Front Page - Wabash College
Transcription
Front Page - Wabash College
January 29, 2010 volume 102 • issue 15 In This Issue Celebr ation N e w s, 3 Wh y W e Te xt Ca v elif e, 8 R ob Ar nett Spor ts, 11 Back In Business DREW CASEY | WABASH ‘12 The 92nd Session of the Student Senate met Tuesday to swear-in President Cody Stipes ‘11, Vice President Michael Nossett ‘11, and class and living unit representatives. With the beginning of the 92nd Session of the Student Senate , some students are still apathetic toward student government. RILEY FLOYD ‘13 MANAGING EDITOR With the pounding of a gavel and the usual formalities, the 92nd Student Senate had its first convocation on Tuesday. Dean Raters swore-in newly-elected President Cody Stipes and Vice President Michael Nossett before the pair gave opening remarks to the newly installed Senate. With students detached, disinterested, and sometimes genuinely apathetic, Nossett has attempted to bridge the gap. But will it work? Nossett created a new Facebook page to instantly stream updates to Students who join the Senate group. But it’s getting them to join that’s the problem. For freshmen, there’s no stan- dard of comparison to prior terms. And some remain generally apathetic to the entire enterprise. “At the beginning of the year, I actually tried having an opinion, but it didn’t matter,” said freshman Thomas Schmidt. And it’s those who felt marginalized that Stipes and Nossett encouraged to make their voices heard during the campaign and during Tuesday’s meeting. In his remarks, Stipes urged new members to not be afraid to voice their ideas and concerns. Unity, despite difficult budgetary allocations and a divide between the students and administration, is what Mark Thomas is most proud of from his term as President. “There was a lot of hostility between students and the administration, but we all came together,” Thomas said. It remains to be seen whether the new administration faces different expectations from the prior session. For most, Senate isn’t something often thought about. “I’ve never paid any attention,” senior Chris Vawter said. Either students genuinely don’t care or they claim that there isn’t enough information. If he knew more, freshman Ian Grant said he might be willing to participate in the process. And that same lack of connection characterizes junior Jarod Brock’s view of the Senate. “I’m not really connected to Student Senate. I feel separated from it…I’ve never really been to a meeting,” Brock said. “I have full confidence in anyone who can run the campus,” Brock said. And that includes Stipes and Nossett. Stipes and Nossett began by making the necessary appointments to the general offices of the Senate. Junior Micah LemSee, SENATE, Page 2 IMA Ratifies New Constitution, Page 2 DREW CASEY | WABASH ‘12 Pictured Above (L to R): Current Vice President Michael Nossett ‘11, outgoing Vice President Craig Cochran ‘10, Outgoing President Mark Thomas ‘10, and current President Cody Stipes ‘11. PAGE 2 • News The Bachelor January 29, 2010 BACHELOR 301 w. wabash Ave. crawfordsville, IN 47933 EDITOR IN CHIEF Gary James IMA Averts Constitutional Crisis After misplacing the governing document of the organization, Independents redesigned advocacy arm [email protected] MANAGING EDITOR Riley Floyd [email protected] GARY JAMES EDITOR-IN-CHIEF NEWS EDITOR Peter Robbins [email protected] OPINION EDITOR John Henry [email protected] SPORTS EDITOR Chuck Summers [email protected] CAVELIFE EDITOR Joel Bustamante [email protected] PHOTO EDITOR Alex Moseman [email protected] Copy Editor Alex Avtgis [email protected] BACHELOR ADVISOR Howard Hewitt [email protected] The purpose of The Bachelor is to serve the school audience, including but not limited to administrators, faculty and staff, parents, alumni, community members and most importantly, the students. Because this is a school paper, the content and character within will cater to the student body’s interests, ideas and issues. Further, this publication will serve as a medium and forum for student opinions and ideas. Although an individual newspaper, the Board of Publications publishes The Bachelor. The Bachelor and BOP receive funding from the Wabash College Student Senate, which derives its funds from the Wabash College student body. Letters (e-mails) to the editor are welcomed and encouraged. They will only be published if they include name, phone, or e-mail, and are not longer than 300 words. The Bachelor reserves the right to edit letters for content, typographical errors, and length. All letters received become property of this publication for the purposes of reprinting and/or redistribution. Profanity may appear in the publication, but only in cases of direct quote or if profanity is necessary to the content of the story. Please do not confuse profanity with obscenity. No article or picture of an obscene nature will appear in this publication. The Bachelor is printed every Thursday at the Journal Review in Crawfordsville. It is delivered freely to all students, faculty, and staff at Wabash College. To receive a year’s subscription, send a $40 check to The Bachelor. All advertising published in The Bachelor is subject to the applicable rate card. The Bachelor reserves the right to deny requests for publication of advertisements. Student organizations of Wabash College may purchase advertisements at half the listed rate. The Bachelor is a member of the Hoosier State and Indiana Collegiate Press Associations (HSPA and ICPA). Announcements The constitution was lost, and now it’s found. The governing document of the Independent Men’s Association (IMA) was misplaced over the course of recent administrations. Current members searched high and low for it but to no avail. So instead, they created a new charter of their very own – a charter that was ratified unanimously Monday night with the signatures of more than 30 independent men. Chief among them was junior class representative and new IMA President Christopher Charles Raymond Sidebottom. With the precision of constitutional scholars and the zeal of ‘60s student radicals, Sidebottom ‘11 and a diverse gang of independent men have taken a giant leap towards a destination that has eluded their predecessors: an active Independent Men’s Association (IMA) that draws on the disparate nature of its constituents. “Frankly we were working from something that had been patchworked together,” Sidebottom said of the constitution, an elusive fabric that tethered together the organization he now leads. “And no one who came to the IMA meetings really thought it was doing anyone any good. This is a way for us to show that we’re starting to do things by changing the fabric of the constitution so we can change the way we do things so we can change the things that we do.” To put it simply, the ratification of the new IMA constitution is a tangible and conceptual symbol for the larger changes in IMA dynamics Sidebottom and Joining IMA The IMA constitution defines an “Independent…as a Wabash College student who remains independent from association with any exclusive social fraternal organization recognized by Wabash College.” Any Independent who chooses to be a member of the IMA and attends any session of the IMA is considered a member. Voting members must be Independents in attendance for at least 66-percent of a semester’s meetings or have attended the prior two consecutive meetings. others want to actualize. The new constitution calls for the IMA President and Vice-President to “relay the interests of the Independent [student] body to the Deans, faculty, staff, student leaders, and all other relevant parties,” to promote and to advocate on improvement for all aspects of Independent life, including dining options, living quarters onand off -campus, intramural sports, and student life generally. The misplacing of the previous constitution gave IMA activists like Sidebottom, current Vice President Mike Schenkel, freshmen members like Rudy Altergott and Michael Keve, and senior members like Martindale Resident Assistant (RA) Yousuf Bahrami and outgoing student body President Mark Thomas an opportunity not only to draft a governing structure for the IMA but to alter the function of the organization itself. “We wanted to make sure we were representing and advocating for every independent on campus in every way that we can,” Sidebottom said, “when they’re in the dorms, and when they’re at Sparks, and doing anything that pertains to the independent experience at Wabash. “What we as an IMA perceive the IMA to be is a group which facilitates communication and forward movement to bring the disparate aspects of student life together, that is COURTESY OF BACHELOR ARCHIVES IMA President Chris Sidebottom led the effort to write a new constititution for the organizatio he leads and averted a constituttional crisis, after the previous document was lost. the say the RAs, the administrators, the student senators, and the independents who maybe aren’t involved to make the body more cohesive and ultimately more active with alumni and with events on campus,” Sidebottom said. This coming together is seen as an essential function in bolstering the independent voice on campus, especially given the fact that the Inter-Fraternity Counsel (IFC) has been so active. “Rather than being reactive and ultimately antagonistic [to IFC] and saying we’re just not Greek,” Sidebottom said, “we decided a more positive definition, which is slippery footwork. An independent makes the TOP LEFT: Dean of Students Mike Raters ‘85 swears in newly-installed President Cody Stipes ‘11 as former President Mark Thomas ‘10 looks on. BOTTOM LEFT: Vice President Michael Nossett ‘11 takes his oaths. Photos by Drew Casey ‘12 Senate From Page 1 Friday, 1/29 Interviewing for Internships, 12:15 p.m. Celebration of Student Research, 1 p.m. Sunday, 1/31 Facutly recital, Alfred and Colette Abel, 4 p.m. Thursday, 2/4 Information session: Purdue University Graduate Programs, 12 p.m. Career Movie Night, 9:30 p.m. decision to be independent. With that we hope we can compliment and not compete with IFC to more accurately and fully promote the needs and wants of independents on campus.” Outgoing President Mark Thomas was gratifies by seeing young Wabash men put so much time and effort into building the foundation for a new activism among independent men. “It was great to see so many interested and active independent men working together toward ratifying the new IMA Consitution,” said the senior. “We have needed to rewrite it for some time, and Chris and the rest of the IMA has done a fantastic job with the document.” bke will serve as the new Sergeant-at-Arms, filling a position the duo originally slated for sophomore Josh Linthicum who passed away earlier this month. Stipes appointed junior Ricky Ritter as representative of off-campus men. In the midst of budget cuts and complex allocations, the chairmanship of the Audit and Finance Committee remains a veritable hot seat. Members voted between juniors Billy Evans and Andrew Forrester with Forrester garnering the most votes. Ritter, along with juniors Evans and Justin Allen, sophomores Steve Henke, Steven Stankovich, and Trevor Counceller will serve under Forrester on the AFC. Forrester plans to meet with his new committee members sometime next week. Junior Nolan Eller will chair the Constitution, Bylaw, and Policy Review Committee (CBPR). Freshmen Rudy Altergott and Michael Carper along with sophomore Matt Meyer will round out the committee. Sophomore Joe Reese will chair the Community Service Committee (CSC). Stipes opted to keep senior Patrick Griffith as representative to the Board of Publications (BOP) until a subsequent meeting. And Nossett continues to chair the Academic Policy Committee. After making appointments and filling necessary positions, the Senate moved on to its new business. In the first resolution of the term, the W.A.R. Council was added to the Senior Council, and the AFC was expanded to six members. But despite the new faces in familiar places, the new Senate term comes with one lingering question. Will this term be any different than prior ones? News The Bachelor • PAGE 3 January 29, 2010 Pandora’s Box of Student Work JOHN DYKSTRA ‘13 STAFF WRITER At this afternoon’s eighth annual Celebration of Student Research, students in the audience have the chance to take in the wide variety of knowledge presented. By doing so, underclassmen who have not declared their major can view a broad horizon of studies— something that freshman orientation does not touch base with—thus giving students an opportunity to find a subject of interest. “In freshmen orientation, students, whether they are guys from your fraternity or your group leaders, along with faculty tell you the student to teacher ratio is phenomenal— there is more time for one-onone learning,” said Assistant Professor of Mathematics, Dr. Chad Westphal. “Thing is, all “I find the Celebration of Student Research interesting for a few reasons, one being that I get to see what my friends did over the summer.” David Seibel Wabash ‘11 of that goes over students’ heads until they see for themselves. The Celebration of Student Research is an opportunity for students to both experience and see that—students participating in the event select a teacher to sponsor them and work with whoever the teacher is to produce their project; whether it is during an independent study class, regular class, or outside of class.” The Celebration enables students to gather as if it were Homecoming all over again. It is also an event similar to Senior Comps in the sense that students are able to discuss what they have learned to not only faculty members, but students at the College. All in all, it is highly recommended that students attend, not just for the “ballin’” food, but for the sake of the social gathering and knowledge being passed from student to student. This day is dedicated to students who have dedicated their time and intellect both outside and inside the classroom to research a topic of their interest. In order to be able to present their research project, students had to have a sponsor sign-off on their project. For many, research was done over a wide range of time—for three years, the summer, and/or a semester. “I proposed my project to Professor Royalty back in late March-early April of last year and I applied for the undergraduate research grant last April and it was approved,” said Adam Brasich ‘11. “I did my first round of research over the summer, started the academic aspects, and went back to Nauvoo over fall break, so it’s been a long process. My research also relates to my background, so I’ve been working months, years for this presentation.” The Celebration of Student Research will be beneficial both to the students presenting and those standing in the audience. Students participating will have a chance to show their peers what they have been working on for an extensive period of time—this is not like the typical paper for any typical class, where every student realizes that it is something that needs to be done—it is voluntary and is praised upon a college transcript. David Seibel ’11 has attended the event the past two years and will be doing a presentation on a project from his class, titled: “Don Quijote: Sad or Crazy? Maybe Both.” “I find the Celebration of Student Research interesting for a few reasons, one being that I get to see what my friends did over the summer— it is a significant amount of time and a lot of it goes unnoticed if they don’t have an opportunity to show us what they’ve been doing,” Seibel Celebrations of Yesteryear Top Right: Vic Powell makes a point to fellow alum Robert Wedgeworth. Middle Left: TKE Scott Pond projects a professionarial demeanor at last year’s Celebration. Middle Right: Senior Dan Brown explain physics poster to fellow Delt Sean Huston. Lower Right: Nathan Rutz explains his project. Photos Courtesy of Public Affairs COURTESY OF PUBLIC AFFAIRS Josh Lopez ‘10 presents in the 2009 Celebration Festival. said. “That and I feel that they deserve a little recognition for what they discover.” The Celebration of Student Research Day at Wabash is unique compared to similar events held on other campuses. “The unique thing about Wabash is its size,” Westphal said. “We are able to cancel classes in the afternoon, allowing students to gather around their peers and hear what they have to say; whereas, at a school such as Purdue, they would have to cancel classes for people majoring in that area of research.” For a fair amount of students, this is not the first time that they will present their research in the Celebration of Student Research. Nathan Line ‘11 has participated in the event the past two years, making this year his third year of presenting in the event. “I’ve presented for several sessions. This will be my third Celebration to present at and probably my ninth poster session to present at. At this time, it has become quite simple for me to demonstrate,” Line said when discussing the possible difficulties in presenting to an audience. The event will take place this afternoon from 1 p.m. to 4 p.m. in various locations throughout campus. Again, all students are recommended to attend as are members from the Wabash community. January 29, 2010 page 4 This Is Your Country on Drugs Moral Absolutism and the Hypocrisy of U. S. Drug Laws SEAN HUSTON COLUMNIST My recent experience with Wabash’s comprehensive exams has led me to reflect on my time spent here and what I have come to learn about myself. This being my first column, I figured that I could share an opinion which I have developed during the course of my scholarship. Unfortunately, I couldn’t think of any. I have come to find that I do not hold many radical political ideals or poignant opinions on current events. I don’t necessarily believe anything. I just think…critically, when I can. It’s not that I don’t pay attention or don’t care. I just feel as though my liberal arts education didn’t prepare me for pouring concrete ideas into my head, to be unmoved by reason. On the contrary, my education informs my desire to deconstruct and challenge these absolutist arguments: to turn a critical eye towards their nuances, shed light on their fault lines and inquire into the depths of their exigencies. The phrase, ‘thinking critically,’ euphemizes this method rather concisely. Honest discourse comes from a place of mutual vulnerability, awareness that no position is 100% correct and remaining conscious of our biases. However, almost any outward criticism of human behavior on moral grounds (a.k.a. the ‘holier than thou’ complex) is based on an absolutist assessment. In claiming, “Drugs are bad” and “Medicine is good,” we are making an important statement about how we, as a society, perceive the ingestion of chemical compounds, morality and the law. How we make this distinction speaks volumes about the moral underpinnings of our culture. The issue of drugs is a complicated one. Heroin was first introduced as a “Is it wise to extend willingly the federal government’s reach further into our bodies?...minds?” cough medicine and was thought to cure opium addiction. Today, methadone is used to treat heroin addiction. The relationship between science and society informs the tenuous moral question of whether one may legitimately use a substance to treat an illness, or illegally to alter one’s mood. Many would like to believe that there is nothing “moral” or “social” about the role that narcotics play in American culture, having faith that “Science” objectively distinguishes between drugs and medicine. But if I took anything away from the science module of C&T, it is that society often tells the scientists whether their discoveries are good or bad, and how they will be used (i.e. Nuclear Bombs, Frankenstein, etc.). Drug enforcement laws originated as complements to the exclusionary laws aimed at alien and racial communities. They reflected the perceptions of class division in our society, implying that there are groups who can control themselves and those that cannot. It was feared that Chinese opium dens were places where white women were seduced. Cocaine was once thought to be good for the pep and vigor of white baseball players, but for blacks during reconstruction, it was considered to be the cause of spontaneous insanity and impulsive violence. As the abuse of these drugs permeated through society, the drugs themselves came to represent the death of American morality, dragging respectable white families into ruin. The Harrison Narcotics Tax Act of 1914 marks a turning point in American law: for the first time, the federal government asserted the authority to regulate what its citizens ingest. Spurred by Christian missionaries and complying with an international conference for the abolition of the opium trade, Congress utilized its power under the commerce (elastic) clause to regulate the production, sale and distribution of Opium and Coca leaves, their salts, derivatives, etc. The political system of the United States made qualitative judgments on these substances that reflected contemporary fears and the moral framework of American culture. The effects of this morally charged leg- islation were felt deeply within American society, resonating in its institutions and influencing its culture. When the Supreme Court ruled on this law, they held that drug addiction was not a disease. This decision resulted in the jailing of addicts and the doctors not in compliance with regulations. It drove drug trafficking underground and may have set events into motion that shaped the social ills which manifest themselves today as overcrowded prisons, a $400 billion black market, and the immeasurable violence and corruption that come with drug enforcement. American society evolves in tandem with its culture. Political institutions like the law adapt to the moral upheavals that reflect biases and preferences embedded in the culture. As narcotics came to public light, the fears of society were reflected in the law. Scientific findings reinforced the negative cultural perception of drugs which signified popular notions of class, gender and race. The effects of federal drug enforcement were heavy; decisions of such social magnitude are complicated and should not be taken lightly. There is currently a political debate over healthcare that represents similar social evolution, with similar questions. Does the commerce clause authorize Congress to institute reform? From a moral standpoint, is healthcare a universal human right or essentially an industry? How far will federal oversight intervene into the doctor-patient relationship? Is it wise to extend willingly the federal government’s reach further into our bodies? ...minds? Outgoing President Pens Final Farewell “I am quite sure that this place has grown from the multiple challenges that we all faced in 2009.” DREW CASEY | WABASH ‘12 Former President Mark Thomas looks on as new President Cody Stipes is sworn in. MARK THOMAS GUEST COLUMNIST As of this past Tuesday, a new student government has sworn to work toward the betterment of Wabash and its students. Being now a former Student Body President, I would like to take this time to first, thank everyone on campus for making this past year so successful, and second, challenge everyone here to make sure our next year is better. I am quite sure that this place has grown from the multiple challenges that we all faced in 2009. This is not because of anything that I or other individuals have done, but instead an accumulation of all our accomplishments. Thus, if you work diligently toward your goals for this institution, then we all will benefit from each other. This past year, our college was met with multiple tests from both inside and out. No one could have known that our economy and the endowment would fall, and, worse, no one could have predicted the hardships felt with the passing of both a student and a professor. Yet, instead of using these as excuses or justification for taking sides, we decided to work together toward healing these wounds in order to build upon them. This has led to tighter and deeper connections within the members of the Wabash community and an improved outlook toward the future. In addition, the student government tackled numerous challenges from financial policy to student rights. This past session, the Senate passed more reform legislation than any other Senate that I remember. Moreover, almost all of this legislation was constructively debated by the body’s active members, all of whom fought for their respective constituents. The Senior Council made it our mission to first bring the campus closer together and second, provide more entertainment and fellowship for the students. With more clubs working together as well as more campus-wide events, we all worked to accomplish this mission. As I close, I would like to challenge all students, freshmen to seniors, to continue working toward the betterment of the college in general. I believe that we are successful because of a strong connection with our alma mater. Wabash is extremely impressive; we have a rich opportunity to make a difference while here. We all have the capacity to do great things and, as a result of the smaller student body, must step up and lead. Therefore, I ask all of you to continue striving for excellence and always keep Wabash on your mind. Opinion The Bachelor PAGE 5 January 29, 2010 Enjoy the Don’t Tell Me Little Things You’re Busy As winter begins to hit full force with continued short days, endless cloudy skies, and a hazardous mixture of snow and rain, it is easy to become depressed. In fact, medically there are many reasons why the winter depresses us. The lack of sun deprives our body of much needed vitamins, while the lengthened darkness and cold keep us cloistered inside away from our family and friends. Similarly the college lifestyle with very little sleep and use of depressants like alcohol can also have a detrimental effect on our health and mental well being. It can be easy in such times to lose track of all the other great things that we have going on. In the worst of times we all still have a variety of little things that can perk up the spirit. Too often we take these small things for granted and become overly focused on the stresses of jobs, internships, grades, and the future. Such fears and stresses are understandable, particularly so in our trying economic times, but take some time out each day for yourself to appreciate the good things in life. Walking around campus everyday deprives us of some perspective on how beautiful our College really is. On a snowy winter night working in the library or armory, take a break and walk around campus for a moment. Enjoy the view of the Chapel, the Grant Street side of Center Hall, or the evergreen trees in the Arboretum. The brisk night air will surely give your senses a jolt, and appreciating our campus’ beauty in the snow will enliven your spirit. Celebrating food can be another way to enjoy the small things in life. Simply brewing a hot cup of quality tea, coffee, or hot chocolate and sharing an intimate conversation with a friend can be just the pick me up you might need. A hot cup of chai is a personal favorite to bring great winter spices, a mild sweetness, and warmth on a cold winter night. In need of more substantial sustenance? Have dinner with a friend or professor. One of Crawfordsville’s best-kept secrets is the sushi at China Inn on Green Street north east of campus. Some other great places to try are the small, authentic Mexican restau- JOHN HENRY OPINION EDITOR rants that blanket Crawfordsville and offer unique fresh food that you cannot find at Taco Bell or another chain restaurant. Whatever your culinary preferences, if they are not offered in town, just a short half hour drive to Greencastle or Lafayette can open a whole new world of options. Both towns offer a different variety of options. Greencastle has unique small town restaurants like Almost Home’s higher end home cooking, Chief’s savory barbeque, or Marvin’s garlic cheeseburgers. Just north, Lafayette offers a bit of everything. Thai, Greek, Japanese, Irish, or even Southern Pit Barbeque, you name it and you can almost assuredly find a great place to try. Opening up your culinary world from the confines of campus life can be just the thing to give your own life a bit of spice in the cold of winter. If nothing else, find something particularly seasonal and have fun with it. Ice skating, sledding, skiing, and snowboarding are just a few of the fun things to do that can rarely be done during spring, summer, or fall. Our lives are all busy but it is in making time for the little things in life that we can truly find warmth and light in the darkness of winter. Finding the bright side in winter’s wrath can be a fulfilling way to have a little fun and get out of the ruts of daily college life. “...take some time out each day for yourself to appreciate the good things in life.” Letter to the Editor Why We Shouldn’t Be Friends Sir – I write in response to Gary James’ editorial, “Why Can’t We Be Friends?”, which weighed the rationale professors give for not accepting Facebook friend requests from students. Mr. James argued that since many students and professors “already have a close relationship,” ignoring a student’s friend request is “rude,” a “rejection of goodwill.” Further, professors should not appeal to worry of ‘playing favorites’ when faced with a Facebook request, because, as Mr. James pointed out, professors seemingly play favorites everyday, and this causes no harm. All very well. I am not interested in Mr. James’ conclusions, but rather the very fundamental assumption on which his editorial rests; namely, that professors and students should want to be Facebook friends – or, for that matter, friends at all. Put simply, they shouldn’t. It is against both of their interests. Professors are interested in educating students, and students in becoming educated by professors. A friend, at least in the everyday [read: Facebook] sense of the word, does neither, rather seeing his role as one of support and validation, someone who might make you feel good about yourself when you don’t. Such was not once the case – one thinks of Aristotle’s sense of “virtuous friendship,” or that between David and Jonathan, Achilles and Patroclus, or even our own Emerson and Thoreau – but it is now, when “friend” has become the lowest common denominator of any relationship, the very norm. All relationships dissolve into friendship. It is the great egalitator. Bosses want to befriend their employees, fathers ask their sons to think of them as friends, and spouses call each other “best friends.” A title is lost, one that means something, and replaced with “friend,” a term of no obligation. Friends leave each other at will. They make new friends. They might not speak to each other for months. Friends are not expected to lead, nor are they responsible for the education of their friends, nor are they tied “till death do us part.” The loss of title affects a loss of obligation, a loss of responsibility – it removes the sacredness that exists between two people bonded by a formal relationship, be that father and son, husband and wife, or professor and student. But it also brings about a loss of enchantment. Titles add magic to the world. They make daily life into a theatre, giving people different parts to play. No country has better understood this in recent history than England, which based its society on pomp and ceremony, and thereby gave a spark to otherwise very dull and mundane tasks – a spark, and a sense of gravity, because titles make things matter by lending them a certain seriousness. A squabble between friends is of no importance, but one between a professor and a student is. Likewise with compliments paid. And likewise with criticism. This loss of seriousness, brought about when titles are cast off, is, incidentally, why Dean Phillips should not be signing his all-campus e-mails with “Gary”, as he did recently concerning The Celebration of Student Research. Dean Phillips is not “Gary” to the corporate body of Wabash, even if he may be to certain members of it: He is, rather, the Dean of the College, a title of far greater obligation and gravity than “Gary”. And so is “professor” more meaningful than “friend”: It carries with it both responsibility and authority, two things I want my professors – be they true, virtuous friends or not – to always keep, lest they become just another friend on Facebook. Jacob Stump ‘11 If you’ve heard it once, you’ve heard it dozens of times. “I’m busy,” he said. “This week was crazy.” “Do you know all the things I have to do?” I would venture to say most of us, if not all of us, have used this excuse at one time or another. Some use more than others. Please stop. Most Wabash men, as well as most people with jobs, school, and families, are busy people. There is always a deadline not to miss, a paper to write, reading and research to do, bills to pay, diapers to be changed, food to be cooked (or ordered), conversations to be had. The list goes on. I do not challenge the fact that most people lead lives occupied with whatever it is with which they have chosen to occupy themselves. It is precisely this fact that leads me to ask my Wabash brethren to stop verbalizing their busy schedules. There are a number of reasons why verbalizing one’s business is a bad idea. First, one shouldn’t have to verbalize his business. People should see it in the work that you do. By repeatedly telling everyone how busy you are, you may actually raise other people’s expectations of you unknowingly and unintentionally. One might reason, “if he is able to handle this, that, and the other thing, then surely he must have his life together. He must have great time management skills.” So if you intend for “I’m busy” to justify your not doing something, it may actually backfire. Second, one shouldn’t verbalize his business because it assumes others aren’t busy. Granted, some people are busier than others. However, I would argue that many Wabash students meet this “busy” threshold. By verbalizing one’s business, he is essentially saying, “my busy beats your busy.” The truth is simple – we’re all busy. We all have various commitments. We all juggle school, jobs, personal lives, gaming, facebooking, and other priorities. By using “I’m busy” as an excuse, one is not only stating what should be the obvious but devaluing the lives and priorities of others. Finally, one shouldn’t verbalize his business because it erodes credibility. Imagine you are a professor. You have meeting upon meeting upon meeting. Add about three classes, with an average of 20 students each. You have to create syllabi, work with the administration, division and department heads, and other colleagues. Not only do you have to read the materials you have assigned to your students, but you must have some semblance about which points your students will leave with after each class. Then you have to make sure your “grand plan” can fit into both the individual class timing restrictions, the ethos of a Wabash classroom, and the semester calendar. Oh, wait. We’re not done. You also GARY JAMES EDITOR IN CHIEF have to create assignments, examinations, and lead discussions. You have to grade all those essays and exams. And you have to do this every semester for multiple classes. Now let’s add a life outside of Wabash. It could be a single life. It could be a married life. It could include children, pets, an aging parent or parents. It could include all of the above. It could even include more. Lately, I marvel at the “I’m really busy” excuse, especially when it’s used by a student to a professor but also when it’s used by peers to peers. It’s insulting. It’s weak. And it’s self-defeating. In Professor Agata Szczeszak-Brewer’s World Literature class, we are reading The Poor Mouth: A Bad Story About the Hard Life by Flann O’Brien. The book is a parody of some people’s obsession with their poor plight. The title of the book is a play on the Gaelic expression “putting on the pour mouth,” which translates to exaggerating one’s bad circumstances to gain favor or relief, often from those to whom one owed money. In our context, we may call it “putting on the busy façade” because I often see the “I’m busy” excuse used to explain why something wasn’t done or wasn’t done well. While one’s busy schedule may actually be the reason why whatever was supposed to be done was not done and while prejudice against the Irish and a series of misfortunes may explain the plight of the Irish, particularly in the 19th and early 20th century, O’Brien’s message is still as true and helpful as ever. Often times, our obsession with our plight – be it our business, misfortunes, or other things – can actually function to diminish our own agency. They can disempower us. They can prevent us from actually improving our plights and doing that which we have committed because we have convinced ourselves that things are static; that there is no hope. Instead of calling attention to our perpetually full schedules, we should figure out ways to reorient our priorities to either accomplish all we have committed to or be honest with ourselves and others about what we can actually can do and what we are able to do well. We learn many things at Wabash, but one of the most important lessons a Wally can ever learn here is the importance of time management. Have an Opinion? Send your letters to: [email protected] [email protected] Limit your letters to 600 words. The Bachelor reserves the right to edit and withhold content. PAGE 6 • Cavelife The Bachelor January 29, 2010 Green From Page 8 an ongoing project and encourage students to think about recycling and what can be done in terms of saving volumes of trash. Our goal is to get the recycling program underway in a fun, exciting, publicity-oriented kind of way.” As the “media blitz” unfolds, students can expect to get e-mails from the various organizations about updates on the current standings in the competition. Logan summarized the SFS’s new movement toward a more eco-friendly environment, “This semester, especially with the green report card, we’ve been more proactive. Rather than just telling people what they should do, we’re trying to go out and create changes.” The newly-elected President of SFS, Michael Mondovics ’13, has already begun brainstorming and creating plans for the next phase in restoring Wabash to a cleaner state, including implementing a system to dispose of ink cartridges and possibly creating a community garden. The EEC will also be contributing to the agenda by pushing for more recycling bins in the academic buildings as well as working with Bon Appétit to keep the campus commitment to sustainable food. “We’ve been much more proactive, rather than just telling people what they should do, we’re trying to go out and create changes.” Will Logan, Wabash ‘11 ALEX MOSEMAN | WABASH ‘11 The SFS makes plans for a greener Wabash. Write for Cavelife! Send your stories, ideas, and comments to: [email protected] Limit your submissions to 600 words. The Bachelor reserves the right to edit and withhold content. Music through a “Filter” One band’s journey from fame to success Following the success of their most recent album Anthems for the Damned, Cleveland-based rock band Filter has entered the studios to record their fifth album. The band was formed shortly after founding member Richard Patrick left Nine Inch Nails and met Brian Liesegang in 1993. Patrick and Liesegang entered the studios and released the band’s first album Short Bus, which featured their mostplayed song, “Hey Man, Nice Shot,” in 1995. “The phrase 'hey man, nice shot' is a reference to the final act itself, an expression of guts and determination of a person standing up for what they believe is right,” Patrick said. Patrick and Liesegang recruited more members into the band to tour After touring in support of their first album, the band started soundtrack projects for the movies/TV shows: The Crow: City of Angels, Spawn and The X Files. “Thanks Bro” was the first single recorded by the band. It was used on the soundtrack for The X Files as was the band’s cover of Harry Nilsson’s “One.” Patrick’s brother, Robert Patrick, starred in the TV show. "Jurassitol" was contributed to The Crow: City of Angels. The concept of “Jurassitol” was based around the idea that younger generations have to “pick-up the slack” of older generations and “step back as the old man walks by.” The band’s contribution to Spawn was the song “Trip Like I Do.” Patrick collaborated with The Crystal Method to produce the song, contributing his voice and guitar work. “Trip Like I Do” marked the true beginning of Filter as an industrial/electronica band. Once the band was fin- JOHN DYKSTRA ‘13 MUSIC COLUMNIST ished producing songs for soundtracks, Brian Liesegang left the band in 1997 due to “creative differences.” Patrick kept the touring members he hired for the Short Bus tour and recorded the band’s second album Title of the Record, which was the band’s break into mainstream success. The album presented a wide variety of music genres, ranging from the ambient ballad “Take a Picture” to the intense guitar riffs of “Welcome to the Fold,” even to the electronica dexterity of “Captain Bligh” and “The Best Things.” “Take a Picture” was one of the band’s top-played songs, alongside “Hey Man, Nice Shot.” In the song, Patrick gives the listener an insight to an incident he faced on an airplane while being drunk, which was the inspiration for the opening lines of “Awake on my airplane.” The true meaning of the song has been an ongoing controversy as to whether it is about the negative alterations of being drunk (“Could you take my picture/ Cause I won’t remember”) or Patrick making a statement to his father (“Hey, Dad, what do you think about your son now?”). Nonetheless, “Take a Picture” led to the making of Patrick’s most personal album The Amalgamut, which was released in 2002. Following the attacks on 9/11, Patrick wrote several songs in support of the troops sent overseas and works who died in the World Trade Center. These songs include: “Columind”, “The Missing”, “World Today” and “The 4th.” Patrick also took this opportunity to express his beliefs on both American society and government in “American Cliché.” Patrick, having expressed his beliefs on what was going on in the world, also gave an insight to his life—he was an alcoholic, lost in the ways of people. “The Amalgamut is an album of which I remember, but do not remember at the same time,” Patrick said. “It was written at a time when I woke-up and realized what was really going on in the world and that I needed to change my ways of living. “Where Do We Go From Here” explores the lost mind of Patrick, running parallel to the idea of “waking-up.” The music video for the song takes place at a party, based around alcohol and teens committing hazardous acts due to being drunk. “God Damn Me” also reveals that Patrick came to terms with all the “wrong he has done,” laminating a tone similar to “Take a Picture.” Patrick decided to put the band into hiatus following the completion of The Amalgamut tour due to rehab. He had the date September 28, 2002, tattooed on his forearm, since it was the day he became sober. During the hiatus, he joined the supergroup Army of Anyone along with the Deleo brothers from Stone Temple Pilots, serving as the band’s lead singer. He also joined The Damning Well to produce the soundtrack for Underworld. With the passing of five years, Patrick brought his band out of hiatus, recruiting new members to record the band’s fourth studio album Anthems for the Damned. The album took strides in the “betterment” of America, by “fighting” a non-violent front about the war in Iraq. “Soldiers of Misfortune,” the album’s hit single, was written in honor of a Filter fan who died in a rocket attack in Iraq. The album as a whole took a break from industrial music, promoting the use of slightly distorted guitars and slower melodies, though there are also songs that carry the torch from “Welcome to the Fold” including “What’s Next” and “The Take.” Having instilled Patrick’s opinion on the war in Kuwait, Filter decided to take part in ‘Operation Myspace’, a set of concerts held in Iraq for soldiers. Since the success of Anthems for the Damned, Patrick has released a greatest hits album for the band titled The Best Things (1995-2008) and recorded songs for more movie soundtracks. He covered the song “Happy Together” by The Turtles for The Stepfather and recorded “Fades Like a Photograph” for 2012. Patrick stated that the album will be a lot more “meaner and industrial” than previous albums and will also include a song that was written for The Amalgamut. Overall, Filter is a band that has proven its versatility both instrumentally and lyrically, hitting controversial topics and exploring the nature of human emotions and struggles. With the looks of the upcoming album, it seems as though Patrick will explore his punk roots, carrying with him the aggressiveness of The Amalgamut and using it to invoke the concepts from Anthems for the Damned, as well as Title of the Record. Cavelife The Bachelor • PAGE 7 January 29, 2010 Texting Simply Stunning From Page 8 haven’t quite figured out how to use their thumbs that way. Perhaps more commonly, several of us probably have to delete our text message inboxes in our phones daily because they fill to capacity. Most mornings, the majority of Wallies are probably not surprised to wake up to two, three, four or five texts that were sent in the middle of the night. Speaking of texts sent in the middle of the night, any college student who hasn’t heard of textsfromlastnight.com has been in a hole for the past year, and Wabash even has its own textsfromlastnight Facebook group, as do most colleges. So why is texting so perfect and popular for high-school and college-aged people? For one thing, we have irregular sleeping patterns, so your friend won’t be surprised when you answer his 4 a.m. drunk text within a few minutes. But just in case you have an early class the next morning, he can efficiently relay his ever-important “dude”-laced message to you before he forgets it and moves on to his next game of beer pong. You can miss a call, but you can’t miss a text. Another reason is that we, the youth, could figure out how to send a text message in any situation short of immigration line at the airport. This includes: in class, while driving, at a chapter meeting, at church, at the dinner table, etc. The appropriateness of this is highly debatable, but in case you have something really urgent to tell someone, no matter where you are, you can and probably will. Some may call us Wabash men backwards because we wear pajamas to class and attend an all-male school. But thankfully, no one can say that we are behind when it comes to the technological trends of our era: cavemen can text with the best of them, in and out of class. The Best in Black & White Manhattan Woody Allen’s perenniJOEL al tragicomedy colorizes BUSTAMANTE ‘11 its story through intensely witty dialogue and trademark neuroticisms. This love story focuses on what truly matters in relationships: the love. Deftly demonstrating the beautiful Manhattan skyline, Allen presents a group of friends finding their way through city life, their romances, their faults, and their temptations. Manhattan elaborately illustrates the quaint confusions of love, while maintaining clever witticisms and charm. The city itself is a wonder to behold, keeping the classic New York as a backdrop against tangled lives. CAVELIFE EDITOR Citizen Kane Arguably the greatest film of all time, Citizen Kane simply outdoes anything to come since. Orson Welle’s tale follows the rise and fall of a man of questionable character dying to be loved, yet hated for that same quality. Perhaps even better than the main plot is the back-story behind the making of it; William Randolph Hearst’s life is directly parodied, motivating him to destroy any chances it had of success. Luckily for the world, Citizen Kane proved to be even stronger than the yellow-journalist’s empire. Encompassing every type of now clichéd motif, Citizen Kane set the standard for how films should be made. Stalag 17 DREW CASEY | WABASH ‘12 Taking a study break for texting is quite a common occurance. Before near-realistic supergore war films existed, there was Stalag 17. Set in a German prisoner of war camp during World War II, a group of young Americans find a hidden SS officer amongst their ranks. Mirroring screenwriters Donald Bevan and Edmund Trzcinski’s actual experiences during the war, the film maintains a stark balance between dark comedy and bleak tragedy. These men are the original Inglorious Basterds, dodging certain death while keeping a clever hatred for the Nazis. Furthermore, the fantastically misleading mystery ends with such a spectacular bang, it’s a wonder why war movies sidestep story for brutality. Sin City DREW CASEY | WABASH ‘12 Perfecting the modern film noir, Sin City derives its harsh realities from Frank Miller’s graphic novel. While technically not entirely in black and white, the light colorizations add heavy emphasis upon an already beautifully written story. Weaving multiple plots of violence and intrigue, the film truly earns its rank through its visual appeal. Literally pulling each scene directly from the graphic novel, the film perfectly mashes twodimensional pictures into a three-dimensional masterpiece. Featuring cameos and guest-directors galore (Quentin Tarantino takes on a particularly unsettling car chase), Sin City stands as a testament of the old and new coming together, with spectacular results. The sad thing is, they’re all texting each other. Modern Times The classic comedy and C&T favorite, Modern Times highlights the growing confusions and fears of the future found at the turn of the century. Charlie Chaplain turns in his best performance as the everpopular slapstick loveable tramp, while the still stunning Paulette Goddard provides a feverishly innocent counterpart. It is obviously hilarious, yet the film gains double points for its historical significance. Poking fun at the Great Depression runs eerily parallel to today’s economic distress, providing hapless irony to modernity itself. Even in today’s world, rarely does a film accurately predict the future, albeit unintentionally. January 29, 2010 Page 8 Texting Takes Over Students reveal their texting habits PETER ROBBINS ‘12 NEWS EDITOR Kevin Billups ‘10 has a problem. With a brand new phone comes an onslaught of new features, but more importantly, Billups finds it hard to stay away from the world of texting. “At this rate, I will definitely be in need of a support group for text-a-holics,” he said. Sending anywhere from 1000-1500 texts a month, he is trapped by texting addiction. From Facebook updates, Twitter micro-blogs, and even full conversations, he is constantly on his phone. But he’s not the only one. The Bachelor recently conducted a survey, which included some questions about texting usage by Wabash students. When asked if they text in class, 47-percent of the survey participants answered “yes”. Of those who do text in class, 36-percent said they did it at least once a day, 43-percent said they did it at least once a week, and 21-percent said they did it rarely or never. More generally, nearly 70-percent of all who took the survey said they texted multiple times every day. Some students have simply assimilated into texting culture because it’s become the default way to communicate. “Texting has changed our social lives and has become more of a necessity,” answered one survey participant. “I text all the time, though I prefer talking on the phone,” answered another. As we enter the second decade of the DREW CASEY | WABASH ‘12 Texting takes place everywhere: the cold dorm, the dinner table, and even class. 2000’s, the most obvious and talked-about advancements in communication technology involve the Internet, particularly with social networking sites like Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, etc. What is clear is that our Internet is not the same as the Internet of 2001. The same is also true of cell phones, which at the start of the decade were simply that: cellular telephones. Nowadays, most cell phones are computers in your pocket, and these handheld do-everything machines are getting more and more mainstream. For instance, AT&T has recently stopped selling new plans that don’t include Internet coverage. But even more mainstream than being able to check your e-mail from virtually anywhere has been the growth of texting as a primary means of communication. In February 2009, Verizon reported that the average text messages sent by its subscriber base had passed one text sent per phone subscriber per day. And according to a story on articlesbase.com, almost 70% of Americans with cell phones sent at least one text per day in February 2009. Most of us have, by now, taught our parents how to text, and most of them still See, TEXTING, Page 7 The Bash Goes Green Students leap into action for a cleaner campus WYATT LEWIS ‘13 STAFF WRITER When The College Sustainability Report Card unveiled the scores for the 2010 school year, Wabash was put to shame with a startlingly dismal “D-,” even earning a spot on some online lists as one of America’s “Dirtiest Colleges.” The shame, however, did not last long before the students’ indomitable spirits embraced the challenge of remedying the college’s environmental awareness. “Obviously, that green report card came out, and a lot of people were wondering why we got that D-, and our campus recycling has really never been where it should be,” Will Logan ’11, former president of Students for Sustainability (SFS), said, “We’re going to try to streamline the process.” How does one institute a campus-wide recycling regimen at Wabash College? Easy, just make it a competition. Professor Olofson, a member of the Environmental Concerns Committee (ECC), described the brainstorming process, “All of the ECC members came in this year really excited to get working on the issue of recycling. We looked at the campus culture and the amount of recycling going on and thought a lot more could be done, so we thought we could start with the living units. They each generate a lot of waste, and it’s unlikely that more than a small fraction of that ever gets recycled. We decided one way to fix this would be to bring recycling bins to the living units. Then we thought, ‘How do we get GRANT MCCLOSKEY | WABASH ‘12 Combating the abysmal report card of last year, students prepare for a cleaner campus. people to use the recycling bins, and what would be a distinctly Wabash way of doing that? Well, the Wabash way would be to create a competition, so that’s what we did.’” The competition is set to begin in February, explained Professor Calisch, another prominent ECC member, “This is a collaborative effort between the ECC, SFS, Campus Services, the Inter-Fraternity Council (IFC), Intramural N e w Mor illo Car t oon Council (IM), and the ESH Program. The SFS are doing a fair amount of legwork by visiting the different houses and getting this competition in place. The idea is to have ESH workers circle the campus twice a week, picking up the amount of recyclables that have been saved and keeping a running total of each housing unit’s contribution. At the end of February, results will be published, and the IM council has agreed to make this an See, GREEN, Page 6 Blac k and Whit e Classics F ilt er -ing Out N e w Music Ca v elif e, 7 officially sanctioned intramural event.” And according to Coach Cory Stevens, the competition will be worth winning, “The competition is worth 24 IM points, which is in the middle of the IM point scale. The lower end sports are about 13, while the major IM sports, like flag football and basketball, are worth 48 IM points. So we figured we’d give it a try and see how it goes. We could bump it up the following year.” Head of Campus Services Dave Morgan elaborated on the importance of the two ESH positions, “How do we get the recycling from the fraternities to the right place? That problem is the genesis of the ESH positions. Campus services will be supplying recycling containers. I believe the IFC purchased recycling containers for each house either last year or the year before, and as of right now, I believe about half the houses still have those. We’re buying a significant amount to put out for the independents, and I will have some on hand if the fraternities want to come and purchase them,” Morgan said. More importantly, each housing unit will be supplied with an abundance of recycling bags, which will be the primary method of making tallies. “We had to figure out a way to tally results and the way we’re going to do that is just by counting the number of bags per person per living unit,” said Professor Olofson, who along with Professor Hudson is in charge of managing the ESH positions. Professor Hudson remarked on the competition, “We want the recycling to be Ca v elif e, 6 Ca v elif e, 7 January 29, 2010 Page 9 OWU Ends Little Giant Win Streak CHUCK SUMMERS SPORTS EDITOR Leading the Pack, On & Off the Track BRANDAN ALFORD ‘11 STAFF WRITER Wabash’s track and field team goes by a powerful mantra: “Men of Wabash, Nothing Breaks Us.” Most people may overlook and take for granted the first of those six words: Men. Coach Clyde Morgan certainly has not. When describing the progression senior Emmanuel Aouad has undergone during his time at Wabash, Morgan is quick to note the most important fact is how Aouad has grown off the track as much as he has on it. “He’s developing into a man,” Morgan said. “Most importantly he has been a good leader on and off the track. He’s a great student and just a great person to be around.” Aouad has experienced a great deal of success during his track career thus far at Wabash; however, the talented senior has his sights set on reaching bigger and better achievements in his final spring on the track. “There is definitely more of a drive to get back to nationals with this being my last year. I won’t be able to compete in track after this year,” Aouad said. Just going to back to nationals won’t be enough for the Terre Haute native, though. “I want to not only make it back to nationals this year, but also make All-American in both of my events.” Morgan noted that Aouad’s talent and potential was obvious from the first time the two spoke. “He’s been all-conference even before I got here,” Morgan said. “So when I met with him, I told him, ‘You’re better than all-conference. Let’s try and be a national qualifier and make it to that meet. And then our next goal was for him to become an All-American.’ He bought into it. I told him that it would be discouraging for him to just be a conference champ three times in a row and that he should work towards being an All-American.” Both coach and runner look “He’s developing into a man...He’s a great student and just a great person to be around.” Clyde Morgan, Head Track & Field Coach to be on an identical page in terms of expectations and goals for this spring’s campaign. That bond has led to a growing leadership role for Aouad on a See, AOUAD, Page 11 A remarkable Little Giant comeback fell short Wednesday night as Ohio Wesleyan handed Wabash their first loss in 2010, 73-67. The loss snaps a sevengame winning streak as well as an eight-game home winning streak that dated back to last season. Wabash (11-6, 6-3) now sits in a second-place tie in the North Coast Athletic Conference with Ohio Wesleyan, Allegheny and Wittenberg. “I’m disappointed,” said Head Coach Mac Petty. “We didn’t follow the game plan. We weren’t blocking out. We out-rebounded them 13-6 on the offensive boards in the second half, but you can’t do it in one half. I wrote on the board, ‘We’ve got to contest all shots,’ and we didn’t contest all shots.” The Battling Bishops exploded for 44 points in the first half on 42 percent shooting. Ohio Wesleyan fed forward Marshall Morris early, as he scored eleven in the first half. He ended with 15 points and five rebounds. Guard Tim Brady also scored 11 in the first half and tacked on another 11 in the second half, giving him a team-high 22 points. Wabash adjusted in the second half, clogging up the lane defensively and limiting shots from Ohio Wesleyan’s post players. With 4:30 left in the game, the Little Giants’ offense came alive, scoring ten unanswered points to take the Bishop’s lead down to five with just over a minute remaining. After an Ohio Wesleyan free throw, Haltom responded with two of his own, making it a 69-65 contest. After senior forward Aaron Brock pulled down an offensive rebound from an errant free-throw, he could not get the contested put-back to fall. Ohio Wesleyan regained posSee, OWU, Page 10 Swimming & Diving Poised for Strong Finish Little Giants enjoy more consistency in second half of season, begin preparing for NCAC’s DREW PARRISH ‘10 STAFF WRITER Wabash’s swimming team is looking to finish the season strong after qualifying the 400 medley relay team and one individual for Nationals. They have been performing well over the past three meets. Junior Evan Rhinesmith broke his own school record for the 100-meter breast stroke. However, it was finishing second at the DePauw Invitational that acted as a catalyst for achieving in the second half of the season. “The team is doing well,” said Head Coach Steve Barnes. “The team was focused and committed during the winter workouts, now we are tapering for NCAC Championships. We would like to qualify as many for Nationals as possible. The DePauw Invitational gave the team a big confidence boost. They performed well on little rest.” With the 400-meter medley composed of juniors Rhinesmith, Dave Birrer, and Eric Vaughn and senior Craig Vetor qualifying for nationals, and Rhinesmith qualifying individually, the team hopes to qualify a few more swimmers at the conference meet. “One of the key components of this team is that it is always someone different doing something great in every meet,” Barnes said. “It spreads the wealth around. We’re doing well as a team, not as individuals, which is why I would like to see six or seven qualifiers for the National meet.” That being said, the team also hopes to accomplish individually, as well. The results for Nationals may come from PHOTO COURTESY OF PUBLIC AFFAIRS Senior Craig Vetor jumps off the board to begin the 200 freestyle against the University of Indianapolis. the standings, but each individual must swim well in order to meet the goal of six or seven qualifiers. “The results will come from standings, but I’m not worried about that. As long as we accomplish individually, everything will fall into place,” said Barnes. Birrer, who has already made the automatic provisional B-cut, echoes his coach’s sentiment. See, POISED, Page 10 PAGE 10 • sports The Bachelor January 29, 2010 The Sports Desk Scores, Stats, Previews & More Track Looks Strong in Little Giant Invitational KYLE BENDER ‘12 STAFF WRITER Team scores were not kept during Saturday’s Little Giant Indoor Track Invitational. Nonetheless, the Wabash indoor track and field team gave all indications that a competitive season awaits as they earned an NCAA provisional qualifying time in the 55-meter hurdles, broke two meet records, and posted many impressive early-season performances. “I was impressed with the team on Saturday,” Head Coach Clyde Morgan said. “They really took my challenge to enjoy the sport to heart. Just to have fun because it’s so early in the season. I was proud of them.” Senior Emmanuel Aouad, junior Wes Chamblee, sophomore Jake Zielinski, and freshman John Haley teamed up to finish first and set a new meet record in the 1600-meter relay with a time of 3:26.66, almost three seconds better than the previous mark. The group also eclipsed the previous 4x200 meter relay record with a time of 1:32.14, finishing second behind University of Indianapolis. Wabash posted two first place finishes in the middle distance events. Kevin McCarthy carried momentum over from a sophomore cross country season that saw him qualify for nationals with a win in the mile (4:21.03). Newcomer Jake Waterman won the 800 meter run in a time of 2:01.22. One of the biggest concerns early for the Little Giants was the health and depth of the throwers. With three returning lettermen out with injuries, ALEX MOSEMAN | WABASH ‘11 Sophomore Kevin McCarthy starts to break away during the mile run in the Little Giant Invitational in the Knowling Fieldhouse Saturday afternoon. including defending NCAC hammer throw champion Alex Moseman, Saturday was a chance to see who would produce points in this year’s field events. “The two freshmen shot putters, Zach Helman and Joe Granger, really stepped up,” Morgan said. “They both threw personal bests on Saturday.” Freshman Matt Know and sophomore Sam Glowinski placed second and fourth respectively in the pole vault, an event that holds considerable point value during the season. However, it was Aouad who was the talk of the day. Already widely respected for his excellence in hurdles, the senior earned a provisional trip to the NCAA Indoor Championships in March with his first place finish in the 55-meter hurdles. Aouad broke his own school record, while setting a new meet record, with a time of 7.61 seconds. “It’s a fast time early in the season,” said Morgan. “He was on the indoor nationals list last year, but bumped out late. We’ll see what happens.” The performance of Aouad also garnered him the honor of NCAC Men’s Sprinter/Hurdler of the Week. The indoor track and field team returns to action this Saturday at Denison University for the NCAC Relays, beginning at 1 p.m. “It’s a fun meet,” Morgan said. “There are only two individual events, hurdles and 5K, and the rest are all relays. It is always a fun event for the conference, but we just want to get in and get out healthy.” OWU From Page 9 sessions and iced the game from the foul line, draining three of four in the last 19 seconds. Free throw shooting was a major pitfall for the Little Giants on Wednesday night, as they were a mere 12-22 from the charity stripe. “They just weren’t falling,” said junior swingman Wes Smith. “I wasn’t feeling it from the start. It came back to whip us in the butt.” Senior point guard Chase Haltom said the early deficit was difficult to overcome mentally as well as physically. “Trying to play from behind, and not just a few points behind but 16-18 points, it messes up your game plan,” Haltom said. “When your playing from behind, your shots are rushed and the other team knows you’ve got to shoot quick.” Haltom’s 12 points were enough to make him the third member of the Wabash basketball team to reach 1,000 points, joining Smith and Brock. Brock added 23 points to his career total against Ohio Wesleyan and also pulled DREW CASEY | WABASH ‘12 Left: Senior point guard Chase Haltom fights for a loose ball against Ohio Wesleyan Wednesday night. Haltom became the 25th Little Giant to score 1,000 points in his career. Right: Junior swingman Wed Smith elevates for the tip-off against Ohio Wesleyan. Smith scored 11 points in the game. down 15 rebounds, both game highs. Smith was held to 11 points on 4-11 shooting, including a 2-6 day from the free throw line. This weekend, the Little Giants will look to bounce back with a road game against Kenyon, who is currently 5-12. “It’ll be a sign if we have any toughness,” Petty said. “Kenyon will be waiting for us and we’ve got to see if we can rebound.” Smith said that he welcomes the challenge, although it won’t be easy. “Kenyon will be pretty tough,” Smith said. “They always play us well at home. We’ve got to stay on top of it. It’s a good thing we’ve got a game in two more days so we can move on from this one.” Despite the loss, the Little Giants are still basically in-line with the goals they set out at the beginning of the season. “Our goal was to be 13-5 by the end of January and we’re 11-6,” Petty said. “If we win this weekend we can be pretty close.” The battle for win number 12 starts at 1 p.m. in Gambier, OH. Poised From Page 9 “We struggled with consistency some this year,” Birrer said. “We had meets where we swam amazingly, and others where we were below average.” The winter training trip to Fort Lauderdale, Florida may have helped with consistency for the second half of the sea- son. The team had two-a-days throughout the three week trip. The first practice was held in a 50-meter Olympic sized pool, while the second practice was held in a short course pool like the ones the swimmers are used to at Wabash. “The training trip was a lot of work, but it is great preparation for Conference,” Birrer said. “Our team bonded by spending a lot of time together, whether it was hanging out on the beach or just hanging out in the room. We didn’t really have time to recover, but it was great for team building and race preparation.” Birrer hopes to secure his spot at Nationals by lowering his time a little bit. He would also like to score at the National meet. Scoring would mean he would have to finish in the top sixteen. The top eight will be All-American, with those finishing nine through sixteen getting honorable mention. Wabash will get its next chance at qualifying more swimmers for nationals at the Conference meet at Canton, Ohio on February 11-13. Wabash would like to continue its success and qualify a few more individuals for the National meet. “As long as we accomplish individually, everything will fall into place.” Steve Barnes, Head Swimming & Diving Coach sports The Bachelor • PAGE 11 January 29, 2010 ‘No Leftovers’ Comes Back for More After a broken leg ended his senior wrestling season, Rob Arnett quickly decided he had some unfinished business CHUCK SUMMERS SPORTS EDITOR Rob Arnett lives for wrestling. It’s why he wakes up for 6:00 a.m. practice two times a week. It’s why he spends about 15-20 hours a week in the Allen Center, in the weight room or working on his technique. And when the 245-lb heavyweight broke his leg early last year, Arnett’s senior season, it’s why his decision to return to Wabash for a fifth year was a nobrainer. “I decided to redshirt as soon as I broke my leg,” Arnett said. “I was on the side of the mat right after it happened, and right there I told the coaches, ‘I need to get a medical redshirt.’” For Arnett, who has amassed over 80 wins over the course of his Wabash career, sitting out for the majority of last season was almost unbearable. “Overall, I’d say last year was terrible,” Arnett said. “I hated having to watch competitions and see guys I know I would beat if I could wrestle.” That’s why he decided to come back for more. Arnett entered the season with the highest of expectations: an individual national championship. But his 22-9 record so far in 2009-2010, although one of the best on the team, is not quite what Arnett hoped to have at this point. “I wouldn’t say I’ve met expectations so far, but I’ve had good parts of the season,” Arnett “[Wrestling] allows you to go one-on-one with another guy. It’s basically a war with rules.” Rob Arnett, Wabash ‘10 said. “I’ve been inconsistent. I just need to keep plugging away.” Although this season has not been exactly what Arnett hoped for, he is still focused on his goal of ending his Wabash wrestling career with a national championship berth. However, it’s going to take lots of work. “[‘The coaches and I] went back to the drawing board on my offensive series, basically broke it down,” Arnett said. “I need to have a more focused attack, rather than being scattered or unfocused out there, like I have been at times. We’re working on getting my conditioning to the breaking point and trying to get as much out of the workouts as possible. I think I have a chance to finish strong. Things are shaping up for a very good end of the year.” When Arnett first fell in love with wrestling years ago, he never could have imagined being in this spot. Unlike many of his competitors at the collegiate level, Arnett didn’t begin wrestling until high school. During his freshman year at Greenwood Community High School, he went 1-18. But he was instantly hooked on the competition and the physical battles he found in wrestling. He worked incessantly to improve and put on more and more weight as his high school career went on. His senior year, Arnett went 36-6 at 215 lbs. “I thought, ‘I might get decent at this if I get bigger.’” And bigger he got. Much bigger. Arnett, unlike the majority of his teammates, has actually worked to put on and keep on weight during his career. As a heavyweight, Arnett is often undersized, especially against top-level competition. He has weighed as much as 282 lbs but has wrestled this year at 245. Gaining weight is no problem for Arnett. In fact, his ability to throw down massive amounts of ALEX MOSEMAN | WABASH ‘11 Senior Rob Arnett throws a headlock on an opponent during Saturday’s Monon Bell Duals. food earned him the nickname “no leftovers,” which he also uses in cage fights, which Arnett competes in during the offseason. “In high school, I competed in local eating contests. One of my friends gave me the nickname. I thought it embodied my entire lifestyle.” Arnett has also got better than just “decent.” He has been an anchor for the Little Giants’ squad for five years. This season, his 22 wins is good enough for second on the team, only behind freshman Jake Strausbaugh, who is having an amazing year so far at 28-8. With an influx of young talent this season Arnett has the added responsibility of being a leader on and off the mat. His ability to shoulder that responsibility was no more apparent than in Saturday’s Monon Bell Duals at Chadwick Court. After fellow senior Michael Burke won the 197-lb contest in the meet’s penultimate match, the Little Giants were two points away from securing a team victory. It was on Arnett’s shoulders to take it home. Arnett delivered, winning 9-4. “Obviously, there was some added pressure,” Arnett said. “But you just have to deal with that. Next year, Arnett might continue his cage fighting career on the professional level. If not, he hopes to earn his M.A. in Education and teach high school, coaching wrestling of course. After all, Arnett needs wrestling like he needs air. Friends of Arnett know this too well. Spend more than ten minutes with him, and there’s a good chance he will try to get you in some sort of grapple, calmly explaining what he’s trying to do as he twists your limbs into pretzels. He can’t help it. It’s an obsession. “Wrestling is a huge part of my life,” Arnett said. “I’d say I think about it at least half of the time I’m conscious. Wrestling is just cooler than other sports because it allows you to go oneon-one with another guy. It’s basically a war with rules. It’s a more intense proving ground for an athlete.” On the Wabash mats, Arnett has proven himself time and time again. If things go the way he plans, he just might prove himself on the biggest stage before it’s all said and done. Aouad PHOTO COURTESY OF PUBLIC AFFAIRS Senior Emmanuel Aouad runs during the Outdoor NCAC Championships last season. From Page 9 squad the coach and senior both look to send multiple athletes to the national meet at season’s end. “It humbles and motivates our younger guys, especially when you have someone like Emmanuel,” Morgan said. “He is teaching and helping them along the way. I can send those younger guys to work with him, and I have already done that a few times this year. When you have a great leader like that who just likes people, it’s pretty easy to send freshmen to him to help develop them.” Acknowledging the difficulty that Wabash academics pose alone, Aouad couldn’t imagine not competing athletically on top of his classroom responsibilities. “I’ve always said that if you are Wabash and not doing something on the side, I don’t know what you are doing here,” Aouad said. “The activities here are a huge part of the experience; interacting with people and the bonds you build are a huge part. Everybody here has a hard time with school. It is rigorous academically, and that brings everyone closer. It’s like you are all going through the gauntlet together.” Aouad’s ability to navigate both responsibilities is what Morgan contributes to the senior’s successes in both arenas. “He’s man enough to talk to me when he is worn down, or he’s beat up physically,” Morgan said. “I always tell these guys, if you are going to be a college athlete, you have to be able to communicate with your coaches. He does a great job of that, especially being at Wabash where the demand is so high, you have to be able to do that. You have to open up and talk to people and let them know when you are struggling physically, emotionally, or academically. “I’d rather develop a young man who has a great attitude who is just good athletically than to deal with a great athlete who is a headache to deal with.” It looks like with Aouad, he’s getting the best of both scenarios, headaches aside. After posting impressive finishes in both of Wabash’s first two competitions of the winter/indoor portion of the track season, Aouad looks poised to once again improve upon his successes of a year ago. A strong end to his senior season could very well garner the all-American status he so desires, and hopefully he’ll be able to bring a few teammates along for the ride. Meet... Emmanuel Aouad Class: Senior (2010) Hometown: Terre Haute, IN Major: Economics Minor: Music Favorite Professor: Vanessa Rodgers Postgraduate Plans: Possibly financial advising and graduate school Favorite Meal: Humus Sport: Track and Field Let’s all celebrate our students’ research, scholarship, and creative work! PAGE 12• Campus The Bachelor January 29, 2010 A Wally’s World Top Left: Newly-installed President Cody Stipes ‘11 addresses newly sworn-in senators and represenative during the first meeting of the 92nd Session of the Student Senate. Top Right: Austin Sanders ‘12 practices his air raid form during his first week of rhyneship. Clearly, he needs more work. Bottom Left: With outgoing President Mark Thomas ‘10 and incoming Vice President Michael Nossett ‘11 looking on, Dean of Studets Michael Raters swears in President-elect Cody Stipes.