Friday, October 29, 2004

by Greg Leiserson, Managing Editor
and Alex Glick, Sports Editor

Telling students that “voting alone is only good for a D,” former candidate for the Democratic presidential nomination Howard Dean urged Swatties to get involved in politics at a level beyond simply voting on November 2nd. Speaking before a packed house in LPAC yesterday, he requested that audience members run for office and volunteer for political campaigns, both now and in the future. Despite jokingly telling the audience “I was going to say Bush-bashing, but [there will] be none of that” today at the beginning of his speech, Dean repeatedly asked the audience “[d]o you trust the President?” Appearing with Dean were congressional candidate Paul Scoles and Pennsylvania House member Greg Vitali.

In an interview with the Daily Gazette and the New York Times following the speech, Dean said that he came to Swarthmore because “rallies don’t win the election, getting out the vote does.” In part because Swattie voters are predominantly liberal and have already decided to vote for John Kerry, Dean believes that the pay-off from his visit to Swarthmore in terms of election day volunteers will be greater than it would have been from simply having another rally. “America is not as divided as George Bush would like it to be,” Dean said, and the American people “don’t elect presidents who they don’t see as credible.” In the final days of the race Dean will be heading to Ohio and New Hampshire for more down-to-the-wire campaigning.

In his speech, Dean argued that it is essential for people to get involved at all levels of government, including the low-profile position of library trustee, and not to allow themselves to be blinded by the grander scale of presidential campaigns. In his words, “I believe we should have people running libraries that believe in reading books, not burning them.”

The speech was filled with red meat for the Democratic faithful, and Dean reiterated many of the themes from his earlier presidential campaign. He asked students “do you trust the president who lost 400 tons of munitions in Iraq?” inquired if students wanted “to spend your junior abroad in Iraq courtesy of the federal government,” argued that “liberals balance budgets, Republicans don’t,” and concluded that “it’s not that [Bush is] a bad person, he’s just incompetent.” On the issue of campaign finance reform, Dean urged people to exploit what his campaign had shown to be true: that the combination of small donations from many donors over the internet could beat the large contributions of special interests and “fat-cats in Washington.”

Dean said that the issues Americans care about are jobs, health care, and public education, but Republicans have to run on “guns, God, gays, and abortion” since they don’t share the public’s views on any of the other issues. Speaking on the current state of American, he pled with the audience to get involved so that the “right wing never does this to the greatest country in the world again.”

Student reaction to the speech trended positive, not at all surprising given the trend in student opinion generally. Lucy McNamara ’08 commented, “I think that the professional Bush-bashing was a lot of fun, but I think the advertising was misleading because I was expecting more information on health care.” Ian Flora ’05 noted, “I felt that the ratio of standing ovations to meaningful content was surprisingly high. Nonetheless it was a rousing experience.”

Katie Davenport ’05, who worked for the Dean campaign in New Hampshire, said that Dean “was very inspiring and is one of the few politicians [she likes] to listen to.”

Patrick Hart ’06, Treasurer of the College Democrats, “felt really good” about the turnout. He stressed the importance of the local candidates getting the opportunity to speak. Hart added that the College Democrats are organizing phone banking, canvassing, and visibility efforts in the final days of the race. According to Hart, activities such as these, as well as the rally, are important because they “help people get enthusiastic.”

*****

With the election less than a week away and students engaged in a wide array of both partisan and non-partisan election activities, the Gazette today concludes a series examining party-based political action at Swat. Check out the Gazette archives online at http://daily.swarthmore.edu, for the first and second installments of the series on Wednesday and Thursday.
———-
Part 3: College Democrats

by Maile Arvin
Gazette Reporter

Eva Barboni ’06, president of Swarthmore’s College Democrats, is a busy person. This reporter caught up with her yesterday, after the Howard Dean event which she was largely involved in coordinating, and shortly before she rushed off to do ‘visibility’ (i.e., standing on public street corners with Kerry signs). As she spoke about the College Democrats and all the events they are involved in this semester, it became clear that Barboni’s demanding schedule is indicative of the bustling activity of the club as a whole in the weeks leading up to the election.

“Howard Dean was our big event,” Barboni said, but it is definitely not the only event the College Democrats have been responsible for lately. The club also brought Paul Scoles, the Democratic Congressional candidate for Swarthmore’s district, to speak last month, and was responsible for coordinating tickets for students who wanted to attend the recent John Edwards and Bill Clinton rallies in Haverford and Philadelphia. The College Democrats have also been active off campus, working in association with the Democratic Party of Delaware County on canvassing, visibility, and phone banking.

There are about fifteen dedicated members in the College Democrats, though Barboni said that they have a huge number of subscribers to their email list. “We’ve gotten a lot of support,” she added. “Even if they’re not supporting us directly, they’re involved with groups [dedicated to getting out the vote] like ACT, SVRC, and MoveOn.” The College Democrats are a member organization of SVRC (Swarthmore Voter Registration Coalition), and so will be involved with that group’s many activities on Election Day. “Monday and Tuesday are going to be very busy for us,” Barboni said. The College Democrats will also be putting door hangers on students’ doors with information about voting and the polls.

Swarthmore’s College Democrats are affiliated with national associations of both the Young Democrats and the College Democrats, both “good resources for information,” Barboni said.

Anyone who wants to know more about the College Democrats should email Eva Barboni at ebarbon1.

*****

by Anya Carrasco
Gazette Reporter

Last week the group formerly known as Swarthmore Pro-Choice Task Force sent out a campus-wide e-mail calling for pro-choice Swatties to train as escorts for Planned Parenthood patients. The Daily Gazette sat down with escort program co-coordinator Emily Nolte ’07 to learn more about what it’s like to escort through a crowd of protesters.

Daily Gazette: So Swarthmore Pro-Choice Task Force has become the Swat Vox? Since when and why?

Emily: Swat Vox is Swarthmore Voices for Choice. We changed the name once we became Planned Parenthood’s official campus affiliate earlier this semester. We still provide Planned Parenthood with escorts and use them as a resource for informational pamphlets, stickers, condoms, and other goodies that they send.

DG: How long have you been a Planned Parenthood volunteer?

Emily: It’s been over a year since I signed up for the PCTF as a freshman last year at the Activities Fair. As an escort coordinator, I get train tickets each week, partner up with new escorts, am in charge of letting Planned Parenthood know what escorters from Swarthmore are going each week, and coordinate the on-campus training sessions.

DG: What made you join Vox and become an escort?

Emily: I’ve definitely been pro-choice for a while. I really became pro-choice in high school, when a friend of mine found herself pregnant at 16. After seeing all the barriers she had to face to get an abortion (in Texas, it’s illegal to have an abortion without parental consent if you’re under 18), and how traumatic the experience was for her, I became a strong pro-choice advocate.

DG: Any stories from your escort experience?

Emily: You’ll witness crazy things out there. Once, a man was using a blowhorn and shouting all kinds of insults to women entering the clinic and anyone walking by. And this mother came out from the apartments across the street and repeatedly asked him if he really cared about the babies, to which he responded “yes.” Then she responds, “so care about my six-month old baby who can’t sleep right now because you won’t shut up!”

There’s also a Catholic group who has a permit from the city to hold a “Prayer Vigil” once a month in front of the Planned Parenthood. During such days, we get as many as 100 protesters. The escorters get insulted by the protesters–just last week I was told that I am “Satan’s little helper.” And the guys from Swat who escort, a lot do, get things like “why aren’t you a real man?”

Random people from the community also go up to the protesters and question their views. They’ll say things like: “What have you done to help? Have you adopted a kid, worked in foster care, day care?”

Luckily the community that houses Planned Parenthood is very open and very supportive. People who pass by usually show their appreciation by personally thanking us for being there. We even get discounts at the coffee shop next door to the clinic.

DG: The hardest part about being an escort?

Emily: It’s really hard when you can’t say anything back to the protesters and they are trying to taunt you to respond to their ridiculous comments. They say some of the most horrible things I’ve heard. Knowing what a traumatic experience it must be for these women, it breaks my heart to listen to what the protesters tell them.

DG: What words would you use to describe your experience as an escort so far?

Emily: Every time I go, it just recommits me to the cause even more. In one sense it’s infuriating to deal with people who aren’t doing anything but hassling others. In another sense it shows me how much escorts are needed and how hard we need to work to keep abortion legal.

DG: Have a lot of people signed up to be escorts? When will the next training session be?

Emily: [The] next escort training session will be on Wednesday, November 10th from 6:00 – 8:00 p.m. at Planned Parenthood, at 12th & Locust Streets. Vox will provide free transportation into Philly. A lot of people have signed up. We trained 25 – 35 people last week, and almost all followed up and applied to become an escort.

You can go in for the training (usually an hour and a half) without committing to becoming an escort. You can also choose your level of commitment. Some people do it twice a month; others do it once a year.

DG: Besides Planned Parenthood, what other activities is Vox planning?

Emily: We also want to create awareness on campus of pro-choice and safe-sex issues. Last semester we took about 200 Swatties to Washington, D.C. to the March for Women’s Lives. We’re also planning to have at least one campus event each month. An example was Bagels and Vox on Wednesday, for the unveiling of our new name.
For Halloween, we’ll be tabling at Sharples dinner, giving out “Candy and Condoms” and brochures, pins, stickers and other goodies.

DG: Ooh…what kind of candy?

Emily: Lots of chocolate: M&Ms, Hershey bars, but other stuff too. It’s all good candy, none of the generic stuff.

DG [eyes Texas charm necklace]: So you’re from Texas? Do people think you’re confused when they see you wearing your necklace and your bright pink pro-choice button?

Emily: I’m sure by now most people know my political views. Initially people just assume that anyone from Texas is incredibly conservative, close-minded and a big Bush fan. And that’s certainly not true. Actually, three of the six Vox officers are from Texas. I love being from Texas. I always wear my Texas charm necklace, and even have the Texas flag in my room. I also drink Dr. Pepper (the official soft drink of Texas) all the time.

Students interested in more information about Vox and the escort program can contact Emily at enolte1.

*****

* The 2004 election cycle has seen a sharp increase in early voting, with analysts predicting that about one out of every five ballots will be cast before November 2nd. In 2000 only 13 states offered voters the option of casting their ballot early, but that number has since risen to 23. Including states where there is no official provision for early voting, but which have few or no restrictions on absentee ballots, the number rises further to 31. Though its hard to know which party will benefit from this new kind of voting, it is already affecting where candidates are going, and where the campaign money is being sent.

* It was announced on Thursday that Palestinian leader Yasir Arafat would leave his Ramallah compound in order to receive medical treatment in Paris. Mr. Arafat is suffering from a serious blood disorder, which Arafat aide Nabil Abu Rudeineh said puts him in critical condition. “He needs rest and medical care. His fate is now in the hands of his doctors,” Rudeineh commented. Though Israel gave assurances that the Palestinian leader would be allowed to return to his compound after treatment, it is unclear who is in charge in his absence.

* Public health experts reported on Friday that they believe over 100,000 Iraqi civilians have died since the US invasion of Iraq began last year. The experts had surveyed nearly 1,000 Iraqi households, comparing the death rates per family from before and after the invasion. Two-thirds of the violent deaths were reported to have taken place around the Sunni-held city of Fallujah. Les Roberts, one of the people who studied the death rates, said “I was opposed to the war…but I think science has transcended our perspectives. As an American I am really, really sorry to be reporting this.”

*****

Friday:

Muslim Students Association
Kohlberg 226, 5:30 p.m.

Ruach Services
Bond Memorial Hall, 5:30 p.m.

“The Adventures of the Monkey King (Journey to the West)” by the International
Monkey King Beijing Opera Troupe
LPAC Pearson-Hall Theatre, 7:30 p.m.

Eelwalk in Crum Creek
Behind Martin, 7:30 p.m.

Movie showing: Three Kings
Science Center 101, 7:30 & 10:00 p.m.

Hip-Hop Extravaganza
Paces, 10:00 p.m.

Saturday:

MoveOn PAC Rally
Scott Outdoor Amphitheatre, 9:00 a.m.

Tailgate party hosted by Garnet Club
Clothier Field, 12:00 p.m.

Voter Outreach Cell-Phone Banking
Bond Memorial Hall, 5:45 p.m.

Movie showing: Three Kings
LPAC Cinema, 7:30 & 10:00 p.m.

Vertigo-go Show
Science Center 101, 8:30 p.m.

Anime/Manga Club Costume Contest
Kohlberg 228, 9:00 p.m.

Scary Hawaiian Mary Lyon — Halloween Party
Mary Lyon Breakfast Room, 10:00 p.m.

Sunday:

Celebration of Mass
Bond Memorial Hall, 11:00 a.m.

Capoeira class
Tarble All-Campus Space, 2:00 p.m.

Olde Club Covers Show
Olde Club, 7:00 p.m.

Chai House
Location TBA, 7:00 p.m.

Garnet Club informational meeting
Kohlberg 230, 7:30 p.m.

*****

SPORTS UPDATE

by Jonathan Ference
News Editor

Despite a lackluster first half, the Swarthmore field hockey team played non-conference foe DeSales tough until the last minute but ultimately fell 3-2 when the Bulldogs managed to withstand a powerful Garnet comeback. The afternoon game at Clothier Field was truly a contest of two halves, with DeSales jumping out to a 3-0 lead that proved to be just enough to best the Garnet Tide.

The Bulldogs started the scoring early, getting a goal from Stephanie Milowicki following a penalty corner with 30:18 remaining in the first half. DeSales continued taking advantage of somewhat sloppy play by the Garnet with another goal just four minutes later. The second goal was scored by Ashley Sparango, a truly dominant player who took advantage of confusion in front of the Swat net to put a shot past keeper Karen Lorang ’07, who had two stops in the half.

Swarthmore tried to arrest its self-destruction with a timeout, and it paid off–defender Julie Monaghan ’07 cleared the ball after a great Lorang stop, and with 20 minutes left to play in the half the Garnet found their legs. Neema Patel ’07 and Julia Morrison ’07 were the catalyst behind Swarthmore’s settled-down offense, and they were ably backed up by the defense of Chloe Lewis ’06, who consistently saved the Garnet with open-field takeaways.

Though the Garnet had found their offense, the DeSales defense managed to keep their net clear, stopping four consecutive penalty corners in the half’s 27th minute. Following one of Shavonne Hannahoe’s seven saves in goal in the half, DeSales was able to start a fast break that Sparango finished with 1:31 remaining in the half to take a 3-0 lead. The half would expire without incident, though a DeSales player suffered an eye injury and had to leave the game.

The Garnet came alive in the second half, putting seventeen shots on goal. But the team was unable to penetrate the DeSales defense despite the efforts of Patel, Morrison, and Lauren Sippel ’05. Melissa LaVan replaced Lorang in goal for Swat and performed admirably, stopping two shots including a penalty stroke. The Tide continued to pepper Hannahoe, finally getting on the board when Lewis connected with Morrison for a goal off a penalty corner at 13:22 remaining. Swat continued to generate chances for the rest of the half, rarely letting DeSales clear the ball from their end.

Lewis earned her second point on the day by making the game 3-2 with a beautiful shot from a Patel feed at 10:34 remaining. Swat did its absolute best to search for the equalizer but was unable to find it as DeSales did a sufficient job of breaking up one-timer tries and stopping shots. Several times the game was on the brink of becoming a 3-3 tie, but the tired Swarthmore offense was unable to finish chances, thanks in part to the superb play of Hannahoe. DeSales finally cleared the ball with less than thirty seconds remaining, and the game ended with a one goal deficit in the Bulldogs’ favor.

DeSales moves to 10-7 on the season, remarkable considering they only have two substitutes on their game roster. Swarthmore is now .500 at 8-8 with a chance to end the season on a positive note against Franklin and Marshall on Saturday at noon. The Tide have filled the gap left by having to keep talented forward Julia Lindenberg ’05 on the bench recently with big contributions from a host of players, and they can move to 4-6 in conference with a victory at home against F & M.

*****

The women’s soccer team defeated the Bryn Mawr Owls yesterday 1-0. With a little more than eight minutes left in regulation, Jane Sachs ’07 headed a pass from Natalie Negrey ’07 into the goal the lone point scored in the game. Kristen Traband ’08 earned eight saves in goal. The Garnet, now with 4-12-1 overall (2-6-1 in conference play) will host Haverford on Saturday for the last game of the season.

*****

Today:
There are no contests scheduled for today.

Tomorrow:
Men’s and Women’s Frisbee at Haverford (Haverween)
Cross Country in CC Championships at McDaniel, 11:00 a.m.
Field Hockey hosts F&M, 12:00 p.m.
Volleyball hosts Salisbury, 1:00 p.m.
Women’s Soccer hosts Haverford, 2:00 p.m.
Men’s Soccer hosts Haverford, 5:00 p.m.

Sunday:
Men’s and Women’s Frisbee at Haverford (Haverween)

*****

QUOTE OF THE DAY

“In America any boy may become President and I suppose that is just one of the risks he takes.”
–Adlai E. Stevenson Jr.

*****

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