tuesday, december 3, 2002

Former Mayor VincentCianci prepares tobegin serving 64-month term on Fridaypage 3

City will relax parkingregulations downtownto ease strain on holidayshopperspage 3

Nick Noon ’05 saysracism still existsundercover at theUniversitycolumn, page 7

After hot start, men’shockey team runs itswinless streak to fourgamessports, page 8

Women’s hockey fallsto No. 2 Harvard, pullsout a win overProvidencesports, page 8

light snowhigh 25

low 16

I N S I D E T U E S D AY, D E C E M B E R 3 , 2 0 0 2 TO D AY ’ S F O R E C A S T

THE BROWN DAILY HERALDAn independent newspaper serving the Brown community since 1891

D E C E M B E R 3 , 2 0 0 2

Volume CXXXVII, No. 123 www.browndailyherald.com

T U E S D A Y

BY JONATHAN ELLISUndergraduate Council of Studentsrepresentatives showed they weremarkedly opposed to adding pluses andminuses to Brown’s grading system atthe final UCS meeting of the semesterMonday night.

Dean of the College Paul Armstrongjoined College Curriculum Councilmembers Beth Goldman ’03.5 and SeanYom ’03 in seeking feedback from thecouncil about various grading issues.They said they hoped UCS would giveCCC a feeling for overall student senti-ment.

Adding pluses and minuses “under-mines what the framers (of the NewCurriculum) had in mind,” saidRepresentative Roophy Roy ’05. Such asystem would increase competition

among students, a problem at manypeer institutions, he said.

“I think pluses and minuses or put-ting restrictions on the S/NC optionwould be a major move backwards interms of what the New Curriculum wasset up to do,” said RepresentativeCharley Cummings ’06. The originalNew Curriculum proposal called for acomplete abolishment of grades, hesaid.

Representative Tarek Khanachet ’03said the lack of a B-plus grade madehim work harder to pull his grades up toAs. He said students at Harvard and Yaleuniversities can do little work andreceive B-pluses, but he said that wasn’tpossible at Brown.

BY BRIAN BASKINA newly confirmed Republican majorityon the National Labor Relations Boardcould spell trouble for Brown’s graduatestudent unionization movement.

On Nov. 14, the U.S. Senate confirmedall five of President George Bush’s nomi-nees — three Republicans and twoDemocrats — to the NLRB. The confirma-tion marks the first time in 10 years that afull board will be majority Republican.

It could also mean a reversal of a land-mark 1999 decision allowing teachingassistants at New York University to union-ize. Previously the NLRB only consideredTAs at public institutions to be employees.

The Brown Graduate EmployeeOrganization/United Auto Workers usedthe precedent set by the NYU decision toform its own unionization movement.Following a December 2001 graduate stu-

dent unionization vote, Brown appealed tothe NLRB, challenging both the regionalNLRB ruling that allowed the Brown voteand the NYU precedent. The BGEO/UAWlater appealed the vote as well, asking theboard to include research assistants in anypotential union.

With Bush’s nominations stalled by aDemocratic majority in the Senate, onlythree members sat on the NLRB for all of2002. The board held off on hearing mostmajor cases, including Brown’s, in partbecause any ruling would need to beagreed upon by all remaining members —two Republicans and one Democrat.

The NYU decision could be reversed ifthe new Republicans agree with formerRepublican board member RobertHurtgen’s dissention from a 1999 prece-

A shift to right at NLRB could spelltrouble for grad student unions

Number of early applications byminorities rises for Class of 2007

see NLRB, page 4

BY SARA PERKINSWith early applicants to the Class of 2007awaiting notification by Dec. 15, admissionoffice numbers show the early applicant pooldeclined 3 percent this year, but the numberof applications from students of colorincreased.

The changes may be a result of the admis-sion office’s decision to restrict early appli-cants from also applying to early actionschools, said Director of Admission MichaelGoldberger.

Last year Brown switched from an earlyaction to an early decision policy. This year,Brown initiated a new policy of not allowingearly applicants to apply to early actionschools. Previously, a student could haveapplied to early action schools like Harvardand Georgetown universities, but they wouldhave been obligated to withdraw those appli-cations if they were admitted to Brown.

Goldberger said he has two theories aboutthe cause of the slight overall decrease inapplications.

The reduction “might be a reaction to (thefact that) we didn’t travel internationally lastyear because of 9/11, and it could be a reac-tion to … our prohibition on only one appli-cation,” he said.

The total number of early applicationsdecreased by 55, from 1,918 last year to 1,863.Of those applications, 76 were from AfricanAmerican students, and 80 were fromLatinos, an increase among both groups of 15percent from last year. The number of NativeAmerican applicants more than doubled, andthe number of Asian American applicationsstayed the same as last year. Asian Americansmade up 12 percent of the applicant pool.

Sherrod Skinner, a college counselor inMilton, Mass., said the new one-applicationpolicy was not a deterrent for any of hisadvisees.

“It did not come up,” he said. “If people

Rise goes against 3 percentdrop in overall applications

see APPS, page 4

U. sees record number of mouse complaints in NovemberBY MATTHEW SHOPSINThe University had 25 reports of mice incampus buildings between Nov. 1 and Nov.25, more than any other month in recentmemory, said Director of the Brown NewsService Mark Nickel.

The tiny invaders have even nestledtheir way into administrative buildings. InMaddock Alumni Center, one secretaryreported mouse footprints leading awayfrom her coffee, Nickel said.

The infestation is not localized toBrown but is part of a generalized trend inthe Providence area, Nickel said. Brown’spest control contractor also reported amuch larger than normal volume of com-plaints related to mice.

Nickel said more mice survived lastyear’s mild winter and are now movingindoors due to increasing colder weather.

To combat the problem, FacilitiesManagement is using poison bait in addi-tion to conventional traps in non-resident

buildings. In residence halls, FacilitiesManagement uses glue traps, snap trapsand door brushes, which prevent micefrom going under doors and inhibit theirspread.

Door brushes are rendered ineffectiveby the practice of propping doors open,Nickel said.

The use of glue traps disturbs some stu-dents.

“Glue traps are the most inhumanethings, and most people are clearly againstthem,” said Karra Greenberg ’04.

But Nickel defended the use of thetraps.

“The idea is to rid the University ofrodents and pests with no potential harmto inhabitants. Pest control vendors havetheir own methods,” he said.

Eric Snyder ’04 said he’s heard evidenceof the mouse problem in Marcy Hall.

“I would wake up and hear squeakingnoises and rustling,” he said. Whatever

was causing the noise, he said, “only madenoise in the early morning.”

Snyder said he hasn’t seen or heard

Beth Farnstrom / Herald

Members of the Undergraduate Council of Students discussed the possibility ofadding pluses and minuses to the grading system at their Monday night meeting.

UCS representatives tell Armstrongthey oppose adding pluses, minuses

Facilities Management received 25complaints about mice between Nov. 1 andNov. 25.

(L.A. Times) WASHINGTON — TheSupreme Court announced Mondaythat it will decide whether the UnitedStates’ colleges and universities cancontinue to use affirmative action inchoosing new students, marking thefirst time the court has revisited theissue since the Bakke decision in1978.

The justices took up two appeals

Supreme Courtwill revisit race-based collegeadmissions

see COURT, page 5see MICE, page 5

see UCS, page 4

Editorial Phone: 401.351.3372

Business Phone: 401.351.3260

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Beth Farnstrom, Vice President

Seth Kerschner, Vice President

Stacey Doynow, Treasurer

Jamie Wolosky, Secretary

The Brown Daily Herald (USPS 067.740) is published Monday through Friday during the aca-

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THE BROWN DAILY HERALD, INC.

THIS MORNINGTHE BROWN DAILY HERALD

TUESDAY, DECEMBER 3, 2002 · PAGE 2

Yu-Ting’s Monday and Tuesday Yu-Ting Liu

A Story Of Eddie Ahn

Inappropriate Touches Deepu Murty and Zara Findlay-Shirras

M E N U S

Cookie’s Grandma Meets The Eyes Reprise Saul Kerschner and Warren Hurwitz

Pornucopia Eli Swiney

THE BROWNDAILY HERALD

YOU’RE GONNABUBBLE UP.

YOUR FAMILY?BUBBLING UP.

YOUR KIDS?DITTO.

BLOOD DRIVE — Sayles Hall, starts 11 a.m.

FILM— “The Wedding Banquet.” Room 102, Wilson Hall, 8 p.m.

SPORTS —women’s basketball vs. University of Rhode Island. PizzitolaSports Center, 7 p.m.

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METROTHE BROWN DAILY HERALD


The City of Providence will allowovertime parking during certainhours to give holiday shoppers abreak.

The annual tradition of easingparking rules began under formerMayor Vincent Cianci, who eased the

restrictions toencourage shoppersto frequent shopsduring the busy sea-son.

The parking break, ordered by act-ing Mayor John Lombardi, is in effectin downtown Providence and on theEast Side through New Year’s Day.

It will allow time limits to lapsefrom 11 a.m. to 6 p.m., Mondaythrough Saturday.

Those areas affected includeNorth and South Main streets,Thayer Street, Wayland Sqaure andcertain parts of downtown. But driv-ers who park in crosswalks, by firehydrants or in loading zones will stillface tickets.

— Juliette Wallack

Providenceeases parkingregulations inanticipation ofholiday season

With prison term fast approaching, Cianci gainsmove to New Jersey, but is denied appeal for bail

BY JULIETTE WALLACKFormer Mayor Vincent Cianci will reportto prison Friday as originally ordered by afederal judge, but he will serve his 64-month sentence in New Jersey instead ofOhio.

The 1st U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals inBoston denied Cianci’s request to remainout of prison on bail while the appeal ofhis sentence is deliberated. That meansCianci must report to prison by noon onFriday as was decreed during hisSeptember sentencing.

In September, a federal judge sentencedCianci to 64 months in prison on one fed-eral charge of racketeering.

The Circuit Court’s decision, released ina two-sentence statement Wednesday,reaffirmed the District Court’s earlier rul-ing.

“Based on our review of the availablerecord and parties’ submissions, we con-clude that appellant has failed to satisfythe criteria for release pending appeal,”the judgment states.

With the beginning of his sentenceapproaching, Cianci told the ProvidenceJournal Thursday that he didn’t know how

he was going to spend his last week of free-dom.

“I’ve never faced this before,” he said.“What do you do?”

But earlier in the week, Cianci learnedthe Federal Bureau of Prisons granted hisrequest to be moved from a prison in Ohioto one closer to home. The Bureau reas-signed him to the Federal CorrectionalInstitution in Fort Dix, N.J. In the Nov. 14request, Cianci said he was concerned thatthe distance might adversely affect hisdaughter, who is seeking treatment forsubstance abuse problems. Cianci alsoappealed to U.S. Reps Patrick Kennedyand James Langevin for support.

Cianci’s request for a different prisonassignment followed the reassignment oftwo of Cianci’s codefendants. In earlyOctober, the Bureau reassigned business-man Richard Autiello and former mayoralaide Frank Corrente to a Massachusettsfederal hospital. The two men were previ-ously assigned to a federal prison inPennsylvania. Elected officials intervenedon the convicted men’s behalves, citinghealth concerns and requested a changein the assignment. Autiello, 64, faces 63months in prison, and Corrente, 73, has a46-month prison term ahead of him.

At a fundraising dinner Monday night,Cianci told the Journal that the scholar-ship fund endowed in his name will con-tinue providing awards to area students.

“It is going to continue after I am incar-

cerated,” he said.The event, held at Mediterraneo Caffe

on Federal Hill, featured $500 tickets withproceeds going to a fund that Ciancihopes will provide for the archival of hispapers.

Cianci also concluded his reign overProvidence airwaves when he signed offhis WPRO-AM radio show for the last timeon Friday morning. The show featured acaller in tears and another caller whopromised to keep Cianci in his prayers.

“I’ll be out in four years or five years,”Cianci said while on the air. “They can’ttake away your spirit. … It’s like going to avery, very inexpensive spa.”

Herald staff writer Juliette Wallack ’05edits the metro section. She can be reachedat [email protected].

“I’ll be out in four years or

five years. They can’t take

away your spirit. … It’s like

going to a very, very inex-

pensive spa.”

Vincent CianciFormer Mayor

Cianci will report to jail onFriday as originally orderedby a federal judge to beginhis 64-month sentence

METROBRIEF

THE BROWN DAILY HERALD TUESDAY, DECEMBER 3, 2002

dent-setting ruling that interns, res-idents and fellows at BostonMedical Center are employees, saidRobert Ames, a partner in the laborand employment group atWashington, D.C., law firm VenableLLP in an e-mail.

“It is quite possible the board’snew majority will revisit the NYUdecision and perhaps BostonMedical as well given their sharpdeparture from over 25 years ofprecedent,” Ames wrote.

But in today’s political climate, aRepublican majority on the highlypoliticized NLRB is more likely tomean a shift to the center ratherthan the anti-union right, Amessaid. NLRB Senate confirmationsare almost as controversial as judge-ships, which is why Democrats pre-vented Bush’s nominations fromleaving committee until after theNovember elections, he said.

“The choices that the presidenthas made have been by necessityfairly moderate and centrist interms of their position on laborlaw,” Ames said.

BGEO/UAW spokespersonSheyda Jahanbani GS said NLRBpolitics will not affect the outcomeof Brown’s appeal because the TAunionization movement is too newto have acquired the polarized poli-tics of older, industrial unions.

“The precedent set in the NYUcase was not a political precedent, sowe believe that precedent will hold,”Jahanbani said. “So many graduateemployees have started to organizenow in private universities. We’d bevery surprised if the board decidedto turn around on this road.”

Labor leaders praised incomingNLRB Chair Robert Battista for hisimpartiality despite his history ofrepresenting employers as aDetroit-area labor lawyer,Jahanbani said.

At What Cost spokespersonJennifer Anderson GS said she wasmore hopeful Brown would win itsappeal with a Republican majorityon the board.

An NLRB ruling could go threeways. The board could reject bothBrown and the BGEO/UAW’sappeals, meaning the votes from theDecember 2001 election woulddecide whether a union composedprimarily of TAs could exist atBrown. If Brown wins its appeal,graduate students at private collegeswould no longer be classified asemployees and would be unable tounionize without another reversalby the NLRB. The board could alsoreject Brown’s appeal but accept theBGEO/UAW’s appeal, which wouldset in motion a new vote for union-ization that would include researchassistants and proctors as well asteaching assistants.

Jahanbani said she hoped the TAmovement’s fresh take on unioniza-tion would allow the new board tolook beyond traditional labor poli-tics and vote in favor of theBGEO/UAW.

“This is not classical union poli-tics,” she said. “We’re a differentgroup of people … with a differentemployee-employer dynamic.”

Both sides agree that the confir-mations indicate that one way oranother, a ruling will be made soon,Jahanbani said.

Herald staff writer Brian Baskin’04 edits the campus watch section.He can be reached [email protected].

continued from page 1

NLRB

decided not to apply (because ofthe one-application policy), it wasnot articulated in our meetings.”

Princeton University has a bind-ing, one-application-only earlydecision program similar toBrown’s, while Yale and Stanforduniversities will switch to an earlyaction system next year.

The decline in applicationscame “mostly in international stu-dents and the major pockets on theEast and West coasts, New York, LosAngeles, where we saw declines of25 or 30 percent,” Goldberger said.“We also saw an increase in the per-cent of applicants who are male.Last year it was 38 percent, this yearit’s 42 percent.

“The top end of the pool looksterrific,” Goldberger said. He saidthe admission staff has no precon-ceptions about what percent of theclass it wants to take early.

“We’ll go through (the applica-tions) with the same mindset as inApril,” he said.

Herald staff writer Sara Perkins ’06can be reached at [email protected].


Apps

Every effort toward achievingincreased grade precision onlyserves to place more emphasis ongrades and less on learning,Khanachet added.

The University should strive tomaintain its position as a uniqueplace where learning comes first,said Representative Tim Bentley ’04.

The University’s lack of compet-itiveness means students havehigher academic integrity,Khanachet added.

The supportive atmospheremakes Brown different and moreenjoyable, said Representative IanSiu ’03.

Corporations and graduateschools know that Brown is a placewhere students come to learn, saidCampus Life Committee ChairJustin Sanders ’04. “It would be adisservice to Brown if we justlumped ourselves together with allthe other schools where you’ve gotthese very finite grading lines,” headded.

Too few students take advan-tage of Course PerformanceReports to supplement their lettergrades, Sanders said. “Anybody

who says that their work and workethic and effort would be best rep-resented by pluses and minusesshould not be looking at how tochange their grade — they shouldbe looking at Course PerformanceReports,” he said.

The number of CPRs writteneach year remains steadily low,Yom said. Not many studentsknow about CPRs, and those thatdo rarely take the initiative to com-plete them, he said.

UCS Vice President DeepaKumaraiah ’04 asked Armstrongabout administrative efforts topromote CPRs. Armstrong said hisoffice occasionally reminds facultyabout them, but he didn’t mentionany other programs. He said areexamination of the CPR pro-gram might result from the grad-ing debate.

No council member expresseddirect support for adding minuses.Representatives Thilakshani Dias’05 and Swan Lee ’05 said theymight support adding only pluses.

“It wouldn’t make us cutthroatcompetitive, because we’re astrong community,” Lee said.Some outside the University thinkstandards here are lower due tothe current system, and addingclarity could help, she added.

A change in the grading system

might cause a gradual change inthe University’s culture, though itwouldn’t have an immediateeffect, said Kevin Bennett ’03,Academic and AdministrativeAffairs Committee chair. Brownmight become more of a “cookie-cutter” institution, he said. He alsowondered if the push for plusesand minuses had been caused by arecent national grade inflation“panic.”

Brown succeeds where peerinstitutions fail in providing stu-dents incentives to be creativethinkers, Dias said.

Dias urged the CCC to continueto nurture the New Curriculum inits relative infancy. “By changing… a curriculum so young, I thinkyou’re changing a lot more thingsthan people’s GPAs,” she said.

The University needs to addressthe issue carefully without puttingits own graduates at a disadvan-tage, Cummings said. Addingpluses and minuses is not the wayto do that, he said.

The CCC will meet three timesthis spring to address grading con-cerns, Armstrong said.

UCS President Allen Feliz ’03said he hoped to address a varietyof topics next semester, includingfinding a long-term solution tocampus events funding andadding a new workout facility tocampus.

Khanachet, the Corporationliaison, said he would try to get theCorporation to offer a matchinggrant for the Senior Class gift, sim-ilar to one it made last year.

Dias, the alumni liaison, saidshe would work on getting analumni presence at freshman ori-entation.

The council voted to upgradethe Biomedical EngineeringGroup to Category II status.

Friday, UCS will presentPresident Ruth Simmons a list oflong-term campus priorities.

Herald staff writer Jonathan Ellis ’06covers the Undergraduate Council ofStudents. He can be reached at [email protected].


UCS “By changing … a

curriculum so young,

I think you’re chang-

ing a lot more things

than people’s GPAs.”

Thilakshani Dias ’05UCS Representative

TUESDAY, DECEMBER 3, 2002 THE BROWN DAILY HERALD PAGE 5

the consolation game against DrakeUniversity. Against the Bulldogs, Brownstarted off quickly but went through aneight-minute period without a field goal.The drought enabled Drake to establish acomfortable lead and they went into thehalf up 35-27.

Poor shooting hampered the Bears asthey shot less than 25 percent for the half,

compared to Drake’s 40 percent.Brown’s play improved in the second half

as the Bears came within three of theBulldogs. However, some clutch free throwshooting by Drake put the game out of reach,as they pulled away with a 75-67 victory.

The loss drops Brown to 1-3 on the sea-son. The Bears’ next contest is today at7pm against the University of RhodeIsland at the Pizzitola Sports Center.

Sports staff writer Shara Hegde ’04 covers thewomen’s basketball team and can bereached at [email protected].


Hoops

strong and threatened the goal often in thefirst period, but it wasn’t until the last tenseconds that anyone managed to get onthe boards. Harvard’s Jennifer Botterilldeflected the puck to Nicole Corriero whoslipped it past the mob in front of the goalto give the Crimson a one-goal lead.Angela Ruggiero also picked up an assist.

Brown retaliated quickly when JennyRice ’03 scored. Harvard’s Julie Chu man-

aged to shoot it past Dreyer to regain thelead. Brown’s Jessica Link ’05 scoredagainst the Crimson to tie the scores.Three minutes later the Crimson took thelead again, and Brown was unable to scoreagain throughout the rest of the game.

Despite the loss, Dreyer had anotheroutstanding game, making 48 saves. TheCrimson out shot Bruno 51-21 in thegame. Brown faces Northeastern andMercyhearst next weekend at home.

Sports staff writer Kathy Babcock ’05 covers thewomen’s ice hockey team and can be reachedat [email protected].


Women’s Ice seconds into the game Union took thelead off of a goal by Marc Neron andwould never look back. At the end of thefirst period, Union doubled its lead on ashort-handed goal by Nathan Gilles.

Brown played well for most of the firstand second period, although the squadfound itself down 3-0 early in the secondafter surrendering a power-play goal.

“Falling behind early is disappointing.They got a couple of lucky shots,” saidAdam Saunders ’04. “We kept working,but we’ve been having trouble scoring.”

The woes for Brown would continueas Gilles scored another short-handedgoal at 15:24 of the second, extendingUnion’s lead to 4-0. Shortly after, howev-er, the hard-working Bears would scoretheir lone goal of the night. Robinsoncentered a pass to Saunders, who one-timed the puck home for a shorthandedtally. Danis finished the game with 17saves and Union goalie Tim Rothstopped 25 in his first career win.

“Right now we feel like we are in a bit ofa funk,” Grillo said. “We are bringingenergy and coming out hard, but it does-n’t show that on the score sheet. Our atti-tude and effort are solid, but things don’tseem to be clicking like they were before.”

Much like the previous night, the

Brown offense was ineffective, scoringonly one goal and failing to convert onseven power-play chances.

Grillo recognizes that lack of offensehas been a major problem.

“We’re missing the net, getting a lot ofshots blocked and not bearing downwhen we need to,” he said. “Obviouslywe are capable or scoring; we just needto reflect on what has worked.”

Even withall the blockedand missedshots, Brownhas still outshot mosto p p o n e n t s ,but has beenunable to findthe reboundsand convert.

“By work-ing hard to getsecond effortslike we were inthe first few

games, we should be able to get somegoals,” Saunders said.

The Bears will continue ECAC playthis upcoming weekend as they travel toYale and Princeton before taking a breakfor exams.

Sports staff writer Ian Cropp ’05 covers themen’s ice hockey team and can be reachedat [email protected].


Men’s Ice

dspics

Yann Danis ’04 helped secure a point against the RPI Engineers with an excellent 31-save performance on Friday night.

“We kept

working, but

we’ve been

having trou-

ble scoring.”

Adam Saunders ’04 Men’s hockey

from white applicants who were rejected bythe University of Michigan and its lawschool, despite their strong qualifications.

If the Supreme Court were to outlaw theexplicit use of race in college admissions,the ruling would have broad impact.

Federal education law forbids race dis-crimination in colleges that receive federalfunds, and lawyers say discrimination thatviolates the equal-protection standard alsoviolates the federal education law.

“What they decide in this case will applyto private institutions as well,” said SheldonSteinbach, general counsel for the AmericanCouncil on Education, the Washington lob-bying group for higher education.

In one of the University of Michigancases, Jennifer Gratz, a white high schoolsenior with a 3.8 grade point average, wasturned away by the Ann Arbor campus in1995. She blamed her rejection on the pref-erences given to black and Hispanic appli-cants.

She and another woman, BarbaraGrutter, who was rejected by the law school,became the lead plaintiffs in lawsuits thatsay “racial preferences in student admis-sions” violate the Constitution’s guaranteeof the equal protection of the laws.

University officials admit they give adecided edge to minority applicants, but

they say their affirmative-action policy isneeded to ensure racial diversity.

“Now is not the time to turn back theclock,” University of Michigan PresidentMary Sue Coleman said. “Race still mattersin our society.” A ruling rejecting the use ofaffirmative action “could result in theimmediate resegregation of our nation’s topcolleges and universities,” she said.

Since 1989, the Supreme Court hasrejected affirmative action in a series of set-tings, but it has done so by 5-4 votes. Forexample, the court said cities cannot setaside some of their public contracts forblack and Hispanic entrepreneurs. It alsorejected race-based preferences in federalcontracts, and struck down “racial gerry-mandering” by state legislatures.

Four conservatives — Chief JusticeWilliam H. Rehnquist and Justices AntoninScalia, Anthony M. Kennedy and ClarenceThomas — have said repeatedly that offi-cials may not use race as a decisionmakingfactor.

Justice Sandra Day O’Connor, who hasjoined them in all the key rulings, hasrefused to go along with the clear, strictstandard that prohibits all use of race. Shehas said, for example, that officials canfavor black applicants to remedy clear pastdiscrimination against blacks. In one suchcase, the court upheld hiring and promo-tion quotas for black officers in theAlabama state police because of thedepartment’s long history of blatant dis-crimination.


Court

what he assumed was a mouse in his sec-ond floor single since Thanksgiving break,and he didn’t call Facilities Managementbecause “I figured there was nothing theycould do about it. I figured it would just goaway,” he said.

“It’s annoying to know there’s an animalliving in there,” he said.

But for Steve Groopman ’05, the micewere more than just a rustling. A few weeksago, Groopman heard scratching was hetried to sleep one night.

“We heard this incredibly loud squeak-ing,” he said. Then, a few days later, hisroommate actually spotted a mouse,Groopman said.

The roommates tracked the mice to thearea between their refrigerator and theradiator, and Groopman said the micewere living behind the fridge.

“Facilities Management said it’sbecause it’s cold and because there’s a lotof construction on campus,” Groopmansaid. Plus, Facilities Management saidMarcy Hall’s structure has a lot of gapsbecause it is so old, meaning it is easy formice to get into the building.

The mice apparently travel through theheating system, Groopman said. Now, hissecond floor double features old-style,wooden mousetraps, and in recent weeks,three mice have met their doom in thesnapping-metal traps. He said he has spo-ken to Facilities Management aboutrepairing the opening through which themice apparently enter and leave the room,and since Thanksgiving break, he hasn’tseen or heard any signs of the tiny resi-dents.

To reduce the problem of mice, theUniversity suggests tying up trash and notleaving food out or propping open doors.To report incidents of rodent infestation,Facilities Management can be reached at863-7800.


Mice

EDITORIAL/LETTERSTHE BROWN DAILY HERALD


THE BROWN DAILY HERALD

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 authors only.

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Charlotte Rose Miller, Night EditorAmy Ruddle, Janis Sethness, Copy Editors

Staff Writers Kathy Babcock, Zach Barter, Brian Baskin, Jonathan Bloom, Carla Blumenkranz,Oliver Bowers, Danielle Cerny, Jinhee Chung, Maria Di Mento, Jonathan Ellis, Nicholas Foley, DanaGoldstein, Alan Gordon, Nick Gourevitch, Joanna Grossman, Stephanie Harris, Victoria Harris,Shara Hegde, Brian Herman, Momoko Hirose, Akshay Krishnan, Brent Lang, Elena Lesley, JamayLiu, Lisa Mandle, Jermaine Matheson, Monique Meneses, Kerry Miller, Alicia Mullin, Crystal Z.Y. Ng,Juan Nunez, Joanne Park, Sara Perkins, Melissa Perlman, Cassie Ramirez, Amy Ruddle, EmirSenturk, Jen Sopchockchai, Adam Stella, Anna Stubblefield, Stefan Talman, Jonathon Thompson,Joshua Troy, Juliette Wallack, Jessica Weisberg, Ellen Wernecke, Julia ZuckermanPagination Staff Bronwyn Bryant, Jessica Chan, Melissa Epstein, Joshua Gootzeit, CarolineHealy, Hana Kwan, Erika Litvin, Stacy WongStaff Photographers Josh Apte, Nick Mark, Makini Chisolm-Straker, Allison Lauterbach,Maria Schriber, Allie SilvermanCopy Editors Anastasia Ali, Lanie Davis, Marc Debush, Yafang Deng, Hanne Eisenfeld, EmilyFlier, George Haws, Daniel Jacobson, Eliza Katz, Blair Nelsen, Amy Ruddle, Janis Sethness

E D I T O R I A L

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David Rivello, Editor-in-Chief

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P O S T- M A G A Z I N EKerry Miller, Editor-in-ChiefZach Frechette, Executive EditorMorgan Clendaniel, Film EditorDan Poulson, Calendar EditorAlex Carnevale, Features EditorTheo Schell-Lambert, Music Editor

S P O R T SJoshua Troy, Sports EditorNick Gourevitch, Asst. Sports EditorJermaine Matheson, Asst. Sports EditorAlicia Mullin, Asst. Sports Editor

L E T T E R S T O T H E E D I T O R

D O N A T E L L A R I V E L L O

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

YOU’RE GONNABUBBLE UP.

YOUR FAMILY?BUBBLING UP.

YOUR KIDS?DITTO.

TO AVOID THIS FATE, WRITE LETTERSthe days are numbered.

THE BROWNDAILY HERALD

The center benefitsfrom two party systemdrawbacks, not moreradical candidates To the Editor:Bill Louis ’06 raises an important point in his col-umn “Disentangling convoluted stances in U.S.politics,”(12/2) when he notes the limitations of ourtwo party system. However, he errs when he saysthat this system tends toward a left-right polariza-tion. In fact, it seems that our political systemencourages a tendency in both parties toward amushy center that cuts off both the left and theright.

When Ralph Nader spoke at Brown after the 2000election, he noted that he was not the only victim ofthis strangely narrow political spectrum. PatBuchanan’s inability to garner even five percent ofthe vote in 2000, like Nader’s own failings, is evi-dence of a system that discourages principled poli-

tics from both the left and right wings.“Conservatives” in politics do not usually uphold aconsistent opposition to big government or beliefin individual freedom. For example, AttorneyGeneral John Ashcroft’s Big Brother plans and theBush military expansion are nearly unchallengedon the establishment right. Nor do most “liberals”favor a wide safety net; in fact, most supported andcontinue to support welfare reform.

So long as U.S. politics are dominated by corpo-rate lobbying and polling-influenced moderation,we will not see our political leaders disseminatingideas that cover a broad political spectrum. Rather,we will continue to see our politicians toeing thecenter-right pro-corporate line that aims primarilyat protecting their own careers.

As some first good steps, we might considermore comprehensive campaign finance reformand an instant runoff voting system that wouldeliminate the “spoiler effect,” which inhibitscandidacies such as those of Nader andBuchanan.

Peter Asen ‘04Dec. 2

Brown witnessed a record number of complaintsregarding unauthorized occupants in campusbuildings during the month of November. As theNew England weather has turned colder, unwant-ed visitors have sought refuge in the homes andoffice of the Brown community. We cannot allowthese bewhiskered beasts to take advantage ofour hospitality any longer. A multifacetedapproach is necessary to ensure this problem isdealth with swiftly and humanely.

Nobody should be forced to live, work or studyin a building that is infested with mice or otherrodents. The University should act swiftly inremoving mice and any other varmint from cam-pus buildings in a manner that does not harmthe animals.

In its attempts to rid University buildings ofrodents, Brown should ensure that it treat miceand other varmint in a safe and humane manner.Some students expressed concern over theUniversity’s decision to use glue traps to capturemice. If these traps are causing harm to the ani-mals, Brown should stop using them. There arenumerous animal-friendly traps available to trapanimals without killing them.

In addition, students who live on campus andpeople who work in University buildings shouldmake an extra effort to keep their living andworking spaces clean. This will help ensure thatBrown’s buildings cease to be squatter homes formice seeking to escape the cold streets ofProvidence.

Killing a few hundred mice probably won’t solvethe campus’ infestation problem, and there arebetter and more humane ways to get many of themice out of the dorms. Hopefully the Universitywill at least be willing to explore other alternativesbefore giving its outside exterminators free reignto act.

Fievel’s Funeral

OPINIONSTHE BROWN DAILY HERALD


Racism undercover but pervasive at Brown UniversityBigotry is untenable in any form, but open racism is more honest, treatable than hiding it for fear of condemnation

FOR SOME REASON, I THOUGHT BROWNwould be different. I assumed that an IvyLeague school, in its infinite wisdom andcoolness, was too good to have racist stu-dents. Maybe it was all of those lovelybrochures I was sent once the Universitylearned I was Mexican, adver-tising the racial harmony atthis University. In them, stu-dents of color were walkingaround the Main Green withhuge smiles on their faces.But I have learned that I mis-understood their expressions:the students smiling on thegreen weren’t smiling out ofappreciation and acceptance,but because within this racistcommunity, they had finallyfound a group of people whothey were comfortable with.

I honestly thought that racism wasdead at Brown. Yes, I am naive, and Iexpected too much. But, during the sec-ond week of my first year, I realized whatmost others expected, that this school isjust as racist as any other, and we just pre-fer to not talk about it.

I am not saying that every white stu-dent at this school is racist — that wouldbe just as foolish as my assumption thatnobody here is. But you would be sur-prised. A lot of you are reading this think-ing, “Here goes another angry minoritysaying how racist the world is.” And I canrespect that nobody wants to talk about

this because it isn’t fun. I hate to take youaway from your daily column about thewar on Iraq, which doesn’t implicate youor make you uncomfortable, but I thinkwe all could use a little discomfort.

Most of you think that this doesn’tapply to you because youdon’t see yourself or yourfriends as being racist. AndI’m sure you, and nobody youknow for that matter, wouldwalk up to me and call me a“spic” or “wetback.” At leastnot to my face.

No, people at Brown takecomfort in anonymity. Butsince I doubt that there is justa pocket of bigots at thisschool who hang out togeth-er, celebrating their racialsuperiority by posting on the

Daily Jolt and scrawling on bathroomdoors, the only conclusion I can come tois that there is an abundance of closetracists at this school. Should we be happythat students have traded in white hoodsfor GAP beanies?

Recently, on the Daily Jolt, a studentposted asking if anybody knew who the“gorgeous Asian student” working at theGate was. Replying to this inquiry, anoth-er student posted, “Eww. You could blind-fold her with dental floss.” Is this a state-ment somebody would say to her face?Probably not because that would be polit-ically incorrect and the speaker’s apolo-getic friends would have serious prob-lems with it.

Two days before the Jolt posting, I wentto the restroom in Wilson Hall (something

I usually make a point to avoid). On thedoor, there were about five different mes-sages, written by five different people.They included, “Bomb those ragheadmotherfuckers” and other statements ofequal racial intolerance.

That same day, I was cleaning tables atthe Gate while two white studentswatched television. I’m not sure whatthey were watching, but it involved awhite cop chasing a black criminal. Onestudent grabbed the other’s arm andshouted at the movie: “That’s right, stopthat boy from eating his watermelon andchittlins.” Maybe people think it is funny,maybe they find humor in pushing thelines of political correctness, but I don’tpretend to understand why.

To me, it seems like racism hasn’t beenkilled, it has been tucked away. Whether itlives on the Jolt or a bathroom door, it hasbeen swept into the corner of Brown, inthe hope that students and visitors won’tsee it. Sometimes it pops up in the Gate.Sometimes it will appear on a Fridaynight in the form of a frat boy who shoutssomething like “Go home nigger” or “Eh,speaky English?” I wonder if these stu-dents don’t kick me in the shin and callme a spic to my face because they know itis wrong, or because they know that itwouldn’t be tolerated. Is it self control forthe sake of self betterment or self protec-tion?

It should be mentioned that there are afew students who have had the audacity(would saying courage be too ironic?) todisplay their racism before me. I’ve beencalled a “spic” and asked if I was in a gangback home. And strangely, as much as I

instantly hate and pity these people, Ihave a meager amount of respect forthem. At least they are honest.

Any student of color can attest to thefact that this list of racial infractionsdoesn’t stop.

It happens everyday, yet we don’t talkabout it. We talk about racism back home,we talk about racism in other countries,but discussing racism at Brown is difficultbecause there is some kind of school-wide denial going on. Thankfully, I wasn’there when David Horowitz purchased anad in The Herald, but in hearing about it,what struck me most was how quickly itturned from a discussion about racisminto one about free speech. The latter ismuch easier to talk about because itdoesn’t make one uncomfortable.

I can already imagine the postingsfrom wiser graduates of the University onHeraldsphere, saying that this type ofarticle has been written before, and that itis all too familiar. “Tough luck kid: It’s theway of the world, get used to it and stopwhining.”

That attitude is what enables this kindof ignorance and discrimination. Peoplealmost excuse it, saying that there willalways be a few kids who talk this wayamongst themselves.

So where does this leave us? I’m notsure who bothers me more: the studentthat would love to call me a filthyMexican but doesn’t because he knowshis racial tendencies aren’t fit for public,or the student that will just come up tome and put his ignorance out there on thetable. I guess I would prefer the smiles inthe brochure.

Nick Noon ‘05 reads every column aboutthe war against Iraq and just bought ablack beanie on sale at the Gap.

NICK NOONBROWN INTRUDER

SPORTS TUESDAYTHE BROWN DAILY HERALD

DECEMBER 3, 2002 · PAGE 8

Deja vu: Flawsin the systemonce again

W. hockey fallsto #2 Harvard,ties Providence

Women’s bballdrops two atMaine tourney

BY IAN CROPPAfter starting out the season by knock-ing off top-ranked ECAC opponents,the men’s ice hockey team has officiallyentered a slump. The Bears returnedhome this past weekend after beingshut out the previous week in back-to-back games on their second upstateNew York road trip in as many weeks. Infront of sparse crowds on Friday andSaturday, Rensselaer (RPI) and Unionhelped extend Brown’s winless streak tofour games. A dearth of offensive pro-duction continued to plague the Bears,who found the net only once eachnight.

On Friday night the Bears battled theRPI Engineers for 65 minutes to a 1-1tie. The tie extended Brown’s home-unbeaten streak to 11 games, but wasnot the win the Bears needed to getback on track. Yann Danis ’04 helpedsecure the point with an excellent 31-save performance and Captain TyeKorbl ’03 netted his first goal of the year.

Despite only allowing 22 shots ongoal, RPI offered Brown many scoringopportunities such as seven powerplays due to eight penalties. Twice theBears found themselves with a five-on-three advantage, although both timesRPI goalie Kevin Kurk teamed up withhis newly found friend the goal post todeny the Bears a much-needed goal.

“We’re just not finishing on thepower play,” said Head Coach RogerGrillo. “You need to create your ownbreaks and not rely on the puck bounc-

ing your way.” While unable to convert on all seven

power plays, the Bears were able to killall five RPI power plays, including onefive-on-three at the end of the first peri-od.

Danis kept Brown in the game earlyon, stopping 13 shots in the first and sixin the second, including a sharp glovesave on a breakaway midway throughthe second period. Feeding off his stel-lar play, Brown scored the first goal ofthe game with ten seconds left in thesecond, narrowly avoiding being shutout for the eighth period in a row. ChrisSwon ’05 and Jarrett Robertson ’05, whoalmost scored on a break secondsbefore, earned the assists on the goal byKorbl.

RPI answered back with a goal earlyin the third period from junior RyanShields. For the remainder of the thirdperiod and a rather uneventful five-minute overtime neither team was ableto find the net.

“We’re trying to get our offensetogether,” said Brent Robinson ’04.“Right now we’re in a slump, and theteam as an entirety needs to step it up,but we’re still confident in each other.”

Saturday afforded Brown a chance tograb a win before heading off on a longroad trip. Despite a hard fought effort,the Bears came out on the short endagainst Union and suffered a 4-1 loss,bringing their record to 4-4-1. Just 57

Men’s icers run winlessstreak to four games

dspics

Men’s hockey heads out on the road this weekend with games vs.Yale and Princeton.

see MEN’S ICE, page 5

BY KATHY BABCOCKThe Brown women’s ice hockey team start-ed Thanksgiving break Tuesday eveningwith a 4-4 tie with Providence College andfinished it by dropping a game 3-2 to sec-ond-ranked Harvard on Sunday. Harvardis currently undefeated in the ECAC with a5-0 record in the conference.

“Harvard we lost to by one goal,Minnesota it was two. It’s little things rightnow that are preventing us from winning,and I think next semester we’ll have a littlemore experience — the younger playersespecially,” said Kim Insalaco ’03.

Brown smoked the Friars in the first fewminutes, scoring three goals before theten-minute mark. In the second periodProvidence managed to tie it up, getting itsfirst goal when Melanie Ruzzi fired a highshot that slipped past Pam Dreyer ’03.

“We had a rough second period againstProvidence and we’re having a really hardtime as a team right now playing threeperiods of hockey in a game,” Insalacosaid. “I think that is one of our biggestdownfalls right now, and also gettingscored on with under a minute left in aperiod is something we’ve talked about asa team.”

Brown took an early penalty in the thirdwhen McDonald received two minutes forhooking. The Friars were able to capitalizeon their power play when Katelynn Laffinput one past the sprawled Dreyer to givethe Friars the lead. Brown managed toeven it up with a goal by Courtney Johnson’03 at 9:42, but the Bears were not able tofind the net again. Neither team was ableto score in the remaining ten minutes orovertime. Dreyer had 33 saves for the dayand the Friars’ Jana Bugden had 28.

On Sunday, the Bears were at home fac-ing the Crimson. Both teams started

BY SHARA HEGDEThe Brown women’s basketball team facedsome stiff competition this past weekendat the Dead River Company Classic at theUniversity of Maine, coming home withlosses in both their games.

In the first round, Brown faced the hostteam, University of Maine. The Bearsjumped out to an early 8-5 lead but theBlack Bears responded with a 22-10 run togive them a nine-point lead at the half. TheBrown Bears received a strong perform-ance from Holly Robertson ’05, whoscored 11 of her 15 points in the first half.However, Brown was hampered by 17turnovers in the half and went into thebreak down 27-18.

The second half saw a reinvigoratedBrown team match Maine point for point.Tanara Golston ’04 provided a spark forthe Bruno, playing an exceptional all-around game. She finished with 15 points,six assists, four rebounds and three steals.Point guard Sarah Hayes ’06 also playedwell, contributing four steals. However, thenine-point halftime deficit proved to betoo much for Brown to overcome as it fellto Maine 60-51.

The loss to Maine placed the Bears in

see WOMEN’S ICE, page 5

see HOOPS, page 5

THIS WILL BE MY THIRD AND FINAL BCSarticle for The Herald. I know you’re all sad,but you’ll get over it. The funny thing is thatthis is the first time that the BCS will proba-bly get things right. That is, of course,assuming that Miami beats Virginia Tech.

Regardless of thisfact, the BowlC h a m p i o n s h i pSeries is still a verypoor system todetermine whoplays for thenational champi-onship in collegefootball. It some-how takes into con-sideration record,difficulty of compe-tition and “qualitywins.” The margin-

of-victory category, a.k.a the SpurrierClause, was taken out this year to preventteams from running up the score like, say,the Chiefs did this past weekend. Evidently,margin of victory counts for something inthe AFC West. This was a good step for theBCS system to make, but it still doesn’t cor-rect the obvious flaws that still exist.

As of today, there are two undefeatedteams and two teams with only one loss.Unless Miami loses next week, the systemwill work, as the two undefeated teams willbe playing one another in the Fiesta Bowl.Never mind the fact that the same resultwould have occurred without the BCS com-puter, as Miami and Ohio State are rankedfirst and second in every poll in the UnitedStates. The question, however, remains ofwhat happens if Miami should lose thisweekend to a talented Virginia Tech team?The BCS will be left in a position of thereexisting three teams with just one loss. Iowa,Georgia and Miami would all have a goodclaim to play in the National Championship,but two of them would get shafted and nothave the opportunity to knock off an OhioState team that has barely won severalgames against lesser opponents.

Imagine if the last game of the NBA finalswere tied after regulation and the game hadto be decided by calculating strength ofschedule, field goal percentage and numberof steals. It just makes no sense.

Some in football seem to actually havereason on their side. Steve Spurrier, for exam-ple, used to push for the institution of a play-off system every year. He got so fed up withthe system that he decided to go and try todominate the NFL, which he succeeded withas evidenced by the beautiful display of foot-ball on Thanksgiving Day. The Skins are asore spot for me, so back to the BCS.

If, for instance, Georgia loses to Iowa ina bowl game, it really won’t hurt theBulldogs too much. They had a great yearand didn’t come through in the end. In aplayoff scenario, both teams would playharder and better because they would havea chance to win it all. This would be moreentertaining for the fans and good for thegame as a whole.

So for the first time, it seems that theBCS will actually come through and pickthe two best teams to play in the FiestaBowl. It is not unforeseeable that down theline there will be a year with three solidundefeated teams. Then a machine willdetermine which are the two best teams incollege football, without even giving theteams a chance to prove it on the field.

Jeff Saltman ’03 hails from outsideWashington, D.C., and is a history andeconomics concentrator.

JEFF SALTMANTHE SALT’S TAKE

tuesday, december 3, 2002

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