in loans as of yet. But I get a substantial amount of money each year in grants, so [if the budget is approved] I’d have to $nd that money some other way, by taking out loans or

by working a lot more or by asking my family for money, which I’ve never done before.”

In consideration of the possibility the budget will be approved, Whitman has put a number of programs and services on hold until the numbers are $nal. "e Student Engagement Center has held back on moving forward with the ap-plication process for summer internship funding.

“We normally fund about 20 intern-ships through the Whitman Internship Fund and another 20 through the Wash-ington State Work Study Program,” Ponti said. “Right now we’re holding o! on that because we don’t know if we’ll have the money available or not, so we don’t want to o!er the internships. So normally the Student Engagement Center has two di!erent internships, and now they just have one.”

Ponti hopes students will take action by voicing their concerns to their state

legislators in writing.“What we’re hoping is that everyone

will write our legislators and say, ‘"is is huge. We rely on these jobs to pay our tuition, to buy our books, to help with so many other things and possibly to pay our rent or food,’” said Ponti. “"ere are a lot of students that rely on work study. Our goal is to get as many students as possible to write their legislators about how important education is, how im-portant it is that you work, that you have the opportunity to do an internship, to $gure out what you want to do with the rest of your life.”

“If we don’t have these internships, and we don’t have these jobs, what will students do?” Ponti said continuing. “It’s hard enough right now in this econo-my to $nd a job. We’re very lucky that we have as many jobs as we do on- and o!-campus, but I have a feeling some of those jobs will go away. And that wor-ries me.”

WORK STUDY: Students rely on aid

BFFC: Students adjust to hours

"e time draws near once again to raid pantries, cupboards and places where non-perishable items may hide to help families and individuals in need. Whit-man’s annual all-campus food drive, which donates all proceeds to the Blue Mountain Action Council Food Bank, is planned to take place next week from Monday, Feb. 8, until Tuesday, Feb. 12.

"e event was established roughly two decades ago by the Community Service Center in collaboration with with the Community Service House and Whit-man’s fraternities and women’s fraterni-ties.

Food collection boxes will remain at spots around campus throughout the week. Last year, the food drive collected roughly 600 pounds of food items for in-dividuals and families in need.

Lina Menard, community service co-ordinator, highlights the importance of hosting the event in February.

“February is the month when food bank stores are the lowest. Farms donate during the summer and during fall and winter, contributions are made due to the holidays,” said Menard.

Menard also commented on the in&u-ence of the current economic downturn on past and upcoming food drives.

“"e last two years have been tricky, but we are still hopeful,” she said. “I en-courage students, when going to grocery stores, to pick up a little something extra for those in need.”

"e most needed foods are protein items such as peanut butter and tuna, quick meals such as macaroni and cheese

or pre-prepared meals, baby food and canned vegetables.

“[We] could use pinto beans, len-tils, split peas and any other dry goods like that,” said Gail McGhee of the Blue Mountain Action Council, a warehouse for local Walla Walla food banks.

"e food, once collected by the Blue Mountain Action Council, is distributed to food pantries such as the Helpline Food Pantry, First Presbyterian Food Pantry, the Salvation Army Food Pantry and others. Individuals can enroll in the Commodity Supplemental Food Program to receive food vouchers that allow them to pick up food from the pantry each month.

McGhee also discussed the number of Walla Walla residents who rely on dona-tions to local food pantries.

“Currently the local pantries are serv-ing approximately 700 or more families each month. In 2009 they saw 9,312 fami-lies which had 25,967 individuals in them . . . We also take food to Clarkston, Pome-roy and Dayton.”

Whitman students can volunteer with this project in a variety of ways.

“"e Community Service O%ce is looking for student groups and students to get involved,” said Menard. “Students can help with collection or promoting the program.”

Food drive starts next week

by JOCELYN RICHARD News Editor

!"#$ page 1

Ian Cooper, Christopher Tobin-Campbell and Jonah Strotsky, all seniors, use elliptical bikes at the Baker Fergueson Fitness Center. Due to budget cuts, the BFFC is closed this

semester on Saturday afternoons and evenings and Sunday mornings.

a place to eat

5 South Colville Avenue Walla Walla, WA 99362 Phone \ 509.529.7354

Pastrami, Panini, Sandwiches, Fresh Salads, Homemade Soups, Vegetarian, Take Out,

$2 Beer, $5 Wine

MON - SAT

10AM TO 7PM

BOWMAN

Without it...I would not have been able to a!ord coming to Whitman

- Tessa Carlson ‘11

by ROBERT CRENSHAW Staff Reporter

Emily Johnson ‘12 and Anna Ekstrom ‘12 gather cans for next week’s campus-wide food drive. The food drive runs from Feb. 8-12.

morning times,” Hanford said when asked why she opted for earlier hours on Saturdays.

She added that she did not have a particular group of people in mind when deliberating on the new week-end hours.

“Our head count gives record of general usage. In adjusting hours, we used all this information and tried to accommodate [student, faculty and staff ] preferences. It is worth noting also that Sherwood hours were not adjusted at all.”

For many faculty and staff mem-

bers and even some students, the new Saturday hours are ideal.

“I’m actually totally psyched for the new hours—I’m a morning person, so the new Saturday hours are perfect for me,” said junior Arianna Cortesi.

While many students are annoyed that they will have to change their Saturday routines this semester, some see the reduced hours as a logical sac-rifice to save money.

“I think people will adjust their schedules and it will work out,” said sophomore Jack MacNichol, who uses the gym six times per week. “It seems like a pretty reasonable cut. We don’t need a gym open all day every day.”

CORRECTIONS TO ISSUE 1:

The credit for the Winterim photos

on page 2 should read Cornelius in-

stead of Cornellius.

Chandini Gaur, not Guar, is pictured

on page 3 accompanying “Glover

Alston Center opens, provides new

meeting space for intercultural

groups.”

Lisa Curtis’s column “Why we failed

in Copenhagen” on page 7 was cut

off in print. The full text can be found

at whitmanpioneer.com.

!"#$ page 1

CORNELIUS

ADVERTISEMENT

Page 3: Whitman College Pioneer - Spring 2010 Issue 2

February 4, 2010February 4, 2010 NEWS 3

A campaign to reduce student and kitchen waste in dining halls during the week of Jan. 25-31 pro-duced mixed results.

Consumer waste decreased—by 13.8 percent in Prentiss Dining Hall and 10.3 percent at Café 66—but kitchen waste, such as vegeta-ble peels and thrown out le!overs, increased by 0.9 percent in Prent-iss and 15.7 percent in Café 66. "at amounted to 2,339 pounds of total food waste at Prentiss Dining Hall and 803 pounds at Café 66. Data for Jewett Dining Hall was unavailable.

Roger Edens, general manager of Bon Appétit’s Whitman opera-tions, is working to reduce kitchen waste.

“We’re actually tracking pro-duction and overproduction of speci#c items at Prentiss and Jew-ett and that’s part of the e$ort,” he said.

Edens hopes that by knowing of which foods Bon Appétit prepares too much, they can reduce kitchen waste.

While last week is the only week that Bon Appétit planned to engage students with daily waste tallies and bright blue and orange ‘Taste Don’t Waste’ signs, the kitchen e$orts are part of a three-month company-wide low carbon diet program.

“Part of it is an education thing,” Edens said. “If you’re trimming the outer leaves o$ a head of cauli-%ower, how much of that stem are you leaving on there. How much are you trimming and throwing away, basically.”

Edens said the waste reduc-tion was important because of the emissions from transporting extra food and because food in land#lls releases methane, a greenhouse gas more potent than carbon di-oxide.

Employees also help to reduce waste among students. First-year Meaghan Russell, a server for Bon Appétit, said that the company tells its employees how much to serve in order to minimize waste.

“"ey usually tell us when we’re serving something to give a cer-tain number . . . at a time. But we can give seconds,” she said.

Senior Lisa Curtis, campus sustainability coordinator praised

Bon Appétit for their e$orts to re-duce waste.

“I think Bon Appétit is doing an incredible amount. "ey’re a re-ally sustainable catering company and the Whitman branch is very open to ideas and very helpful in changing their practices,” she said, noting their willingness to elimi-nate trays in dining halls two years ago a!er hearing student concerns about waste.

"e biggest change Curtis would like is a composting program.

“"e main thing that I see with waste being a problem is that we don’t have a composting facility right now,” she said. “"e problem with [a source as big as] Bon Ap-pétit is that the composter itself would cost a couple thousand dollars because there’s so much waste.”

Curtis said there would soon be an application for a grant from the Sustainability Revolving Loan Fund or Outdoor Environmental Leadership Program.

“I would say [composting is] fairly likely because there’s so much support for it and so many people who want it to happen,” she said. “I think the main issue right now is #nding funding.”

Edens echoed Curtis’s senti-ments, but doesn’t plan on pur-chasing composting equipment soon.

“"ere’s two tons worth of stu$ [weekly] that if there was commer-cial composting in Walla Walla, it could go there,” he said.

While e$orts to reduce waste are e$ective to a point, neither students nor employees are perfect about minimizing waste. Russell said she’d occasionally seen other employees throw out bags of bread with two or three slices le!.

“Sometimes they take the other slices and put them in another bag of bread. It doesn’t happen all the time,” she said.

Curtis said students looking to have a big impact on sustainability can start small by paying attention to how much they waste at Whit-man.

“I feel like Americans in gen-eral tend to produce more waste and use more resources than any other country in the world,” she said. “I think that starting at Whit-man and starting by only taking the food you need is a great way to make the world a better place.”

Bon Appétit aims to reduce waste

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VALLEY TRANSIT: Cuts would be two-phased

For the #rst time in over a decade, the Associated Students of Whit-man College voted in favor of a proposal not to raise its Student Activity Fee for the 2010-2011 academic year.

Last Sunday, Jan. 31, the ASWC Senate decided unanimously against raising a fee that, accord-ing to sophomore ASWC Finance Chair Matt Dittrich, has under-gone a yearly increase since its ini-tiation decades ago.

"e Student Activity Fee, which is included in students’ tuition package, constitutes a large per-centage of ASWC’s annual operat-

ing budget."e fee was set at $320 for the

current 2009-2010 academic year, a signi#cant increase from 2003-2004, the earliest year on ASWC record, when the fee was set at $226.

Dittrich spearheaded the pro-posal not to raise the fee, receiving unanimous support from both the Finance Committee and the Sen-ate.

“Due to the terrible state of the economy and the great #nancial burden which families and college students are currently incurring, I believe it is the duty of ASWC’s government to keep tuition costs as low as possible,” Dittrich said in an e-mail. “It is our duty to com-

pose a modest budget, a modest budget that works.”

Dittrich is con#dent that the current fee will be su&cient for funding student activities and ser-vices for the upcoming year and does not believe club funding and ASWC initiatives will be a$ected by the vote. ASWC plans to add several new clubs and salaried po-sitions to next year’s budget, and new initiatives are in the works, including the installation of laser printers in residence halls and the creation of an Outdoor Program Travel Fund.

“I will ask all of our clubs and budgeted items to submit conser-vative budget requests. We will also be budgeting for an additional

30 students,” said Dittrich. “Fi-nally, we have a few contingency funds that have been underused or not used at all, which we can re-allocate for other, more bene#cial purposes.”

He plans to #nd an extra $19,000 for the 2010-2011 budget, a conservative estimate.

ASWC salaried position hold-ers and club representatives will submit budget requests in early March, from which Dittrich will dra! a budget. Two #nance forums will follow in early April, allowing students to petition their salaries and club funding.

Dittrich will present his #nal budget for 2010-2011 to the Senate on Sunday, April 18, for approval.

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population increased to 50,000 by the next census, it would be classi#ed as a “small urban area” and eligible for more federal transit grant money.

“Our goal was to scrape by until the end of the 2010 cen-sus,” said Fondahn. However, in July 2009, Congress passed a bill which raised the popula-tion requirement to 100,000 people—something Walla Walla had no hope of meeting. In ad-dition, the recession has led to decreased sales tax revenue, an-other major source of funding.

"e Valley Transit board tri-pled fares from 25 to 75 cents in response, and has delayed cut-ting services until the sales tax increase is voted on. If the mea-sure does not pass, transit ser-vices will be cut by 50 percent in a two-stage process. Phase one would begin immediately and involve complete elimina-tion of routes three and seven. Buses would only come every 45 minutes, rather than every half hour. A second phase of cuts would occur about a year later, when several state and fed-eral grants expire. At this point, more routes would be cut.

Fondahn said that he has seen no organized campaign against the measure, but he has received a telephone call and an e-mail in opposition.

“Both of them were against additional taxation,” he said. “Neither of them seemed to have any issues with Valley Transit services.”

Clark believes that the Walla Walla community will come through for the transit system.

“"is community is small enough that people really step up when there’s a problem,” she said. “I think that attitude is go-ing to work for us.”

Walla Walla residents rely on Valley Transit to get around. Two bus lines will be eliminated

and frequencies on remaining lines reduced unless voters pass a sales tax increase Tuesday.

!"#$ page 1

by JOSH GOODMAN Associate News Editor

by MOLLY SMITH Editor-in-Chief

ASWC opts not to raise feeFinance Chair Matt Dittrich ‘12 led an effort to preserve the current Student Activity Fee for the upcoming academic year, while at the same time planning to expand student services and programs.

PHOTOS BY BULLION

Page 4: Whitman College Pioneer - Spring 2010 Issue 2

!e PioneerISSUE 2

FEB. 4, 2010

Page 4 A&EFebruary 4, 2010 A&E 5

Some of KWCW’s most loyal listeners are tuning in from the Washington State Peni-tentiary.

“Blues !erapy,” KWCW’s award-win-ning blues show, gets one to two letters a month from an inmate who calls himself “Dreamer.”

“Dreamer says he likes the show because the music is so great and we mix up our selections—playing new releases as well as old favorites,” said Ray Hansen, co-host of “Blues !erapy” and Walla Walla resident. “He also enjoys the joking that goes on be-tween me and my co-host.”

Hansen views the interaction between KWCW and the state penitentiary as another part of the station’s interaction with the Walla Walla community in that KWCW plays music that inmates and community members can’t hear on other stations.

“I see the relationship K-Dub has with the inmate listeners very much the same as it is with the community at large,” said Hansen. “KWCW programming is eclectic and "nds fans from all walks of life.”

However, interaction between KWCW and inmates sometimes requires regula-tion. In certain cases, KWCW must deter-mine an appropriate level of involvement in issues concerning the state penitentiary.

“It can get weird,” said senior Joe Gustav. “Last semester . . . what happened was this inmate was calling in collect to shows. I don’t exactly get what his deal was, it was something about how he was homosexual and he couldn’t get into this church group and he wanted us to do something about it and tell people about it.”

KWCW advised the DJs not to publicize the issue and redirected it to authorities within the penitentiary.

“We should never, ever, ever be in-volved with anything like that,” Gustav said. “!ankfully we have a bunch of DJs who are community members, not Whit-man students, who have either worked in the pen or are familiar with how it works and referred this speci"c case to the proper people. It’s not our place to interfere in this. We don’t know the veracity of the state-ment given. He may just trying to be incite stu# or whatever, and we don’t want any part of that.”

Nevertheless, Gustav emphasized that interaction with the inmates is mostly pos-itive, and the DJs always have the power to determine the degree to which they want to interact with their listen-ers.

First-year Patrick Wi-ley, who currently co-hosts “!e Schmorges-borg,” was contacted by state penitentiary inmate Ramon Silva at the end of last semester. Silva wrote Wiley a letter a$er Wiley gave out his name on his show. Despite Wiley’s initial surprise and apprehension, he is now glad for the contact.

At "rst Wiley was hesitant to re-spond. !e letter was “a pretty heavy letter” and described problems that Silva struggled with within the penitentiary.

“I didn’t write him back right away because I wasn’t sure how comfortable I was with it, but [my co-host] and I

had talked about doing like a group letter from North [Hall]. And that I was down to do because I wasn’t comfortable enough to do it totally alone, and so now we’re getting together a letter and hopefully it’ll be sent next week.”

Part of what convinced Wiley to write back was that he felt an obligation to sup-port Silva, who was making an e#ort to turn his life around. !e letter expressed a desire that Wiley put Silva in contact with other Whitman students. Wiley thinks that the interaction would be bene"cial to Silva, who in turn o#ered to answer any questions Whitman students had about life inside the penitentiary.

“I’m not saying that my life is perfectly in order,” said Wiley. “But certainly I’ve had more opportunities than this guy—and I mean just I was thinking if I were in jail and had nobody around, I would love if people wrote to me so I’d have something to do. So I feel like when people who’ve made mistakes or whatever reach out and try to get their life back in order, then it would be extremely hypocritical of me just to ignore it and be like ‘Well, you’re already down the drain.’”

Wiley views radio as an opportunity for the inmates to establish a relationship with the outside world, as well as with members of their own generation.

“!e guy mentions in the letter he’s been locked up for all of the YouTube era, all of the Myspace and Facebook. He’s nev-er seen that stu# and doesn’t know how it works so he’s disconnected a lot, and having a radio connected to a college is key to that part of our generation and our experience. I think it gives—especially someone who’s been locked up for a long time and has lost themselves—gives them a chance to be a little bit connected, and I think that’s the most important part of what K-Dub does.”

Anyone interested in writing to Silva should address their letters to:

Ramon SilvaDOC #326609Washington State Penitentiary1313 N. 13th AveWalla Walla, WA 99362

KWCW DJs foster links to community, penitentiary inmatesby AMI TIAN Staff Reporter

Seniors at Whitman may recall the concert during their first year when Flogging Molly performed live here at Whitman. This spring, the band is still touring, but the closest they’re coming to Whitman is Tempe, Ariz.

While Whitman still enjoys a wide range of programming events, the generally lower profiles of artists such as Point Juncture, WA and Menomena raise the question of what has changed since the days of concerts from the likes of Maroon 5 and Guster. The answers lie in the continuing evolu-tion of Whitman’s relatively new pro-gramming body, the Whitman Events Board.

This past September, former mem-bers of the now-defunct Campus Activities Board and new officers of WEB expressed confidence in the availability of sufficient funds to pro-cure large acts.

“My freshman year we had Flogging Molly and Salman Rushdie was here sophomore year . . . that was ASWC-funded and now WEB is also going to be ASWC-funded, so all of that mon-ey is still going to be available,” said senior and former CAB Chair Kali Stoehr.

The current official position on the budget is slightly less optimistic.

“I’ve never said [the new budget] was comparable in the past; I’ve always known it was less money than it was previously,” said Leann Adams, WEB faculty coordinator and assistant di-rector of student activities. “This year they’re working with a budget that is smaller than the combined budgets for all of programming last year, and it’s being distributed across five or six programmatic areas. So, music is functioning with a smaller budget than the combined budgets last year for concerts and Coffeehouse. [Junior]

Matt Coleman, our music director, has had to make choices about when to invest money in small Coffeehouse performances, how to use money in a big concert, and how to distribute it between fall and spring. Since WEB is getting rolling, and is still in its devel-opment phases, I think he did plan on focusing more resources on the spring than on the fall, so that he had time to use them really well.”

Despite the changes in program-ming, many Whitman students are still reasonably content with the selec-tion of events available. In an online survey, 28 percent of students indi-cated they were very satisfied with the amount of concerts, speakers, Coffee-houses and other event programming on campus, while 59 percent indicated they were somewhat satisfied, and 13 percent indicated they were very un-satisfied.

“I thought the amount of concerts was fine,” said sophomore Meghan Bill. “However, I did feel that there were a lot of programming events that students didn’t attend, like I know some of the movie viewings weren’t very well attended. I know it costs a lot of money to put on those movies, and if nobody shows up, it could be better spent elsewhere.”

Although concerts and speakers are historically the most popular events, WEB wants to ensure that event pro-gramming continues to diversify, and to this end is bringing a wide range of

performers to Whitman this spring, including comedian Ty Barnett and slam poet Alvin Lau.

However, deprived concert-goers need not worry—Coleman reported having between half and two-thirds of his budget for musical programming remaining, and is currently wrangling with student committees and booking agencies to contact artists and make bids. Although bidding and convinc-ing large artists to travel to Walla Walla presents its problems, students can expect at least one larger concert event this spring.

Admittedly, it is not only large con-certs that pose a financial and logis-tical problem. To bring any outside band to Coffeehouse also demands considerable resources.

“When we bring in bands like Point Juncture, WA there’s a very significant cost,” said Colleen McKinney, student activities program adviser. “The cost with them is not only the honorarium, but travel, hotels and food.”

Addressing these considerations as well as the resources of burgeon-ing musical talent on-campus, Cole-man has decided to forgo booking outside bands for Coffeehouse during this semester in favor of booking stu-dent and faculty bands. With a greater volunteer response from the student body, the number of Coffeehouses held could also potentially increase, according to both Adams and Cole-man. Coffeehouses may also start ap-pearing on Thursdays and Saturdays as well as Fridays.

In short, students should be able to look forward to a rewarding program-ming season, whatever the roughness of the fall semester transition period.

“It’s a real formative process, just like any organization building up from the ground,” said sophomore WEB Di-rector Steven Stradley.

“We are very optimistic,” said Ad-ams.

by CAITLIN HARDEE Staff Reporter

WEB Chair Steven Stradley ‘12 (left), stands between the crowd and the band Menomena at a concert that he organized last semester.

Dwindling budget forces WEB to curb ambitions

BULLION

!e last decade was good to Spoon, who responded to being dropped from major label Elektra in 1998 by achiev-ing commercial success with superindie Merge, with whom they released Girls Can Tell, Kill !e Moonlight, Gimme Fiction and Ga Ga Ga Ga Ga. Over the

course of that four-record run the band saw their sales improve to the point that they broke the Billboard Top 10 in 2007; the critical consensus surround-ing their work turned near-unassail-able, and thus they entered the 2010s with a reputation as one of the most reliable bands working today. !ey pro-duce accessible pop music that hints at experimentation, but never let it stand between the band and a song. !e band’s risk-taking was relatively safe—something for which one would have to listen, rather than something that hits immediately—as frontman Britt Daniel and drummer/producer Jim Eno were certainly interested in sound, but still had hooks and striking melodies at the forefront of their music.

Transference di#ers in that it is not a re"nement of Ga Ga Ga Ga Ga in any way; it tries hard to sound fragmented and broken, it %irts more openly with

psychedelia than anything the band has done before, and rarely does Dan-iel exude the con"dence he seemed to carry on the band’s last two albums. Songs occasionally sound like un"n-ished demos, reducing mid-line to their most skeletal elements in low "delity, the percussion sounds relentlessly digi-tal, songs suddenly and inexplicably cut out mid-line, leaving some to wonder if early copies of the album were defec-tive. !ere are obvious, abrasive hard pans in the stereo mix, reminiscent of obnoxious production techniques from the late ‘60s.

Consider “Written in Reverse,” the album’s "rst single. It sounds like some sort of vicious kisso#, but one that Dan-iel simply can’t bring himself to deliver; he says little more than “that lightbulb’s gone out” and “I want to show you how I love you, but there’s nothing there.” “Before Destruction” opens the album

obviously wounded, almost like an ex-tended three-minute introduction than a song itself, with reverb-heavy, word-less vocals and a ceaseless drum loop taking the forefront of the mix, well above an acoustic guitar and voice ar-rangement that sounds deliberately tinny. “Goodnight Laura” sounds delib-erately un"nished; it features a second verse in which Daniel repeats a vocal melody almost exactly as it was in the "rst, but without any words, as if this is clearly a reference version that could have been reworked into something much grander.

And those moments are here, too; “Trouble Comes Running” sounds like a ragged, lo-"delity version of Gimme Fiction single “Sister Jack” with Guided By Voices—like sutures between seg-ments, as it cuts in and out of the full band arrangement. !e melody and the chorus are so strong, however, that they

carry the song e#ortlessly. Points also go to the battered “I Saw !e Light,” perhaps the one song here in which nothing suddenly falls apart, yet the song gives way to a lengthy, cerebral outro that hints at, but never delivers anything explosive.

It’s hard not to read Transference as a breakup album, and it’s even harder to read it in Spoon’s chronology. Whereas on Girls Can Tell, Daniel sang about these things with an Elvis Costello-like energy, here his angst turns in on every aspect of these songs, as if there was nothing he could do but make a delib-erate attempt to put his destroyed head-space on display through what would be con"dent, straightforward pop music if only he’d chosen to present it that way. I can’t tell how replayable it is, or if it’ll make it anywhere in my rotation, but it probably deserves more than a dismis-sive description like “interesting.”

by ANDREW HALL Music Reviewer

MUSIC REVIEW:

ALDEN

Back in September, the old Campus Activities Board and ASWC Events restructured to form

Whitman Events Board. Although organizers were optimistic at the time of this switch, many

students have voiced dissatisfaction over the fact that the Events Board brought relatively few

musical performances to campus last semester. A&E reporter Caitlin Hardee investigates why

this is, and looks in to some of the programming they have planned for the coming semester.

!is year, they’re work-ing with a budget that is smaller than the com-bined budgets for all of programming last year.

- Leann Adams, WEB faculty coordinator

Page 5: Whitman College Pioneer - Spring 2010 Issue 2

February 4, 2010 A&E 5

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50. Malt shop purchase51. “All we see or __ is but a dream with in a dream” (Poe)52. French de"nite articleDOWN1. It may be worth 3 points2. Arti"cial fertilization method3. Church area opposite the altar4. #ey have perfect basal cleavage5. Site of many an internet rant6. Poisonous snake variety7. “Wait a minute…”8. M*A*S*H actor Alan9. Con"scate10. Pays to play11. Entourage17. Greek muse of lyric poetry19. Wicked tight22. Entourage23. One of the pre-Colombian societ-ies26. Get in a tizzy27. TOTALLY STOKED29. Iridescent jewels30. Category for 4- and 29-Down31. Journalists’ guide34. Artists’ aid35. Shamu and friends36. One born between August 23rd and September 23rd37. Steer clear of39. Brothel proprietor41. “#e #in Man” dog42. Plains tribe of Minnesota and Mon-tana44. Is no longer45. Mining yield

For answers to last week’s crossword, see whitmanpioneer.com

by KARL WALLULIS Puzzlemaster

Sampson family preparing for a special dinner guest. #e eldest daughter, Julia, is home from college and is a bit unnerved by the somewhat erratic behavior of her mother and her two younger siblings. Julia's feelings worsen when she realizes that the expected dinner guest may be a "gment of her family's imagination.

Cook's "#e Ride" retells the story of Cassandra and Agamemnon. In this rendition, Agamemnon is a soldier re-turning from war with Cassandra who is cursed with a vision of their coming murder. In the last hours before arrival, Cassandra tries to warn Agamemnon, but he is intent on his return home.

"#e Ferrets of my Heartbroken Past," Cobb's one-act, is the story of Gray, who a$er a devastating break-up begins to piece him self together despite being tor-mented by both a self-serving friend and the specter of his ex-girlfriend. Mean-while, Gray's unexpected attraction to a fellow ranch-hand leaves him con%icted between forbidden love and his rough-and-tumble cowboy lifestyle.

#ese writers, their directors and their casts and crews have been working for weeks to put together their productions, which has been a process full of new op-portunities, but not without frustrations.

When asked what the most frustrating part of directing a one-act was, the three directors had similar responses.

"#e biggest challenge is telling my peers what to do," said sophomore Cait-lin Goldie, director of Cook's "#e Ride," “I don’t want to tell them what to do be-

cause, you know, it’s uncomfortable."Sophomore Sarah Wright, director of

Gianotti's "#at Chair is Empty" agreed."Half my cast is older than I am," she

said. "I let them know that they have just as good of ideas as I have. So we get to collaborate and really come together as a team."

Senior Lindsey Witcosky, director of Cobb's "#e Ferrets of my Heartbroken Past," also indicated that she had experi-enced some di&culty keeping the group in check.

"#e most frustrating thing is main-taining control over a group of my peers," she said. "Student directing is tough because o$en everyone takes it less seriously, and that can really hinder the production."

But despite the minor challenges that the directors have faced in leading their peers, their casts and crews seem to re-ally enjoy working with a student direc-tor. First-year Jeremy Kotler, who plays the part of Phil in "#e Ferrets of My Heartbroken Past," found this dynamic particularly productive.

"Professional directors have more of an idea of what they want to do and you have to conform to that; but here, the ac-tor and the director can work o! of each other," he said.

Much like the Instant Play Festival, which is held in the fall semester, the One-Act Play Contest o!ers unique op-portunities for student writing and di-recting. While the One-Act Play Contest allows writers an inde"nite period of time to write the script and a few weeks to direct it, the Instant Play Festival has

more draining rules. Writers for the In-stant Play Festival have only twelve hours to produce a ten minute script, and di-rectors have only twelve hours to direct the production before it opens that night. Many of the actors, directors and writers now working on the One-Acts were also involved with the Instant Play Festival, and the majority of them preferred the One-Act process. #e actors appreciated how much more time they were given to work on their roles.

"I’m liking [the One-Acts] more be-cause I have more time to develop my character and learn my lines," said Kot-ler.

For the writers, having more time was very helpful.

"I like this process. I like having lots of time because the Instant Play Fes-tival was so quick and you just write it and don’t really have time to go back and change things. It’s like word vomit on a page; hope it’s good. But [the one-act] was something that I wrote multiple dra$s of," said Gianotti.

Cook expressed similar sentiments."In this process I got to write what I

wanted and really write the play I wanted to write as opposed to the play [for the Instant Play Festival] that my ca!eine-hyped, sleep-starved brain wrote at the three in the morning," she said.

Di&culties aside, most student par-ticipants agreed that the One-Acts have been extremely fun to produce.

"[#is] is basically three weeks of hav-ing fun and exploring a new text, and you also have the writer there with you, which is really great," said Wright.

ONE-ACT CONTEST: Instant Play Festival alums return for more

FENNELL

Michail Georgiev ‘12 (left) and Ryan Campeau ‘13 (right) rehearse “The Ferrets of My

Heartbroken Past,” a one-act play written by Galen Cobb ‘10.

Perhaps the "rst time many of Whit-man's international students eat Ameri-can food is upon arriving in Walla Wal-la, when they encounter Americanized versions of their home cuisines in Reid Campus Center's Café '66.

“It’s good food, but it’s not Mongo-lian,” said junior Enkhjin Batjargal, as she dug into her plate of Café '66's Mon-golian grill option from the Fire and Spice line.

Students o$en credit Bon Appétit for living up to its reputation of providing seasonal and nutritious foods through its extensive menu and salad bar. Bon Appétit regularly serves ethnic dishes in the dining halls and at Café '66, ranging from Indian curry to taco salad.

A$er leaving her native Mongolia to study at Whitman, Enkhjin "rst became familiar with non-authentic Mongolian food from Bon Appétit. She urged her visiting sister, Nomunaa Batjargal, to sample her plate. Nomunaa appeared unexcited to try her "rst American-made Mongolian meal.

“#is doesn’t look anything like Mongolian food,” she said before taking a bite.

With few exceptions, all students are required to purchase a meal plan when they begin studying at Whitman. In-coming international students who discover menu items supposedly from their host countries are likely to expe-rience a fusion of cooking.

When asked for her opinion on the dish, Batjargal only responded with a polite smile. Not surprised by her sister’s reaction, Enkhijin pointed out the dish's distinctly un-Mongolian characteristics: the unfamiliarly sweet sauce, the use of Japanese Yakisoba noodles and the vari-ety of vegetables not typically found in Mongolian dishes.

“#e meat, vegetable and noodle con-cept is the same. #e ingredients are dif-ferent,” she said as she further explained that Mongolians o$en stir-fry noodles

but do not eat tofu or water chestnuts and typically do not use bok choy, bell peppers, broccoli or mushrooms.

Whether there are di!erences in preparation or in %avoring, campus food shows that interpretations of for-eign dishes can easily fall way o! the map.

Enkhijin mentioned how Mongolian food di!ers in other locations.

“I’ve never had Mongolian food any-where else in America,” she said, “But when I "rst came [to America] I heard about how popular Mongolian grill is and that res-taurants stir-fry meat on big stoves just like Mongo-lian soldiers used to barbeque with their

swords. It’s complete-ly untrue. Mongolian grills

are a myth.”Junior Trang Pham, from

Vietnam, grinningly shared the story of her encounter with Hanoi beef soup at Prentiss Dining Hall. Born and raised in the capital Hanoi, Trang guessed that the dish was a popular beef noodle soup usually called Vietnamese pho.

“When swiping into the dining hall I saw it on the menu and was so excited!” she exclaimed. “I told my friends to try it with me, but when I went to the soups I couldn’t tell which one it was.”

Trang approached Susan Todhunter, Prentiss Dining Hall manager, and asked her to identify the correct soup of

the two.Explaining that she was surprised by

the taste, Trang said that Vietnamese soups are traditionally %avored with herbs and green onions and mixed with thinly sliced beef, whereas this soup had a sweet %avor and contained chunks of beef.

“I thought it tasted plain,” she said, “I was disappointed, but I appreciated that they tried.”

Students may not agree with Ameri-can representations of their home foods, but they are able to appreciate Bon Ap-

pétit’s e!ort to diversify the menu. For those judging the interna-tional food provided at Whitman, senior Neda Ansaari em-phasizes that it is the

thought that counts.“I realized that it was hard for them to make the right %avors,” she said.

Originally from In-dia, Ansaari "rst expe-

rienced Americanized In-dian food at Whitman while

working as a Bon Appétit server. Observing the kitchen and inspecting the spice cabinet, she noticed unfamil-iar methods of cooking and a lack of fa-miliar spices. Still, she would eat Jewett’s chicken curry on a weekly basis.

“I thought the taste wasn’t great. I thought it was probably made with spices they use in any other food,” said Ansaari. “It makes sense that they won’t have very exotic spices.”

Since curries at home are much spici-er and more %avorful, Ansaari was satis-"ed but unimpressed.

“When you grew up with a particu-lar spice at home, something your mom made or a speci"c style, it will obviously not taste the same here,” she said. “If Americans go somewhere else to get a hamburger, I’m sure it won’t be the same.”

International students experience

Bon Appétit’s ‘international’ foodby LIZ SIENGStaff Reporter

E. JOHNSON

CROSSWORD PUZZLE

COMIC

ALDEN

Every Thursday, The Pioneer high-lights several events happening on campus or in Walla Walla over the weekend. Here are this week’s picks:

Visiting Writers Reading Series: Anthony DoerrThe VWR series, sponsored by the English department, brings novel-ist and Boise, Idaho, native Antho-ny Doerr to campus to read from his award-winning work. He is au-thor of three books with a fourth scheduled for release this summer, and has won three O. Henry Prizes. His work has also won distinctions such as New York Times Notable Book, the Washington Post “Book

of the Year” and finalist for the PEN USA fiction award. Thursday, Feb. 4, at 7 p.m. Kimball Theater. Free.

Spanish-Themed Dinner at La CasaSign up to enjoy a Spanish-themed dinner with the residents of La Casa Hispaña. Space is limited, so please RSVP to Hannah LaCroix, or e-mail her for more information. Sunday, Feb. 7, at 6 p.m. La Casa Hispaña.

Japanese Horror FilmsCome hear about Japanese horror films and how they fit into Japa-nese culture. This is the first part

of a semester-long lecture series put on by the residents of the Japa-nese Interest House, Tekisuijuku. Sunday, Feb. 7. Free. Contact Teki-suijuku RA David Abramovitz ‘10 for more information.

Open Mic - Poetry StyleWhitman’s premiere slam poetry group, featuring sophomores Dujie Tahat, Eli Singer and Dorian Zim-merman hosts an open mic in an-ticipation of slam poet Alvin Lau’s upcoming performance later in the month. Come hear your fellow Whitman students perform their poetry. Friday, Feb. 5, at 4:15 p.m. Kimball Theater. Free.

PIO PICKS

!"#$ page 1

Page 6: Whitman College Pioneer - Spring 2010 Issue 2

6 FEATURE February 4, 2010February 4, 2010 FEATURE 7

It may still be chilly in Walla Walla, but the long winter days are the perfect time to start planning your spring break escape. !is week’s Feature has the scoop on spring break 2010, including trips led by Whitman students, independent excursion opportunities and what professors are planning. We’ve also included tips on the internship process—from networking to interviewing—to help you make the most of the weeks left before break starts. Whether you’re looking for a relaxing spring break on the beach, a service project or time with family, we want you to enjoy your two weeks to the max!

!is year, spring break trips sponsored by Whitman o"er a twist on the clas-sic, bikini-clad Cancún vacation. !e Outdoor Program and the Center for Community Service have planned trips for students who want to get away from campus, learn something new and have fun in the process. !e Outdoor Program will o"er

two trips this year. !e #rst option is a sea kayaking excursion to Baja,

Mexico, led by ‘09 alumna Kate Ceron-sky and OP Assistant Director Salmon Norgaard-Stroich. !e students plan to $y to La Paz, Mexico, rent kayaks and kayak to the remote Isla San José. !ere they can spend the days paddling and swimming, and the nights #shing and relaxing.!is year’s program is unique, Cero-

nsky said, because it o"ers students the opportunity to focus on kayak leadership skills and learn

about the con-servation issues of Baja. !e trip will cost from $ 1 1 0 0 - $ 1 2 0 0 per kayaker, in-cluding airfare, kayak rentals and food—relatively cheap, said Ceronsky, compared to similar com-mercial trips. Students can sign up in

the OP Rental Shop in the base-ment of Reid Campus Center until the trip is #lled, and no

prior kayak experience is required.!e second Outdoor Program group

is headed to the warmth of Southern California’s Death Valley National Park for 10 days of hiking, camping and hot springs. Senior Lilly Dethier and ‘09 alumnus Ranger Sciacca chose the lo-cation for its natural beauty, location and predictable weather—usually in the 70s this time of year, said Dethier. Hikers will have the chance to cook

trail food, stargaze and admire the wild$owers

that bloom in March. S t u d e n t s

of all expe-rience levels can sign up at the OP Rental Shop until

the remaining spots are

#lled.The Center for Community Service

has designed and planned service-oriented trips for spring break. This is the first year that the Center has orga-nized its own excursions. Junior intern Kelsie Butts spent the fall semester researching organizations, building contacts and organizing logistics for each of the four trips planned for this March.!e students will mainly stay within

the Paci#c Northwest, with the ex-ception of one group heading to New Orleans. Each group will work with local non-pro#ts to learn about an is-

sue a"ecting their area and participate in service projects, including commu-nity building in Issaquah, sustainable building in Portland, homelessness in Seattle and disaster relief in New Or-leans. Butts said that each trip will in-clude awareness, as well as service.

“Service is important, but the trips will also focus on re$ection and educa-tion. We want to teach students to take what they’re learning and bring it back to campus,” said Butts.

Although spots for these trips have already been #lled, students still have the opportunity to research and plan their own service-oriented trips.

by REBECCA BRIGHT Feature Editor

Still need ideas for your spring break? In the past, Whitman students have participated in an array of trips that in-cluded everything from humanitarian aid to meditation. Here, three Whit-man students share past experiences that may inspire you.

Last spring, senior Jonathan Golden-berg helped organize a student trip to the Mexico-Arizona border sponsored by the student club Justice Beyond Borders. !e students worked with the advocacy group No More Deaths to provide humanitarian aid to individu-als in need of medical assistance in the Sonoran Desert, learning about critical immigration issues in the process.

“!e combination of service and ed-ucation has been really valuable,” said Goldenberg. “Learning about these is-sues is important because it helps focus future advocacy work.”

Goldenberg also helped organize and lead a 2008 spring break trip focused on immigration issues in the Paci#c Northwest.

Senior Susannah Lowe spent her sophomore year spring break living

for a week in a monastery. !e trip was organized as part of an alternative break led by Whitman students. Life at the monastery was strictly organized; Mornings began early at 4:30 a.m. and included three to four hours of medita-tion, time spent doing outdoor chores and ritual meals, all led by the monk in residence.

“At #rst it was kind of a culture shock,” said Lowe, “but a%er a while I didn’t want to leave. !e trip gave me the chance to really get to know the group of students and form a spiritual connection.”

Sophomore Kiley Wol" canoed on the Green River during a spring break trip to Southern Utah last year. !e week-long trip was sponsored by the Whitman Outdoor Program and was student-planned and led. An OP trip has its advantages, Wol" said.

“I didn’t have to do any work for it, planning-wise. All the planning was done, all the arrangements were made, which was really nice. I didn’t have to worry about any of that,” said Wol".

Although the trip focused on canoe-ing, the students found time to hike, read and relax.

“It was pretty idyllic,” said Wol".

by REBECCA BRIGHT Feature Editor

Students share past spring break experiences

Productive break in store for students, faculty

Whitman students paddle on the Green River during a 2009 spring break trip to Southern Utah. The trip was led by Whitman students and sponsored by the Outdoor Program.

Kate Ceronsky, an ‘09 alumna, will lead a sea kayaking trip to Baja, Mexico this March.

This year Whitman students have planned excursions for the long spring break that explore new areas, offer varied challenges and travel further than ever before. All trips have been imagined, organized and will be led by student leaders.

CONTRIBUTED BY WOLFF

CORNELIUS

WO

LFF

WO

LFF

Whitman students lead new, diverse spring break options

Page 7: Whitman College Pioneer - Spring 2010 Issue 2

6 FEATURE February 4, 2010February 4, 2010 FEATURE 7

It may still be chilly in Walla Walla, but the long winter days are the perfect time to start planning your spring break escape. !is week’s Feature has the scoop on spring break 2010, including trips led by Whitman students, independent excursion opportunities and what professors are planning. We’ve also included tips on the internship process—from networking to interviewing—to help you make the most of the weeks left before break starts. Whether you’re looking for a relaxing spring break on the beach, a service project or time with family, we want you to enjoy your two weeks to the max!

Looking for service-related spring break adventures? Here are a few options with-in the United States and abroad that of-fer new experiences and a chance to help others.

Student Conservation Association Alternative Spring Break 2010Dates: March 14-20Where: Grand Canyon National ParkWhat: !e organization provides envi-ronmental service projects for college students, training them to be conserva-tion leaders. !is trip involves camping on the Grand Canyon’s South Rim, daily hiking trips, vegetation projects and re-moving gra"ti throughout the park.Web site: www.thesca.org/serve/in-ternships/special-programs/alterna-tive-spring-break

Global Volunteers: Renovate homes or tutor youth in AppalachiaDates: Year round, one- to two-week-long tripsWhere: West VirginiaWhat: Students will work to create safer housing for low-income fam-ilies and will learn #rst-hand about

day-to-day life in Appalachia. Outdoor trips are o$ered and some tutoring op-portunities are available as well.Web site: www.volunteerabroad.com/listingsp3.cfm/listing/3855

Build homes in Costa RicaDates: March 21-29Where: San Ramon, Costa RicaWhat: Students will work with the com-munity to improve housing conditions in San Ramon. !is trip involves a home-stay, training and manual labor as well as immersion in the local community.Web site: www.i-to-i.com/volunteer-projects/build-homes-in-costa-rica.html

by KRISTEN COVERDALE Staff Reporter

alternative breaks

Jim Hanson, professor of forensics and head coach of the Whitman Col-lege debate team, has planned a busy spring break this year. He will spend the first five or six days preparing Whitman’s debate team for tourna-ments in Oakland, Calif. and Lub-bock, Texas, that are set for the sec-ond half of break.

“We might do something in be-tween the tournaments. The policy debaters get a day or two off, and the parliamentary debaters I think get three days off,” said Hansen.

He is not alone—for many profes-sors, spring break is a chance to do work that’s not feasible while classes are in session.

“We don’t get a break, really. It’s just a time to get some research done,” said Nathan Lien, visiting assistant profes-sor of chemistry.

Lien, like Hanson, will spend the first half of his break working with students on research projects in chem-istry, and the second half traveling.

He is going to San Francisco for the

American Chemical Society’s Nation-al Meeting and Exposition, a biannual chemistry conference that, according to Lien, just happens to usually oc-cur in the last week of of Whitman’s spring break.

“It’s four days of nonstop presenta-tions,” Lien said.

Both men agreed that summer is vacation time for faculty. However, just because they’re working doesn’t mean they don’t enjoy themselves.

“I like interacting with the students on our team. We just have a lot of fun talking. I also really like the growth and challenge that the students expe-rience when they’re at these tourna-ments,” said Hanson.

One professor who is not working this spring break is Noah Leavitt, ad-junct assistant professor of sociology and general studies. Leavitt plans to travel to Trenton, N.J. for the unveil-ing of his grandfather’s tombstone. The unveiling is the end of a year-long mourning tradition in Judaism.

“The one-year cycle is the psycho-logical insight that Judaism offers, which is that when there’s been a death or some sort of really signifi-

cant trauma in a family or in a rela-tionship, you need to ease out of that trauma. You can’t just suddenly return to life the next week and think every thing’s fine,” said Leavitt.

However, in past years, Leavitt has also used spring break to conduct aca-demic research. He and his wife trav-eled for a sociological study, inter-viewing couples in which one spouse was Jewish and the other Asian.

“Spring break is a time that we are able to do some of the research that liberal arts college professors are supposed to do in conjunction with teaching all of our classes,” he said.

All three professors, however, are traveling, even if not for a traditional vacation. Spring break gives profes-sors an opportunity to travel without having to take time away from teach-ing.

Of course, spring break isn’t a va-cation for all college students, either. The debate team will travel with Han-son, and two students plan to research with Lien over break. For these stu-dents and professors, spring break of-fers a chance to work together outside of Whitman classes.

by HADLEY JOLLEYStaff Reporter

All work, some play for Whitman profs

We may be caught in the grips of win-ter, but it is time to plan ahead for the sunny days to come. For some of us, summer may entail returning to that summer job or even facing the daunt-ing task of applying for one. For a re-freshing change of pace, make this summer the best one yet by applying for an internship.!e question: When is the best time

to start looking for an internship?“All of the hard-core applying and

interviewing happens in the period between winter and spring break,” said Ali Barlow, assistant director of the Stu-dent Engagement Center.!ere are several steps to applying

for an internship. !e best resource for perfecting a resume or #nding an internship is our very own Student En-gagement Center. Just take the trek up the stairs in Reid and the friendly sta$ will be glad to guide you toward the fu-ture of your dreams.!e following four steps will help il-

luminate the path to the perfect sum-mer internship.

1. Scout it out“!e web is a great resource—our site is a great place to start,” said Barlow.!e Student Engagement Center has

purchased memberships for Whitman students to National Internships Con-sortium and www.internships.com. See the Student Engagement Center Web site for information and instructions on using these databases as well as oth-er links to internship sites.

Barlow recommends www.idealist.org, a database of 93,000 non-pro#ts across the globe, which o$ers volunteer opportunities or jobs in every imagin-able #eld.

“Often, students are overwhelmed by the availability of information,” said Barlow.

2. Network“It’s valuable to spend half an hour each day making networking connections. Write e-mails, make phone calls, do re-search,” said Barlow.!e #rst step in networking, said

Barlow, may be asking family friends and professors if they know of any in-ternship opportunities.

“In general, I think just having con-versations with Whitman professors about personal and academic interests is a good way to #nd out about oppor-tunities that one, as a student, might not be aware of,” said senior English major Christine Texeira. Texeira and senior Mimi Cook interned this past summer with Assistant Professor of English Scott Elliott.

In order to obtain an internship, it is important to invest in a relationship with your networking contact. Have co$ee with that person. Get to know them on a personal level. An internship is o%en a huge time investment for an employer, said Barlow, so the student must be convincing and committed to the company or professor.

Lacking in network connections? Take a stroll down to the Student En-gagement Center, where there is a data-base of 1,500 Whitman alums who can help connect students to organizations that o$er internships.

“We get e-mails from them all the time asking, ‘Why hasn’t anyone con-tacted me?’” said Barlow.

3. Update resumeThink of a resume as a self-adver-tisement. You can be your own best promoter by purging all grammatical errors and providing information that

represents your skill set. For example, if you worked at Starbucks, instead of writing, “I learned how to make cof-fee,” write, “I learned how to be effi-cient, manage money, and communi-cate with a variety of different people when I worked at Starbucks.”

The Student Engagement Center Web site offers a PowerPoint with tips on how to format a cover letter as well as a resume. Barlow encourages all stu-dents who need a few pointers on their resume to stop by for a conversation; this can often help to flush out various skills that you never knew you had.

4. Apply early, often“If you #nd a job that you’re not sure that you’re quali#ed for or would completely love, just apply,” said Barlow.

!ere is no rule of averages regarding how many internships you should apply for. Keep searching for unique opportu-nities until you get an internship.

Apply early. Start perfecting your resume and researching opportunities during winter break. Apply in January and February; interview and con#rm your internship during spring break.

Problems?If you’re not quali#ed for an opportuni-ty—O%en this is the case for underclass-men with little or no experience in their #eld of interest. A good recommenda-tion is to take a volunteer job or work at a summer camp for to gain work ex-perience toward your dream internship. Be patient; work towards your future in small steps.

If you can’t a$ord to stop working for a summer in order to take on an internship—Some internships are paid while some reward in experience. Whit-man o$ers an internship grant, which funds 24 students every year to do a 10-week unpaid internship in the area of their major. Although the grant pro-cess is highly competitive, students are encouraged to apply. !e deadline for applicants is March 31. See the Student Engagement Center for more informa-tion.

Although the road to #nding that perfect internship may seem long and winding, the rewards are worth the ef-fort.

“One thing that makes Whitman stu-dents so great is that they go out and en-hance what they learn in class with an internship,” said Barlow.

Starting the summer internship search before spring breakby BECKY NEVIN Staff Reporter

Productive break in store for students, faculty

WOLFF

Susan Buchanan, director of the Student Engagement Center, offers advice to Andrew Lee ‘10. The Student Engagement Center provides resources for students seeking an internship or job.

BOWMAN

Page 8: Whitman College Pioneer - Spring 2010 Issue 2

!e PioneerISSUE 2

FEB. 4, 2010

Page 8 OpinionFebruary 4, 2010 OPINION 9

America is known for its c o n s u m e r i s m . We invented the strip mall as well as online shop-ping. We’ve even created a term for shopping when we can’t a!ord to: credit card debt or if you prefer, window shop-

ping. Notoriously, our savings rate was below zero or near it until the "-nancial crash happened last fall. We’re also known for exporting our lifestyles abroad.

Isn’t that what happens when people across the world see our movies? #ey see a particular aspect of American society. So while “Avatar” could be interpreted as an allegory about the horrors of colonialism or ecological devastation, it also represents the most potent combination of technology and money in "lm. You’re bombarded with computer-generated jungles that make the real world pale in comparison. And when people across the world see “Avatar” they’re seeing what American culture is capable of.

In China, for example, there are only 10 IMAX theatres in the coun-

try; it so happens that one of them is in Kunming, where I am right now. To see the movie, you have to buy tickets two to three days ahead of time. Each ticket is hundreds of Renmingbi (the unit of currency here, literally trans-lated as the people’s currency). People love it just like they love everything else about America except the whole human rights/democracy lecturing.

In fact, walking around parts of town, you get the distinct feeling that you’re walking in a giant city display—those 10 by 10 foot plastic models of how cities are designed to look that mayors, urban planners and archi-tects use. Sometimes, you’ll see them in museums. In China, there are some areas that look like life-size versions. #e streets are a little too clean. #e buildings are a little too new. It’s as if everything’s just been built for you to wander through.

Yet, a lot of the new luxurious ho-tels, designer stores and restaurants are empty or close to it. Now, why is that? It costs a lot of money to build a seven-story shopping mall. It costs money to buy space in that shopping mall. It costs money to hire people to run your store. It costs money to build big billboards. And yet, not many peo-ple actually walk in and buy stu! com-pared to how much stu! there is.

What I think is going on is an e!ort at brand management. Companies know that China still, on the whole, is very poor. #ey also know that 30 years ago, it was a lot poorer. And they’re betting that in the next 30 years, it’s going to be a lot richer. So, what better way to lock up a future billion consumer mar-ket than by building now? Get your gi-ant Adidas logo on the streets before Nike gets theirs.

What ends up happening is that western companies build stores here. People in China see the lifestyle they’re supposed to have—what we already have here in the United States. So, why not have it now?

Walking the streets, you see an enormous generational gap in terms of how people look and what they wear. People our age are like us. #ey are interested in the same movies, sports, hobbies, etc . . . Meanwhile, people who are over 50, who’ve been through the Cultural Revolution, are living a very di!erent lifestyle.

It seems like China’s population is slowly being groomed to be the perfect consumers. Companies are $ocking here to invest because of the highly ed-ucated work force. Low prices. No capi-tal gains tax. And hundreds of millions of people ready to live their dreams—or rather, the American dream.

Malls in China: Brand today, buy tomorrow

GARY WANGColumnist

President Obama’s State of the Union address was a great speech—it had urgency, hu-mor and a little something for ev-eryone. But forget the spin you heard on CNN. In terms of real political change—that is, passing Presi-dent Obama’s

agenda—the speech mattered very, very little.

In fact, let’s take that a step further. In terms of passing health care reform, cli-mate change, a jobs bill, etc., the role of the President matters much, much less than the media’s talking heads—or the public—seem to imagine.

While the president may o!er a com-pelling character and simple narrative device for our news media, democracy is a complicated a!air. Perhaps above all else, democracy requires an informed public. Right now, the public needs to be informed about the Senate "libuster—no matter how dull a topic it may be.

As of last week, only 26 percent of Americans knew the basic Senate "li-buster rule—that it now takes 60 votes, rather than a majority, to pass a bill in the Senate. A public that believes the President of the United States has the ability to simply “buck up” and pass bills—irregardless of the threat of "li-buster in the Senate—is either unin-formed or misinformed.#e "libuster rule was not created

by the Framers. In fact, the "libuster as we know it only came into existence in 1975. #e change—requiring 60 votes to begin voting on a bill rather than 51, plus removing the need for Senators to physically stand and speak before the Senate to block voting—resulted from a minor Senate rule change that was part of a liberal compromise intended to advance civil rights legislation. Now, Senators easily and anonymously block legislation from behind closed doors.

Franklin D. Roosevelt needed only 51 votes to pass the New Deal. Lyndon B. Johnson needed only 51 votes to pass the Civil Rights Act, Medicare and Med-icaid. Even Ronald Reaga—whose 1981 tax cuts were technically "libuster-proof as part of the budgeting process—need-ed only 51 votes to pass the centerpiece of his “Reagan Revolution.”

Yet since Obama’s inauguration, the lack of public knowledge of the 60-vote "libuster–and the failure of the media or the Democratic Party to inform the public—has allowed Republicans to qui-

etly and undemocratically become the tiny “Party of No.”

When the relatively-liberal voters of Massachusetts elected a Republican to the Senate last month in a special elec-tion, only 38 percent of those voters said they were motivated by opposition to Obama’s policies. Rather, the frustra-tion seemed to stem from the failure of Democrats to act boldly and pass their agenda.

Now with just 41 votes in the Senate, Republicans have obstructed the agenda Americans overwhelmingly voted for in 2008. While the House passed progres-sive bills—due to 60-vote "libuster em-ployed by Republicans and conservative “Blue Dog” Democrats in the Senate—President Obama and the Democrats have been slow, or unable, to deliver.

Americans must learn about the "li-buster, or the voters will continue to see a president and a party that can’t get things done. Once Americans under-stand the rule, I am con"dent it will be abandoned in order to return to a system in which the election of a supermajority can lead to real change.

If the American democratic experi-ment is to succeed, then those we elect must be allowed to govern. Elections must matter. If voters see no change when they elect a massive majority, the hope and optimism at the heart of the democratic experiment will quickly be replaced by cynicism and apathy.#us, the "libuster must now be at the

center of our national discourse.Without the "libuster, President

Obama and the Democratic superma-jority in the Senate would have un-doubtedly passed a historic health care bill, an admirable climate change bill, e!ective "nancial regulatory reform, a more e!ective stimulus bill and the jobs bill Democrats are promising to address unemployment.#is is not to downplay the fact that

President Obama can—and must—work hard to wrangle votes in the Sen-ate for his agenda. But as Obama’s "rst year has taught us, this has much less to do with delivering powerful speeches than bargaining with Senators over spe-ci"c requests and recruiting formidable candidates to run from the le% against Republicans and Democrats who stand in the way.

But in our news media and our ca-sual conversations, the president must not be anointed the metaphorical father of the nation. It’s time to abandon our over-emphasis and near-fetishism of the role of the President of the United States, and focus our discourse where the real power now lies—in the undemocratic, "libuster-threatening Senate.

RUSS CADITZ-PECK

Columnist

FORGET OBAMA Americans must

r!

My fellow colum-nist and Opinion Editor Alex Pot-ter recently wrote that the unfore-seen election of Republican Scott Brown in the traditionally blue state of Mas-sachusetts was “ringing endorse-ment of the in-

herent conservatism of the American people.” I would argue that instead, the election was a sign that the American people are fed up with the polarized, partisan politics of Washington.

The election of Scott Brown signals the end of the Democratic superma-jority that supposedly enables them to pass anything they want, anytime they want. If only it were that simple . . .

Since taking office, President Obama has had to fight tooth and nail within his own party to pass “radical” legislation such as the Amer-ican Reinvestment and Recovery Act and the budget. With Brown’s election, the Democrats have announced that they will seek a “scaled-back bill” on health care. They’ve stopped mention-ing the cap and trade bill stalled in the

Senate altogether. All of these changes have occurred despite the fact that the Democrats still control the Senate by 18 votes.

Most of the media has focused on the consequences of Brown’s election on the Democratic party, entirely for-getting the effects on the Republican party. Now that the Democrats no lon-ger have the ability to push legislation through, the Republican party is going to have to prove that they aren’t just “the party of no.”

So far, they haven’t done too well. The Senate recently defeated a White House proposal to form a bipartisan commission to deal with the debt and d e f i c i t . Several Republicans who

once co-sponsored the bill voted against

it. In the polar-ized world of

Wash-

ington, any Republican who is seen as cooperating with the President is likely to face a challenge from his own party in the upcoming primaries.

“Polarization is the twin evil of par-tisanship,” recently explained Ross Baker, a political scientist at Rutgers.

Baker believes that while partisan-ship is natural, the real problem comes from the personalization, search for immediate political gain and vol-ume of conflict that characterize polar-ization.

But our president is not giving up on his promise to change the polarized w o r l d o f

Washington. Last Friday, Jan. 29, Obama attended a House Republi-can retreat in Baltimore, spending 90 minutes in one of the longest public debates any President has had with a hostile audience.

Defying expectations, it was an incredibly civil debate. Obama com-plained that the Republicans had

painted him as radical while the Re-publicans countered that the pres-

ident has failed to listen to any of their ideas. Both sides agreed that they were to blame for the vicious polarization that has

marred Obama’s first year in office.As the New York Times noted, the

debate more closely resembled the British tradition where the Prime Minister submits to questions in the House of Commons than anything ever before seen in Washington.

If Republicans and Democrats can keep that spirit of civility then maybe Americans can have not just a presi-dent, but a government that we can believe in.

Obama’s problem of polarization

LISA CURTISColumnist

Dear Editors,In a recent editorial, your columnist Mr. Potter stated that “like all good conservatives, Americans are fearful of the concentration of power.” (Jan. 28) Now, in past articles, Mr. Potter has tried to define what a ‘true conser-vative’ is. The statement, even by his

previous definition, misses the mark completely. A conservative afraid of concentrated power could not be more opposite the philosophy of the original conservatives—men like Prince Met-ternich of Austria and King Charles X of France. On the contrary, they favored the tradition of concentrated

power in the hands of the monarchy, the nobility and the clergy. The con-servatives described in the article are in much closer to classical liberals, like those who authored the Articles of Confederation.

- Ian Williams ‘12

SONG

DOUGLAS

LETTER TO THE EDITOR

Page 9: Whitman College Pioneer - Spring 2010 Issue 2

February 4, 2010 OPINION 9

For those of you who don’t know, Apple released a little trinket on Jan. 27, the iPad. Finally, a!er two years of rumors about an apple tablet circulating around the blogo-sphere like digital herpes, there has been a product an-nouncement. Since

the iPad is the Next Big "ing out of Cu-pertino (Apple’s home base) it’s hard for digital media types—myself included—to keep from wild speculation.

Unfortunately, things have gotten out of hand.

First, some details about the iPad special event held in San Francisco: It was an invitation-only event, with mostly media types invited. However,

it was a small event, and not everyone who writes about tech was invited. I know I wasn’t. But articles about Apple products bring in big reader numbers, so every blogger worth his or her salt from here to Yakutsk is going to be writing a piece on it."erein lies the problem: How do you

write a story about a product that has had two years of hype behind it when you haven’t even seen it? Furthermore, how do you maximize the potential reader-ship bump that could come with an article about the iPad?

In some cases, the answer seems to be to write something stupid. In my expedi-tions around the Internet, I’ve run into a lot of complaints when it comes to the iPad. Some of them have merit but a lot of them are just a bunch of drivel from peo-ple who felt jilted when the iPad didn’t live up to all of their masturbatory fantasies. I’ve decided that it would be a good idea to break down the top three complaints I’ve seen (in no particular order).1. No multitasking

Okay. Apparently, it’s a big deal for ev-eryone to make sure that all of their per-sonal computing devices can do 15 things at once, which is #ne by me.

I appreciate the ability to write my col-umn on my laptop while simultaneously checking my Twitter feed, chatting with people on Facebook and watching an epi-sode of “Castle” as much as the next guy.

But that’s on my laptop, which is packing a 2.16 GHz, dual-core processor, as well as 4 GB of RAM. "e iPad’s processor is a 1 GHz, single-core chip.

But, for all its power, my MacBook’s battery life tops out at about three hours of typical usage, if I’m lucky. For the iPad to make its 10-hour battery estimate, mini-mizing power usage is key. You can’t do that if you are running four apps at once. Having to keep track of all of the apps currently running would be a pain. Long story short: Multitasking makes way more problems than it solves.2. No support for Adobe’s !ash plug-in

I understand, Flash is used a lot on the web. I’m plenty guilty of wasting my time playing incredibly addicting little games that are powered by Flash. "at said, I’ve had a lot of problems with Flash. Blogger and analyst John Welch put it very elo-quently on his blog: “"e problem is the plug-in crashing our browsers.” I spent two hours playing Flash games before writing this column. My browser crashed three times. Flash sucks up processing power like a turbocharged dust buster.3. "ere’s no camera

Cameras are nice. As a photographer myself, I have an entire page of apps on my iPhone devoted to taking pictures with its camera. "at said, I don’t see the use of a camera in the iPad, because it’s just too big. "e iPad’s dimensions are well-suited for holding in your hands and reading, or typing on your lap. But holding something roughly that size up and trying to take a picture with it are just not what it was de-signed to do.

As someone who reviews products, I know that it takes substantial time to really get to know a new gadget, especially some-thing as multifaceted as the iPad. Most of the analysis that comes out over the next few weeks before the iPad is actually re-leased to the public (or most reviewers) is going to be powered by the wild specula-tion machine that is the blogosphere.

If you enjoy blowhards spouting as-sumptions and theories at one another, by all means, pay attention. "ey’ll love the tra$c. Otherwise, just wait until March.

the Pioneer whitman news, delivered.

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When I #rst came to Whitman, I was sort of looking for-ward to Encoun-ters, also known as Core—really, I was. Even though I was a sophomore. Even though I was sick of requirements. Even though I believed that I already knew how to read and

write at a college level—I had been doing it for a year, a!er all. But still I was looking forward to Core, partially because I had no alternative, and partially out of genu-ine excitement. I was curious. I wanted to learn what Core had to teach me.

I had taken a required writing course at Carnegie Mellon University called Inter-

pretation and Argument, which had been pretty much the bane of my existence. I had started out that course, too, with high hopes. First-years were able to choose their own sections from a variety of sections, each of which had its own speci#c topic. Examples included “De#ning Terrorism,” “Punk and the Politics of Subculture” and “Frankenstein: Technology and Dystopia.”

My section was called “Hamlet and Contemporary Consciousness.” I had asked for it.

Most of my problems with that course were not with the content itself, but with the instructor, who was a pretentious graduate student whose passions included mumbling, staring at the corner when he talked and sending indecipherable e-mails. His favorite words were “mimesis,” “cogent” and “fuck.” Needless to say, it was di$cult to communicate with him, which

made class discussion excruciating.I’d like to think that despite all of that,

my writing had somewhat improved by the end of the semester, that I hadn’t suf-fered for nothing. I #gured that Encoun-ters couldn’t possibly be as bad as Inter-pretation and Argument, and that even if it was, at least I’d be able to get something out of it. Besides, they didn’t let graduate students teach at Whitman.

From what I could gather during the #rst few weeks of the semester, the pur-pose of Core seemed to be twofold: 1. to bring incoming students’ compositional and analytical skills up to par on a college level and 2. to make students familiar with canonical cultural texts. Although I felt that the #rst part didn’t really apply to me, the second part seemed important and useful.

As the semester went on, however, I

felt increasingly frustrated by the lack of relevance to contemporary society that these texts seemed to hold, and by the pace of class discussion, which was pain-fully slow.

I heard similar sentiments expressed by the other transfer students I knew. I heard about and envied transfer students who petitioned out of Core by arguing that they’d taken an equivalent course at their old school.

Transfer students inhabit the strange middle ground between sophomores and #rst-years; they’re new to Whitman, but by no means new to college. One reason that I, as a transfer student, felt frustrated by Core is that it placed me in the category of those new to college. In my mind, I was past that. I’d taken a required #rst-year course. I’d paid my dues. So what was I doing here, sitting in a course full of #rst-

years, with a book in front of me telling me how to cite sources in MLA format?

Ostensibly, there is something about the Encounters curriculum that is unique to Whitman.

One person I talked to said that maybe the purpose of Core was to provide a com-mon, unifying experience for all incoming students.

“It gives students a foundation, a chance to discuss the same readings,” he said. “And to whine together a lot.”

Maybe that’s it. But there are rare mo-ments when I’m glad that I’m taking Core, when I read something particularly reso-nant in a text dating back to 500 BC, when someone says something unexpectedly in-sightful about the reading or when I hear my professor say something and I think, “It could be worse—at least he didn’t say ‘mimesis.’”

AMI TIANContributing

Columnist

BLAIR FRANK

Columnist

Tech writers: Stop whining about iPad

DOUGLAS

POLITIC AL C ARTOON

TELL US WHAT YOU THINK!

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Visit whitmanpioneer.com to take the survey.

Page 10: Whitman College Pioneer - Spring 2010 Issue 2

!e PioneerISSUE 2

FEB. 4, 2010

Page 10 SportsFebruary 4, 2010 SPORTS 11

The Whitman men’s and women’s swim teams are on their final laps as the season draws to an end. The dual meet on Friday, Jan. 29, against the University of Puget Sound marked the final home appearance for the Mis-sionaries, with the men’s team earn-ing a 102-101 victory and securing second place in the highly competi-tive Northwest Conference with an impressive 6-1 record.

The men's team victory is their first over UPS since the Loggers joined the NWC in 1997. The win will undoubt-edly give them momentum going into the NWC Championships.

First-year Kevin Dyer and sopho-more Chris Bendix are among the notable underclassmen who sped past UPS. Dyer broke Bendix’s NWC re-cord from last year for the 1,000-yard freestyle with a time of 10:14.27 and Bendix held his own at second place with a time of 10:27.46.

For the women’s meet, Whitman fell short against the Loggers with a 152-53 loss, but they still remain hopeful for the conference championships.

“We pictured ourselves doing well at the beginning of the season and re-mained confident,” said senior Sidney Kohls of the women’s team.

The Whitworth Pirates men’s and women’s teams beat the Loggers on Saturday, Jan. 30, leaving the Whit-

man men secure in their second place standing, and the women in third place.

The Whitman teams have not fin-ished above third in Northwest Con-ference since 1987, making this sea-son particularly noteworthy.

“Despite finishing our dual meet season with a couple of losses against top teams like Whitworth and UPS, we can attribute our progress this year to our freshmen women,” Kohls said, hopeful for the next few seasons.

First-year Charlotte Graham won the 200-yard individual medley for the Whitman women with a time of 2:17.03.

As for the men's team, junior team leader Jamie Nusse gears up to finish off the season strong and prepare for his senior year on the team. Nusse won the 200-yard freestyle for Whit-man with a time of 1:50.23.

“The changes that this team has seen come from some of the guys stepping up and really committing a

lot this year,” Nusse said, noting the team's younger swimmers.

Kohls reflected on her past swim-ming career at Whitman and how the program has transformed in recent years.

“The team and swimming in gener-al have been the most important part of my time here at Whitman. It’s going to be kind of tough to say goodbye,” Kohls said. “The rest of the seniors and I have really done a lot in our four years and just being part of this team was a huge thing for all of us.”

Whitman's teams will conclude their season with the North West Conference Championships at the King County Aquatic Center in Fed-eral Way, Wash. Feb. 12-14.

The Whitman men’s basketball team went 1-1 this weekend, losing its first game against the Pioneers of Lewis and Clark 68-62 on Friday, Jan. 29, before smashing conference cellar-dwellers Willamette University 103-82 Saturday, Jan. 30.

The Missionaries have six games re-maining this season. Considering all six are against conference opponents, Whitman will need more offensive explosions like Saturday in the com-ing weeks, rather than a repeat of the drawn out brick-fest that was Friday’s game.

While Whitman was able to end its five game losing streak against the overmatched Bearcats, the Missionar-ies struggled offensively against Lewis and Clark, posting their lowest point total of the season up to this point. First-year LuQuam Thompson tossed in 19 points versus the 6-12 Pioneers, going three of six from behind the arc. However, the rest of the Missionaries were unable to match his production, combining to make only six of their 29 attempts from three-point land.

Lewis and Clark was able to capital-ize on the poor offensive execution of the Missionaries with a balanced at-tack that allowed four of its players to break double figures. They were led by senior guard Josh Kollasch with 17. The game remained close until the be-

ginning of the second half, when the Pioneers went on a 14-4 run, extend-ing their seven-point half time lead to 17.

Whitman was able to bring the game within a manageable distance thanks to clutch shots down the stretch from se-nior Jordan Wheeler, junior Justin Ar-tis and Thompson. It looked as though Thompson’s one-man offense—he scored 10 straight Whitman points late in the second half—might be able to steal the home team a win, but the clock proved to be the Missionaries’ real enemy as Lewis and Clark made their free throws to preserve the win.

After the loss on Friday, Whitman sorely needed to break out of the five-game losing streak that had been dragging them towards the bottom of the Northwest Conference standings. Luckily the Missionary men were able to do just that against the 4-15 Wil-lamette Bearcats on Saturday.

Everything that went wrong against Lewis and Clark seemed to fall into place for Whitman against the Bearcats. In the same arena where Whitman just one day earlier couldn’t buy a trey, the team sunk jump shots like layups. Pe-ter Clark, a 6’4’’ sharp shooting first-year who missed eight of his 10 threes against Lewis and Clark, poured in six long bombs against Willamette, while sophomore Brandon Shaw led the Mis-sionaries with 25 points, 14 of which came from the free-throw line.

“The Willamette game was a must

win not only because we needed to protect home court, but also because we needed it to continue to be in the hunt for a playoff spot,” said Clark, who leads the Northwest Conference in three-point shots attempted per game.

Whitman shot 39 percent from three-point range and 46 percent for the game, continuing to prove their of-fensive dominance and pushing their already conference leading points per game to 85.5, but it was Coach Bridge-land’s swarming press defense that re-ally prevented Willamette from keep-ing the score close.

“We were very happy to have the consistent effort from beginning to end versus Willamette,” said Bridge-land. “We struggled with this versus Lewis and Clark.”

The Bearcats were unable to main-tain possession throughout the game, finishing with an astonishing 27 turn-overs. The Bearcats’ 6’7’’ senior post player Cameron Mitchell, leading scorer and rebounder in the North-west Conference, was the only visit-ing player who was able to exploit Whitman’s lack of interior size, lead-ing Willamette with 28 points and 11 rebounds. The Bearcats left the game with a 1-9 conference record occupy-ing last place in the Northwest con-ference. Their next opponent will be Bridgeland’s old team, the University of Puget Sound on Feb. 5.

The Whitman men will try to prove

that Saturday’s game symbolizes a new swing in momentum during this com-ing weekend’s games at George Fox University and Pacific University on Friday, Feb. 5 and Saturday, Feb. 6, re-

spectively. The game against George Fox, which sits above Whitman at third in the Northwest Conference, will be especially important for the Missionaries post-season hopes.

Missionaries continue rollercoaster seasonby ALLAN CRUMStaff Reporter

Men upset UPS, women trouncedby MELISSA NAVARROStaff Reporter

JACOBSON

FENNEL

!e team and swim-ming have been the most important part of my time here at Whitman.

- Sidney Kohls ‘10

-

Page 11: Whitman College Pioneer - Spring 2010 Issue 2

February 4, 2010 SPORTS 11

In the midst of losing !ve straight games to Whitman’s number one doubles team of senior Matt Solomon and !rst-year Jef-frey Tolman, University of California—Santa Cruz’s Marc Vartabedian unleashed his frustration by turning away from the court and forcibly hitting the tennis ball against the stone wall of the Bratton Ten-nis Center. "e tide appeared to be turn-ing favorably not only for Solomon and Tolman, but for the men’s tennis team as a whole. However, the team fell short of ful!lling the promise encompassed with-in this #eeting sign, dropping a series of close matches to fall 8-1 to the UC-Santa Cruz Banana Slugs, the top ranked team in NCAA Division III.

Aside from seniors Jake Cappel and Jasper Follows, who combined to defeat UC—Santa Cruz’s Ulrich Capaul and Parker Larsen in a 9-8 (7-4) decision, the Missionaries emerged from this Jan. 30 match winless in both singles and dou-bles play. "at being said, Whitman was far more competitive than the !nal score suggests.

Head coach Je$ Northam described the match as “a good loss.”

“At every position we competed with Santa Cruz and had opportunities in most every match. "e di$erence between win-ning or losing a set 6-4 comes down to a point here or there,” he said.

In doubles matches shortened to eight games, Solomon and Tolman ultimately lost a tantalizingly close 9-8 (7-3) decision while the number two doubles team of senior Christoph Fuchs and junior Quin Miller succumbed to an 8-6 defeat.

In singles Solomon played evenly with UC—Santa Cruz’s number one, Bryan Pybas for a short while, only to lose in consecutive sets (4-6, 1-6). Junior Chris Bailey and sophomore Conor Holton Burke—playing second and sixth, re-spectively—each claimed a set, but were unable to win their matches. Tolman lost consecutive 6-4 sets in number three sin-gles while Fuchs lost in straight sets in the number four match.

Considering UC—Santa Cruz crushed Whitman last year at the NCAAs, this

showdown with the defending Division III National Champions was by no means a complete disappointment.

“"e big thing the team takes out of the match is belief. We now know that we can play with the best team(s) in the nation,” said Northam.

It was especially impressive that UC-Santa Cruz was unable to overwhelm Whitman this time given that junior Eti-enne Moshevich and senior Nadeem Kas-

sam, two of Whitman’s top players, were unable to play due to injury.

In a testament to its depth, the team was able to remain competitive in spite of the injuries to these players.

“In college tennis you only play six sin-gles players. We have 15-16 guys that can compete in our conference . . . Going into the weekend, Conor Holton-Burke was our number-eight player. However inju-ries to Etienne [Moshevich] and Nadeem Kassam gave him the opportunity to play and he almost knocked o$ the number six player from the number one team in the nation,” said Northam.

Along with team depth, Northam and Solomon cite togetherness and experience as the team’s primary strengths. In light of these strengths, Solomon is cautiously op-timistic regarding the team’s future.

“At this point, I think it’s hard to say

whether this match was a setback or build-ing block. It’s all in how we use this match as motivation to push ourselves harder in training over the next few months. We have a chance to be a very special team,” said Solomon.

Whitman will have two weeks to hone its game before conference play begins with matches against Paci!c Lutheran University and the University of Puget Sound on Feb. 13 in Tacoma, Wash.

S!"#$%&#

S!'(#)'*($

Missionaries get Sluggedby BIDNAM LEE and JAY GOLDStaff Reporters

"e Super Bowl XLIV match up be-tween the Indianapolis Colts and the New Orleans Saints has the potential to be one of the greatest champion-ship games in recent history. Regular season powerhouses in their respec-tive conferences, these two teams have both carried their success deep into the postseason. We are certainly not try-ing to argue that there have not been memorable Super Bowl games played over the past few years, or that the Su-per Bowl by its nature is not a viewable competition. Still, who can name a Su-per Bowl match up in the last 10 years that has hosted two quarterbacks of a caliber equal to that of Peyton Man-ning and Drew Brees? Or one that has a team being supported by an entire nation; minus the city of Indianapolis and the immediate Manning family? To elaborate, we have compiled a list of three major reasons why we think that this Super Bowl will be one to re-member:1. Shootout Potential

"e Saints’ o$ense led the league in scoring and total yardage during the regular season, yet with Peyton Man-ning leading the Colts’ o$ense, it is un-clear who’s o$ense is more threatening. Needless to say, the Super Bowl point record could be shattered. Addition-ally, Brees threw for 419 yards against Washington in the regular season and Manning approached 400 passing yards last week against the Jets. With these two proli!c passers, we could re-alistically see Kurt Warner’s record for passing yards in a Super Bowl (414) get shattered.

2. Loaded Sub-Plots"e Saints have never been to a Su-

per Bowl in their franchise history and for a city like New Orleans, which is still devastated from Katrina, there is absolutely a larger signi!cance for the city as a whole. A Saints victory will bring Mardi Gras 10 days early, ya dig? On the Colts side, the fact that Pey-ton Manning’s dad, Archie Manning, played with the Saints for 11 seasons and that the Manning family is hugely popular amongst New Orleans fans could bring about some tension, de-spite what o%cial media reports sug-gest. Also, Colts wide receiver Pierre Garçon has dedicated his playo$ per-formance to his native country of Haiti, hoisting the Haitian #ag a&er the AFC Conference Championship game.3. Dynamic Defenses

In their two playo$ games, the Saints’ defense has o%cially ended one legendary quarterback’s career (Kurt Warner), and may have indeed ended another’s (Brett Favre)—both in a bru-tal fashion. New Orleans’ defense plays extremely aggressively, relying on turnovers to keep opposing o$enses o$ the !eld. "e Colts, on the other hand, are small and speedy on the defensive side of the ball, relying on a ruthless pass rush to apply heavy pressure on the quarterback. Unfortunately, the Pro Bowl man-beast that is Dwight Freeney is su$ering from a torn ankle ligament which will limit his mobility during the game. Although each team has a distinct defensive style, both units could be successful.

If you actually required any per-suasion to watch the Super Bowl, you probably hate freedom. And in that case, this column is not meant for your eyes. "e purpose of this article was to get you as excited as we are about the big game on Sunday, and prove to you why this game will not be boring, de-spite Peyton Manning’s participation. In the last 10 years, no better-balanced teams have met in the Super Bowl, and oh yeah, there’s the commercials . . .

For more commentary, tune into KWCW 90.5 FM Tuesdays at 1 p.m.

A Superb Bowl for the ages

The Whitman women’s basketball team overcame a six-point halftime deficit and held off a late charge from Lewis and Clark College to win a cru-cial home game at Sherwood Center Friday, Jan. 29. Despite a first half that saw the visiting Pioneers put together an 11-0 run and compile a six-point lead to close the period, the Mission-aries took the lead early in the second half and held on to win 61-56.

The Missionaries, just one win re-moved from a five-game losing streak, rode strong performances from up-perclassmen and first-year students alike to knock off a talented Lewis and Clark team and improve their Northwest Conference record to 3-6. The Pioneers, who entered the contest alone in second-place in the NWC and leading the conference in rebounding and rebounding margin, were out-rebounded by the Missionaries 44-29. With the win Whitman evened the season series with Lewis and Clark avenging an early season road loss, which saw the Pioneers dominate the Missionaries 53-38.

Head Coach Michelle Ferenz was optimistic about the Missionaries abil-ity to adjust their style of play in their second match-up with the Pioneers.

“We changed our whole defensive game plan this time around,” said Ferenz. “We did a much better job de-fending their inside game and made them shoot from the perimeter. They struggle from long range, and we did a much better job on the boards. Lewis and Clark leads the conference in rebounding, so to beat them on the boards is a great effort.”

Megan Spence, Lewis and Clark’s 6-foot center and leading rebounder, was held to just five boards, while Whitman senior Hilary White put to-gether her first double-double of the season, adding 14 points to her game-high 13 rebounds. White, who averages just over 12 points a game and whose two three-pointers per game is second

in the Northwest Conference, kept the Missionaries in the game at both ends of the floor. Eleven of White’s 13 rebounds came on the defensive side of the ball, and her three free-throws in the game’s final minutes cemented Whitman’s victory.

Despite being trounced 44-29 in the rebounding column, the Pioneers stayed with Whitman throughout. Al-though the Missionaries took the lead for good with nine minutes left, Lewis and Clark surged back to tie the game at 38, 40, 42 and 44.

“The game was back and forth for the whole time,” Ferenz said. “I think a key for us was [junior] Jessica Brice in the first half. We were really struggling to score, and Jess grabbed three offen-sive rebounds putting two back in for scores to give us a real lift. Otherwise, we would have been down double dig-its at the half.”

When dominant junior center Rebecca Sexton fouled out midway through the second half, first-year Kelly Peterson filled the void in the paint.

“I was just trying to be aggressive, and I was looking for my shots every time down the floor,” said Peterson, whose 16 points throughout were far overshadowed by the six points she scored in the final two minutes. “We really needed to win on Friday—this was a really pivotal game for us.”

Peterson is one of three Whitman first-years to make substantial contri-butions this season.

“Mary Madden, Kelly Peterson and Emilie Gilbert have played really well in a tough situation. I am really proud of the way they have stepped up and helped us despite being first year play-ers,” Ferenz said after Friday’s game.

As Madden, Peterson’s roommate, put it, this season has been a decidedly comfortable transition.

“Since all three of us played so much in high school, this year has really been a smooth transition back into playing for us. We’ve been able to get into roles we’re already familiar with,” she said.

Madden’s three offensive rebounds

in the second half proved to be crucial, and Gilbert’s put-back of a White miss to close out the half sent the Mission-aries into the locker room on a posi-tive note.

Decimated by injuries, the Mission-aries entered Friday’s game needing a win to keep their playoff hopes alive.

“We just have to take it one game at a time,” Ferenz said.

While losing junior guards Anna Forge and Jenele Peterson for the sea-son was “a huge blow,” Ferenz has been impressed by her team’s ability to play well under difficult circumstances, a sentiment echoed by Madden.

“[The injuries] hurt our offensive flow at first, but we’ve had really good togetherness in the last few games.”

Ferenz’s team showed no signs of fatigue in their Saturday night game, in which they routed conference cel-lar-dweller Willamette 67-35. The win brought the Missionaries’ conference record to 4-6 and placed them two games out fourth-place and a playoff berth. Whitman will play two crucial road games this coming weekend. Friday, Feb. 5, they will travel to New-berg, Ore. for a showdown with de-fending Division III National Cham-pion George Fox University followed by a match up with struggling Pacific University in Forest Grove, Ore. on Saturday.

Whitman players and coaches rec-ognize the importance of each game going forward as the try to make up ground in the conference standings.

“We can’t afford to miss more than one more game, and we can beat both George Fox and Pacific,” Madden said.

With six NWC games left the Mis-sionaries have overcome catastrophic injuries and a series of close losses to place themselves in position to make a late season run at the playoffs. How-ever, Ferenz is keeping their recent success in perspective.

“We just have to keep focused on getting better each day, each game. If we do that, things will take care of themselves,” she said.

Women secure big win, extend streakby BAILEY ARANGOStaff Reporter

Women's Basketball"e Whitman women have an opportu-nity to to !nally climb above .500 this weekend in Newburg, Ore. on Friday Feb. 5. Unfortunately, they will be facing a George Fox University team that has thus far gone undefeated in Northwest Conference play. Whitman, 4-6 in con-ference action, will have their hands full with the 17-2, overall, Bruins. "e fol-

lowing day, the Missionaries will travel to Forest Grove, Ore. to face Paci!c University. "e Boxers, currently with a 3-7 NWC record, are below Whitman in NWC standings and may provide relief to an injury-ridden roster.

Men's Basketball"e Missionaries go into the Friday, Feb. 5, matchup with George Fox Uni-

veritsy in Newberg, Ore. with an op-portunity to climb to .500 in confer-ence standings, putting them in good position for the play-o$s. "e Bruins are currently 6-4 in NWC and 9-10 overall. "is Saturday, Whitman will be in Forest Grove, Ore. facing the Boxers of Paci!c University, cellar dwellers of the NWC. "e Boxers are 2-8 in NWC, 6-13 overall.

Women's BasketballLewis and Clark College vs. Whit-man College in Walla Walla, Wash. on Saturday, Jan. 29Points by Half1 2 TotWhitman College (8-10, 1-3 NWC) 24 37 61Lewis and Clark College (12-6, 6-3 NWC) 30 26 56

Willamette University vs. Whitman Col-lege in Walla Walla, Wash. on Saturday, Jan. 30Points by Half1 2 TotWhitman College (9-10, 4-6 NWC) 32 35 67Willamette University (3-16, 1-9 NWC) 16 19 35

Men’s BasketballLewis and Clark College vs. Whit-man College in Walla Walla, Wash. on Saturday, Jan. 29Points by Half1 2 TotWhitman College (9-9, 3-6 NWC) 23 39 62Lewis and Clark College (6-11, 5-4 NWC) 30 38 68

Willamette University vs. Whitman Col-lege in Walla Walla, Wash. on Saturday, Jan. 30Points by Half1 2 TotWhitman College (10-9, 4-6 NWC) 49 54 103Willamette University (4-15, 1-9 NWC) 42 40 82

SwimmingUniversity of Puget Sound vs. Whitman College in Walla Walla, Wash. Friday, Jan. 29Team Score: Men WomenWhitman College 102 53Whitworth University 101 152

Men's TennisLewis-Clark State College vs. Whitman College in Walla Walla. Wash. Friday, Jan. 29 Team ScoreLewis-Clark State College (1-1) 4Whitman College (1-1) 5

UC - Santa Cruz vs. Whitman College in Walla Walla. Wash. Friday, Jan. 29 Team ScoreUC - Santa Cruz (3-2) 8Whitman College (1-2) 1

against the UC—Santa Cruz Banana

Slugs, the number 1 ranked tennis

JACOBSON

DOYLE McCARTHY & GABE CAHN

Sports Columnists

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Page 12: Whitman College Pioneer - Spring 2010 Issue 2

!e PioneerISSUE 2

FEB. 4, 2010

Page 12 Backpage

10.5 “Do you speak click?”

10 “I don’t see you as black.”

9 “You REALLY don’t like watermelon?”

8 “I can NOT believe how eloquent you are.”

6” You’re not really black. Are you? No way!”

6 “I forgot he was black for an hour.”

5 “You can’t get lice; you have black hair!”

4 “Do you know that one black guy?”

3 “Are you mad there’s no football team?”

2 “And now we will discuss civil rights or Jay-Z.”

(Looks at black student.)

1 (Wondering who to pick first on their team and looking

at black kid.) “HIM!”

How racist are you?!How many times has this happened to you: You say something racist about black people and you’re not sure what quantity of white guilt you should give yourself? The Back Page has solved your problem. Look for your comment from this list of REAL WHITTIE COMMENTS and rate yourself!

SOOOO RACIST!

a little racist...

HEY AMERICANS! For years, unfortunate statistics have been labeled with stigmatic and unfairly harsh terms like “Black-White Achieve-ment Gap” and “Racial Profiling.” Thankfully, Obama has brought us into the post-racial world and we can leave those ugly terms behind. Below are your new, less controversial . . .

The Black-White achievement gap1. Racial profiling2. Police brutality3. Crooked cops4. Affirmative action5. Wage inequality6. Minority7. Barack Obama8. Crack vs. cocaine sentence disparity9. Greensboro diner sit-ins10. Three-Fifths compromise11. George Bush doesn’t care about black people12.

Black Student UnionFeaturing:

attempting humor since 1922...ish

SandBay windowCopies of the Sierra Trading

Post catalogPacSun board shortsHang tenMaori tribal tattoos

Free tradeSparrowCurious GeorgeMellow JamsShoebox of photographs Sepia tone Iguana

by Jack Johnson

1. In a large Buddha incense holder, whisk together the -

ter. Let the mixture sit for three gnarly waves.

Mix with sage wand.4. Ladle mellow portions onto a surfboard heated by

5. Sit, wait, wish for the pancakes to bubble on one side. 6. Turn the whole pancake upside down. Sing and dance

to Mother Nature’s song. Pretend like there’s no world outside.

syrup. Enjoy while chilling on the beach, defeating the horizon with your friend with bubble toes.

My famous banana

pancakes

Brand new line of energy drinks for 2010!

Who is which

“Sex and the City”

character?

the only energy drink on the

market with the taste of fish

the taste so nice, we penetrated it twice

MOTHERF***ING PEACH TEAPHOTOS BY BULLION AND ILLUSTRATIONS BY SLOANE

O.

JO

HN

SO

N

Guest writers: Tumi Mothei & Sarah Deming

The Oopsie-Daisey Valley1. Color blindness2. War on Drugs3. Upwardly mobile police officers4. Our favor to you5. The American Dream6. One of us!7. Messiah8. The great powder preference9. The week of patient customers10. The FRACTIONS ARE FUN agreement!11. Hurricane Katrina12.

YOU USED TO CALL IT . . . NOW YOU CAN CALL IT . . .

Ingredients

Directions

POST-RACIAL TERMS FOR UNFORTUNATE FACTS!

Carrie Charlotte Miranda Samantha

The Teletubbies

Tinky Winky: Always carries hand-bag, fashion addic-tion, closet alcoholic

Po:Cutest, dumbest

Dipsy:Bad with babies,

hangs out with them anyways

LaLa: Most experimental

N*SyncJustin:

Always wearing shoes to die for

JC Chazez: Hottest,

least appreciated

Chris/Joey: Most forgettable

Lance: Gay after a few

seasons

Items on Batman’s

Utility Belt

Batarang: Keeps coming back to

the same Mr. Big

Cyro Capsules: Sterile

Bat Cuffs: Dirty in an un-fun way

Bat Goo Gun: Dirty in a fun way

Men of Fox News

Bill O’Reilly: Wants to hear you talk until he remembers

how great he is

Bill Hemmer: Uptight, plays dumb, least interested in

tea bagging

Shepherd Smith: Those eyes, those

soul-sucking eyes…

Glenn Beck: The train wreck that never quite destroys

itself

Founding Fathers

John Hancock: Will sign anything in

front of him

John Adams: Once had it rough on

Long Island

William Whippie: Forgettable

Ben Franklin: Total slut