OCR::/Vol_114/WLURG39_RTP_20101104/WLURG39_RTP_20101104_001.2.txt ‘ re» '51 ‘3 . 4.55 2552 , \r- l\ ‘r Q r(2'o..'Z '. I Chatting with the Police Chief. J on Salm sits down with Alfred S. Thomas, LeX1ngton’s new Chief of Police, and discusses how to improve commumty commumcation. OPINIONS / page 4 GTON ND LEE UNIVERSITY THE RING-TUM PHI. THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 4, 2010 BY THE Housing pitfalls Dealing with bags, bats and bad landlords . By Courtney Ridenhour STAFF WRITER lt’s that time of year again. The leaves are falling, Barbour jackets are making a return to campus and leases are being signed. After the security deposit is in, all that’s left to do is name the place and answer the all-important question of where the beer pong table will go. But the joys of leasing a fabulous off-campus house can be cut short by the discovery of bugs. Or, in the case of junior Grace Cushman, bats. ' Cushman and her four housemates had just set- tled into their off-campus house when they received the unsettling news. “We had bats in our attic that we didn’t know about when we first signed the lease,” Cushman said. The group had to pay for an exterminator and_ evacuate the house for a week while it was fumi- gated. Because the bats had been a problem before the group moved in, the five students thought the landlord should help pay for the exterminator. The landlord disagreed. “For the most part, we were pretty upset with our landlord,” Cushman said. “We felt he may have tak- en advantage of the fact that we had never lived in a house before without our parents and had absolutely no idea what we should pay for as tenants.” “For students looking at housing: don ’t stress and don ’t feel obli- gated to sign a lease if you think... repairs need to be done. ’ Danielle Bowman, senior ‘ Other students have also run into issues with their landlords. Senior Danielle Bowman said her land- lord has been unresponsive to repair requests. “The problem is that she doesn’t own the house, someone else does. And for anything to get done, we have to wait until they’ve communicated. Getting something done takes a lot longer,” she said. The problem for many first-time renters is that they don’t know what to look for when they are looking for a place. But Washington and Lee hasn’t left students to completely fend for themselves. lnforrnation on renters’ rights and a guide to off- campus housing are available on the Washington and Lee website under Residential Life. The 28-page guide includes a list of local real estate agencies and a Home Condition Checklist. ‘I Despite these resources, when renters do run into trouble with landlords, W&L has “no legal recourse,” Dean of Student Affairs Dawn Watkins said. According to Watkins, signing a lease is a deal between two private citizens and the school cannot intervene. If major problems occur, renters can submit a written request for an inspection to the Rockbridge County Building Department. “There is no charge,” Rockbridge County Build- ing Official Erich Schnetzler said. Depending on the severity of the infraction, landlords are given anywhere from one week to 30 days to remedy the problem. . The request can only be made by current tenants. Students searching for a house need to be careful and vigilant. , “The nuance that students have to understand is what they’re buying,” said Watkins said. Bowman said she learned some important les- sons from her housing experience. “For students looking at housing: don’t stress and don’t feel obligated to sign a lease if you think some- thing like repairs need to be done,” she said. “I felt pressured because we sign leases so early. 1 pretty much settled for the first house I saw.” Cushman also offered advice for those in the house-hunting process. “Know your landlord’s reputation before you sign the lease, and make sure you’re both aware of the expectations,” she said. “Every house has its little issues and weird tweaks, and having a heads-up about them before- hand would have saved us a lot of time.” Rockbridge County Building Department: 150 South Main St., Lexington, Virginia, 24450 (540) 463-9361 STUDENTS AND H‘ ..irr FOR THE STUDENTS SINCE 1897 uiling VOLUME CXIV, Washington and Lee is capital campaign seeks to raise $500 million in seven years By Paige Gance STAFF w RITER - Washington and Lee University’s capital campaign, “Honor Our Past, Build Our Future,” launched into its public phase with the announcement ofa $500 million goal. This goal was revealed at a kick- off celebration on Oct. 22, with 350 trustees, donors and friends of the university in attendance. The quiet phase began on July 1, 2008. The entire campaign will last seven years and end on June 30, 2015. The campaign goal is one of the highest ever set by a liberal arts col- lege. It doubles W&L’s last cam- paign, “For the Rising Generation,” which totaled almost $243 million and ended in Dec. 2003. Donations thus far total $310 mil- lion and include Rupert H. Johnson’s gift of $100 million and Gerry Len- fest’s gift of $50 million. According to Vice President of University Advancement Dennis Cross, early progress is encouraging. The campaign has raised 62 percent of its goal, more than the 40-60 per- cent Cross said a quiet phase of a campaign should raise. “Our goal is aggressive, but reachable,” said Cross. “We have great confidence in our abilities to meet it.” The campaign breaks the total goal into five main categories, with the first four adhering closely to the ‘ii University’s 10-year Strategic Plan developed in 2007. These include student recruitment, faculty and staff, campus improvement and academic programs. The last category is grow- ing the annual fund, which isnot part of the Strategic Plan but still vital for the University’s financial flexibility. Cross describes the priorities of this campaign as more broad based than the last one. He said the differ- ence is like that between a rifle and a shotgun. According to Cross, the final goal amount is based on a compromise between the estimated cost of the Strategic Plan and an evaluation of potential donors’ abilities to give. “It allowed us to think of what are the highest priorities of the Strategic Plan,” said Cross. The difference be- tween the cost of the Strategic Plan and the campaign goal is an extra $100 million. Cross said that reallo- cation of funds, tuition revenue, and loans could cover this gap. The estimated goal began more modestly, only $400-450 million. Cross recalled a meeting of the cam- paign cabinet in New York City in Nov, 2008, right as the economic downturn intensified. “Things seemed bleak,” said Cross. They continued their plan however, and as the quiet phase pro- gressed, “it became clear that 400 was too small, we could go higher.” Campaign Co-Chair Phil Norman said that a significant portion of the goal has already been invested in the first two priorities because of John- son and Lenfest’s gifts. Since the Johnson Scholarship program was announced, the number of applicants to W&L has increased from 3,700 to 6,200. The gift also established a lecture series, opportu- nity grants and two new professor- ships. “We want to bring in students from all over the country and the world so that we have a more diverse environment for students to learn in, that is more reflective of the world in which they will spend the rest of their lives,” said Norman. The gift from Lenfest focused more on recruiting and retaining exceptional faculty. According to Cross, the salaries of W&L profes- sors are 10 percent lower than those at peer institutions. Funds from Lenfest will be used to improve professor salaries as well as to support research, sabbaticals, visiting scholars and faculty initia- tives in emerging areas such as envi- ronmental science and entrepreneur- ship. “We want to keep our great teach- ers active scholars,” said Cross. V Of the remaining goal, $120.5 aignijellofc ° $160m for student recruitment ° $122m for faculty and staff ° $120.5m for facilities ° $37.5m for academic programs - ALSO: growing annual fund $60m million will support campus im- provements such as the Colonnade renovation and a new indoor athletic facility. Academic programs like Spring Term and internships will re- ceive $37.5 million. The campaign will also increase the annual fund to $9 million per year. While these investments will im- prove many facets of the University, Campaign Co-Chair Warren Ste- phens said that W&L will stay true to its traditions and core academic offerings. “I think any major change in the way Washington and Lee educated young people would be fiercely re- sisted by the board and by every con- stituency we could possible think of. We’re not looking to make wholesale changes in how we operate,” said Stephens. As the public phase of the cam- paign moves forward, the cabinet will focus on matching donor inter- ests to particular priorities, Cross said. Rector J. Donald Childress is confident that the Board of Trustees and Campaign Cabinet will be able to inspire gifts to the University. “More than any other college or university with which 1 am familiar,” said the Rector, “those who come in contact with this University develop a relationship that is both intense and indelible.” This is a campaign of meaning and renewal. It is about our core mission and its relevance to a very challenging future for Washington and Lee and its students. And it is ambitious and historic. It will be noticed not only for its reach but also for the priorities we have established within it. It says something about this university.’ It also says something about the leadership role we will assume in shaping the future of the liberal arts.’:*,‘;;e‘t-ii-,i‘i" - W&L President Ken Ruscio NUMBER 7 OCR::/Vol_114/WLURG39_RTP_20101104/WLURG39_RTP_20101104_002.2.txt UNIVERSITY LIBRARY LEXINGTON, VA 24450 NOV 0 8 Ziiill WASHINGTON & LEE UNIVERSITY 2 0 THE RING-TUM PHI 0 MONDAY, I1 GWS Legen dary anchor speaks at W&L Former CBS anchor Dan Rather delivers the keynote address at the 5 0th Institution on Ethics in Journalism By Becky Mickel STAFF WRITER Speaking to a crowd of over 300 on Friday at Washington and Lee University, former CBS managing editor and anchor Dan Rather compared passionate journalism to the patriotic sacri- fice of soldiers fighting overseas to protect our country. Rather’s speech, titled “The Crisis in Journalism and Why We Should Care,” was the key- note address of the university’s 50th Institute on Ethics in Jour- nalism. In addition to attending Rather’s speech, W&L joumal- ism students spent the weekend discussing ethical issues with journalism fellows from media outlets around the country and with Rather himself. Although his speech was at times very critical of the process of news-gathering today, Rather repeatedly including himself when he spoke about the mis- takes reporters often make. Rather said that one of the biggest, problems in journalism today is the tendency of report- ers to accept obviously “spun” answers from authority figures without asking needed follow-up questions. i According to Rather, journal-‘ ists have a patriotic duty to ask the tough questions and to pre- vent the crisis that stems from insufiicient reporting. Because journalists’ actions and inactions can have just as much signifi- cance as the men and women in uniform, reporters owe it to the public to report the facts and to protect democracy, said Rather. In addition to shoddy report- ing, Rather said conglomeration and increasing entertainment media has created a crisis for journalists and the public. “The news has become cor- poratized, politicized and trivial- ized,” said Rather. According to Rather, news is now a byproduct of international conglomerates, safe thoughts and even safer re- porting. ‘ Rather said that journalism is crucial to democracy because it allows America to remain a fact- gathering society. According to Rather, if jour- nalism is to be rescued from the “entertainment crisis,” the public must educate themselves prior to elections and news resources must be available to the public. Rather emphasized that free- dom of the press is essential to democracy, which is why it is protected in the Constitution. He did, however, distinguish free- dom of the press from freedom of the media. According to Rath- er, entertainment media is not protected at the same level as the press because media is not news. Although all forms of media may not be protected, Rather stressed the importance of de- fending freedom of the press as well as the importance of solid, reliable well-researched news. “[News is] for us, for Amer- ica and for the freedom of the flag for which we stand,” said Rather. PHOTO COURTESY OF GOOGLE Payne Hall closed for renovation Payne Hall, home of the W&L English department, is the next step in the Colonnade renovation project By Kelly Mae Ross STAFF WRITER As any student or faculty member passing by the Colon- nade may have noticed, the next phase of the Colonnade preser- vation and rehabilitation project is underway. Phase 2B, the reno- vation of Payne Hall, began in late September. Payne Hall is the home of the Washington and Lee English De- partment. Now that work on the building has begun, the olfices of the English Department profes- sors have been temporarily relo- cated to Baker Hall. The work on Payne will be completed by early August 2011, giving the members of the department time to get settled back into the build- ing before classes start up again. According to the university’s Director of Design & Construc- tion, Tom Kalasky, work will be performed over the next year on both the interior and exterior of the building. Kalasky said that the exterior of the building will be “renewed and freshened” but not changed in any major way. The interior of the building is another story. New mechanical and electron- ic systems will be installed on the inside of Payne Hall, includ- ing new fire alarm and sprinkler systems. Central air condition- ing will replace the individual air conditioning units that used to jut out from almost all of the windows of the building. The building will also be completely handicap-accessible, meeting standards set by the Americans’ with Disabilities Act. Kalasky said that the new and improved Newcomb Hall is a good benchmark for the work that is to be done on Payne. The new Payne Hall will con- tain l2 faculty offices, a semi- nar room, several classrooms and a student lounge. Members of the design and construction team worked with deans from the university to create the plan for the interior of the building. Classrooms will be located on all floors, with the hope of increas- ing student traffic to all parts of the building. The design and construction team is also attempting to mini- mize the impact that the Colon- nade preservation and rehabili- tation project will have on the environment. A waste manage- ment plan was created in order to maximize the amount of waste that is recycled, as opposed to just shipped off to the landfill. Also, whenever possible, regional con- struction materials are used. The use of regional materials means that fewer fossil fuels are used in the transport of these materials I because they come from nearby suppliers. Despite the fact that so much work is being done to Payne Hall, Kalasky said that the build- ing is going to look pretty much the same as it did before all of the construction and rehabilita- tion began. “The simplicity of the archi- tecture speaks for itself” Payne Hall is the second building on the Colonnade to be renovated. The first, Newcomb is an example of coming improvements. MEG WEIGEL/staff photographer Moms and dads come to campus Parents weekend events range from concerts and classes to athletic events, early-morning hikes and parties By Chelsea Stevenson STAFF WRITER Every year students look for- ward to the two fall days that are spent with their parents, not at home during Reading Days but on campus, with approximately 2,000 other visitors. If you ask a returning student, they’ll tell you that they love having fun with their parents, who may or may not have been Washington and Lee students once themselves, at various par- ties throughout the weekend. These parties usually range from “Tex Lex” (an event to celebrate all of W&L’s Texans) to pledge class dinners, and the traditional Red Square band party. But be- yond the nightlife that brings parents back to their college days, the W&L Student Affairs Department has a lot in store for‘ this year’s Parents and Family Weekend Celebration. The weekend kicks off on Fri- day, November 5, where parents are welcomed to join students in their classes. According to Nel- lie Rice, the Executive Assistant to the Vice President for Student Affairs and Dean of Students, parents are welcome to attend any on campus class. Before or after attending class, parents should drop by the registration table in the Elrod Commons Living Room to pick up a complimentary tote from Student Affairs and student vol- unteers. Rice said she enjoys meeting parents during registration, “they email you, but it’s really nice talking to them face-to-face.” Parents will also have the op- tion to attend pre-arranged Finan- cial Aid Conferences throughout the day. Between 1 p.m. and 6 p.m. several departments will host open houses, for students and their families to attend. The open houses may include stu- dent research presentations and self-guided tours. Career ser- vices will also host two events on Friday: an open house and an hour-long class titled “From Major to Career.” Appointments with faculty, administrators and the University Registrar can also be pre-arranged throughout the weekend. Original to this year’s Par- ents and Family Weekend will be an afternoon book signing with alum Dr. Horace Douty, class of’54. Douty is the author of Histogg Lessons from a Coun- try Church, a book about the stories ofaRockbridge County’s 250-year-old Oxford Church. The book signing will be held in the Elrod Commons Atrium and is sponsored by the W&L Book- store. Earlier on Friday evening, families of first-year students will have the opportunity to at- tend a Greek Life Q&A, and first-year females and their fami- lies will have the chance to tour the sorority houses. Following the information on W&L’s Greek recruitment process, first-year students and their parents are in- vited to a reception at President Ruscio’s house. W&L has organized events for families to continue on through the night such as a Night-Sky Viewing in the Canary Islands, which will display photos of planets and galaxies from a 14- inch shared telescope. The Uni- versity Choral Concert will take place in the Wilson Hall Con- cert Hall at 8 p.m. Tickets are required for the concert but are free of charge. After a long day of tagging along with students and seeing what life at W&L in 2010 is re- ally about, the fun will continue bright and early on Saturday. Clay Coleman, director of Stu- dent Activities and Greek Life, will direct a 6:30 a.m. morning run throughout campus. For ex- ercise fans who find 6:30 a.m. too early after a long night with their students, the Cycling Club, also known as Team Traveller, will lead an hour-long bike ride for all skill levels. Once mid-moming exercise has concluded, the Generals Ral- ly and Luncheon will be held in the dining hall before the l p.m. football game. The rally will fea- ture the University Jazz Ensem- ble in the Marketplace. Tickets are $8.75 per person. In addition to the football game against Hampden-Sydney, W&L swimming will face off against Randolph Macon Col- lege at l p.m. After the athletic events, there will be a special welcome recep- tion for grandparents in the Elrod Commons. W&L’s a cappella groups and University Wind Ensemble will hold concerts Saturday night. Both events require tickets, which can be obtained through the box ofiice. According to Rice, the concerts during the celebratory weekend have been very well attended in past years. The W&L Student Affairs office has spent an entire year putting this weekend celebration together, with the help of Facili- ties Management, the Develop- ment Office, Dining Services, various academic departments, and of course, W&L students. Each year, W&L receives an abundance of positive feedback from parents and strives to have the weekend run just as smooth, if not easier, than last year’s. According to Rice, “Parents are easy to please, as long as they get to spend time on campus with their students.” OCTOBER 25, 2007 OCR::/Vol_114/WLURG39_RTP_20101104/WLURG39_RTP_20101104_003.2.txt THURSDAY NOVEMBER 4, 2010 3 - THE RING-TUM PHI ' Stopping alcohol-related tragedies The student health center, Traveller and the new Green Dot program enourage behaviors that keep students safe By Randi Wilson COPY EDITOR Every year 150-200 Washing- ton and Lee students will wake up in the health center. Accord- place on campus they could be. When a student is taken to the health center, the nurse on duty Throughout the night, they are often checked on to be sure they are sleeping soundly and still breathing. An average of 40-50 students are sent to the emergency room for special care before they can return to the health center for the rest of their night. Only one or two cases a year require extend- ed hospitalization. W&L’s nurses take care of those students who might oth- erwise be put to bed by their friends and expected to “sleep it off,” just like they do at other colleges across the nation. According to Horton, W&L students are great at bringing stu- V dents in when they seem unsafe. At other colleges, sometimes the only options are the hospital (where there is a fear of judicial action) or just going to bed. I If a student does not receive care they might never wake up. A few weeks ago, Radford University sophomore Samuel Mason, 20, was found dead in an off-campus Tau Kappa Epsilon house, according to the school paper. He was a pledge of TKE, a fraternity already on probation for serving alcohol to minors. Mason was seen drinking a bottle of liquor at the fraternity house the previous night before being walked by friends to the off-campus house and put to bed. Police found his body the _ RAND! WILSON / staff photographer Students who have had too much to drink can get the care they need at the student health center, which is open 24 hours a day. poisoning, though there have been other alcohol-related deaths in the University’s history. The last time alcohol played a role in student deaths was a drunk driving accident in Octo- ber of 2000, when two students, Adam Burchett, 20, and Kristin Shelton, 18, lost control of their SUV homecoming weekend and flipped over on the highway sev- eral times. The trees on the right side of the GBD quad are in their memory. The student health center is one of the reasons W&L has been able to avoid alcohol-re- lated deaths. Judicial action is not brought against students that spend the night in the health cen- ter. While it has always served this purpose unofficially, a task can be brought into the health center at any time of night, free of charge and free from worry about legal or university conse- quences. “If assistance is needed, it shouldn’t be denied,” said Hor- ton. Horton said that some schools are not as understanding as W&L. These schools’ health centers may turn away intoxi- cated students, saying “we do not do that.” For example, the Radford University health center is open until 6 p.m. on Friday, and does not reopen until 8:30 a.m. Mon- day morning, according to their webpage. While they do have a 24-hour emergency call line stu- dents can access, it’s a far cry from W&L’s overnight health According to Horton, chang- ing times have made it more dif- ficult for college students to be safe. Binge drinking is a new is- sue that simply wasn’t a problem decades ago. Women are keeping up with men, going shot for shot and drink for drink. Men have discovered alcohol energy drinks like Four Loko, which contain 5-6 standard drinks in one con- tainer. The “energy” components like taurine and guarana, combat the effects of alcohol, allowing consumers to drink more without feeling as poorly. All of these factors caused October to be the record month for the health center: 55 students were treated, thehighest num- ber in its history. September was also very high. Horton believes that November and December ing to Dr. Jane Horton, 60-75% of them are freshmen. Not all of them will remember their nights, but all of them are _in the safest takes their BAC, determines if they are in a stable condition and puts them to bed if they are sober enough to talk and walk. next morning. During Dr. Horton’s 23 years here at W&L, there. has never been a death caused by alcohol The E. Caté EXPERIENCE A NEW DINING OPTION ON CAMPUS! ocated in the new Hillel House, is a kosher caté featuring N.Y. Bagels, a variety of cream cheese spreads, specialty sandwiches, salads, soups, and smoothies. VIEW THE MENU AT go.wlu.edu/ecate As an extra incentive, bring the following coupon and receive a 20% discount On your first or next purchase at the E. Caté. ENJOY THE EXPERIENCE WITH 20% OFF Coupon Expires Nov. 30, 20lO Hours of Operation: Monday thru Friday, 7:30 a.m.—4:OO p.m. The E. Caté accepts food or general debit, flex dollars and cash. ll7 West Washington Street “If assistance is needed, it shouldn ’t be denied. ” Dr. Jane Horton, Director of Health Services retuI.ning to campus and rush force created in response to the deaths of Burchett and Shelton formalized it. The Alcohol Task Force was created in the fall of 2000 by then-President John Elrod, ac- cording to the W&L website. Its purpose was to find ways to change the culture of alcohol at W&L, after ten alcohol-related student deaths in the 90’s. This led the university to adopt the “University Initiatives on Substance Abuse” which de- fined the three-strike rule for al- cohol and drug violations. According to Horton, students stays. The health center is just one way that the university is trying to keep students safe. Traveller, the student transit service, was designed as a way to prevent drunk driving. W&L also just re- cently started Green Dot, which is a “bystander mobilization program,” according to Jennifer Sayre, Coordinator of Violence Prevention. “A Green Dot is a moment in time when someone makes a choice to be actively and vis- ibly intolerant of violence,” said Sayre. will be slower months because of Thanksgiving and finals. She hopes numbers will not remain high in January with students week. Book club turns the pages back Page Turners, a new club at W&L, reads lighthearted children 3* books to destress students By Kelly Mae Ross STAFF WRITER The newest club on campus aims to put some fun back into the art of reading—fun that can be lost during long nights of reading nothing but textbook af- ter textbook. Sophomore Cassie McGinty, founder of Page Turners, said she hopes to help members “return to the roots of reading” by delving into exciting books. McGinty said she started Page Turners because she be- lieves that despite how academi- cally successful students are at W&L, they don’t do enough fiin reading. McGinty chose works for the club that she hopes will attract a variety of people. She said that she selected works that would “challenge assumptions” that people might have, for instance, about fantasy novels or about the value of reading a children’s book when you are 20 years old. The club will read works from several different genres and meet biweekly to share their thoughts. The first book that the club will be read- ing and discussing is a children’s novel entitled Inkheart. McGinty selected Inkheart as the first work for the club because she thought that reading a chil- dren’s book during midterms would put the least amount of stress upon members of the club. Page Turners will meet some- time next week to discuss the first several chapters of Inkheart, but it is not too late for new members to join the club and get in on the discussion. Used copies of Inkheart are available for purchase at a dis- counted price in the University Bookstore. OCR::/Vol_114/WLURG39_RTP_20101104/WLURG39_RTP_20101104_004.2.txt 4 0 THE RING-TUM PHI THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 4, 2010 opinions An interview with the chief of the Lexington Police force The Police Chief discusses the community policing, noise violations, and Washington & Lee students Editor is! note.‘ Usually, we would run this in the News section, but as it is a follow-up to other opinions articles, we decided to run it the Opinions section. Bylon Salm STAFF WRITER Earlier this week, I sat down with Alfred S. Thomas, Lexing- ton’s Chief of Police. Despite having only been Chief of Police for the past six months, Thomas has a firm grasp on life in Lexington and how his department can help improve it. During our conversation, Thomas spoke about the con- cept of community policing and how he has introduced it to his officers in order to increase com- munication within the Lexington community. ‘ Thomas also responded to a number of criticisms of his de- partment, including a response to the “War on Noise” that has seen ' parties shut down earlier and ear- lier this year. Ring-Tum Phi: Tell us about yourself. How did you end up in Lexington? Chief Thomas: I’ve been here for about six months. I was appointed Chief of Police in Lex- ington back in April of this year. I started my career with the Lynch- burg Police Department. I was in Lynchburg for over twenty years and had a number of assignments during my career there. I attained the rank of captain, worked as a patrol captain, the IA [internal af- fairs] commander for a stint and also served as a staff captain. Phi: After entering the police department, what have you want- ed to change about it? Is there anything particular to Lexington you have wanted to change? Thomas: One promise I made the employees here in Lexington when I first arrived was that I am not going to come in and try to turn this agency upside down with changes. I am not going to try to make this the Lynchburg Police Department. We will move slow and deliberate to find out what works here. We will custom fit the changes towards Lexington PD. We will not make changes just to make changes. It turns out I was wrong, I have made a lot more changes than I thought I would make so far. When problems arise and if I see an opportunity to do something better, then we’ll make change. We’ve made a number of changes in the last six months, more than I anticipated. Not changes be- cause there were major problems — that is one of the reasons why I came to this city. This wasn’t a police department that needed a culture change. We weren’t hav- ing problems with officers doing anything rimmoral, unethical or illegal. But I saw opportunities to see the department run a bit more efliciently. I am a huge pro- ponent of community policing. I saw an opportunity to take that to a new level with the talented of- ficers we have here. Phi: Can you tell us a little more about the idea of commu- nity policing? Thomas: Absolutely. The essence of community policing is partnerships with the com- munity. Let me preface that by saying something about the 911 phone system. We made a prom- ise to the community — if you dial 911 a policeman will show up and solve all your problems. We started to really have that mindset. Call us; we’re the ex- perts; we’ll solve your problems for you and we’ll leave. What we have discovered over time is that we are not always the experts. We don’t always know what all the problems are and we can’t solve all your problems. That’s when community policing really started to really take hold. Police started working more as a part- ner with the community and with other city government employ- ees to truly identify, prioritize and problem solve.‘ Phi: How has community po- licing come to affect Lexington? Thomas: There are a num- ber of programs. Because we are a small city, that can be good and that can be bad. Everybody knows everybody, which is great. But what I’m finding is that al- though we’re small, there is still sometimes a disconnect. I’ve seen a number of civic groups that are all doing good work in this community, but I’m not sure they always communicate with each other. Sometimes you can have different groups working on very similar projects that are not combining or pooling their resources to become more effec- tive. That’s where the police can come in. If were reaching out and partnering with all the civic groups that we can, if were going to community watch meetings, if were talking to people, we can be that conduit. We can be the communication between all the groups in the city. Especially in a smaller community, I think that it is important. You just automati- cally assume that we all know everything that is going on in this area, and we don’t. Phi: How do you feel you can help 'Washington and Lee stu- dents or Virginia Military Insti- tute students? Thomas: Well, I don’t really distinguish between the commu- nity and W&L students or VMI students. You are all part of the community the way I see it. The students at VMI and the students at W&L live here. You need to have ownership in this commu- nity and that’s how we treat the students — you are members of WASHINGTON AND LEE UNIVERSITY ~— Tii1?R1No -TUM IE. MANAGING EDITOR NEWS EDITOR OPINIONS EDITOR ARTS & LIFE EDITOR SPORTS EDITOR COPY EDITORS CONTRIBUTING WRITERS DESIGN EDITOR STAFF PHOTOGRAPHERS BUSINESS MANAGERS DISTRIBUTION STAFF EDU. DIANDRA SPICAK ELEANOR KENNEDY STOCKTON BULLITT HOLLY SUTHERS JAYNA JOHNS SAMUEL GILLERAN RANDI WILSON JESSIE YKIMOFF JOHN PAUL BEALL CAMPBELL BURR LIZZ DYE PAIGE GANCE SUMMER LOLLIE KIRSTEN KYNE BECKY MICKEL COURTNEY RIDENHOUR BURL ROLETT KELLY MAE ROSS JON SALM PATRICK SMITH CHELSE STEVENSON KATIE HATFIELD MEG WEIGEL ROB GEORGE MATT GOSSETT KELLY LANE JOE MORAVEC EVAN SHARBER ZABRIAWN SMITH DAVE WILSON MISSION STATEMENT: It is the mission of THE RING-TUM PHI to accurately, truthfully, and thoroughly report news affecting the Washington and Lee community for students, faculty. parents and alumni. Our goal is to look deeper into news affecting campus life and hold leaders accountable. Through our reporting, we aspire tospark discussions that lead to discovering information that prompts change. THE RING—TUM PHI IS PUBLISHED MONDAYS DURING THE UNDERGRADUATE SCHOOL YEAR. THE R/NG-TUM PHI IS A MEMBER OF THE MEDIA BOARD, BUT IS OTHERWISE INDEPENDENT. QUESTIONS OR CONCERNS ABOUT THE PHI SHOULD BE ADDRESSED TO THE EDITORS AT PHI@WLU.EDU OR TO THE MEDIA BOARD AT MEDIABOARD@WLU. THE MEDIA BOARD IS AN INDEPENDENT, STUDENT-RUN EDITORIAL OVERSIGHT COMMITTEE WORKING WITH ALL MEDIA OUTLETS ON THE WASHINGTON & LEE CAMPUS. WILL REMAIN CONFIDENTIAL. THE RING-TUM PHI WELCOMES ALL LETTERS. WE RESERVE THE RIGHT TO EDIT SUBMISSIONS FOR CONTENT AND LENGTH. LETTERS AND ADVERTISING DO NOT NECESSARILY REFLECT THE OPINION OF THE RING-TUM PHI STAFF. TH/S NEWSPAPER OBSERVES CURRENT COURT DEFINITIONS OF LIBEL AND OBSCENITY. THE RING-TUM PHI UNIVERSITY COMMONS ROOM. 341 WASHINGTON AND LEE UNIVERSITY LEXINGTON. VIRGINIA 24450 TELEPHONE: (540) 458-4060 FAX: (540) 458-4059 EMAIL: PH|@WLU.EDU SUBSCRIPTION RATE $45 ALL INQUIRIES the community. You should not be treated any differently. You should have a voice in your com- munity and be involved in your community. I know for a fact that students are very involved. I gave a speech at the Lexing- ton Women’s Club and I com- mended the students, particu- Iarly at W&L, because of how involved they are. Students have more stress now that ever before. They are doing so much more and so much more is expected. But there is still a sense of com- munity, a sense of service. I am seeing more and more of that and I am so impressed. I told the la- dies at the Women’s Club about my daughter. She is a 13 year old at Lylbum Downing Middle School. One thing that she is excited about is that W&L girls go to the school every week and mentor young girls. I don’t know if people in the community know how important that is. My mid- dle school-ageddaughter has a college student as a mentor. She By Patrick Smith STAFF WRITER The best idea occurred to me last Wednesday night when a couple of friends and I went to a rock concert at the University of Virginia. Think about this: driving your car somewhere and being able to park it. SAFELY. Iknow this idea seems a little crazy, par- ticularly in Lexington. Lexington is the city where you can go somewhere for only two hours at a time. It’s great on days when you have 3+ hours of class in a row to attend, and even better on days when you forget your car is in two-hour parking. It is just the best feeling ever when you stroll back to your car after a hard day of work and find that shiny green parking viola- tion on your windshield. I LOVE paying fifteen dollars to the City of Lexington, almost says, “Dad, I can talk to them about life problems, what its like to go to high school, what its like to go to college and we just talk about life in general.” These are things that I can’t talk to her about. She has students who can, who come in and do that on their own. I think that is invaluable. There are programs and things that students do in our commu- nity that you don’t get credit for. Its fun to talk about noise com- plains and shutting parties down because that sells papers. I really don’t think students do a good job of talking about your com- munity involvement and all the important things you do in our neighborhood. I think you sell yourselves short, quite honestly. Phi: You seem to have quite the positive image of W&L stu- dents. What about any negative things you have seen from stu- dents? . Thomas: Well, there is one negative. lt’s not that unusual. I ’ve seen students make some poor decisions related to alcohol. Whether it is underage drinking, underage possession of alcohol or excessive drinking, I have seen some students make some very poor decisions in that area. Al- cohol alfects people differently. I am concerned when I see people who are drinking in excess leave a party and are walking alone. I know we live in a safe city, and I am proud that this is a safe city. But you are more likely to be a victim if you are not using your faculties, if you are inebriated to a point where you are not aware of your surroundings. It is dan- gerous, and I think that is a prob- lem. I have seen students leaving parties walking across the street laughing and talking, not a care in the world. They don’t even see cars driving around. They don’t pay attention to traffic concerns. But I will say that I don’t see as much of that as I used to see in Lynchburg. It is still problemat- ic, but what I do see a lot of here is that people tend to walk in groups. I think that girls are do- ing a betterjob of looking out for each other. I think the male stu- dents need to step up. If they see a female or two females by them- selves and they are walking back at midnight, they need to escort them home. Chivalry is not dead. We are still in the South. Phi: The W&L community, especially students, has the per- ception that the police depart- ment is out to get them. That of- ficers want to arrest them, to give them speeding tickets, violations and citations in order to increase department revenue. How do you respond to this criticism? Thomas: I would say that is just the opinion of a few. Over- all,-the students I’ve met with and talked to are very intelligent. as much as I love typing words in all-caps to accentuate my ar- guments. ‘ Now, here comes the sob sto- ry. Have no fear for I have hired my own violinist to follow me around. Just this year already, I have received three parking vio- lations. The first one I deserved be- cause I forgot my car was in two hour parking and left it there all day. The second one, I was parked for about two hours and four min- utes. That guy was just WAIT- ING for me. For the third ticket, I got a little too cute and thought I could beat the system. There is a brick parking lot below Lee Chapel that is labeled, “visitor parking”. Apparently V this is not the case. They want to learn. They want to know why things are done the way they are done. I think that is the majority of the student base. There are two sides to every story. When I met with the IFC a couple of weeks ago, I asked them how many noise permits they thought were issued per year. The answers ranged from 50 to 100 to 200. We issue in excess of 100. Then I asked how many vio- ' lations they thought were issued on average each year. I got ev- . erything from 20 to 50 to 70. The fact of the matter is that this year, we have issued four summonses. I am not sure that is all W&L. It may not be any W&L. We don’t distinguish between W&L, VMI and the community. Last year, for the entire year, we issued five. I don’t like to argue with some- one over their opinion. Everyone is entitled to their opinion. I do like to engage folks in intelligent discussion. Let’s talk about what really happens. This community is very tolerant of students hav- ing social activities. We don’t go to parties unless we receive a complaint from the community. If there is no complaint, we don’t respond unless we need to. If we respond to a complaint, then we issue a warning. We let students know that it is time to lower the noise, control the crowd. If we get a second complaint, then we can make a decision whether or not to take enforcement action. Phi: How much do you work with the W&L administration? Thomas: I interact on a regu- lar basis with W&L officials, primarily with public safety of- ficials, but also with the Dean of Students. We talk whenever necessary. We have an excellent relationship to the point where I feel comfortable contacting them any time I have a problem. Believe me, they do the same. When they hear complaints and concerns from students, they pick the phone up and call us. We’ll either talk on the phone, email, or if it’s serious, have a face-to-face meeting. That’s the best way to work out your prob- lems. Sit right across from each other and talk about it. Phi: Have you spoken with Dean Watkins concerning a re- cent article published in the Ring-Tum Phi? It introduced the “War on Noise” ~ the fact that parties have been getting shut down earlier and earlier com- pared to earlier years. Thomas: Yes, Dean Watkins sent Mike Young [W&L direc- tor of public safety] over here to have a face-to-face discussion with me about that incident. For- tunately, the deputy Chief of P0- lice was actually there that night the party was shut down. I credit Dean Watkins and Mike Young. They wanted to know firsthand. I purposely did .not register my vehicle with the school be- cause I knew that where I live is too close to campus to utilize the parking deck. If I am not going to get any utility out of registering my car, why pay the registration fee? So here is where the trickery comes in to play. One day I decide to park in the Lee Chapel parking lot for thirty minutes so that I can run into the Beta fraternity house to get a quick bite to eat. My vehi- cle could have been any random alumnus’, a recruit’s, a prospec- tive student’s, etc. Yet, after my totally‘ killer lunch (it was fajita day), I had a fat ticket sitting on my wind- shield and a light bulb hovering above my head in the form of a great idea. Before they jumped to any con- clusions, they wanted to know the facts. .Phi: How would you have a party operate if you were a part of the W&L administration? Thomas: I think something is working. If we’re having well over 100 parties in this small town every year and there are only four or five violations, I think something is working, don’t you? If we were having 150 parties and 100 violations, if people were being arrested, if we were shutting parties down, then I’d say we have a serious prob- lem. What we’re lacking now is communication and planning. I think that the students being held accountable should have a plan if a neighbor feels that a party is too loud and calls the police. You can’t plan that at ll:30 the night of a party. If you are planning a party and you have a week’s no- tice, you need to have a plan to make sure the party stays under control. That’s an opportunity where students can do a better job. Do I have a plan? Can I shut the music down lower? Can we have a tent erected? It surprises me how much a tent really helps with the sound. We encourage the students to go out and talk to the neighbors. It’s important to be good neighbors. Talk to the people who live in the area and let them know. There is a lot of planning that can be done on the students’ part. If students have concerns, then I encourage them to come sit down and talk to us. Come meet with the police de- partment. We want everyone to have a good time and be safe. Phi: The W&L administra- tion has strongly encouraged on-campus social events, such as those in fraternity houses, to those off-campus at Windfall or the Pole Houses. Do you have a preference to as where students go when they go out? Thomas: I don’t necessar- ily have a preference. I have no authority to say where a party should take place. I know there is a lot of talk now about bring- ing parties back to the city. We don’t have many alcohol-related arrests right now in the city. I know folks won’t believe that [we do], but we really don’t have very many. The more parties, the more those numbers will go up. It’s a numbers game. When par- ties are in town, we don’t have students operating motor vehi- cles. lt’s one thing to be walking on the street when you’ve had too much to drink. You might become a victim. You might put yourself in danger. If you operate a motor vehicle, you put every- one around you in danger. Cars beware; they are out to get you Despite being in the middle of nowhere, parking in Lexington is still a pain Razor Scooters. Remember in the olden days when Razor Scooters were the bee’s knees and going to your friend’s house on one was the cat’s pajamas? Join the movement; let us all make Lexington a place where Razor Scooters run free. Stop beating your gums and being such a wet blanket, there is no room in this town for such raga- muffins. For a complete list of l920s slang, please feel free to contact me. Otherwise, tune in next week when I discuss our University’s amazing Internet service. Why did the Canadian cross the road? He saw some American do it on TV. OCR::/Vol_114/WLURG39_RTP_20101104/WLURG39_RTP_20101104_005.2.txt THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 4,2010 THERING-TUM PHI -5 opinions Lex Appeal: Helping prospective students choose W&L After suflering bad experiences herself Campbell Burr explains the do is and don ’t for hosting a prospective student By Campbell Burr STAFF WRITER Despite the countless plane rides, road trips, hotel stays, in- formation sessions and tours that made up my college search, it was ultimately Washington and Lee Parents’ Weekend that left the strongest impression. Parents of younger siblings, be forewarned: come Sunday, your second child will want to be a General, too. Some thoughts that crossed my mind over my inaugural Par- ent’s Weekend: Are all applicants required to submit a headshot? Why is everyone going to the football game in every color but royal blue and white? Is shag/swing dancing a pre- requisite for admission? Overnight visits can make or break an applicant’s view of a school. My visits to W&L have been wonderful, but I’ve had less pleasant experiences at other uni- Versities. A word to anyone hosting a prospective student: you have the power to make or break his or her view of your school. Here are some pointers... 1. Do not drink too much. My overnight visit to a Vir- ginia state school would have been awesome if I hadn’t spent the entire night making sure my host didn’t pass out. I expected that she would take it easy and look out for me, as I Remember, rememb was a senior in high school. Not so. The night began with her having a cocktail (or three) in her room. She told me that most nights she ended up “blacking out somewhere.” That made me feel good. We headed to a pregame down the street. My host walked in, headed to the bar, and downed a strong mixed drink. Before I could say “Gucci,” she was wasted. She couldn’t even stand up without putting a death grip on my shoulder. When I tried to mingle with the other students, she followed me, clasped her hands around the neck of the nearest boy and passed out against his chest. At- tractive. At one point, my host started laughing so hard that she fell onto her back and began rolling back and forth on the floor, mum- bling something indecipherable. People were staring at her. I ran over to pull her up. She preferred the ground. 2. Do not try to impress your prospective with the amount of alcohol you can get your hands on or how “hard” you apparently go. During my college visits, I re- alized that the nerdier the reputa- tion ofa school, the more its stu- dents bragged about “how hard they partied” and the more they pretended that they didn’t work or care about school. At one school it seemed as if everyone I met was obsessed with destroying his nerdy high school reputation, despite the fact he was attending the world’s most prestigious university. As I prepared to head off to a big football game with my host at an Ivy League school, I met some boys determined to convince me that their weekends involved se- rious binge drinking. The moment I walked into one eating club to meet my host’s friends, one of them handed me a beer. Not in the genuine, consid- erate, “this girl might be thirsty” kind of way. It was more of an” I want to show this girl how tight I am because I can give her alco- hol” kind of offer. I considered taking a sip then spitting it out, “Ew, this tastes weird!” orjust refusing it, “Mom would kill me.” I decided not to accept the beer. The girl I was with laughed. “No! Do not start corrupting her already!” I wanted to remind her that I actually had a social life in high school. I probably came across as awkward and uncom- fortable, even though I was nei- ther. Shortly after another boy walked into the room holding a backpack. My guest introduced us er the 2nd Before I could finish the “nice to meet you,” he unzipped his bag to show off the “goods” for the game. He described every‘ drink in his bag, while nodding his head and laughing about how sick the day would be. This scene was faintly reminiscent of a l6-year- old bragging about raiding his parents’ liquor cabinet. 3. Do not leave your prospec- tive to hook up. and had no way of letting myself into her locked apartment. To make matters worse, my phone was on low battery. I didn’t know if she had al- ready gone to the bars down the street or if she was in one of the apartme ‘s with her new “friend.” . I decided to take a risk and head downtown. I felt more com- fortable being in an area that was populated. As if that wasn’t bad enough, later on that night, she left me in her apartment to go make out with the boy. Whatever. At least I got the bed to myself for part of the night. The main point here is to be a responsible host and don’t act too cool for school. This brings me back to Par- ents’ Weekend. W&L students seemed normal, well-rounded, W&L students seemed normal, well-rounded, and most importantly, happy. There was no bragging about alcohol and no acting like they didn ’t care about anything. This was rare. Most of you are probably hor- rified to think that a host would actually leave a high school stu- dent alone on a college campus to go hook up with someone. Un- fortunately, it happened to me. The same drunk girl at the Virginia state school told me that she would wait for me outside of an apartment complex with the boy she had been leaning on before while I went to get some- thing from my car. When I came back ten minutes later, she was gone. I tried calling her. No answer. And again. Still no answer. I was unfamiliar with the area I kept calling her. Still no answer. And then, I felt it com- ing. Tears. And then slowly, a sob, and then as people probably started wondering, “Who is the random girl shivering and crying on a street corner?” My phone began to ring! My host was call- ing. She said she would meet me outside the bars in a second. She had been in one of the apartments hooking up with the boy. I waited ten minutes, and then saw a girl in a revealing shirt stumble over. “I’m so sorry.” It was the same whiny, drunken voice. It was too much to take. of November and most importantly, happy. There was no bragging about alcohol and no acting like they didn’t care about anything. This was rare. It’s refreshing to attend a school where the students have a range of talents and interests. What other schools have fra- ternity presidents who are skilled chefs, tennis stars who can recite the platform of every politician or future investment bankers who can use the words “valu- ation” and “dank” in the same sentence? I can’t think of one. The GOP gains in the midterm elections are overshadowed by a rise in independent presence among voters ’. By John Paul Beall STAFF WRITER The midterm elections are finally over, and they were cer- tainly interesting to watch. The political landscape has greatly changed. In other words, this election was explosive. The final results of the elec- tion held huge gains for Repub- licans in the House and in gov- ernors’ races, accompanied by still alive; Sen. Barbara Boxer held off a California Republican onslaught; and the govemorship of California revertid to Demo- cratic control. But that was small consolation for Democrats dur- ing this election. As of press time, the count in the House is 186 Democrats (a loss of 60 seats), 239 Repub- waged a write-in campaign after being defeated in the Republican primary by Joe Miller. While it could take weeks to tabulate all the ballots, the Democratic nom- inee Scott McAdams, has been eliminated, leaving the choice between Miller and Murkowski. Moreover, Murkowski has re- peatedly pledged to caucus with While it appears that the party system still has enough integrity to be the dominant force in our nation ’s elections, the non—aligned move- ments are picking up speed. moderate gains in the Senate. The GOP can cheer that Nan- cy Pelosi (D-CA) is no longer Speaker of the House, and major players like Sen. Russ Feingold (D-WI) have fallen by the way- side, but many other heavy-hit- ting Democrats are still in office. Sen. Harry Reid (D-NV) came out of the arena tattered but licans and 10 seats too close to call. For the Senate, the gap has been closed. There will be 52 Democrats in the ll2th Senate and 46 Republicans, with two races too close to call. One of those races is the three- way race in Alaska, in which in- cumbent Sen. Lisa Murkowski the GOP if re-elected, thereby ensuring that seat will stay in Re- publican hands. For governors’ races, there are 15 Democrats, 29 Republicans, 1 independent (from Rhode Island) and 5 still undecided. Perhaps today it is inappropri- ate to just analyze things in terms of blue and red, because the real action in the election took place with third-party candidates, per- haps a sign that the party system has some fundamental changes coming to it. Other races have also seen independents take charge. Con- sider the race for governor of Colorado, which saw a Republi- can rejected by the party run and claim many more votes than the GOP-endorsed candidate. F lorida’s Senate race saw ex- Republican Charlie Crist run as an independent and pick up more votes than the Democrat, as GOP candidate Marco Rubio picked up almost the entire Republican base. Also, New England saw a fundamental change in this re- spect as well. In the Maine race for governor, the Republican topping the polls had an Inde- pendent nipping at his heels, and in Rhode Island, an Independent won the race by a few points. While it appears that the party Alumni-in- November Programs Call or come by Career Services to make an ' appointment with one of these alums to talk about their fields of interest Ben Barton ‘76 W&L, Natural Science and Math Major MD., University of Tennessee Cardiotlzoracic Surgeons of Roanoke Valley \X/ed., Nov. 10, 2:00 - 4:00 p.m. Chris Tutor ‘09 Economics Major Security Specialist Office of the Undersecretary of Defense for Policy Friday, Nov. 12, 9:00 — ll:30 a.m. Hilary Craig Tutor ‘09 Journalism and Mass Communications Major Recipient of the Sarah Ball Teaching Award Friday, Nov. l2,‘9:00 -11:30 a.m. Join Hilary for Lunch at 12:15 in Commons 206 WASHINGTON AND LEE UNIVERSITY Residence CAREER©SERVICES CAREER SERVICES WELCOMES PARENTS TO CAMPUS ]OlN Us FOR A CONVEIRSATIION ABOUT now CAREER sisnvicias PARTNERS WIITH STUDENTS “FROM MAJOR TO CAREE ” Friday, November 5 1:30 -2:30 pm 01' 3:00 — 4:00 pm Room 345, Elrod Commons‘ WASHINGTON AND LEE UNIVERSITY CAREER©SERVICES system still has enough integrity to be the dominant force in our nation’s elections, a non—aligned movement is picking up speed. While this election posted great gains for the GOP and the Democrats’ power base is large- ly intact, the old-time oddity of having an independent such as Lieberman is becoming more of a commonality, which speaks loudly‘ to the change in our coun- try’s voting habits. It could either mean that dis- satisfaction with gridlock has rendered a need for a third per- spective, which would mean that people are largely looking at the virtues of each candidate (which would explain some of occur- rences like the Senate race in Delaware). The corollary ofthis indicates that this movement is positive re- flection on voters, who are gener- ally accused ofvoting by party. Furthermore, the rise in inde- pendent voting could be a tempo- rary phenomenon that will recur as long as the two—party system is destabilized though partisan- ship. On the other hand, it could be a reflection of the decline of the party system and its loosen- ing monopoly on the political system, which may not be such a temporary occurrence. So now that the system has returned to balance, all politi- cians must tread carefully. Any more gridlock could lead to the dissolution of the political es- tablishment under two parties, a system that has given our coun- try strength in the past. To paraphrase Benjamin Franklin, Republicans and Democrats must hang together or together they will each hang separately, as independents are setting vital precedent with every move. This is the inflection point from which the great change promised will come. I I ~ .&-‘American Cuisirip A _ Br,eakfast~ Lunch~ Dinner. f , 5 V (Breakfast served all (lay;lj)»p‘:i Tuesday-Thursday: 7AM — 9PM” 0' , Friday and Saturday: 7AM — 10PM ‘} Sunday: 7AM - 3PM Closed Mondays Lunch and Dinner Specials! V Carry Out Available "Go Greek at Niko’s! 167 South Main Street “ ' ” Lexington, VA A Phone: 540.464.9499 Fax: 540.464.1226 Look for menu at www.nikosgrilI-cafe.comK‘ - V OCR::/Vol_114/WLURG39_RTP_20101104/WLURG39_RTP_20101104_006.2.txt 6 ' THE RING-TUM PHI THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 4, 2010 opinions How the Democrats lost the midterm elections so badly Looking back on the successes and failures of the last Congress and what to look for in the next two years By Summer Lollie STAFF WRITER As I watched the midterm elections come in on Tuesday night, I’ll admit, I shed a tear or two, yelled, screamed and possi- bly threw a few things. While the Democrats did manage to retain control ‘of the Senate (thank you, Tea Party), the Democrats lost control of the House of Representatives in a devastating fashion, leaving me wondering how we got to this point. The Democrats were always poised to lose seats in both chambers. In Congress, the party in power will almost always lose seats during mid-terrn elections. Also, the party in power will most assuredly lose seats if the economy is down and unemploy- ment is up. The Democratic-controlled 111th Congress started their ses- sion facing the worst economic downturn since the Great De- pression and was faced with near double-digit unemployment fig- ures. It is unsurprising that the exit polls found that almost 9 out of 10 people thought the economy was in bad shape, and, despite the fact that the majority of Ameri- cans still believe that George Bush and Republican policies got us into the mess, the Ameri- can people blamed the party in power for not fixing it. However, Democrats can- not come out of the loss simply blaming the economy. The Dem- ocratsplayed a role in their own defeat. President Obama and Con- gressional Democrats had con- trol of both houses and the presi- dency, yet decided to play footsie with a Republican Party that was determined to be the party of “no” from the very beginning. The Republican Party played except to send a few annoying videos and encourage people to hold “Healthcare Parties.” Instead of mobilizing the base, the Democratic Party did the opposite; they demobilized it as many troops to Afghanistan, and continued and expanded the Bush/Cheney national security policies. How much more centrist could Obama and Congressional Now, the Republicans have to deal with a fractious party as they figure out who the hell these Tea Party candidates are and what they want. Republicans will quickly discover what they learned in 1994 — that it is much easier to talk than to govern. the obstructionist legislation af-I ter legislation with the goal of gridlock. Democrats could not swal- low the fact that the Republican Party was not going to come to the middle and work with them. In 2008, the people gave President Obama and Congres- sional Democrats a mandate, and instead of using that mandate to govern, they gave the public tep- id legislation in the name of bi- partisanship that was never really going to come. The Republicans were dead set to block anything the Democrats put out. And what happened to the co- alition that Obama and the Dem- ocrats built in 2008, anyway? President Obama’s presiden- tial run left the Democrats one of the strongest voter mobilization networks this nation has seen, promising to keep the voters en- gaged as they governed. Yet, until the upcoming days of -the election, the Democrats did not use their Organizing For America network for two years by chasing after the Republicans and ignoring their base. It didn’t help any when Rahm Emmanuel called the Demo- cratic base “t"‘*king retards”. One should not bite the hand that feeds them and then expect more snacks. However, do not believe the things you will hear following the election. President Obama and Congressional Democrats did not overreach. The TARP (bank bailout) was Bush’s baby. The stimulus package, deemed too small anyway, was needed to stave off the economic downturn the Bush policies created, and the financial regulations bill was deemed insufiicient by the ma- jority of Americans. Do not believe that this elec- tion loss meant that Obama and Congressional Democrats should have moved more toward the center. He was always in the center. He cut taxes, passed Mitt Rom- ney’s healthcare plan, opened off-shore drilling, sent twice Democrats be? In fact, it was the Blue Dog Democrats who took the most losses. While unfortunate for those needing Democratic rep- resentation in purple states, Blue Dogs chose to act like Republi- cans and thus shot themselves in the foot. Trying to imitate a Republi- can will not bring you votes, es- pecially if voters can pick a real Republican. Do not believe that this elec- tion is a vindication of ‘conser- vative philosophy. Demoralized Obama voters stayed at home, and non-aligned independents defected, voting against a lousy economy—they voted for perfor- mance rather than ideology. Democrats did do a lot: passed financial reform law that prohib- ited banks from engaging in pro- prietary trading and established a Consumer Financial Protection Bureau to look out for the inter- ests of everyday Americans. Democrats passed the health- care reform bill, preventing in- surance companies from denying insurance because of a pre-exist- ing conditions, cut prescription drug cost for Medicare recipi- ehts by 50%, extended benefits to same-sex partners of federal employees, passed the Ameri- can Recovery & Reinvestment Act of 2009: a $789 billion eco- nomic stimulus plan and signed the Children’s Health Insurance Reauthorization Act, which pro- vides health care to 11 million kids - 4 million of whom were previously uninsured. They also significantly expanded Pell grants, which help low-income students pay for college. The list goes on and on. On a side note, I would like to say that one of the biggest ca- sualties of Tuesday night (setting aside Prop. 19) is that Nancy Pe- losi will no longer be Speaker of the House. Speaker Pelosi walked lock- step, synchronized with President Obama and ALWAYS got the votes. The House was dispropor- tionally blamed for the Senate’s failures. Nancy Pelosi didn’t de- serve this. Harry Reid did, yet it was Pelosi who lost her job. Where, you ask, does all of this lead us? Well, more grid- lock, that’s for sure. Keep a lookout for Boehner and Cantor calling to shut the government down. Watch out for moves to put Wall Street in charge of Social Security and insurance compa- nies in charge of Medicare, and get ready for the ridiculous use of Congressional time and money as the Republicans try to “investi- gate” the Obama administration. For Republicans, the NoBama policy stopped Tuesday. Now, the Republicans have to deal with a fractious party as they figure out who the hell these tea party candidates are and what they want. Republicans will quickly discover what they learned in l994—that it is much easier to talk than to govern. Republican policies got us into this mess; let’s see if their policies can get us out of it. - President Obama does have one advantage: he is one voice against the babble of Republican and Tea Party voices. This is the time when Presi- dent Obama and Congressional Democrats can make the differ- ences between Democrats and Republicans very clear. This is not the time to appease Republicans. Stand your ground, President Obama. Truman stood his ground,. Reagan stood his ground. Now it is time for President Obama to stand his ground and stay true to the principles he campaigned on to get elected. As the Republicans struggle to bring their caucus together, improve the economy and create jobs while beholden to the busi- ness interests that funded their campaigns, the Democrats need to let it be known that they are a party of political courage, not political contributions. Democrats need to regain their voice as the party for the people by the people and remember who and what they are fighting for. The trouble with rooting for both Donkeys and Cowboys As his beloved Dallas Cowboys and Democratic Party take their seats in the cellar, Stockton Bullitt laments on the loss By Stockton Bullitt OPINIONS EDITOR I’m a Democrat and a fan of I the Dallas Cowboys, so this re- ally hasn’t been the ideal autumn for me. I’ve had the joy of listening to Sean Hannity call Barack Obama racist against black people, and even worse, I’ve had to remind a friend of mine who is a Giants fan that Jon Kitna was a washed up quarterback for the Lions three years ago! I really wanted to make this article a giant pity party for me. Oh, how difficult my life is: Re- publicans kicked the Democrats’ ass this past Tuesday almost as badly as the Jaguars (reminder: Jacksonville is a city in the Unit- ed States, albeit an irrelevant one, and it does have a football team) dismantled the Cowboys in their own stadium. Did I mention my best fantasy football player is Peyton Hillis? But the more I think about it, the happier I am about this situ- ation. Being a Democrat and a Cowboys fan hasn’t really been that easy since early 2009. This school is filled with Republican fans of every other team in the NFC East, so it’s not like the daily taunting I get is new to me. Plus, for the last three years, the head coach of my favorite football team and the Congres- sional speaker for my party have been Wade Phillips and Nancy Pelosi. Are you serious? With the unemployment rate hovering around 9%, it is noth- ing short of a crime that these two strangely similar individuals have been getting a generous sal- ary for a combined seven years. Every time either one of their faces fiashes on the TV screen, I have to fight the insatiable urge to throw something. And I’m the one who’s supposed to root for these guys. By the way, Republicans, wipe that smile off your face. Re- member, Michael Steele, a.k.a. Brad Childress, is still the head of your party. Yes, this is a time of cleansing for both the Democrats and the Dallas Cowboys. I can finally sit back and put all my chips on Obama like I wanted to do from day one of his presidency, and I no longer have to wait until early January for Tony Romo to treat my hopes and dreams like his own personal Jessica Simpson. I am in the position I was used to growing up: watching the “Daily Show” for clips of blatant Republican lying and reading Mel Kiper Jr. for his thoughts on early draft picks of defensive backs (I’m preordering my Cow- boy Prince Amukamara jersey as we speak). Moving forward, this apoca- lyptic week could not be better for the long term future of both my party and my team. The Cowboys are finally go- ing to get themselves rid them- selves of Jason Garrett and Wade Phillips, who proved to be as in- telligent under pressure as W&L students on Windfall once the cops show up. Plus, Dallas leads the league in attendance and has the most money, so it’s not like they are the Cavaliers and won’t be good for another quarter of a century or so. Sorry, Cleveland, at least you have Eric Mangini to look forward to. My certainty in the Demo- crats is a little more complicated to explain. For starters, is having a Dem- ocratic President and a Repub- lican Congress all that bad for anybody? The last time we had it, 1994, led to a pretty sweet six ‘years in America. The economy was good and the biggest foreign policy issue was a war in Kosovo that mattered infinitely less to Ameri- cans than Kurt Cobain’s death and Hanson’s new album. For the last two years, I’ve had to constantly hear about how evil and idiotic Democrats were. I had the pleasure of listen- ing to extended tirades about the similarities between Barack Obama and Vladimir Lenin. So, Republicans, you got what you wanted. I look forward to seeing the fruition of all this proposed change that I keep see- ing in commercials. __ You say that you are going to fix the way Washington is run, Remember the wonderful job you did with responsibly coming out of the 2001 recession, con- trolling government spending from 2000-2008, and getting out of wars during the Bush admin- istration? Oh, you’re over that now. Well, have fun ignoring the Tea Partiers and leftover neo-cons in your own party now that you have the power back. More importantly, let’s say you are who every single Repub- lican here says he or she is: “Lib- ertarians” with a little Reagan thrown in there. In other words, you find ways to drastically cut down on gov- ernment spending without hav- ing to resort to taxes and fix this war in Afghanistan, all the while Republicans do works out. Then Obama can just take credit for all that success. If you believe that Americans are too smart to see that logic. Remember they were dumb enough to expect Obama to pay their mortgage and Christine O’Donnell to perform witchcraft once elected. Just know this, Republicans: enjoy this election as much as you can for the next two months. Despite not controlling the Senate, you are the ones with the momentum. You just started dating the hot, popular chick, and right now she’s in the honeymoon phase. This is the time when you break out your “NObamaCare” t-shirts. mg once spring rolls around. So with my football team and political party in disarray, I’m looking to the future. I’m excited for Bill Cowher to be introduced as the new head coach of the Dallas Cowboys. I’m excited to see some won- derfully stagnant Congressional bills. Mostly though, I’m excited to see what you Republicans do with this opportunity. Yes, you guys might find suc- cess with all your proposed leg- islation, and maybe you’ll even wise up to the fact that your best candidate for 2012 BY FAR is Haley Barbour. The current governor of Mis- sissippi is the only member of the GOP who actually scares Oh, how difiicult my life is: Republicans kicked the Democrats ’ass this past Tuesday almost as badly as the Jaguars (reminder: Jacksonville is a city in the United States, albeit an irrelevant one, and it does have a football team) dismantled the Cowboys in their own stadium. and I look forward toyou imple- menting your groundbreaking ideas. For all the shit you give us Democrats, these past two years haven’t really been the complete failure you said it has. Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell? Mis- sion Accomplished. Troops out of Iraq? You’re welcome. Health Care? Failed. Oh wait, that passed? Sucks bro... Now it’s your turn. You think you can balance this economy, stifle government spending, and win the war in Af- ghanistan? Go right ahead. I’m all ears. somehow getting our economy out of the toilet. If that happens, then my life has just been made drastically better, and I’m perfectly fine with that scenario. This is where Baracka Flaka Flame‘ comes in (Barack Obama for those who haven’t seen the YouTube video). He’s a winner either way this works out. Let’s say the Republicans de- cide to abide byvtheir “no com- prise” slogan and don’t work with Obama _on anything. Then, Obama can play the helpless president card for the 2012 elec- tion. And let’s say everything the This is the time when you re- mind Democrats about how this is the biggest swing in the House since 1932. This is the time when you go around telling everyone you kicked out the only thing worse than Michael Moore, a San Fran- cisco liberal, for some guy named Boner. . .er. . .Boehner. Remember though, once Jan- uary rolls around, you are going to be the ones with the respon- sibility. You are going to have to convince that hot, popular girl why she needs to stay with you through 2012, and let me tell you, her eyes are going to start drift- any Democrat, and his fund rais- ing efforts with the Republican Govemor’s Association have surpassed even the RNC’s. Trust me, the only thing stopping this guy is_ a heart attack from his umpteenth Wendy’s run. But, just like I know that the Cowboys will make the playoff in 2011, I know that Republicans won’t ride off into the sunset that easily. I know that Sarah Palin or Mitt Romney will find some way to get back into the presidential race, and I know Republicans will be distracted. So, have fun with your new Congress, Republicans, I’ll be watching football. OCR::/Vol_114/WLURG39_RTP_20101104/WLURG39_RTP_20101104_007.2.txt ‘M MONDAY, OCTOBER 25, 2001 THE RING-TUM PHI 0 7 arts&Iife . Rugby player from half way around the world W&L sophomore applies his skills from F iji on the rugby fields of Southwest Virginia By Holly Suthers ARTS&LlFE EDITOR Hailing from the remote vil- lage of Natewa, Fiji, Tuwi Ro- kodulu became involved with Washington and Lee’s Scream- ing Minks Rugby Team in an efl°ort to stay in touch with his roots. The sophomore has been involved with the team since the pre-season of his freshman year and has continued to be an inte- gral member. . The Screaming Minks have a long-standing history at W&L. Established in 1966, the team has traveled all over the country to compete. The Minks are cur- rently in the midst of their fall season and will have another season in the spring. The rugby team is part of Campus Activities and Recreation and is coached by Tom Lovell and John Welsh. As a continuation to the'Cam— pus Recreation Spotlight series, Tuwi agreed to answer questions about the team and his involve- ment in it. Phi: How long have you played rugby? . Tuwi: I have played rugby ever since I can remember. In Fiji primary school rugby is di- vided into four grades namely A’s, B’s and C’s and D’s. D’s are grades 1 and 2, C’s are 3 and 4 up until A’s which encompass the upper grades of primary school, I guess it would be termed mid- dle school here. In Form 3, I switched to soccer but promptly switched back the year after that. After that it has been all rugby up until this point. Phi: What is your favorite as- pect of playing rugby at W&L? Tuwi: I really like the com- radeship between the players, themselves and with the coaches. I’m used to a cutthroat competi- tive environment if I wanted to play for the starting 15 or the starting 7. Here it is more re- laxed and friendly and really allows me to just enjoy playing with friends. Phi: Do you have a favorite A memory or story that took place during a rugby match, practice, etc.? Tuwi: memory last year was that of Vos David, Law Exchange stu- dent last year, and [sophomore] Miguel Garza I3’. Vos would put in a perfect cross the field kick and Miguel would have the sheerspeed, balance and timing to score time after time. This season so far [sophomore] John Hale’s kicking game has been quite impressive. Of course off the field, it is having dinner with Coach John and his family and especially being entertained by his son JP. Phi: How much time do you My favorite rugby , put into the Rugby Club? Tuwi: Basically it is just two hours every Tuesday, Thursday and Friday and usually the whole of Saturday, too. brute force, loads of injuries and a lack of elegance. However, it all comes down to preparation, not unlike any other sport. In fact once a team starts getting to- because that definitely played a role. It also helped that friends were already here namely [ju- nior] Raisa Velasco and [senior] Anitesh Lal. comments that you would like to add? - Tuwi: I would really like to thank thosefamiliar faces on the rugby field sidelines, thanks for PHOTO COURTESY OF TUWI ROKODUU Tuwi Rokodulu takes to the rugby field at the beginning of the match on a gorgeous fall Saturday. Phi: Is there anything about the rugby team that you would like the campus to know about? Tuwi: Other than the fact that we still need people to come out, not really, no. But on a more se- rious note I think rugby has the misconception that it isjust sheer gether, it is uniquely elegant and makes for a good watch. - Phi: Why did you choose to come to W&L? Tuwi: It was a variety of fac- tors, chiefly among them the Honor system. I would be re- miss to blot out rugby here, too, Phi: What is your favorite as- pect of W&L? Tuwi: The small classes would have to be it and the easy relation to the professors. Other than that it would have to be my friends. Phi: Do you have any other coming out to support the team. Also to those of you who buy rugby tee’s, thanks, as well. Ku- dos to my Host Mum and Dad Mr. and Mrs. Toner and the only rugby’ cheerleader [sophomore] Sirocco Fury Hamada. Subject of musical too dark for one student ‘Assassins ’reviewer says that the story line and music was depressing, but that the actors played their roles to a tee By Julie Hansen smrr wnmzn Washington and Lee’s dq- partments of Music, Theater and Dance showed their portrayal of Assassins, a musical based on an idea by Charles Gilbert, Jr., with music and lyrics by Ste- phen Sondheim; think “Sweeney Todd.” Before I get into the nitty—grit— ty details, let me just warn you, Assassins is a play you probably shouldn’t take your grandmother or younger sister to. There is no want of swearing or gunfire; there are rather vivid interpretations of death and execution; and, for a musical, there is a great deal of long soliloquies. The musical itself has an eerie vibe to it, dealing with the deaths of presidents and the thoughts that possess people to murder a national figure, whether the rea- sons were for infamy, politics or pure psychosis. Furthermore, the anachronistic conversations between assassins left me con- fused; it was a break from the historical facts and speculations that the musical is greatly based off of. Adding to the confusion was the non-chronological pre- sentation of assassinations, espe- cially since I need to brush up on my U.S. presidents. In all fairness, most of my complaints really can be blamed on the script and my own person- al preferences in musicals. I had a conversation with a classmate who saw the same showing and he came away praising the things I was criticizing, namely “Un- worthy Of Your Love,” a song in which John Hinckley, played by freshman Yates Wilbum, and Ly- nette “Squeaky” Fromme, played by freshman Kaitlyn Farley, sang to their respective muses, Jodie Foster and Charles Man- son. I said it felt bizarre hearing crazy people sing to their unre- quited loves as though they were religious figures; he said that was the point, he had never thought about assassin’s reasoning’s be- hind their actions. Despite, what I interpreted as a very dark musical, W&L music, theater and dance stars shined throughout. Senior Johnny Coyle played a relatable, almost likable John Wilkes Booth; that is, when he wasn’t acting as menacing, time-traveling instigator of more than a centuries’ worth of assas- sinations, which he did just as convincingly. In fact, Booth is the sanest assassin in the whole show, killing the president as a political statement against the Civil War, rather than for an ul- cerated stomach, like Giuseppe Zangara, played by freshman Raya Taylor, attempted. Furthermore. with freshmen comprising more than a third of the cast, Assassins was a genuine exhibition of new W&L talent. Freshman Keith Trump brought an endearing quality to the musi- cal as he performed as the Bal- ladeer. With an excellent voice and stage-presence to match", Trump helped break the ten- sion and serve as comic relief; especially in Charles Guiteau’s. execution scene. While the au- dience (well, at least I) cringed and waited for Guiteau, played by sophomore Tyson Janney, to be hanged Trump came in danc- ing along with Janney, mocking the evangelist jack of all trades up until his final breath. Not to mention, “The Ballad of Booth” kicked off the musical’s almost comedic view of Booth’s actions, which was seen as more chann- ing than derogatory. Other new talent included Kaitlyn Farley who, despite playing a crazy hippie, was able to show off her voice while sing- ing about her equally crazy idol- boyfriend-son of god, Charles Manson. Also, freshman Sarah Williams had an excellent vo- cal presence in “Something Just Broke,” a favorite song of mine from the musical considering it seemed to restore the severity of the acts ofthose portrayed in As- sassins. W&L really excelled at bringing out the humor in this dark comedy. With her excellent comic timing and stage presence, junior Jeni Pritchett brought Sara Jane Moore to life as a hilarious, naive, crazy-mom-down-the- street character. And, when Assassins wasn’t making me laugh, it was cer- tainly giving me chills. From the executions to the projection of John F. Kennedy’s assassina- tion, I was sucked into the past and experienced ‘both what the assassins may have felt and what the general public may have felt. At times, both understanding and sympathy were felt for all of the assassins, even the psychotic ones like for Leon Czolgosz, who was played heartbreakingly genuine by senior Dave Curran. Czolgosz was it first-generation Polish-American who worked in a glass factory until the pressures and inequalities of immigrant overcame him. If there was any assassin I felt the most compas- sion for, it was Czolgosz. While W&L Music and The- ater did an excellent job of pre- senting Assassins as an informa- tive and compelling presentation of U.S. history, ifl could have changed one thing, it would have been the projection screens on the back of the stage. Though at times they did show relevant, heart-wrenching photos, such as the children living in the city slums during the late l9th centu- ry, a lot ofthe time I found them rather distracting. It is true that I have a short attention span, but also it seemed like at times it was just a Google images search. The action would have been more compelling with just the bare stage. Despite my criticisms, Assas- sins was an amazing musical that left me feeling chilled and reflec- tive, especially about the types of circumstances that lead to as- sassination attempts; It made me want to fight for equality, as well as increase security measures ev- erywhere. Greeks put on a successful carnival again Members of fraternities and sororities organize and volunteer at the Halloween Community Carnival at the YMCA ‘By Mary Helen Turnage STAFF WRITER Several Lexington and Rock- bridge County families attended the annual Halloween Commu- nity Carnival last Saturday to show off their costumes, play games and win prizes. The tunes of “The Monster Mash” and “Thriller” played throughout the day while children, parents and Washington and Lee student vol- unteers were filled with smiles on the crisp fall afternoon. The event is a joint effort among the Greek men and wom- en of W&L. The Panhellenic Council organized and plarmed the event, while the lnterfraterni- ty Council (IFC) provided a large number of volunteers and helped cover expenses. “This year we chose to benefit the YMCA’s Fall Membership Drive and the event was held in their parking lot,” said junior Kenzie Doss, Panhellenic’s Pro- gramming/Public Relations Ex- ecutive and head of the carnival this year. I In previous years, each frater- nity or sorority was responsible for running a given booth, but this year the fraternities were asked to provide the actual games. “A few fraternities really went above andbeyond. Sigma Chi made a great ‘Pin the Tail on the Donkey’ and a few members of Beta sacrificed themselves for ‘Pie a Greek,’ which just so happened to be the most popu- lar game with the kids. KA was also very enthusiastic about their face-painting,” said Doss. In 2004, the manager of Wal- Mart proposed the idea to Pan- hellenic because he thought that Greeks might be interested in volunteering for a community carnival. W&L Greek organiza- tions have participated in the event ever since. Local organizations also con- tributed to the carnival. Dave’s Produce donated 50 hay bales and 300 pumpkins. The mission ofthe carnival is to improve rela- tions with the Rockbridge Com- munity. As a winner ofthe Gamma Phi Beta College Panhellenic Award in 2008, the Panhellenic Council at W&L works hard to enhance the Greek image on campus and in the Lexington area. With help from all Greek organizations on campus, the carnival serves as a great way for fraternity and sorority members to show their loyalty to the Rockbridge area. i“We don’t raise money, we don’t raise awareness, it is just about giving to the community,” said senior Panhellenic President , ' Sarah Merritt. A carnival participant pies the face of junior Will Hall. PHOTO COURTESY OF KENZE DOSS_ OCR::/Vol_114/WLURG39_RTP_20101104/WLURG39_RTP_20101104_008.2.txt ésimous UNDERARENOVATIONS XV .“.W4Na‘,’R»nyniM“t“* _ 1 V ‘ '~«’ ‘ £1‘ ' 1 FIRST . SECOND FLOOR FLOOR Townhome Style Apartments On Nelson Street ‘ Now LEASING ‘A' High Speed Wireless Internet ~k New Heat & Air Conditioning ,. Water with Washer & Dryer *Renovated Kitchens and Baths 4 1. ALL INCLUDED NOT Affiliated with Washington & Lee University 540-GOGENRET y 540-464-3673 ian@tbmcom.com THE BUlLDlNG MANAGEMENT DD OCR::/Vol_114/WLURG39_RTP_20101104/WLURG39_RTP_20101104_009.2.txt 3); THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 4, 2010 THE RING-TU'M PHI - 9 sports Swimming success continues Men 3 and women is swim teams take down Transylvania, individuals have strong showing in Invitational By Jayna Johns SPORTS EDITOR The Washington and Lee men’s and women’s swimming teams both claimed strong victo- ries in their meets against Tran- sylvania University, in Lexington, Ky. The teams won a combined 15 events in the process of their sweep of the Pioneers. The men, who are now 2- 0 early in the season, won nine event victories to earn a total score of 169 to Transylvania’s 91 points. The women, 1-1 on the season, claimed wins in six events to win by a score of 145- 116. For the W&L men, first- years Philip Dishuck and Robert Knuth led the Generals. Each claimed victories in two indi- vidual events. Dishuck won both the 1000-yard freestyle and the 200-yard breaststroke, coming in with a time of 10:50.91 and 2:26.45, respectively. Knuth touched in first in the 100- and 200-yard backstrokes. The first he did in the time of 56.40 and the second in 2:08.52. The men’s team included sev- eral other individual winners. Senior Brandon Wilder won the 200-yard butterfly in 2:04.11, while a string of first-years also came in first. David Ireland won the 100-yard breaststroke at 1:02.30, Forrest Behne won the 500-yard freestyle at 5:15.67 and Eric Shuman won the 100-yard butterfly in 55.36. One of W&L’s men’s relay teams also came in first. The 200-yard freestyle team, consist- ing of first-years Brendan Mc- Goldrick and Matthew Hesser, senior Dorsey Terry and junior Brian Stirling, came in with a time of 1:32.34. The women also had an im- pressive showing on Friday. Five different swimmers came home with first-place individual finish- es, and, like the men, landed one relay team in the top spot. Juniors Elizabeth ‘Stames and Jocelyn Cassada claimed event victories in the 1000-yard freestyle and the 100-yard back- stroke, respectively. Stames re- corded a time of 11:17.75, and Cassada won hers in a time of 1:02.84. Sophomore Delaney Rolfe finished first in the 200-yard but- terfly with a top time of 2:20.73. Fellow sophomore Ann Mc- Campbell touched in first in the 500-yard freestyle in 5:32.32. First-year Lauren Kasoff con- cluded the individual winners for the women’s team, coming in first in the 100-yard butterfly in 1:02.79. Cassada, Kasoff, ju- nior Dana Fredericks and sopho- more lzzy Brassfield made up the 200-yard medley relay team who finished on top in a time of 1:54.91. Both teams swam again the following day in the Centre Col- lege Invitational. They swam against DePauw University, Washington University and Cen- tre College at the University of Louisville’s pool complex. Washington University won the event for both the men and women. The Generals’ men’s team came in right behind them at second, and the women’s team finished third behind second place DePauw. Three men won their indi- vidual events. Ireland came in again, this time in the 200-yard breaststroke to record a time of 2:13.02, sophomore Rick Sykes touched in first in the 50-yard freestyle in a time of 21.39 and junior Chris Washnock won the 200-yard backstroke in 1:56.75. Four W&L women came in with second-place finishes. Cas- sada had a strong weekend, as she added to her earlier win by coming in right behind the win- ner in the 100-yard backstroke, finishing in a time of 1:02.75. Rolfe built on her win Friday by adding a second-place finish in the 200-yard freestyle event in 2:00.24. Sophomore Brittany Ross finished the 200-yard but- terfly in 2:14.33 andjunior Katie Salvati touched in second in the 200-yard backstroke, recording her time of2:13.74. In all, it was a strong and suc- cessful weekend for both Gener- als’ swimming teams. The men will return to pool on Friday, November 5, when they host Gardner-Webb at 6:30 pm. The women swim again on Saturday, November 6, when they will compete against Randolph-Ma- con at 1:00 pm. Both meets will be at W&L. Generals stopped short of finals Washington and Lee s field hockey season ended after a loss in the ODAC semifinal game Wednesday By Kirsten Kyne STAFF WRITER The Washington and Lee field hockey team ended their season Wednesday night at Randolph Macon College in the ODAC semifinal game. After suffering a 2-0 deficit in the first half, the Generals began to come back but were shut down, the score ending at 5-3. “I don’t think the score re- flected how we play the game,” said sophomore Katherine Price. “I think a lot of their goals were luck and bad timing. We had vi N‘°“‘ [N1‘r‘.5fl (‘raft-‘h. ‘M. the ./U05. ii-‘x-\uvT\. New Otleitntfil . éeztfutitng /Wm 7014/SMXIL6, P6030090 . 900 léwwrv Tim Nov. 8, 2010 7:30 p.m. Keller Theatre Tickets are i'eqIiirod 1oiif\»\I.u II|.N1u WAS}11NG'1‘ON,\M>1.1i1§ ‘UNIVER SITY more shots and played our hearts out.” J uniorAnne Stevenson started off the scoring for the Generals and senior Emmy Matthew’s goal followed shortly after. “We’ve come back from worse before and thought we could do it,” said junior Lindsey Edmonds. The Yellow Jackets scored their fifth and final goal just two minutes later. Sophomore goalkeeper Caro- line Sutherland was pulled from am Dadi the game to allow the Generals to have an 11th field player. The strategy seemed to work because junior Christina Benedetti scored the third goal, but the team was unable to capitalize on the shots and comers they had. The Generals held a 28-7 shot advantage and 19-2 penalty cor- ner advantage against the Yel- low Jackets but were unable to find the goal. “We had so many shots, we just needed to get it in there,” Edmonds said. “Luck Have this funthis weekend! .2.t'li 1»...i\.w.i-_, (‘ill/vs/.I‘..i. his Life is calling. How far will you go? 1.800.424.8580 www.peacecorps.gov Forlmore information contact Ben Burnes at bburnes@peacecorps.gov. just wasn’t on our side.” Despite the loss at Randolph Macon, the Generals finished the season 9-8 including a win on Saturday for the ODAC first round against Virginia Wesleyan 4-1. This was the Generals last game on the W&L Turf Field as it will be replaced at the end of this season. It was also the last home game for the four seniors that will be graduating in May. The seniors were recognized at the end of the game with their ’~°.Ve, "76 Phi! Peace Corps at W&L Peace Corps is growing and has thousands of new volunteerjobs available for 2011! Apply now for programs departing next year. Tuesda November 9 J Information‘ Session Elrod Commons, Room 345 5:00 p.m. - 6:00 p.m. Change |ives...and your own! parents by having all of their achievements from the past four years announced. It was a very emotional game for the seniors because a lot of work has been put in over the past years for them to get to where they are now. As first-year Katja Kle- me said before the game to get the team pumped up, “Think about the seniors and how many miles they’ve run over the past four years for them to get to this game.” Tuesday — Saturday Allyou can eat crab legs and sushi 4:30 p.m. — 9:30 p.m. All Day Dinner Buffet ‘ToiJC§.3§°.if.*?.. 110 South Jefferson Street — Lexington, VA Closed Every Monday — Beer & Wine 540-463-2002 Japanese Steak House and Sushi Bar “.1 ‘.5 . I Dinnerfor Two - $29.99 Shrimp or Chicken 3:30 p.m. -10:00 p.m. No Reservation Required -rouci.:¥=.%.*%.. 110 South Jefferson Street — Lexington, VA Closed Every Monday — Beer & Wine 540-463-2002 ~ Chinese Buffet Lunch Buffet: $6.99 The speech worked with the Generals starting off with a 3-1 lead in the first half with goals from Stevenson, senior Kelly Tran and Benedetti. Tran scored the fourth goal in the second half. “I’m so glad to be on this team,” said senior Kate Donnel- 1y. ‘‘I wouldn’t want to play for anyone else. ' 11:30 a.m. — 3:00 p.m. 12:00 noon — 9:00 p.m. OCR::/Vol_114/WLURG39_RTP_20101104/WLURG39_RTP_20101104_010.2.txt THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 4,2010 10 ' THE RING-TUM PHI sports ondeck THuRs Fm SAT Sun Mon Tues WED vs Hampden- Football Sydney 1 pm. vs _ ' Menvs Gardner- swlmmlnfi webb 6:30 p.m. vs womews Randolph swimming Macon 1 pm. Vs ODAC Emory & volleyball Henry Semifinals at Hollins at Hollins 4 p.m. TBA Wrestling lVIen’s xc Women's xc Men's Soccer VlIomon’s soccer in the numbrgs The number of ODAC records Washington and Lee's football team set in Friday nights 49-14 victory over Catholic. It is also the number of players who broke the century mark in rushing yards in the game. The Generals are 5-0 in conference play for the first time in school history. .56 The number of years the San Fransisco Giants have gone without win- ning the World Series. The drought finally ended Tuesday night with a 3-1 victory over the Texas Rangers in Game 5 of the Series. EH07 Nebraska senior runningback Roy Helu, Jr. rushed for this many yards on Saturday to become the first college football player this season to gain 300 on the ground. His touchdown runs of 73, 66 and 53 yards helped lift #14 Nebraska over #6 Missouri, 31-17. soapbox “That's a santuary for our coaches, our players and our football family to be out there together doing the thing we love most. It kind of felt good to sweat out some of the feelings and emotions that were inside.” Mississippi State’s head football coach Dan Mullen on how he and the team are coping following the death of teammate Nick Bell, 20. Bell was diagnosed with cancer late this September, and passed away on Tuesday, Nov. 2, after a sudden turn for the worse. Courtesy of espn.com. “It was during the Cuban Missle Crisis. I think I won the prize. People were impressed that the president was able to break away to attend a school Halloween party.” Bill Belichick on his favorite Halloween memory during a rare light moment with the media. He dressed as President John F. Kennedy. Courtesy of foxsports.com. “I wished and hoped that it would have worked out as well. But‘ it was a programmatic non-fit, and it didn't work out. When things don't work out, you need to move quickly to take steps.” Minnesota Vikings head coach Brad Childress commenting on the recent trade of Randy Moss to the Tennessee Titans. issues between Moss and the Vikings began following Sunday's loss to the Patriots. Moss heaped praise on the Patriots while criticizln Vikings coaches for not listening to his input during the game. com. ourtesy of espn. ODAC Champions ' Women 3* cross country win conference, men finish season 6th in ODAC By Jayna Johns SPORTS EDITOR The Generals’ women’s cross coun- try team are 2010 ODAC Champions af- ter dominating Saturday’s championship meet hosted by Randolph College. All five of Washington and Lee’s scor- ing runners placed in the Top 15 to give the team a final score of 46 points, squeez- ing by second-place Lynchburg College by only one point. They were competing against six other schools. This is the sixth time in seven years that the Generals have won the conference title. F irst-year Rebecca Bryer was the first General across the finish line, coming in third overall and with a time of 23:25. Sophomore Lauren Schultz finished with a time of 23:38 to come in fifth, and first-year Annelise Madison finished llth in 24:18. She was followed four seconds later by senior Katherine Fenwick, who came in 12th. , Bryer and Schultz each earned First Team All-ODAC honors for their fin- ishes, marking the second year in a row that Schultz has won this honor. Bryer was also named ODAC Rookie of the Year for her performance for the season. Madison and Fenwick were both named to the all-conference Second Team. Sophomore Molly Ortiz rounded out the W&L team with a 15th-place finish in a time of24:39. The post-season accolades did not stop with the runners as W&L’s head coach Kris Hoey earned ODAC Coach of the Year. W&L’s men’s cross country team also competed at Saturday’s ODAC Cross Country Championships, coming in at ‘sixth-place out the eight competing teams. The men finished with a team score of 125 points. The winning team, Lynchburg College, had 34. Junior Matt Gossett finished in 15th place with a time of27:30 as the General’s top finisher. Junior Robert Warneford-Thomson recorded a time of 27:59 for a 20th place finish. For the second-consecutive year, Wameford-Thomson was named the ODAC/Farm Bureau insurance Scholar Athlete of the Year. Senior Rob George took 28th overall at 28: 15, andjunior Ryan Henner finished 31st at 28:24. Senior Jack Ivy came in with a 32nd-place finish in a time of28:42 to conclude the scoring runners’ for the Generals. Both teams will continue on to the NCAA South/Southeast Regional meet at Rhodes College. The race is set for 12:00 pm on Saturday, November 13. Generals’ streak continues W&L Football Continues field dom By Burl Roiett STAFF WRITER The Generals extended their winning streak to five games with a record—break- ing 49-14 victory last Friday at Catholic University. Washington and Lee (6-2, 5-0) rushed ‘for an ODAC single-game record 496 yards and broke the ODAC record and the W&L’s school record for rushing yards in a single season on their way to the first 5-0 ODAC conference start in school his- tory. They are currently at 3,008 rushing yards for the season with two games left to play. The Generals’ entire offensive line earned ODAC Player of the Week Honors for their performance. The players on the line are senior Greg Kurkis, junior John Fitzgibbons, sophomore Mike Stefanelli and first-years Bobby Jones and Connor Hollenbeck. . Sophomore Luke Heinsohn led the way with 114 rushing yards and a touchdown, while fellow sophomore Brett Murray ran for 101 yards and junior Harrison Hudson added 100 yards and two touchdowns. Se- nior Jason Zelesnik also ran for his first touchdown of the season. Junior quarterback Charlie Westfal had three completed passes with only five at- tempts, including a couple of long touch- down passes. He hit senior tight end Pat- rick Conley over the middle for a 36 yard catch and run in the first quarter, and later found Harrison Hudson down the right sideline for a 30 yard touchdown. Westfal also added 71 yards on the ground. The Generals held the Cardinals to only 14 points, the lowest they have held an op- ponent all season, and forced turnovers at crucial times. Catholic’s first drive ended on a fumble deep in Generals’ territory, recovered by sophomore linebacker Doug Fraser inside the W&L five yard line. Sophomore safety Jake Pelton also intercepted Catholic quarterback Greg Cordivari at the one yard line in the sec- ond quarter. Pelton would add a second interception in the second half and earned ODAC Defensive Player of the Week honors for his perfonnance. This week marked the third week out of the last four that Peltbn was awarded this honor. ination as they move to 5-0 in ODA C play Catholic managed only 100 yards rush- ing yards, almost exclusively by running- back Nick Cortese, but the Cardinals did move the ball effectively through the air. Cordivari completed 21 of 36 passes for 209 yards, and Lawrence DeSi1none led the way with six receptions. Ball control played a huge role in the lopsided victory. The Generals held pos- session for 41 minutes and 22 seconds, compared to only 18 minutes and 38 seconds for Catholic. W&L also scored touchdowns off of each of Catholic’s four turnovers for a total of 28 points. The Generals also set a new ODAC record for rushing touchdowns on the sea- son with a current total of 33. Looking ahead, W&L will host Hamp- den-Sydney this Saturday at 1:00. Both teams will enter the game undefeated in the ODAC, and Washington and Lee will clinch the outright ODAC championship and an automatic bid to the NCAA tourna- ment with a win. Generals continue success Women win 3, lose I at Emory National Invitational; move to 25-5 By Llzz Dye STAFF wmrsn Washington and Lee opened the Emory National Invitational in Atlanta, Georgia with a 3-2 win over Berry College, which would lead them to three more victories and a tough loss on Friday, October 30. W&L, with a season record of 23-4 at the time, came from behind to defeat the Vikings, 20-9, and post its ninth-straight victory, 25-23, 21-25, 23-25, 25-20, 15- 11. The W&L volleyball team won its 10th match in a row with a 3-1 victory over Maryville. W&L defeated the Scots, who were 14-15 on the season, 28-26, 19-25, 25-22, 25-18. It was the second 10-match winning streak of the season for the Gen- erals. First year outside hitter M.A. Boles was one of three to record at least _l0 kills and had15 total, while junior middle blocker Lindsey Dee had 12 and junior outside hit- ter Megan Daily added 10. Boles also had 11 digs and two service aces. Sophomore libero Cameron Hill posted a team-high 13 digs and first-year Nikki DelZenero had 21 assists, 7 digs and two service aces. The Generals’ volleyball team was once again victorious as they recorded their llth win in a row with 3-2 over Birmingham-Southem College in at the Emory National invitational in Atlanta, Georgia on an exciting afternoon. W&L (25-4) defeated the Panthers (23-11) 25- 17, 21-25, 25-23, 18-25, 15-8. Junior Lindsey Dee led the Gener- als with an impressive career-high nine blocks and complemented that with eight kills. First year M.A. Boles proved her skills with a team-high 13 kills to go with 15 digs and a pair of blocks. Junior Megan Daily came out with twelve kills while sophomore right side Bailey Walker had ten and senior middle blocker Louise Brooks recorded nine. ' A great day for the Generals got even better when first-year setter Nikki Del- Zenero had a team-high 23 assists and 11 digs, while first year Meghan Meleski had 21 assists, and sophomore libero Cameron Hill led the team with 23 digs. Unfortunately, when the Generals ad- vanced in the tournament to play No. 2 Emory University, they lost 3-0. W&L (25-5) fell to the second-ranked Eagles (27-4), 25-19, 25-17, 25-10. Daily tallied seven kills while Dee recorded five kills and a pair of blocks. Hill had ten digs and once again led the defense. Meleski had a team-high 14 as- sists. At the conclusion of play, both Dee and Boles were honored and named to the All-Tournament Team. Captain Daily said that she is “con- tinually impressed with how well our first years fit in with the team. They all came in and have made immediate contributions.” She also noted that the “seniors have re- ally fostered a positive team chemistry, which has manifested in how well we have done this season. Every day we are working hard in the gym to get better and maximize our performance.” She also said “while we were successful at Emory, we are building up to the ODAC tournament to hopefully win and have a great run in the NCAA tournament.” The Emory National Invitational con- cluded W&L’s regular reason play. The first-seeded Generals will next take on eight—seeded Emory & Henry in the ODAC , Tournament hosted by Hollins University on Friday, November 5, at 4 pm. 0