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Volume XII, Issue 11 If there any potential ew College who were H: llv intrin i{.:all, offend d y the "In tile final an,tly is" quote from Rc t ir d PhilosupliV Prufc sur Douolas lkrggn:n, r lend to think tha t thev \ \ otlldn 'I I ike it here. Hut c' ( nC\V line i. HSrnart r hinking." lfyuu like to sniff glue, then }OU will e Little Nicky It bn 'I going t o win any Oscars, not a long shot, and it will never grace the AFt's best 100 movies list, but L ick y will make you laugh, even if feel like you shouldn't. REVIEW, PAGE 5 ew off-campus study opportunit have j usl opened up. Now, t"'ew College students can spend a year at one of I 70 ional campuses or study abroad at of 37 countries without having to costly out-of-stale tuition. The pro-m al o provides exciting avenues to s who need a change of pace, gey or culture. Another advantage the program is that it's easy to take ad vantage of it STORY, PAGE 8 "I don t believe we ever really know why anybody does anything" by Hill Outlaw S tudents frustrated by ew C ollege s lack of creative writing opportunities rna} take in a breath of, relief. A oon as nc t semester, ew College will gain a Writer in Residence wno will help fi II the void of expressive riling opportunities-particularly in the area of prose. When que tioned about 'cw College'. current htck of course offering and tutorials in the area of expressive prose writing, Literature Professor Arthur MeA. "Mac" Miller stated .. .thing are looking up. A l\earch commitree ha been formed within the Division of Humanities to locate and hire a writer in residence to begin in hbruary of thi academic year. The position is funded, and we have Jots of application letters coming in, and the deadline is soon.'' This sentiment was echoed by Profe or of German Language anti Literature and Chair of the Division of Humanities Glenn Cuomo, who told the CMalyst in an e-mail, "Ju t this summer we learned that we received funding for an adjunct appointment of a Writer in four w hole voles. True to form, however. the Gore campai"n ha-. onC(' again rc fu-,cd to concede defeat, and i-. {;Vcn 110\\ mounting .111 all-out kgal <.:hal len c of the 11<1ry period of time, Vice Pre idcnt and l bave asked onl. that the ot w re cast on Election Day he counted." Democratic Vic Pr sidcntial candidate J scph Lieberman -.aid in an addre s ur day nig ht. c plainin g why America sh o uld n ot he outraged over t llc election' Rc tdcncc. This writer would come t o ew Colleg e fo r a term to t e a c h c re a tive writing a nd give publ i c readings of work in progres .'' Cuomo continued We a re looking for an author with relevant teaching e p ri ence in creative writing and two published books or the equiva lent. We will be reviewing application. for this ap pointment at th end of the month.'' Addressing the i ue of what course opportunitic the Writer in Residence would offer to cw College students, Cuomo responded, "We hope to find an author who can teach a many as two e mester-length cour cs/work hops in prose fiction. We will announce the cour. e as soon as the appointment for Term II 2001 is finalized." Cuomo added, ''Studenls interested in creative writing should check the Cataly r tudent li t erv, and the addendum to the Term II cour e catalog.'' When asked about the qualifications with hich the potential applicant for this position will be judged, Miller stated, "We want someone who i a riter, not a November 29, 2000 Insane never-ending story. "1 his C\" ning, sccJct
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It wam 't a big-time heart allack. 'heney ha heart attack and live \ 'edncsday, 10Vembcr 22, vice presi dential <.:andidate Dick Cheney checked him:elf into George Wa hir.gton Univer.>ity Hospital due to che t The pains were a mild heart attack, Cheney' fourth in a twenty-year period. His doctors discharged him Ia t aturday, giving him a clean bill of health. Cheney walked out of the hospital Ia t Saturday morning\\ ith l1is >'ife and other family memb rs. Doctors put Cheney on an additional blood thinning medication for the next thirty days. Cheney already take a combination of mcdi ation tor treating people with bad hearts. Cheney rejected campaign-related stress a a con tributing factor to hi heart atlack. He aid that hi role in the Gulf War wa more tressful than the current election than ten year.> in office. He had been in Japan ostensibly to isit his son and to get aid for Peru in the form of loans. However, he did not return and instead sta_ cd o t of sight in his hotel from which he announced his rc ignation. He resigned before the Peruvian Conan on Monday O\'ember 20, Peruvian President lbcrto Fujimori resigned after more A y I Iaiti's presidential inauguwtion. F ire i n gannen t fa(: ory A fire in a Bangladesh garment fac tory killed 45 p<:uplc and :-eriously Relatives mourn 11-'0man and children killed in a Bangladesh weatshop fire injured m re than 100 other.. of the Richard D. nonnette, pre idcnt and chief dead were women and children who were executive officer ot the partnership said, crushed to death in the rush to escape the "We appe, r to be turning a very impor burning factory. The factory was four 'totant corner. But as we turn one corner, ric tall and had only one exit on the troubling developments arc coming at us bottom floor. That exit had been locked from other directions-pccifically with for security rca ons and could only be opened by fire fighters. Some of the injured jumped out of wmJows to e. cape the fire. The tire tartcd on the fourth floor where towel and knitwear wea: ironed. B n g l ndc-; h has almost 2,000 garment fact o n t n l a t 1 i workers Most workers arc women arid hildrcn. Garment c po rt mainl y to the United States and Europe, m a ke up sev enty percent of Banglad 's export revenue. Update on the Dmg War 'l he annual report of the Pa11ner:-,hip for a Drug-free America reported that for the third year in a row, marijuana use among teens has dropped. llow vcr, u. e of the drug tasy has increased. The re port found that the percent of teens that have tried marijuana has dO\\n form 44 percent in 1997 to 40 percent this year. Trial use of I:c.stas !las climbed trom seven percent to ten percent just thi year. r he report noted that tccn-a e attitudes v ere becoming incrcasml!ly negative. Some strange ne" One of America's best selling toy. la t summer v-.as "Death Row Marv'' (MacFarlane Toys, $24.99) "his toy fea tur e d a man into an electric hai r t hing to 'be Ill up wit. h more vults 61 elect rici t y R dcs call e d the "Original h ck r'' at <1 Rockville. MD arcade and "The Electri<.: Chair Game., at various park in Italy simulate death hy electro cution on an ele tric chair. inclined to play are strapped in and administered a low dose of clc tri ity that causes hca y vibrations. The rides al o feature the sound of sizzling liquid, n cloud of smoke, and a heartbeat monitor. Winning this game entails staying in the chair until the game declare. you dead. Information compiled by Anna Maria Diaz-Balart from the AP wire, ewsday. the ew Yo1 Tim s, nncl "1 of tire ,. '/he Catalyst is available on th World Wide Web at http://www. ar.u fedu/-cataly.\t/ Ge n era l ditor Kathryn Dow unou t Editor Mich"ael anderson Managing Editor Max Campbell Pho tognt pher The Catalpt i an academic tutorial sponsored by Professor Maria Vespcri. It i developed in the New College Publication. Office using Adobe Photoshop and Quark Xpres for PowerMacintosl and printed at the Bradenton Herald \Vith money provided by the ew Contributions may range in length from 250 to 500 words. Letter-.. to t he l:ditor should be no more than 250 words. Submissions should be labeled as c1ther letters to the tditor or <.'ontributions and include names and contact information. Submissions may be avcd to the Catalyst Contribution. folder in the on the "Public"' file server, printed may be plac d in ("ampus box 75, and all other contribution mav be e-mailed to cataly-;t(p virttuar.usfedu. c) anonymou. submi. sion will he accepted. Onlin e Edi tor 1-i o n s a n d i n qu i r i s to: '1 he Catalyst 5700 Tamiami Tr. Box #75 Sarasota, FL 34243 cutalyst(s_{ virlluw:usfedu The Catalyst rc crvc the right to edit submi sions for space. gramm11r or tyle. All ubmission must be received by 5:00p.m. aturday in order to appear in the following week's issue. lnlormation about upcoming is welcome throughout the \ tck.
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The Catalyst NEWS November 29, 2000 3 Presidentia d goin and going Above: w ith it !FROM "BUSH-GORE-JWH?"' l'AGR I ] his spirits with a rousin g gam e of peek a hoo Right : ''!am 180 vote m that county before the count to place in doubt the results of the elec-ing upport for Gore' position Gephardt wa ::.u pended at 4:19 p.m. Sunday, tion." After the completed Palm Beach assured Reuter that his fellow party which Secretary of State Katherine Harris County recount, Gore gained an addi-member have been "entirely supportive, then refused to add to the overall count-tiona! 2L votes which went left out of and continue to be entirely supportive of a fact which Lieberman made much of. the official state total. In 1\assau, going ahead with this contest for the pur" In thousands of hours of work for hun-Democratic lawyers arc. ceking the addi-pose of findtng out how everybody voted dreds of citizens of Florida, Republicans tion of 52 more vote. for Gore which had i n this election." and Democra t and independents alike been o erlooked in that county'. o riginal G o re s a id h e was encouraged by s tatea r e being ignore d," he aid. "What i at tally. ment by t h e Democra ti c p arty leader i sue here i s every Amencan's simple, sa-Miami-Dade is both the l a r g e t county t h at t h e r e were "Ea. ily more than e n o u g h cred right to vote. in the sla t e and largely D e mocr a tic in po-[vote I t o c h a nge t h e e lection i n o ut Judge Charles Barton, head of th e litic a l preference, a n d is therefore favor," adding, ''it's about the pri n c iple, Palm Be ach Count y canva, sing boar d, considered to be Gore' be t bot at pick -but there are more than enough vote to called Harris's decision "a s lap in the m' up t:nough votes to \.\in the election. change the outcome, and that's important face to a ll t hese people" who wo1 ked to Last week, the county' s canvassing board as well." conclude the arduous hand recount. abandoned the recount-which had Bush. meanwhile, lost no t1mc in gleeI hrri s {li;a ret;d, -. Demai '11 had an. d h 1 t" of officials dcn\i that charge. althoug l t t: aile ing that Harn an ot ere cc Jon J nounced tlleir intent to in 1 It hoard's decision \vas abandoned .,o n ficials refusal to consider partJa rcsu s advance. Ut1-.h :-.aid that he "res(> ctfully l h d"d t after a noiw dclllonstration bv our-ofand certification of re ults w liC 1 no a ks" Gore to reconsider his legal cam-include. ball h wa: "conduct suffici nl staters shipped in at the Reoublic e orts \\ere no G ore's campaign was accu. \.:d of theft for the be t route for America: leaving the buildino with a blank sample-Banking on the image of legit imacy which the certification has be. towed ballot. On Monday, the Sena te a n d House upon a Hu s h Lhc \1inority 1 eaders, Thomas Daschle and p arty ea gerly echoed lus plea rcnewmg Richard Gephardt, declared the once again their calls tor closure an Democratic party'. 'overwhelming'' sup-end to further challengc.s of the election. port for Gore's litigious position. Despite "I think tbc American people arc going to some media reports of Democrats. wans a ) that enough is e ough.'' former Senator Bob Dole said, banking on the Republicans' hop that a m rican public \'>'ould turn agamst the AI and Tipper m rlre1r Hollaween cos1/inte\ (\'<'riou,/y) glc sl1ll further. 'ow thai the votes ha\ e been counted, it\ time for the vote" to count," Hush sid on Sunday night. The General Services Adminbrr:ttion. howe er, has rcfu cd to turn 0' cr the h:ys or the iedcral fund to the campaign for a hansition to_ the \ l11te ) louse offices. ""1 he GSA w1ll not pro-1 ,. vid funds until the results are c ear, GS spoke. man Beth 1 'cwberger told C "and as long as both side ar "oing to court, the result ate not dca1 \ct.' Undaunted. Cheney aoon re::.ponded that the Bush campaign will proceed in plan ning their transition to power vdth all rnate tunding. claiming that it would
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_4..:.__...:....:rh..:....:e.....:c:....::a..:....:ta:..:.Llr..::..;sr:.._________ E_N_T E R T.A IN ME f you li e to so rr g ue, then you wlll ve Little Nicky b) Zak lt>ck It isn't going t v. in n) 0 car not by a long shut. anJ it will n .\ r gr. cc the Fl' hcst 100 movies li:-.t, but /,1/lle Xickv \ill make. ou lauoh, even if. ou fe llik \OU houldn't. 'Jb prcmi of Uulc Nicky i:-. :traH1t forward: the entire plot line and the li ely uut<.'OIIle i r vealcd within the first tl'Il minute of the film. This lea e the of th' minutes to be dedicated entirely to cheap gags, exactly what the typical Sandler movie excels at. Fro n cracks ab<.,ut goah. to the eternal damnation o Adolf I Iitlcr, to the antics associated with eating a has hi h cake, the tilm will keep the audience in a fit of hy teria. l he basic gist of l.ittle Nicky is that icky. the son of the Devil, i forced to capture his two older brother who have es caped to earth. If 'icky fails at his task, then the balance be tween good and evil will be di rupted and, a a :.ide note, the Devil will sink out of existence. Little if any of the religious ref erences made seem to agree with any of icial hurch doct nne. ee, o made to educate: in fact, it may make many dumber. he t1lm has -;upport of many famous actor. and comediu n a:-. \\ell as cameo appcaran b} haractcr. in many oth r of Sandler'. tilms. Harvey Kictcl, '' ho mad hi..., Uroach\ 'I)' debut in li.J75 in rthur 1 1ill r'..., lkarh of a ::Ja/cwncm, tncs hb hand the Devil and ick) father. Patt icia Arquette, a timid art stu dent play Nicky's love interest. John Levitz. from Night Lhe and The Critic, plays d peeping tom v. ho i:-. haws sed by a large black bird in hell. Also in the film are comedians Rodney Dangerfield, Kevin ealon and Dana Carvey, to name a few. As for cameos. fans \Vill recognize the "You can do it!" guy from The 1Vaterboy. as well a Chub from Happy Gilmore. The film i not for the e< ily offended or the weak of heart. It definitely earned its PG-13 rat ing crude sexual humor, drug language and thematic t 1atcrial. Phrases like "Tithead" (which i applied to the Gatekeeper, played by Kevin after the Devl rea r his head) and, "Popeye's chicken is fucking awesome!" Jitter the commentary and indicate the level this film caters to. be an gels in heaven are made out to be airheaded sluts, and pout id iotic line. bout how God is 'Tke. Jeopardy smart." 1 here arc a And, perhaps most a sauJriog to ones sen. ibihties, Henry Winkler is attacked by bees, twice. Sandler' newest picture in a long line of intellectually bleak and hy terically funny movie i exactly what one might exp ct j g <:> T with a weak story line, with elements of a mediocre romantic Out ast's new album, 'Stan onia 2000' should be a hit by ooa ;\hri Di zB lart "Don't pull the I bang ou unless you phu1 to bang/ Don't even bano unless you plan to hit somelhang" challenges the hit single from OutKast' new album Stankonia. At parties and walls New College .tudents are dancing to a song inspired by the US military bombing of Iraq. Once again OutKast has produced a brilliant album. tankonia is the forth album OutKast has pro duced ince recording their first album in 1994 when the artists \vere just eighteen years old. Andre "Drc'' Benjamin and Antwan ''Big Boi" Patton have been creating some of the most creative and unus al music ever ince. The new album is an art ful mix of socially conscious lyrics and wild, funky music. layered on top of Outkast's Atlanta dirty South tyle music origins. The result of this combination i. a lyrically powerful album that is outrageously ucccs ful. 0 tKast have sped up the tempo of their mu ic with two tracks on the new album reaching 135 beats per minute. The tracks and 'peedballin"' are some of the most proTressive PU ongs in hip-hop today. Similarly the track "Miss Jackson" ha taken < standard ong formal and made it totally new. his hip hop apology breaks new ground, :peaking to the baby-momma's momma. This song i highly personal, speaking to the relationship between Dre and Erykah Badu 's mother, the grandma her of Badu and Dre's son Seven. OutKast arc charting a direction for hip hop. fhcir eclectic album brings a variety of styles together from a diverse music sce11c. 1 he new album is incredibly creative without lo ing credibility. Dre explains the mu. icon the alb rn, "If you make it hard, with feeling and lyrics on top, it's a new type of music. We call it lumadclic-slum dance music.'' Heavily influenced by techno and drum-and-bass. Stankonia rcintcrpr ts those forms in a unique way. rhrown into the mix arc full size rock guitar solos. The album is sure to get a lot of Wall play, but it till may be a wise inve tment for tho:-.e eager to own a piece of musical hi. tory. Stankonia 2000 i!; from B, 1G/Aristu/La Face YOUR ANNOUNCEMENT IN THE CATALYST! November 29, 2000 comedy. It i everything that the typical Sandler fan v.ill repeat like parrot to their friends, who will giggle at and retort with an even dumber Sandleresque quo-tation. until the next idiotic m i r should sec it. BUT THINK LONG AND HARD FIRST. DO YOU REALLY WANT TO SELL THAT STEREO? PERHAPS YOU DON'T REALL.YWANT PEOPLE TO COME TO YOUR COFFEEHOUSE. LIFE IS FULL OF TOUGH CHOICES. ALWAYS MAKE A WISE DECISION WHEN RUNNING AN ANNOUNCEMENT. CATALYST@VIRTU.SAR.USF.EDU
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The Catalyst FEATURE November29, 2000 5 'Ea me' sa d the fish, a d the Ia 1ge ndsturbed vegeta 0 s traditional Thai (Bangkok) much closer to ca1npus Frui1 ctnving i a traditional 'Jhai culinary art. A carved carrot fi h in water \imilar 10 that pictured wa on di paly at Tlwi Palacl.' when thi.\ reliew was written. by Kathryn Dow and \1ichael a d ron Studen s who are saddened at th a and it al you can eal buffet) shoul d take heart. Thai Palace ha:; opened in the vacat d spac and once again you can get delicious Pad Thai just a short drive from campus. Catalyst edi tors Mike Sanderson and Kathryn Dow ate dinner at 1 hai Palace on Sunday. November 19, and had a mixed but overall positive experience. Thai Palace Sample Menu: Appetizers Satay $4.95 Thai Chicken Satay prepared from a tender ch1cken served with creamy peanut sauce and cucumber sauce Crispy Spring Rolls $2.95 Ground chicken. fresh vegetables green onion bean thread noodles wrapped in rice paper, served with sweet and sour sauce Crispy Tofu $2 95 Small Pieces of crispy tofu served with 1 sweet sauce and topped with crushed peanuts Soup Cup $2.50 Pot $8.50 When Kat and Mike arrived at the restaurant, they bumped into fourth-year Candace Lucado, who wa finishin her meal. n n oaned the m a p n. 1'\ul i eclared hai Palace "F-tn-fucking-tabu lou ." Perhaps he wa enthu ed about the reasonable pr ice.--only the ''spcdal'' and ''popular" dinn r entrees exceed ten dollars. As nn appetizer, the editors decided to try the 1 ispy 'ood le, which were de, cribed on the menu a "Puffed rice Wonton Soup Wonton Noodle wrapped ground pork, tender ch1cken with napa cabbage, mild yellow onion, green on ion and straw mushrooms in clear broth Coconut Soup Coconut Broth with lime, mild yellow onion, straw mushrooms, bell peopers, lemongrass magrut leaves green onion (choice of chicken, shrimp, or tofu) Salads Cucumber Salad $2.95 Shredded fresh cucumber tomato, sliced mild yellow onion, crushed peanut, fresh Thai herbs, served with a spicy lime dressing Entrees Lobster $13.95 Fresh Large lobster, bay scallops, large mussels, tender squid with Tha i herbs, vegetables, and choice of chili, g1nger, or garltc sauce d '' ith r h l.trg shrimp., b .. n sprouts, green oni n, and Thai \e t sauce." Mike at th fr h Jan.!, -.hrimp t fore Kat cou d tr them. and de id d that he pn:fcr hb hrimp warm. I le va. nonplu std h) the noo Hes them-h. e:. Kat found the noodles to be tasty and atbfyingly crispy. hut not particu larl) exciting. Di. turbingly, !he noodl s al o c mcd to have been tos ed vith chicken, which the menu did not m n tion. 'at also tried the Seafood Soup, which was good, though the large piece of 1 h was a bit much. The scallops were delicious, and the picy, lemony broth was delicious. Their hot and sour :oup i the. ame broth, with more vegetables and the option of meat or tofu. n1ere i a crispy. water chc tnut-like vegetable in cluded in both soup which b astoundingly bitt r. Whil Kat has no idea what this vegetable i she i fairly certain that it adds more to the flavor of the broth when it is not bitten into di rectly. It hould be noted that a "cup" of soup is actually are pectably-sized bowl. or their entree Kat and Mike had the 1ofu Red Curry and Pad lbai Tofu, respectively. I ike most of the en,recs, these dishc can be ordered with a chmce of lulu, SCl lfood chicken, p<.lrk, or he f. and are pric d accordingly. Whil e Ka t normally orders Green Curry, he de cided to expand her horizons for the evening, and was very pleased with the result The curry was picy and weet, with tast bamboo shoot and bell pep pers (red and grcen!) tofu it elf was prepared perfectly, lightly crisp on the Fried Rice Beef Chicken or Pork $6 .95 Shr imp, Scallop or Squid $7.95 Seafood $8 95 Tofu $6 95 (D1shes include P ineapp le Fried Rice,Basil Fried Rice, and Vegetable Fried Rice) Stir Fry Beef Chicken or Pork $7 95 Shrimp, Scallop or Squid $8 95 Seafood $9.95 Tofu $6.95 (Dishes run a w1de range. from a basic vegetable and garlic stir-fry to Amazing Dish, which includes the famed Thai peanut sauce) Curry Beef, Chicken, or Pork $7.95 Shrimp, Scallop or Squ id $8.95 Seafood $9.95 Tofu $6.95 (Options include Panang, Green. Red, out ide and melt-in-. our-mouth oft 111 the middle. The Pad Thai Tofu ta ted, u pic iou ly, c. aclly like that at hai Bangkok. Perhap the ccr t r cipe h. vc gotten out. In fact, almo t all of the m 'llll item an; identical! Mike prop ed an elaborate theory of a ec ret A ian Mafia that, pre vel ted by Republican igilancc from hanncling money into .S. el ctions, .. a. nov en a 'Cd in espi onag This theory was debunked when Kat told him that Thai Palace is appar ently owned by the same people. llowevcr, while the menu is the same and thus the food e cellent. not all the amenitie of Bangkok can be tran:-.ferred o easily. Part of Thai Bangkok's appeal i the bustling of the restau rant. the ortables .:ramp d together, as waiter. slide by earring met;ll pots of rice for de manding cu tomcr We :ampled this restaurant on a 'unday, and it wa so quiet we could eavesdrop on conversa at far away t able The tables wcrcn 't anything to marvel at either, looking like they were recycled from a Denny' and other amenities of Thailand were par. e. These superficial aspect should not be dwel\cd on in a so new and o ood. What d erve artention is the fruit and vegetabl e carving:-., fa m ilia r to any Bangkok patron, on display in intri cate variation. and even erved with certain dishes. adly. Thai Palace was out of fried ba nana (one of K;tt's favorite de." erh in the world.) Oh w 11-therc's always next time. Yellow. Massamun, and Pineapple Curry) Noodles Beef Chicken or Pork $6. 95 Shrimp Scallop or Squid $7 95 Seafood $8. 95 Tofu $6 .95 (Dishes include Pad Thai, Pad Woon Sen Pad See Aeiw. and Ladnar) Hours: Lunch: Mon-Fri 11:30 a m -2:30p.m Dinner: Mon-Thurs 5 9 p.m. Fn and Sat: 5-10 p m Sun : 5 9 p.m. Tha i Palace is located 3 miles north of New College on US 41 opposite Blockbuster
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6 The Catalyst NEWS You have to get creative to make the program work Humanities Chair Glenn Cuomo IFROM "CREATIVE WRITING" PAGE II over some students expectations. At the forefront of this debate is Catalyst staff writer Zachary Konkol. Konkol, who transferred to New College from Murray State University a school with a creative writing program, said that while he knew that there was no formal creative writing program he wa. under the impression that opportumties for the ubject abounded at New College in the form of Independent Reading Projects and tutori als. "I was extremely disappointed with the difficulty of arranging creative writing IRPs and tutorials," Konkol said. "If the Admissions Office is going to lead people to believe that there are opportunities for creative writing at New College, then there should be not only faculty with knowledge in that depart ment, but faculty who have ample time to devote to working with interested stu dents." He went on to say, "The lack of a creative writing program here could very well contribute to my leaving the school." In response to questions about the dif ficulty in arranging IRPs and tutorials, Miller said, "The way things work now is .that a student who want to do a tutorial should take a standard academic course with a professor who is interested in the subject, knock their socks off, then get them to sponsor the tutorial in the following semester. The rationale for this modular paradigm is that most faculty member don' t want to re-invent the OPINION New New College website not "Smart Thinking" by Ryan McCormick Price, Esq. I am disturbed by the new aphorism that Admissions has so kindly saddled us with. If there were any potential New College students who were really intrin sically offended by the "In the final analysis" quote from Retired Philosophy t end t o think that they w ouldn' t like i t here. But New College 's new lin e is "Smart Thinking. "Smart Thinking?" It sounds like a tagline from an ad for a particularly cheap brand of computer. It's the kind of two-word gimmick that ad executives spend weeks refining in their high-rise offices in downtown Cleveland. It's something I would expect to sec on a Microsoft poster geared to attract someone with no attention pan, not on a web page for the honors college of the Florida state university system. And it's not a subtle slogan, either. It's blazoned in bright white letters across the top of the page, announcing to whoever managed to navigate through the Java moat that was the front page that they must indeed be utilizing some "Smart Thinking" by coming here. My self-esteem was soaring. Almost as disturbing were the charming little campy graphics tucked in beside the headline of the New College Fact Sheet page (the "About New College" link). A charming little man with a giant head points to a chart on one side, and on the other a clock, a book, and a washboard hover over a vast field of numbers. These graphics would not inspire me to apply to this institute of higher learning. They make the page look like USA Today with less class. th e vast amount of information availabl e on t he we bsite-all the Financial Aid in formatio n is there, a l ong w it h t h e ent i r e academic program and a variety of charming little tour pages -some of the information is painfully out of date. For instance, did you know that a natural foods grocery-deli is a short walk from campus? Al suming the authors this page are referring to the beloved Granary, they have an interesting definition of "short walk." The page also lags a bit in the campus updates; according to the "Facilities" page, students can look forward to the opening of the Dallas and Elizabeth Dort Residence Hall soon, along with an as-yet-unnamed Natural Sciences laboratory/ classroom/ office/ auditorium complex! This is truly an ex citing time to be at New College, it seems. An additional issue is the entire front page being written in Java. JavaScript, as fun and fancy as it may be, allowing any one with pare time on their hands to do all sorts of marvelous things with animation, online games, and mouse dragging effects is NOT the best choice for an in formational page on a small liberal arts school. There are still, believe it or not, a good many people whose computer are just not sharp enough to catch on to the whole Java scene. These people have no e College web page and t herefor e miss out on a ll th e undoubt ed l y marvelous fea ture s and wealths of info rmati o n. E ven if the New College webma ter cannot resist the lure of Java, it would not be incredi bly difficult to at least provide a simple link to a text-only version of the page. The page does have its high points. Everything seems to be spelled correctly, and the innumerable links proved surpris ingly enlightening. I was unaware that the Counseling and Wellness Center even had a web page until I was poking around on the New College site. The color pat tern is comfortably predictable in good old blue and white, and the new "look" of the pages, while rather banal, is at least inoffensive. The site really just needs some updat ing and a good PR man to rank up there with some of the all time great pages like http://backtable.org/-blade/fnord/con diments.html and http://www. webspan.net/ -fender 1/bbo wm.html. All it lakes is a lillie love and a Jot of Smart Thinking. November 29, 2000 wheel in a tutorial -they want someone who can already drive Miller continued "There is a tendency to blame Admissions when expectations are not met, but nobody in Admissions has ever told a potential applicant that they could major in Creative Writing at New College. It can be very difficult for the Admissions people to explain New College's flexibility without creating ex aggerated expectations in the applicant's head." Hey kids! Interested in the journalism program at New College? Write for the Catalyst. Credit as tutorial. Contribution Guidelines Letter to The Editor: A reader's response to previous articles, letters and/or editori als, or an opinion that is intended to be shared with the student body. Letters to the Editor shoula be no more than 0 da m fo r free advertising. J .. Contribution: A factual arti cle written by someone not on staff. Contributions should be informative and pertinent to the interests of New College students as a whofe. Contributions may range in length from 250-500 wora Guest Column: A solicited opinion piece. Guest colum msts do not necessarily represent the views of the Catalyst, but rather opinions of whicfi we feel the New College community should be maae aware. Guest columns may range in length from 250-500 words. All submission should be turned into box 75 ore-mailed to catalyst@virtu.sar.usf.edu, by Friday at 5pm.
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The Catalyst OPINION Guest opinion: learning from Jessica by Elizabeth Elia When Michael Shannon told me that Jessica Archer, a transgendered activist, would be coming to New College to deliver a pre entation entitled, "Ec;;caping the Gender Matrix," I was really excited. I've studied gender quite a bit in the past few years, and I thought it would be fascinating to hear a lecture by someone on the front Jines of the war against gender dualism. So why did I find "Escaping the Gender Matrix" o disappointing? This question is easy to answer, difficult to solve, and unfortunately, applicable to other New College presentations. The tone at the presentation was wrong. When 1 say this, I mean, quite specifically, that I did not feel comfortable asking the kinds of questions that most intere t me. I wanted to ask Jessica about her views on gender construction. How does she ce herself in relation to the gender matrix? (Why does she choo e to wear cosmetics, for example?) I wondered why I felt uncomfortable with these question Throughout the presentation, Jessica asked if there were any question about her depiction of gender. Why didn't I raise my hand? The answer is a little embarrassing, but ['II be honest. I didn't ask questions because I felt that there was an expectation for me, as an audience member, to validate Jessica Archer through her conception of gender. It seemed that to challenge anything she said, let alone ask her personal questions about her self-presentation, would come off as confrontational and antagonistic. That's the last thing 1 wanted to do, so l remained silent. A few days ago, a friend and I di cussed the Criminal Justice Forum, which was held Ia t Wednesday, Friday, and Sunday. My fri end told me that h e h a d a feeling at u .ion der Matrix." He said that there were point made-facts shared-that he would have liked to di cuss more critically, but he feared that questioning the speaker would make him seem unsupportive. I found it disturbing that various people described both vents as "preaching to the converted." The criti cal word to notice here is "preaching'' because it captures the uncomfortable feeling experienced by audience members at both events in that it seemed we were being pitched all or nothing proposition Rather than merely showing our support for a certain cause by nodding silently at presentations on campus, it would be great to have events designed around the idea of creating a critical and constructiv-e atmosphere for discussion. Jessica Archer was on the right track when she chose the campy and disam1ing "Matrix" theme, and her audience participation tactics were also good. Perhaps if these had been combined with the forum format of the Criminal Justice Forum, the event would have been a bit more satisfying. For anyone who ha ever organized, or been, a guest speaker at New College, I salute you. I appreciate the thought and work involved. However, in the future, I urge you to try to anticipate the kind of atmosphere you are going to create. If you want to promote critical discussion, consider the various methods of facilitating it. From the Archives. The following article originally ran in the November 14, 1995 issue of the Catalyst. To our knowledge, the facts have not changed. SPAATZ DROPS BOMB, GETS STREET NAMED AFTERHIM by Rachael Lininger The road from Hamilton Center to Tamiami Trail is named after General Carl A. Spaatz, who ordered the Enola Gay to drop the atomic bomb on I [iroshima. He was a brigadier general at the start of World War II, and headed the Air Force Combat Command (then a part of the Army, not an independent part of the ser vice). At the beginning of 1944, he was put in command of the strategic Air Force in Europe and ran the massive daylight bombing of Germany. He signed the German surrender documents as a witness. In 1945 he was promoted to full general and sent to the pacific theater of the war. Feeling that Japan was about to surrender, he recommended conventional bombing. I le had no part in the decision to drop the Abomb on Hiroshima, and insisted on written orders. According to one biography of Spaatz, he objected to the atomic bombing of Japan on technical rather than moral grounds. If he had felt the bomb-and civilian deaths-were neccs ary, he would have recommended using it. But he did not believe it nece sary, and requested written orders to make that clear. On August 6, 1945, by order of the President and hi advisory committee, paatz sent the Enola Gay to bomb Hiroshima. Spaatz had a list of targets for the next atomic bombing, all urban areas. He recommended that the next bomb he dropped on a les -populated target. Instead, he received orders to bomb Naga aki. On Augu t 9, the second bomb was dropped. Of 70,000 death about 500 were soldiers; half of those were American POWs. After the war, Spaatz was in trumental in the Air Force's move out of the Army. He served a' the first chief-of-staff of the newly independent Air Force. He retired in 1948 and died on June 14, 1974 at the age of 83. November 29, 2000 7 Opinion: who cares? by Ben Ruby The presidential election, which was supposed to be over on November 7, has not ended. The legal disputes over which votes count and which votes should be recounted will probably la. t well into December, and it could be said that some are losing interest. The phrase, "I just don't care anymore," or some variant of it is often heard around campus. Therefore, this piece is being written for one rea on: to offer a few reasons why you should still care about politics. If you're tempted to wash your hands of the whole business, this is addressed to you. We live in a privileged position in this country. Each election cycle our government tries to make it easier for us to vote. Voting is a right that people die for on a daily basi and we have a government that encourage us to participate in the democratic process. If what is happening now, if happening in a different country under slightly different circumstances, things could become very unplea ant. Gore and Bush are fighting in the courts, we should be thankful there isn't fighting in the streets yet. This election hasn't indicated that there are flaws in the democratic spirit of this country, it has shown how trong our democracy is. Part of the problem here is that old idea of politics as a sport. Politics certainly does have those elements for people who follow it on a daily basis. In other words, politics can be extremely entertaining. The presidential race certainly ha an entertaining quality, especially a race as closely contested as this past one But ju t because politics is entertaining doe n't mean that its entertainment. The American people are used to being able to change the channel when something, is no longer t a i polrtics allow :ipath to ake over 1mply because 1t's not so fun to watch anymore. We Jive in a democracy that is so well established that we are ultimately allowed to give it away, piece by piece, if that's what the public wants. It is a mark of the fact that we live m a strong democracy that people ee this election as a tlaw in our government rather than an opportunity to better define democracy in the days ahead. We don't realize how well off we are. It is the mark of an overindulged anesthetized electorate. The true danger in this country is that people are going to whine away their rights. Bemg informed about politics is being engaged in politics. Attempting to make sound political judgments based on political realities and your own beliefs doesn't take an unfair amount of effort. On an individual basis we can work against thi. trend simply by caring enough to tay informed on a regular basis. It is not much to a k someone to care whom their president will be and to believe that the fact that they care and stay informed makes some difference. People in the United States have the right not to care, but that doesn't make their lack of intere t right. We get much less reader response than we would like-most of it along the lines of "fuckity-fuck fuck-fuck" catalyst@virtu.sar.usf.edu. We're dying to hear from you.
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8 The Catalyst NEWS / ANNOUNCEMENTS November 29, 2000 New program facilitates studying away Classified Fred's Restaurant by KeUy Jones ew off-campus study opportumtles have just opened up. New College stu dents can spend a year at one of 170 national campu es or study abroad at one of 37 coun tries without having to pay costly out-of-state tuition. The National Student Exchange Program (NSE) is different from other off-campus study programs in that you pay either the normal New College tuition or the in-state tuition rate of the host campus. Room, meals, some field trips and special events are charged to the host campus, and financiat aid is available. So even if you're paying out-of-state tu ition at ew College, this could be a good deal. Career Center Counselor Karen Patriarca said that in the past "a lot of stu dents have to make [off-campus study] l'rtiss the monks? Go chase ajier them! decisions based on finances rather than on what program and school is best for them." The SE program could provide a window for financially-conscious students. SE is an a sociation of colleges and universities which works so that students from one NSE member campus can apply for exchange with another NSE member for up to one year. Although USF Tampa was one of the first members at the time of the program's founding in 1968, New College has only recently been in cluded. The program also provides exciting av enues to students who need a change of pace, geography or culture. Through the SE program students can access courses not offered at New College: aerospace sci ence, agricultural economics, or deaf studies for example. They can experience unique academic programs, as well as field studies, internships, professional schools and career options. NSE is also a great way to "try out" a school you were thinking about for graduate study. Another advantage of the program is that it's easy to take advantage of it. Eligibility for New College students means "basically to be in good academic standing," said Patriarca. NSE places approximately 97 per cent of all the eligible students who apply each year for exchange and 84 percent re ceive their first choice. If you plan on studying abroad or accessing honors courses internships, field studie!', student teaching programs or if you arc a student with physi cal challenges, a learning disability or want to work as a resident assistant, be aware that there is an additional application process, and advanced planning i" required. The specific program that New College provides is based on an even acceptance rate; in other word, 1.ve don't receive more students than we send out on SE. There is also an application process for students en tering 'ew ollege through SE, so there is no need to worry that cw College will be inundated with underqualifiell students due to student exchange. There will bc an information session about National Student Exchange on Thursday, November 30 at 7 p.m. in enter. or ,tc iti n, 1 call the Career Center at 359-4261 or go to the NSE webpage: http:/ /www.bu ffalostate.edu/ -use/. Servers ($2.13(hr+ tips) Hosts ($8/hr+tips) Di hwasher (57.50/hr) We provide outstanding cuisine in an upscale environment. Our clientele tips well. Should have good people skills, enthusiasm & quality work habits. Call 954.0492 ext 300, Fax 957.1035, Visit 18.30 S. Osprey Ave. #I(),, 34239. Morton':-, Gourmet Market $7-11/hr +benefits, I-T and PT Cashier* Coffee/Pastry Bar'" Meat/Seafood Cook*Baggcrs"Pastry Asst.'' gt. Stocker* Dishwashers We are a -.pecialty market look ing for special people. Opportunities for individuals w/ enthusiasm & quality work habits. Must have good cus tomer service skills & initiative. Call 95-L0-+92 ext 100, Fax 957.1()3-, Visit 1830 S. Osprey Ave. Suite I 08, 34239. Epicurean Kitchen Life Caterino :::-On call positions for off-site catering events. Must have telepho ne food prep experience, and initiative. Call Alan at 351-5612. SAC MINUTES 11/20 National Student Exchange information session Thursday, November 30, 7 p.m. in Sudakoff Center. Discover how you can pend up to one year studying in that part of the U.S.A. you have always wanted to see and not pay out of state tu ition. For more information, call the Career Center at 359-4261. every week. Co!lle! SAC Minutes ll/20 In attendance: Michelle Brown, Andrew Jay (proxy Emma), Lindsay Luxa, Pete Summers, Shannon Dunn (chair), Cathy Heath (sec), Julia Skapik. ***all votes are unanimous with the exception of the chair, who does not vote*** 1. Organization: NC P.R.l.D.E. Michael Shannon Requesting: $50 plu 40 copie for party Allocated: $35 from food re serve and 40 copies 2. Organization: Food for Thought Myriam Alvarez Requesting: $1,000 for stu dent activities Allocated: $1,000 3. Organization: Jntervarsity Christian Fellowship Lauren Pauly Requesting: $61.00 to make cookies, flyers, etc Allocated: Tabled. 4. Organization: Bonk Sponsorship Peter Brinson Requesting: $400 for concert Allocated: $400. SAC meets on Wednesdays at 9 pm in Ham Center. Turn in Proposals by 5 pm to box 137. Help plant the Caples Butterfly Garden during ISP month! Contact Pam at (2)-5086. Try the new Pandora Colada, the official drink of The Ninth Temple. ''It's the only way to exca vate." For a limited time only at the Four Winds Cafe. Guitar lesson., all styles, all levels. Song writing/Composition theory. Also available: banjo lessons. Call today, start playing right away. Affordable rates. Professional player/teacher re cently re-located from New York City. Museum area studio, or will travel to you. Call Alex at (941 )-355-0638. Diversity Circle is meeting at 7 p.m. in Goldstein 301, every Monday night. Come snack, talk, share, watch movies, discuss, pre ent. Safe place. Diver ity Circle is hosted by a different per on Tutoring in Newtown. Hey guys and gals, where are you? For anyone interested in helping kids (first grade through high-school--you decide) with their hopcwork between 3:45 and 5:45. Meet every Wednesday on the couches in front of the fishbowl at 3:45. Transportation will be provided. Do a good deed and get rid of tha! empty tenth week of the semester feeling--the kids will be grateful you did! Backwards & Ugly. "Pomp' the first issue. Now accepting submissions: poetry, prose, art, photyo graphy. Writing submissions must be typed and printed unless sent via e-mail. Prints no larger than 8 x 10. Include cover sheet listing name, ad dres telephone#, and e-mail. Boxes #597 (prose), #155 (poetry), and# 167 (prints/slides). backward _and _ugly([ibombdiggity.com New College Faculty Lecture Series presents Professor Maribeth Clark, "Imaginary Italian in the Operatic Marketplace and the French Baracelle." Wednesday, November 29, 2000. 3:30p.m. in Sudakoff (refreshments will be provided).
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