The Bowdoin Orient

Following last Sunday's incident at Colby College between students, security, and Waterville police, Colby administrators have begun to interview witnesses to bring clarity to the series of events. Early Sunday morning, a conflict between a few Colby students and security guards heightened to a physical altercation.

In order to increase efficiency, Campus Activities Board (CAB) has written a new constitution that will bring changes to membership and rename the organization the Entertainment Board (E-Board).

In response to the recent economic downturn, the Bowdoin library is seeking to reduce its expenses on periodicals by $150,000 for the next fiscal year.

Tonight, close to 500 Bowdoin students will be spending the night at Farley Field House participating in Bowdoin's fourth annual Relay for Life. "The idea is to celebrate, remember, and fight back against cancer," said student coordinator Julia Seltzer '09.

At its Wednesday meeting, Bowdoin Student Government (BSG) discussed both a recent incident at Colby and Ivies weekend in a question-and-answer session with members of the Dean's Office and Security, and also addressed funding issues with representatives from the Orient and Bowdoin Cable Network (BCN).

Following a College investigation of alleged research misconduct, a Bowdoin professor now awaits a final decision on the matter from President Barry Mills. Professor of Economics Jonathan Goldstein, a former chair of the economics department and a 29-year tenured veteran of the College, researched in a 2008 paper the effect of athletics on academics at 36 small, liberal arts colleges, including Bowdoin. The paper, which contained results potentially harmful to the reputation of the College, has not been published in a scholarly journal but was posted last August on Goldstein's faculty page of the Bowdoin Web site.

At Monday night's Bowdoin Student Government (BSG) debate, candidates for officer positions answered a variety of questions about their goals, dedication, and experience. During the debate between the two presidential hopefuls, one thing became clear: Mike Dooley '10 makes the grade in all three categories.

Euphemisms are, by their nature, tricky things. They are designed to simultaneously suggest ugly topics and avoid them. They allow interested parties to talk about sensitive issues in code, while at the same time maintaining a plausible deniability concerning the subject matter and their overall goals. They are contextual, insinuating through proximity what they do not dare to claim outright. The use of euphemism is a good way for those of a delicate nature to hurt people, because euphemisms allow for an injured retreat under challenge, with claims of pure intentions and unfortunate misunderstandings.

The debates surrounding Professor Goldstein's controversial study and the College's ongoing investigation certainly raise some interesting questions. Inevitably, questions have arisen about the study's findings, the way in which it was distributed, and the accusations of the College's stifling of free speech. What stands out most, however, is the lack of transparency throughout the handling of the situation.

At the beginning of the year, President Barry Mills addressed the community in an e-mail, reminding us of the existence of the Bias Incident Group on campus. The group's purpose is to address "...defacements, graffiti, or other hateful expressions against campus groups." Last week, an unknown group entered the chapel and posted several pictures protesting the Roman Catholic Church's stance on gay marriage. One picture depicted the Virgin Mary with the word "slut" written on the back. At the time of writing, the Bias Incident Group has yet to issue a statement condemning the actions of these maladjusted individuals.

I am beginning to notice a trend in the performers whom we attract for the Ivies Weekend concert. In addition to being unable to break away from hip-hop, the model for our selections seems to be one "big name" artist who has three decent songs. This year we are having Sean Kingston who will sing "Me Love," "Take You There" and "Beautiful Girls." Last year we had Naughty by Nature who sang "OPP", "Jamboree", and "Hip Hop Hooray." And before that we had Kevin Lyttle who sang "Turn Me On" three times in a row.

On Wednesday, April 22, the Maine Legislature's Joint Committee on the Judiciary will take up hearings on what has become the defining civil rights issue of our time: same-sex marriage. A large crowd is expected; indeed, projections are so large that the hearing has been moved to the Augusta Civic Center to allow for a greater seating capacity. Many Bowdoin students have been working on this campaign in one way or another, and some on both sides of the issue may even attend the hearing (it is open to the public).

From the commitment displayed on the walls of Thorne Dining Hall, to the myriad of environmentally friendly changes in our lifestyles, Bowdoin College has caught green fever. Although this new lifestyle may seem hip, it is actually very old-school. In the olden days Americans weren't coerced or instructed to live green. For them it was common sense. They called it thrift. This new concern with our impact on the environment is most certainly not that new at all. Why, the first Earth Day was held back in 1970. Except, back then, they were worried about global cooling. Yeah...global cooling.

Elections for Bowdoin Student Government begin today and you need to decide if, and how, you are going to vote. But, in order for you to believe that voting is a worthwhile use of your time, you need to understand why, or if, BSG matters. This is exactly what I was wondering as I walked around campus this week taking note of the hundreds of posters plastered on every wall—specifically, I asked, "What exactly is BSG for?"

To the Editors: As the Orient's commendable weekly reports make clear, the current student leadership is worthless. The past three weeks have been spent debating the nature of a $3,000 food handout during Ivies. Much of the preceding month was spent discussing "gender-neutral housing," a policy BSG has no control over.

To the Editors: In light of Tax Day occurring this week, I have seen various forms of political advertising all around campus. While I praise these people for taking time out of their precious Bowdoin lives to write messages in front of campus buildings, I do not fully understand the extent to which these messages served a purpose.

If you've been reading my column this year, you are already well aware of the fact that college has been a very formative experience for me, both sexually and socially. Unsurprisingly, then, with graduation biting at my heels, I still find myself in the position to learn and grow at Bowdoin. Today will be the first time in my four years at this school that I attempt to participate in the Day of Silence.

On Wednesday I watched two very interesting presentations consecutively, exiting each with the same conclusion about their style, but not their fashion. First, I saw a painter present his work as though the presentation served the role of a job interview, which in a sense it did since Bowdoin is currently hiring for a professor to fill the role of two people on sabbatical. Normally, I would expect someone coming in to interview for a job to dress as if interviewing for a job—at least a button-up shirt, tie, suit jacket, dress pants. This is what the Career Planning Center (CPC) conditions us almost-graduated seniors to do, isn't it? So I was surprised to see a man in a casual jacket, button-down shirt, and jeans standing at the front of the room.

After four years at the College, Organic Garden manager Katherine Creswell is headed off to start her own farm in Oregon. During her tenure at Bowdoin, Creswell has helped the garden grow physically as well as in its importance to the College.

When it comes to talking about sex, people often feel comfortable staying quiet. We accept sex as a taboo subject and keep our own sexual realities and experiences to ourselves. We have questions that we never ask. Though this might have been the norm in American society for some time, our culture is heading in a direction that requires us to reassess our perceptions on how we discuss sex.

The arrival of a traveling exhibit from the New York University collection will infuse the Bowdoin College Museum of Art with a new shade of cool. The exhibit, titled "New York Cool: Paintings and Sculpture from the NYU Art Collection," was curated by New York University professor and art critic Pepe Karmel. Skillfully surveying the disparate New York art world of the 1950s and 1960s, Karmel drew entirely from the New York University Art Collection and included significant pieces by artists such as Willem de Kooning, Helen Frankenthaler, Alex Katz, Robert Rauschenberg, and others.

You don't know it yet, but you want to party with Daniel Lanois. He has been behind the console of legends like U2, Emmylou Harris, Brian Eno, Peter Gabriel and the tambourine man himself, Bob Dylan. If that who's who of undeniable coolness doesn't do it for you, then you are cool—approaching Prince-levels of cool. For the rest of us, living our lives in the Jason Segel regions of the hip spectrum, Daniel Lanois is a god.

Forget Hollywood—the red carpet will unroll at Bowdoin this week at the annual Film Society Student Festival. The short films from 14 different student directors range from a "mockumentary" to a 19th century psychological thriller. The Bowdoin Film Society (BFS), which collects film entries and recruits volunteers to judge them, will hand out the awards tomorrow night in Sills Auditorium.

Food is famous for its ability to bring people together. It is central to family gatherings, holidays and celebrations. First, second, and third dates usually revolve around food; there is romance in a well-laid table and the accompanying well-chosen wines. Food preferences reflect people's personalities and moods. The inherent magic of food and its preparation is the foundation of Erica Bauermeister's novel, "The School of Essential Ingredients."

As the weather gets nicer, I've noticed that time during class has started moving a lot slower. My 90-minute classes, which used to move at the normal pace of time, have suddenly stretched out to feel as if they're three hours long. Watching "Sunshine Cleaning" was like sitting in class knowing everyone else is lazing about on the grass in front of the art museum—excruciating.

With the opening of Professor of Art Mark Wethli's show "Recent Paintings" at RedFlagg Gallery in New York City, the Bowdoin arts continue to make a scene in the Big Apple. RedFlagg Gallery, the product of Bowdoin professors Wethli and John Bisbee's inspiration and effort, exhibited works from another Bowdoin artist at its inaugural show. In February, work from 2001 alumna Cassie Jones' "Standard Deviations" was the first art to fill the space.

The No. 18-ranked Bowdoin Women's Tennis Team defeated No. 15-ranked Middlebury on Saturday during the Bowdoin Tennis Alumni Weekend. The victory brings the Polar Bears to a 7-5 overall record. The team won 6-3, with important victories from the doubles teams of captain Sarah D'Elia '09 and Emily Lombardi '12, and Rachel Waldman '09 and Charlotte Hitch '09. D'Elia remains undefeated in No. 1 singles play this season, as she coasted to a 6-2, 6-4 victory against Middlebury's Tori Aiello.

Five years in the making, senior pitcher Pat Driscoll continues to lead the Polar Bears. In the opener of a three game set against Colby last Friday, Driscoll pitched a complete game shut out on just five hits and no walks. He has now pitched 17 straight scoreless innings for the team and hasn't allowed a run in the month of April. "He's having fun out there, but more importantly, he's having fun competing," said Coach Mike Connolly.

The Polar Bears fell 6-3 to Middlebury last Saturday, bringing an end to their seven-match win streak. The match was very close, with the No. 11-ranked Polar Bears winning two of the three doubles matches and the No. 4-ranked Panthers winning five of the six singles matches. Coach Colin Joyner asserted that the team had a winning strategy coming in to the match, which was very clear from its strong wins in the No. 1 and No. 2 doubles positions.

Facing cold, drizzly skies last Saturday, the women's track team garnered three victories against the University of New Hampshire in Durham, N.H. Though UNH's Wildcat Invitational was not scored, the strong performances in tough conditions bode well for the annual Aloha Relays this weekend, when schools from across Maine will come to Bowdoin to compete at the Magee-Samuelson track.

After a tough overtime loss to Colby on Wednesday, the men's lacrosse team will have to claw its way toward a home conference playoff game. With two crucial games remaining, the Polar Bears will look to snap a four-game losing streak. "We just need to begin playing with more confidence in ourselves as individuals and one another as teammates," said senior quad-captain Cullen Winkler.

The men's track and field team remembers the heartbreak from last spring's second place finish at the Maine State Meet. Despite an overall terrific performance by the entire team, it was still not enough to beat archrival Bates, who outscored Bowdoin by only two points to win the state title. With this memory still fresh in their minds, the Polar Bears say that they are determined and excited as ever to seize the state title at Bates on Saturday.

Despite wind conditions preventing the final races, Bowdoin sailors competed in the Friis/Marchiando team race at MIT and Tufts and finished sixth of 12 teams in the Alymer's Trophy. The team placed sixth after a fourth-place finish in A division and seventh in B division. On Saturday the Polar Bears sailed in big breeze on the Charles River at MIT in FJs. Eight teams competed at MIT, Bowdoin included, and another eight raced at Tufts.

But just before I was vacuumed back in by his jaunty façade, I caught myself. This man was something that he was not; this man was a mirage. This was a man whose charm and intrigue were both complete affectations. This was a man whose duplicity and hollowness had once fooled me and thousands of others into trusting him. This was a man who had burned so much more than bridges, who had now made an unexpected and inconvenient return into my life. This man was Isiah Thomas.