The Bowdoin Orient

The Board of Trustees has voted unanimously to refrain from directly investing in companies with business dealings in Darfur, and to avoid indirect investment in such companies if possible.

It was billed as the start of the capital campaign, but it turned out to be a grand celebration. After all, there was much to celebrate?$147 million?at the the unveiling of The Bowdoin Campaign at the John F. Kennedy Presidential Library and Museum on Friday.

Most Bowdoin students are accustomed to having Security check for violations of the College's alcohol policy. However, most of these checks are conducted on weekend nights at parties or large social gatherings where alcohol is being served.

An eight-member reaccreditation committee from the New England Association of Schools and Colleges (NEASC) has presented an initial summary of its findings to the College. In a preview of a report to be submitted to the NEASC, the team commended Bowdoin for its commitment to a liberal arts education and change since the last accreditation, but expressed concern about the College's planning for the future and focus on academic advising.

Decades ago, Richard A. Mersereau sat in a classroom, slightly incredulous, as Professor Daniel Levine began a survey course of American history by asking him, "What is history?"

Bowdoin Student Government devoted nearly all of Wednesday's meeting to a lively but sometimes tense discussion with President Barry Mills, who attended to discuss campus issues.

The Bowdoin Organic Garden has never actually been organic. At least not in the eyes of the Maine Organic Farmers and Gardeners Association (MOFGA). Though the garden has never been certified, the practices of the gardeners at Bowdoin have always been organic. No chemically synthesized pesticides or herbicides are used in the garden, and no genetically modified crops are planted.

After this week, Bowdoin students will no longer be able to claim ignorance about the humanitarian crisis in Darfur. By stuffing mailboxes, putting up posters, and sponsoring lectures and documentaries, the Darfur Coalition is making sure students are informed about the genocide.

Storm water run-off attributed to the heavy rains this fall has caused flooding at various locations on campus, and has prompted Facilities Management to hire an independent consultant to redesign storm water management systems in flood-prone areas.

"About a year ago, I was talking to my husband about what I termed 'my perfect job,'" said Meadow Davis. "If there was a way I could work on a college campus, focusing on women students and the issues that were important to them, that would be my perfect job."

As he sat with an Orient reporter last week and reflected on the most important points in his adult life, Secretary of the College Richard Mersereau '69 recalled Professor Daniel Levine telling him something that he has never forgotten.

Around this time of year, families gather together to celebrate a great day in the history of our country. I'm talking, of course, about November 20: Traffic Light Day.

Like past election cycles, 2006 showed us that there will always remain those in politics tempted to pick the scab of this nation's original sin to stir our bigotry rather than our better angels.

We'd like to remember Al Gardner (also known as Alan Shavarsh Bardezbanian), director of the Bowdoin Middle Eastern Ensemble, who passed away on Thursday, November 9.

In the recent elections, young voters turned out in record numbers, shifting the tide in elections everywhere in the country. This is certainly a very encouraging trend for our beloved democracy, but I'm concerned with how informed young voters are.

When the College formally announces its drive for a quarter-billion dollars amid much fanfare in Boston on Friday night, alumni and other friends of Bowdoin will be asked to give generously to this small college in Maine. In an age when there are so many opportunities for giving to worthy causes around the globe, we wish to assure alumni that Bowdoin not only remains a place worthy of their support, but also is more worthy of their support than ever before.

At the sight of children squealing with glee and chasing each other around a jungle gym, most adults will sigh wistfully and think, "Oh, to be young again!" The exception, of course, are residents of Howard and West halls?located across from Longfellow elementary?who are more likely to say, "QUIET THE $%#@ DOWN! DO YOU HAVE ANY IDEA WHAT TIME IT IS!?"

American elections are often boring and easy to forecast. Ninety-five percent of incumbents win re-election, and public opinion polls do an excellent job of predicting winners. At the same time, however, we live in an age of polarized partisan politics, where "blue staters" and "red staters" battle over cultural, economic, and international issues.

As the Republicans were fond of saying in the aftermath of 2004, "elections matter." Their stunning loss of what now appears to be both houses of Congress will have ramifications abroad and at home. Within the last hour, we have learned that Secretary Rumsfeld is gone, to be replaced by Robert Gates, a member of the Iraq Study Commission.

I would like to write a rebuttal to the letter in last week's Orient from Brian Dunn and Adam Baber about the football players at Super Snack. When I suggested to Mary Lou Kennedy that we ask the Bowdoin football team to work for us, it was not to intimidate the guests coming to enjoy the meal.

Getting dumped is bad. Getting dumped for someone else? That's even worse. Here are the two most common kinds of breakups: the "we just can't get along" one, and the "there's someone else" one. Which is better? I think we would all prefer the former.

Dear Dr. Jeff: I've got some questions for you, about flu shots. First, why should I get vaccinated against the flu?

Dear Dr. Jeff: "I've been thinking about getting my nose pierced. Are there any health concerns I need to be worried about?" L.S.C.

For all Eric Clapton fans, his new album with J.J. Cale is something that they have waited for some 40 years. That's right?the career of each of these two giants of rock has spanned more than 40 years. Their unique new collaborative album, titled "The Road to Escondido," hit stores on November 7.

Gritty's Christmas Ale?$8.35 for a six-pack at Hannaford When I was little, I couldn't figure out what all the Thanksgiving fuss was about. I just couldn't discern what was so fantastic about getting all excited and waiting all day for a bunch of food that was prepared by people other than my own mother. I mean, what do I care if Aunt What's-Her-Face has brought her famous asparagus custard? Part of it, I think, was because my mother's food is just too damn good to care what someone else has to offer.

Counting the list of books that Margaret Atwood has written requires more than two sets of fingers and toes. She is capable of writing not only novels, but poetry, nonfiction, and children's books as well. I was flabbergasted to see yet another new volume on display in the Gulf of Maine Bookstore. More remarkable still is that the frequency of her publication does not stunt its quality.

For many students, Friday night is simply an excuse to party. Tonight, a group of students organizing "The Dance 'Til Dawn" plan to turn this impulse into a good cause. The party, which is planned in support of St. Jude Children's Research Hospital, will be held from 9:00 p.m. to 2:00 a.m. in Jack Magee's Pub.

On November 22, 2005, Microsoft was the first company to enter the next generation of video game systems with the release of Xbox 360. Sony and Nintendo will now throw their hats into the ring with the release of Sony PlayStation 3 and Nintendo Wii. Let the console war begin.

You won't find this film on IMDb. This week, I went to my first film at the Frontier Café +Cinema+Gallery. I recommend you check it out if you haven't done so already. Great open space, lots of healthy food options, and quality events programming, there's something for everyone. This month, Frontier is screening the film "My Friend, My Enemy," a enthralling documentary about a group of Israeli and Palestinian girls who met at a peace camp in America in the summer of 2000. By 2003, when the film was shot, the deeply entrenched societal conflicts of the region had divided the friends in more than just location.

The women's rugby team's nine-hour bus ride to Batavia, New York, was well worth it. The women left the weekend's two-day Northeast Regional Playoffs 1-1, but were awarded the second seed to April's National Championships because of point differentials.

Maybe in the year 2574 we'll have robots on planet Zyborg programmed to run a certain distance in a certain amount of time compete against each other for the Intergalactic Champion-Chip. But that would hardly be as exciting as Bowdoin men's cross-country's second-place finish at the Division III New England Championship over the weekend.

In contrast to the strong winds and pelting rain of the NESCAC championships, the New England Division III Women's Cross-Country Championships, held at Springfield College, featured sunny skies and mild temperatures. In its final meet of the season, Bowdoin finished 11th out of 48 teams and placed eighth out of the NESCAC teams, beating both Wesleyan University and Trinity College.

You can sing and you can dance. You can play and you can run. And you can strut and you can laugh. You can do each of these things in all types of weather; but if you do them in the rain, odds are you'll get wet. So when it in pours, most of us tend to remain indoors, lest we end up more soaked than Warren Sapp after a 10-yard sprint.