February 10, 2020
GEORGE MASON UNIVERSITY'S STUDENT NEWSPAPER
Volume 7 Issue 13
FOURTH ESTATE Mason celebrates Black Excellence ~ p. 9 ~ @ivestate | gmufouråthestate.com
PRESIDENTIAL SEARCH (P. 5) || SPECUDATE (P. 7) || NFL SEASON IN REVIEW (P. 11) || OPINION: CLIMATE CHANGE IS AN ATTACK ON HEALTH (P. 13) Fourth Estate is a free publication, limit one copy per person. Additional copies are 25 cents payable to the Office of Student Media.
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02.10.2020
FOURTH ESTATE
GMUFOURTHESTATE.COM @IVESTATE
HAILEY BULLIS DANA NICKEL Co Editor-in-Chief
LETTER FROM THE EDITOR
ALEXANDRIA MCALPINE Art Director DELANEY HARRISON Copy Editor
Hey Patriots, This week our News staff and my co editor and I went delved into a little bit of Mason history and went through our archives to find out more about the presidential search processes of 1996 and 2011. To say that they were wildly different wouldn’t be uncalled for. But, even still, both of them carried some of the same undertones and concerns that today’s presidential search does. Read more about what we found on page five. Our archives also brought to my attention an important part of Mason’s history. Throughout my time at Mason I have seen time and time again students standing up for what they believe in and what they feel is important — and it seems the students of Mason’s past did so as well. On Nov. 11, 1996, Mason student’s attended a Board of Visitors meeting to advocate for establishing a “Gay, Lesbian, Bi-sexual, Transgender Resource Center.” And in April 1994, students voiced their concerns about the safety of disabled students during fire evacuation procedures. Students have also, it seems, always been concerned about rising tuition costs, but I’m sure that’s not a big shock to anyone. So, I guess you could say that as much as some things change, some things stay the same. Mason students pushing for change is part of our history.
LAURA SCUDDER News Editor ALEXA TIRONI Assistant News Editor PETER NJOROGE Culture Editor NAYOMI SANTOS Assistant Culture Editor NATALIE HEAVREN Sports Editor DOMENIC ALLEGRA Assistant Sports Editor
Today, as our own presidential search heats up, I’m glad to say that that same drive is alive and well in the Mason community. For the most recent updates about what is going on in Mason’s current presidential search, flip to page six. This issue, our Culture section highlighted another important part of the Mason community and attended the fifth annual Black Excellence Gala, where Dewberry Hall was filled with music and art created by Black Mason students all night long. Read all about the celebration on page nine. Meanwhile, our Opinion section has an article talking about how climate change will affect public health on page 13. And, last but not least, our Sports section wrapped up the NFL season with a review of the season and a commentary on how weird it was for our Sports editor Natalie Heavren to not see the Patriots in the Super Bowl this year. As always, let us know your comments, concerns or questions at masonfourthestate@gmail.com.
DOMINIC PINO Opinion Editor JACK HARVEY Assistant Opinion Editor BILLY FERGUSON Online Director LEXI REYES Social Media Editor
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Hailey Bullis Co Editor-in-Chief
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A LOOK INSIDE MASON KOREA’S CAMPUS
A history of Mason’s sister school on the other side of the world
HASEUNG JOUNG STAFF WRITER
“I had both worries and expectations being a part of Mason Korea’s first freshman class,” said Seung Su Yu, now a senior studying Management. “It meant that I would be the first one to experience the unknown.” Yu, along with his 33 cohorts, were the first batch of brave students to venture out into this historic project for Mason.
is continuing to branch out to increase visibility. But in its endeavor to expand and gain recognition, two issues linger for students: lack of representation of Mason Korea at the Fairfax campus and lack of effective communication between the two campuses. “I feel like there’s not enough exposure here in the Fairfax campus at all, nor is there enough support,” said Sarah Kurian, a junior who spent a semester at Mason Korea last fall. A similar narrative seems to be present in South Korea as well.
While Mason Korea came from humble beginnings, it has grown into an expansive campus with a tight-knit community of 624 students and over 70 faculty and staff members, last recorded this August by the Incheon Daily.
“I have yet to meet a single Fairfax student who hasn’t expressed their surprise or frustration at the amount of information that is withheld,” said Yihyun Kwon, a junior studying at the Songdo campus. According to Kwon, there is a general lack of information given to students about Mason Korea.
Celebrating its fifth anniversary this year, Mason Korea is still in the beginning stages of university life and
“Many of them don’t realize how small the Korea campus is or the fact that there is no bookstore where they
can purchase their textbooks for the semester,” she added. “On the other hand, Mason Korea students who have not yet visited the Fairfax campus hardly know anything about it.”
and near South Korea’s capital, there are multiple unique internships and volunteer opportunities that students studying at Mason Korea can get involved in.
While Mason Korea is an independent institution, it is part of a larger global education hub — called Incheon Global Campus (IGC) — shared with four other institutions: Stony Brook University, the Fashion Institute of Technology, the University of Utah Asia Campus and Ghent University Global Campus.
“The geographical location and ‘international’ aspect of the university allows for plenty of unique internship or volunteer opportunities. Quite a number of major international conferences happen in Songdo, and the school always manages to provide us with chances to be a part of them,” Kwon said.
“At first, I was a bit surprised seeing how small the campus was, but as time went by, I realized how convenient and cozy it was. I appreciated the tight-knit community,” Kurian said. Although Mason Korea is a small and young community, it is a promising institution with a range of opportunities and experiences available for students. Being located in the Songdo International Business District, a part of the Incheon Free Economic Zone,
according to GMU Key Facts for 2019. Despite the work that is laid out for both Mason and Mason Korea, Sua Oh, a freshman at Mason Korea, thinks that Mason Korea’s ongoing efforts have paid off. “Even though GMUK does not have a long history, I know everything is set up for me to study and grow,” Oh said.
The 624-student population is just a fraction of the much larger 37,677 student body at Fairfax. But not too long ago, Fairfax was a tiny campus too. In just 10 years, student enrollment jumped 17 percent,
PHOTO COURTESY OF MASON KOREA
When Mason Korea first opened its doors in March of 2014 in Songdo, South Korea, only 34 students were enrolled to learn from just a handful of faculty members with only two majors to choose from.
MASON STUDENT TESTS NEGATIVE FOR NOVEL CORONAVIRUS University continues to issue precautions regarding coronavirus HASEUNG JOUNG STAFF WRITER
Mason shared this global concern when a university-wide email titled, “Unconfirmed report of student sick with Coronavirus at Mason” was sent from Student Health Services on Jan. 27. Mason Student Health Services and Mason Safety, Emergency & Enterprise Risk Management later updated the university on Jan. 31 that the suspected coronavirus case associated with the student was confirmed negative by the Virginia Department of Health. “We continue to encourage all students, faculty, and staff to observe the precautions shared in previous emails to help keep the disease from
spreading within our region,” they stated in the email.
according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
They also added that “it is extremely important that anyone who suspects illness caused by a novel communicable disease, such as coronavirus, seek medical attention and disclose their travel history.”
The World Health Organization listed
The university is also carrying out travel precautions and confirmed that Mason does not have any students studying in China in the email. There is currently no vaccine available to prevent the virus, therefore precautionary measures and avoiding exposure to the virus are being advised
coughing and sneezing with a tissue or elbow. Discard the tissue immediately and clean hands afterwards.
PHOTO COURTESY OF HARVARD MEDICAL SCHOOL
Over the past couple of weeks, alarming reports about the novel coronavirus outbreak rooted in China have prompted international panic. While numbers continue to rise, there are now approximately 31,000 confirmed cases worldwide and death tolls over 600. The majority are from China.
basic protective measures against the new coronavirus: 1. Wash your hands frequently with warm soap and water or an alcohol-based sanitizer with at least 60 percent alcohol. 2. Cover your nose and mouth when
3. Maintain at least a three feet distance between yourself and other people, particularly those who are coughing, sneezing or have a fever. 4. Avoid touching eyes, nose and mouth with unwashed hands.
As of Wednesday, Feb. 5, there are 12 confirmed cases of the coronavirus in the United States, with six of them from California. The Virginia Department of Health said that Virginia continues to have no confirmed cases of the virus at this time. Along with the United States, several countries in Asia have people
confirmed for the virus, as well as Europe and the Middle East. However, China has the most reported cases and deaths — with over 20,000 infections and at least 490 deaths rooting from mainland China alone. One student weighed in on the rise of discrimination against Asians due to the coronavirus. “I feel nervous for [the] large group of Chinese students that attend our university and for any Asian student that non Asians would assume is Chinese as well,” said junior Sarah Kurion, a Global Affairs major. “I [feel] like there would be more social consequences than health ones on campus.” However, Kurian thought that Mason did the best they could in terms of alerting students about the coronavirus and providing them with adequate resources and tips to avoid communicable diseases.
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02.10.2020
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VIRGINIA RATIFIES EQUAL RIGHTS AMENDMENT After a long journey through state legislatures, ERA’s future is still unclear BRAD BYRNE STAFF WRITER
the 116th Congressional session is as follows:
PHOTO COURTESY OF ABC NEWS
Section 1: Women shall have equal rights in the United States and every place subject to its jurisdiction. Equality of rights under the law shall not be denied or abridged by the United States or by any State on account of sex. Section 2: Congress and the several States shall have the power to enforce, by appropriate legislation, the provisions of this article.
On Jan. 27, Virginia became the 38th state in the United States to ratify the Equal Rights Amendment (ERA). Virginia’s ratification opens up the amendment to discussion over whether it could be in the Constitution in the near future.
ERA was written in 1923 by Alice Paul, who was a leader of the women’s suffrage movement and a women’s rights activist with three degrees in law. It has since been introduced in every Congressional session since 1982.
The ratification of the ERA pushes forward in its nearly one-hundred-year journey to become a Constitutional amendment. According to EqualRightsAmendment.org, the
In 1943, Alice Paul rewrote the amendment to what we know it as today. She modeled it after the 19th Amendment. The current version of the ERA in
Section 3: This amendment shall take effect two years after the date of ratification. This version of the ERA was introduced to Congress on March 22, 1972, where it was passed both by the Senate and House of Representatives and given a deadline of June 30, 1982 for ratification. Only 35 out of the 38 states required ratified it. Since then, the ERAt has been stuck in a ratification limbo, waiting for support until Virginia’s recent actions. At the beginning of this year, the Justice Department issued a memo
stating that it was officially too late for states to ratify the ERA. The only option remaining for supporters of the amendment is to have each state ratify it again because of an official Constitutional amendment. The National Archives, which certifies and makes constitutional amendments official, stated that it would stand by this memo from the Justice Department. On the contrary, ERA supporters argue that there is no deadline because it is not currently listed in the preamble of the amendment, making it not legally-binding. They also have begun a push in Congress to remove this deadline. A worry that ERA supporters have is that due to the deadline, some states may rescind their ratification, therefore not making it possible for the ERA to be an amendment. Virginian lawmakers have made the ERA a priority since Democrats took control of Virginia’s General Assembly. The state will be sending the resolution to the National Archives for now.
Virginia Attorney General Mark Herring has been preparing for potential obstacles in Virginia’s ratification process and is willing to go to court to fight. Mason student Sydney Hardy weighed in on the matter. “I don’t think that the act will change much, but I do think it will provide legal precedent for those who have been blatantly discriminated against,” Hardy said. She believes that it’s the ordinary people and not the government that will enforce the change in everyday life. “There is no way to legislate discrimination in a way that will end it because it is a force that has guided this country for ages,” Hardy said. “Slavery was legal. Abolition [was] started by ordinary people. Perhaps this legislation will expand the push to eliminate discrimination, but it will be up to the people, not the government.” When asked for comment by Fourth Estate, neither the George Mason Democrats nor the George Mason College Republicans responded.
LAST WEEK IN THE NEWS
Monday, Feb. 3
Tuesday, Feb. 4
Wednesday, Feb. 5
Kansas City Chiefs celebrate first Super Bowl win in 50 years.
Rep. Adam Schiff (D-CA) delivers his closing remarks in Senate impeachment trial.
Rush Limbaugh announces he has advanced lung cancer.
Greta Thunberg nominated for 2020 Nobel Peace Prize.
Senator Mitt Romney (R-UT) announces he will vote to convict the president on the first charge of impeachment, abuse of power.
Iowa caucuses results delayed due to voting app failure.
President Trump gives State of the Union address.
Senate votes to acquit Trump in impeachment trial. Iowa caucuses end in a near-tie.
Thursday, Feb. 6
Kirk Douglas dies at 103. Nancy Pelosi “pre-ripped” pages of Trump’s SOTU, video shows. Li Wenliang, Chinese doctor who warned the world of coronavirus, dies.
Friday, Feb. 7
Antarctica registered its hottest temperature on record, reaching 65 degrees fahrenheit. Trump fires impeachment witnesses Gordon Sondland and Alexander Vindman. Joe Walsh withdraws from challenging President Trump in Republican primary.
NEWS
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02.10.2020
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FACULTY ANXIOUS OVER PRESIDENTIAL SEARCH METHODS A look at Mason’s presidential search processes from Merten to Cabrera to today ALEXA TIRONI ASSISTANT NEWS EDITOR
Many faculty senators emphasized their frustration with the private selection. Senators made references to a possible resolution. One unnamed senator said, “I would like to have assurances that this will not happen again, and I’m concerned that by violating the faculty [handbook], what is to stop the Board of Visitors from doing this to the Provost search, with dean’s searches and even chair searches?”
When the university received Angel Cabrera’s farewell email on June 13, 2019, Bethany Letiecq, president of Mason’s chapter of the American Association of University Professors (AAUP) had one thought: “I know this history, it’s going to happen again.” As the presidential selection process reaches its final stages with no public conversation of finalist candidates, Mason faculty worry they will be shut out of the decision again. However, in a meeting held on Friday, Feb. 7, the Board of Visitors (BOV) voted to allow faculty to participate, in some capacity, in the presidential search process. Per the Mason faculty handbook, “The search and selection process must include opportunities for the General Faculty to meet with candidates who are finalists for the presidency.” From records of Mason’s student newspaper, formerly known as Broadside, in 1996 the presidential search was narrowed down to four candidates who were then scheduled to visit campus. Broadside’s Feb. 29, 1996 issue showed that the visits were structured into four sessions: one for students, one for faculty, one for the Mason campus community, and a reception hosted by the Alumni Association. Candidate names were not made public until their visit to campus, however, two of the final candidates names were leaked to the public by a search committee member prior to the scheduled meeting. In the 2012 hiring of previous university president Angel Cabrera, the requirement for faculty to meet the candidate was not upheld.
In a 2012 faculty senate meeting called specifically to address the handbook violation in Cabrera’s hiring, emeritus faculty member Jim Sanford stated, “If one party, [The Board of Visitors], that is a signatory to the handbook can ignore its provisions, it brings into question the entire contractual nature of the handbook … and also the ramifications regarding the future validity of the handbook as a contractual document.” According to the recorded meeting minutes, members of the faculty senate who were part of the 2012 presidential search committee and included in the selection process stated that the reason for the lack in transparency was due to the fact that conducting a public selection jeopardizes candidates’ careers. According to reports from Broadside, the 1996 presidential search committee had similar concerns. “Market realities cause candidates to choose what searches they will be in based on part of the process being used is public or confidential,” former faculty senate member Linda Monson said. “Since the mid-1990s candidates who were presidents, who were sitting presidents who were looking at other presidential opportunities, have had four troublesome impacts on themselves and on their universities.” Monson continued, “Some have lost their jobs. Some have lost donor funding. Some have lost legislative funding, and many have lost goodwill on their home campus, if indeed, it was made public that they had interviewed elsewhere. It is predictable that almost all of the public and private
Another senator remarked, “Issues of apologies have been mentioned, but I think that one can say ‘sorry’ at any time and then when it’s later, go back to doing the same things.” No resolution was passed on the matter. The current presidential search has found itself come under the same questions regarding the faculty handbook as Letiecq and the AAUP argue for an open presidential search, as seen in a previous Fourth Estate article. Letiecq came to Mason in 2013 and was not present during Cabrera’s hiring. “I actually read up on this a long time ago because faculty had said that Angel Cabrera was an ‘illegal president,’” Letiecq said. Letiecq said those feelings of resentment stem from the fact that Angel Cabrera was notified that late-stage secrecy went against the faculty handbook and demanded that the process remained confidential if he were to continue with the hiring process.
She continued, “How can we have a president or leadership within our university who says they are committed to shared governance, if they won’t even participate in shared governance upon their hiring?” The presidential search committee released a position description and qualities they will expect from Mason’s eighth university president. Some expectations include: “A highly communicative and transparent leadership style that fosters an environment of trust, excitement, and high morale among faculty, students, staff and the university community.” Another asks for, “A demonstrated commitment to effective communication and collaborative work with a variety of partners, including faculty, staff, students, alumni, donors and community leaders.” According to an article from Broadside’s March 7, 1996 issue, the third candidate in the 1996 search, Peggy Elliot, spoke to the importance of these open sessions for both student and candidate saying, “I have to hear you to know what you need.” After the Mason campus and community had met with each candidate, Alan Merten was announced as the next president. Search committee chair, Anita Taylor, expressed her satisfaction in the decision at the time saying, “We had the most uniformly positive response across campus to this candidate.” At the presidential search meeting
held Friday, Feb. 7, Tamara Harvey, associate professor of the English department, argued the importance of a public search process in regard to the longevity of the president. “Secret searches are a fairly new phenomenon, and if this trend continues I think we will find the turnover of presidents and provosts will continue to accelerate, because it’s easier for our highest administrators to test the waters,” Harvey said. Mason has seen a decline in the number of years a president serves the university. George Johnson was president for 17 years, Alan Merten for 16, followed by Angel Cabrera for just 7 years. Harvey continued her argument, saying, “Which means that we are likely to be having this conversation again and repeatedly unless Mason chooses to become a leader in transparency and openness turning back the tide of the trend that has yet to prove, despite claims to the contrary that secret searches yield better presidents and stronger universities.” The BOV agreed on Friday, Feb. 7, to allow the campus community participation in the selection, however, it is still unclear what form the participation will take. The next faculty senate meeting will be held on Feb. 12 at 3 p.m. in Robinson Hall B113 and is set to hold an open conversation with Rector Tom Davis on topics of interest within the faculty community.
When a select group of faculty senate members was eventually given the opportunity to meet with the presidential finalist, they were asked to sign non-disclosure agreements that would bind them for the remainder of their lives. If a president were to be hired in this way again, Letiecq stated that the candidate would be “installed as a president to a university where faculty and students have been demanding for engagement in their hire. I think this actually will set this president up poorly right out the gate to begin a leadership position here, knowingly in violation of our faculty handbook.”
PHOTO COURTESY OF ESTATE PATCH.COM
PHOTO COURTESY OF LIFESITENEWS.COM
research universities are now using a confidential process.”
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02.10.2020
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PRESIDENTIAL SEARCH COMMITTEE HOLDS PUBLIC MEETING Members of Mason community gather to comment on wishes for next president, search process
LAURA SCUDDER NEWS EDITOR
Mason’s presidential search committee held a public meeting Friday, Feb. 7, to address comments and hold open dialogue between the committee regarding the current status and future hopes of the presidential search process. A Board of Visitors (BOV) meeting was held shortly after, where the visitors voted to adhere to the language of the faculty handbook and ensure that general faculty are, in some way, involved in the search process. American Association of University Professors (AAUP) President Bethany Letiecq and Secretary Tim Gibson expressed their pleasure that the BOV decided to uphold section 1.2.5 of the faculty handbook. “I’m incredibly pleased that the board has affirmed the spirit and the letter of our handbook language,” Letiecq said. “I think that’s incredibly meaningful.”
Much of the discussion in Friday’s committee meeting related to the presidential search options which the faculty senate voted on Nov. 6. There were three options which the faculty senate presented to the BOV: have a completely open presidential search process; hold a process in which faculty/students are able to meet candidates, but most sign non-disclosure agreements in order to do so; and hold an online forum in which candidates can anonymously talk to members of the Mason community. Faculty and students alike addressed their concerns for the current presidential search process in relation to transparency issues — both during the public comment portion and after the meeting was finished. Gibson explained that if the third option were to move forward, it would not really be a public search. The
faculty would not even be able to see a candidate’s resume, making it difficult to ask specific questions. “I have concerns about this anonymous, online interaction as a substitute for true public forum that is attended in real-time by all [of] the community — that is when you can see in real-time how the actual human being interacts with the community and the vast diversity of this community, both in terms of staff, students and faculty,” Gibson said. “We view it as not a substitute for the true spirit and letter of the faculty handbook. We want them to come to campus and meet us in person.” When asked by BOV member Ignacia Moreno about the breakdown of the search options, faculty senate Chair Shannon Davis explained that the options proposed to the BOV were in order of how much the faculty favored each option. “Of the senators who voted, half — more than half actually — see the language of a completely open meeting as meeting the language of the faculty handbook,” Chair Davis said.
FOURTH ESTATE ALEX TRUSTY
According to Davis, the online option is the least favorable. “Of those options there was question on … not knowing the identity of the person as to whether that meets the criteria of the faculty handbook, but the other options did meet the
PHOTO COURTESY OF MASON POLICE
MASON WEEKLY CRIME LOG
criteria of the faculty handbook,” she explained. Vice Rector Jimmy Hazel had other thoughts about the proposed processes. “I would reverse the rank order,” he said. Rector Tom Davis explained that the BOV has previously tried to get rid of language in the faculty handbook stating that faculty had the opportunity to meet with a president, but he advocated for keeping that in there. In Nov. 2019, Davis said that the board had no legal obligation to uphold this. Student Body President Camden Layton expressed his views on the idea of an open search process. “Going forward, I don’t know if I’m in favor of necessarily full openness … but I definitely think that we need more students involved and more open than the online [option],” Layton said.
I think that the best candidate for Mason right now is one who’s willing to come and be seen on campus,” Pollard said. Members of the BOV expressed the concern that a public search would limit the pool of candidates. “I am terribly concerned that we are directly pitting the rights of a private individual to be hired for a job against the public’s, not right to know, but the desire to know,” said Terri Cofer Beirne, chair of the GMU Foundation’s Board of Trustees. “And it’s very different. And I’m really struggling with what to do about this because I don’t want to limit ourselves. I don’t want to bias one candidate who’s willing to participate in an open process against one [who] is not.”
Other students expressed their wish to have a completely open search. Student organizer Cassidy Pollard explained that she would prefer the most public option for the presidential search in order to build trust between the administration and the Mason community.
Hazel explained that, due to the confidentiality of the candidates, he could not comment on how large the pool is currently — and also stated that the timeline for the presidential search process is not set in stone when asked about Shannon Davis’ assertion at the general faculty meeting that they would like to choose a president before March.
“My opinion is that the best candidate for Mason is one who’s willing to come to campus. ‘Best candidate’ is not an objective thing — it depends on the context of the school, and with the context of Mason as one that has such a troubled past with transparency,
“Like any project, we have a goal we’re working towards. We have always said that if we need to take more time to get the right outcome we will,” Hazel said. “We are getting into the final stages but we don’t have a set definitive date at this time.”
Monday, Feb. 3 — Kennedy Hill (Bike Rack)
Monday. Feb. 3 — Hampton Roads
Larceny: Complainant (GMU) reported the theft of an unsecured vehicle from a bike rack. (30/Tallon)
Dating Violence: Complainant (GMU) reported being assaulted by a former intimate partner (Non-GMU). (41/Raeford)
Case 2020-001384 — Inactive
Case 2019-011085 — Referred to Title IX
Monday, Feb. 3 — Aquatic and Fitness Center (Men’s Restroom)
Tuesday, Feb. 4 — Aquatic and Fitness Center (Men’s Restroom)
Theft From Building: Complainant (GMU) reported the theft of unattended property from an unsecured locker. (40/Ries)
Theft From Building: Complainant (GMU) reported the theft of unattended property from an unsecured locker. (40/Ries)
Case 2020-001400 — Inactive
Case 2020-001446 — Inactive
Monday, Feb. 3 — Outside of Original Building (Arlington Campus)
Tuesday, Feb. 4 — Johnson Center (Starbucks)
Drunkenness / Medical Assist: Subject (Non-GMU) was transported to local hospital for overconsumption of alcohol. (50/Morris)
Shoplifting: Subject (Non-GMU) was trespassed from campus for shoplifting. (41/ Raeford)
Case 2020-001403 — Closed
Case 2020-001453 — Closed
CULTURE
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02.10.2020
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SPECUDATE: ONLINE DATING’S REAL GAME
Two Mason students forge their own path in a flooded market TRAVIS MCMILLAN STAFF WRITER
Despite being a two-person operation, junior Cameron Smith and senior Dennis Nayandin have been making leaps and bounds in the development of SpecUdate. According to the team, the app has been in development for about seven to eight months. “I had the idea locked in my basement for about a year or more, maybe a year and a half. And then I came to Dennis when I thought we could
bring it off the shelf,” said Smith, the administrator of SpecUdate. Understanding the flooded market of dating apps, Smith wanted to create something more. For example, the
dating apps or hear that they suck, and we want to address these big problems.”
games, or the other person can “save” you by getting it correct from their side.
really expanded my knowledge in the [computer science] field,” Nayandin said.
One way that SpecUdate differs from the competition is the addition of
The games are great conversation starters. The first one, “Two truths and a Lie,” has participants put two facts and a lie about themselves, and anyone who wants to match has to find the lie. The second option is simply a game of true or false.
The app is currently in development but is taking new users through submission on their website, specudate.com. Currently, they have around 500 signups and are hoping for 1,000 to 2,000 by the end of the semester. They predict that the beta will come out in around five or six weeks while the full release, depending on the quality of feedback, could be closer to the summer.
PHOTO COURTESY OF SPECUDATE
As many students may have seen around campus — whether it be by flyers, business cards or a personal pitch from one of the creators — the app SpecUdate has been gathering buzz at Mason. Two computer science majors have been putting in the work to market their dating app, coined as “Online Dating’s Real Game.”
creators plan to keep bios only 150 characters long. “People sometimes don’t know what to say in their bio, for example. People don’t know what to say in a conversation ... and a lot of the time, people get bored of online
games to go along with the app. Below the bio of the person you would like to match with are two different games that you can participate in. The way to match with a person is by either getting a correct answer in one of the
Each time you win a game, you earn coins. These coins are used for “MegaPlays” and an undo option. You can also obtain additional coins through streaks of correct answers, or by logging on every 24 hours. The process has been a great learning experience for both Smith and Nayandin. “Learning it all at the same time as taking courses has
One thing Nayandin made clear about SpecUdate was their company mission. “The reason the ‘U’ is capitalized in our logo, SpecUdate, is to put value on the individual,” he said. ”You’re more than just pictures and a bio and some props. We want to allow people to express themselves.”
VISUAL VOICES INVITES CURATOR DOROTHY MOSS Shedding light on the inner workings of the Smithsonian National Portrait Gallery MAGGIE ROTH STAFF WRITER
The lecture, which took place on Feb. 7 in the Harris Theater, featured Dorothy Moss, the curator of painting, sculpture and performance art at the National Portrait Gallery, and the coordinating curator of the Smithsonian’s Women’s History Initiative. Moss’s presentation, titled “Active Presence at the Smithsonian Portrait Gallery: Reverberations of the Obama Portraits,” explored the process of creating those portraits from the team of museum curators to the public reception of the final product. She provided an insider’s perspective on how the artists Amy Sherald and Kehinde Wiley were chosen, and how they worked with the Obamas to create the iconic portraits we now know. Moss described how she was able to watch
one of Michelle Obama’s portrait sittings with Sherald. She noticed a sister-like bond between the two women developing as they worked. Moss quoted Michelle Obama’s comment at the unveiling of her portrait: “I am thinking of all the young people, particularly the young girls of color, who in years ahead will come to this place and they will look up and see someone who looks like them hanging on the wall of this great American institution.” For Barack Obama’s portrait, Moss explained how Wiley inverted power dynamics by creating an image of the former president that was familiar and approachable. As Moss spoke, an image was projected on the wall behind her: A little girl standing in front of Michelle Obama’s portrait, awe-struck. It was a photo that had gained a lot of attention following its release, and took on an extra air of significance with the new context provided. “I didn’t know the backstory behind
the Obama portraits. I haven’t been [to the gallery] in a long time, so this definitely made me see it in a different light,” said Raquel Bumgarner, a junior art and visual technology major. “You get to learn more about the art world outside of college.” Beyond the Obama portraits, Moss highlighted the ongoing work of the National Portrait Gallery’s push to increase diversity and inclusion. Moss described a “deliberately planned mix of curatorial projects of the National Portrait Gallery, designed to implement change and move the museum towards the goal of a more inclusive representation of American history through portraiture.” A total of eight Visual Voices lectures were planned throughout the 2019-2020 school year by the School of Art. Moss’s presentation was the fifth in the series, but the first of the spring semester. Mason will be hosting Melanie Buffington, professor of Art Education at VCU, in the next installment of the series on Feb. 20.
FOURTH ESTATE MAGGIE ROTH
Mason students were given the opportunity this past week to peer behind the scenes of the iconic portraits of Barack and Michelle Obama in the most recent installment of the School of Art’s professional lecture series, Visual Voices.
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CULTURE
Reading your “required text”on a budget NAYOMI SANTOS ASSISTANT CULTURE EDITOR
A week or two before classes, I check the Mason Bookstore site to check if any of my courses have listed the required readings. Then, I open three other tabs: Chegg, Thriftbooks and, finally, Amazon. There are tons of other sites that are available for students to buy or rent textbooks, so if you have a favorite, don’t give it up! Thriftbooks has been a go-to for me since high school when I would buy summer reading books on the site. This was especially useful because popular classics were really cheap — as low as $3! Even better, there is free shipping for purchases over $10. Thriftbooks is
a great option if you don’t mind buying used books and want a great deal.
Whatever I choose to do, this is not the time when I actually commit to buying or renting. I bookmark the cheaper
It’s hard to miss the orange boxes on campus associated with Chegg. Chegg is a great site for students that goes beyond buying textbooks. What sold me on them, though, was their refund policy. They have a 21-day satisfaction guarantee during which you can return your textbook for a full refund — and they pay for the shipping! For all of the books that are listed in the bookstore, I copy the ISBN number and search for them on each site. While I am doing this, I have the age-old debate of whether to buy or rent. For major-specific classes, it depends. Sometimes I have a number in my head that I won’t go over if I am going to buy, other times the book sounds interesting and I predict that I’ll read the rest of it. In this case, it’s important to know yourself and your habits.
options to review later for when I have the syllabus because sometimes a “required” reading is only a few
FOURTH ESTATE BILLY FERGUSON
Classes are well underway and those pesky required readings are creeping up each week. If you’re like me, you dread the amount of “required” textbooks that are listed in class syllabi. Sometimes they are unavoidable, but there are ways to save money and do the readings.
chapters from a book. One thing I did this semester was to add a tab in my search for the cheapest option out there: the Mason Fenwick Library catalog. I searched for each of my textbooks and managed to find two required textbooks for a class. One of them I had access to through an online database and the other was in the TextSelect Reserves in Fenwick. I checked with the syllabus and discovered that we would only read two chapters out of that book. I went to the library and scanned the pages I needed into a PDF. Maybe the required textbooks we need have been under our noses the whole time! In an age where it’s an unavoidable fact that college and its related expenses are expensive, it’s useful to put in the work to find the cheapest options out there.
HIDDEN HANGOUTS: A BAKED JOINT What your favorite coffee shop wishes it could be PETER NJOROGE CULTURE EDITOR
FOURTH ESTATE PETER NJOROGE
In a sea of overhyped coffee shops with “nice aesthetics” and “a cool staff,” A Baked Joint on K street in Washington, D.C. stands out as one of the premier coffee destinations in our area. As
someone who makes a concerted effort to visit multiple coffee shops per week, this cafe provides one of the best selections of food, coffee and District vibes and energy.
First and foremost, the shop is huge and beautiful. Even for a large restaurant, A Baked Joint exceeds what you originally thought was possible for an urban dining destination. It’s incredibly rare for a coffee shop to have such an incredible space. The lighting is immaculate, there are a ton of different seating options, the ceilings are high and there are even a few places built for you to just lean on and look cool. Sunlight streams through the massive windows and a selection of music (carefully curated by the staff) fills the entire building. Everything about the shop is nouveau. Examples include ceramic cups with your name written in electric highlighter and the giant helicopter fans that help maintain a perfect ambient temperature. The space is essentially an open kitchen with an “L” shaped bar where you get to watch all of the action happen. Watching the baristas prepare each coffee behind the large bar is one of the particular joys of visiting.
Their menu provides diverse options for caffeinated drinks and tasty brunch options. The pastries are a real treat and their BLT is among the best that I’ve ever had. For coffee, I recommend ordering one of the rotating pour over options.
Don’t be surprised when your data plan doesn’t seem to be working, or if the barista tells you that there is no wifi available. The shop is a space for collaboration, reading, relaxing and spending time with people that are important to you.
The shop also has a few brothers and sisters around the city, including Baked and Wired, a more intimate shop known for delicious cupcakes in Georgetown, and A Baked Joint’s new neighbor, the restaurant La Betty.
A Baked Joint is a place that is very special to me. It was the first independent coffee shop that I visited in Washington, and I was totally astounded that such a marvelous space could exist in the middle of a bunch of otherwise boring buildings.
At A Baked Joint, the owners make it their mission to serve some of the best specialty coffee roasters from around the country including Intelligentsia Coffee, Blueprint Coffee and Elixr Coffee. Their selection is the best in our area, and if you want to brew some amazing coffee at home, make sure to take a look at their retail offerings located next to the cash register. While A Baked Joint is many things for many people, the only thing it is not is a place to work on your computer.
There aren’t a lot of places that really represent the culture of the city that they are located in. But when I think about the real urban culture of Washington, D.C., I think about A Baked Joint. It’s located just a few minutes away from the Red Line’s Gallery PL-Chinatown metro stop, so it’s easy to take a few of your favorite people to experience one of Washington’s coolest cafes.
CULTURE
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02.10.2020
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INAUGURAL BLACK EXCELLENCE GALA ART SHOW
Bringing visibility for Black artists NIKAYLA KIRCHNER STAFF WRITER
Located inside the Gold Room in Dewberry Hall, viewers were immediately greeted with dim lighting, soft music and a wide variety of art exhibits, each centered around the artists’ own unique perspectives towards the Black community. It was evident that the prominent theme of the exhibition was the power of community and the Black body, as presented through different modes and mediums. Much of the work centered around controversial themes and concepts. For instance, a handful of artists portrayed scenes of painted symbols associated with
the shooting of Trayvon Martin, in addition to a few more depictions of police brutality.
in the Black community and how it should be addressed more and its lack of discussion within the community.”
“My works depict what it’s like to be a young Black [woman] in America,” said gala artist and community health major Breyanna Woods. “Some tell personal stories, others tell stories for Black women and men, some bring awareness to what we go through in our day to day lives.”
The biggest take-away from the event was not just the cultural appreciation for the works of an incredibly underappreciated group, but rather the unity art brings to the Black community. Much like the community itself, the artwork was very collective, drawing from similar themes. For instance, the violence that the Black community faces daily, from police brutality to the KKK.
Freshman forensic science major Jacayla Richardson built upon Woods’ statement when she described her work and how it aims to truthfully illustrate the reality of the Black community as a three-dimensional concept, touching on other concepts of violence and mental health. “Even though we all come in different shades and skin tones, we all share the same struggles as Black people,” she stated. “For instance, my works depicts the struggle of mental illness
The ways that art can be simultaneously both an individual and collective form of expression, with each artist contributing their own experience and perspective of the community into the collective consciousness of it altogether.“It means representation: to know that there’s someone out there that has the same beliefs as you and supports,” Woods said.
“Art for Black people is really up-and-coming, and it’s amazing to be a Black person expressing themselves just like anyone else,” gala artist and graphic design major Asiya Freeman said. Gala artist and marketing major Emond Dash, whose works center around the depiction of the strong Black female, built upon Freeman’s statement on the power of art as not only a personal outlet but a community outlet. “Art was always a way for me to connect to people,” he said. “I’m not an open book, so this is my way of communicating and translating my thoughts to people.”
The Black Excellence Gala Art Show was a momentous portrayal of the power of the Black community as an underappreciated yet visible aspect of the community. As Woods eloquently put it, “This is art made by us, about us, for us.”
FOURTH ESTATE DOMINIQUE BERNARDINO
Art exhibits. Spoken word. Rap performances. On Saturday, Feb. 8, the Black community at Mason debuted the Black Excellence Gala Art Show in Dewberry Hall, where Black art ranging from canvas paintings to photography to poetry were acknowledged and appreciated by all.
MASON CELEBRATES 5TH BLACK EXCELLENCE GALA
Students, staff and alumni turn out for Black Excellence in Dewberry PETER NJOROGE CULTURE EDITOR
FOURTH ESTATE DOMINIQUE BERNARDINO
On Saturday, Feb. 9, over 400 members of the Mason community were in attendance of the 5th annual Black Excellence Gala in the Johnson Center’s Dewberry Hall. Hosted by the Black African-Heritage Caribbean Coalition in partnership with the Office of Diversity, Inclusion and Multicultural Education (ODIME) and LGBTQ+ Resources, the night was an energetic, emotional celebration of all things Black at Mason. Throughout the evening, there were multiple performances by different students and organizations from across the multicultural Mason community. Musical numbers were performed by the Anointed Voices of Unity Gospel Choir (AVU) and Kirshie & the Fellahs. Spoken word performances were given by a few students and the Reign Model Fashion Troupe, in one of the evening’s highlights, performed a condensed runway show for the audience. Many students, staff and alumni took the opportunity to don impressive formal attire that helped to celebrate Black and African culture. During the
event, one of the hosts made sure to acknowledge some of the stand-out outfits in the crowd. “I think it’s really nice to come together and experience Black Mason first-hand, and you know, see everyone that you know and see on campus dressed up,” said AVU performer and sophomore psychology major Deja Garrison. Throughout the extravaganza, various awards were handed out to students, faculty, staff and alumni for a wide range of achievements by Black members of the Mason community. This year, for the first time, the gala honored Black entrepreneurs and Black graduate students with their own award categories. According to senior events management major Janell Armstead, one of the principal organizers of the event, this gala is one of the premier events for the Black Mason community. Armstead had attended the event since her freshman year and has always wanted to plan the gala. “I came my freshman year, which was
the second year [the gala was hosted], and I knew like, ‘I want to plan that event’ because this is the largest event that our community has, so it doesn’t get much better than this,” she said. For junior anthropology major Jae-lynn Tavarez Brown, another one of students that helped coordinate the event, the Black Excellence Gala is an opportunity for the Mason community to have a night where achievement and progress can be at the forefront. “Especially being in Black history classes, we learn about the sad,” she said. “We learn about what happened to our people in the past, and this can be a night where we come back and say well look at our present.” The evening concluded appropriately with a powerful speech given by Dr. Michelle Allen, a former member of the ODIME and LGBTQ+ Resources office. “My charge to you all is to get about the business of figuring out who you are,” Allen said. “Why are you here? And tether yourself to your lineage and legacy.”
Faces of Mason
Faces of Mason delves into the lives of Mason students, faculty, alumni and organizations every week. This week, we take a look at students Tom Sit and Hayes Makinano INTERVIEWS BY AHMED FARID AND NAYOMI SANTOS
S t u d e n t : To m S i t What made you come to Mason? Mason’s close to D.C. Since I’m majoring in IT, I found out that there are a lot of IT jobs in NOVA and Washington, D.C. Why did you choose IT? PHOTO COURTESY OF TOM SIT
I’ve been involved with computers at a very young age. I’ve always loved computers and wanted to find a profession that deals with computers. IT covers a wide range of topics, there’s information security, web development and multimedia, database and programming. So while it is computers, there are different concentrations. I’ve
been focused more on web development and programming. What’s been your favorite thing about Mason so far? There are a lot of things I love about Mason. I love the JC, it has everything I need in one place — especially the food court. I also love how massive this campus is. And the people here have been very nice about helping me find my way around campus. What clubs have you been involved with on campus? It’s not really official, but I attended
the first meeting of the Culinary Club last Friday, Jan. 31. It was an amazing experience because I got to meet about a dozen people, and we made hybrid brownies with chocolate chip cookies and Oreos, and they were delicious. Somebody also made fried rice for everyone, and it was really good! Are you an experienced cook? No. I like cooking and sometimes watch videos about cooking, but have never cooked anything difficult. In this club, we plan to learn how to cook as we go.
PHOTO COURTESY OF HAYES MAKINANO
Student: Hayes Makinano How are you involved on campus?
is to help outreach to the community in general.
Right now, I am one of the student advisory board members for the Clearance Ready Program under Career Services. [The program] prepares students for being cleared when they are applying for internships and for careers. I am also a representative of the STEM outreach program. I am working with the Clearance Ready Program, the board, as well as the other industry advisors at Career Services, specifically with Matthew Meyers, who is the Government industry-focused advisor. For the STEM outreach program, I am working alongside Dr. Kamaljeet Sanghera.
So, within the program, I went to the Science and Society Conference in Maryland at River Hill High School and [two weeks ago] I went to a Science Night for Alexandria public schools. [I talked] to students and their families about the summer programs that we have here at Mason ... We are trying to promote GMU in every possible way and make it as fun as possible so high school students can get involved.
How did you get involved with the STEM outreach program? Why did you choose to combine an IT major with a conflict analysis and resolution minor? So, with IT, you have to communicate with all sorts of people, whether it’s your supervisor or your client. You have a wide variety [of people] that you have to communicate [with] and being able to communicate in different ways with your wording, with the technical language and with problems arising in today’s technological industry. You have to be aware of how you communicate things, how you resolve
conflict, how you solve little and big issues at work. For me, going into college, I thought I was going to focus more on project management. … Even though there was a class on it, I wanted to delve [into it] as much as possible. I’ve learned that through the projects [I’ve worked on] and through communicating with professors but I wanted to show that on my resume. By declaring that minor, I was able to not only show that but also be exposed to another school and to other people with different majors.
At this cyber event with the SANS Institute, I was connected with Dr. Sanghera to help volunteer and through that, I networked with another volunteer who is now my STEM outreach partner, Hajrah Choudry. We proposed to Dr. Sanghera in November of last year for the GMU/ VSC STEM Outreach Initiative 2020 to visit high schools in the area to help promote not only GMU programs, services and degrees but also expose high school students to some of the pipeline events in the area … So that’s what we have been doing with the initiative but the program as a whole
What are your goals for these programs? For the outreach program, we are looking for students or faculty who have experience in graphic design, photography [and/or] social media content to help us promote our program and to help network with educators, sponsors and students in the Northern Virginia area, and also with prospective students who want to come to Mason. … We are looking for people who have some technological interest through the graphic design [program] because from industry to industry, there are some different techniques with graphic design and promotions and how flyers, brochures and presentations look. And also, for the photographer, [they should be] willing to come to some events that are off-campus, visiting
the schools and visiting companies at their events and having access to reliable transportation. Right now, I am a representative but me and Dr. Kamaljeet Sanghera are looking to change it to STEM ambassador. What are your personal goals in these roles? For this new semester, I want to help organize and plan for the outreach program and Clearance Ready Program. And have a structure within them to get things going and get ready for the fall semester, when the whole entire year starts over. So, get more involved. Have you applied the skills you’ve learned in your conflict classes in these programs you’re involved in? What I really like about getting involved at Mason is that there is so much access to so many opportunities, and it’s not only learning about the skills and knowledge [taught] in class but also applying those skills and knowledge to the community outreach, extracurriculars and student involvement that I am getting into. What do you like to do for fun when you have some downtime? Usually I like to go to the gym or meet up with friends or just relax and take a break and watch Youtube or Disney+.
02.10.2020
SPORTS
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2019 NFL SEASON IN REVIEW CONOR FORREST STAFF WRITER
posted a 13-3 finish a year later, only to fall in the final minutes to the Chiefs in Superbowl LIV.
FOURTH ESTATE BILLY FERGUSON
The Chicago Bears, however, were an example of a team that did just the opposite. From finishing 12-4 in 2018, the Bears finished the 2019 season at 8-8, with more questions than answers moving
As the Vince Lombardi Trophy finds its new home in Kansas City, it’s time to take a look back at the 2019 NFL season. The NFL is a story, and each season is a chapter. Each chapter brings in new challenges and new triumphs. Along with each chapter come the characters that drive the storylines to new levels of entertainment. 2019 was home to some incredible stories, both victories and failures. Because when the dust settles on a season, and the confetti is swept up from the field following the Super
Bowl, there is only one team who leaves the final words on the page and goes home feeling fully satisfied.
forward.
Starting again comes easier to some than it does others. Each team has a foundational group of players and coaches to build from. Some foundations are stronger than others.
This past season saw stars emerge in some incredible ways. Names like Lamar Jackson from the Ravens and Patrick Mahomes from the Super Bowl Champion Kansas City Chiefs will be household names in the years to come. Young talents like Kyler Murray from the Cardinals and Nick Bosa from the 49ers also strongly broke onto the scene.
Take, for example, the turnaround the 49ers had. From finishing 4-12 in 2018, the Kyle Shanahan-led group
While some teams are already at work revitalizing their rosters for the upcoming draft, others needed a
That leaves 31 other teams behind them to pick up the pieces and start again.
complete overhaul from the top down. Organizations like the Browns and the Redskins cleaned house. From the removal of GM’s, coaches, staff members and even members of the training staff, the Redskins and Browns are looking for more than just wins on the field. They are looking for a brand-new identity. Teams like the Giants and Panthers found new coaches as well. The Giants employed Joe Judge from the New England Patriots, while the Panthers appointed former Temple and Baylor head coach Matt Rhule. The Cowboys finally parted ways with long time head coach Jason Garrett and agreed to terms with former Packers head coach Mike McCarthy. The NFC West division was one of the best divisions in football this past season, sending the 49ers to the Superbowl, while the Seahawks and Rams all found themselves to be playoff-relevant by the time the end of the season came around. The NFC East division this year, however, looked more like a contest for who wanted to lose more, rather than four teams who were vying for a playoff spot.
But in many ways, that’s how the wheel goes in the NFL. Some years, you find yourself in the thick of the race for the Lombardi Trophy. Other years, you are planning off-season golf trips in the middle of October. One thing is for sure, however. Every year is a brand new chapter in the story of professional football. The characters and challenges change with each season. New players come and go, from the NFL draft to training camp to the preseason, and kick off in early September. 2019 was a season that saw a team win the Superbowl for the first time in 50 years. It saw the Patriots exit the playoffs in the first round for the first time since 2009. Who could have scripted that? That, however, is the beauty of football. The moment that people think they have teams figured out is the moment that something unexpected happens. The Kansas City Chiefs will take the next week or so to celebrate their title, and spend some time reflecting on the year they had. For the rest of the NFL? It’s on to 2020.
SPORTS IN BRIEF Women’s Basketball Women’s basketball ended their eight-game losing streak with an upset win over UMass, 73-56. This marks the team’s second Atlantic 10 win of the season, the first coming on Jan. 4 against George Washington. Senior Jacy Bolton, junior Nicole CardañoHillary and junior Marika Korpinen combined for 50 points in this contest. The Patriots look to keep the momentum going as they host Saint Louis at 2 p.m. Sunday for their Pink Game for Breast Cancer Awareness.
Men’s Volleyball On Friday, men’s volleyball battled Charleston, sweeping them in three sets. Bradley Creamer led the Patriots with a matchhigh 10 kills and tied a match-high in service aces (two) to go along with three digs. Zach Talamoa had a big night for the Patriots, earning eight digs and two serving aces while Trevor Kennan led the match with 10 digs and two assists. The Patriots defended their perfect record against the Golden Eagles, improving their all-time head-to-head record to 10-0.
Softball On Friday, the Patriots lost their first two games of the Stetson Lead-Off Classic in Florida to Sam Houston State and Stetson. Sam Houston State got out to a 6-0 lead by the sixth inning. Mason tied it in the final inning. The Bearkats scored in the extra frame and Mason failed to answer. Mason lost the first match 7-6. Mason also lost their second game of the season to Stetson 4-2. Mason, who out-hit Stetson 10-7, had eight different batters record a hit in the contest. The Patriots left 13 on base in the loss.
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THE SUPER BOWL DOES GO ON WITHOUT THE PATRIOTS NATALIE HEAVREN SPORTS EDITOR
But it was weird not watching the Patriots in the Super Bowl. Super Bowl 50 in 2016 was the last Super Bowl I was at home with my parents and brothers before I went off to college. Now, four years later, I had to figure out how to watch the big game, without the Patriots and without my family. Spoiler alert: I ended up wearing my boyfriend’s high school sweatshirt and pajamas while eating food he cooked instead of nervously watching the pre-game show decked out in my jersey and Patriots sweatshirt, socks and pajama pants.
I could count on my favorite football team playing for a championship. So yes, all non-Patriot fans I know I’m lucky, but I really don’t cope well with change. And this February was a change from my normal routine. And it was weird. For the first time in three years, I didn’t spend all week looking forward to the Super Bowl. Instead, I calmly went about my week, getting all my school work done, writing my story last week on Jack Tempchin and going to the Chocolate Lover’s Festival in Fairfax. In all honesty, I think I was more excited about chocolate than the Super Bowl — it was really good chocolate so I regret nothing.
But then came the Super Bowl.
Not devoting most of my week to watching NFL Network was weird, but I didn’t really notice until after the fact. I’d long since accepted the fact that Tom Brady would not be taking the field on Feb. 2.
Many things in my life have changed since February 2016 — really more than I can count. Yet every February
From the start of the NFL season, I told my boyfriend that I didn’t want to go to a Super Bowl party because I
The Divisional Round and Conference Championships were like watching a sport I wasn’t quite familiar with. I can barely remember a time where the Patriots were not in these later games.
don’t like them (the only one I’ve been to was for Super Bowl LII with several Philadelphia Eagles fans).
FOURTH ESTATE ALEXANDRIA MCALPINE
We all saw the jokes and memes about the Patriots not being in the Super Bowl and fans being sad about it.
So instead we hung out at his house and for the first time in eight or nine years, I did not watch any pre-game shows. We instead watched “White Collar.” And it was lovely. The world kept on turning and the Patriots weren’t in the Super Bowl. I was not even sure what channel the Super Bowl was on until 48 hours before. I think I looked up what time the game started a few hours before kickoff. It wasn’t that I didn’t care, it was just that I didn’t have the usual incentive to investigate the information I needed to know really early. Not being extremely emotionally invested in the game was bizarre, but I am sure my boyfriend and best friend both appreciated me not going into frantic “Patriot Watching Mode” — because I am not an easy person to watch the Super Bowl with. But it was kind of fun?
Obviously, I’d love to see Tom Brady in every Super Bowl until the end of time, but I enjoyed watching the game without needing to remind myself to breathe. My family group chat was more concerned about my dad’s score pool at work than the specific plays that happened. I got to not be emotionally crushed or overwhelmingly happy, but instead just felt like I should probably drive home so I could get ready for bed. That part was definitely nice. So while the Patriots not being in the Super Bowl was different, a bit jarring and not fun in the lead-up, it was okay, I survived. And best of all, the trajectory of my mood for the week was not decided Sunday night as the confetti poured down. Most importantly I learned that the Super Bowl does go on without the Patriots, and that too can be okay. But don’t get me wrong, I do want to see Brady and the rest of the team taking the field in Tampa in 2021, but if they don’t I know that the world won’t end and the show will go on.
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Opinions do not reflect the views of Fourth Estate. Submit opinions to dpino@gmu.edu
CLIMATE CHANGE IS AN ATTACK ON HEALTH
SAVANNAH MARTINCIC STAFF WRITER
According to a report from Global Alliance on Health and Pollution (GAHP), every year pollution kills as many people as HIV/Aids, tuberculosis and malaria combined and causes 15 times the number of deaths caused by war and all other forms of violence. Globally, the United States ranks seventh for overall pollution-related deaths, with 197,000 deaths reported in 2017. Among the top 10, the U.S. stands as the wealthiest nation. While toxic land and water also kill many, air pollution is by far the biggest killer, largely thanks to particulate matter (PM). PM is a mixture of solid and liquid particles suspended in the air. These particles are either directly emitted like during the burning of fossil fuels or indirectly formed when gaseous pollutants turn into particulate matter over time. According to the GAHP report, toxic ambient air is responsible for 3.4 million or 40 percent of pollution-related deaths worldwide. But the issue goes beyond just pollution. Extreme heat kills more Americans every year than any other weather-related disaster, except hurricanes. And, as climate change progresses, heat waves will only continue to grow in intensity and frequency. High temperatures can also increase pollen production and allergies and
lead to exacerbated asthma symptoms, heart attacks, heatstroke and mosquito-borne illnesses. These health impacts of killer heat disproportionately impact those living in lower-income urban communities, a fact that can be traced back to redlining. Taking place in the 1930s, redlining was designed to help mortgage lenders avoid areas identify lending and insurance risks. However, this practice used racially-biased criteria and negatively impacted poor communities. While redlining was banned 50 years ago, its effects are still being felt. In the concrete jungle of cities, heat can be overwhelming. Trees and green spaces can help reduce temperatures; however, in formerly redlined neighborhoods there tend to be fewer trees than in non-redlined neighborhoods. According to a 2020 study of 108 urban areas nationwide by the Molecular Diversity Preservation International and Multidisciplinary Digital Publishing Institute (MDPI), formerly redlined neighborhoods in almost every city studied were hotter than the non-redlined neighborhoods. Access to air conditioning in these areas may also be limited, causing increases in heat-related illnesses and deaths. A study of citizens of low-income and segregated areas in St. Louis also found they were at a higher risk of cancer from increased exposure to an unequal distribution of carcinogenic air pollutants. “[Low-income] communities are much more likely to face grave consequences
in terms of their human health, their financial health or generally their ability to cope with these effects,” said Vivek Shandas, co-author of the MDPI study. Other vulnerable populations include children, the elderly, and those who work outside. In 2018, 60 workers died due to exposure to temperature extremes, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics’ data on workplace fatalities. However, despite these monumental health impacts, little is being done legislatively to combat them. Rather than moving forward with new life-saving and planet-saving legislation, the current administration is moving backward. The Environmental Protection Agency turns 50 this year. But undermining this monumental celebration are the 95 environmental rules being rolled back under the Trump administration. 95 environmental rules that were put in place to protect not only the health of our planet, but the health of its inhabitants. 58 of these rollbacks are completed and 37 are still in progress. From gutting laws that implement standards for methane emissions and PM to withdrawing from the Paris Agreement, the Trump administration has failed to consider that lives could be lost because of its actions. As doctors, nurses and medical schools begin to step into the climate change discussion, public health also enters the conversation. In early January of this year, the Medical Society Consortium on Climate and Health (MSCCH), a division of the George Mason University Center for Climate
Change Communication, along with doctors and medical groups wrote a letter to President Trump asking him “to make a New Year’s Resolution to protect Americans’ health, safety and wellbeing by stopping the withdrawal from the Paris Agreement on Climate Change.”
system works for us and our health.
“We foresee much greater health harms to all Americans, especially our children and grandchildren, if we do not join with the rest of the world to respond to the climate crisis — because climate change is a public health emergency,” reads the letter.
So why is there a disconnect between the people and the government?
Groups like MSCCH are working to ensure that public health is always in the conversation around climate change through educating today’s and tomorrow’s health professionals on its impacts. But dealing with climate change’s health impacts does not rest entirely on doctors’ shoulders. Healthy behaviors like eating a plant-based diet, walking instead of driving and using sustainable products can help lead to a healthier planet and a healthier population. B e y o n d m a k i n g changes in our lifestyles, we also can ensure that our political
People care about climate change. According to a preliminary entrance poll conducted by Edison Media Research at the Iowa caucuses, the issue of rising global temperatures was the second-most important issue among Iowa voters.
Because those in charge refuse to listen to climate scientists, to the doctors that see climate-related deaths, to the students who hold signs at protests that say “We won’t die from old age. We’ll die from climate change” and “Why should I study for a future I won’t have?” Our health and the health of future generations is on the line. So when the time comes to vote in November, cast your ballot for the person who is keeping the planet’s health and your health in mind and remember that climate solutions are health solutions.
FOURTH ESTATE ASHLEY KWON
Over the years, climate change has become a highly politicized issue. Party lines have been drawn over economics and whether climate change is even happening. But rarely do we hear climate change called what it is: a public health crisis.
CAN THE GOP WIN ON CLIMATE CHANGE?
DAWSON WEINHOLD STAFF WRITER
Until recently, tackling climate change hasn’t been a priority for the GOP. Their prevailing narrative is that any action on the issue would be a backdoor for increasing the size of the government.
Representative Dan Crenshaw (R-TX) has taken notice. During a Q-and-A session at the Texas Public Policy Foundation’s 2020 policy conference, Crenshaw said it’s an issue Republicans can’t afford to ignore.
As a small government advocate, I’m sympathetic to this concern, but it is becoming increasingly apparent that inaction is not an option. Younger generations of voters are becoming increasingly concerned about climate change. The GOP should offer realistic solutions, rather than ignoring the issue.
House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) also talked about addressing climate change in an interview with Axios. His plan would focus on capturing carbon emissions and investing in clean energy, such as natural gas and nuclear power. McCarthy’s plan would also give
foreign aid to countries with highly polluted rivers. Rep. Bruce Westerman (R-AR) is working on the Trillion Trees act, which would try to increase the number of trees grown in the U.S. in order to capture carbon emissions. Politically, it would make sense for the GOP to address climate change. Among younger voters, 73 percent of millennials say it’s “personally important” to them. Even millennial Republicans are becoming concerned about climate change, with 45 percent
of them expressing concern. It is no secret that the GOP has troubling winning the youth vote. Only around 32 percent of millennials identify as Republican or lean Republican. As millennials continue to increase their share of the voter population, the GOP will need to find ways to win their support. Introducing legislation to tackle climate change would be the perfect opportunity to begin to repair their reputation with younger voters. The biggest handicap the GOP has
when addressing climate change is their lack of messaging. While they criticize Democrats’ plans, such as the Green New Deal, up until now they have failed to propose and market an alternative solution. The GOP has an opportunity to offer a pragmatic solution to climate change that doesn’t involve radically reorganizing the economy. If Republicans could bring together rural conservationists and suburban moderates to combat climate change, they just might able to rebuild their reputation with younger voters and create a pathway back to the majority.
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AGAINST THE HIGH-SPEED RAIL PROSELYTIZERS DOMINIC PINO OPINION EDITOR
Railfans are a wonderful subculture. They’re train lovers: people who can tell you what year a train was built by looking at it, photographers who travel the country chasing their subjects, historians who can tell you any number of things about the development of railroads. I’m not one of them, but I’m sympathetic. Call me railfan-curious. Railfans are not the only train enthusiasts however. There are also what I will call the high-speed rail proselytizers. Unlike railfans, who have the good sense as a subculture to mind their own business, the high-speed
rail proselytizers jump at any chance to tell you why America is an awful country because it doesn’t have a better passenger rail system — especially on Twitter. “Look at Japan!” they say. Or, “Let’s join the other developed countries and stop lagging behind.” When they’re really feeling it, they trot out this one: “Why can’t we be more like Europe?” Just like other proselytizers, these people are annoying. There are a plethora of reasons that high-speed rail doesn’t make a whole lot of sense in the U.S. The most
important is geography. A high-speed rail network is not a question of how developed a country is. If it were, in addition to Europe and Japan, we’d expect to see high-speed rail in places like Australia and Canada, which have a combined total of zero routes. Why? Because they aren’t very densely populated. Imagine going to the Metro station in Vienna, getting on the Orange Line train to New Carrollton and actually riding it all the way to New Carrollton. Nobody expects you to do that because the route is densely populated. Other paying customers are going to take your spot when you get off.
FOURTH ESTATE BILLY FERGUSON
On a bigger scale, consider the To k a i d o Shinkansen, in Japan. It’s the oldest highspeed railway in the world, and it makes perfect sense. Its 320-mile route starts in Tokyo (population 8.6 million), passes
through Yokohama (population 3.7 million), Hamamatsu (population 800,000), Nagoya (population 2.3 million), and Kyoto (population 1.5 million), and terminates in Osaka (population 2.7 million). So many chances for customers to get on and off along the way. There’s only one part of the United States even slightly similarly populated: the Northeast Corridor between Washington, D.C. and Boston, which also happens to boast the only highspeed rail line in the country. The rest of America looks like Canada or Australia, population-wise: big cities separated by vast open spaces. On a hypothetical train from Cleveland to Indianapolis, which are about 320 miles apart just like Tokyo and Osaka, you’d pass through Elyria (population 55,000), Lima (population 39,000) and Muncie (population 70,000) — and those are some of the biggest towns along the way. It’s easy, you might think, just eliminate the stops and connect the cities directly. But that’s not how it works. Put yourself in the Mayor of Lima’s shoes. A railroad calls you on the phone and says it wants to go through Lima to connect Indianapolis and Cleveland. There’s got to be something in it for
you; you don’t just want trains flying through your town all the time. So you demand a train station in Lima. Lima isn’t going anywhere, and the train needs to get through, so the railroad doesn’t have much of a choice but to agree. Same story with every mayor in every town, village, borough and hamlet along the way. It’s just not practical. We have highways and airplanes, just like Australia and Canada. Rail had its time in the limelight. The late 1800s and early 1900s were the railroad age in the U.S. We moved on. The railfans maintain that legacy as a subculture. Let’s keep it that way. Consider a different subculture: Civil War reenactors. It’s one thing to form a community to reenact battles, learn about history, make neat costumes and immerse yourself in a bygone era. It’s quite another to want the whole country to play along to reenact the whole Civil War. The high-speed rail proselytizers are doing the equivalent of the latter. They need to join the railfans. There’s nothing wrong with thinking trains are cool, but be a good member of a subculture and leave the rest of us alone.
NOT HAVING MASS TRANSIT MAKES CARS WORSE JACK HARVEY ASSISTANT OPINION EDITOR
In the United States, 36,750 people were killed in car accidents in 2018 according to Reuters. That’s after you get past the crumple zones, car-assisted auto-breaking and distracted driving safeguards that are nigh-ubiquitous in modern car design. Of those killed, 16 percent were pedestrians.
freedom to get up and go where we will.
Does it really matter that much? Death is inevitable, and these are the prices we pay for the freedom of car ownership. Leave your house, get in your car, go wherever you want, whenever you want.
American drivers’ licenses are relatively easy to obtain, largely because our economy relies on cars. In truth, we need as many people to be able to drive as possible because driving is the primary mechanism for free movement across both short and long distances, so whether it be for vacation spending, long-distance work trips, commuting or local leisure, cars are a necessity. I argue they shouldn’t be.
If you’re a commuter in the D.C. area, cars afford you the freedom of spending 82 hours a year stuck in traffic, according to ABC News. The national average for commuters is closer to 42 hours. That’s hardly the
Despite this, cars are so well-liked because they allow rapid less-structured transit in an environment that is familiar, comfortable and private, according to studies of driving habits in Sydney and London.
First, bad drivers are killing what it
means to drive. Cars have the potential to be fun and responsive — to zip, so to speak — and to push the driver toward understanding how they work and respond to road conditions. There is a joy in understanding one’s vehicle. Instead, because of the drive for safer vehicles anyone can handle, what prevails on the road is the SUV: The modern land yacht, a banal, gas-guzzling, ridiculous class of vehicle that provides none of the advantages of a min-van, station wagon or a vehicle actually befitting the designation of “sport utility.” More generally, the complicated electronics that exist in the internals of modern vehicles make them more difficult for amateur car enthusiasts to work on and increase the likelihood of costly visits to the mechanic.
Beyond necessity, it must be noted that in a sane society, the comfort and privacy of car transit ought to be treated entirely as mostly-optional privileges and not rights. Drive down Braddock Road behind an erratically-swerving Ford Explorer with cigarette smoke billowing from the driver’s window and tell me that the fact that driver is probably feeling nice is justification enough to allow them on the road. Greater investment in public transit would be a good start to solving these problems — it eliminates the utilitarian element of car ownership for a good number of people, especially in densely-populated areas. The change would not be immediate, but the more local bus routes run through suburbs, the more rail/bus networks span
the American South, Midwest, and Southwest, the more affordable, subsidized alternatives there are to driving across town or across the country, the less appealing cars will become to broader swathes of the population. The dropping appeal of cars would in turn allow for raised standards for receiving a license. Raising the stringency of driving tests would in turn improve people’s road performance overall, which would enable the raising of speed limits and thus allow a faster commute for those who choose to continue to drive for whatever reason. And finally, the American car market would be able to stop making generic SUVs and focusing on cars that are a joy to drive.
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SUPER BOWL: CONSUMERISM FIRST, FOOTBALL SECOND ELI KOHN STAFF WRITER
In the 21st century, materialism and television addiction have given rise to a massive, multi-billion dollar holiday: Super Bowl Sunday.
FOURTH ESTATE BILLY FERGUSON
Now, football itself is as American as it gets, but that’s really only half of this event. See, the game isn’t what draws in corporations which provide the million-dollar ads that make the event what it is, rather, it’s the spectacular ratings. How many times have you heard someone say they only watch the Super Bowl for the ads? That’s right, the TV event that draws a third the American population to its screens is more about advertisements than it is football. Oh, America, I love you. To give some context to the money-making phenomenon of the Super Bowl, let me share some numbers. This year, 102 million Americans tuned in to watch the game. The American population is 327 million. To run a 30-second ad
during the Super Bowl this year cost $5.6 million dollars. So what do these numbers mean? That a game is used as a tasteless, gaudy parade for corporations to flaunt their wealth, while fishing for even more. Grubby billionaires sweat and salivate as nearly a third of the population is stuck to their screens, watching for the best, funniest ad, looking for the next boy dressed as Darth Vader to instruct them to buy their next $50,000 car. And this is treated like a holiday, celebrated in most homes. A holiday about TV ads. Is this our new pride as Americans? We invite our neighbors over, spend our paychecks on food and beer, for a “holiday” that is targeted at stuffing as many pretty items in our faces as possible? American culture is increasingly, almost exponentially, centering itself around consumerism. Centering itself
around the need to have, the need to possess, and the fact that the only worth in life is how nice your car is or whether you have AirPods. The Super Bowl is a beautiful example of how this culture infiltrates quite literally every aspect of our society. If you’re not convinced, look at Christmas — a day intended as a religious celebration has become every company’s wet dream, where consumers are invited (and grossly pressured) to show their appreciation for loved ones through the buying of gifts. What’s next? Will corporations continue to pervert holidays and other celebrations to make a buck? When will we reach the point where corporations just begin making their own holidays? Moneysgiving? Moneytines Day? How long will we, the consumers, continue to perpetuate this? I think it’s already too late. Prove me wrong.
ALL THE WORLD’S A STAGE, AND WE ARE MERELY BALL PLAYERS
CHRISTOPHER KERNAN-SCHMIDT STAFF WRITER
So, what does this scene have to do with international politics? Well, more than you would imagine. Your home run didn’t change the course of the Cold War, send troops into Iraq or start World War III, but the values of baseball — American values — have and will change the course of international events. Baseball is America’s game, often referred to as “our national pastime.” It’s a game where in the mid 20th century, a young, poor AfricanAmerican could become one of America’s most well-known names — Jackie Robinson. It’s a game where even an underdog team with a 108-year World Series title drought can
win one of the most sought-after titles in American sports — the Chicago Cubs. It’s a game that Mark Twain once described as ‘’the very symbol of the outward and visible expression of the drive and push and rush and struggle of the raging, tearing, booming 19th century.’’ Baseball is emblematic of the stereotypical American culture and spirit: power of the underdog, freedom and growth for all persons, teamwork and the reward of hard work. Baseball historian Ronald Briley described baseball as “[an embodiment] of many of the values coming to dominate an urbanized and industrialized America.” Our values — arguably the values of baseball — have driven America’s foreign policy. During the Cold War, the U.S. focused on the containment of communism in favor of traditional capitalist ideals. The Truman Doctrine launched the U.S. into interventionism, destined to be a global leader advocating for American ideals around the world
— ideals of hard work, freedom from tyranny and rights for all people. America sent troops to Vietnam and Korea and supported numerous proxywars in the fight against communism. President Carter’s foreign policy plans advocated “human freedom” and believed in holding America’s allies and adversaries accountable for human rights failures. Additionally, the U.S. has a controversial history of advocating regime change — assisting pro-democracy leaders in weaker states. Agree or disagree, we assisted underdogs in the pursuit against communism. Foreign policy has become muddied these days. In 2019 President Trump announced what critics called a betrayal of our Kurdish allies in Syria, who have been a key partner in the fight against the Islamic State. Where has our value of teamwork gone? In 2016 Trump justified Russia’s annexation of Crimea, saying, “You know, the people of Crimea, from what I’ve heard, would rather be with Russia than where they were.” Ukraine,
which is improving its democratic institutions and aligning with the west, is still left behind by Trump in favor of Russia’s “fake democracy.” Where is our support for the underdog, our democratic, westernizing partners in the east? President Trump can learn a thing or two from cultural historian Jacques Barzun, who said, “Whoever wants to know the heart and mind of America had better learn baseball.” It seems Trump and his foreign policy team have a bit of learning to do. We should all take a note from James Earl Jones in “Field of Dreams,” “[America] has been erased like a blackboard, rebuilt and erased again. But baseball has marked the time. This field, this game: It’s a part of our past, Ray. It reminds us of all that once was good and that could be again.” Our ideals, although on pause for now, will return to the international stage. Our foreign policy will realign with America’s classic values. For now, let’s learn a little bit about America from the stands of Nationals Park.
FOURTH ESTATE BILLY FERGUSON
It’s a hot summer afternoon in mid-July. You step up to bat — your parents look eagerly from behind the fence. Next thing you know you’ve hit the ball. It’s flying. The right fielder runs — sprints — looking up into the summer sun. It lands in a sea of thorns and leaves just past the fence. You’re euphoric. After all your hard work, you’ve earned your very first home run.
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DID YOU NOTICE THE AUSCHWITZ LIBERATION ANNIVERSARY? SAMI GIBBS STAFF WRITER
The anniversary of the Auschwitz liberation was remembered by survivors returning to the same grounds on Monday, Jan. 27, that they were liberated from 75 years earlier. This same date is also remembered as the Holocaust Memorial Day.
education, and that arguably starts with the media making more of an effort to cover and uncover these stories.
Did you notice?
By having survivors there, unified and thinking about what took place on the grounds they were walking on over 75 years earlier, it humanized the number of deaths and survivors during the Holocaust by showing the victims — the faces of those who could never forget. Considering the ages of many of the survivors both at the commemoration and at large, it is unlikely that we will ever witness this same act of unity at the next large anniversary date, or even on the 76th anniversary. I find it particularly interesting that
many national news platforms, many of which are placed in Washington, D.C. and within walking distance from the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum, brushed over this anniversary as if it was worth the same amount of attention as the novelty stories for that evening. Amidst the news of Kobe Bryant, an acclaimed NBA player,
dying tragically as well as the Senate impeachment trials, the amount of coverage of this event was lackluster at best. History teachers remind us to study the past, and while we have primary sources of those who are victims available to us, it seems as if we take their words of fear of warning and of
grief for granted. The term ”Never Again” is thrown around after each antisemitic attack and when discussing actual genocides occurring around the world today (see China imprisoning Uyghurs). It is time that words with abstract connotations are put with real discussions, revelations, discoveries and
Their efforts in educating the public are an important part of preventing similar tragedies from happening (although they already are as we speak). They serve as an underrated example of efforts to hopefully put more focus on a people and on a history and on the future of humanity that is not focused on enough by the media and the public at large. They strive to make sure we notice, and it’s vitally important that we all do.
WHY I MARCH FOR LIFE
Do you know what one of the biggest annual human rights demonstrations in the nation is? It has taken place every year for over 40 consecutive years. Every year, thousands of people converge to one place. Everyone gathered shares a similar mindset on improving the condition of a particular group of people. The answer is the March for Life in Washington, D.C. The Women’s March may have been the largest gathering in Washington, but that was only in 2017; ever since then, attendance has plummeted. Even though approximately 250,000 gathered to hear Martin Luther King Jr’s “I Have a Dream” speech, it was a one-time event. This year alone, Students for Life estimated 225,000 people participated in March for Life. They’ve had attendees arrive in the thousands in previous years, even during a blizzard. Many media pundits have opinions about who is at the march and what it’s like there, but as an attendee for the last two marches, please allow me to share what I’ve personally observed.
Contrary to some uninformed presumptions, there is a large female population. The theme of the march this year was “pro-life is pro-woman,” the leadership staff of the march is 90 percent female (including the president of the organization, Jeanne Mancini), over half the speakers were female, and the march was led by Catalina Scheider Galiñanes, a female high school student. They had prominent civil rights leaders such as Martin Luther King Jr.’s niece Alveda King, Louisiana state senator and pro-life Democrat Katrina R. Jackson, and abortion survivor Melissa Ohden at the march. Every year outside of the Supreme Court, the march features women sharing their stories on why they chose life in the most extreme circumstances. What made this year’s march unique is it was the first time in history a sitting president personally attended and addressed the attendees. As you read this, you may be thinking: “Why didn’t this idiot of an author include sources from more ‘credible’ outlets?” After we skip over a quibbling
argument over what is a credible source, my response is simple: The March for Life is arguably the most underreported annual mass demonstration in American history. Take the New York Times coverage of the event. Not once do they mention crowd size. Instead, most of the article is dedicated to Donald Trump rather than a report on what actually happened at the event. The only comment they got from a female pro-life attendee was on — you guessed it — Trump’s impeachment. Or take CNN’s coverage. Not one picture is provided in their article demonstrating the crowd size. Not once do they refer to pro-life supporters as pro-life (except in quotations), rather, they only discribe what the participants of the march are against by calling them anti-abortion. Instead of reporting on the event, they chose to dedicate the majority of the article to — you guessed it — Donald Trump and to explaining how Governor Northam of Virginia explicitly saying he didn’t have a problem with abortion after birth wasn’t really saying he didn’t
have a problem with abortion after birth.
skeptics. If so, it is a reality we need to confront.
Please, don’t take my word for it. Go to the march yourself. Don’t be afraid to have a conversation with someone on abortion. Ignoring the issue only weakens and divides us more. The basic question we must confront is: Does an abortion end a human life? If not, then we must use logic and empirical evidence to explain it to the
Since 1973, over 50 million potential scientists, leaders, entrepreneurs, artists, and would-be friends in the U.S. will never have voices because of abortion. That’s why I march and will always march until women with unexpected pregnancies are cared for, children are brought up with love and abortion becomes unthinkable.
PHOTO COURTESTY OF TFP STUDENT ACTION, FLICKR
ALEX MADAJIAN STAFF WRITER
PHOTO COURTESY OF WIKIPEDIA
The anniversary included a march of about 200 survivors from around the globe through the camp gates, as well as a ceremony that world leaders and families of those who perished attended.
One platform that excels in educating the public of what took place decades ago at Auschwitz is the Auschwitz Memorial on social media platforms. On Twitter alone, they have over 1 million followers and post content daily, ranging from profiles of those who were murdered at Auschwitz to unknown facts about the Holocaust to warnings of behavior that led to the belief system that was at the core of the Holocaust.
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GETTING THINGS DONE VS. DOING THINGS RIGHT
STEVEN ZHOU STAFF WRITER
Last month, a study at Kaplan reported that Americans believe an internship at Google to be more helpful to a high school graduate’s future career than a Harvard degree. In some ways, this isn’t surprising, given recent doubt over the career readiness of fresh-outof-college young adults.
incentives to motivate employees and the right selection methods to hire the right person without discriminating against others. In real life, it wasn’t that easy. As a
lowly HR associate with many business factors out of my control, I couldn’t implement a department-wide variable-ratio reinforcement program for sales incentives. When I only had a few days to find and hire a new employee,
I didn’t have time to implement a Solomon Four-Group research design to test the accuracy of the selection method. Colleges teach us what the ideal looks like. Unfortunately, the real world is far from ideal, and the ideal world is far from realistic.
Why is there such a discrepancy between what colleges teach and what employers look for?
There’s an open secret that academia often moves at a snail’s pace. Especially in publishing, we tend to be a year or two behind. Part of the reason for this is a commitment, rightfully so, to getting it right. Papers go through numerous rounds of peer review to ensure accuracy and quality. As important as this process is, in the real world, things just move too fast.
Having worked for a couple years in private industry, and now returning to academia, I have a guess. It’s not that colleges aren’t teaching the right things, or are outdated in their technology, or students don’t have enough internship opportunities.
PHOTO COURTESY OF UNSPLASH
There’s a fundamental difference in the approach employers and colleges take to training: Employers focus on getting things done, colleges focus on doing things right. These things aren’t mutually exclusive and often overlap, but they can conflict. Let me explain. I studied human resources (HR) in college, then worked in HR at a rapidly growing start-up. In college classes, we talked about the ideal
On the flip side, the focus on getting things done contributes to an overwhelming pressure to produce results — even if it means taking some shortcuts. Consider the big-name scandals such as Enron or Theranos, where the same drive to produce positive and impactful results fueled a breakdown of ethics and eventual catastrophic collapse. These ethical scandals often come out of a culture of performance pressure and a short-sighted fixation on the financials.
Doing it right usually takes a long time, but getting it done doesn’t always allow for time. Kaplan president Brandon Busteed, in his assessment of the finding that Americans think a Google internship is more important than a Harvard degree, argues that higher education must embrace an “innovative fusion between education and work,” and explore “the possibility of new partnership models.” Yes, such new partnerships would be vital to bridge the apparent gap. But I’m concerned that simply adding more internship requirements, increasing career center funding or offering more online degrees and certificates won’t solve the problem. Bridging this gap would require a fundamental shift in the way both colleges and employers think about what it means to train the next generation. Students need to learn both how to do things right and to get things done. Until colleges and employers embrace both philosophies and integrate them into both college curricula and work expectations, the gap is only going to get larger and larger.
WHO AM I TO DECIDE WHAT YOU BUY?
JACE WHITE STAFF WRITER
McCarthy sneaked in a point here that has much wider implications than the limited space it is given would suggest. In weighing the benefits of economic growth, he relied on his own assessment of the merits of flat-screen televisions, and decided that they are not as worthy of consideration as something else. The idea that economic growth is less desirable because it goes to things McCarthy deems unimportant exposes a serious lack of humility on his part. McCarthy used an argument that is quite common. In this case, he used it to defend tariffs, but it is used on both sides of the political spectrum to justify interfering with the market. It’s
the idea that to promote free markets is to promote the blind pursuit of material things that don’t truly make us happy. This effectively says that economic growth isn’t worth pursuing because it allows people to fulfill their wants in a way that, in the judgment of other people, is bad for them. We may have growth, we might get all of the conveniences of modern life, but these things are unimportant, even harmful. Maybe so, but the question that free market advocates always ask is: “Who am I to decide?” I might have opinions about what I want in my own life, but that hardly gives me the authority to decide what others should want. Many people fully accept that individuals have the right to decide what to believe, say and do. Yet put those individuals into a group and have them make a few purchases and suddenly they aren’t given that same deference. If we promise to uphold people’s right to take significant and consequential actions like
criticizing the government or choosing their religion, we ought not interfere with their right to buy what they want to buy. You don’t have to agree with everything that results from free markets to support them. The difficult part about believing in freedom for everyone is extending it to people you don’t like. Just as we have to accept that in a system with free speech, some people will say things we find repulsive, we have to accept that in a system of free markets, some people will buy and sell things that we wish they wouldn’t. Maybe you have a philosophical complaint against consumer culture. Fine. I might even be inclined to agree with you. But if you think that that philosophy gives you the authority to take money out of people’s pockets and put it somewhere you think is more important, you are doing more than critiquing the system. You are asserting the superiority of your own ideas and
the inferiority of the public’s. People who believe in freedom shouldn’t make arguments that make themselves out to be better at running other peoples’ lives than they are. Economic growth has given people
more opportunities to pursue whatever they want. If you have complaints about the choices those people have made, they can be persuaded, but to oppose letting them make their own choices is arrogant.
PHOTO COURTESY OF MOJZAGREBINFO / PIXABAY
In a 2018 column defending President Trump’s tariff policies, conservative editor Daniel McCarthy mocked his free trader opponents for believing that “the harm to those whose manufacturing jobs are lost [is] outweighed by the good that comes from, say, cheaper flat-screen televisions.”
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