The Bowdoin Orient

By next week, the wait for the H1N1 vaccine will be over—at least for some students. On Wednesday, the Maine Center for Disease Control (Maine CDC) informed College health administrators that a shipment of H1N1 vaccine would be delivered next week.

The long-awaited Brunswick Explorer Bus Service is scheduled to start by fall 2010, according to Coastal Trans Executive Director Lee Karker.

Bowdoin Student Government (BSG) discussed two proposals to amend the bylaws of the election rules at its Wednesday meeting.

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.

On Tuesday, the approximately 1,377 students that did not cast ballots in last Saturday's Early Vote Day will have the opportunity to vote in the Maine State and town elections. In a year when a Maine ballot issue—Question 1, the people's veto to overturn Maine's new same-sex marriage law—is the only such marriage equality vote in the country, the State election is receiving a significant amount of national attention.

It's no secret that I am a Mainer. I love Maine and truly believe it to be the greatest state in the Union, infinitely better than Massachusetts. Okay, so I might be a little biased. But even the most metropolitan of "flat landahs" can revel in the political delights of the Pine Tree State. I could provide a litany of examples that would display the inimitable qualities of this humble land, but I shall spare you the history lesson; not because I do not think history lessons are awesome (they are), but because in the coming week the results of the referendum election will provide all the compelling evidence I need to convince you that Maine is the best state in the Union. With seven separate issues up for voter approval, this election will appeal to more than political junkies.

Prepare yourselves, because everything you thought you knew about the politically liberal-conservative continuum is about to be refuted. Fascism, according to a book by conservative writer Jonah Goldberg, is quite paradoxically a facet of liberalism. I'm not buying it, because there is nothing remotely liberal about totalitarianism, just as the actual, tyrannical practice of Communism is not a recognizable continuation of far-left ideals.

Over the past few weeks it has been hard to ignore the fliers and posters which have saturated the walls of many campus structures. "No on 1" or "VOTE" say the signs' headers in vaguely hostile capital letters. These simple reminders to participate in the political process are all well and good, as Question 1 centers around one of the most polarizing issues in politics today.

"We have some breaking news, there is a boy in what looks like a homemade hot-air balloon floating ten thousand feet above the ground in Northern Colorado!" In the latest example of a society gone haywire, we have Richard Heene and his family's bizarre attempt to captivate our nation's attention and our media's equally bizarre willingness to oblige.

Properly managing the finances of any successful enterprise starts with one simple principle: spend less money than you take in. From the family budget to the corporate balance sheet, spending wisely and minimizing debt are basic keys to economic prosperity. When the economy starts to slow down, this principle becomes even more important for households and businesses to follow. Scarce resources cannot be squandered, or you might find yourself in a deficit that you are unable to correct.

This is a belated note, but I felt it would be remiss not to comment on a troublesome phrase in the Celebrating Sex column from October 16. The authors write that "You can use olive oil, extra virgin or otherwise, as a safe lubricant in an emergency."

As a straight middle-aged male, I strongly urge all Maine voters to vote "no" on Question 1 on November 3 to protect Maine equality. As Franklin Roosevelt noted, "We have nothing to fear but fear itself," but fear seems to be the main—indeed the only—weapon in the arsenal of those who urge a "yes" vote on Question 1.

I realize that many Bowdoin College students will be drawn to the polls this year by Question 1 on the state ballot. As a supporter of same-sex marriage, I urge all students to cast "no" votes to preserve this important civil right for all Maine people.

As you consider the choices in casting your vote in the upcoming election, I encourage you to vote for Joanne King for Town Councilor At Large. Throughout her years on the council, she has proven to be an elected official who is intelligent, knowledgeable and fair.

Student blogs featuring both students' academic and leisure interests, have taken campus Web browsers by storm. Many visual arts professors now ask their students to create blogs to showcase class assignments. There are also those who are delving into the blog world by choice to introduce others to what they are passionate about—everything from music to fashion to photography.

Earlier this month, two Bowdoin students had a unique opportunity to complete fieldwork in the Gulf of Mexico with Professor of Biology and Doherty Marine Biology Postdoctoral Scholar Dan Thornhill. Thornhill also brought Courtney Bell '10 and Will Hatleberg '11 with him to conduct research. Leaving the week before fall break, the group spent a night in Auburn, Ala. before continuing to Mississippi with researchers from Auburn University to conduct deep-sea data collection.

Dear Silent Majority, Your correspondents were shocked that we could have erred as egregiously as you pointed out in your illuminating epistle to the editors. BMASV, Safe Space, Out Peers and Allies, SASSMM, Peer Health, V-Day, Speak, Sex 101 and the Vagina Monologues simply do not provide a large enough forum for the intellectual discourse that you so fervently desire. Bowdoin does deserve a better sex column, one that points out the rampant risks and rare rewards of sex, so that innocent Bowdoin students won't be duped by our "overriding manifesto," stating that despite the risks and consequences, sex should be enjoyable. As every "highly intelligent, highly rational" Bowdoin student should know, sex is a highly rational and highly intelligent process.

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.

"We are all connected to everyone and everything in the universe. Therefore, everything one does as an individual affects the whole. All thoughts, words, images, prayers, blessings, and deeds are listened to by all that is," said Dr. Serge Kahili King, author, humanitarian and teacher. Vice-President of the International Club (I-Club) Nattawan Junboota '10 offered the above quote to express the nature of the club's "Connected" photo exhibition, which will be unveiled today.

This Parents Weekend, music, dance and the sound of hefty drums can all be heard across campus. Following the traditions of the weekend, students and parents will be treated to student performances in supplement to highly praised brunches.

For all the kids out there who might worry that Spike Jonze's "Where the Wild Things Are" will ruin their favorite children's book, be not afraid. The hugely anticipated adaptation, which converts Maurice Sendak's 10-sentence picture book into an hour and 40-minute adventure film, expands the book but does not do any heavy reinterpretation, creating a movie that adds to but does not change the original.

No, hip-hop is not dead. Sorry Nas. A more appropriate exclamation would be, "hip-hop has changed," because one would have a hard time arguing with that conjecture.

Don't get me wrong. I abhor the wastefully prolonged marketing gimmick known as "childhood." To shelter children from the horrors of the world is to train them to turn a blind eye on the systemic violence that underpins their way of life. When Woody Allen imagined his adolescent avatar outside the principal's office dismissing human achievement as worthless muddle because of the impending supernova of our sun, we laughed at the absurdity.

For Halley K. Harrisburg '90, the world of art and art history—a world which she continues to explore and redefine—first presented itself to her within the Bowdoin classroom.

The women's volleyball team kicked off last weekend's Hall of Fame Tournament on a high note, crushing both Gordon College and Bridgewater St. 3-0.

The final Polar Bear field hockey game of the regular season will take place on Friday at 5 p.m. on the familiar turf of Howard F. Ryan Field. The Polar Bears will play fifth-ranked Tufts.

As a Trinity player was tackled in Bowdoin's penalty box last Saturday, each Bowdoin player had the same initial moment of panic, waiting to hear if the whistle was going to be blown. It was.

After last weekend's competitions, both the co-ed and women's teams held tight to their positions within the top 16 and 13 teams in New England respectively, allowing both to qualify for important upcoming regattas, the Schell and the Urn.

"Can you smell it? There's a life force in here tonight. Do you feel it? Hmm? I look around this room, and I see potential."