BY KRISTA HACHEYThe Undergraduate Council of Studentswelcomed a new member and delvedinto issues of objective decision-mak-ing and accessibility to the studentbody at its Wednesday meeting.

Campus Life Chair Ari Savitzky ’06,who is also a Herald opinions colum-nist, clarified the current status of table-slips in dining halls. Table-slipping isback permanently. The Brown EventsMagazine will continue as a pilot pro-gram until the end of the semester, butthe magazine’s fate in coming semestershas not yet been decided.

George Mathews ’05 from the BrownDaily Jolt attended the meeting torequest feedback about the online text-book exchange and the possibility ofremoving it now that book-buying peri-od has passed.

Council members praised the Jolt forthe collaborative effort and for the site’ssuccess.

“The site is amazing — I managed topay $130 for all my books for five class-es,” said Class of 2006 representativeNatalie Schmid ’06.

Luke Meier ’04, UCS coordinator ofappointments, urged Mathews to main-tain the site throughout the semester. “Ijust sold a book yesterday, and I buybooks in the middle of the semester allthe time,” he said.

UCS President Rahim Kurji ’05addressed two key issues in his weeklyExecutive Board report. Kurji praised

the turnout and content of PresidentRuth Simmons’ Monday address, whichhe said will likely become a biennialevent.

“Simmons’ speech also gave greaterlegitimacy to UCS by including that factthe student body has brought the issuesshe spoke about to the forefront,” hesaid.

I N S I D E T H U R S D AY, F E B RUA RY 1 2 , 2 0 0 4 TO D AY ’ S F O R E C A S T

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Volume CXXXIX, No. 12 www.browndailyherald.com

T H U R S D A Y

RISD communitymembers discuss therole of fine arts in thepresidential campaignrisd news, page 3

Student Alliancediscusses misuse of labfees, studio closinghoursrisd news, page 3

The White Housecould be within reachof the Dems, thanks toDeancolumn, page 11

Gymnastics falls inPittsburgh meet, los-ing to Cornell,Rutgers and Pittsports, page 12

Men’s and women’sswimming teams bothlose matches overweekendsports, page 12

BY ALEXANDRA BARSKIt was quite a spectacle in Salomon 101Wednesday night, as 10 men from theClass of 2004, each representing a dif-ferent student group, competed for thecoveted title of Mr. Brown University.

The winner of the 2004 Mr. BrownUniversity Pageant was audiencefavorite Michael Keefrider ’04, whilefirst runner-up was Lance Rubin ’04and second runner-up wasChristopher Yee ’04.

Along with the honor of beingnamed this year’s Mr. BrownUniversity, Keefrider’s organization —the track team — will receive 10 per-cent of the proceeds from the event’sticket sales, the rest of which will go tothe fund for Senior Week.

The event, sponsored by the Class of2004 and hosted by Nicole Morris ’04and Julian Jordan ’04, began with achoreographed dance set to “It’sRaining Men.”

The audience cheered as the con-testants, two of whom were clad inspandex bike shorts, leapt across the

BY STEWART DEARING“Writing about medical training whileyou are doing it isn’t something you plan.It just happens,” said Dr. Perri Klass at aWednesday night reading of her novel“The Mystery of Breathing.”

The author of three novels and severalcollections of essays and short stories,Klass is a practicing pediatrician andmedical director of Reach Out and Read,a program that promotes youth literacy.

During her time at Harvard MedicalSchool, Klass used writing as an escapefrom the intense medical training, shesaid.

“Anyone who has a full life includeswriting in it,” she said.

When Klass graduated from medicalschool in 1986, one-third of her class-mates were women, she said, making herone of the first female medical writerswho didn’t have to focus on being a pio-neer.

This experience made her literaturemore interesting, she said.

In “The Mystery of Breathing,” Klasswrites about a young female neonatolo-gist.

“I wanted to imagine myself in thehead of someone like that,” she said.

BY JANE TANIMURA Students interested in study abroadwill soon be able to apply to programsfrom their own rooms.

Application materials for Brown’sstudy abroad programs should beavailable on the Internet by the end ofthe week, said Mell Bolen, associatedirector of international programs.

Students will be able to enter allpersonal information, essays andcourse choices online and to print outother forms, such as professor recom-mendations.

Though OIP initially feared thatproviding applications online woulddiscourage students from visiting theoffice to seek advice about programs,

administrators recognized that“online applications are the way of thefuture,” Bolen said.

The office also wanted to facilitatethe process for students away fromcampus, she said.

Because submitted informationfeeds directly into the office’s databas-es, the online process will ultimatelyimprove communication between stu-dents and the office, Bolen said.

Students will be able to log intotheir accounts to confirm their appli-cations have been processed. Underthe old system students had to inquirein person at the OIP office.

BY SARAH LABRIEThe wall the Israeli government is build-ing between Israeli and Palestinian settle-ments can only lead to more violence,which will not cease until Israel ends itsoccupation of Palestinian land, saidDiana Buttu, legal advisor to thePalestinian negotiating team, in aWednesday night lecture in StarrAuditorium.

Buttu, whose speech was titled “TheWall: Dead End or Road to Middle EastPeace?”, said its construction has hurt thePalestinian economy by killing a largepercentage of local olive trees.

Now 145 kilometers long, the wall ispart of an attempt by the Israeli govern-ment to confine Palestinian movementwhile increasing the volume of its settle-ments, Buttu said.

Palestinians living behind the wallmust rely on the Israeli military to allowthem access to the fields and water theydepend on for survival, she said.

“They are basically living in an open-air prison,” Buttu said.

Buttu suggested an end to the occupa-tion is dependent on increased interna-tional awareness of its severity.

“What really frustrates me is when Iread in the New York Times that there’s nolonger an occupation,” she said.

The situation in Israel is “neither a dis-pute nor a conflict,” but “an occupation,”she said, and encouraged Brown studentsto push the media toward using such ter-

UCS approves new groups after intense debate

Study abroad applications tobe available online this week

see OIP, page 4see KLASS, page 4

Nick Neely / Herald

Clockwise from top left: Christopher Yee ’04, Joshua Biber ’04, Glenn Riddlespurger ’04and Mr. Brown University Michael Keefrider ’04 performed in Wednesday’s competition.

Keefrider ’04named “Mr.Brown U.”

Author draws onexperience withhate mail inwriting novel

Advisor toPalestiniangovernmentsays end of occupationwill stopviolence

see BUTTU, page 6

see MR. BROWN, page 5

see UCS, page 5

T O D A Y ’ S E V E N T S

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Greg and Todd’s Awesome Comic Greg Shilling and Todd Goldstein

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A O L E R F I E S T AR A G D O L L O I L T A NA T E A T L E V E L B E S TI R A T E O R A L I N K SD A R E D W E L D N O S Y

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RISD NEWS THE BROWN DAILY HERALD

THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 12, 2004 · PAGE 3

Arts belong in 2004campaign, RISD’spresident saysBY HAYLEY TYLERPublic funding for the arts is not as controversial as same-sex marriage or the war in Iraq, but when they ignore thearts in their campaigns, Democratic presidential candi-dates miss an opportunity to challenge President GeorgeBush, some RISD community members say.

Arts and the humanities are rarely central issues inAmerican politics, and funding for the arts typically com-prises a small portion of the federal budget. Bush request-ed an $18 million funding increase for the NationalEndowment of the Arts last month, but his budget pro-posal also included the elimination of the $35 million Artsin Education program.

RISD President Roger Mandle said programs like Artsin Education are crucial to developing an audience for art.

“People need to be exposed to (the arts) to understandhow and why to appreciate them,” he said.

Art appreciation has economic as well as social bene-fits, said RISD Professor of Sculpture Ellen Driscoll. By vis-iting museums, attending symphonies and frequentingthe theater, Americans feed money back into the econo-my, she said.

“Where arts in a city thrive, there’s been copious docu-mentation of the arts having an economic benefit to soci-ety,” Driscoll said. “The only way in which the arts canenter into (public) dialogue is by linking them to theeconomy.”

Though Bush’s funding proposal for the NEA wouldamount to a 15 percent increase in the agency’s budget, ifapproved, it will still leave the NEA with less federal sup-

Student Alliance discussesmisused lab fees, student repsBY ALEXIS KUNSAKThe RISD Student Alliance prioritized investigatingpossible misuse of lab fees and instating regular stu-dent representatives from each department at itsWednesday evening meeting.

The Alliance also outlined the process of applyingfor funding for new clubs and senior shows at itsbiweekly meeting, held in the Tap Room.

Alliance member Lizzy Cross RISD ’04 updated theAlliance on the investigation into complaints aboutexpensive lab fees, including allegations that somedepartments are using the funds to supplement theirbudgets, as opposed to paying for student materials.

“(Provost of Academic Affairs) Joe Deal and thedeans of the school are checking into all of the lab feesbeing charged now to students. … We are hoping thetotal in fees, about $400,000, can be cut in half,” Crosssaid.

“Guidelines are being created that will be applicableby next year, to show where the money students arebeing charged is going, because no system to monitorthese fees was previously there,” she added.

The Alliance advocates using regular student repre-sentatives of each department to open lines of com-munication among the Alliance, students and faculty,said President Suzannah Park RISD ’05.

“We can only be as strong as the students who arewilling to be the spokespeople for their department,”she said.

By attending regular Alliance meetings, studentswill be able to apply for funding to start clubs or trans-form gallery space for a senior show, said Alliance VicePresident Becky Fong RISD ’05.

To obtain funding from the Alliance, a studentgroup must submit an itemized list of needs to theFinance Committee.

Student representative attendance will now berequired for a department to receive funds for a seniorshow, a change Park said would show students theAlliance is committed to continuous student partici-pation.

Although no RISD class is officially scheduled dur-ing the Alliance meetings, every other Wednesday at 5p.m., some students in the printmaking and glassdepartments said they cannot attend meetingsbecause of departmental studio time.

“In order to require attendance, you have to give areason for people to be here,” said Emily Rosen RISD’04, of the printmaking department. Rosen said arequired spring semester class will prevent her fromattending meetings.

Students voted to reinstate RISD Global as an offi-cial club promoting institutional diversity, and sup-ported new initiatives of the RISD Frisbee Club andOuting Club. Details will be posted on the Intranet.

Claudia del Castillo RISD ’06 opened discussion onwintersession studio closing times.

“It’s ridiculous that students are kicked out at mid-night, because many people don’t keep a regularschedule and would like to nap after class and still beable to get work done late at night,” she said.

Murmurs of agreement went around the room, butFong said that if students had 24-hour access to stu-dios, there must be a safe way for them to return home

see ALLIANCE, page 9 see ARTS, page 6

PAGE 4 THE BROWN DAILY HERALD THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 12, 2004

The online applicationprocess will also allow the officeto improve its program evalua-tions.

And, in addition to currentonline evaluations, a mid-expe-rience evaluation will also be inplace, Bolen said.

“That gives us a way to trackwhat we’re doing well and not sowell … and also to track theprocess itself for the students,”

she said.Though study abroad pro-

grams have become increasing-ly popular in recent years, Bolensaid she does not anticipate thatthe online application processwill increase the number ofapplicants to Brown programs.

But the online option does“make the process easier andmore accessible,” said JulieFalconer ’04, an OIP peer advi-sor who studied abroad inPrague last year.

“It expedites the process,” shesaid.

continued from page 1

OIP

“Someone who likes a closenessto life and death and intense sit-uations. Someone who is theopposite of me.”

For the novel, Klass said shealso drew on the experience ofreceiving anonymous hate let-ters as a hospital intern. The let-ters attacked Klass’ competencyas a physician and accused herof plagiarism, she said. The pro-tagonist of “Breathing” receivessimilar written attacks.

When asked how the lettersaffected her life, Klass said, “Ididn’t have time to think aboutit. If I were really lousy, at thisstage in my life, they would beletting me know.”

When a story about hate mailaddressed to Klass reached thefront page of the Boston Globe,she wrote a letter to the paper inher own defense.

“After that, the hate lettersstopped,” she said.

“I was targeted because I wasa writer, and I fought back as awriter. As soon as it happened tome, I knew I wanted to writeabout it.”

Of her novel, Klass said, thewriting process was “very thera-peutic, but it’s not really aboutme.”

Klass’ reading drew an audi-ence of about 20 to the Bio-Medical Center and wascosponsored by the Office ofWomen in Medicine, theAmerican Medical Women’sAssociation and the PediatricsInterest Group.

Little Rock, Ark. (L.A. Times) —Speaking softly and appearingto fight his emotions, retiredGen. Wesley Clark formallydeparted the Democratic presi-dential race Wednesday, but notbefore pledging to do every-thing he can to help oustPresident George Bush from theWhite House.

“Folks,” Clark told well-wish-ers, “this old soldier will notfade away.”

Clark decided to end his can-didacy late Tuesday night, afterfinishing third in the Tennesseeand Virginia primaries. He tooka bus from Memphis, Tenn., toLittle Rock, Ark., his home,Wednesday morning to makehis withdrawal official.

Clark gave no indication hemight run again, nor did heendorse any of the remainingDemocrats in this year’s contest.

But Clark, who registered as aDemocrat only after helaunched his presidential quest,stressed his commitment to

continue to press the party’scase against the Bush adminis-tration.

“George W. Bush has not ledAmerica, he has misledAmerica, time and again,” Clarksaid, his tone resolute as heasked the crowd of about 300 tojoin him in that effort.

During much of his cam-paign, Clark focused on his owncredentials and mostlyrefrained from criticizing hisrivals.

That changed recently; withhis political fortunes flagging,he launched attacks on Sen.John Kerry of Massachusetts,the Democratic front-runner,and Sen. John Edwards of NorthCarolina.

But on Wednesday, he com-plimented them both, as well asHoward Dean, the formerVermont governor.

“Our country is well-servedby John Kerry, John Edwardsand Howard Dean,” he said.“And I applaud them all.”

Clark exits race, vows to help Dems defeat Bush

continued from page 1

Klass

stage, twirled and, on occasion,clapped. The panel of judgesincluded Yoni Goldberg ’04,member of the Class of 2004Social Committee; Kate WolfordRUE ’06, project director forCampus Life and StudentServices; Fatima Areia of BrownDining Services and the manknown simply as Kevin of Max’sUpstairs.

Contestants were judgedbased on their personality,poise, talent and responsesduring the question-and-answer section of the pageant,Jordan said.

Each contestant was givenfive minutes to display his tal-ent to the audience and judges.

Keefrider is more commonlyknown as “MCK,” a nicknameaudience members chantedenthusiastically throughout theevening. His performance cul-minated in the pageant’s sec-ond choreographed groupdance, demonstrating his talentfor being the “life of the party.”

Glenn Riddlespurger ’04,representing Phi Kappa Psi,entered the stage wearing ablack Kangol hat to audienceshouts of, “You’re so hot. Oh mygod,” and “Take off your pants.”Riddlespurger said thatbecause he does not have anydemonstrable talents, he wouldinstead attempt to fix the prob-lem of “crappy hugs” at Brown.

Riddlespurger instructed theaudience on how to give a vari-ety of hugs, including the “chestbump” and the “bear hug,”each of which he said is appli-cable to a different social situa-tion.

Riddlespurger said the“heart hug” could be used toconvey the message, “Hey,what’s up? I care about you.”

Rubin, representing theBrown Derbies, used his fiveminutes on stage to demon-strate two distinct talents.

First, he performed a dra-

matic monologue portrayingthe character Jack Traven of thefilm “Speed.”

Rubin then proceeded toperform an ode to theUniversity’s president. Heencouraged the audience tojoin him in singing the song’schorus: “Who needs otherwomen, when you could haveRuth Simmons?”

During his performance,Tom Lipinski ’04 told the audi-ence a self-made fable. Hegraphically recounted an inci-dent involving his zipper, his“member” and blood, whichwas worsened because, he said,“I always get incredibly arousedwhen I go into the library.”Lipinski’s final words were, “Toall you guys who are handlingyour johns: be careful.”

Yee, representing FusionDance Company, gave a multi-faceted performance involvingtap dancing, gyrations and anipple tweak.

The audience applaudedwhen Yee ripped off his sweat-shirt to reveal a black meshshirt.

Other performances includ-ed dancing by MichaelLittenberg-Brown ’04, repre-senting MEZCLA, and LuisCampillo ’04, representing theLatin American StudentsOrganization. Jason Alperstein’04, representing Students forAcademic Freedom, and NickBayard ’04, representing Livefor Liberia!, both sang whileplaying guitar. Joshua Biber ’04,representing Student Hungerand Housing, did what he saidhe does best, which is embar-rassing his girlfriend in public.

Rubin told The Herald hewas happy with the resultsbecause “the support for MCKwas infectious.”

He said he told Keefriderbefore the hosts announced thewinner, “MCK, if you don’t winright now, there’s going to be ariot in the auditorium.”

Herald staff writer AlexandraBarsk ’06 can be reached atabarsk@browndailyherald.com.

continued from page 1

Mr. Brown

THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 12, 2004 THE BROWN DAILY HERALD PAGE 5

Kurji also shared a memoran-dum from Dean of the CollegePaul Armstrong concerning theannual Diversity Honors ThesisPrize. Students may submit a the-sis focusing on issues of race andethnicity and compete to receiveone of two $500cash awards.

UCS will con-tribute the sum ofone prize, takingmoney from itsbudget.

S t u d e n tActivities ChairRob Montz ’05inquired as towhether UCSfunds other thesisprizes. Kurjireplied that theDiversity HonorsThesis Prize iscurrently the onlyone UCS funds.

Kurji helped toestablish theprize as a first-year on UCS inlight of “the importance of diver-sity in our community and thelack of thesis prizes that supportracial and ethnic diversity,” hesaid.

Montz put forth eight newclubs seeking increases in UCSrecognition and funding. Theproposed New Jersey Coalition,which seeks to bring togetherstate residents, incited discus-sion about how to evaluate clubsobjectively and how selectiveUCS should be in awardingCategory I status.

Despite concern that the clubwould not serve a valid function,UCS ultimately gave the groupCategory I status based on themerits of its level of organizationand activity, if not substance.

“The group is large — therewere six people at their tableduring Activities Night at anyone time, there are hundreds of

people from New Jersey on thiscampus and a lot of people wantto join and talk about their homestate,” Savitzky said. “We cannot,as a council, say we do not likethe idea of a group and justifyour decision based on prefer-ences.”

Montz added, “We canstreamline when groups applyfor Category II and III status,because we know what they’vebeen doing,” he said. “It doesn’t

hurt anyoneto give thesepeople theopportunityto expressthemselves.It gives ustime to eval-uate themaccurately.”

T h ec o u n c i lexperiencedsome tensem o m e n t swhen somem e m b e r sattacked theseriousnessof the BrownT o r t o i s eRacing Club,spearhead-

ed in part by Associate MemberJoseph Beals ’04.

In defending the seriousnessof the club, which will put on anannual racing event, Beals said,“It is based on something thatalready exists at other academicinstitutions, though not in U.S.institutions.”

Secretary Joel Payne ’05reminded representatives aboutthe checks in place to keepgroups active and directed. “Wewant to trust the people here inCouncil, and we have given ourtrust to (Montz),” he said. “Itthey don’t have a tortoise race,they can be de-constituted.”

Representative DivyaKumaraiah ’07 spoke about aUCS-Campus LeadershipAlliance effort to bring togetherall student leaders throughmonthly meetings to explorecollaborations and funding

options. The first meeting is slat-ed to be held after the Feb. 26Corporation meeting.

“At the meeting, students willbe more informed about the ini-tiatives the Corporation is plan-ning and will be able to foster adirected, meaningful discus-sion,” Kumaraiah said.

In response to complaintsmembers have reported hearingabout Morning Mail, a newmode of daily communicationfrom the administration, UCSplans to tackle the issue duringnext week’s meeting.

Members also discussed thecurrent use and potential of timespent in the UCS office.

Class of 2006 RepresentativeIlena Frangista ’06 said UCSneeds to more effectively publi-cize office hours. While mem-bers can use the time to tend toUCS projects, the open hours areprimarily in place to make mem-bers available to students.

“Even though I’m there andavailable, no one comes,”Frangista said.

Admissions and StudentServices Chair Sonia Gupta ’06and Mathews discussed the pos-sibility of spreading word of UCSoffice hours via the Daily Jolt.

After holding internal elec-tions to fill the position of for-mer at-large representative VijayMalik ’05, the Council electedformer associate member DaveBronfman ’07 from among threecandidates.

Bronfman is helping toimprove the UCS Web site byincluding personalized profilesof members so that students canput names and faces to person-alities and personal goals, hesaid. He said he also wants towork on developing new fitnessfacilities.

The meeting paused for a“singing valentine” from theUrsa Minors, who serenaded thecouncil.

Herald staff writer Krista Hachey’07 covers the UndergraduateCouncil of Students. She can bereached at khachey@browndaily-herald.com.

continued from page 1

UCS

The proposed New

Jersey Coalition, which

seeks to bring together

state residents, incited

discussion about how

to evaluate clubs

objectively and how

selective UCS should

be in awarding

Category I status.

minology.Buttu also urged students not

to invest in socially irresponsiblecompanies such as Caterpillar,which manufactures themachines she said Israelis use totear down Palestinian houses.

The wall, currently underconstruction, runs along theborders of Palestinian lands onthe West Bank. The area aroundthe wall is a closed military zoneguarded by Israeli soldiers.Anyone who enters the zone canand will be shot, Buttu said.

In a question-and-answersession after her lecture, Buttuemphasized that the majority ofIsraeli citizens do not supportthe occupation. But Palestinianviolence against Israelis will notend until a solution to the occu-pation has been reached, shesaid, either by the creation ofseparate, equal states or bygranting the rights of Israeli citi-zens to Palestinians in the occu-pied territories.

“The only way that change isreally going to happen is toaddress the occupation,” shesaid.

At the beginning of the lec-ture, Buttu provided a historicaland political context for the wall,

giving the background to theOslo Accords of 1993. The OsloAccords set the foundation forPalestinian-Israeli relations from1993 until 2000. Their signingwas marked by an historic hand-shake between PalestinianPrime Minister Yasser Arafat andformer Israeli Prime MinisterYitzhak Rabin, ostensibly indi-cating an end to years of bitterfeuding.

Palestinians were motivatedto support the Oslo Accordsbecause they thought the agree-ment heralded an end to Israelioccupation, Buttu said. Instead,the number of settlers living inoccupied Palestinian territorydoubled as Israeli settlementsexpanded.

“These settlements are a vio-lation of international law,”Buttu said.

Buttu said the settlementsdivided the occupied territoriesby providing a dual system oflaws — one for Israelis and onefor Palestinians. Bypass roadsbuilt between Israeli settlementscaused the destruction of homesand schools and cut offPalestinian access to potablewater. Palestinians are nowforced to stop at checkpointswhen traveling from one area toanother, and the wait at thesecheckpoints can reach up to 6hours, Buttu said.

“There are 757 checkpoints inan area one quarter of the size ofNew Jersey,” she noted.

After the Oslo Accords weresigned and checkpoints wereinstated, Palestinians in theoccupied territories lost much oftheir freedom as citizens, Buttusaid, and were unable to freelyaccess their houses of worship.

A state-wide economic boy-cott against Israeli productsended when Palestinian mer-chants lost the ability to shiptheir goods freely. In an ironictwist, the Palestinian Authoritywas made responsible for Israelisecurity by being held solelyresponsible for preventing sui-cide attacks, Buttu said.

Herald staff writer Sarah LaBrie’07 can be reached atslabrie@browndailyherald.com.

PAGE 6 THE BROWN DAILY HERALD THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 12, 2004

port than it had 25 years ago.The NEA’s budget was

reduced in 1995 whenRepublicans gained control ofCongress. Conservativesargued that some of the proj-ects funded by the NEA,including controversial worksby photographer RobertMapplethorpe, threatenednational morality.

Controversy is often theonly way the arts attract wide-spread political attention,which might explain why cur-rent candidates fail to addressthem, said Jennifer Lawless,Brown assistant professor ofpolitical science.

“The arts come up whenissues of morality and valuesare at stake, or when there’s aquestion of censorship andFirst Amendment rights,” shesaid. “Those are sexier topics.”

But Democratic presiden-tial candidates could bring thearts into the public forum bychallenging Bush’s poorrecord on arts funding,Mandle said.

He noted Democrats mightavoid talking about the artsbecause they fear charges ofelitism. But candidates canapproach the arts in a “broadcultural sense, to unite thecountry,” he said.

Cristina Zancani RISD ’05agreed presidential candi-dates should discuss the arts,but said she worried the lackof adequate arts educationwould close people’s ears tothe message.

“Art is the culture of thenation; it’s essential to the his-tory of the nation and itshould be taken into consid-eration by the presidentialcandidates,” she said. “But Idon’t know if the majority ofthe population would under-stand that, because there’s notenough education that dealswith art. That’s the first step.”

But Mandle said the privatesector also plays a crucial role.

“Legislation (for the arts) isonly symbolic; it must bematched by private support,”he said.

“People in our government,senators, members ofCongress, business leaders,people in education, shouldspeak out on behalf of the artseven if the money isn’t there tosupport them.”

continued from page 3

Arts

continued from page 1

Buttu

THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 12, 2004 THE BROWN DAILY HERALD PAGE 7

dual meet record for the year to7-3.

With its regular season closed,the team now looks forward tofinishing its season strong at theIvy League Championships.

“Our focus is now, as it hasbeen the entire season, on per-forming at Ivies. We are in a goodposition, individually and moreimportantly as a team, to do justthat,” McCoy said. “We have twoand a half more weeks to prepareand, based on the meets we’vehad this semester, I expect to seesome exceptional things from

this team.”Daniels agreed, noting that

the team kept a positive outlookeven though it was not victori-ous.

“If anything, the Yale meetgives us more confidence thanwe had before,” Daniels said.“Two years ago, Yale beat us by50 points, and we went and justmissed winning the Ivy Leaguetitle by 15 points.

“Last weekend, our team andYale were in very different posi-tions,” Daniels added. “Theywere just coming off a taper, andwe are just beginning our taper.We swam very well for the posi-tion we were in, and if there isone thing that we are walking

away from that meet with, it isthe desire to win.”

Head Coach Peter Brown alsoseemed optimistic about theupcoming challenge.

“Dual meets are steppingstones and nothing more thanthat,” he said. “We are as deter-mined as ever to make a goodshowing at Ivies and I am confi-dent that the team we are takingto Harvard in two weeks will dojust that.”

The Ivy LeagueChampionships will take placeFeb. 26 in the Blodgett Pool atHarvard University. The meet isthe last for seniors Daniels,Hoban, Lee, McCoy, Pedersenand Pullman.

the event. By coming through under

pressure when the team reallyneeded her, Nguyen proved herworth as a leader on the squadin years to come, Finst said.

“It shows a lot about herpotential, because she reallystepped up to the plate when weneeded her,” she said. “Herentire team is very proud ofher.” Nguyen’s performancehelped set a tone for the rest ofthe meet.

The floor routine was anotherstrong event for the Brown gym-nasts on Saturday. Here theywere led by Amber Smith ’06and Finst, who each scored9.725. Suzanne Schlosser ’04and Melissa Forziat ’05 also hadsolid performances. MandiBaughman ’06 had her best floorroutine of the season, with ascore of 9.65. Baughman usuallycompetes on the beam, butSaturday was her day to shine ina new event. She added difficul-ty to the routine, whichincreased the risk factor but alsoincreased her score after herflawless finish.

The team might not havepulled out a win against thesethree tough teams, but the spec-tacular individual performancescould add up to a win thisSunday, when the Bears comehome to host SpringfieldCollege.

continued from page 12

Gymnastics

continued from page 12

W. swim

PAGE 8 THE BROWN DAILY HERALD THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 12, 2004

minutes, that the Rangers wouldcontinue to miss the playoffs andthat he and Andre Agassi wouldcontinue to use the same barber.In what was likely his final All-Starappearance, Messier chipped inwith a goal and an assist. He nowholds league records for All-StarGame assists and most times usinga hockey stick as a cane.

The game’s MVP honors went toJoe Sakic, who notched a hat trick.This marked the second straightyear that the MVP came from thelosing team. To commemorate thehonor, the league is allowing theAnaheim Mighty Ducks to callthemselves Stanley CupChampions, despite losing to theNew Jersey Devils in the finals.Even though his team lost, Sakicwas happy to receive the honorand the huge paycheck that comesalong for playing in a game withno real consequences.

The NBA announced the par-ticipants for the Slam DunkContest and Three-PointShooting Contest at this week-end’s All-Star Game.

The line-up for the Slam DunkContest consists of ChrisAndersen, Ricky Davis, Fred Jones

and Jason Richardson. Can youeven name the teams that any ofthese guys play for? The roster isnot quite Brent Barry and IsaiahRider, let alone Kobe, Vince Carteror Michael Jordan. The over/underon missed dunks is five, while theover/under of television shots ofDikembe finger-waving in thecrowd is seven. The only way thisyear’s contest can be saved is ifLeBron enters the competition,and a la Vinsanity, dunks over YaoMing. If that happens, the Knickswill look to trade for Ming and playhim and Fredric Weis as their newstars.

At this point though, is thereeven any dunk that would be trulyoriginal? Windmill, tomahawk andbetween-the-legs slams have allbeen done. Unless a playerdunked two balls and Spud Webbat once, it would be unimpressive.

Finally, in his book coming outnext month, Cedric Ceballos final-ly admits that he could seethrough his blindfold when hewon the Slam Dunk Contest. Afteryears of denial, Ceballos hopes theadmission will allow him to watchan NBDL game.

Joshua Troy ’04 is upset that CalRipken was basically thrown anunderhand pitch to hit for a home-run in his final All Star Game.

THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 12, 2004 THE BROWN DAILY HERALD PAGE 9

continued from page 12

Troy

respectively, against Columbiaand Yale, in the three-meter event.

Coming down the home stretchof the season, Brown is looking fora strong finishing kick to propelthe team into the post-season.

“I think you’re always lookingfor something to make yourselvesbetter,” Brown said. “Detail is veryimportant. Relay turns, starts, fin-ishes and other technical issuesare extremely important. We aremaking sure that we get the bestwe need.”

Such precise training will benecessary if Bruno wants to makea name for itself at the EISLChampionships three weeks down

the road.“Goal-wise, you want to have as

many lifetime-best performancesas you can,” Brown said. “Weshould have a goal of winningsomething at Easterns, along withgetting as many points as we canas a team.”

Brown returns to actionSaturday when it travels to Ithaca,N.Y., to face Cornell University inthe conclusion of the regular sea-son. Two and a half weeks after-ward, Bruno travels to Princeton,N.J., for the EISL Championships,March 4-6.

Herald staff writer Chris Mahr ’07is an assistant sports editor andcovers men’s swimming. He can bereached at cmahr@browndailyher-ald.com.

continued from page 12

M. swim

at night.“safeRIDE runs until 3

a.m., and you are guaranteeda ride if you call by 2:30 a.m.,but there is a one-hour gapbefore RISD Public Safetyoffers to escort studentshome beginning at 3:30(a.m.),” del Castillo said.

“That system needs to berevised anyway.”

Del Castillo and otherAlliance members agreed toset up a meeting with Deal todiscuss building closingtimes during the winterses-sion and regular semesters.

Starting next week, theAlliance’s agenda will be post-ed on the Intranet for stu-dents to view the Fridaybefore each the meeting. Anynew suggestions can be e-mailed to officers for inclu-sion before the Alliancemeets, Park announced.

“We need to compile anagenda so that time can beused efficiently and we cancover topics like the expan-sion projects that need ourconstant attention so that wedon’t get left out of deci-sions,” she said. “That wayeach meeting will end with asolid focus and an idea of ouragenda and concerns for nexttime.”

Herald staff writer AlexisKunsak RISD’05 can be reachedat akunsak@browndailyher-ald.com.

continued from page 3

Alliance

EDITORIAL/LETTERSTHE BROWN DAILY HERALD

THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 12, 2004 · PAGE 10

THE BROWN DAILY HERALD

C O R R E C T I O N S P O L I C YThe Brown Daily Herald is committed to providing the Brown University community with the most accurate information possible. Correctionsmay be submitted up to seven calendar days after publication.

C O M M E N T A R Y P O L I C YThe staff editorial is the majority opinion of the editorial board of The Brown Daily Herald. The editorial viewpoint does not necessarily reflectthe views of The Brown Daily Herald, Inc. Columns and letters reflect the opinions of their autho rs only.

L E T T E R S T O T H E E D I T O R P O L I C YSend letters to letters@browndailyherald.com. Include a telephone number with all letters. The Herald reserves the right to edit all letters forlength and cannot assure the publication of any letter. Please limit letters to 250 words. Under special circumstances writers may requestanonymity, but no letter will be printed if the author’s identity is unknown to the editors. Announcements of events will not be printed.

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Al Gore, Night EditorAmy Ruddle, Melanie Wolfgang, Copy Editors

EDITORIALJuliette Wallack, Editor-in-Chief

Carla Blumenkranz, Executive Editor

Philissa Cramer, Executive Editor

Julia Zuckerman, Senior Editor

Danielle Cerny, Arts & Culture Editor

Meryl Rothstein, Arts & Culture Editor

Zachary Barter, Campus Watch Editor

Monique Meneses, Features Editor

Sara Perkins, Metro Editor

Dana Goldstein, RISD News Editor

Alex Carnevale, Opinions Editor

Ben Yaster, Opinions Editor

Christopher Hatfield, Sports Editor

PRODUCTIONLisa Mandle, Design Editor

George Haws, Copy Desk Chief

Eddie Ahn, Graphics Editor

Judy He, Photo Editor

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BUSINESSJack Carrere, General Manager

Lawrence Hester, General Manager

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In Young Park, Project Manager

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POST- MAGAZINEEllen Wernecke, Editor-in-Chief

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S T A F F E D I T O R I A L

Staff Writers Kathy Babcock, Zaneta Balantac, Elise Baran, Alexandra Barsk, Zachary Barter,Hannah Bascom, Danielle Cerney, Robbie Corey-Boulet, Ian Cropp, Sam Culver, Gabriella Doob,Jonathan Ellis, Justin Elliott, Amy Hall Goins, Dana Goldstein, Bernard Gordon, Krista Hachey, ChrisHatfield, Jonathan Herman, Miles Hovis, Robby Klaber, Alexis Kunsak, Sarah LaBrie, Hanyen Lee,Julian Leichty, Kira Lesley, Allison Lombardo, Chris Mahr, Lisa Mandle, Jonathan Meachin,Monique Meneses, Kavita Mishra, Sara Perkins, Melissa Perlman, Eric Perlmutter, Sheela Raman,Cassie Ramirez, Meryl Rothstein, Michael Ruderman, Emir Senturk, Jen Sopchockchai, LelaSpielberg, Adam Stern, Stefan Talman, Joshua Troy, Schuyler von Oeyen, Jessica Weisberg, BrettZardaAccounts Managers Laird Bennion, Eugene Clifton Cha, In Young Park, Jane C. Urban, SophieWaskow, Justin Wong, Christopher YuPagination Staff Peter Henderson, Lisa Mandle, Alex PalmerPhoto Staff Gabriella Doob, Benjamin Goddard, Marissa Hauptman, Judy He, Miyako Igari,Allison Lombardo, Elizabeth MacLennan, Nicholas Neely, Michael Neff, Alex Palmer, Yun Shou Tee,Sorleen TrevinoCopy Editors Emily Brill, Leslie Kaufmann, Katie Lamm, Anne Rabbino, Amy Ruddle, MelanieWolfgang

...write a letter.

come on now,seriously...

opinions@browndailyherald.com

S H A N E W I L K E R S O N

L E T T E R S

Not so fastSometimes, comfort and ease shouldn’t be our goals.

Being able to complete mundane tasks online from the com-fort of the ergonomic chairs in the Rockefeller library makes allour lives easier. We pay credit card bills, renew library books andarrange to meet friends for dinner all over the Internet in waysthat were impossible just a few years ago.

But when it comes to tasks requiring more deliberation andcare, the impersonal Internet simply can’t substitute for individ-ualized attention. Making a major decision such as whether andwhere to study abroad shouldn’t be an easy one. It should be theresult of a careful process of self-reflection and setting goals.

That’s why officials from the Office of International Programswere hesitant about putting study abroad applications online —they worried that students would no longer be encouraged toseek out personalized advice in the Rhode Island Hall office.

Yet this valid concern was superseded by a belief that “onlineapplications are the way of the future.” Study abroad applica-tions will go live on the Internet by the end of this week.

Brown has always played catch-up with the ways of thefuture; the University is notoriously behind the times when itcomes to what students can do online. At other, larger universi-ties, registration and other bureaucratic processes are stream-lined more efficiently than at Brown. But at these same schools,students can graduate without developing relationships withadvisors and professors, without having to figure out where toget help and without consulting with fellow students goingthrough the same deliberations.

They can make bad decisions without speaking to anyonewith the experience and training to stop them.

Brown students have long compensated for their school’stechnological deficiencies by actively seeking out help andadvice when they need it. Their dedication and willingness topursue help are two of the qualities that distinguish Brown stu-dents from their peers at these larger universities. It is disturb-ing to hear Brown administrators would compromise thesequalities simply because it is what other schools do these days.

OIP officials are right — online applications probably are theway of the future. But if embracing the way of the future meansshortchanging the students of the present, maybe it isn’t timefor us to plunge into the future quite yet.

OPINIONSTHE BROWN DAILY HERALD

THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 12, 2004 · PAGE 11

President Bush is feeling the heat. This week’s Timemagazine cover features a face-off-style graphic ofBush with the title “Does Bush have a credibility gap?”The mainstream press, typically a sluggish, money-eat-ing manatee of a creature, has awakened from itsnoontime nap just in time to cover a grand jury inves-tigation of the White House over the outing of a CIAofficial, fan the flames over Bush’s National GuardService (his records apparently have been to morestates than I have), and splash the whole “we-were-wrong-about-the-war” thing all over the weeklies. Thepresident’s Feb. 8 appearance on NBC’s “Meet thePress” was roundly panned as at worst lying and at best— in the words of conservative Wall Street Journalcolumnist Peggy Noonan — “not impressive.” The pres-ident is polling below Democratic frontrunner JohnKerry in some head-to-head polls at this point.

Which brings me to Howard Dean. Gov. Dean haschanged the nature of American political discourse,and ultimately shifted the course of American history.And while the corporate media and the DemocraticNational Committee might have made concertedefforts to quash the doctor, his candidacy will beresponsible for a Democratic victory in November.

After the 2002 congressional elections, Democraticvoters yearned to be empowered, and Dean called onthem directly to stand up and change America. Thiscatalyzed the growth of the Internet as an organizingand fundraising tool. The empowerment memeworked for Dean, and now works well too for John“Stand up for Change” Kerry and John “You Have thePower” Edwards. Americans are starting to believeagain that they own their government.

Dean expressed his opposition to the war in Iraq

when the public was 70-30 percent for it. The mostrecent Gallup poll shows Americans are now split 49-49over whether the war was worth it. While most votersmay fit more into the I-was-duped narrative both Johnsare peddling, Dean’s early audacity broke the taboo ofcriticizing the war on terror. Dean was hit hard for his

Bush-bashing, but his candidacy single-handedlymainstreamed the notion that Bush bungled hisbiggest issue.

Similarly, Dean’s other criticisms of the Bush admin-istration have become the talking points of theDemocratic field. While the Johns both voted for the NoChild Left Behind Act, Dean’s condemnation of Bush’spublic school reform forced them to become critics ofit too. His fervor inoculated the Democratic candidatesagainst the contradiction between their own votes andtheir current stump speeches. Universal healthcare,fiscal responsibility, challenging the Republicans in thered states on jobs and education — the Democratshave a plan and a case against the current presidentbecause they aligned around Dean’s initial message.

At the same time, the primaries have been a mediabonanza. Howard Dean’s “I have a scream” speechbumped the president below the fold the morning afterthe State of the Union address. During the Democratic

primaries, voter turnout has increased by 500 percentfrom the 2000 presidential primary in some precincts,state turnout is way up across the country andDemocratic voters are ready for a fight they can win. InNew Hampshire, 2,500 Republicans wrote inDemocratic candidates on their ballots.

The media frenzy, the exhaustive coverage and theenergized Democratic base are all directly related to Dr.Dean’s candidacy. The Doctor’s backbone transplantshave translated into a rising Democratic party, and thelonger the Dems have a powerful, unified field of can-didates, the longer the story is them — and the closerwe get to spending limits on W’s now targetless warchest.

John Kerry has positioned himself well as the gener-ic Democrat who has been challenging the president inthe polls for several months. But it was Dean’s message(since pilfered by the other candidates), his initialboldness and his honesty about the state and the needsof our union that have created a polity in which aDemocrat can beat George Bush.

While Sen. Kerry is currently reaping the benefits,November will see America harvest the bounty theDoctor sowed. And regardless of whether Gov. Dean ison the ticket, he will ultimately be viewed as a politicalprophet.

In some future histories, Dean’s candidacy will beseen as a means by which an insurgent candidatechanged and shaped the American political discourse.In others, it will be the opening chapter of “The DeanAdministration: How America Became a Better Place.”

Ari Savitsky ’06 worked for the Dean campaign in NewHampshire over winter break.

What we owe Dean (besides a vote)

The governor has given

the Democrats a shot at

the White House.

ARI SAVITZKY

People may have come to last Tuesday’s (Feb. 3)panel, “Democracy and Peace: An Exploration ofthe Israeli-Palestinian Conflict,” thinking it wouldbe the same as any other panel that they hadattended on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict: full ofanger, bitter blaming, polarized presenters, and allof the usual arguments about the unambiguous evilof suicide bombers or settlers. Unfortunately, theywere right.

We, the organizers, envisioned an event thatwould transform a divisive and bitterly emotionaldebate into an important new forum for intellectu-al exchange on a conflict that is in dire need of newideas. We hoped to change the tone of the dialoguefrom a presentation of dogmatic and immutablepositions into a constructive conversation withmutual understanding of each other’s argumentsand pain.

Those of us who organized the event are the lead-ers of a wide variety of student organizations,including Brown Students for Israel, Friends ofIsrael, the Muslim Students Association and Tikkun.Among these groups, we have supporters of thewall, opponents of the wall, supporters of the Israelisettlements in the West Bank, supporters of thePalestinian cause, supporters of the current Israeligovernment and everything in between. And yet wecame together regularly for the past six months toplan an event that, through its panel of diversespeakers and its higher goal of greater understand-ing, would satisfy our common ground: our sharedconcern for peace in the region.

We envisioned that our panelists, though notnecessarily in agreement with each other, wouldexplore together the challenges and aspirations ofIsraeli and Palestinian societies by delving whole-heartedly into the historical and contemporary roleof democracy in the Israeli-Palestinian relationship.By bringing scholars together to discuss both

Palestinian and Israeli democracies, we sought tocreate a compassionate intellectual atmospherewhere the audience could learn about and discussthe trajectories of the Israeli and Palestinian peopleand identify areas for improvement and growth inthe Israeli-Palestinian relationship.

We tried to express this vision to the panelistsand to set up the structure of the panel in a way thatwould facilitate this kind of exploration. The schol-

ars of Israeli politics were instructed to focus onways in which to improve and solidify Israelidemocracy, while the scholars of Palestinian poli-tics were asked to focus on methods with which todevelop Palestinian democracy. We instructed thespeakers to address the past, present and future ofIsraeli and Palestinian democracies, rather thanjust to make policy recommendations.

Unfortunately, the panel did not realize ourgoals. The political perspectives were not balancedand the atmosphere of introspection and investiga-tion never developed. We wanted to listen to pan-elists who would enable us to truly consider eachpoint of view and understand and empathize whereit was coming from. Instead, the presentationsbecame polemical and at times bitterly emotional.Members of the audience responded to such emo-tional appeals on an equally combative and emo-tional key. As happens all too often at such events,

we failed to communicate and found ourselves andthe audience clapping for the people we agreedwith and sitting sullenly silent waiting for the peo-ple we disagreed with to stop talking.

We struggled with this outcome. Why did we notget what we wanted? Why could we not change thedialogues, or lack thereof, at this university? Evenwithin our group, we had very different reactions.Some of us thought the panel brought up essentialand often unspoken questions underlying theIsraeli-Palestinian conflict. Others among us feltdisappointed to have put our names on the organiz-ing list of a panel we felt to have been one-sidedand misleading.

Regardless of the nuances in our reactions, we allagreed that the panel did not achieve our ideal of adiscussion that encompassed a diversity of per-spectives and not only listed demands for peace,but also embodied peace in its process. Some mightargue that our expectations for a mutually compas-sionate and self-critical discussion of this conflictwere unreasonable and naive. But we maintain thatthis is a vision we can and must continue to strivefor. Bitter, emotional arguments about these issuesreproduce and amplify the very conflict theyattempt to resolve. Therefore, to help transform theconflict, we must first transform the conversation.

While the panel did not create the kind of discus-sion we had envisioned, we believe that our collab-orative process in organizing this event should be asource of hope for those who share our yearning totransform the discussion on the Israeli-Palestinianconflict. In organizing this event, we began to talkto each other. We are bringing different ideastogether, and we are trying to understand eachother. We disagree. And yet we can create a newconversation.

Beth Goldman ’04 et al. don’t think talk is cheap.

GUEST COLUMN BY BETH GOLDMAN, ARI JOHNSON, HANNAH LANTOS, MICHAELLA MATT,FATIMA QURAISHI, JAKE ROSENBERG, SHIRA WAKSCHLAG AND SARAH ZAKOWSKI

In order to stop the

conflict, we must change

the conversation.

Where did this panel go wrong?

BY ARON GYURISThe women’s swim team was barelyedged out by Yale University this pastFriday in the team’s final dual meet ofthe season, held in New Haven, Conn.The Bears led halfway through the meetbut could not oust the Bulldogs, and theteam closed the meet a mere 10 pointsbehind their adversaries, 155-145.

“Yale won a couple of close races inthe second half of the meet,” said Co-captain Liz Daniels ’04. “This gave themthe edge to beat us by 10 points, which isnothing in a meet where the score is inthe high 100s.”

Opening the competition was the

dominating first-place finish of Brown’s200-yard medley relay team, consistingof Daniels, Elisabeth Wong ’06,Karlyanna Kopra ’07 and Co-captainEmily McCoy ’04.

McCoy stepped up to the blocks againto take third place in the 200-yardfreestyle, where teammate Toni Pullman’04 placed first. The Bears’ offensive con-tinued when Daniels touched the wall inthe 100-yard backstroke with a convinc-ing victory.

Continuing their domination of thecompetition, Daniels and EileenRobinson ’06 claimed first and secondplaces in the 50-yard freestyle, Kopra

and Julia Lippe-Klein ‘07 finished firstand second in the 100-yard breaststrokeand McCoy and Katie Schlesinger ’07took first and third in the 100-yardfreestyle.

Contributing second-place finishes tothe team were Alexis Skoda ’05 in the200-yard breaststroke, Lindsay Hoban’04 in the 200-yard backstroke and JeanLee ’04 in the 500-yard freestyle.

Also adding points to their team’sscore were the Brown divers. AmyLatinen ’07 took second place andJessica Larsen ’06 took third on the one-meter board, and the two took fourthand third, respectively, in the three-meter event.

Despite Brown’s strong effort, Yale’sgambit was its 1-2-3 finish in the 200-yard individual medley, the meet’spenultimate event. Even Brown’s first-place finish in the 200-yard freestylerelay could not turn the tide in favor ofthe Bears. The result brings the team’s

BY CHRIS MAHRDespite strong efforts in freestyle andrelay events, the men’s swimming teamdropped tough decisions in a dual meetwith Columbia and Yale universities inNew York City Saturday. Bruno fell toColumbia 183.5-112.5 and Yale 193-95.

Both the Lions and the Bulldogsentered Saturday’s meet with winningrecords for the Ivy League season, withColumbia coming in at 3-2 (4-4 overall)and Yale at 7-2 (9-3).

“We match up well with their front-line people. After that, the way that theyget us is depth,” said Head Coach PeterBrown. “What played into their favor isthat we went with a long order of eventsand they went with a shorter order.”

Despite the end result, Coach Brownsaid he was impressed with his team’sperformance.

“We swam well, about as well as weexpected this time of year,” Brown said. “Ifelt that we competed well and per-formed well and I feel good about howwe did.”

Leading the way for Brown were twoseniors, PJ Santoro ’04 and JeffersonMoors ’04. Moors took first in the 200-yard freestyle against Columbia and thirdagainst Yale, while also taking first and

third, respectively, in the 200-yard back-stroke. Santoro took first place againstboth Columbia and Yale in the 100-yardbreaststroke.

Santoro and Moors teamed up withMatt Zimmerman ’05 and Brian Sharkey’06 to grab first in the 200-yard medleyrelay against both schools.

“Everybody did a pretty good job, andI think overall we did just about every-thing I had hoped we would,” Brownsaid. “Winning the medley relay was veryimpressive, and our freestyle relay wasrock solid.”

Also swimming well for Bruno wereTimothy Wang ’05 and MatthewDelMastro ’05. Wang tied for first withTobin White of Columbia in the 100-yardfreestyle and took third in the eventagainst Yale. DelMastro had a strongshowing in the 100-yard butterfly, takingfirst against Columbia and secondagainst Yale.

In the diving portion of the program,Matthew Freitas ’07, the lone diver on themen’s team, took second againstColumbia and first against Yale in theone-meter event. Freitas followed up thissuccess by taking third and second,

SPORTS THURSDAYTHE BROWN DAILY HERALD

THURSDAY 12, 2004 · PAGE 12

All-Star eventsshowcase thebest of the pros

Judy He / Herald

The women’s swimming and diving team dropped a tough meet to Yale University this past weekend, losing 155-145.The loss camedespite strong performances from several individuals.

BY BROOKE WOLFEThe women’s gymnastics team placedfourth in competition against Rutgers,Cornell University and the University ofPittsburgh on Saturday on Pittsburgh’shome turf.

The Bears were unable to overcomestrong competition from Pitt and Rutgers,who took first and second place withscores of 194.75 and 192.55, respectively.Brown has defeated Cornell in the past,but at this meet, Cornell came out with aslight edge, scoring 188.475 to Bruno’s188.275.

But with few opportunities to competeagainst schools as competitive as Pitt,the meet was a good opportunity for theteam to spotlight its skills. The teamboasted several outstanding individualperformances but was not quite able tohold on to the amazing winning streakthat lasted through Brown’s first threeweeks of competition.

Despite the disappointing loss, theteam finished the meet with a positiveoutlook.

“Strong teams such as the Universityof Pittsburgh motivate us to work harderfor meets to come,” said co-captain JayneFinst ’04.

Co-captain Gina Verge ’04 was Brown’stop performer, scoring a 9.7 on the bars,followed closely by Kelly Moran ’05 (9.65)and Sarah Cavett ’06 (9.625).

Finst demonstrated her skills in allparts of the gym, bringing home a first-place finish in the beam, two third-placefinishes in the all-around and vault and a13th-place finish on the floor.

But it was not just the upperclassmenthat had a chance to shine at the compe-tition. Nadia Nguyen ’07 competed forBrown for the first time and performedflawlessly on the beam to place fifth in

It’s about that time, folks — time for mean-ingless exhibitions in which three majorprofessional sports present the best theyhave to offer. The all-star games for the NFL,NHL and NBA happen within the span of a

week each year, so Ihave decided tobring you a recap ofthe first two and apreview of the thirdas only he can.

The NFC comes back from a 25-pointdeficit to defeat the AFC, 55-52, in the ProBowl.

The combined score for both teams was25 points higher than the previous recordfor a Pro Bowl, and the game itself repre-sented just the second time in NFL historythat a total score surpassed 100. Apparently,the AFC’s defense consisted entirely of play-ers on the Kansas City Chiefs, so expect DickVermeil to continue crying from now untilthe start of the preseason. In another downmoment for the AFC, Mike Vanderjagtmissed two field goals after missing none inthe regular season, including one to tie thegame as time expired. His Colts teammate,Peyton Manning, who also threw two inter-ceptions, blamed their poor performanceon being liquored up. For the record, noneof Manning’s interceptions was to Ty Law.

On the NFC side, Marc Bulger passed foran NFC-record four touchdowns and wasnamed the game’s Most Valuable Player.Unlike teammate Kurt Warner, Bulger didnot celebrate his touchdown passes with aBible reading in the end zone. The perform-ance not only cemented Bulger as the Rams’quarterback of the future, but also as a QBwho plays best in meaningless games. In agame with 107 points, the leading rusherwas Shaun Alexander, with just 66 yards.The teams agreed to run the ball only whenJoe Theismann was not contradicting one ofhis co-anchors.

In the NHL All-Star Game, the EasternConference bested the Western Conference6-4.

Just as when the Rangers won the StanleyCup in 1994, 43-year old Mark Messier guar-anteed victory for the East. Messier alsoguaranteed that each period would last 20

Gymnastics teamstumbles at Pitt meet

Yale, Columbia too deepfor men’s swimming

Women’s swimming drops heartbreaker, 155-145

JOSH TROYSPORTS COLUMNIST

see W. SWIM, page 7 see TROY, page 9

see M. SWIM, page 9see GYMNASTICS, page 7