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Men’s Soccer Falls in NCAA Match

The Middlebury men’s soccer team had an anxious final two weeks of its season. After falling to Williams on Saturday, Oct. 27 in the NESCAC quarterfinals, the team had to wait a week while still practicing to see if its season would continue. After receiving the news that they had earned an at-large bid to the NCAA tournament last Monday, the Panthers’ season was extended another week. On Saturday, Nov. 10, the Panthers headed to Amherst, Massachusetts, for a first-round NCAA tournament matchup against Saint Joseph’s of Maine. Saint Joseph’s entered the matchup with an astounding 20-0 record, having only let in one goal the entire season. Although Saint Joseph’s typical level of competition is much lower than Middlebury’s NESCAC foes, Saint Joseph’s played NESCAC rival Bowdoin during the regular season and beat them 1-0. Although facing an undefeated opponent is always intimidating, captain Peter David ’19 noted that the Panthers felt ready for the challenge, saying, “We went in feeling very prepared. They are a good team, but we matched up with them well.” Amid freezing temperatures and howling winds, the Panthers started out by pushing the ball forward and forcing Saint Joseph’s to defend their attack. The Panthers created opportunity after opportunity, but finding the back of the net proved to be difficult, as the game ended in a 2-1 loss for Middlebury. In the 35th minute, despite being dominated by the Panthers, Saint Joseph’s scored the first goal of the match. The Monks played the ball into the box, and Middlebury was unable to clear it immediately. After the loose ball came down in the 18, Noah Robinson of Saint Joseph’s managed to get a foot on it, volleying the ball into the bottom left corner to make the score 1-0. The Panthers fought hard for the equalizer. They continued to dominate possession and got the majority of the chances. Middlebury took 15 shots, with eight on goal, compared to Saint Joseph’s seven, with four on goal. All throughout the second half the Panthers created opportunity after opportunity, and finally their break came. In the 79th minute, Drew Goulart ’20 played the ball through to Daniel O’Grady ’19. The St. Joe’s keeper got off of his line while O’Grady managed to loft the ball into the net from roughly 20 yards out. The Panthers looked to have turned the tide of the match. They continued to press and create more chances. However, in the 86th minute Middlebury gave up a free kick to St. Joseph’s on the left flank. The Monks’ Quinn Hewitt headed the ball into the goal off the service from Dalton Gaumer. At the end of the day the Monks shifted their chances, with 50 percent of their shots on goal ending up in the back of the net compared to Middlebury’s mere 12 percent.  “Effectively it came down to finishing on set pieces. We created a lot of really good opportunities. But they were able to finish theirs and we weren’t,” Kyle Moffat ’19 said. “I thought the score should’ve been 4-2. But all the credit to them, they played tough and scored when it mattered the most.”  This was a devastating way for the soccer careers of many of the seniors to come to a close. However, Peter Davis ’19 noted that the boys felt lucky to have come this far. Had the final game of the year been the NESCAC quarterfinal loss to Williams, they would have been much more distraught. “I don’t think it’s fully sunk in yet, but that’s probably the toughest part of it. You put so much into this for four years. Us, going out the way we did, losing in the NCAA tournament, is better than not being there. We know how [well] we played, and I think it would have been different had we lost to Williams,” Moffat said. When asked about where the program is headed, both Davis and Moffat seemed optimistic. “The team had a fun, positive atmosphere this year. I think we reestablished Middlebury, by going to the NCAA tournament the last two years, as a significant player in DIII soccer. It had been since 2010 since we made the tournament. I think that my class rallied around elevating the level of play and our standing in the NESCAC,” Moffat said. When asked about his time as a Panther as well as how the rising juniors will step in and lead the team, Captain Peter Davis ’19 seemed optimistic about the future of the program. “Being a captain, I would say, was my proudest moment of being affiliated with the program,” Davis said. “It was more than I expected going into it. You’re so in it when you’re a captain. They’re going to be so fine. A lot of the guys in the junior class stood up and took more leadership roles. They have made the NCAA tournament two years in a row. They know what it takes and are ready to step up into those senior roles. Being a fan is going to suck, but I am excited about seeing where these guys go in the future.” Although its season ended in a tough way, the men’s soccer team provided plenty of thrills and quality play this season. With back-to-back tournament appearances under its belt, the program is progressing and looking to take it one step further next year.

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Self-Care Tips for a Stress-Free Semester

Being a college student can seem like an insurmountable task.  You have papers to write, labs to do, readings to look up on Sparknotes, and midterms that never seem to end.  On top of all of that, you have to also maintain your social life and extracurriculars. Despite everything you have to do, your health is still crucial to your well-being and should be a top priority. As the SGA’s Health and Wellness Committee, our job is to address student mental and physical health on campus. In order to help the Midd community navigate the stresses and difficulties of college life, we’ll be tuning in every other week with tips and articles on living your best life here. Nowadays, we’re in that tricky part of the semester where all professors think that midterms can occur at any time. Our committee has discussed and would like to propose some tips on how to navigate these stressful weeks: Helpful Tips 1.  Ask for help  a. It is never a bad idea to ask for help. If you find that you are struggling in any shape or form, communicate with your teacher, your FYC/RA, your Commons Dean or your CRD. 2.  Utilize go/appt for all of your writing needs! a. The CTLR is an extremely useful place to receive academic help. You can make appointments with professional writing tutors to help you with your papers. b. If you find that there aren’t any more appointments available, there are also highly trained peer writing tutors at your disposal! Their schedules can be found at go/ctlr. 3.  Make a Study Plan a. Divvying out time to study can be daunting. What can be most useful is taking time to write out what you need to accomplish, then making a game plan on how you will  finish each one. Even if you don’t tackle everything on your list, making the effort can be just as rewarding. 4. Celebrate your successes (even the small ones) a. Treat yo’self! If you finished a 30-page reading, reward yourself. Get a cup of coffee with the $25 on your college ID card. Maybe even grab an extra slice of cake. Take the time to be proud of what you have done, despite the work that may still be left. Easily Forgotten but Just as Important 1.  Drink water 2.  Don’t skip meals 3.  Get adequate amounts of sleep 4.  Change up your study space! 5.  Remember: You are not your grade 6.  Take breaks while studying 7.  Visit the CTLR for time management 8.  Check with your professor to see if there are any practice tips/ resources, etc. 9. Dress for success! (whether this is a pair of sweatpants or a four piece suit)

Election Day

  8:30 p.m.: Senator Patrick Leahy and Congressman Peter Welch address the crowd at the Vermont Democrats Election Night Party in Burlington. [gallery size="large" ids="41482,41484,41483,41481"] 8:20 p.m. Congresswoman Barbara Comstock '82 (R-Virginia) has lost her bid for reelection to the U.S. House of Representative.   [embed]https://twitter.com/costareports/status/1059975851125731329[/embed]     7:57 p.m. Our reporters are stationed in three places: Crossroads Café, the Middlebury Inn, and the Hilton Burlington. We'll be bringing you live updates. 5:07 p.m.: It's getting dark! Voters continue to turn up at the polls. [gallery size="large" ids="41454,41457,41455,41456,41459,41458"] 4:42 p.m.: Students continue to flock to the polls. [gallery size="large" ids="41451,41450,41452,41453"] 4:00 p.m.: MiddVote hosts a "Party at the Polls," featuring cookies, pizza and face painting. Students, faculty, staff and community member stop by on the way back from voting. [gallery size="large" ids="41445,41446,41447,41448,41449"] 3:01 p.m.: Another MiddVote shuttle leaves for the polls. 2:15 p.m.: Voting continues through the rain. [gallery size="large" ids="41433,41434,41432"] 1:00 p.m.: Full of students, the sixth MiddVote shuttle of the day leaves Adirondack Circle for the polls. 12:30 p.m.: Professor of Political Science Matt Dickinson reported "record turnout" at his weekly politics luncheon, where Dickinson analyzed the electoral landscape heading into today's elections and made his own midterm predictions: a Democratic takeover of the House of Representatives, and an unchanged Republican majority in the Senate. Several boxes of pizza, courtesy of Model UN, may have contributed to the surge in attendance. [gallery size="large" ids="41415,41416,41418,41417"] 9:35 a.m.: Former Governor of Vermont Jim Douglas '72 and Celeste Levy '22 cast their votes. Outside the town offices, members of various local races campaign for their candidates. [gallery size="large" ids="41411,41412,41413,41414"] 8:05 a.m.: MiddVote begins operating hourly shuttles to the polls. [gallery size="large" ids="41409,41408,41410"] 6:47 a.m.: Voters begin lining up at the polls, which open at 7 a.m. Associate Professor of the History of Art and Architecture Katy Smith Abbott is among the first to vote. [gallery size="large" ids="41405,41406,41407"]

Election Night Results

[video credit="AMELIA POLLARD" align="right"][/video] ADDISON UPDATE: 11:06 pm Democrats Ruth Hardy and Chris Bray were both declared winners of the local state senate race at 9 pm this evening. The announcement was followed by a joint speech, in which the two cited Universal Primary Healthcare, paid family leave and a comprehensive lake cleanup plan as the top priorities to tackle in Montpelier. Hardy, a first-time elect, thanked her staff and husband, Jason Mittell, professor and chair of the Film & Media Culture department, for their support on the campaign trail. She spent the day visiting 10 of the 25 towns with campaign treasurer Dave Silberman. She drove from Huntington to Middlebury "blasting 80s tunes and dancing," she said at the Middlebury Inn this evening.[infogram id="addison-senate-district-25-towns-total-1ho16vvomr0v6nq" prefix="PeT"] Paul Forlenza, who's on the Addison County Democratic Committee in Lincoln, Vt., was stationed at the corner of the Middlebury Inn, intermittently connecting his computer to the large TV in the room to broadcast up-to-date local election results. "Town clerks report into candidates or somebody who's close to a candidate in town," Forlenza said. Vermont House seats for Addison-3 were won by Democrats Diane Lanpher and Matt Birong by a narrow margin. Democrats Mari Cordes and Caleb Elder were also elected to Addison-4 with 26.5 percent and 29.1 percent of the vote, respectively. "Yes! We have two Ds. Caleb and Mari have just won," declared Dave Sharpe, the retiring legislative from Lincoln, Vt. to a packed crowd at the Middlebury Inn Tuesday night just before 9 pm. STATE UPDATE: 10:46 pm At the VT Dems event in Burlington this evening, Senator Bernie Sanders and Congressman Peter Welch were among the politicians to give speeches. "Being the United States Senator from Vermont has been the honor of my life," Sen. Sanders said during his speech this evening.                       Attorney General T.J. Donovan was re-elected for his second term. Jim Condos, the secretary of state, addressed the crowd just after the announcement of Donovan's win, harping on the emphasis of voting in this midterm election. "This election was about one four-letter word: vote," Condos said during his speech. He believes the state's voter turnout was 55 percent today -- the highest of any midterm election. 69,000 early votes were cast, as opposed to 33,000 in 2014. Democratic gubernatorial candidate Christine Hallquist addressed the crowd, thanking supporters and volunteers for the arduous hours put in during the last six months. She admitted defeat with 82 percent of votes reporting in the state. [video credit="BENJY RENTON" align="left"][/video] [infographic align="center"] !function(e,t,n,s){var i="InfogramEmbeds",o=e.getElementsByTagName(t)[0],d=/^http:/.test(e.location)?"http:":"https:";if(/^\/{2}/.test(s)&&(s=d+s),window[i]&&window[i].initialized)window[i].process&&window[i].process();else if(!e.getElementById(n)){var a=e.createElement(t);a.async=1,a.id=n,a.src=s,o.parentNode.insertBefore(a,o)}}(document,"script","infogram-async","https://e.infogram.com/js/dist/embed-loader-min.js");[/infographic] "I'm very proud of the campaign we've run," Hallquist said in her concession speech at the Burlington Hilton. "Phil is going to be very committed to the future of Vermont. We sparred well and I think Vermont is a beacon of hope of what democracy looks like." Hallquist began her campaign on March 2 and has been lauded by Democrats for supporting single-payer healthcare, the $15 minimum wage and paid family leave -- all proposals Gov. Scott's vetoed in the last few months[pullquote speaker="Christine Hallquist" photo="" align="center" background="on" border="all" shadow="on"]We sparred well and I think Vermont is a beacon of hope of what democracy looks like.[/pullquote] Gov. Scott's favorability dropped dramatically after passing stricter gun laws this past summer. However, he's continued to be one of the most favored Republican governors nationwide. Vermont is one of the only states that often has split ballots. Many voters are willing to vote for a Republican governor, but Democratic senators and congressman.                       Editor's Note: Ruth Hardy is the spouse of Prof. Jason Mittell, The Campus' academic advisor. Mittell plays no role in any editorial decisions made by the paper. Any questions may be directed to campus@middlebury.edu.

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Incumbent Scott, Favored to Win, Says Stay the Course

Surrounded by machine parts and agricultural equipment at a promotional event for state Senate candidates, incumbent Governor Phil Scott sat down with The Campus to discuss his platform for re-election on a rainy October evening. The smell of Porky’s BBQ & Smokehouse’s well-loved brisket and mac n’ cheese wafted in from outside as Scott spoke to his desire to do what he can to “forward Vermont.” While most other states across the country are gearing up for gubernatorial midterms, Vermont is one of only two states where the term for governor lasts for just two years. Next week, on Election Day, Nov. 6, the state will vote to elect either the Republican Scott or — in what would be a major upset — his challenger, the Democrat and political newcomer Christine Hallquist. Republican governors historically tend to be popular in liberal Northeastern states, and Scott is no exception. Last year, a Morning Consult poll showed Scott’s approval rating at 60 percent, ranking him as the seventh most popular governor in the country. But, according to another survey released in July of 2018, Scott suffered a net drop of 38 points in approval — driven mostly by Republicans. Conservative disapproval stemmed largely from Scott’s shifting position towards stricter gun control in the wake of the school shooting in Parkland, Fla. and the foiled shooting plot in Fair Haven, Vermont. Scott currently retains a relatively solid 45 percent approval rating, according to a VPR - Vermont PBS Poll. Combined with the natural advantage of incumbency, this base of support may be enough to indicate a likely victory. The national election tracking website FiveThirtyEight gives him a 95 percent chance of winning as Election Day draws near.  Poised for gubernatorial reelection, Scott, a racecar driver turned long-term politician, sits at the wheel of what could be a rocky second term in office. With a state legislature heavily dominated by Democrats, Republican nominees falling behind in many other states and much work to do in Vermont, Scott is up against significant challenges. Scott would have a lot left to accomplish in a brief second term to realize even his 2016 campaign promise: “grow the economy, make it more affordable, and protect the most vulnerable.” So, what does it mean for this moderate Republican to uphold these principles?   ADDRESSING THE “AFFORDABILITY CRISIS”  “From my perspective, everything we do is about the economy and changing the demographics of our state,” Scott said. “That’s where our challenge is: We’re an aging state, the second oldest in the country and I believe that we’ll be number one if we don’t change our ways.” The struggle to retain young people and fill job opportunities is a concern many Vermonters share. With a low unemployment rate of 2.8 percent, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Scott’s focus is on workforce challenges and addressing what he terms Vermont’s “affordability crisis.” [pullquote speaker="Phil Scott" photo="" align="center" background="on" border="all" shadow="on"]That’s where our challenge is: We’re an aging state, the second oldest in the country and I believe that we’ll be number one if we don’t change our ways.[/pullquote] He emphasized figuring out what it takes to keep college-age students — like those at Middlebury College — in state, in order to “to take advantage of our great quality of life but also the opportunities that are here.” The students that Scott has spoken with, he said, described being drawn out of state by career opportunities, less expensive housing and general affordability. “The good news,” Scott said, “is that we have … about 10,000 graduating every year so we have opportunity and we have jobs available and open — but we have to connect the two.” In his first term as governor, the legislature passed Scott’s $35 million housing bond proposal, which was the largest investment Vermont has made toward affordable housing for the state’s workforce. The sale of these “sustainability bonds” by the Vermont Housing Finance agency aimed to create more available and affordable homes for working families, according to a February 2018 press release. Given time, Scott believes, this sale will help to positively impact the state’s economy.   MICHAEL BORENSTEIN MINIMUM WAGE Unlike his opponent Hallquist, Scott does not believe in increasing the minimum wage. Scott has maintained throughout both of his campaigns, and his time in office, that the way to make Vermont more affordable is through keeping taxes and fees where they are. “I would say you should travel from Brattleboro to Springfield to Bradford, to St. Johnsbury up in the Northeast Kingdom because that’s all along the Connecticut River,” Scott said, tracing an imaginary map of the state. “Right across from the Connecticut River is another state called New Hampshire that has a minimum wage of $7.25, that has no sales tax, that has no income tax, and no corporate tax.” Raising the minimum wage, Scott believes, would be placing Vermont companies along the border at the risk of not being able to compete with out-of-state business. “I want people to make more money. I believe in supply and demand and capitalism,” he said. “If they want to change the minimum wage so that we are on an even keel, and even playing field with everyone else, do it nationally.”   TAXES AND FEES Following his 2016 gubernatorial campaign, Scott made a pledge to not increase taxes or fees, including property tax rates. In his first term he worked to eliminate the social security income tax for low and middle-class households and avoided increasing fees for residential property owners. His logic: live within the state’s means. He believes the 2018 budget surplus of $55 million made it “counterintuitive to raise taxes.” “I waited until after [the 2016 campaign], built the budget and then determined that we could live within our means,” he said. Scott held the line on taxes and fees with just one exception, as the threat of a government shutdown this past summer forced his hand. He vetoed two proposed budgets that included increases in certain tax rates before eventually allowing the Fiscal Year 2019 budget to be adopted into law without his signature. Though Scott backed much of the package’s other initiatives, some of which were his own proposals, he could not sign on to the increase in non-residential property tax-rates. [pullquote speaker="Phil Scott" photo="" align="center" background="on" border="all" shadow="on"]I cannot support the Legislature’s decision to increase the statewide non-residential tax rate by 4.5-cents in a year we have a large, and growing, surplus.[/pullquote] “I’m letting this bill become law without my signature because, ultimately,” Scott wrote in a letter addressed to the legislature. “I cannot support the Legislature’s decision to increase the statewide non-residential tax rate by 4.5-cents in a year we have a large, and growing, surplus. “I wasn’t going to shut down the government in order to prove my point,” Scott said about his decision not to continue the budget standoff. “Sometimes people take advantage of your good naturedness, but at the same time we accomplished a lot over the last two years — we didn’t raise a single tax or fee for the general fund.” While he has yet to make the same pledge so far, Scott said his administration will continue to build this year’s budget with the hope that a sufficient surplus will allow him to keep taxes and fees steady. “To make Vermont more affordable we have to have economic activity. We’re focusing in those areas that obtain that,” he said.   TAX AND REGULATE MARIJUANA Adults at least 21 years of age are legally allowed to possess and grow marijuana in Vermont, thanks to a new law that went into effect in July of this year. The law, which received Scott’s approval in January, permits individual use and possession with restrictions but does not allow for the purchase or sale of marijuana. The institution of a tax and regulated marijuana market is another area where Scott and Hallquist disagree. Though ultimately Scott did not disagree with the possible value in implementing a commercial marijuana market, he does not believe Vermont is ready. “I signed the legalization of marijuana. So it’s not as though I’m philosophically opposed,” he said. “I just think we need to do this right and we have an opportunity and an obligation to do it right.” Doing it right, he said, means first designing better ways to test impairment on highways and doing the work of more education and prevention in schools. “Public safety from my standpoint is the highest obligation of any government,” he said. “So let’s do that, let’s work together on that and then bring the tax and regulation system in.”   HEALTH CARE Following in former Gov. Peter Shumlin’s footsteps, Scott aims to expand and improve health care options in the state through an all-payer model. Unlike the universal healthcare route supported by Hallquist, the all-payer system is designed to equalize prices so patients pay the same fee at a given hospital. With this model, he said, “we’re looking to pay providers for the care of the patient holistically instead of the fee for service program.” He remains skeptical about the idea of a state single-payer approach, arguing that Vermont is not ready for such a system at the present moment. It took Shumlin five years after taking office to come up with a proposal for a single-payer model that, in the end, Scott recalled, was “not going to work for Vermont.” [pullquote speaker="Phil Scott" photo="" align="center" background="on" border="all" shadow="on"]Just prove to me it [universal healthcare] can work, show me the plan, tell me who’s going to pay for it, how much is it going to cost, basic things of that nature.[/pullquote] “I said I’m open minded. Just prove to me it can work, show me the plan, tell me who’s going to pay for it, how much is it going to cost, basic things of that nature,” Scott said. Ultimately, though he professed keeping an open-mind, Scott posited that the single-payer method is too expensive and would put Vermont at risk in comparison to other states. “We’re not an island,” he said. He plans to continue to expand and improve the all-payer pilot program if re-elected, focusing investments on prevention, quality of care and long-term benefits for Vermonters.   OPIOIDS Addressing the opioid epidemic falls under Scott’s third principle of “protecting the vulnerable,” and represents one of his priority initiatives. In a state where obituaries of those who lost their lives to addiction go viral nationwide, addressing this epidemic must be a priority for any governorship. “We’re taking action on a number of different fronts,” Scott confirmed, underlining his Opioid Coordination Council (OCC) and initiatives to continue expanding and improving prevention, treatment facilities, transitional housing, recovery and enforcement. He highlighted the opening of another treatment facility in St. Albans, as well as the reduction of the treatment waiting list in Chittenden County from 700 to zero. Scott offered praise for the Hub and Spoke model, which is the state’s current framework for providing opioid addiction treatment with 9 large regional “hub” facilities and 75 “spoke” care settings focused on more long-term recovery. He described Vermont as “a leader in the country in regards to treatment and recovery,” acknowledging the work left to be done.   PRISONS For a governor who places utmost importance on protecting public safety, the issue of Vermont’s overpopulated prisons has presented some strife for the Scott administration. “We put forward a prison,corrections plan last year to the legislature and it wasn’t well received,” said Scott, referencing his proposal to increase Vermont’s prison capacity. His plan entailed employing CoreCivic, a private prison company, to construct and lease a prison in Franklin County. Critics faulted Scott’s proposal to work with a private prison corporation. The facility, which would be run by state employees, would create space for inmates who have been forced to out-of-state prisons. Former Democratic Governor Howard Dean began the practice of exporting inmates, Scott said. Responding to criticism, Scott said his proposal was no more than a “mechanism for building the facility in a manner that we could afford.” “I left [the proposal] open when we developed it — we put it out there — but you know this is politics 101, D.C. type politics,” Scott said. “I said from the beginning this is just a concept, a plan. If you want to build it with state resources, draw your own facility up, engage us!” He underlined the fact, however, that his administration has reduced prison populations by about 50 people and pledged to go back to work on his plan if re-elected. Bottom line, Scott said: “I would like to see us have an opportunity to have all of our offenders within state borders.”   MERCHANTS’ ROW RAIL BRIDGE CONSTRUCTION  On a local note, Scott is sympathetic to the concerns held by Middlebury residents in the face of the economic hardship posed by the rail bridge infrastructure project. While he offered words of support, he clarified that financial aid for the town was more complicated. “There is a limited amount of money. A lot of our dollars are leveraged with federal funds and they don’t allow for us to use their dollars to supplement,” Scott said. What’s more, he said, when resources are used to supplement losses in one community, “it takes infrastructure projects away from other communities.”   FOLLOW THROUGH “We haven’t followed through with everything we needed to follow through with initially,” Scott said, underscoring the brevity of his first term. “So I’m going to continue to be the person I am and do what I can to forward VT in a much different way.” Scott’s open-mindedness, willingness to, as he describes, “work across the aisle” and “treat others with respect and civility” even when they disagree may set him apart favorably from many candidates nationwide in the era of party politics.  Now, more than ever, an inclination to work outside of party lines and compromise can be hard to come by. However, Scott’s oft-repeated claims to bipartisanship hinge first on the ability of others - namely his opponents - to generate legislation and then prove to him that such proposals could work.  “Show me the plan, tell me who’s going to pay for it, how much is it going to cost, basic things of that nature,” he said. Given the state of his party support, if re-elected, it might require more than just a passive, though welcoming attitude — but some active creativity on the part of this moderate Republican to see his platform goals accomplished.

Football Fumbles, Loses to Bantams

  The Panthers traveled to Hartford, Connecticut this past weekend to face the Trinity Bantams. Middlebury suffered a 48-0 loss, bringing its season record to 4-3, while Trinity won its sixth game of the season. Offensively, the Panthers had a hard time working the ball down the field. Unable to catch onto momentum, the team did its best to suppress the Trinity offense, but was ultimately unsuccessful. Sophomores Jonathan Hobart and Pete Huggins recorded 12 and 11 tackles during the game, respectively. Punter Maxwell Rye ’20 had an impressive game, with a game average of 41 yards per punt. His season average of 39.7 yards per game puts him on top of the leaderboard for NESCAC punters. Looking forward, the Middlebury team will be facing Hamilton and Tufts to determine whether it ends with a winning record. The Panthers will also be fighting for a strong NESCAC standing in the coming weeks.  Last year, Hamilton had one of its seasons in the past few years. This year, the Continentals are on the same path, with a 2-5 record and immense potential. Earlier in the season, Hamilton beat Wesleyan in a close 33-29 game, while the Cardinals beat the Panthers earlier in the season. Though Hamilton was able to beat teams Middlebury struggled against, the Panthers will go in looking to turn heads and move up the NESCAC rankings. Coming up, the Panthers will also face the Tufts Jumbos on Saturday, Nov. 10 for their last home game of the season. The Jumbos are 5–2 on the season thus far and pose a bigger threat to Middlebury’s season. The Panthers beat Amherst while Tufts lost to Amherst, proving that this game is up for grabs. Hopefully, a home crowd will ramp up enough energy and excitement for a win. Aditionally, Middlebury will be facing Tufts on its home field for the last game of the season, which will ramp up energy and excitement for the Panthers.

MIDDVOTE WANTS YOU TO VOTE

The student group MiddVote has led the charge to increase voter participation on campus this election season with the goal of doubling Middlebury students’ 14 percent voter turnout in 2014. Abby Dennis ’21 and Nora Bayley ’21 are spearheading the initiative as co-organizers. MiddVote is a non-partisan organization that strives to increase civic engagement and informed voter participation. The group has provided resources and hosted events to help guide students through the voter registration and absentee ballot application processes.  “It’s hard to tell people what to do and how to vote because it’s different in every state,” Dennis said.  Hazel Millard ’18 founded MiddVote with help from the college’s Center for Community Engagement (CCE), which provides funding. Thanks to Millard, MiddVote has a master document detailing voter registration and absentee ballot instructions and online application links and due dates for each state. At MiddVote’s voter drives, students can find stamps, envelopes and copies of each form for states that use a non-electronic system. MiddVote even mails student’s forms. MiddVote and the CCE worked together to provide the Center for Careers and Internships, Mail Center and Residential Commons offices with stamps to give students for free. Since the beginning of the school year, MiddVote has helped more than 60 students register to vote and more than 160 students apply for an absentee ballot.  “Even if students don’t stop, simply seeing our table in Wilson reminds students to register on their own,” Bayley said. Along with drives, MiddVote has organized a shuttle that will run from Adirondack Circle (ADK) to the polls every hour on Election Day, Nov. 6.  A #VoteTogether Celebration organized by MiddVote and the CCE will also be held at College Park across from Shafer’s Market & Deli on Election Day from 4:00 to 6:00 p.m. Free pizza, hot chocolate and face-painting by college student volunteers will be provided. The event is a local celebration under the national #VoteTogether initiative, which aims to host 2,000 similar events across the country to bring community members together to vote and celebrate civic engagement. Bayley and Dennis won a grant from MTV’s +1theVote campaign, which selects one application from each of the 50 states to receive funding for a voting celebration.  This event is especially important to MiddVote’s organizers because in Vermont, citizens can register to vote on Election Day, and all Middlebury students registered to vote in the U.S. are eligible to vote in Vermont.   “A lot of students have been registering in Vermont, especially people who missed the registration deadline in their home state. This event allows students to get to the polls, register and vote on Election Day,” Dennis said. In addition to posting reminders on its social media account, MiddVote has reached out to President Laurie Patton and the Student Government Association President Nia Robinson to send out campus-wide emails with voter participation reminders. MiddVote volunteers are also taking a grassroots approach by announcing reminders in classes. The Middlebury College Democrats and the Middlebury College Republicans have left the voter participation push to MiddVote.  “I have huge respect for what MiddVote does. The Middlebury College Democrats have resisted pressure to do partisan registration out of respect for MiddVote,” said Grace Vedock ’20, the president of College Democrats. Although some members within the Middlebury College Democrats have pushed for encouraging voters to support Democratic candidates, the club’s leadership has decided not to facilitate partisan voting. This has translated into club members volunteering at MiddVote drives rather than operating under the Middlebury College Democrats banner. Dennis, Bayley and Vedock noted that the country seems more tuned into this election than in previous non-presidential election years.  “It is easy to get frustrated with government and feel like your voice isn’t being heard, but the solution to that is not to not vote,” Bayley said.  “If everyone says that their vote doesn’t count, then their vote won’t count,” Dennis said.

Foreign Correspondents: Yaoundé, Cameroon

As our taxi inched along, I watched all the students in their school uniforms, adults on their way to work and the countless Yaoundéens in the street, selling papayas, corrosols (my new favorite fruit), plantains, credit for telephone calls, fabric, tires and really anything you can imagine, and all I could feel was happiness. At 8 a.m., I arrived (surprisingly on time) and met up with my classmates for our étude de terrain or field trip, as if nothing had happened. We climbed into the bus with my professeur de géographie, and started off for the village of Okola, to walk around a cocoa plantation, talk to the Cameroonians working there, and of course, to suck on the sweet inside that envelopes the cocoa beans as we walked through the forest. The village was just a bit north of Yaoundé, the capital of Cameroon and the city of about three million people where I’ve been studying for more than two months now.  As we bumped around on the bus (you’d be hard pressed to find a street in Yaoundé without bumps and holes), it didn’t feel like I had just gotten off a plane at 4:30 a.m. from Casablanca, Morocco. It didn’t feel like I had just spent an entire week exploring Morocco, staying in Rabat and visiting the beautiful surrounding cities by train and bus. It didn’t feel like the country of Cameroon, situated between West and Central Africa, had just elected the same president, Paul Biya, for the seventh time, after having lived under his power for 36 years. Middlebury’s decision to send us to Morocco for a week felt like a dream. I understood the reasoning: the necessity to avoid possible election violence breaking out after the announcement of the results, which could have caused the airports to close and trap us inside the country.  When I first came to Cameroon, I never expected to be asked by my host parents: “Et toi? Tu as vécu pendant combien de conditions présidentielles aux États-Unis?” which is French for the question: how many American presidents have served during your lifetime? The answer for me is four. The answer for my host siblings, even my 25-year-old sister, is one. In the month leading up to the election, you could see the evidence of Paul Biya’s (and the state’s) power everywhere in the streets. The posters of his face were everywhere, on billboards, the walls of stores and houses. His face was on t-shirts, dresses, hats, backpacks, umbrellas and more, which people received for free at organized meetings. There were eight other candidates, but they were hardly visible. The week before the election, we were told not to discuss politics in the shared taxis (the main form of public transportation) and on the streets. There was a rumor that people were positioned in Yaoundé, trying to find secessionists and stop their voices from spreading throughout the city. The secessionist movement in the country is part of the Anglophone crisis, a long-running conflict that intensified in Cameroon in 2016 between English-speaking separatists and a  national government dominated by French speakers. The police presence grew in various locations. There was another rumor that a series of random arrests was going on throughout the city. When we went out, we had to carry copies of our passports with us. The phone connection went in and out, making communication harder. However, no violence or anything of significance occurred in Yaoundé leading up to Oct. 7, the jour de vote. Walking through the streets, I could feel in so many people the hunger and readiness for a change of power. On election day, the streets were eerily calm, especially for Yaoundé, a city of bustling disorder. It was said that it would take two weeks for the Supreme Court to officially announce the election results, on Oct. 22. A week and three days after the election, the students of Middlebury’s School in Cameroon were abruptly told that we would be leaving for Morocco (a North African country that speaks Arabic and French) for a week, with the possibility that we wouldn’t be able to return. I was devastated. At the airport in Yaoundé, the program director told me, “Tu vas rentrer au Cameroun, Emily,” or, “You’re going to come back to Cameroon, Emily” and I took her words to heart. Luckily, she was right. We watched Paul Biya’s smiling face from Rabat, Morocco, as it was announced that he had won 71 percent of the vote (but who really knows how much of the vote he won given that the government also falsely claimed that Transparency International watched over the election process, according to a statement on the organization’s website). Following the results, there have been small incidences of violence in the Anglophone region, as well as a peaceful protest march in Douala, another major city, organized against fraud during the election. It saddens me to imagine the future of Cameroon under the power of an 85-year-old president, who has failed to follow through on initiatives for his people in his 36 years of power. However, I know that this October’s election awakened the spirit of many Cameroonians. I’m sad for my adopted country and its questionable democracy, but I’m also a little bit hopeful. Now that I’m back, I just get to appreciate everything in Cameroon: my host family, my classmates, the markets, the rainy season and all the adventures, a little bit more. Editor’s note: Cameroon held national elections on Oct.7. On Oct. 17, students participating in the college’s study abroad program in Yaoundé, Cameroon’s capital, were flown to Morocco on short notice amid concerns that the threat of violence following the announcement of election results would shutter airports and trap students in the country. All students returned safely to Yaoundé on Oct. 26. Yaoundé has not been stricken by election violence that other parts of Cameroon have seen, and the step to extract the students was precautionary. In this piece, Emily Ray ’20 reflects on this experience. 

Middlebury Students Can Vote in Vermont, Here's How You Do It

Forgot to apply for an absentee ballot in your home state? Unable to make it home on Election Day? Well, as a Middlebury College student you are a resident of Vermont, which means, as long as you are eligible to vote in the United States, you can register and vote here in Middlebury on Election Day, Tuesday, Nov. 6. Vermont allows voters to register on the same day they vote, including Election Day. Vermonters are also allowed to vote and register early. Any student can easily register in person at the Middlebury Town Offices or online before Election Day with valid identification. Here’s how to do it: Registering in Advance Students can register to vote in Middlebury prior to Election Day by visiting the Middlebury Town Offices at 77 Main Street. The office is open Monday - Thursday from 7:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. The office will remain open on Friday, Nov. 2 from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. The office is closed weekends, and on Monday, Nov. 5th, the day before the election. Students can also register online (https://olvr.sec.state.vt.us), but need to do so before Monday, Nov. 5 in order to ensure they are included on the printed voter checklist.   Same Day Registration Vermont is one of only 15 states (plus the District of Columbia) to allow same day registration at the polls. This means that if you go down to the Middlebury Town Offices right now to register, you can also vote. “Same Day Voter Registration is a great tool for us to use in order to ensure everyone’s right to vote, “ said Middlebury Town Clerk Ann Webster. “But if a large number of people wait until the last minute to register, because they can, this creates long waiting lines just for the registration process.”   Webster strongly urges Middlebury students who plan to register in Vermont to do so as early as possible, but the same day process is an option meant to increase flexibility and access to voting. Election Day voting will also occur at the Middlebury Town Offices at 77 Main Street. The polls will be open from 7:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m.   What to Bring Whether you are registering early, on Election Day, or online, here is what you need: a form of ID, your Middlebury College ID (optional, but may speed up the process), the last 4 digits of your Social Security number, and the ID number from your Vermont driver’s license (only if you’re a Vermont resident). Webster also made sure to note that students are only allowed to vote in one state, so if you have already voted in another state for the Nov. 6 election, you are unable to vote in Vermont.

The Pragmatic Left: Dos and Don’ts for Winning Elections

In September, a senior Trump administration official wrote an anonymous op-ed for The New York Times that condemned the president’s unstable behavior. The essay assured the American public that “adults in the room” were checking Trump’s belligerency and protecting our institutions. Shockingly, the article discussed bureaucratic efforts to invoke Section 4 of the 25th Amendment, which allows the Cabinet, under congressional oversight, to declare the president incapacitated and unable to carry on the duties of the office. The author claims that this approach was considered, but abandoned because of a fear of causing a constitutional crisis. The controversial article excited a liberal fantasy: using the 25th Amendment to oust Trump before 2020. In their fervor, some Democrats and leftist media neglected to consider the specific mechanisms of the amendment.  Section 4 asserts that “the Vice President and a majority of either the principal officers of the executive departments” must declare the president  “unable to discharge the powers and duties of his office” in order to precipitate his/her removal. If the president contests this determination, Congress must agree to the removal by a two-thirds majority. The unlikelihood that Vice President Mike Pence, senior officials in the administration, and a supermajority in Congress would turn on the president did not dissuade the media from churning out op-ed after op-ed about the possibility of Trump’s removal. The articles, by offering liberals false hope that Trump’s presidency could be brought to a quick end, attracted clicks and attention.  While imagining a White House without Trump may be satisfying, Democrats should recognize how their fantasies energize Trump’s base. Both the 25th Amendment craze and liberal calls for impeachment are bad politics. As House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi tactfully remarked in an interview with Rolling Stone last August, the removal issue is “a gift to the Republicans … I don’t think it’s in the interest of America’s working families to focus on that, unless we have more [evidence] to go on, which we don’t at this time.”  With the 2018 midterm elections fast approaching, Pelosi is right to fear that talk of removal or impeachment will infuriate and motivate tribal Republicans. Trump’s corruption, coziness with Putin, and irrational tariffs have left his GOP base dejected and demoralized. That base, however, shows signs of revival when the political discussion in our country turns away from policy arguments and toward partisan fights.  We see this, for example, with the possible recent uptick in Republican voters’ enthusiasm after the Kavanaugh confirmation debacle. Democrats could enjoy a blue wave in the coming elections by focusing on broad-based economic policies that work to the advantage of the middle and working classes. To do so, however, they must avoid talking about impeachment or the 25th Amendment and kindling partisan resentment. Democrats should learn from Republican politics. In 1998, the GOP campaigned during the midterm elections with the promise that their success would bring about President Bill Clinton’s impeachment. The scheme backfired by drawing great Democratic turnout at the polls. Ultimately, the Republicans lost three House seats and House Speaker Newt Gingrich, a loud advocate for Clinton’s removal, stepped down. Pelosi appears to be on the right track. Under her guidance, Democratic leaders have, with few exceptions, sidestepped the impeachment and removal issues. When the subject is broached, they smartly shift the conversation back to their “kitchen-table” platform, refusing to arm Republicans with partisan ammo.  We may want Trump out of office, but we cannot enable Republicans to make the midterm elections what Steve Bannon, Trump’s former chief strategist, recently predicted they will be: an “up or down vote on the impeachment of Donald Trump.” Impeachment rhetoric and discussions of invoking the 25th Amendment are losers on the trail and impossible in reality (getting two-thirds of the Senate to vote for either will not happen).  We must not succumb to the temptation of employing them. If Democrats continue to promote policies that benefit the majority of Americans, we will win at the polls next month and in 2020.

Parton, SGA Establish Support Group for Survivors

The counseling department at the Parton Center for Health and Wellness has formed a support group for students who are survivors of sexual violence.  The group will meet every Thursday beginning on Oct. 25. All of the services provided by this group will be free and confidential. The support group formed as a result of efforts from both the Student Government Association (SGA) and Parton. Cece Alter ’19, the chair of the SGA Sexual and Relationship Respect Committee, told The Campus that the committee discussed the idea last year. This semester, Parton intern Alexa Szotka reached out to make the support group possible. “I met with Alexa and we talked about what I thought would be valuable in the support group and ideas the committee has,” Alter said. Recent protests have emphasized many students’ opinion that the college does not provide adequate support to survivors or punish abusers appropriately. Most recently, signs at the demonstration outside of Proctor on Oct. 4 read: “@midd stop protecting abusers” and “@midd support survivors” in the wake of Justice Brett Kavanaugh’s confirmation to the U.S. Supreme Court. Alter said that these demonstrations reveal that the college needs to do more to support survivors. [pullquote speaker="Dr. Mark Peluso" photo="" align="center" background="on" border="all" shadow="on"]In addition to the medical and psychological support for survivors of sexual violence currently available at Parton, the new support group is another option that may appeal to some students.[/pullquote] “The school has a ton of resources and using those to support those who need it is really important,” she said. Dr. Mark Peluso, director of health services at Parton, also commented on the benefit of creating an additional space to facilitate healing for survivors. “In addition to the medical and psychological support for survivors of sexual violence currently available at Parton, the new support group is another option that may appeal to some students,” Peluso said. Szotka, who will facilitate the new group, emphasized the importance of offering group-based support.  “Support groups offer a means for students to share their experience, struggles, strength and hope with each other in a supportive and safe environment with counselors present to help facilitate healing,” Szotka said. Alter also recognized that the existing resources the college offers in this area, such as Middsafe and counseling, are almost exclusively individual in nature. [pullquote speaker="Cece Alter ’19" photo="" align="center" background="on" border="all" shadow="on"]The experience of being a survivor on this campus can be really hard and lonely sometimes, so bringing people together can be helpful.[/pullquote] “The experience of being a survivor on this campus can be really hard and lonely sometimes, so bringing people together can be helpful,” she said. Alter said that nobody can know what is best for all survivors on campus, and that as a result, the group doesn’t need to be sterilized and clinical. She envisions it as a more creative space for healing that can go far beyond sitting in a circle. “If people are interested in joining but are not sure what it will look like, they should know that it can look like what they need it to,” Alter said. Depending on the interest in the group this semester, Parton plans on offering additional support groups next semester as well. More information including time and location can be found by calling Middlebury College Counseling at (802)-443-5141.