The Bowdoin Orient

The College presented a draft of its Climate Neutrality Implementation Plan to the Board of Trustees this past weekend, officially announcing its commitment to becoming carbon neutral by 2020. Now, Bowdoin will seek input and recommendations from the Board and campus community before it submits the plan to the American College & University Presidents' Climate Commitment (ACUPCC) by early December.

The College will join forces with veterans, public officials and community members tomorrow in "350", an international climate change campaign. Together, they will celebrate the International Day of Climate Action. The goal of the event "here on campus is to raise awareness about the climate change issue and about the science behind climate change," said Sustainability Coordinator Keisha Payson.

The Office of Safety and Security released the 2008 edition of its Annual Security Report yesterday, detailing the infractions committed on campus over the past three years. The report was compiled as a result of the Federal Clery Act of 1990, which mandates that colleges and universities must submit annual, publicly-accessible reports covering campus security to members of the community. In addition to being posted on Security's Web site, copies of the report are available from Security by request.

Seniors are applying in record numbers this year for several fellowship and research opportunities. While only some of the deadlines for certain fellowships have passed, the Office of Student Fellowships and Research has already seen a substantial increase in applications compared to last year.

Tomorrow, Glen Fitzmaurice, will teach his Fear Aggression Stress Training (FAST) Defense course at Bowdoin, free of charge.

There were two main orders of business at Wednesday night's Bowdoin Student Government (BSG) meeting. The first topic, which took up the majority of the meeting, was a proposal to amend the BSG bylaws in order to create "a liaison position between...BSG and the Brunswick Town Council." The second issue was a discussion of a BSG resolution regarding the College's Credit/D/Fail policy—a resolution dating back to March 31, 2009.

Bowdoin's Climate Commitment Advisory Committee (CCAC) has created a plan to become carbon neutral by 2020, following through with its 2007 pledge for carbon neutrality. The College will present a draft of its Climate Neutrality Implementation Plan to the Board of Trustees during Homecoming Weekend, then revise and submit a final version in November.

Brunswick Police arrested two local youths on charges of criminal mischief on October 2. Police and Bowdoin Security suspect that the two are at least partly responsible for the wave of water balloon assaults on students since the start of term. The suspects, one 19 and one 21, were apprehended for throwing water balloons at cars from the overpass above Route 1.

The green posters, "350," even the lack of water bottles at Express—we're seeing signs of the College's push toward environmental sustainability everywhere. While last year's "We're Committed" signs were visible, the declaration seemed half-hearted and the campus's focus directed elsewhere; namely, at the economy. Suddenly, with the College's aim set squarely on carbon neutrality by 2020, things are happening, and they're happening fast.

Consider the array of housing options at Bowdoin: our impeccable first-year residence halls and our comfy Brunswick Apartments; our well-funded houses and our vista-giving Tower rooms. In addition to the range of options we face each year when the lottery looms in the latter half of spring, we are fortunate to have well trained proctors and RAs, friendly full-time residential staff, and a say in how the social houses affect our college experience.

Like many of you, I had alumni staying with me over this gorgeous Homecoming Weekend. It was not until these past few days that I realized there really is something to the saying, "you never know what you got until it's gone." Although I think what I am going to miss is slightly different from most. Of all the things in Maine and Bowdoin, my guest looked forward to two things: Racer X and Super Snack. And look, I get it—an 80s cover band of sweaty wig-rocking Bowdoin professor and late-night snacks with million dollar Electronic Simon Says look-a-like lights—I guess it's a little out of the ordinary. But the two girls got me thinking of all the quirk that Bowdoin has to offer.

Two issues ago, I argued that Bowdoin needs to energize its student body around intellectual growth. While most of us take our education seriously, and while many of us spend summers or semesters pursuing research or independent studies in our majors, we hesitate to challenge each other on these topics. Moreover, we hesitate to ask each other the questions that stimulate inquiry. One way Bowdoin can engender more open passion for learning is to reserve one day each semester dedicated to student presentations on learning outside of the classroom.

Upon leaving the presidency, George Washington famously warned that the manifestation of political parties would create a class of professional politicians with no interest other than a lust for power. The results would undermine American democracy and make a failure of the values this nation was built upon.

What was promised to the readership of the Orient in the first article of the Celebrating Sex series was a frank recasting of sex "in a realistic but rewarding light." What we got instead was a list of hook-up spots and erotic foods, all written in the cheery, instructional tone of a flight attendant indicating emergency exits.

Though voters will not be casting their ballots for a historic presidency this November, the outcome of the Maine ballot could still impact policy decisions across the nation. Although Maine legalized same-sex marriage on May 6, 2009, opponents of the law gathered enough signatures to force the issue onto the November ballot, halting the law in its tracks before it could take effect as planned in September. On November 3, Maine voters will either vote "yes" on Question 1 to veto the law allowing same-sex marriage, or "no," to uphold the law as it currently stands.

For the first time in six years, the end is in sight. On October 12, 2009—six and a half years after President George W. Bush invaded Iraq under the pretense of disabling the country's non-existent nuclear proliferation plants—military spokesman Brig. Gen. Stephen R. Lanza announced a definitive exit strategy for the 120,000 troops remaining in the country. By August 2010, there will be approximately 50,000 soldiers on the ground in Saddam Hussein's former country, training Iraqis to take over and overseeing peaceful operations.

Any candid observation of the current health care debate reveals two facts. First, in terms of quantity, quality and access, medical care in the United States is far above average. Second, reform is necessary, but many options under consideration are truly worse than the problem. This is an important time for America not because we desperately need health care, but because this is where we, as a country, decide the role government will play in the lives of Americans until Jesus comes back, or at least until the Chinese take over.

On December 10, 2010, I would like a Nobel Peace Prize. I already hit up Expedia and got my ticket to Oslo. If you want to join my entourage, I'll put you on the waiting list. I think I deserve the Nobel Prize. I think I know a lot of people that deserve one, as well. I say this because it seems that all you have to do to get the Nobel Peace Prize these days is to do your job

Sharing ideas about education, presentations of expeditions, and meals in the dining hall—all in a days work for Bowdoin education students and students from North Haven Community School. Seventeen Bowdoin students in the Education 301 and 303 classes ventured to the island of North Haven last Thursday, while eighteen students from North Haven High School spent two days at Bowdoin earlier this week.

Place: The Liberal Cup Trivia Night in Hallowell, Maine. Distance from campus: 35 minutes. Time: Every Tuesday Night, 8 p.m.-11 p.m. Number of Companions: One or more. Ingredients and gear: Brains equipped with a Bowdoin College education, plus a few random facts. Cost: $10 per team. Brunswick is surrounded by nooks that are worth discovering. If you are looking for a unique alternative study break on any given Tuesday night, let me recommend gathering your chums together to try your luck at Trivia Night at the Liberal Cup—a watering hole on Main Street in the picturesque town of Hallowell. A group of Bowdoin students ventured here this summer and found it to be a fresh escape from campus life.

Over fall break a group of eight students headed north to help build affordable housing in North Haven, an island off the coast of Rockland, Maine. The trip was led by Krista Bahm '11 and was the first part of a series of Weekend Service Trips coordinated through the McKeen Center for the Common Good. The McKeen Center runs a myriad of programs throughout the year that aim to connect Bowdoin students with the larger communities in Maine. This island service trip was an opportunity for students to learn about life in North Haven while helping the local community.

After a 43 year stint at the College, former Robert K. Beckwith Professor of Music Eliott Schwartz has one more accomplishment to add to his list: the recent release of an album featuring six chamber concertos of his own composition. The album is titled "Elliot Schwartz: Chamber Concertos" and will be released through the Boston Modern Orchestra Project (BMOP) label this month.

Hey babe, want to engage in some sweet sitophilia tonight? As your partner runs screaming out of the room, you'll probably realize that the fastest way to desexualize a fetish is to call it by its proper name. Sitophiliacs are those who find sexual arousal from incorporating food into sexual activity. Food play holds a prestigious position, as the most culturally acceptable sexual fetish. Subtypes include meat, fruit or vegetable fetishes, Nyotaimori (the ritual consumption of sushi off of a naked woman) and yeastiality (sexual activity centering on baked goods).

The Café is alive with the sound of music as Bowdoin Unplugged gets underway. The brainchild of Farhan Rahman '10, this open-mic style showcase provides welcome study breaks for many Bowdoin students each Sunday night.

The Bowdoin Film Society (BFS) begins its second annual 48 Hour Film Fest tonight, with teams of students rushing to write, cast, film and edit a movie over the course of the weekend. Given the challenge, coffee, caffeine pills, Red Bull and sugary treats from the C-store will likely be in high demand.

In hip-hop, beefs are as common as beats. At one point, these verbal altercations drove the production of new music, as responses to one artist's slander began to come in the form of "diss tracks," which would provoke even more responses in the form of hip-hop music. But with modern technological advances—the internet and the ease of which mixtapes are produced—rappers and other musicians have taken their words to the Web, gaining online followings that rival their record sales.

For Andrew Gould '00, creative director at EMI records, it is the passion for the music—for the melodies, the industry and the business behind it—that has long been a driving force.

It might strike some people as strange that Davis Guggenheim, famous for his Oscar-winning direction of An Inconvenient Truth, decided to make a documentary film about the electric guitar.

I remember my first IPA vividly. It was Celebration Ale, a seasonal brew crafted by Sierra Nevada. It poured a rich copper hue, with a creamy off-white head. The aroma was full of fresh hops—big, fruity and citrusy. It tasted, well, hoppy, and the bitterness and big piney flavors were overwhelming. This IPA made me pucker as my taste buds tried to comprehend what was going on. It was not until a few days later, after my second or third bottle, that I got over the bitterness and appreciated the symphony of flavors. Now I don't know what I'd do without the American IPA.

At Bowdoin the name Ahmad Hassan Muhammad '10 is synonymous with piano prodigy, and tonight, students will have the chance to see Muhammad perform original compositions.

This Saturday, Studzinski Recital Hall will fill with melodious voices as the talents of the Bowdoin Chamber Choir and Bowdoin Chorus are exhibited for the first time this year in the Homecoming Choral Concert.

I had big goals for this past summer: I wanted to get a job or internship, save money to buy a car, and have an adventurous summer that would culminate in a cross-country trip from Oregon to Maine. It was a slap in the face when no one back home would hire me (and when I say "no one," I mean Pottery Barn). I was forced to work under-the-table construction for a family friend and I slowly began to realize that I wasn't going to be able to afford a car. So by July, I was broke and jobless with my bike as my only form of transportation. That being said, I had an amazing summer. My friends were also jobless and we spent our time hanging out in Portland. Eventually, we all embraced our financial situations and tried to have as much fun as possible. It was a summer full of lazy days, parties and, most of all, music.

Even though the University of Southern Maine's men's cross-country team was ranked No. 1 in New England and the overwhelming favorite to claim the Maine state meet this year, Bowdoin was still determined to make things difficult for USM and the rest of the field. The Polar Bears did just that and more last Saturday at Colby.

Aspiring journalists and sports enthusiasts alike gathered together to see iconic baseball reporter Buster Olney, senior writer and baseball analyst for ESPN The Magazine and ESPN.com, speak about the realities of beat writing and life as a sports journalist. The event, held in Lancaster Lounge last Friday evening, was set up by the Career Planning Center (CPC). Fifty students attended, according to Associate Director of Career Planning Dighton Spooner, and were able to ask Olney questions on a variety of sports-related topics. Olney traveled to Bowdoin to introduce Susan Leonard Toll '85, a lifelong friend who was inducted into the Bowdoin Hall of Honor on Saturday.

Coming off an impressive all-around performance against the Hamilton Continentals during homecoming weekend, the football team travels to the unfriendly confines of Trinity College to face an undefeated Bantam team on Saturday. The Polar Bears are hoping to do what no football team has done in seven years—win at Trinity College. "Trinity is a huge game," senior captain Matt Leotti said. "We've got to go out and have a great week of practice, and just bring it on game day."

After 105 minutes of scoreless play, junior defender Tiernan Cutler finally broke the deadlock when she buried a shot from close range to beat Brandeis University in overtime yesterday. Bowdoin, coming off a well-contested loss to Williams last Saturday, bounced back yesterday in triumphant fashion. Bowdoin and Brandeis were even from the start, trading opportunities with multiple chances and just barely missing the back of the net.

The women's rugby team will play at home against Amherst in the tier- two playoffs this Saturday, October 24 at 1 p.m. "We are kind of disappointed that we didn't make the [tier one] playoffs," said co-captain Hannah Larson '10. "We aren't used to being anything less than a really good team, so this is tough."

The women's tennis team's fall season ended last weekend with the New England Women's Intercollegiate Tennis Tournament (NEWITT). The format of this tournament was different than that of other competitions previously played. Each player was paired with another teammate from her school, and each played one singles match and then a doubles match. With 24 different colleges participating in the tournament, Bowdoin sent four teams.

Big breeze, rainy weather and unseasonably cold conditions greeted Bowdoin sailors at four different regattas this past weekend. This weekend, the women's team looks to rebound from its setback last weekend and reestablish its top-10 presence in New England Intercollegiate Sailing Association (NEISA) rankings at the Stu Nelson Trophy, hosted by Connecticut College.