Overseas Briefing - 1/14/10

MONTEVIDEO — If I had a peso for every time an uruguayo told me that “Uruguay is a small country” I probably could have ridden the bus for free during my entire semester in Montevideo. Upon opening my mouth to speak my classroom-learned Spanish — if my appearance didn’t already give  me ...

Center of the Circle - 1/14/10

I am happy to report that I survived yet another holiday drill session performed annually by my extended family. How are your grades? Who are you dating? Have you come to your senses about voting liberal? What are you going to do with an English and Religion degree anyway? After four years, I have ...

Seniors react to grad speakers

“I had never heard of these people before they were invited to campus. My standards for graduation speakers are pretty simple — if they can entertain me, great; if not, I don’t care how famous they are. Graduation is my time, not time for some stuffy famous windbag to tell me how I ought to ...

SGA update - 1/14/10

The Student Government Association (SGA) has decided to pass a bill funding the MiddView program for the next three years. This bill will cover the program’s costs for the next three years and make it need-blind to all incoming students, giving them a chance to experience a version of the widely praised ...

Local Lowdown - 1/14/10

Drop-in Bridge Jan. 14, 2 – 4 p.m. Looking for a new bridge partner, or just a chance to improve your bridge game? Join Gisela Palmer, local bridge expert, at the Ilsley Public Library for an informal celebration of a much-loved card game. More information is available at (802) 462-3373. Verbal ...

Women’s hockey adopts a new system of play

The Middlebury women’s hockey team, currently ranked seventh nationally, has faced stiff competition in its last several matchups. In the Panther/Cardinal Classic Jan. 3 and 4, the Panthers played the second-ranked Elmira and third-ranked Plattsburgh, dropping both games to these national powerhouses. Last ...

Ice fisherman tackles winter blues

Average temperatures in the Burlington area were 26 degrees below freezing on Sunday. Gerry Hartley and his wife Cathy spent the day outside on Lake Champlain ice fishing. “I prefer the solitude of winter fishing,” Hartley insisted, in spite of temperatures. “It’s peaceful out there; the ice ...

Campus Clones - 1/14/10

Food service model remains unprofitable

The Grille and 51 Main at the Bridge continue to lose money despite reductions in hours of operation, administration officials acknowledged. The two College-operated venues stand to lose $340,000 and $70,000 in fiscal year 2010, respectively. While 51 Main is expected to reach profitability in coming ...

Op-Ed: Tragedy of the past decade, tentative hope of the next

I was 11 years old, and it was my first time back to Israel since my family had left when I was five. We decided to visit the Western Wall in Jerusalem, and I clearly remember being surprised by how many soldiers there were, by the flood of olive drab around the ancient, cool sandstone. I asked my ...

Carps' Complaints

Last spring, amidst a feast of piña coladas and Doritos in my Florida hotel room, my dad and I came across the 1981 NCAA men’s basketball championship game between Indiana and UNC on ESPN Classic. I usually don’t care to watch old sports broadcasts, but my father had the remote, so I watched. We ...

Winter Term Checklist

With Winter Term nearly half-way through, and so many evenings left to enjoy and mornings to power through before heading to the slopes and warm fire-side beverages that come with another all-too-early nightfall, there is a lot left to do before the chaos of spring semester wakes us up from our late ...

Cartoons - 1/14/10

Dancing above and beyond

Winter Term is the time when you can pay 50 dollars to ferment your own cheese. If you are unhappy with the usual seaweed-colored Adirondack chairs that grace the lawn every fall, you can learn how to make your own and paint it sky-blue. Students who crave pure honey straight from the hive can even ...

‘Age of Stupid’ delivers urgent message

“The Age of Stupid” is an idiotic name for a film that everyone should see. In its examination of cultural choices that ignore the impending effects of global warming, the film provokes a sense of urgency, disgust with consumerism, and a desire for change. Actor Pete Postlethwaite poses as an ...

town/gown - 1/14/10

Here’s what I love about Middlebury, Vt., in no particular order: The mountains — skiing, hiking...heck, just looking at them. I have lived in the Champlain valley, framed by mountains, for 20 years and I have yet to get sick of them. My family — Gang’s all here! I never met a relative I didn’t ...

McCardell to depart College, leaves rich 34-year legacy

President Emeritus of the College and Professor of History John M. McCardell, Jr. will assume the position of vice chancellor at Sewanee: The University of the South, beginning July 1. Announcing his decision on Jan. 6, McCardell said, “The prospect of serving a unique institution whose history and ...

Waters to Wine - 1/14/10

J-Term is here! Ring the bells! Sound the alarm! It’s that most wonderful time of the year. As The Campus’ resident alcohol columnist, it probably comes as no surprise that I spend most of my year counting down to J-Term. For me, these four weeks of free time, outdoor recreation and binge drinking ...