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Vol. 40, No. 28 MONDAY, OCTOBER 22, 2012 nyunews.com WASHINGTON SQUARE NEWS NYU’s Daily Student Newspaper Dogs march in costumes at Halloween Parade Dogs re-enacted famous movie moments and political gaffes in Tompkins Square Park for the 22nd annual Hallow- een Dog Parade on Saturday. The parade attracted more than 3,000 viewers who went to see the costumes. PHOTO SPREAD ON PAGES 6, 7 LAURA ENTIS FOR WSN NYU-Poly tests the waters with new robot MTA facilitates travel to LaGuardia ROBOT continued on PG. 3 Men’s swimming, diving open season victoriously Reel China film festival shows real China MSWIMMING continued on PG. 11 CHINA continued on PG. 4 LAGUARDIA continued on PG. 3 By MARGARET EBY A team of students from the Poly- technic Institute of NYU, led by pro- fessors Maurizio Porfiri and Oded Nov, launched a remote-controlled robotic vessel into Brooklyn’s Gowanus Canal last Monday. The team intends to use its ro- bot, Brooklyn Atlantis I, to gather information about the notoriously polluted canal. Brooklyn Atlantis I uses sensors and cameras that will transmit the data back to its public website, brooklynatlantis.poly.edu, every 30 seconds while the robot is in the water. They hope the data they gather will help construct a history of the Gowanus Canal to guide the cleanup process, in addition to providing an opportunity for NYU-Poly undergraduate and graduate students to put their skills into practice. In an article in The New York Times, Porfiri said the project be- came practical when he moved to By LESLEY GREENBERG Travels to LaGuardia Airport may become faster starting next year. The city and Metropolitan Transit Authority announced improvement plans earlier this month in an effort to provide faster, more reliable and more affordable public transporta- tion routes to LaGuardia Airport. “LaGuardia Airport is a transpor- tation hub ... that needs a better connection to the transit network and the region’s economy,” New York City Department of Transpor- tation commissioner Janette Sadik- Khan said in a press release. “These routes will open the terminal doors to new neighborhoods and bring more reliable local service to peo- ple across three boroughs.” Queens will offer a new route on the Brooklyn-Queens express- way to shorten the ride to the airport. Those traveling from the Bronx will benefit from a Se- lect Bus Service extension of the Bx41 line from Fordham Plaza By JENNIFER LU Every two years, the best Chi- nese documentary filmmakers travel to NYU for the Reel China @NYU Documentary Film Festival. Throughout its 10 years, the festival, which is hosted by the Department of Cinema Studies in conjunction with the Center for Religion and Media at NYU, has featured more than 100 documen- tary films by aspiring and estab- lished Chinese filmmakers. The documentaries typically depict social issues in China, es- pecially issues the government has refused to address. This year, the festival is expanding to include fiction films. “Hosting the festival now for the sixth time, we have seen so many crossovers from docu- mentaries to fictional films,” said Zhang Zhen, co-curator of the festival and professor in the Cinema Studies department at the Tisch School of the Arts. “We like the hybridization.” Ping Jie Zhang, a Chinese film- maker, started Reel China in 2002. After meeting Zhang in 2004, the two worked together The festival will explore documentaries on contemporary China COURTESY OF REEL CHINA By NICHOLAS NEMEROFF The NYU men’s swimming and diving team competed in their inaugural meet of the 2012-2013 season on Saturday. NYU took down the State University of New York at Cortland 184-110 at Palladium Athletic Facility. Sophomore Jerry Crowley led the Violets on Saturday, reigning supreme in the 100-yard free- style, 100-yard butterfly and the 200-yard medley relay. In the 100-yard freestyle, Fresh- man Ray Oo eclipsed his compet- itors by nearly two seconds — a fine start to his collegiate career. In the longest event in both time and distance, senior Dan Isaacson won the 1,000-yard freestyle in just over 10 minutes (10:11.62). “It is always great to win your first meet to help build confi- dence going into the season,” Isaacson said. “This victory will give us confidence going forward, and hopefully we will improve each meet from this point on.” Junior Charlie Wu won both the 100-yard (55.29) and 200- yard backstroke events. Match- ing his teammates’ feats, junior Aleksandr Koukhare- vitch won both the 100-yard (1:02.79) and 200-yard (2:20.65) breaststroke events.

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Page 1: WSN102212

Vol. 40, No. 28 MONDAY, OCTOBER 22, 2012 nyunews.com

WASHINGTON SQUARE NEWSNYU’s Daily Student Newspaper

Dogs march in costumes at Halloween ParadeDogs re-enacted famous movie moments and political gaffes in Tompkins Square Park for the 22nd annual Hallow-een Dog Parade on Saturday. The parade attracted more than 3,000 viewers who went to see the costumes.

PHOTO SPREAD ON PAGES 6, 7

LAURA ENTIS FOR WSN

NYU-Poly tests the waters with new robot

MTA facilitatestravel to LaGuardia

ROBOT continued on PG. 3

Men’s swimming, diving open season victoriously

Reel China film festival shows real China

MSWIMMING continued on PG. 11 CHINA continued on PG. 4

LAGUARDIA continued on PG. 3

By MARGARET EBY

A team of students from the Poly-technic Institute of NYU, led by pro-fessors Maurizio Porfiri and Oded Nov, launched a remote-controlled robotic vessel into Brooklyn’s Gowanus Canal last Monday.

The team intends to use its ro-bot, Brooklyn Atlantis I, to gather information about the notoriously polluted canal. Brooklyn Atlantis I uses sensors and cameras that will transmit the data back to its public website, brooklynatlantis.poly.edu, every 30 seconds while the robot is in the water.

They hope the data they gather will help construct a history of the Gowanus Canal to guide the cleanup process, in addition to providing an opportunity for NYU-Poly undergraduate and graduate students to put their skills into practice.

In an article in The New York Times, Porfiri said the project be-came practical when he moved to

By LESLEY GREENBERG

Travels to LaGuardia Airport may become faster starting next year.

The city and Metropolitan Transit Authority announced improvement plans earlier this month in an effort to provide faster, more reliable and more affordable public transporta-tion routes to LaGuardia Airport.

“LaGuardia Airport is a transpor-tation hub ... that needs a better connection to the transit network and the region’s economy,” New York City Department of Transpor-tation commissioner Janette Sadik-Khan said in a press release. “These routes will open the terminal doors to new neighborhoods and bring more reliable local service to peo-ple across three boroughs.”

Queens will offer a new route on the Brooklyn-Queens express-way to shorten the ride to the airport. Those traveling from the Bronx will benefit from a Se-lect Bus Service extension of the Bx41 line from Fordham Plaza

By JENNIFER LU

Every two years, the best Chi-nese documentary filmmakers travel to NYU for the Reel China @NYU Documentary Film Festival.

Throughout its 10 years, the festival, which is hosted by the Department of Cinema Studies in conjunction with the Center for Religion and Media at NYU, has featured more than 100 documen-tary films by aspiring and estab-lished Chinese filmmakers.

The documentaries typically depict social issues in China, es-pecially issues the government has refused to address. This year, the festival is expanding to include fiction films.

“Hosting the festival now for the sixth time, we have seen so many crossovers from docu-

mentaries to fictional films,” said Zhang Zhen, co-curator of the festival and professor in the Cinema Studies department at the Tisch School of the Arts. “We like the hybridization.”

Ping Jie Zhang, a Chinese film-maker, started Reel China in 2002. After meeting Zhang in 2004, the two worked together

The festival will explore documentaries on contemporary China COURTESY OF REEL CHINA

By NICHOLAS NEMEROFF

The NYU men’s swimming and diving team competed in their inaugural meet of the 2012-2013 season on Saturday. NYU took down the State University of New York at Cortland 184-110 at Palladium Athletic Facility.

Sophomore Jerry Crowley led the Violets on Saturday, reigning supreme in the 100-yard free-style, 100-yard butterfly and the 200-yard medley relay.

In the 100-yard freestyle, Fresh-man Ray Oo eclipsed his compet-itors by nearly two seconds — a fine start to his collegiate career.

In the longest event in both time and distance, senior Dan

Isaacson won the 1,000-yard freestyle in just over 10 minutes (10:11.62).

“It is always great to win your first meet to help build confi-dence going into the season,” Isaacson said. “This victory will give us confidence going forward, and hopefully we will improve each meet from this point on.”

Junior Charlie Wu won both the 100-yard (55.29) and 200-yard backstroke events. Match-ing his teammates’ feats, junior Aleksandr Koukhare-vitch won both the 100-yard (1:02.79) and 200-yard (2:20.65) breaststroke events.

Page 2: WSN102212

TODAY

6:30 p.m.King Juan Carlos I of Spain Center | 53 Washington

Square SouthSPANISH CIVIL WAR FILM SERIES:

LAND AND FREEDOMThe King Juan Carlos I of Spain Center and the

College of Arts and Science host a screening and dis-cussion of Ken Loach’s 1995 film “Land and Freedom.”

7 p.m.NYU Bookstore | 726 Broadway

BOOK CLUBPublishing executive Karina Mikhli will lead a book club meeting at the NYU bookstore. Bring a fiction book you have read and want to discuss — maybe

even swap with another book club member.

8 p.m.Frederick Loewe Theatre | 35 West 4th St.

CONCERT A LA CARTEVocal group the Mirror Visions Ensemble performs “Concerts à la Carte,” a series of songs about food

by American composers.

1 2 3

ON THE SIDE COMPILED BY THE WSN STAFF

2 WASHINGTON SQUARE NEWS | MONDAY, OCTOBER 22, 2012 | NYUNEWS.COM

Editor-in-Chief AMANDA RANDONE

Managing EditorJAEWON KANG

Web Managing Editor

AMY ZHANG

Deputy Managing Editor

EMILY YANG

Assistant Managing Editors

HANQING CHEN DANIEL HINTON

Creative DirectorMERYLL PREPOSI

SENIOR STAFFuniversity GENTRY BROWNcity/state TONY CHAUarts STEFAN MELNYKfeatures NICOLA PRINGmultimedia JAMES KELLEHERcopy JORDAN MELENDREZ senior editors HANNAH BORENSTEIN, CARRIE COUROGEN, JULIE DEVITO, BRIDGETTE DORAN, JONATHON DORNBUSH, CHARLES MAHONEY, COLE RILEY

DEPUTY STAFFuniversity TATIANA BAEZcity/state KAYANA JEAN-PHILIPPEbooks/theater CLIO MCCONNELLfilm JEREMY GROSSMANentertainment SAMANTHA RULLOmusic JOSHUA JOHNSONfeatures KATYA BARANNIK beauty & style HILARY PRESLEYdining LAVYA YALAMANCHI special issues ESHA RAYsports MARY JANE DUMANKAYA, SARA LEVY, SEBASTIEN VAN HEYNINGENmultimedia GLORIA LEE, JONATHAN TANforeign correspondent RICHARD ZHANGsocial media agent NICOLE GARTSIDE

OPINION PAGEopinion editor CHRIS DINARDOdeputy opinion editor JESSICA LITTMAN

ADVERTISINGBUSINESS MANAGERREBECCA RIBEIRO

CIRCULATION MANAGERCHELSEA GOLD

UNIVERSITY SALES COORDINATORKAITLYN O’BRIEN

SALES REPRESENTATIVES ELLEN MCQUEEN, MELISSA YNEGAS

SALES ASSOCIATEGLORIA LEE

CIRCULATION ASSISTANTSOMID GOLMOHAMMADI, MAX KANE

ADVISING

DIRECTOR OF OPERATIONS

NANCI HEALY

EDITORIAL ADVISER

KEITH LEIGHTY EDITOR-AT-LARGE

FRANCIS POON

About WSN: Washington Square News (ISSN 15499389) is the student newspaper of New York University. WSN is published Monday through Thursday during NYU’s academic year, except for university holidays, vacations and exam periods.

Corrections: WSN is committed to accurate reporting. When we make errors, we do our best to correct them as quickly as possible. If you believe we have erred, contact managing editor Jaewon Kang at [email protected] or at 212.998.4302.

NYUNEWS.COM

WASHINGTON SQUARE NEWS

A memorial acknowledged NYU’s treasured Time Keeper, John Votta, in Washington Square Park.

PHOTO BY JONATHAN TAN

SNAPSHOT ON THE WIRE

DWS: Driving While SanitizedA Connecticut police station reported a local woman sped, spun out

of control and almost hit another vehicle earlier this month. The woman, Jennifer Amanda Wilcox, 36, did not admit to consuming

alcohol at first, but failed several field sobriety tests and was charged with driving while intoxicated. Wilcox later admitted to consuming half a bottle of hand sanitizer, which brought her blood alcohol level

to 0.176. She was released on a $500 non-surety bond. — NBC NEWS

UNIVERSITY OF MARYLAND

Quidditch Team wins annual Turtle Cup — THE DIAMONDBACK

BOSTON UNIVERSITY

Students opt out of voting, lack info, voice in election— THE DAILY FREE PRESS

GOT AN EVENT? EMAIL US AT [email protected] OR TWEET US @NYUNEWS. GOT SOMETHING TO SHARE? EMAIL US AT [email protected].

BEST OFWEB

“I am in Gallatin concentrating in Laguna Beach recaps.” #NYU

@FASHiNPRiNCeSS

I totally did not know that #homecoming was still a thing in college. #NYU #WeHaveNoSports #Lol

@KarissaSays@questlove cramming 71yrs of music into 1 hour. newfound position @ #NYU congrats!

#Denon #feelthemusic #nyc

@Daneblak

COMMENTS

TWEETS

In all my years at #NYU I don’t think I’ve ever stepped foot on the fifth

floor of Kimmel #truestory

@Joe_Picini

In response to “NYU’s treasured Time Keeper passes away at 70”

(Article posted Oct. 17)

John was a [kind-hearted], wonderful person. He

was a friend to everyone who had the benefit of knowing him — every

student at NYU and even all the squirrels in Washington Square. His

presence and booming voice helped make

going to NYU such a magical

experience. He will be

missed but will live

on in our memories.

— Troy Pospisil

In response to “NYU releases admission rates for class of 2016” (Article posted Oct. 18)Finally, a University that sees itself as an elite private school (a view reflected in the level of its tuition) shouldn’t allow the size of the undergraduate body to approach that of a large state school, as then students will be paying premium prices for an experience they could obtain more cheaply at a public

institution intheir home

state.

— Daniel Greenspan

GRAPHIC BY LAUREN GOLDSTEIN FOR WSN

Page 3: WSN102212

NYUNEWS.COM | MONDAY, OCTOBER 22, 2012 | WASHINGTON SQUARE NEWS 3

Brooklyn a year ago and realized the op-portunity the Gowanus Canal provided.

In 2010, the Environmental Protec-tion Agency named the waterway a Superfund site, making it a prior-ity for environmental cleanup. Resi-dents in the area have been paying close attention to the cause and have suggested additions to the robot, like adding air quality and salinity sen-sors to the robot.

The project was funded by the Na-tional Science Foundation to encourage citizen science. The group said the pub-lic’s participation in the project is key: Visitors to the website are encouraged to register an account, attend Brooklyn Atlantis launches and share their pho-tos of the canal throughout the cleanup process. Tutorials also show volunteers how citizen science brings profession-als and students together to collaborate on projects in the community.

Jeffrey Laut, a Ph.D. student at NYU-Poly who is on the team, said the project has complimented his course of study and research interests.

“I think that this project is par-ticularly exciting for a graduate stu-dent because we get to see our work in action, right here in our own community,” Laut said. “Most graduate students don’t have that satisfaction, and I think it is especially rewarding to talk to longtime residents who are thank-ful for the work that we are doing.”

The various interests and fields of the involved students are reflected in their contributions to the project. Some have designed the robot, and others have

created the website and user interface.Porfiri said he is encouraged by the

feedback he has received.“Based on the meetings that I’ve

had with the community, the re-sponse has been very positive,” Pro-firi said. “Of course, we don’t know if the people who are interested will actually do the work or if they are just interested. But the response has been extremely exciting.”

CAS freshman Helen Ratner said the robot is a valuable tool: “I hope there are more projects like this in the future that get such wide recognition.”

Margaret Eby is a staff writer. Email her at [email protected].

NYU-Poly launches robot in Gowanus Canal to guide cleanup

ROBOT continued from PG. 1

NYU, NYU-Poly to officially integrateBy LESLEY GREENBERG

Earlier this month, the Boards of Trustees of NYU and the Polytechnic Institute of NYU ap-proved the final steps to formally make NYU-Poly the NYU School of Engineering.

After the official steps are taken, all NYU-Poly students will become NYU students and will be able to participate in NYU student events, have access to university buildings and partic-ipate in NYU student clubs. NYU-Poly under-graduate and graduate students will also be able to take classes at the schools of NYU and apply to study at the university’s global sites.

The process is expected to be complete by September 2014.

“The announcement by the boards of NYU and NYU-Poly marks an important milestone in the integration of the two institutions,” said K.R. Sreenivasan, provost of NYU-Poly. “It will make both of our schools stronger and more competitive.”

In 2007, the Polytechnic Institute and NYU be-gan conversing about a possible affiliation. A year later, Poly renamed itself NYU-Poly.

NYU spokesman Philip Lentz said the affiliation from 2007 benefites NYU-Poly by increasing ap-plications, geographic diversity, research funds, graduation rate and new faculty hires.

“[The integration will] enable NYU to re-es-tablish technology and engineering capabilities within our comprehensive research university,” Lentz said.

He added that the strength of NYU and NYU-Poly’s partnership helped gain approval from the city for a new applied science institute, the Cen-ter for Urban Science and Progress.

But many students have yet to feel a connection between the schools. Eugene Dobry, a NYU-Poly sophomore, said he does not feel connected to the general NYU community.

“While we are technically NYU students, us

Poly kids don’t feel like we’re really a part of NYU,” Dobry said. “We’re mostly engineers, [NYU kids are] mostly liberal arts students. There’s a lot of mutual disdain.”

Tisch sophomore Caroline Kaplan agreed with Dobry.

“I don’t feel connected to NYU-Poly at all,” she said. “I sometimes forget that it’s even associated with NYU.”

Though NYU-Poly sophomore Sandy Amoako-hene said she does feel connected to NYU, she said being in Brooklyn makes it a bit harder to be-come involved in the NYU community. As a mem-ber of the Poly and NYU Navigators, Amoakohene attends weekly meetings at NYU. She eats in NYU dining halls and studies at Bobst Library.

“I believe the merge will give Poly students ac-cess to a lot more resources,” Amoakohene said.

Jason Blonstein, a professor of Science Educa-tion, said the official merge will be beneficial.

“A major university ought to have a school of engineering, not only as a focus of applied science but as a university hub of creativity in art and design, and associated information technology,” he said. “Poly having engineers of so many kinds complements the pure arts and sciences offered at NYU.”

Bruce Garetz, a professor of chemical and biomolecular engineering at Poly, agreed.

“Engineering and technology are key areas of endeavor that can interact strongly with the medical, dental and scientific research done at various schools of NYU, to provide a synergy that hasn’t existed at NYU for forty years,” Ga-retz said.“Students will have a broader range of course offerings and research opportuni-ties. Faculty members will have greater op-portunities for research collaboration across the different schools of NYU.”

Lesley Greenberg is a staff writer. Email her [email protected].

NYU-Poly students set Brooklyn Atlantis I afloat last week.

COURTESY OF ODED NOV

City, MTA announce plans to expedite travel to LaGuardia

LAGUARDIA continued from PG. 1

across the Robert F. Kennedy Bridge, which will significantly decrease the travel time to the airport, the press release said.

Currently, travelers from Manhat-tan can take the M60 to LaGuardia. But due to traffic and stop lights, the bus has often been clocked in at a speed of 2.7 miles per hour, ac-cording to a press release from the Office of the Mayor. The M60 bus line will begin using Select Bus Ser-vice to prevent buses from getting stuck at traffic lights. The service includes bus-only lanes, pay-before-boarding, streamlined stops and transit signal priority technology.

The plans will begin to take ef-fect in 2013.

Gallatin sophomore Tanya Neufeld, who took public trans-port from LaGuardia airport last Wednesday, said she is thankful for the changes to come.

“It took over an hour, you needed exact change for the M60 from the airport to Harlem then you had to walk two blocks to take the train downtown,” Neufeld said. “The easier trip to the airport would be a godsend because LaGuardia is the nearest air-port but getting there is so compli-cated that I usually end up taking a $30 cab [ride] instead. It would help

me save money and time.” Sharr Prohaska, a professor in

the Preston Robert Tisch Center for Hospitality, Tourism and Sports Management, lauded the plan.

“Getting to the airports can be a challenge especially during rush hours and/or in bad weather,” Pro-haska said. “Unfortunately, many visitors do not understand the ob-stacles and end up missing their flights. This is a great alternative, and I think many people will be very pleased to have the option.”

Lesley Greenberg is a staff writer. Email her at [email protected].

Businesses file lawsuit against soda banBy TRICIA LIN

A group of organizations and businesses sued the city in an attempt to overturn the Bloomberg administration’s ban on supersized sodas earlier this month.

The assembly includes the Teamsters Local 812, Korean-American Grocers Association of New York, National As-sociation of Theater Owners

of New York State, National Restaurant Association, New York State Coalition of His-panic Chambers of Commerce and the American Beverage Association.

Caroline Starke, a spokesper-son for these groups, said the plaintiffs are challenging the Board of Health’s authority in court because the board does not have the authority to uni-laterally enact the ban.

“Under New York State law the power to pass new laws is reserved for the legislative branch, here, the City Coun-cil,” Starke said.

Starke added that the lawsuit was filed to question the Board of Health’s power.

“This lawsuit is not about the health of Americans or more specifically, New York-ers,” Starke said. “The Board of Health does not have the authority to create law, plain and simple. That’s why we’re asking the court to rule.”

Marc La Vorgna, press secre-tary for Mayor Michael Bloom-berg, emphasized the authority the Board of Health has over the well-being of New Yorkers.

“The Board of Health abso-lutely has the authority to reg-ulate matters affecting health

and the obesity crisis killing nearly 6,000 New Yorkers a year, and impacting the lives of thousands more unquestion-ably falls under its purview,” La Vorgna said. “The Mayor’s plan to limit the size of sugary beverages, the leading contrib-utor to the obesity epidemic, has spurred a long overdue na-tional dialogue on obesity.”

Many NYU students said they understand both sides of the argument.

“I believe that the govern-ment should have the right to regulate businesses’ ability to sell products which are un-healthy for the consumer,” said Laura Waters, a CAS freshman. “It is the place of those who are the distributers of these products to make sure that the customer is made aware of the negative ramifications and protected from them.”

But CAS freshman Zack Free-man stated that the govern-ment is overstepping its pow-ers in enforcing the ban.

“I am against the ban,” Free-man said. “It isn’t the govern-ment’s place to tell me how much soda to drink.”

Tricia Lin is a staff writer. Email her at [email protected].

New York businesses contend that the soda ban is illegal.

FILE PHOTO BY JONATHAN TAN

The M60 bus will begin using select bus service in 2013.

COURTESY OF NYC TRANSIT

Page 4: WSN102212

4 WASHINGTON SQUARE NEWS | MONDAY, OCTOBER 22, 2012 | NYUNEWS.COM

FEATURES

Festival offers unique opportunity to view Chinese films

CHINA continued from PG. 1

to make the second Reel China a university-sponsored event.

Two years later, Angela Zito, co-director of the Center for Religion and Media in the De-partment of Anthropology, joined the team. Though she and Zhang invited the festival’s featured Chinese filmmakers to attend the event, it was not until 2008 that the filmmakers were able to be present during their film screenings because it was difficult for them to obtain U.S. visas.

“We are so grateful that the art-ists can be here in person because we can now conduct panel discus-sions and question and answer sessions with them,” Zito said.

Films presented in this year’s festival, which began on Oct. 19, include “The Loves of Mr. An,” a heartwarming love story, “Five Plus Five,” which follows the lives of contemporary artists, and many more.

Filmmaker Wang Yunlong showed his documentary “To Jus-tify Bu Qinfu” to Reel China’s at-tendees on Friday.

The film focuses on Wang’s mentor Bu Qinfu, who was wrongfully executed by the Chi-nese government because of her dissent in China’s Cultural Revo-lution. Wang hopes the film will expose the corruption of the Chi-nese government.

“I want the truth to be re-vealed,” Wang said. “After all, this is Reel China. We need to show what really happened.”

Tisch sophomore Ken Kriheli said the festival was eye-opening.

“It’s because it’s different that it was interesting,” Kriheli said. “I don’t get the opportu-nity to see Chinese films, so I’ll be coming back for the films next week.”

Zhen and Zito attend film festi-vals in China each year to select the films for Reel China.

“When I choose films and act as a curator, it also enriches my teaching, and it opens windows for my students,” Zhang said.

Students from Zhang’s ad-vanced honors seminar, Chinese Independent Documentaries, at-tend Reel China as a part of their course. The festival is free and open to the public, and audience members typically include NYU students and people from all over the metropolitan area.

Regardless of who comes to see the films, the purpose of the festival is to show social and cul-tural issues in China.

“These are alternative inde-pendent films that represent everyday life in China, and they show contemporary China in a different light,” Zhang said. “Once the films are shown, a ripple effect is created so that people are talking about issues that would otherwise not be talked about.”

Reel China will continue from Oct. 26 through Oct. 28 at the Michelson Theater at the Depart-ment of Cinema Studies, located on 721 Broadway, room 648.

Jennifer Lu is a contributing writer. Email her at [email protected].

Guide for the absentee voterBy JONATHAN KESHISHOGLOU

The 2012 presidential elec-tion is just a few weeks away, and people all over the coun-try are preparing to vote. Many students from out of state who are unable to make it home to cast their vote have the added task of voting with an absentee ballot. While not as simple as casting your vote in person, if absentee voting is important to you, follow these simple steps to make sure your voice is heard on Election Day.

KNOW YOUR DEADLINESDuring important national

elections, the enforcement of deadlines tends to be strict. Absentee voting is a two-step process, first mailing in your request for an absentee ballot and second mailing in the bal-lot itself with your votes. Both have deadlines that are differ-ent by state, so make sure they are postmarked by the proper date. Most states require it to be postmarked no later than Oct. 30. And of course, make sure your ballot is received by Nov. 6.

REQUEST YOUR BALLOTMany states have absentee bal-

lot applications online, which can be downloaded and printed. Fill out your ballot application and send it to your home state’s Board of Elections. If you hap-pen to be close to your home state, you may also choose to hand-deliver your application.

WAIT FOR YOUR BALLOT IN THE MAIL

This seems simple enough but

can be a source of unwarranted stress for many young voters. Ballots arrive at different times depending on where you are from and the date you requested the ballot. Stay patient if your ballot does not arrive at the same time as someone else’s.

FILL OUT AND TURN IN YOUR BALLOT

Once you receive your absen-tee ballot in the mail, the rest is up to you. Vote for the can-didate you believe is best suited for the job. A No. 2 pencil is recommended, and most of the other instructions you will need will be clearly written on the ballot. After you finish filling out the ballot, follow the direc-tions to mail it back. As long as

the Board of Elections in your state receives the ballot by the time the polls close on Election Day, your vote will be success-fully counted.

REMEMBER:EVERY STATE IS DIFFERENT

Each state has its own rules about voting, although the differ-ences tend to be minor. Check out the rules in your state, and take into account any special laws it may have, although most states follow a pretty consistent guide-line for voting.

Happy voting.

Jonathan Keshishoglou is a staff writer. Email him at [email protected].

Because states vary, make sure to check registration deadlines.COURTESY OF LEAGUE OF WOMEN VOTERS OF CALIFORNIA

Artist brings French countryside to Maison Française By HELEN HOLMES

A ray of Parisian sunshine was present at NYU’s La Maison Française on Thursday evening.

“Houses in Provence,” an exhi-bition of the work of artist Paul Resika, which opened on Thurs-day, Oct. 18, explored Resika’s somewhat romantic relation-ship with the French country-side. Quaint houses and seaside verandas were depicted with bright, saturated hues coupled with a brush stroke so enthusi-astic that thick swaths of paint curved toward the viewer from the canvas.

At 19, Resika began studying in Provincetown, Mass., under the tutelage of renowned Ger-man-American abstract expres-sionist Hans Hofmann. Since then, Resika has enjoyed much success and fame in the local art scene.

Resika’s work is featured in the

permanent collections of muse-ums around the world, including the Metropolitan Museum of Art and the Museum of Modern Art in New York.

Resika and his son, Nathan, were in attendance on Thursday.

“I used to live [near Washington Square] when I was five years old with my dad, so it’s kind of like hav-ing an art show almost where you used to live,” Nathan said.

Washington Square resident Flora Hogman attended the show because it reminded her of home.

“I am from Provence, I grew up in Gaas and that’s why I came, because it feels so familiar,” Hog-man said. “The light and the sense of being welcome, and the sense of tranquility. There’s an ideal about this area, and this has an impressionistic aspect to it.”

Resika sees creating art as somewhat of a natural process.

“An artist doesn’t get bet-ter, and he doesn’t get worse.

If he’s an artist, he’s an artist, and if he’s not an artist, he’s not an artist,” Resika said. “Peo-ple think you become an artist, that you get a style. That’s not true. That’s a misunderstand-

ing. You do not become an artist. You are an artist.”

Resika’s “Houses in Provence” will be on display at La Maison Française, 16 Washington Mews, through Nov. 15. A second part of

Resika’s exhibition titled “Houses in Provence: Works on Paper” will be on view beginning Nov. 19.

Helen Holmes is a staff writer. Email her at features@nyunews.

Paul Riska’s bright and colorful depiction of rural France draws viewers into his paintings.VIA SHFAP.COM

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NYUNEWS.COM | MONDAY, OCTOBER 22, 2012 | WASHINGTON SQUARE NEWS 5

EDITED BY NICOLA PRING [email protected]

Gallatin professor’s new book tells of ‘Becoming a Ballerina’By KIMBERLY SCHU

Gallatin professor Lise Friedman’s new children’s book “Becoming a Ballerina” takes readers behind the glamorous lights, costumes and fairy tale world of the classic ballet “The Nutcracker” to the difficult yet rewarding audition process.

The book follows 13-year-old ballerina Fiona Wada-Gill as she embarks on a difficult journey to follow her dreams and perform as Clara in the Boston Ballet.

“Put simply, ‘Becoming a Ballerina’ is the story of an ordinary girl’s extraordinary life as a young ballerina,” Friedman said.

In the book, Friedman observes Wada-Gill and shares details about her successes and struggles from her first audition for the show through to the opening night.

Readers begin to see that despite how tough the life-style may be, Wada-Gill puts her heart and soul into do-ing what she loves and somehow manages to balance rehearsals, classes, homework, family and friends.

While the main focus of the book is how Wada-Gill perfects her dancing for her performance in “The Nutcracker,” the message is much deeper. Readers can derive different mes-sages from the book depending on the their age and mindset.

A recurring theme in the book is that in life, people must always follow their dreams and pursue their passions even in difficult, overwhelming moments.

Friedman, a former dancer herself, is an accom-plished author who co-wrote the book “Letters to

Juliet,” which inspired the 2010 film of the same title. She teaches magazine publishing courses in Gallatin.

Friedman worked closely on “Becoming a Ballerina” with Mary Dowdle, a talented photogra-pher and a friend of Friedman’s. Friedman and Dow-dle previously collaborated on a book called “Break a Leg!: The Kid’s Guide to Acting and Stagecraft,” which was published in 2002.

Dowdle, who is credited for all of the photography in “Becoming a Ballerina,” admires Friedman’s dedi-cation to creativity.

“Not only is Lise an eloquent writer, she was a profes-sional dancer, and a mother of a young dancer,” Dow-dle said. “She is also a great editor of photography.”

Dowdle said she hopes readers will draw inspiration from the book.

“‘Becoming a Ballerina’ will inspire children and teenagers to pursue their dreams,” Dowdle said. “Whether they want to be an Olympic athlete, a high school captain of a soccer team, or just ... get a part in the play or production that they’ve always wanted.”

Gallatin freshman Jessica Soares, an actress and for-mer ballerina, enjoyed the book.

“Reading this book truly helped me feel inspired,” Soares said. “It was crazy how much I could relate to Fiona and, in a way, even idolize her.”

Kimberly Schu is a staff writer. Email her at [email protected] OF LISE FRIEDMAN

Apple and pumpkin picking spots

QUEENS COUNTY FARM Queens County Farm has a huge pump-

kin patch for you to wander through to find the perfect pumpkin, and they serve hot apple cider to keep you warm while you look. The farm also features a three-acre corn maze with the theme “Once Upon a Time,” which takes a couple of hours to navigate.

Queens County Farm is accessible by taking the E or F train to Union Turn-pike and then taking the Q46 bus to Little Neck Parkway.

WILKENS FARM Wilkens Farm in Yorktown Heights,

N.Y. features 14 different types of apple trees to pick from yourself. Traditional hay wagons are provided

to bring you to and from the orchards. Wilkens Farm’s bakeshop sells the farm’s famous apple cider donuts and a wide variety of freshly baked pies and muffins.

Get to Wilkens Farm by taking the Metro-North Railroad Hudson Line from Grand Central Station to Peekskill.

MASKER ORCHARDS In addition to a large apple orchard,

Maskers offers spectacular fall foliage views. The orchard is large enough that it is easy to find a quiet corner on even the busiest days. The quaint, red-barn country store sells a wide range of goodies for you to bring back to your dorm along with all the apples you pick. Coupons for discounted apples

and free jugs of cider are available at www.maskers.com.

Reach Maskers Orchard by New Jer-sey Transit’s 196 or 197 bus from Port Authority to Willowbrook Station in Warwick, and walk half a mile to the orchard from there.

OUTHOUSE ORCHARDS Outhouse Orchards in North Salem,

N.Y. offers a pumpkin patch where you can pick pumpkins right off the vine, as well as 10 types of apple trees. Before heading out into the orchard to start gathering, make sure to grab a large bag of their delicious apple cider donuts from the main house. The orchard also features a large corn maze and hay rides to and from

picking sites.Get to Outhouse Orchards by taking

the Metro-North Railroad Harlem Line from Grand Central to Croton Falls and getting in a taxi from there.

FISHKILL FARMS Fishkill Farms seems to be located

in a fantasy land, with beautiful apple trees set against a misty backdrop of open fields and rolling hills. This farm in Hopewell Junction, N.Y. offers a wide variety of apples in addition to a pumpkin patch and a well-stocked farm store.

Fishkill Farms is accessible by tak-ing the Metro-North Railroad Hudson Line from Grand Central Station to Beacon Station.

Nothing says fall like strolling through a pumpkin patch and apple orchard, searching for the perfect picks to take home. For college students living in the heart of New York City, a day spent at the farm can also be the ideal way to escape and de-stress for a few hours. Here are the top five places to go apple or pumpkin picking this season.

By BRYNA SHUMAN

Bryna Shuman is a staff writer. Email her at [email protected].

Orchards and patches:

TOP5

One of the best traditions of the season, a trip to a pumpkin patch makes for a beautiful weekend.COURTESY OF RICH BOWEN

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6 WASHINGTON SQUARE NEWS | MONDAY, OCTOBER 22, 2012 | NYUNEWS.COM

HALLOWEEN DOG PARADETOMPKINSSQUARE PARK

PRESENTS

By LAURA ENTIS

Dogs masquerading as alligators, cowboys and bananas filled Tompkins Square Park on Saturday for the 22nd annual Hal-

loween Dog Parade. The parade attracted a crowd of more than 3,000 people who came to see quirky costumes. This year, a

dog named Maddie took home the Best in Show award for her costume of Steven Spielberg’s classic “E.T.” The costume was an

elaborate recreation of the iconic scene where Elliot and E.T. bike through the night sky, complete with a cardboard moon.

READ THE FULL STORY ONLINE.

PHOTOS BY REBECCA CLEMENTI/WSN

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NYUNEWS.COM | MONDAY, OCTOBER 22, 2012 | WASHINGTON SQUARE NEWS 7

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THE NEW YORK TIMES CROSSWORD & DAILY SUDOKU

Across 1 *Prefix with

physics 5 So last year10 Papa’s partner14 Sounds of

satisfaction15 Fields16 Hwys.17 “___ bien!”18 Film units19 Cats and gerbils,

e.g.20 *Substance

marketed under the name NutraSweet

22 Stiller’s partner in comedy

23 What “can travel halfway around the world while the truth is putting on its shoes,” per Mark Twain

24 *Fightin’ words26 Libra’s symbol29 Ashes container

30 ___ sauce31 Religious councils35 Aptly named fruit39 *Coach’s clichéd

reminder42 Teed off43 Bridge player’s

combo44 Bygone flier45 Go pfft, as an

engine47 ___ rod (molding

with a twined serpent design)

49 *Chess ending55 Loo56 Peter of

“Casablanca”57 Pie filling …

or a hint to the answers to the six starred clues?

61 The “A” in A.D.62 ___ lily63 Basic drawing

class64 French kings

65 Shaquille of the N.B.A.

66 Singer Celine67 Greek war god68 Pesto ingredient69 *“Don’t look ___!”

Down 1 ___ Hari (W.W. I

spy) 2 What friends,

Romans and countrymen lent, in Shakespeare

3 1992 Robert Altman film about Hollywood

4 Attack 5 A comb makes

one 6 “You’re ___ pal” 7 Curt summons 8 Oregon’s capital 9 Double curve10 Advertising figure

with a monocle11 Bothered greatly12 About 39 inches,

in England13 Source of much

tea from Asia21 Actress

Witherspoon22 Debussy’s “La

___”25 What a Spanish

orchestra produces

26 Retired fliers27 Pacific salmon28 The “S” in CBS32 SSW’s opposite33 Suffix with ball

34 Sábado or domingo

36 “Quit your beefing!”

37 What a sidewalk may abut

38 “___ shocked as you are”

40 Blood group?

41 Writer Zora ___ Hurston

46 “I Like ___” (’50s political slogan)

48 Holiday Inn alternative

49 Barton of the 40-Down

50 Trophy or medal51 Bert’s pal on

“Sesame Street”

52 Big appliance maker

53 Scrabble pieces54 China’s Zhou ___58 Telephone59 Itsy-bitsy bit60 Fork prong62 Inner part of an

ear of corn

Puzzle by Adam G. Perl

For answers, call 1-900-285-5656, $1.49 a minute; or, with a credit card, 1-800-814-5554.Annual subscriptions are available for the best of Sunday crosswords from the last 50 years: 1-888-7-ACROSS.AT&T users: Text NYTX to 386 to download puzzles, or visit nytimes.com/mobilexword for more information.Online subscriptions: Today’s puzzle and more than 2,000 past puzzles, nytimes.com/crosswords ($39.95 a year).Share tips: nytimes.com/wordplay. Crosswords for young solvers: nytimes.com/learning/xwords.

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17 18 19

20 21 22

23 24 25

26 27 28 29

30 31 32 33 34 35 36 37 38

39 40 41

42 43 44

45 46 47 48

49 50 51 52 53 54 55

56 57 58 59 60

61 62 63

64 65 66

67 68 69

U P I N A R M S M A S S E SD O M I N I C A O C T O P ID R A G O N E T O N E N I LE T C H D W Y A N E W A D ER I O T S A R S S T U N

A P I A N I T T I I R TC N N C R I M I N A L

S T P E T E R A N O M A L YC H A T R O O M E N AH E Y A N N A S I C B ME L I S I N P U T E E LD O N T J I N X I T F E T AU R G E O N C R U D I T E SL A U R E N A E R O F L O TE X P E L S T A N G I E R S

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FEATURESEDITED BY NICOLA PRING [email protected]

Social network connects users to political interestsBy CICI CHEN

Politics can be complicated, and partisan news outlets can make important issues even more difficult to understand.

Recent Brown University gradu-ate Joschka Tryba has devised a way to simplify political issues for students. With a passion for politics and entrepreneurship, Tryba and his team recently launched LoveGov, a website that allows users to get political infor-mation, connect with other users and take political action online.

“The goal is to completely change the way politics is and bring the world closer to a digital democracy,” said Tryba, LoveGov’s founder and CEO.

One of LoveGov’s main functions is matching people to like-minded individuals, politicians and groups. Users can take a simple quiz when they log onto the site, which helps classify political interests.

“The website can tell you where you sit in the political space, from local to federal level, how you com-pare to politicians and your friends, what causes are going on, what or-ganizations are currently active in your area and [more],” Tryba said.

“People can go out and take action and make a difference rather than feel completely disconnected and powerless from the political pro-cess, which is really how I perceive the state of politics to be today.”

Tryba’s idea for LoveGov sparked last year when he was a senior at Brown and studying Commerce, Organization and Entrepreneur-ship. He entered his ideas in a start-up business plan competition on campus, and although he did not win, he attracted an investor’s at-tention and began working on the project after graduation.

Tryba and his co-founder Max Fowler, who also recently graduated from Brown, noticed that students were often confused by political movements like the Tea Party, Arab Spring and Occupy Wall Street.

“While the people in these pro-tests were so unified in what they were in opposition to, they had difficulty figuring out who among them would agree on what should be done to solve these problems,” Tryba said. “So there were lots of dif-ferent people with different views who just got lumped together in one movement.”

The website, which is currently in its beta phase with more

than 800 users, operates on a for-profit model.

“We are a for-profit company, and you know part of it is obviously be-cause we want to make money our-selves,” Tryba said. “But mostly we did that because I believed that a social business is a better model for sustaining itself than nonprofit.”

Many NYU students found LoveGov was a helpful teaching tool.

“I think it’s great how much LoveGov facilitates the process of allowing people to sign petitions [and] contact representatives, etc., which are usually things people consider too tedious to be bothered with,” said CAS junior Matt Rosen-

thal. “My one concern is that it is a for-profit site, so while the mission statement declares a commitment to non-partisanship, I would still be concerned about the influence ad-vertisements have on users.”

CAS junior Alex Silady is inter-ested in the way the site matches users to politicians.

“The matching [system] seems interesting because it gets you thinking about seemingly minor or technical issues you’d never considered before, such as the [Food and Drug Association’s] policy on generic drugs,” Silady said. “My only ... worry is that it’ll only reinforce the rigid duality

of the two-party system and lock people into a purely Democratic or Republican mindset.”

Tryba said Lovegov represents the future of politics.

“Technology and computers have made such a big difference in every-thing in our lives, and yet govern-ment and politics have still been relatively unchanged,” Tryba said. “I really believe even if we don’t achieve this, the Internet is going to completely change the way gov-ernment and democracy work.”

Cici Chen is acontributing writer. Emailher at [email protected].

Brown alumnus launched a new website to bring people closer to a digital democracy.VIA FACEBOOK.COM

NYUNEWS.COM | MONDAY, OCTOBER 22, 2012 | WASHINGTON SQUARE NEWS 9

‘The Girls’ delivers haunting thrills of Hitchcock dramaBy ISABEL JONES

HBO’s “The Girl” is a terrifying look within the relationship between iconic filmmaker Alfred Hitchcock and his lead-ing lady, Tippi Hedren — one of “the girls,” as Hitchcock insisted on calling his actresses. The film does a masterful job of setting the scene: Toby Jones plays Hitchcock and strangely bears a disturb-ing resemblance to the man. Sienna Mill-er shows a great deal of strength in her portrayal of an actress plucked from ob-scurity only to be trapped by a seven-year contract. “The Girl” takes the viewer past the aesthetic facade of “The Birds” and

“Marnie” and into the sinister musings of a man possessed.

The film follows the plight of Hedren, a single mother and little-known model looking to hit the big time in Hollywood. Much to her surprise, in spite of having little hope and even less acting experi-ence, Hedren is cast as the lead in Hitch-cock’s upcoming thriller, “The Birds.” Hitchcock believes the birds to be the main stars of the film, seeing no need to cast a household name. He is captivated by Hedren’s beauty. However his captiva-tion soon turns to obsession. Hitchcock was reported to have had similar attrac-tions to each one of the girls, but with

Hedren it was different. Her strength and serenity in the face of his advances only provoked the director.

Jones removes a bit of Hitchcock’s mys-tique in entering the role. The film depicts Hitchcock as a lecherous old man, his per-version stripping him of all mystery. His slow, signature drawl, iconic profile and posture are perfectly replicated by Jones in an unspeakably eerie performance. In jux-taposition with Miller’s wide-eyed shock at each of his advances, the dynamic be-tween the two generates discomfort. The viewer often feels the urge to avert their eyes from the screen. Many of Hitchcock’s irksome quality in the film is derived from

his frank manner; the man knows no bounds. Whether reciting a dirty limerick or asking a col-league for sexual favors, Hitchcock does so in a way that assumes his dominance without any hesitation or shame.

Miller plays Hedren

well, although her role is hardly as chal-lenging as Hitchcock’s. As an eager young ingénue, Hedren hopes to form a close bond with the iconic director, and Miller brings a sense of personal despair to the part, showing Hedren’s deep dismay over the collapse of their working relation-ship. In a particularly disturbing scene, the young actress is subjected to over 45 takes in which she is attacked by live birds. Miller’s portrayal of determina-tion in the face of deep exhaustion and terror is remarkable.

“The Girl” is stylistically akin to a classic Hitchcock film, and although the content is undeniably interesting, it’s an interest that one might not be wise to pursue. Disconcerting to a fault, “The Girl” is of-ten cringe-worthy. The tale is well-told, as many of HBO’s feature films are, but what lies beneath almost feels like a pri-vate matter — a secret that should retain its mystery.

Isabel Jones is a staff writer. Email her at [email protected]

Sienna Miller captures the ups and downs of Hedren’s relationship with Hitchcock in “The Girls.” COURTESY OF HBO

ARTS

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10 WASHINGTON SQUARE NEWS | MONDAY, OCTOBER 22, 2012 | NYUNEWS.COM

OPINION EDITED BY CHRIS [email protected]

Despite sensitivity, politicizing tragedies is societal learning tool

STAFF EDITORIAL

WSN welcomes letters to the editor, opinion pieces and articles rel-evant to the NYU community, or in response to articles. Letters should be less than 150 words. All submissions must be typed or emailed and must include the author’s name, address and phone number. Members of the NYU community must include a year and school or job title.

WSN does not print unsigned letters or editorials. WSN reserves the right to reject any submission and edit accepted submissions in any and all ways. With the exception of the staff editorial, opinions ex-pressed on the editorial pages are not necessarily those of WSN, and our publication of opinions is not an endorsement of them.

Send mail to: 838 Broadway, Fifth Floor New York, NY 10003 or email: [email protected] TO

Email the WSN Editorial Board at [email protected].

ARGENTINA

Kirchner’s economic policies cause unrest

All courts should allow gay marriageCONSTITUTIONAL RIGHTS

EDITORIAL BOARD: Chris DiNardo (Chair), Jessica Littman (Co-Chair),

Christopher Drake, Sanchay Jain, Sasha Leshner, Peter Murphy, Raquel Woodruff and Richard Zhang.

By JESSICA LITTMAN

Last week, the Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit in New York ruled Section Three of the federal Defense of Marriage Act unconstitutional, a step that brings federal law one step closer to equality and constitutionality.

The Defense of Marriage Act, a federal law passed in 1996, contains two important sections that limit equality. Section Two maintains that states are not required to recognize same-sex marriages performed in other states. Section Three defines marriage as a union between a man and a woman, for the purpose of the administration of federal laws.

The appeals court in New York ruled only Section Three unconsti-tutional, because it discriminates against gay people who would oth-erwise be able to obtain federal ben-efits through their legal spouses.

The suit was brought by 83-year-old Edith Windsor. Windsor married Thea Spyer in Canada in 2007 after a 40-year engagement. When Spyer died three years later, Windsor had to pay nearly $400,000 in taxes on her inheritance — far above what a heterosexual widow would have paid with normal deduc-tions on estate taxes.

This discrimination in government

benefits is absurd. It is unconscionable that we continue to make gay people second-class citizens by denying them both the title of marriage and the legal benefits that go along with it.

The gay rights movement is strug-gling towards marriage equality in each of the 50 states, but the achievement of equal rights to marry in individual states is not enough when the federal govern-ment can still deny these married partners benefits on the basis of their sexuality.

The Defense of Marriage Act is un-constitutional because it discriminates against a particular group for no valid reason. The constitutionality of this law is what is important to the courts, who I am confident will eventually strike the law down. But to me, the constitutional issue pales in compari-son to the moral issue of discrimina-tion against same-sex couples.

The fact that there is still a battle to be won regarding the Defense of Marriage Act means that there are still many people out there who will fight to keep this law in effect in order to perpetuate their bigotry and cause others to suffer because of their prejudices.

In the national discourse, same-sex marriage is still something one can

believe in or not believe in. But same-sex marriage is not a belief. Most marriages these days, heterosexual or otherwise, have much more to do with the relationship between the parties than their relationships with God or their religious institutions. Marriage is personal — it is a deci-sion to be made between two people that affects no one but themselves. We cannot choose to believe in gay marriage; we can only choose to defend or not defend equality.

Last week, the often disappoint-ing American legal system made a huge leap towards equality. Rul-ing Section Three of the Defense of Marriage Act unconstitutional makes it all the more likely that the Supreme Court will take up the is-sue — Justice Ruth Bader-Ginsburg said she expects the ruling within the next year.

The courts should continue to act on this issue and will hopefully strike down the Defense of Mar-riage Act altogether. Until then, the rest of us need to finally realize we cannot suppress gay relationships by suppressing their legal right to exist.

Jessica Littman is deputy opinion editor. Email her at [email protected].

By SUZI BROWN

You don’t have to be in Argentina for long before someone starts talking to you about President Cristina Fernández de Kirchner. Some of the nicer things I have heard her called are dictadora, bruja and loca — dictator, witch, crazy. Argentines aren’t known for sugar coat-ing their opinions.

This is not exactly how you would ex-pect a president to be described. Presi-dent Kirchner is the first female presi-dent to be elected in Argentina and the second woman to hold the position — Isabel Martínez de Perón acted as presi-dent for two years after her husband, Juan, died in 1974. After Kirchner’s hus-band served the presidency from 2003 to 2007, she was elected in 2007, and then again in 2011. This means the fam-ily has been in office for nearly 10 years, overseeing the recovery of the econo-my after its 2001 economic calamity. And while Argentina enjoyed relative prosperity in the middle of President Kirchner’s first term, today’s landscape looks grim, and the people are letting President Kirchner know exactly how they feel.

Over the past few years, the sound

of clanging pots and pans has become synonymous with this presidency. These sounds — protests known as cacerolazos because of the cacerolas, or pots, that they bang together — resonate around the city whenever Kirchner makes a statement on TV in an effort to drown out her voice. Ever since I came to Buenos Aires, the tiny chimes of cacerolas have interrupted my studying on countless occasions, and small protests are a frequent part of life. On Sept. 13, the largest protest under the current presidency broke out on the streets of Buenos Aires, in barrios across the city and provinces across the country.

This gathering of millions, spread entirely through social media, stemmed from a variety of factors that came to-gether to create the perfect storm of discontent amongst porteños — those who live in a port city — as well as an insecure Argentine peso, soaring inflation rate and the increased crime and social unrest that follows from eco-nomic instability.

And now the president has been threatened by the International Monetary Fund. For many years, Ar-gentina has reported an inflation

rate of 10 percent, when in real-ity, the number sits at nearly 25 percent. The IMF recently issued Argentina a yellow card, warning that if Kirchner continues to fudge the numbers, a red card will be is-sued. Unfortunately, there is no warning worse than a red card, so if the country continues down the path they are heading, they will be the first country expelled from the international organization.

Based on the negative sentiment coursing through the city, Kirch-ner’s position in the political are-na looks fairly precarious. But, of course, when you have a majority in both houses, anything is possi-ble. She has already passed a bill al-lowing 16-year-olds to vote, thereby increasing her odds at re-election, and she is looking into the possibil-ity of amending the constitution so that she may be elected for a third term. Only time will tell what hap-pens, but these are certainly going to be an interesting few months in Buenos Aires.

Suzi Brown is a foreign correspondent. Email her at [email protected].

Yesterday morning, yet another public mass shoot-ing occurred. This time the incident happened near the Brookfield Mall, just west of Milwaukee. The gunman, Radcliffe Haughton, killed three people and wounded four others before taking his own life. According to Brookfield police chief Daniel Tushaus, the shooting was probably the result of a domestic dispute between Haughton and his wife, who was one of the three victims. The two others were most likely innocent bystanders — an unfortunate case of being in the wrong place at the wrong time.

We had gone almost two months without a mass shooting like the one we saw yesterday. It was almost long enough for us to begin to forget about July’s movie theater shooting in Colorado or the Sikh temple shoot-ing in August, which also happened in Wisconsin.

After tragic events such as this, many are quick to condemn anybody standing atop a soapbox and preaching about the ways it could have been pre-vented. And time and again we are told, primarily from politicians, that it is not right to politicize a tragedy of such magnitude. Politicians take a break from campaigning to honor the memories of the victims. We saw that in Aurora. Many refuse to ac-knowledge potential societal causes in the name of respect for those killed. We saw that with the temple shooting. But acknowledging what allowed a tragedy to happen enables us to respond with the necessary steps to curb similar events from occurring.

Politicizing shootings invites the public to reflect on the underlying issues behind such tragedies, and one of the main issues that continuously arises is gun control, one of the oldest but most controversial issues in the history of the United States. It is also an extremely sensitive problem that ideologically polar-izes the nation. Politicians, especially presidential candidates, are unwilling to voice their positions on the issue because doing so tends to jeopardize their campaigns. Putting shootings under the umbrella of political issues forces the elected officials to revisit the issue of gun control and place it in the limelight.

Exploring gun accessibility, random violence and issues of mental health in the political sphere ensures a dialogue that may prevent our culture from enduring these tragedies. And that, in itself, lends substantial value to politicizing such events.

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SPORTSEDITED BY THE WSN [email protected]

NYUNEWS.COM | MONDAY, OCTOBER 22, 2012 | WASHINGTON SQUARE NEWS 11

Violets win inaugural races, Blease takes first in diving

events at home

MSWIMMING continued from PG. 1 Violets return to wrestling mat after championship season

NYU women’s volleyball splits weekend matches

Women’s swimming, diving win first meet

By NICO CANTOR

The NYU women’s volleyball team played Richard Stockton College and Cabrini College in Galloway, N.J. on Oct. 20. The Violets split their matches, losing against Richard Stockton and capturing a victory against Cabrini.

The Violets had to play two matches in one day at the Osprey Classic tri-match. The first match was played against host Richard Stock-ton College. The Violets fought hard in the first set but lost 25-17, though they won the second set by a resounding 15-25. The third set ended with a 25-14 loss, but NYU was determined to come back in the fourth set. Although they had seven more kills than the hosts, the Violets failed to capture the win, losing 25-23.

“Our team has a tendency to check out throughout the game and create unnecessary mental errors, and that’s what happened in the game against Stockton,” junior outside hitter Perri Goldberg said.

Junior captain Alexandria Mao, fondly re-ferred to by her teammates as “the Chair-man,” recorded 16 kills with a .343 hitting percentage. Together, freshman Emily Moore and junior captain Hope Bogle, both set-ters, totaled 34 assists. Goldberg, NYU’s best all-around player, was notable with nine of-fensive kills and eight defensive digs. Senior captain Kaylee Schanda had 18 digs as libero. The Cabrini College Cavaliers came out with a balanced attack, but they were no match

for the Violets. NYU took the first two sets, 25-19 and 27-25, respectively. The Cavaliers had the upper hand in the third set, winning by five points (20-25). NYU went on to win the game with a fourth set score of 25-18.

“Mao and I picked apart their back row by switching up our line and cross shots, while Kaylee and Hope dominated their serve-receive with aggressive serves,” Goldberg said. “Hope and Mackenzie’s sets were really consistent, which allowed us to attack their defense.”

Mao and Goldberg shined, recording 18 and 15 kills, respectively. Bogle helped run the of-fense with 28 assists. Outside hitter sophomore Vera Shulgina recorded nine kills and six digs in the match.

“After a week of tough individualized practices, it was nice to see what we worked on imple-mented in the game from all of our players,” Goldberg said.

Between the three teams, it was difficult to determine who was the weekend’s most domi-nant squad. Cabrini College defeated Richard Stockton 3-1, and each team ended the day with a 1-1 record.

“It was a good weekend and we worked out a lot,” Mao said. “It was nice to get a win after a tough couple weeks and a good build of mo-mentum going into UAA Championship.”

NYU will play at Baruch College at 7 p.m. on Wednesday, Oct. 24.

Nico Cantor is a contributing writer. Email him at [email protected].

By MARY JANE DUMANKAYA

NYU men’s wrestling went 12-9 in dual meets last year and won the University Athletic Association Championship for the first time since 2008.

The Violets beat the University of Chicago 19-14 and Case Western Reserve University 43-7 at the 2012 UAA Championship. This was the fifth time NYU captured the title in program history. All five titles have been during the tenure of head coach Bruce Haberli, who is now in his 18th year at NYU.

Last year, NYU was also a re-cipient of the 2012 National Wrestling Coaches Association Division III Scholar Team Award, with senior David Rice selected as a Scholar All-American.

At last year’s championship, Rice won both of his key matches, finish-ing the 2011-2012 season with a re-cord of 31-2 in the 165 pound class. Rice was named the UAA’s Most Outstanding Wrestler.

“In terms of my personal goals, I’m aiming to win nationals like I expected myself to do last year but also compete at the level of a [Division I] All-American,” Rice said.

Rice finished first at last year’s

Ithaca and Ted Reese invitationals.“I want to set the bar even higher

for myself and be at the level of a top Division I wrestler,” Rice said. “I’ll be going to a few tournaments this year, some on my own, where I can get that kind of competition.”

Sophomore Matt DiGiovanni, who had a great start to his fresh-man year, finished with UAA All-Association honors at 141 pounds. After recording a 20-10 record at 141 pounds, DiGiovanni will be returning to the mat in the 149 pound class.

“After having a strong freshman year, I’m looking to continue to build and improve as a wrestler,” DiGiovanni said. “I’ve moved up from 141 to 149, and I think this will help me stay stronger in the latter half of the season.”

Senior Jake Pawlowski was awarded UAA All-Association honors in the 184 pound class and finished last season with a record of 22-16.

“The coaching staff did an un-precedented job recruiting wres-tlers,” Pawlowski said. “We have an above-average freshmen class combined with a talented return-ing class, which can only result in lots of victories.”

There are 10 freshmen on the

team this year. “We have a very talented and

large group of newcomers, and while we’ve had a few significant losses from last year, I believe that there will be current team members that fill those holes just as well or even better,” Rice said.

For the third straight year, NYU had the most wrestlers named All-Association at the Champi-onship. In addition to Rice, Paw-lowski and DiGiovanni, senior Dan Gorman was awarded UAA All-Association honors in the 149 pound weight class.

The wrestling team also has a new addition in assistant coach Mike Torriero. Torriero gradu-ated in 2005 from West Virginia University, where he was a start-er and captain on the university’s NCAA Division I wrestling team.

“I’m excited to see how the team will do at Ithaca and look forward to a strong season,” Di-Giovanni said.

The reigning UAA champions will return to the mat Friday, Nov. 2, at the Ithaca Invitational in Ithaca, N.Y.

Mary Jane Dumankaya is a deputy sports editor. Email her at [email protected].

In the diving portion of the meet, sophomore Austen Blease, NYU’s 2011-2012 Hon-orable Mention All-American, won the men’s one-meter and three-meter diving events, scoring 318.90 points and 336.01 points, respectively. Blease’s overall performance exceeded the runner-up’s total by more than 40 points in both competitions. In the men’s one-meter and three-meter events, three of the top four finishers were NYU divers.

“I went into this meet know-ing what to expect and how to approach the competition,”

Blease said. “My goal for this season is to make finals at NCAA Nationals.”

This meet represents the first of a potential 11 meets for the Violets this season. After finish-ing 5-4 last season, the Violets have taken some positive steps forward so far this year.

Next up for the swimming and diving team is the University of Rochester Invitational, which will be held Friday, Oct. 25, and Saturday, Oct. 26.

Nicholas Nemeroff is a contributing writer. Emailhim at [email protected].

Crowley landed first place in three races this weekend.COURTESY OF NYU ATHLETICS

By NICHOLAS NEMEROFF

Opening up the 2012-2013 season, the NYU women’s swimming and diving team defeated the State Uni-versity of New York at Cortland 173-123. The victory marks NYU’s third straight win over SUNY Cortland in the last three years.

In the first event of the meet, fresh-man Caitie Hawthorne, junior Nina Rusiewski and seniors Savanna Ke-ator and Claire Stephens won the 200-yard medley relay (1:53.78).

Junior Gabrielle Borutecene was victorious in the 1,000-yard freestyle, finishing in just under 11 minutes (10:56.68). Borutecene also finished first in the 200-yard individual med-ley (2:16.50).

Rusiewski claimed her first individual victory in the 200-yard freestyle (1:59.50).

In the 100-yard backstroke, sopho-more Silke Herold grabbed first place with a time of 1:04.26, edging out SUNY Cortland’s junior Abigail Mac-Donald by less than one second.

Keator blazed past her opponents in the 100-yard breaststroke, winning by almost three full seconds (1:09.13).

Sophomore freestyle specialist Emily Doerner dominated her competition in both the 50-yard freestyle (24.93) and 100-yard freestyle (53.98). Doerner also won the 100-yard butterfly (1:00.46).

“Individually I’d like to make NCAA cuts, and as a team we want to get as many qualifiers as possible,” Doerner said.

In the one-meter diving event, NYU freshman Nealy Wallis beat out sophomore teammate Kate Donnelly to claim first place. To add on to the freshman’s highly laudable perfor-mance in her first collegiate meet, Wallis also won the women’s three-meter diving event by 13.80 points.

Next up for the women’s swimming and diving team is a trip to Rochester, N.Y., for the University of Rochester Invitational on Oct. 25 and Oct. 26.

Nicholas Nemeroff is a contributing writer. Email him at [email protected].

Keator and her 200-yard relay team took the first prize.

COURTESY OF NYU ATHLETICS

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