We are in a different place than we were last time. During the last public divestment from fossil fuels campaign, that is. Personally, as a first-year last year, the word “divestment” seemed taboo on this campus and I could not fully wrap my head around it. On the one hand, it was sullied because ...
Millions of years ago our common ancestor with chimpanzees made an extraordinary decision. It gradually took its knuckles off the ground and began to walk on two legs. Of course, this was not actually a conscious decision. Evolution selected for this occurrence because, for some arcane reason, it was ...
Erin has selected for this week one of the most complex and nuanced problems America has grappled with over the past fifty years: abortion. However, she also previously discussed another complex issue in Voter ID laws. I feel the need to address both, at least in part. I’ll start with Voter ID laws. ...
To the Faculty, We write to you as the student leaders of the group MiddIncluded. We are spearheading the campaign to change Middlebury’s current cultures and civilizations requirements. This letter is an effort to clarify what our campaign stands for, to explain why these changes are necessary ...
After months of speculation, the College announced our 17th president on Tuesday — Dr. Laurie Patton, the current dean of the College of Arts & Sciences at Duke University. In last week’s editorial, we laid out the qualities we wished to see in our next president, and in all of these areas, ...
Last year, I wrote a column urging students and the public in general to pay more attention to the news surrounding the large trove of information Edward Snowden leaked to The Guardian. The leaks detailed a vast network of domestic and international spying put in place by the US government. In the year ...
Three weeks ago I found my bike in a bush. I had locked the wheel to the frame, but not the bike rack. Someone had thrown my bike into a bush. This wasn’t an isolated incident. Two other friends have had their bikes thrown into bushes. Now when I walk by all of the bikes are locked to the rack. I ...
I am a little late on the uptake, but it appears our campus has taken a renewed interest in our social, or lack thereof, lives. Or perhaps long-simmering tensions have boiled over and all our angst and frustration is being made known. Or maybe we just had an opportunity to complain. No matter what perspective ...
As registration for spring semester approached during my first year at Middlebury, I remember the stress and excitement that came with it. And, like any enterprising first year with nearly a semester of experience under his belt, I immediately began trying to figure out all the important course information ...
There is much hypocrisy in politics, but after the midterm elections last week, one point bothers me more than ever: the glaring contradiction between Republicans’ founding mantra and their current values. In its 2012 platform, the GOP reaffirms its support for small government. It states, “This ...
Ever since President Ronald D. Liebowitz announced he would step down at the end of the current school year, the Presidential Search Committee has been emailing the Middlebury Community updates as they search for his replacement. The most recent update, which was sent at the outset of the school year, ...
The Lobby. Sabai Sabai Thai Cuisine. That coffee shop with the motorcycle in the window. Post-rebranding Crossroads. All of these Middlebury dining institutions have opened during my time at the College. Their introductions into the community have, at least from college students, always been met with ...
This week is all about the millions of Americans who turned out to vote in the midterm election. Those citizens determined the next term’s leaders and decided whether or not propositions passed. In short, they had a say in choosing the people and policies that will shape their lives to come. Not everyone ...
The relationship between students and the administration is like any other: it needs constant communication to be healthy. Last Sunday, in recognition of a general discontentment in the student body, President Liebowitz held an open forum about social life on campus. That Liebowitz opened this ...
In my last column, I discussed three important responsibilities of the SGA on campus: 1) allocating the student activities fee, 2) managing student organizations and 3) serving as a vehicle for students to change institutional policy. It was on the third front, I noted, where there is much room for ...
One of the hardest parts of being a fan of hip-hop is being asked the following question: “how can you listen to music that revolves so much around the glorification of violence?” I usually deflect the question by saying something about how you can consume art without endorsing its message, but ...
When two news sources asked to approve their quotes and the article before it was slated to print in last week’s issue, it became clear to me that the line between the press and press releases is becoming difficult to discern. The practice of allowing news sources to read and edit quotations as a ...
I hope I will not appear as too much of a nerd by assuming you know about the world famous Italian plumber Mario. Mario spends his time jumping on turtles and saving Princess Peach in the aptly named “Super Mario” video games. By today’s standards Super Mario is a quaint game as it contains no ...
I was sitting in Wilson Café last Wednesday, preparing for a job interview with a friend, when my phone buzzed with a New York Times Breaking News update. “Gunfire Reported in Canada’s Parliament,” it read. It was a headline that no Canadian thought they would ever see. In disbelief, I opened ...
A year and a half ago I decided to take a gap year. The term “gap year” invariably implies backpacking through some countries, picking up the local tongues and doing some pro-bono work. I did a bit of that, but was never one of those hostel-hoppers you find in European cafes. Instead, I chose to ...