9/11: The Duke family

10 Sep 2011, Posted by Dylan Peterson in Backpages, 0 Comments

Although September 11, 2001 dredges up horrific memories that will stay with us forever, the events that constitute the worst terrorist attack on American soil remind us of the companionship and resourcefulness of the Duke family.

The Chronicle

On the morning of September 11 directly after the first jetliner had slammed into one the Twin Towers, it was an understatement to call the crisis shocking or baffling. To sum up the air of uncertainty that morning, national news broadcasters were calling the tragedy an accident, some sort of horrible mistake.

People congregated to the televisions in the Bryan Center, said Michael Gustafson, associate professor of electrical and computer engineering. He remembered that Duke stayed open that day—nothing was canceled.

“There were police cars everywhere within an hour or two—the campus remained on lockdown for a day or two after,” said Stephen Nowicki, dean and vice provost for undergraduate education. “There were police cars at all of the entrances and police at all of the critical places. Classes weren’t officially canceled, but I remember that day my class wasn’t going to go anywhere.”

The Office of Student Affairs immediately went to work utilizing its resources, passing information along between students and parents to account for Duke faculty and personnel.

“Dean Sue [Wasiolek] set up a command post in a multimedia-enabled conference room in the Faculty Commons near Plates and Pitchfork trying to contact students where we weren’t sure where they were and contacting parents if we couldn’t get in touch with the students—basically centralizing Duke’s resources as far as taking care of the people,” said Gustafson said.

Finally, within the next couple days, it was found that no students or faculty at that time were killed in the terrorist attacks. Unfortunately, since Duke places so many graduates onto Wall Street, five alumni were killed that day. Additionally, the tristate area is one of the top areas represented in the undergraduate class, so there were many Duke students that had relatives and friends caught in the midst of the gruesome events that took place in New York City and the Pentagon.

A tighter community

“The short term mood of the campus was like a completely different world for a while,” Nowicki said.

Students, faculty and staff lost members of their families or childhood friends, and the campus came together in spirit and compassion.

There were multiple memorials and vigils, bringing the community closer.

Gustafson noted that the Duke community—being the open and accepting community that it is—recognized that the practice of Islam is distinctly separate from terrorism and that all terrorists were not Muslim extremists simply by association. The international Duke community did not discriminate or shun those practicing different religions.

“There was a non-denominational prayer service in the quad in front of the chapel,” Gustafson said.

Christopher Roy, associate director of undergraduate studies and professor of chemistry, recalled Nietzsche’s famous quote, “That which does not kill us, makes us stronger.”

Practically speaking, 9/11 and the subsequent shootings at Virginia Tech led to the implementation of the Duke Alert systems—the emails and text messages that are sent to notify the campus of emergencies.

But even more importantly, the Duke community was brought closer together despite places of origin.

Chris Roy, the faculty-in-residence of Wilson Residence Hall, referred to the 100 students living in Wilson as his family, which speaks volumes about the tightly-knit community of which we are a part.

No matter where we are from, and no matter Muslim or Catholic or Protestant or atheistic, Dukies are open to new and different people and new and different ideas. That is in essence what makes us Duke students. We accept all into what we call our family, the family that will exist now, next year and until the day we die, because we are always here for each other.

Whether it’s the student office tracking down family members during crises, spiritual leaders holding prayer services or the freshmen advising counselors on move-in day lugging pounds of luggage up three flights of stairs in nearly hundred degree weather, Dukies will always lend the hand of support whenever another needs it.

9/11: The East coast connection

10 Sep 2011, Posted by Lia Cromwell in Backpages, 1 Comments

September 11—the phrase just hangs in the air whenever it is stated—on television, over a loudspeaker or in everyday conversation.

Special To The Chronicle

Ten years have passed since September 11, 2001, but the connoted rainbow of emotions has not faded with time. For most Duke students, it is difficult to forget where they were on 9/11. But for those of us who were raised on the East coast, the attacks were in our own backyards.

The fact that 10 years have passed since we last saw the Twin Towers is unfathomable. For many Dukies, 10 years represents over half of their lives. It doesn’t really feel like 10 years, does it? Part of me wants to say it was ages ago—but then again, the day still feels so vivid in my memory. September 11 was and is the only time I have ever seen my father cry.

It is important to remember that everyone has a story to tell. Duke students shared with me their memories of 9/11, and many shared their tears. They recounted stories of family members whose lives were lost and of new family bonds formed.  They spoke of their new fears formed that day and of their undying appreciation for those who risked their lives to save others.

There are students like sophomore Akhil Sharma, who was ostracized by his peers for a time directly following 9/11, most likely because of his skin tone. Then there are students like freshman Ben Freeberg, whose uncle died in the Twin Towers in order to rescue two people. But what connects all of us, regardless of where we were on the Eastern seaboard, is that we felt the attacks in a very personal manner.

“My dad had meetings at the Twin Towers. It could have been my father or anyone else’s killed that day,” said freshman Julia Goodman, from Scarsdale, New York.

I think Julia’s point best sums up the thoughts of many Americans when they reflect on September 11—it really could have been anyone on those flights or in the buildings attacked. So much was left up to chance—a notion still hard to swallow.

When I asked other students about their memories, many had similar tales to recount.

“I was so young—I didn’t understand the implications of what had happened,” said Margaret Morrison, a freshman originally from Washington, D.C. “The principal came and explained what had happened, and I remember not really getting it.”

As I sit at my laptop finishing this piece, I feel a lump in my throat remembering back to 2001.

Ten years later, Americans are able to reflect on the day with interesting perspective. Think about what has happened since September 11—the aftermath is unreal. One day’s events left just under 3,000 Americans dead. One day’s events sent us into two wars. And one day’s events catapulted a man whom none of us had previously known in our ignorant youth to international spotlight: Osama bin Laden.

Coming into the tenth anniversary of 9/11, we have a lot for which to be thankful. But most of all, I think Americans are thankful that Bin Laden is not here to share the anniversary with us.  I saw my father cry for the first time on September 11, 2001, but I saw him smile on May 1, 2011 when I ran into his room screaming, “WE GOT HIM!”

Unapathetic and proud

09 Sep 2011, Posted by Nguyen Tran in Backpages, 1 Comments

Katie Vo/The Chronicle

When I tell people I come from Vietnam, many ask me how I could live under a communist regime and not do anything about it.

They would then go and shake their head, and I could clearly hear what they were thinking: “Those apathetic young people—they wouldn’t do anything even if it means to save their lives.”

I doubt I’m the only one affected by this “concerned adult” treatment. After all, the perception that college students do not care about anything that does not involve Lady Gaga, parties or basketball, has been around for ages.

Ebrahim Moosa, associate director of research and professor of religion and Islamic studies, believes that this perception is strongest in the West, where liberal capitalistic economies enjoy great wealth.

“There simply isn’t a reason for [young people] to rise up,” he said.

He noted that this is not the case for other countries. In his native country South Africa, it is the students that started the first large-scale anti-apartheid protest—the Soweto Uprising.

With unrests in France last year and the U.K. this year, however, the age of the apathetic youth in the prosperous West seems to be coming to an end.

Moosa believes it is because youths are growing increasingly worried about their future.

“In the current economic and political climate, there is much more at risk—and as such, much more for [youths] to lose,” he said. “The indignation of the youth has not turned into a political force for change.”

For the youths to become an agent of change, things have to reach a tipping point in their economic well-beings, Moosa said.

But you do not have to be desperate to be an activist, some students assert.

Junior Ann Kang, president of the student group Vision for North Korea, said she became interested in helping North Koreans and refugees after she learned how bad their conditions can be.

“When I heard the stories of North Korea from the past presidents in VNK—that even the most basic rights any human deserves were not given—I became dedicated to raising awareness about this situation,” she said.

There are other reasons why students get involved in political issues other than their well-beings are at risk, said sophomore Chris Williams.

“There are kids that drive BMWs and work to help homeless people. There are straight guys who help to raise awareness of LGBT issues on campus,” Williams said. “To say that we only get involved when our interests are threatened is to unjustly label us as selfish and uncaring.”

Junior Thomas Hasse added that to be an agent of change, one does not have to start a revolution.

“It takes some sort of crisis to spark a revolution. But you can always start out with small, little steps for causes you are passionate about,” he said. “And every little thing counts.”

DukeEthicist: The bank behind balling

09 Sep 2011, Posted by Duke Ethicist in Backpages, DukeEthicist, 1 Comments

Is it morally right to spend so much money on the basketball program (estimated 1.3 million on the chartered flight to China), knowing the high cost of Duke’s tuition and other products and food available on campus? Should we leave the lavish treatment of the players to the NBA after they graduate?

It is no secret how much Duke spends on its basketball program. It should, however, be clear that the majority of the money spent comes from Duke alumni and basketball fans. It should also be noted that Duke’s basketball program brings in more profit than it loses for the university.

Nevertheless, I cannot help feeling uneasy hearing how much Duke spent on its recent tour. Maybe it is because my parents work longer hours with less time off because we fall into that ‘no man’s land’ of middle class citizens that are “too rich” for financial aid but “too poor” to pay the tuition. Maybe it is because I have to pay at least seven dollars to get a healthy, filling lunch. Or, maybe it is because my upbringing has trained me to find the cheapest, most effective way to purchase something.

Can you blame me for cringing when I hear that $1.3 million have been spent for travel alone? Especially with the knowledge that a commercial round trip ticket for the trip costs about $3,000 per person.

Don’t get me wrong; I absolutely adore being a Cameron Crazie, and the Duke basketball program was one of the main reasons I came to Duke. I fully understand how much it costs to run a college basketball program as world-renowned as Duke’s. But still, it is hard to believe that the generous alumni were adamant about their hard earned money going towards a chartered flight in particular.

The team’s status would not suddenly dip if they had decided to take a commercial flight. Crazy towel guy would still swing his towel around, and alumni would still throw their cash at Coach K, just as before. The difference is that Duke would save extra money to give to research, school programming and even to donate to philanthropies. Duke would also leave less of a carbon footprint and follow their motto ‘bleed blue, live green.’

Go ahead Coach K, spend your alumni’s money on all the things your team needs to play a great season and fill the stands. But perhaps first ask yourself, does your team really NEED the celebrity treatment?

The Duke Ethicist is a project of the Honor Council which responds to ethical questions posed by the Duke community. Our purpose is to provide a medium through which students may anonymously seek advice or spark dialogue. Got a question? Send it to dukeethicist@gmail.com, and look out for a response on our blog.

Playing Price is Right with water is a game never won

09 Sep 2011, Posted by Jamie Moon in Backpages, 0 Comments

“Can I get a cup of water with that?”

Sophia Palenberg/The Chronicle

I ask this question every time I get a meal. And almost every time, the worker naturally hands me a cup of water at no cost. I mean, it is just water. Restaurants, shopping malls and even libraries often provide free water for everyone—albeit not the quality found in an Evian.

Free access to water is actually a human right. In July of last year, the United Nations General Assembly explicitly established the indispensible right to clean drinking water and sanitation for every human being, making it possible for me to confidently ask for my free cup of water.

However, discourse on whether or not this decision is universally beneficial still remains. Many still argue that water should not be overlooked as an essential commodity.

According to Investopedia author James McWhinney, what marks water as a potential commodity is its scarcity. Despite the fact that 70 percent of earth’s surface is covered with water, merely three percent can actually be used for drinking, irrigation and additional industrial purposes. McWhinney views water’s scarcity as a viable market for investment, encouraging readers to look into the profits they may gain from investing in different water-related businesses.

Others like The Huffington Post’s Marc Gunther argue that, although dismissing water as a commodity may have its good intentions, it essentially becomes counter-productive. He questions the possibility of providing hundreds of millions of people sustainable water when no one, even those who are able, are willing to pay for it.

If the United States can own up to any of our weaknesses, it’s probably that we are a nation of waste. According to U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, an average family of four can use up to 400 gallons per day, almost double the amount necessary.

Despite their well-founded proposals, both McWhinney and Gunter fail to clearly define the next step. The execution, not the solution itself, is what causes United Nations and other policy makers to stumble.

These faltering steps can be seen even in our vicinity. In 2009, the City Council of Raleigh established a three-tier water rate structure for residents in hopes of stirring active water conservation. If a household surpasses 3,000 gallons of water per month, the rate of water raises to a new price. The same occurs when the household further surpasses 7500 gallons. (An average Raleigh family household uses 6000 gallons per month).

This was supposed to have been in effect that December, according to The News & Observer.

The three-tier water rate has yet to be implemented.

Lori Leachman, professor of economics,said that perhaps rationalization of water may not be the best idea.

“My own views are strict limits and rationalization are not going to get us where we want to be,” Leachman said. “I think appropriate pricing is the right option, but then the question is how do you appropriate the price? That is the tricky thing.”

Raleigh plans on enforcing the new system beginning in December. I would be lying if I said I had high hopes in its success. Placing a higher price on water undoubtedly evokes an overflow of complaints and conflict. There is also a possibility of encouraging a black market for those who want more water are continually refused.

If future policy results in my having to pay a few extra cents for my water cup, I will be more than glad to do so—that is, if we are able to even handle water as a new commodity.