The Bowdoin Orient

With the global economic crisis worsening by the week, Bowdoin and its peer schools have worked on plans to secure their financial futures. Bowdoin has created a financial planning model and recently approved cost-cutting measures to balance the budget, while peer schools have made other plans to suit their needs.

While the Board of Trustees spent much of its meeting last weekend discussing ways to cut costs at the College, some time was dedicated to take care of usual business. As is typical for its February meeting, the Board reviewed faculty members who had been recommended for tenure.

Honoring a tradition now more than 80 years old, students and staff at Bowdoin have planned several events to celebrate Black History Month. According to the Web site of the Association for the Study of African-American Life and History, Black History Month began as a single week of recognition in February 1926. Since then, the African-American community has made significant progress in attaining civil rights and, with the recent election of President Obama, major political representation.

On Friday evening, Associate Professor of Religon Robert Morrsion shook hands with one of the most controversial figures in the world—Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, the president of Iran. The two met briefly during a ceremony in Tehran that recognized winners of Iran's International Book of the Year Awards.

At an unusually long meeting Wednesday night, Bowdoin Student Government (BSG) wrangled over the issues of co-ed housing, sustainability at the College, and a new reincarnation of the Health Center survey. Conversation over the prospect of co-ed housing commenced with a brief analysis of peer schools' policies on the issue. BSG representatives addressed the systems in place at institutions including Colby, Middlebury, Pomona, Carleton, Harvard, and Stanford.

Chris Hill '74, the lead negotiator with North Korea under the Bush administration, is expected to be named the next U.S. Ambassador to Iraq by President Obama, ABC News first reported on Monday.

The Board of Trustees will meet this weekend and discuss a theme that has been on the minds of most at Bowdoin: the economy and its impact on the College.

Before coming to Bowdoin, college guidebooks told us that professors here would invite us into their homes, take us to lunch, and ask us to babysit their kids. Many of us hoped to form close relationships with our professors, and we expected that such relationships would spring up naturally, easily, and frequently. While some students have had just these sorts of experiences, many others may feel surprised or disappointed that they have not.

President Barack Obama promised us change. More specifically, he promised us the end of "business as usual" in Washington. After years of behind-closed-doors dealings and shrewd White House cover-ups, he told us we should expect our government to be transparent and accountable. He hoped to change the partisan culture of politics in Washington so that our government could operate more efficiently and more effectively for the American people.

Think for a moment about all those soccer matches, football games, tennis lessons, footraces, and gym classes that were part of our rearing. Recall the friends you made while playing, the post-game gatherings of local families, the silent aspirations to make the high school team as you took batting practice in the basement of the school gym. Remember the rituals of half-time oranges and the superstitious shoe-tying before taking the field. Just for a minute, bring to the forefront of your mind the images—cheering for your siblings from the sidelines, hearing advice from your dad about how to perfect your throw, and reacquaint yourself with the inner adolescent arrogance telling you that going pro might be possible.

Since the first few months of my sophomore year, when upperclassmen friends began their search for jobs, I've harbored certain anxieties about my own senior year process, wherein I begin to shape my future self. I came down to breakfast one morning to find track friends, whom I never saw dressed in anything other than Nike Frees and Levis, buttoned up and polished in Hugo Boss blazers or Ann Taylor skirt suits, always looking uncomfortable, nervous, and self-conscious.

Government exists for a very important reason: to look out for the common good. No other institution is capable of taking large-scale, concerted actions to further the collective interests of the people. And because reality is littered with non-zero-sum situations, "the people" will always have collective interests to further.

To the Editors: Eamonn Hart's op-ed ("Universal Health Care a Necessity," February 6) is absolutely correct about the pressing need for health care reform. His criticism of the current system is mostly accurate as well. However, all of the solutions presented in his article included a greater government role in American health care. But, more government may not be the answer.

The breakfast scene at Moulton and Thorne are familiar routines: swiping in, grabbing a newspaper, and sitting down to read the news with your scrambled eggs and fruit platter. A less familiar routine, however, is that of students returning these newspapers after breakfast for later diners to enjoy.

February is the toughest month of winter, offering neither the excitement of a new semester nor the anticipation of spring. This time every year, Bowdoin provides just about everything it can to cheer up students and prevent them from becoming slobbering, mindless zombies: themed dinners at Thorne, ice sculptures on the Quad, even a traveling clown troupe.

Around mid-February of my sophomore year, I was looking to solidify my summer plans. As a potential French-Biology double major, it would have made sense for me to travel, teach French, try outdoor education, or do ecology fieldwork. But part of me was still tempted by the allure of the business world.

Recently, top Democrats have publicly declared an end to partisanship and the beginning of a post-partisan era; however, their recent actions are telling a very, very different story. Last week the house approved the 647-page "stimulus" package, by a vote of 244-188. Not a single Republican voted in favor of the new spending bill and 11 Democrats joined the GOP's attempt to stop this titanic bill from ever becoming law.

In September of 1826, senior John Brown Russwurm's graduation from Bowdoin not only signaled a significant personal achievement. It was also a milestone for the College.

What do goldfish and 21-year-old male Bowdoin students have in common? They both exhibit sexual and aggressive behaviors, traits that make them ideal subjects for Professor of Psychology and Neuroscience Rick Thompson's research. That sex and aggression are "fundamental behaviors in pretty much every species" is fascinating to Thompson, who seeks to understand the relationship between those behaviors and what their role in the brain is. For Thompson, understanding the "complex and powerful" brain mechanisms that cause animals to act in certain ways is "the most interesting thing."

When I was 11, I found the repeat button on my stereo system. Dave Matthews' "Before These Crowded Streets" was spinning around in the CD player and before long, track number eight, "Crush," was looping sweet sounds in and out of my ears for hours on end. There's a part in that song—"Let's go drive 'till morning comes, and watch the sunrise and fill our souls up"—that blew me away the first time I heard it. Those words were so real I could almost taste them. It was like Dave was talking to me, telling me what love was going to be like.

Shoe designer Ruthie Davis '84 has always been a trend-setter. Her shoe company, Davis, has been known to challenge even the highly progressive fashion industry. Her stilettos, boots, sandals, and flats have appeared in magazines such as Glamour, Lucky, InStyle, People, Vogue, and Bazaar, and, like Davis, are constantly pushing the fashion envelope.

This time of year, we should all be aware of SAD. I am not only referring to seasonal affective disorder, but also to the rapidly approaching Singles Awareness Day, which "coincidentally" falls on February 14. We are now a week into February, the month when single people become acutely aware, and in some cases defensive, of the fact that we've been cuddling up to our body pillows for the past couple of days, weeks, months, or years. Usually we love our body pillows, but sending your body pillow chocolate for Valentine's Day is generally counterproductive because you wind up eating them all yourself and then feeling lonely and sick.

All of a sudden, I had an urge to purchase a pair of cowboy boots. I think it started the night that I watched "Once Upon a Time in Mexico" with friends—friends who insisted on wearing cowboy boots themselves while watching a movie replete with a like-booted cast. "They're awesome, and they add just a bit of height," one friend says. The last-described characteristic of the boots attracted me especially, for, dear readers, your columnist has always looked for ways to artificially increase his diminutive height. (And before you suggest heel inserts, let me tell you, I have been there. My middle school years were spent with said inserts and, unfortunately, inserts are forever tied to those painful years of life, so alas, I must move on).

Some authors coax their audience into seeing through their eyes. Others immerse you in their worlds. Nam Le does the latter. His voice captured me in the first story of his debut collection "The Boat."

It's common knowledge: The day after a date with a guy she likes, a girl will dissect every sentence, every word, and every gesture to try to determine if said guy will call her in an acceptable amount of time to go out again. If he doesn't call within that time frame, then the girl talk begins. "Why didn't he call me?" "Well, maybe he lost your number. Or maybe he got into a car accident and is in a coma. Or maybe he got food poisoning from the salmon he had at dinner and has been puking for the last few days and is afraid to call you when he's throwing up since that's gross."

What do you get when you make the same album three times in a row? Subquestion: Is it still awesome? The first answer is Andrew Bird's "Noble Beast," and the second: sorta. In the grand scheme of pop music, the average listener is subjected to the same song over and over again. We are fed the same chord progressions from the same instruments that accompany lyrics about the same thing. Andrew Bird is a welcome departure from the monotony of pop listening.

What happens when a circus and a classical play combine? 500 Clown theater group. Tonight, "500 Clown Frankenstein" comes to Pickard Theater. Hailing from Chicago, the group 500 Clown currently has four shows in its repertoire; along with "500 Clown Frankenstein," its shows include "500 Clown Macbeth," "500 Clown Christmas," and "500 Clown and the Elephant Deal." A fifth, "500 Clown A Man's a Man," is in the works.

People may not think of their ordinary home videos as fine art, but after viewing the most recent exhibition in the Bowdoin College Museum of Art's Media Gallery, anything seems possible. The exhibition is Guy Ben-Ner's "Moby Dick," a 12-minute silent film staged in a strange setting: the artist's kitchen. Starring only himself and his six-year-old daughter, the film summarizes Melville's classic novel and accentuates many of its basic motifs while simultaneously introducing themes of fatherhood, masculinity, and sexual tension between the father and daughter.

Continuing a spotless season, the women's track team upheld its undefeated streak by decisively winning the Maine State Championship last Friday evening at Bates College. The Bears, who won the meet with 220 points to Bates' 146, Colby's 119, and USM's 87, have had their sights set on reclaiming the state title since their third-place finish at the 2008 championship.

Facing some of the best men's track teams in the state, the men's track team proved themselves during last Saturday's Maine Indoor Championship at Bates. "The State of Maine Championship is always extremely competitive amongst the Maine colleges," said junior distance runner Thompson Ogilvie. "It was a big win as well as a huge confidence booster for our team."

Every weekend is a big weekend for Bowdoin Women's Basketball. But this weekend is really big. The Polar Bears head to Connecticut for a pair of NESCAC showdowns to end the regular season. Wins at Wesleyan (3-4 NESCAC) tonight and at Connecticut College (0-7 NESCAC) tomorrow afternoon would net Bowdoin the honor of home games throughout the conference tournament.

Both the men's and women's squash teams breezed through their home stand this past weekend in the last matches of the regular season. The women emerged with a record of 5-0 and the men with a record of 3-0. The women kicked off the first match of the weekend on Friday night, taking on the University of Toronto.

The women's hockey team has been skating to victory, winning their last four competitions. This past week, the Bears played three times, defeating Wesleyan 5-3, Hamilton 4-3, and Colby 4-1. The wins were significant for the Bears, as their success against Wesleyan guaranteed them a spot in the NESCAC playoffs, and the Colby win was the Bears' first victory in the new Watson Arena.

The men's hockey team twice battled its way into overtime last weekend, beating Hamilton on Friday and then slipping to Amherst on Saturday. "We played really hard," said Mike Corbelle '10. "We showed a lot more grit than we had for a lot of the rest of the season." On Friday, the Continentals took the lead early in the first period with only 31 seconds elapsed. Colin MacCormack '10 struck back with only eight seconds remaining in the first on a power play.

Kelsey Borner '09 has been a pillar of the women's track and field team from the first day she arrived on campus. As captain of both Bowdoin's indoor and outdoor track teams, Borner has helped create a winning and supportive atmosphere for the Bowdoin squad, looking to build on its recent first place finish over MIT and Colby.

After a split-decision weekend, the Bowdoin swim teams look ahead the NESCAC championship meets, which begin next weekend at home for the women's team. The women will look to avenge last weekend's 157-131 loss to Colby.

The Nordic team raced in the open UVM carnival last weekend in inclement weather conditions. The men finished ninth and the women finished 10th in a field of 11 teams. The carnival hosted a collegiate race, a Supertour, and an Eastern Cup Junior Olympic Qualifier, so a large number of nationally ranked skiers were present.