All roads lead to Roman Polanski

29 Sep 2009, Posted by Braden Hendricks in Backpages, Braden Hendricks, 0 Comments

For those of you who don’t know who Roman Polanksi, here’s an introduction.

He’s a very famous Oscar winning director of such classics as Rosemary’s Baby, Chinatown and The Pianist. He is a revered artist worldwide and commands legions of fans.

He is also a pedophile.

Now, if any of you regularly keep up with the news, odds are you have heard about the latest concerning Polanski: That after 31 years as a refugee from the United States, he has been arrested in Switzerland and faces extradition to Los Angeles on grounds of sleeping with a minor. This charge is something he has plead guilty to. How old was the minor? She was 13. How old was Polanski? 44.

There’s nothing right about that. There’s also nothing right about the US waiting more than thirty years to go after a guy who is an admitted pederast. Just because he’s Roman Polanski, someone back in the seventies decided that it would be a better idea to just leave him alone.

Since he fled, Polanski has done everything except keep a low profile. He’s made films, he’s gone to parties, he’s even gotten married again. How is this even possible? If this were any other man, US authorities would have hounded him to no end. Instead, Polanski gets an academy award presented to him by Harrison Ford for all the world to see (see here).

Now, maybe I don’t understand all the potentially extenuating circumstances in the case: I know his wife Sharon Tate was killed by Charles Manson’s followers, and perhaps the girl lied to him about her age, but he’s still an admitted sex offender and nobody did anything about for more than 30 years.

France, the place where Polanski first fled to, does have limited extradition treaties with the US, but even still, the fact that this has seemingly happened all of a sudden seems extremely strange to me. To be honest, this just seems to be another example of the double standards that riddle our society. Celebrities historically have gotten off easier than the average Joe, but this is just ridiculous.

Why, after all this time? Was Polanski in fact dogged by US officials for decades and was so Catch Me if You Can good at it he could still make films around the world while managing evasion? Did he happen to piss someone off in the Justice Department all of a sudden. I’m very curious to find out. The answer may lie years ahead as apparently his extradition could take that long.

Housing woes

28 Sep 2009, Posted by Laura Keeley in Backpages, 0 Comments

Residence Life and Housing Services (RHLS) has made it abundantly clear to all students studying abroad that they should have zero expectations for their living accommodations when they return. But at the same time, RLHS is doing its best to limit student’s options by forcing everyone to wait on trying to find an off-campus apartment (per the July 28th email) but then decided once we were abroad that, actually, they would prefer us find somewhere off campus. Thanks for that, RLHS.

We have received two e-mails from RLHS reminding us what awaits us, which I copied and pasted below (bold emphasis mine):

July 28, 2009

Hi Everyone!

You are receiving this note because our records indicate you are participating in a Fall 2009 Study Away program.  Please keep reading if you plan on returning to Durham for Spring 2010.

The full details of the Spring housing process will be available on our website in late September.  During October, if you are returning to Durham for Spring 2010, you will need to submit a housing application.  On your application, you will indicate any roommate or room type preferences, as well as any location preferences.

You will also have the opportunity to enter the off-campus lottery.  Students for whom Fall 2009 is their fifth semester in housing (your time on Study Away does count towards this) will be eligible for the lottery.  You should not sign any lease or agreement to live in an off-campus location until you receive confirmation that you are being released from the three-year on-campus living requirement.  Lottery results will be sent out in early November, once all housing applications, cancellations, and lottery requests have been received. The number of students lotteried off will be dependent on how many students cancel their housing to go abroad, graduate, etc.

One thing we can say with certainty – the likelihood of roommate pairs being placed together this Spring will be much lower than last year.  Last year, pairing people up was easy because Few Quad was being reopened after renovations.  This year, we are back to the more normal situation where vacancies will be scattered, and open doubles and apartments will be scarce.  We understand this may be disappointing, and we hope that you will all have realistic expectations about your housing assignments for Spring 2010.

More info is available here:
http://rlhs.studentaffairs.duke.edu/housing/housingrequirement/studyaway.html

Thank you for your attention to this – enjoy your time away!

–
Jen Frank
Assistant Director of Accommodations
Residence Life and Housing Services

September 14, 2009

Hi Everyone,

We are writing to share that Spring 2010 Housing information is now
available on our website:
http://rlhs.studentaffairs.duke.edu/applications/index.html

Some key points:

- The off-campus lottery application is due October 7.  Results will be
emailed October 14th.

- The deadline to apply for on-campus housing is October 31.

- Our current projections show that there will be very few opportunities to
place roommate pairs together on-campus for Spring 2010.  If living with
your preferred roommate is your top priority, we encourage you to consider
the off-campus lottery.

- Opening for Spring is Saturday, January 9, 2010 at 12pm.  Plan to arrive
at this time or later.

- Closing for Spring 2010 is Monday, May 10, 2010 at 12pm.  Graduating
seniors and those approved to stay later for other approved activities will
move out by May 17, 2010 at 12pm.

Please review the Spring Housing information in full and complete the
appropriate application by the stated deadline.  You may contact Housing
Accommodations with questions about this process.

Thank you for your attention to this process!
Jen
–
Jen Frank
Assistant Director of Accommodations
Residence Life and Housing Services

On the issues of beauty and happiness

26 Sep 2009, Posted by Braden Hendricks in Backpages, Braden Hendricks, 0 Comments

I’m like everyone else–I get happy, I get sad, I have goals and I have fears. And, like everyone else I’ve given a lot of thought to what makes me happy, if I’m happy, and just what the hell happiness is to begin with. Like I said, I think I’m like all of us in that regard, but there’s an entire half of the population that, when we get down to the gritty details of these things, I cannot understand as well as I would like: that being the female half, of course. In fact, if you ask certain women they’re liable to tell you that I don’t know jack-snappy about women and probably never will. Well, okay, whatever.

I do try to empathize when I can, and I try to be observant of the people around me, including women. Especially women because I happen not to be a woman. Despite my efforts I was surprised when I read a Maureen Dowd column in the New York Times regarding the current levels of happiness in women and how they’ve been declining since the “feminist revolution.”

The column, called “Blue is the new Black,” discusses how despite the fact women have successfully broken down gender barriers and expanded their opportunities in the workplace and in their lives, women around the world are more depressed regardless of race, socioeconomic status and career–the one exception being black women in America, who Dowd says is still not as happy as black men.

The column goes on to talk about why that may be–along with expanded opportunities and choices comes greater responsibility and stress, and mentions that men are in fact happier than they were thirty years ago.

I’m still pondering all this right now, and it leaves me shaking my head. I kind of want to ask some of my female friends if they feel this, or have heard of this, and what they might think. If this is true, and according to Dowd, six major studies say it is, is it because of the America’s (and now the world’s?) obsession with youth and beauty? Are women, as time goes on, set to face a grimmer and more stressful reality?

If this is the case, I can’t help but feel that something will ultimately give. Society loves beauty now-advertising and common notions revolve around it, and that sentiment will never truly disappear, but someday women will be completely fed up with these double standards currently in place. As they did in the ’70s and ’80s, they will effect change to where society’s main focus will truly be merit and achievement, not something as specious and shortlived and, in the long run, as meaningless as exterior appearance. I only hope I’m around to see it….

Can’t we all get along?

23 Sep 2009, Posted by Dayo Oshilaja in Backpages, 2 Comments

Race and race relations are my favorite subjects, and as I’ve mentioned before, there are problems with race relations on this campus and nationwide. Fortunately, I’m not only one who thinks this. According to Purple’s campaign, race relations is one of the top five important causes to students. So of course it’s only natural that I attended Purple’s discussion on race relations.

When I first walked into the room, I was impressed by the racially mixed audience. When I attended such events in the past, the audience was dominated by minorities with only a few white students. I was late but when I arrived the conversation seemed to be stuck on the inevitable question of self-segregation. I sighed wondering if this discussion would be like so many other race conversations I attended in the past, with everyone throwing around politically correct terms like self-segregation.

But this discussion was different because a white student from the audience asked why there was no white representative on the panel and then nominated himself to become that representative. I chuckled with the rest of the audience as the guy roller-bladed to the front of the room but I was slightly shocked. The topic of race always seems to be a topic for racial minorities. In my experience, whenever the question of race arose, or a conversation about race occurred, it was either sponsored or dominated by racial minorities. So I was surprised but happy that for once I would get a chance to hear a white student’s perspective.

As he fielded a variety of questions about his perspective on being a white student trying to navigate duke’s interesting racial dynamic, I began to wonder why this was the first time that I was actually hearing from a white student about race. Too often in our politically correct society, race is a topic that is glossed over particularly in interracial settings. Campus leaders and other prominent members of society talk about diversity and the need for tolerance but we never actually talk about race and racial concerns. With my non-black friends we are willing to talk about classes, relationships, parents anything and everything but race.  Race has become yet another taboo subject, like politics or religious beliefs that shouldn’t be discussed in mixed company.

But if race is a subject that we can’t even bring up with our friends how will we ever fix the racial dynamic on campus or even nation-wide? Too often, race doesn’t become an issue until an incident occurs and then pundits and newspapers speculate on the myriad racial questions and concerns that always permeate our society but remain ignored until the next racial scandal.

The most recent incident occurred on Sept. 9, 2009 when in the middle of President Obama’s speech to a joint session of Congress, Rep. Joe Wilson, R-N.C. shouted “You lie.”  As usual, everyone was outraged and Wilson did call Obama to apologize. But people have now begun to speculate that Wilson’s outburst was racially motivated. As former President Jimmy Carter said, “There is an inherent feeling among many people in this country that an African American ought not to be president, and ought not to be given the same respect as if he were white. “

So people believe that racial discrimination has caused many of the disrespectful attacks against Obama such as Wilson’s outburst and even the birther’s scandal from this summer when people challenged whether or not Obama was actually born in the United States.  Of course, other people completely disagree and believe like Michael Steele, chairman of the Republican Party that “this isn’t about race but policy.”

As usual we are talking past each other, continuing these constant arguments that get us nowhere. As usual one side is determined to believe that race is not a factor, and as usual the other side is trying to show that race is still an important factor. As usual, race is rearing its ugly head revealing problems and questions that everyone seems so eager to ignore.

Because we refuse to honestly and openly talk about race, nothing is happening. Not that a racial conversation will magically solve our problems, but at least it’s a start. And next week, television pundits and newspapers will forget these racial questions, as they talk about the latest scandal and other political problems. And just like after the Purple discussion, we will scatter off into our separate worlds content to believe that everything is fine. That is until the next racial incident.

You come from your own personal greatness

22 Sep 2009, Posted by Gloria Ahn in Backpages, 0 Comments

So this is the beginning of my first ever video column. The best part about it is that it’s going to be an awesome adventure to get to know more about you all.

We are surrounded by greatness. We have friends who do so many amazing things that it almost becomes disgusting. In this plethora of greatness, I sometimes find myself wondering what I’m doing with my life. With this student researching the cure for HIV, and another student backpacking through South-East Asia while teaching little kids how to speak English, my own dreams and accomplishments may start to sound a bit petty. For you grad students, and even me as a sophomore, we may see our younger brothers and sisters, and we wonder how they do it. Thus, we measure ourselves by another’s accomplishments.

Didn’t we learn in elementary school that we can’t compare oranges to apples or whatever that saying was? Then why do we live in such an accomplishment/busy-body driven environment where how busy, how little sleep, how all-the-things-I-did-better-sound-longer-and-more-awesome than yours dictates our worth? I don’t know about you, but I want to disentangle myself from this sticky status quo of a web, and define myself by my own standards. That’s why we came to Duke right? So that we could become the best versions of ourselves, so that we could learn about this scintillating universe we live in, so that we can show the world the potential for good we all have, so that we can make someone’s life better not only by someone else’s achievements, but also by yours.

We come from our own personal greatness. We do amazing things–we come from amazing things–and we’re destined for amazing things. However, that’s only if you believe in that yourself.