Dartlog: 10/27/2002 - 11/03/2002

The Dartmouth Review

Saturday, November 02, 2002

Query...

In light of this weekend's Homecoming festivities, of which I am partaking vicariously, I have a question perhaps someone might address. Has there been any thought of making shirts that said, "I love Dartmouth, but Hate the College"? I think that may capture the sense of feeling among some (many?) alumni at the moment. Bonus: It also could make some money for our beloved Review. Just a thought.

Full post and comments below the fold.

Posted by Christian at 11:51 PM (0 comments)

Re: Mascot Mishmosh

A survey by Sports Illustrated this past Spring indicated what most people with common sense already knew, that most Native Americans do not find sports teams with Indian monikers offensive.

The Peter Harris Research Group polled 352 Native Americans (217 living on reservations and 134 living off) and 743 sports fans; the results are published in SI's March 4 issue.

Here's the most important finding: "Asked if high school and college teams should stop using Indian nicknames, 81 percent of Native American respondents said no. As for pro sports, 83 percent of Native American respondents said teams should not stop using Indian nicknames, mascots, characters, and symbols."

The poll also found that 75 percent of Native Americans don't think the use of these team names and mascots "contributes to discrimination." Opinion is divided about the tomahawk chop displayed at Atlanta Braves games: 48 percent "don't care" about it; 51 percent do care, but more than half of them "like it." The name "Redskins" isn't especially controversial either; 69 percent of Native Americans don't object to it. As a general rule, Indians on reservations were more sensitive about team names and mascots, but not to the point where a majority of them ever sided with the activists on these questions.

Full post and comments below the fold.

Posted by Ben at 1:30 PM (0 comments)

Friday, November 01, 2002

Re: Mascot Mishmost

Emmett, since when is "Jew" a "vile slur"?

And what about "Fighting Irish Drunkards"? I know a number of your countrymen who take distinct pride in their ability to put away pints.

Speaking of putting away pints, it's Homecoming this weekend. Maybe someone on campus could fill the rest of us in on any happenings of note?

Full post and comments below the fold.

Posted by Andrew Grossman at 4:47 PM (0 comments)

Mascot Mishmosh

Tai Antoine '01 has offered us, via The Daily Dartmouth, another piece of pablum on the mascot issue. The article reveals a shocking (and race-based) narrow-mindedness. Antoine is outraged when another individual with Indian ancestry declares that she is not offended by the mascot and "would be proud to wear that shirt." Antoine apparently cannot concede that people might have differing views on this issue. (Indeed, Antoine's orthodoxy is in direct contradiction to what most Native Americans think.)

Interestingly, Antoine -- of Indian ancestry -- argues: "Why not the Dartmouth Gumbas, Dartmouth Jews, Dartmouth Pollacks, Dartmouth Fighting Irish Drunkards, Dartmouth Gestapo, Dartmouth Limeys, Dartmouth Wops, Dartmouth Camel Jockeys?" Antoine's disrespect for Native Americans is appalling. Is the term "Dartmouth Indian" akin to these vile slurs? Does Antoine think so little of the name? Is "Indian" an insult? It certainly isn't -- but Antoine's article is. And those who proudly wear the Indian mascot seem to have more respect for what it stands for than does the author of this silly little screed.

On the Dartmouth Indian's long and distinguished history, click here.

Full post and comments below the fold.

Posted by Emmett at 1:08 PM (0 comments)

In Other Election News: The Senate

Missouri: Jim Talent seems to be leading Jean Carnahan, 45-41... But there are a lot of undecideds.
South Dakota: John Thune leads Tim Johnson, 48-43... Though there are other polls suggesting Johnson has a small lead.

***
I have nothing new on Arkansas, Colorado, Texas, Minnesota, or Georgia. Trends suggest that Wayne Allard (R) will eek out a very, very tight victory in Colorado. All the latest polls have Tim Hutchinson (R) and Saxby Chambliss (R) slightly trailing in Arkansas and Georgia, respectively. Cornyn seems to have a relatively comfortable lead over Kirk in Texas. Coleman still trails Mondale, but Mondale is beatable (especially if Minnesotans get miffed over the Wellstone memorial-cum-Dem rally, if Coleman can capitalize on this "wave of the future" thing, and if turnout is low). If all these races break the way they're trending, that means two GOP pickups (MO, SD), two Dem pickups (AR, NH) -- in other words, no change. Republicans need to push in MO and SD and score an upset in NH (quite possible) or AR (less likely).

Bush's travel schedule reflects his priorities:
Friday: Pennsylvania, New Hampshire, Kentucky
Saturday: Tennessee, Georgia, Florida
Sunday: Illinois, Minnesota, South Dakota, Iowa
Monday: Iowa, Missouri, Arkansas, Texas
Tuesday: Texas

Clearly, Bush wants to focus on MO and SD, and wants to bolster Hutchinson in AR. NH shouldn't be Friday -- it should be later in his schedule, since it's less of an uphill battle than AR. (Why he's wasting time in Iowa, I don't know. But oh well.)

Full post and comments below the fold.

Posted by Emmett at 12:55 PM (0 comments)

Crunching the Numbers

Sununu might be in trouble. So says PoliticsNH.com, which notes that Shaheen is up by five points. However, this is a survey of "New Hampshire voters," so the likely voter matchup is probably much closer. Also, there's a very interesting analysis of the election possibilities here. Especially interesting is the "Heartbreak Hill" scenario...

Full post and comments below the fold.

Posted by Emmett at 10:10 AM (0 comments)

Thursday, October 31, 2002

The Texas Perspective

Jeremy Donaldson '98 writes:

I was perusing the latest issue of the Daily D, which I often do for comic relief (after I've read the NRO and the Review Online), and almost choked on my morning coffee. Dartmouth College now has a Dean of Pluralism. I am convinced that my calendar is incorrect and this is the April Fool's issue. Or possibly they now run an April Fools-style spoof issue on Halloween as well? Should the alumni vote to become a satellite branch of Brown? Diversitymouth College is rapidly becoming a joke. How can people possibly take our school seriously. Do we?

Either way, now that I live in Houston, I'm considering telling people that I went to Texas A&M (home of the George Bush Presidential library).

Read about Mr. Woon and his new position here. If there's any justice, Mr. Woon will soon be exploring the plurality of employment-status as one of thirty.

Also read about "diversity seats" in Amherst's student senate. Oddly, one was to have been allotted to a conservative (how's that for a minority group?), until recently.

Full post and comments below the fold.

Posted by Andrew Grossman at 2:03 PM (0 comments)

The Buzz in Ithaca

Ye Olde-Tyme Vibrator

Many students feel it would be helpful for [University Health Services] to have vibrators available because Cornell is located in Ithaca, not a major city.

"At this point, you either go online or go downtown to the sort of scary and not very woman-affirming place sex-shop downtown," Frazer ['03] said.
...
"I think one of the most important things is for women to be able to get themselves off. It's better than going to the sketchy shop downtown where they have to check the batteries for you," Sara Jacobs '05 said.

Full article here (via the Corner).

Full post and comments below the fold.

Posted by Andrew Grossman at 1:36 PM (0 comments)

Wednesday, October 30, 2002

Re: Oh Goody

Hey Emmett, cut her some slack. She probably just hasn't heard the news yet. In any event, it's a little less perplexing than her endorsement for "Patsy Mink (deceased) HI-02."

I apologize profusely for my previous inexcusable typo.

Full post and comments below the fold.

Posted by Rollo at 3:06 PM (0 comments)

"Memorial" costs Dems interim seat

Gov. Jesse Ventura was offended by the tone of the memorial last night for Senator Wellstone, and will likely appoint an Independent to fill the seat until January. Ventura was set to appoint a Democrat until last night's memorial turned political rally, one that included the booing of Trent Lott, and chants of "We Will Win."

Full post and comments below the fold.

Posted by Ben at 2:19 PM (0 comments)

Wah-Hoo-Nah

Sound argument against bringing back the Indian mascot by one of Dartmouth's finest. We need more profs like Calloway, folks who are at least honest and frank about their positions and have some sort of awareness of history to back them up.

Full post and comments below the fold.

Posted by alex at 2:14 PM (0 comments)

Bad Pun

According to the D, someone has cut a swastika into a couch in the Rockefeller Center. Dean Larimore's statement (really) was: "Incidents like these really do tear up the fabric of our community."

Larimore also noted that he "doesn't like to couch the issue": it's despicable behavior. Lastly, Larimore added that he will do his best to "cushion the blow" to the campus.

Full post and comments below the fold.

Posted by Emmett at 11:23 AM (0 comments)

Re: Oh Goody

I noticed that Barbra (note spelling of her name, Rollo!) -- or "Baghdad Babs" -- has endorsed Paul Wellstone. Is this some sort of sick joke? Or is it a slap in the face for Mondale? Why would she endorse a dead man and not a live one? Perhaps there's dissent among the ranks? Perhaps she figures that, if Mondale can come back from the dead, so can Wellstone. Hmmm...

Full post and comments below the fold.

Posted by Emmett at 11:04 AM (0 comments)

Tuesday, October 29, 2002

Oh Goody

Famed political pundit Barbara Streisand released all of her endorsements last week. You can find them here.

Also, while you're there you can buy some sweet Barbara Streisand merchandise. I'm a big fan of the silver money clip with the Streisand logo myself.

Full post and comments below the fold.

Posted by Rollo at 11:48 PM (0 comments)

Anti-Semitism at Yale

Anti-Semitism Now...

From this article in the Yale Daily News (via Sullivan):

In a mind-boggling act of vandalism, the posterboard memorial to 14 Israelis killed in a car bomb explosion displayed during a Yale Friends of Israel vigil Tuesday night was torn and scattered across the lawn early the next morning.

This is not a sign that dissent has devolved to graffiti on campus -- that was last week's defamation of an anti-divestment petition in the Law School. This is not a political objection to the Israeli government's treatment of Palestinians gone awry -- that was the removal of most of the signs advertising former Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Barak's visit two weeks ago.

This is anti-Semitism. Plain and simple.

Full post and comments below the fold.

Posted by Andrew Grossman at 2:47 PM (0 comments)

A woman seeks reparations from US companies

Deadria Farmer-Paellmann is descended from South Carolina rice slaves and now plans to make US companies pay. She is targeting "every US company that profited from slavery." Currently there are 10 lawsuits looking for reparations and she's coordinated 9 of them.The lawsuit is seeking billions of dollars. She even claims that she "went to law school just to make a case for reparations." She also has 60 potential targets for her lawsuits. She says her father is bitter that his family never received 40 acres and a mule, as the William T. Sherman promised. How does 40 acres and a mule equal billions? Not to mention that if she wins these suits, she'll be no different from these companies, since she too will be profiting for slavery.

Full post and comments below the fold.

Posted by Alison at 10:27 AM (0 comments)

Monday, October 28, 2002

Who's afraid of Virginia Woolf, James Joyce, George Orwell, etc.?

Orwell

Books by these authors and many others are in the public domain in many countries but not in the U.S., given the many extensions to the Copyright Act that have been passed over the years.

So, while one can find and download more than 17,000 transcribed books (this link leads to a 3 MB file of every title on the site; it will probably crash your web browser) from Penn's Online Books Page (this link will not crash your browser; bookmark it), similarly accessing To the Lighthouse, Finnegan's Wake, or Down and Out in Paris and London is illegal (unless one is reading this from outside the U.S., in which case go ahead and click those italicized links with impunity).

This is why Eldred v. Ashcroft (AKA, Sonny v. Share) is important and matters to students at all levels of education. Whatever happens, Lawrence Lessig has done the best that he can, and it's in God's hands now (or something like that).

Full post and comments below the fold.

Posted by Andrew Grossman at 5:48 PM (0 comments)

The D

"'The Greens can sputter around and make all the noise they want,' Begley said. 'I don't care.'"

And with that, I join the select few, the Chosen Ones who have been correctly quoted by The D. I'm so proud.

I feel compelled to mention, for the record, that my first initial is G and not C. Regardless, I'm thrilled and will be holding a celebration to mark this momentous occasion.

Full post and comments below the fold.

Posted by Rollo at 2:06 PM (0 comments)

Sunday, October 27, 2002

"Transgendered students have nowhere to go to the bathroom on campus"

From the Boston Globe (via the Corner):

Transgendered students at the University of Massachusetts at Amherst, unable to persuade administrators in the past year to create coed bathrooms, are shifting their strategy from private talks with school officials to a petition drive and mass mobilization.

The Restroom Revolution group, as students are calling themselves, will meet Wednesday to gauge student response to its campaign to create coed bathrooms, which they say are needed to help transgendered students - who exhibit the appearance and behavioral characteristics of the opposite sex - feel safe from ridicule and physical harm.

Full post and comments below the fold.

Posted by Andrew Grossman at 1:04 PM (0 comments)