Good Grades=Frozen Tuition?

Good Grades=Frozen Tuition?

by Jade Polay 

As a fourth year student at a university that once topped the charts for its expensive price tag, I am well acquainted with the debt crisis that is posing implications for both students and their families. According to a recently published article in The New York Times, "the average student-loan debt of borrowers in the college class of 2011 rose to about $26,500, a 5 percent increase from the previous year." This statistic is alarming considering the number of recent college graduates who are struggling to find jobs and make ends meet. As current unemployment and student debt rates continue to rise, universities are reconsidering how they can make education more affordable. 

In a much simpler time, (during the late 70s and early 80s when my parents attended college) it was almost unheard of, blasphemous if you will, to move back in with your parents after graduation. The search for a job was also much less arduous. Today, recent college graduates are fortunate enough to land an unpaid internship at a reputable organization, simply to enhance their resumes. 

In an effort to alleviate student debt, Indiana University President Michael McRobbie recently announced the University's decision to stabilize the tuition of sophomore students who are in good academic standing and on track to graduate. At the annual State of the union address, McRobbie said, "We will in effect freeze tuition costs for all our students after their sophomore years provided they have completed a sufficient course load to allow them to graduate on time." Is freezing tuition costs for students who are simply doing what they are supposed to be doing, the answer? 

As tuition rates continue to soar, students are increasingly taking out loans and enrolling in public universities. I most certainly commend Indiana University for taking the initiative to help decrease costs and encourage students to graduate on time. I do, however, have difficulty understanding how the decision will impact students who are not in "good" academic standing. Will tuition rates continue to rise for these students who might be struggling in school? Although frozen tuition is a great incentive to encourage students to work that much harder towards their diplomas, I wonder how this will impact students' views on their educational experience. Will students be that much more diligent and put effort into their studies, simply to decrease their bills? 

The initiative is an experiment that the Indiana administration plans to evaluate. I am most curious to see, however, if it has any impact on struggling students who might change their habits in order to eliminate costs. 

Finding What Really Matters

The gentle rays of the sun barely crept over downtown as young children to elderly adults braced the cold to claim their spot along 6^th Avenue. They were taking part in an annual tradition of watching inflatable members of their favorite cartoons tower over the streets for almost 50 blocks – an area of New York normally congested with taxis and confused tourists. It was Thanksgiving morning in Manhattan. Where was I? Warm in my bed, completely idle to the chaos of the Macy’s Day Parade taking place ten blocks from where I slept.

Thanksgiving has been an odd holiday for me over the past few years, unlike the norm of the “traditional” Thanksgiving consisting of a 25-pound turkey, stuffing, cranberry sauce still in the shape of the can, green bean casserole and the drunken uncle telling obscene jokes at the end of the table. Two years ago I was at a hotel in Wisconsin, last year I was in Rome and this year I was in New York. I’m from the suburbs of Chicago. I’m almost not accustom to the picturesque Thanksgiving anymore, but that’s ok because as long as I’m with my family, nothing else matters.

As I sat with my parents and brother at dinner that night at a restaurant, we became somewhat of friends with our waitress. Eva was her name, and she had a two and a half year old son at home – Lukas. She is also a single mom.

“I cried for thirty minutes this morning knowing I would not be able to spend tonight with him, but I’m better now,” she said to us with a smile the further we got into conversation. She was one of the brightest faces I saw in Manhattan during my entire trip, and she was spending Thanksgiving away from her family, surrounded by people enjoying the holiday with the people they loved – the holiday staple she was missing.

It always fascinates me the pure impact one person can have on your outlook on something, no matter how small or large. Earlier that day I was upset I couldn’t be spending my Thanksgiving at home, even though I was with my family. Eva was spending her Thanksgiving working, away from her son, and didn’t complain once. Everything Thanksgiving from now on, I will always think back to that dinner, wondering if Eva is able to spend it with her son.

I hugged my parents a little tighter that night before bed.

-Matthew Kwiecinski

Tablet Future?

The first iPad was released on April 10^th, 2010 and since then it is estimated that more than 84 million iPads have been sold. Many competitors have copied the iPad and released their own tablets; most recently Microsoft released the Surface tablet. Newspapers and Magazines have all had to adapt to these devices to stay in business as most people are flocking to their tablets for the news.

I am myself an avid tablet user and I think the iPad is one of the greatest inventions to come out of the last decade. Every morning that is the first thing I go to for my news of the day and my connection to the outside world without leaving my bed.

Tablets are no longer something that we wish we all had, its something that everyone has or is getting. Tablets are the way of the future in so many ways from saving paper to an earlier way to surf the web. Experts believe that the tablet sales are to reach 119 million sales by the end of 2012. That number is astonishing, just a few years ago (less than a decade even) tablets didn’t even exist now they’re everywhere we look.

Tablets may be cool but are they taking the spot of the traditional newspaper? Many people including myself are using the tablet to read the newspaper instead of picking up a paper newspaper. Newspaper are becoming a thing of the past at this point with more and more companies stopping the daily production of printing a paper and moving to an online version. Personally I like reading an online version but I hate seeing the traditional newspaper die. Newspaper are dying one by one and there isn’t anything to stop it. Times are changing and tablets are the way of the future, you get more content out of your newspaper and magazine than ever before. The future is digital and the paper world is out. 

-Jason Calabretta

'Boy Meets World' meets world... again

Josh Perlman

If there’s one 90s TV series that remains a classic to this day, it’s “Boy Meets World.”

We all secretly modeled our middle school relationships after that of Cory and Topanga, tried our hardest to be half as cool as Shawn and told ourselves that one day we would get a teacher just like Mr. Feeny.

But this week I stumbled across some unsettling news concerning one of my all-time favorite TV shows. Stars Ben Savage and Danielle Fishel have reportedly signed on to reprise their roles in a new Disney Channel spin-off, “Girl Meets World.”

The sequel will follow Cory and Topanga’s 13-year-old daughter Riley as she experiences the same ups and downs of young adulthood the original cast faced throughout its seven seasons. “Boy Meets World” creator Michael Jacobs is backing the project, with the pilot still in production and a nationwide search for the show’s lead actress still in progress, according to TV Line.

Though many fans will surely welcome this as a second chance with the characters they grew to love, I can’t help but feel both angered and confused. The pilot will air with some pretty big shoes to fill, and I’m confident that the resulting disappointment among viewers will be catastrophic.

The truth is that spin-offs are never a good idea.

Remember when Matt LeBlanc tried to relive his “Friends” days by starring in the NBC spin-off “Joey?” Yeah, the rest of us tried to block that out from memory, too.

“All Grown Up” took any imagination out of what the future held for the beloved “Rugrats” characters. And I’m sorry, but I was not expecting Tommy’s hair to be quite so purple.

“Sabrina’s Secret Life” was a spin-off of a spin-off of “Sabrina the Teenage Witch.” That one pretty much speaks for itself.

The list goes on and on, and the end result is always the same. You can make a molehill into a mountain, but you can’t make a mountain into two mountains. At some point the networks will have to realize that they can’t rely on old successes just because they’re running out of ideas.

I think many “Boy Meets World” fans will agree with me when I say that with a TV show as epic as this one, sometimes it’s best just to accept it for what it is and let it rest in peace.

Exchange Student vs. Food

Everyone warned me that a year in America would mean new levels of sugar intake, becoming a Starbucks addict and eating more burgers and coffee than my previous 21 years put together.

No! I told them, I love a salad, me. Oh how I’ve been proved wrong.

Is there anywhere else in the world where “Jumbo Slice of Pizza”, which is probably triple the size of my face, exists? These giant triangles of copious amounts of cheese have become a standard end-of-the-night binge after an evening of partying in Adams Morgan.

The choice for post-bar food indulgence is either giant pizza or McDonalds, where you can only order a TWO cheeseburger meal, minimum TEN WHOLE chicken nuggets with a meal, where the medium drink and chips (sorry, fries) are the same size at what England would call a Large. What worries me is after three months of living in America I can now gobble down an entire 10 Chicken McNugget meal without feeling ill.

The ‘baking’ aisle of grocery stores (my friends at home would kill me for using the term ‘groceries’) have never-ending cardboard boxes of cake mixture and tubs of every kind of cake frosting imaginable.

Even the Ben & Jerry’s flavors. At home, there are only four or five different ice-creams on sale, but here, my oh my, Karamel Sutra, AmeriCone Dream, S’mores, Milk and Cookies, CAKE BATTER?!

There is now even an “Iced Cake” flavor Smirnoff vodka. Since when did alcohol have to taste like desert?

…Not to mention a cupcake store on practically every street.

One “Honey Bun” I believe they’re called, a doughy cake covered in icing, has 95% of the daily allowance’s sugar content.

One slice of the "Ultimate Red Velvet Cake Cheesecake" from the infamous Cheesecake Factory: three days worth of saturated fat, almost 60 grams. 1,540 calories a slice. 

I ordered a salad at TGI Fridays during the first week of being here, and received in front of me half an iceberg lettuce covered in nachos. How do you cut and eat a huge wedge of lettuce?! In the end I gave up and shared my friend’s barbeque chicken and chips, which considering the portion size, it’s no surprise she didn’t finish.

Let's just say I’m glad GW has a free gym.

NHL players go around the lockout for a cause

Liz Henriksson

The National Hockey League might be in a seemingly never ending lockout, but that didn't stop 32 players from coming together and doing what they do best to try to raise money for the Hurricane Sandy hard hit areas of the tri-state area this past saturday. Taking place in Atlantic City, one of the most devastatingly hurt areas, Operation Hat Trick was able to raise an estimate of a couple hundred thousand dollars for numerous organizations like Empire Relief Fund, NJ Hurricane Relief Fund and American Red Cross, which are working to help with this devastation. 

Being from New Jersey, probably the state most effected by Sandy, I definitely say a dire need to help for people who were fortunate to not be affected by the storm to help out those who were by donating time and money. That being said, I think it is also extremely important to bring to lift the spirits and bring a sense of morale back to these areas that have been hit hard. Operation Hat Trick was a great opportunity for individuals to not only come out to an event, but even better an event that many people had been missing due to the NHL lockout. 

The dedication that many of these players showed to their fans was incredible. Numerous players flew in from across the globe to be a part of this event for their fans. Most people don't understand the spectacular two-way bond between athletes and fans that occurs during the season because it is seems to be a one-way relationship where fans support and aid the athletes. However, it is times like these where you are able to see the same relationship and admiration from the athletes to their fans.

I think it is so refreshing to see players who are currently involved in a dispute about money and benefits to put aside their points of view and to selflessly participate in this event to help out their fans who are sticking by them and waiting for them to sort out their disagreements. It shows that for most of these players, their ability to play in the NHL is much more than just money, it is their love of the game and their love for their fans. It is almost beneficial that there is currently no NHL season as this game would not have been able to take place to raise this significant amount of money to help out with all the damage, but it was also able to show a side of these professional athletes that you don't usually get to see normally. 

My Top Five Holidays

Bryan Albin


In honor of the recent holiday break we had it got me to thinking about what my favorite holidays are. To each individual, holidays have different meanings, so in order to let you all get a better understanding of who I am, I'm going to present my Top Five Holiday's, and no, I will not be so egomaniacal as to include my birthday as one of my favorites.

5.The Third Thursday of March – Ok, so I admit it. Right out of the gate I am cheating a little bit. The third Thursday of March is not actually a holiday (unless it happens to be St. Patrick's Day). However, for basketball fans it might as well be. The third Thursday of March represents the start of the NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament, a day in which office productivity significantly declines and schools across the country have an increased number of cases of the flu. Whether your favorite team is playing, your alma mater is playing, or you're simply emotionally (and perhaps financially) invested in your bracket, the beginning of the tournament is a day of nonstop basketball where student athletes become heros, David and Goliath are reunited and we meet mascots worthy of being on Sesame Street. It's a day I mark on my calender each year because there isn't a better day of basketball all year.

4.Mother's/Father's Day – When I went through my list, I even caught myself off guard with this one. The Hallmark holidays found a way on to my list? Each year, I hardly look forward to these days as special days as they approach, but in retrospect, so many great memories have come from these two days. My mother and my father are my best friends, plain and simple. I should appreciate show my appreciation for them every single day, but sometimes as a human being I forget to. Having a day where I get to go out of my way to make up for all the days I missed is pretty nice.

3.Christmas – Hopefully I'm not going to make too many enemies here by putting Christmas as number three on my list, but really St. Nick should be proud I hold such high regard for his holiday considering I am Jewish. Let's just go over several of the great things about Christmas. Marquee NBA matchups on national television, family, cookies, “A Christmas Story” marathons on TBS, egg nog, snow and more family are all reasons why Christmas is a great day. Christmas has a couple problems, though. First off, now that Christmas music finds its way on to radio stations by Halloween, by the time I hear it on Christmas its been played out worse than Flo Rida's “Right Round” in the winter of 2009. Secondly, when is someone going to make a new Christmas movie? Since 2003's “Elf”, we there hasn't been a contemporary Christmas movie worth watching (I'm probably the only person who actually liked 2007's “This Christmas”). Fix this hollywood.

2.Thanksgiving – Yes, the holiday we just had is on the list. Thanksgiving is all about the three F's: family, food and football. Seeing relatives you don't normally get to see is always a good time and its even better if the Cowboys are losing. However, there is one thing I would change about Thanksgiving. It's time to axe the turkey and bring in the chicken. Let's be honest, if it was Tuesday October 12th, and you were at the supermarket, faced with the decision to buy a turkey or a chicken, what are you going to buy? Chicken, all day every day. I don't know about you, but I've never heard of a turkey quesadilla. When was the last time you went to a Kentucky Fried Turkey? Never. No one would watch “Breaking Bad” if Walter White had cooked meth for the owner of Los Pavos Hermanos. Put chicken on my Thanksgiving table and maybe it'd be number one on my list.

1.4th of July – Realistically, adding chicken to the Thanksgiving menu still wouldn't be enough to top the 4th of July. I shouldn't have to say anything other than AMERICA, but I will. Let's go through some of the great things to happen on the 4th of July. July 4th, 1776, the Declaration of Independence was signed, July 4th, 1938 Bill Withers was born, July 4th 1971 Koko, the sign language gorilla, was born, July 4th, 2012, Joey Chestnut ate 68 touchdowns and of course July 4th, 1996 Will Smith, Jeff Goldblum and a recovering alcoholic saved the world from destruction at the hands of aliens. Wait, you mean the last one isn't real? And the one about the hotdogs is? All jokes aside, celebrating the birth of this wonderful country is a day that can't be beat. For most of my life the 4th of July was routinized. I would go from barbeque to barbeque, play in the traditional 4th of July softball game with my friends, cool down at the beach and then wait until the fireworks started. Last summer I had my first ever 4th of July here in DC and despite the 102 degree heat, it was pretty special sitting at the Lincoln memorial and watching the fireworks. I am so fortunate to have been born in this wonderful country and I love celebrating this day with friends family and strangers alike. It always strikes me as amazing that we can be such a polarized nation politically considering on the 4th of July everyone recognizes each others love for this wonderful country.

What do YOU want to do?

Samantha DiFeliciantonio

One of the worst parts about being a senior in college (especially during this economy) is getting asked the inevitable question in just about every social setting: So, what do you want to do with your life? As if people really care about your future plans as opposed to having nothing else to say.

It is different than the childhood question that was easily answered by saying a teacher or a firefighter. People want a long, thought-out response. I am willing to bet that more than half of college seniors end up in different fields than they originally thought. So, in reality, this question is worthless.

Even though I don't know what I am doing on the destined date of May 20, 2013 (the day after graduation), I am not worried. If I did have specific plans for next year this question would still be an annoyance since for some reason people are more occupied with my future and not my present. Whether it is a snarky side comment or an interested conversation starter, the irritation still exists.

This is even more heightened during the holiday season. When else do you see those random family members that only know things about you through your grandparents or the distant family friend that drops by for a quick visit or meal? They always want to seem interested in your life, or they have nothing else to talk to you about so they rely on the go-to question for all kids ending college.

This feeling adds to the bittersweet atmosphere that is senior year. Things are ending, but things are beginning. People are following their dreams while others get lost in theirs.

During the past weeks I started responding by simply saying I wanted to be president. This response is wacky enough to lighten the mood and crack a smile but serious enough with my International Affairs major to satisfy the inquiry. At least I have a couple votes.

Hopefully I will know the answer to this question in twenty years.

Black Friday brings dark consequences

By Devon Horowitz

It wasn't more than two hours that I was home for Thanksgiving before I had seen about 45 different, equally obnoxious television commercials advertising Black Friday deals. I was surprised that I didn't even see many ads for Thanksgiving, many of which are classic and reminiscent of the holidays for me, like the Pillsbury crescent rolls commercial. Instead, I saw repeat after repeat of god awful jingles luring people into big box stores.

I understand the appeal of Black Friday and I recognize that it does help many people fulfill their shopping lists, especially those with big families and young children. And there's something to be said about getting up at 3 in the morning to go snag a deal - it's an experience.

However, something seemed different to me this year. Because of social media, I felt like I was vicariously living through people's Black Friday shopping experiences and I noticed something odd. No longer are people using these deals to shop for other people, and instead, are solely buying things for themselves.

Why does there need to be a day in which we buy things for ourselves? Isn't that every day?

What's more is that people get so caught up on getting these deals that they are actually PERISHING because of it. Take a look at what happened in Atlanta to a suspected shoplifter or the shooting that occurred outside a Florida Walmart. In fact, "black friday casualties" was trending on Twitter on Friday and Saturday. People died and suffered serious injuries. All because of mob mentality and the desire for stuff.

By no means am I one of those people who thinks Christmas should be anti-presents, anti-materialism. In fact, I think that this time of the year is a great opportunity for people to give gifts to those who never buy for themselves and to truly show people how much you care. However, stores need to reconsider the turmoil their doorbuster deals are causing. They have the power to change things... but do they have the heart? Guess we'll have to wait until next year. 'Tis the season.

Why I’m a Feminist, and You Should Be Too

Michaela Bethune
 
        Here it goes, a statement that will perpetually garner eye rolls, snickers and exasperated sighs, and is also the proudest part of my identity: I am a feminist. But being a feminist does not mean I want to burn my bras, shave my head, or refuse to use male-dominated language (although “her-story” has a nice ring to it). Nor does it mean I am ungrateful to the incredible strides of progress women in America have taken to ensure the freedoms and rights I enjoy today are that much closer to gender equality. Being a feminist does not mean I’m an angry, man-hating soul with no respect for basic hygiene. Nor does it mean I'm a "tomboy" or emotionless, or despise women who embrace their femininity.

            Being a feminist means that I believe that men and women should have equal rights, and that repression against women worldwide needs to end. That’s all. This is so basic to me that it's somewhat absurd that any educated person would not agree with this statement. And I’m all about differing opinions and belief systems (bring on the diversity), but as Americans, shouldn’t we all agree that this basic statement is merely a fact of life? And that’s why it confuses and frustrates me when others assume that feminists are some whiny extremists pulling the “sexism card” whenever something seems slightly unfair to them. It frustrates me that people think the women’s rights movement accomplished all that women needed, and that sexism is not fully ingrained in our society today, when statistics after statistics prove otherwise. Most of all, it frustrates me that women don’t support other women who are trying to stand up for their rights, and ridicule these women, in an effort to maintain an eagerly compliant, “chill” image they think is more attractive to men.

            Gender inequality still exists for women in America. Look at the facts. Women earn 77 cents, on average, for every dollar men earn. Women are twice as likely to live below the poverty level in their senior years as men are. One out of every six American women have been the victims of rape in their lifetime. One in three American women will be sexually assaulted in her lifetime. This isn’t a make-believe issue from another era, this is what’s happening in our society today.

            I am very invested in feminism for two reasons; the first being my interest in the media, and how the misrepresentation and limited image of women presented in the media perpetuates sexism in our society. A film that does an excellent job at demonstrating what detrimental role this plays in the lives of both men and women in our culture is Miss. Representation. This film illustrates the need for us to realize the role the media plays in our lives and how it shapes our cultural norms, as the majority of Americans consume over ten hours of media a day. The U.S. is still only 90^th in the world for women in national legislatures, women hold only 3% of clout positions in mainstream media, and 65% of women and girls have disordered eating behaviors. Women are merely 3% of Fortune 500 CEOs and 25% of girls will experience teen dating violence. These statistics reinforcing the real disparity between men and women are endless, and many experts hold the media responsible for how it portrays gender norms and underrepresents women.

            The second reason behind my passion for feminism is the extremely perilous condition women are living in globally. While sexism is very much a part of our everyday life in the U.S., the battles women are facing internationally are life threatening, in many instances to the point unimaginable to Americans.

            One in three women on the planet will be raped or beaten in her lifetime. “One Billion Rising” is a movement started by feminist, Tony-Award winning playwright, and all around superstar, Eve Ensler (who has been defined as a “global goddess and guardian angel for women"). This movement encourages women globally to rise up to end violence against women. A truly inspirational video that this movement has created is found on the homepage of the campaign and encapsulates the idea that one billion women being violated is an atrocity, but one billion women dancing is a revolution.

            I could continue on with this tangent (it’s my jam to talk about the importance of girl power), but I hope I gave you a taste as to why I’m a feminist, and why I’m not embarrassed about it, but I’m actually embarrassed for those who would ever chose not to identify with feminism (c’mon fellas, its not emasculating to like human rights). So please, the next time you plan on scoffing when you hear the word “feminist”, think about the fact that women are still being oppressed, objectified, threatened, and abused every day. The first step in making a change in the lives of women is for us to come together and agree that this is a legitimate problem, and that something needs to be done about it.

New women workforce make men feel lost.

 Scott Figatner

Today, I read an interesting article which you can find by clicking Here. According to Pew Research Center, the share of women ages 18 to 34 that say having a successful marriage is one of the most important things in their lives rose nine percentage points since 1997 – from 28 percent to 37 percent. For men, the opposite occurred, dropping from 35 percent to 29 percent.

Apparently, this issue is a hot topic in the media currently. Many men now are saying that they never want to get married. For the writer of this piece, this stems from women effectively taking over the work force. That's right, there are now more women working than men.

After interviewing many hundreds of men and women, the writer found an answer. Men think that women just aren't women anymore. Since the sexual revolution, women are angry and defensive because they've been raised to think of men as enemies.

Think about it. If you've ever watched a chick flick—and unfortunately I've watched many—you will see that men are portrayed as lying, shallow, disloyal jerks. I've heard from countless of my friends that "all men are pigs" and things like that. As men, we now have to be extremely careful of what we say and how we say it.

The writer says that men are tired of being blamed for everything that goes wrong in a relationship. "It has also undermined their ability to become self-sufficient in the hopes of someday supporting a family. Men want to love women, not compete with them. They want to provide for and protect their families – it’s in their DNA. But modern women won’t let them" (Venker, Suzanne). She suggests that women "surrender to their nature.

I agree with this writer that men are confused at this moment in history and do not know how to deal with women that are assertive and defensive. I think that if women want males to shed their stereotypes of women, they need to extinguish their own deeply embedded prejudices. Men and women are 100 percent equal, but they are not the same. I would like to advise people not to shy away from marriage. Rather, people need to embrace our masculine and feminine qualities, but just recognize that they do not make us superior, inferior, guilty or victimized.

Bah, humbug!

By Erica Windwer

I've never been in the habit of embracing the Christmas spirit. This isn't because I'm Jewish and resent how fun Christmas looks. Yes, it has its own songs, its own foods, and a slew of pop culture characters, films, and holiday specials. We, in the Jewish faith, have all (ok, some) of that too. It's not even because as a kid I was even more cynical than I am now and I would watch TV and wonder why every commercial, jingle, and sale were directed at those celebrating Christmas. This has grown to be a bit more politically correct over the years (Macy's Holiday Sale) and, as an almost-grownup, I don't really think people don't want me around because I don't put my presents under a tree.

The true reason why I've refrained from indulging in eggnog, lights, and mistletoe is holiday shopping. There is nothing about this concept that I understand. Like any normal human being, I like presents. Creating a list of things that you want and not having the responsibility of getting them for yourself is probably the most pleasant thing I can imagine. But the chaos that ensues from this concept is just too much. With Thanksgiving right around the corner, I have tried to mentally prepare myself for the next 33 days.

Every year, between the third Thursday in November and the day my family eats Chinese food and watches movies, I lose all faith in the ability to go into and come out of a store in under an hour. These are the 33 days where buying toilet paper turns into a marathon event. Where I opt to find something else to eat to avoid going to the store to buy milk for cereal. Where, by the end of the month, I have read EVERY magazine on the shelf (for free!) while I wait in line to check out. Find me a store where I don't have to suffer these consequences and I'll buy you all the presents you want. 

Forget the lines, the empty shelves, and the jam-packed parking lots because what may be worse than all of this is the length of time this holiday-shopping business is being rubbed in our faces and robbing our wallets. In my short, though nonetheless cynical, life, I have come to terms with the fact that right as the calendar rips away my favorite holiday full of parades, pajamas, and pies, stores and homes string up lights and Christmas music blast through every speaker from here to California. And, by the way, there are only so many of Christmas songs. Just because every musician to ever sell an album has recorded their own version of "Jingle Bell Rock" or "Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas," that does not mean I want to hear them all. In succession. 

I promise, I'm not all Grinch- and Scrooge-like. This time of the year has its redeeming qualities. Mariah Carey's "All I Want for Christmas is You" may be one of my favorite songs of all time. Sales are great. Knowing that whenever I go into a store most things will be on sale is something I really look forward too. Although, I do get a bit paranoid this time of year because I just know that when I finally commit to buying something, next week its going to be even cheaper. (Do not get me started on what is known in my family as the Camera Saga of 2011.) 

And, I've tried to find the Christmas Spirit within myself. Two years ago, I made it a point to search for the spirit. My roommates and I threw a holiday party - I made decorations, we had peppermint and wrapping paper. We exchanged gifts - I got a Christmas mug and toe socks and I don't think it gets more Christmas than that. Each year, I succumb a bit more to the Christmas fury. In 10 years I'm sure you'll find me in line at 6 a.m. on Thanksgiving day waiting for the best deals so I can buy EVERYONE I know a Christmas gift.

Just a bunch of Yanks...

By Dan Stelly

As an aspiring journalist and passionate soccer fan/player, I’m always looking at how networks and media groups are covering soccer in the United States. Soccer’s come a long way in America, especially following the introduction of the MLS (America’s professional soccer league) in 1996 and ESPN’s coverage of European games as well as recent World Cups. While it’s clear that soccer is here to stay, the future of soccer coverage and its impact on the game’s popularity is unclear.

The biggest debate right now concerns “the Americanization” of soccer, or making it more appealing to us uncultured, pigskin-loving Americans. American announcers and analysts have had a growing presence in soccer coverage, including both domestic and international games. However, many believe that the quality of American commentary and analysis is far below that of their British and European counterparts. Unfortunately, I almost always tend to agree. Americans simply cannot announce soccer matches without making me cringe.

The contingent of die-hard soccer fans feels the same way, especially since we’re spoiled with the current coverage of American soccer. ESPN, Fox Soccer Channel, and NBC Sports Network (the three biggest soccer networks in the States) almost exclusively use British commentators. There are a few Americans in the mix, but they have more studio roles as analysts. Not that the networks haven’t tried using purely American commentators before—for the 2006 World Cup, ESPN used an American team for nearly every game. The reviews of the commentators were disastrous, and rightly so. Compared to British commentators, Americans lack a deep knowledge of the game, subtlety, eloquence, pacing, and the classic understatement that makes the British so great.

For example, here’s my favorite video featuring hilarious American soccer commentary:

“RELEASE THE KRAKEN!”

Compare that with this, one of the greatest soccer calls of all time from British commentator Ian Darke (who is currently the face of US soccer commentary). It certainly helped that this was the goal that put the United States into the next round of the 2010 World Cup. Also note the awkwardness of the American color commentator. Darke thankfully picks up the slack

Overall, I think that American commentators have a lot of catching up to do if they want to reach the level of British and European announcers and analysts. It won’t happen overnight; soccer’s just starting to reach a new level of popularity in the United States. There’s a fine line between giving the die-hard soccer fans the British commentary we consider standard, and using American commentators who might be able to attract new viewers. Right now, American announcers don’t have the experience and cultural knowledge of soccer that makes the British commentary seem so natural and effortless. I can’t help but feel awkward while listening to an American announcer bumble his way through a match.

Next year, NBC Sports Network will control rights to the English Premier League (the world’s most popular professional league) and the American MLS, effectively making them the top soccer channel in the US. It will be interesting to see if they hold onto the British announcers or try to introduce a little American flavor to the commentary booth. Although I always like to see new American soccer fans, I’d rather have a trusted British voice guiding me through the game rather than an awkward American.

World Peace or Facebook Rants? It's Your Choice.

By Jennie Krems

The last few days I have been doing a lot of contemplation.  At first I was going to write a blog post about the campus smoking ban and why I think that a few issues relating to it should be addressed before I would fully support it.  Those issues are namely the fact that it would be very hard to enforce, would get rid of cultural events on campus that involve smoking hookah/shisha, and the fact that University employees as well as international students have been largely overlooked throughout this process, which I believe is extremely unfair. 

Next I was going to write about GW’s “unranked” status in US News’ rankings and the fact that I think that the outcry about it is extremely overblown.  This lead me to think about the fact that many University students in our country, particularly in my generation, take so many things that they have for granted.  I find that this issue is quite problematic.  The fact that students spend much of their free time ranting on Facebook and Twitter and other social media sites portrays many in our generation as superficial and I think that portrayal is largely accurate.

Before I go on I will first give some background on me.  Last year at this time I studied abroad in Sevilla, Spain, one of the most wonderful places on Earth, in my opinion.  Choosing to study abroad and particularly there will surely go down as one of the greatest, most life-changing decisions I have ever made.  It allowed me to become more independent, do a lot of contemplation about my life and what is important in life in general and along the way I made incredible friendships with people from around the world. 

Last year it was great to be away from GW and the sometimes self-absorbed, materialistic culture that consumes many students here.  I learned that this is not the only way to live and that it is by no means the best way.  I love GW, I applied Early Decision 1 and could not be happier with my choice, and it annoys me to no end to hear and see people complaining about our University, preferring to focus on the bad and rarely the wonderful things that go on here.

The “controversy” this week with the rankings made me realize once more that in some ways I do not fit in here, with people who care more about arbitrary college rankings than world issues and focus on the negatives in life more often than the positives. 

This week is Hunger and Homelessness week on campus and the week before Thanksgiving.  I can only hope that some of my classmates and the wider spectrum of likeminded people will take this time to be grateful for what they have been afforded in life and start to think about how they can use their knowledge and skills to help others.

A close friend of mine is Israeli and is currently serving in the IDF.  In light of the escalation in fighting between Israel and Palestine, I think that many people in our generation need to do some soul-searching and must realize that what we have and what we can do to make the world a better place, in which violence ceases, is much more essential than a silly college ranking.

The world is full of sadness, but also beauty.  We must focus our attention on the important issues of our time and help to solve them.  If we do, the world will be better for it.

A Week of Firsts

By: Eugenia Finizio

This week I did two things I have never done before.  I used Facebook to contact someone I have never met, and I e-mailed GW.  How are these two acts related, you ask?  By one article in the Wall Street Journal that is getting far less praise or PR than it should be.

This article, written by a freshman at GW, was published in the WSJ on November 11th.  I read it because my dad sent it to me, which is sad because my dad is a 56 year-old lawyer living and working in Pittsburgh and he heard about the article before I did.  If the topic is a GW green initiative, a celebrity coming to campus, or anything related to Colonial Inauguration, our university will shout from the rooftops.  But when a smart, young student has an article published in a national newspaper, nothing happens.  So I decided to do something about it.

I was moved by the article not because I tend to be conservative (although I do), and not because I agree with everything the author said (I don't), but rather because it was smart, funny, and realistic.  She took all the babble that has surrounded this election, especially the whining from the right, and turned it into real talk.  She said what most Republicans won't say, and I applaud her for that courage.  I'll go so far as to say that democrats would thoroughly enjoy her article.  If nothing else, it's a well-written opinion piece by a girl that is more than half the age of most WSJ writers.  With a line like "The GOP is like a supermodel who's been doing photo shoots under fluorescent bulbs without any makeup," how can you not at least want to read further?

I've never met or heard of the author, and so I did what any 22 year old would do.....I messaged her on Facebook.  I am usually staunchly against this sort of cyber behavior, but I wanted the author to know that someone read her article and learned from it, and so I hit send.  The author wrote back and seemed genuinely grateful for my message.  Thanks Mark Zuckerberg, you killed it with that invention of yours.

After contacting the author, my adrenaline was pumping and I did something I never thought I would do.  I e-mailed a generic GW e-mail address and told them what I thought.  The fact that 1,266 people found this article important enough to comment on it, yet GW did not find it important enough to mention in one of the many emails or newsletters they send out to students every day really rubbed me the wrong way.

Even if I never get a response and no one at GW reads this article, at least I know that I did what I could to spread a thoughtful piece of writing around this campus.  I stood up for a student that I barely know, and I have one more Facebook friend to prove it.

Unrank and File

By Devon Horowitz

This week, GW revealed that it has been botching admissions data for the past 10 (yes, TEN) years, leading U.S. News & World Report (the only college ranking site that anyone cares about) to leave the university unranked until next fall's review of new data. GW was ranked 51st last year and now we are unranked. You want to know what other "institutions" of higher education are unranked? Well, the likes of University of Phoenix Online, Alliant International University and Wartburg Theological Seminary. Oh, and lest we not forget the ever-rigorous Divine Word College.

No disrespect to these, ahem, universities, but I sure hope that GW realizes what a slap in the face this act of dishonesty is to its students, faculty and alumni. Now many higher-ups in the university are saying this was an "unintentional" mistake - I get it, that's PR speak, but I'm calling their bluff. First of all, the erroneous data goes back to the 1990s, so I'm not really sure how they can get away with saying something unintentionally happened for over ten years. Additionally, U.S. News and World report just released the differences between the numbers reported and the accurate numbers and the differential is astounding. For example, for the entering class in Fall 2011,

Freshmen ranked in top 10% of high school class
Actual after correction: 58%
As first reported: 78%

Percent of students who submitted high school class rank
Actual after correction: 38%
As first reported: 51%

These are not one or two percentage points of difference - this was clearly done knowingly and it's wrong. For a university that so highly holds academic integrity, this is not setting a great lesson for all the future cheaters out there. If you flubbed the data, fine. But at least own up to it. Don't try to cover it up and pass it off to a scapegoat. It makes you look weak and like you actually do have something to hide.

What makes me most upset is that this flub is such a poor reflection on the students and faculty at GW. I hate when people tell me my school isn't nearly in the realm of Georgetown or Ivy League schools. We may be a bit different, but our students do really amazing things in their times here and go on to contribute tremendously in the world. And our faculty, especially in SMPA, are top notch, with great practical experience and connections that they willingly pass down to students. As a member of the GW community who has always had great pride for the buff and blue, I have to say I'm very disappointed in you.

You can hardly hold a class on the future of journalism without becoming a blogger. And now you will. Before the end of the semester, everyone will write at least three entries. It can be about the class, the professor, your significant other, your favorite sports, the last great play you saw, the way students dress on the campus, any subject that touches you where you live. You may illustrate each entry any way you wish, add photos, let yourself go, know yourself out. The only rquirement is that it be original, clever, well-written, interesting, funny or of interest to the wider world. So, go ahead, get started.