The Women’s Swimming team beat Redlands by over 100 points to win their eighth straight SCIAC championship, the third longest active SCIAC winning streak next to the women’s and men’s track teams. On the first day, he Athenas team of Jenni Rinker SC ‘11, Elica Sharifnia CM ‘12, Katie Bilotti CM ‘12 and Emma Jones CM ‘12  started the night by winning the 200 free relay and followed by closing the same night with a victory in 400 medley relay (Rinker, Annie Perizzolo CM ‘11, Bilotti, Jones.) On the second day of competition, Athenas also took gold, and set a CMS and SCIAC record in the 200 medley relay (Elsa Cheng CM ‘13, Perizzolo, Bilotti and Jones). In addition, Emily Ott CM ‘13 won the 400 individual medley, Perizzolo won the 100 breaststroke, and Bilotti won the 100 butterfly and 100 backstroke, setting meet records in both swims. On the final day CMS cemeted their victory with wins from Whitney Dawson CM ‘12 in the 1650 free, Tessa Dover CM ‘11 in the 200 back, Perizzolo in the 200 breast and the team of Rinker, Perizzolo, Bilotti, and Jones in the 400 free relay.  Dover set a CMS and SCIAC record in the 200 back and Perizzolo set SCIAC meet records in the 200 breast and the 400 free relay. A number of swimmers will move onto NCAA’s and will be previewed in The Forum before the competition.

In the SCIAC final at Ducey Gymnasium on Saturday, two-time SCIAC player of the year Chris Blees was the star, scoring 14 points to go with 6 rebounds and 3 steals, including the final steal and two free throws that clinched the Stag’s victory. Second team All-SCIAC forward Joey Anderson dominated the glass with 13 rebounds, and added 6 points of his own. Connor Faught came up huge off the bench, with 13 points in just 18 minutes of play, including two big threes. Hounded by the Pomona-Pitzer crowd with chants of “Ja-Son”, Jason Toney CM ‘11 was off, shooting just 2 for 10 from the field, but handled the ball well, and led the offense effectively. Toney was also named to the SCIAC first team for his efforts this season. The Stags were unable to continue their run, as they dropped their first round NCAA tournament game to Chapman 58-47.The Stags will have to wait another year to win their first NCAA tournament game.

The women’s basketball team entered the SCIAC tournament, having high hopes, especially after taking Occidental to OT in their previous match up. They played the first thirty minutes with the same confidence, rolling to a 10 point lead on top seed Oxy. A back and forth game still had the Athenas with an 59-51 lead with 5:31 remaining, but the Tigers did not back down.  They clawed back to even the score at 59-all in the next minute and a half. Occidental then went on a run, and looked like they had the game won in the final minute, up 68-62, but All-SCIAC guard Aria Krumwiede CM ‘12 scored 7 points in the final minute to give the Athenas a possession down 72-69 with eight seconds remaining. Krumwiede again was called upon, but unfortunately her shot fell short, and the Athenas season came to a conclusion.

The improvement plan can be seen in three steps: the immediate, short, and long term.

Within the week, students will see flat-screen televisions in the Hub with HD Direct TV. The administration is also looking to replace the tables to create a more cohesive study environment.

Prior to Kravis Center construction, the space currently occupied by Faculty Support West served as the Frazee Room– a multipurpose room that was significantly underutilized. Vice President for Student Affairs Dean Huang shared, “It has been my plan to return the Frazee Room to a student lounge when the Faculty Support Center leaves in 2011.” Faculty Support will be moving to a room underneath the “glass cube” and the current space will become vacant.

One of the three rooms will become a lounge and meeting room for the Robert Day School, which has requested a space for its scholars; the other two will become study lounges, stocked with tables and whiteboards. The space will be open late-night. It will be one of many additional study spaces, as the Kravis Center is slated to have quite a few as well.

“I think that’s really what we’re most lacking on campus,” Kraus said. “We need more study space.”

In theory, this reshuffling will extract the study-lounge function of the Hub and allow it to excel purely as a lounge. The space will then see more significant renovations.

Further down the line, CMC’s Master Plan, recently approved unanimously by the Board of Trustees, suggests the complete demolition of Emett, as well as McKenna Auditorium and Bauer Center. An academic building will replace the space across from the Athenaeum. And in Bauer’s place, a more fitting and extraordinary building will become our student center.

Students are invited to submit papers, projects, or original research for the enjoyment of the CMC community below. Participants and their topics will be selected by a committee of student representatives for uniqueness, interest, and quality. We are looking for interesting arguments on any topic — politics, culture, CMC, etc — and although the content will vary greatly, the form will remain constant: each participant will have 10 minutes, a projector, and a podium.

Presentation skills will be valued equally alongside content. At the end of the event, the audience will be asked to rank the speakers on their interest and persuasiveness, and while everyone will get a token of our appreciation, the winner will get a special prize: Ath VIP Status, including a head table spot at Mitt Romney and your name on the wall. More details regarding the prizes to come.

To get you thinking, here are some ideas (although not necessarily good ones) from our own Carl Peaslee: “Will NASCAR be the sport of the future?” “Who is the bigger nuclear threat, Iran or North Korea?” “Is Ford a better investment than Toyota?” “What does Twilight have to do with the recession?” “How is Star Wars the perfect metaphor for the Obama administration?”

Enter to present your idea using the form below, and be sure to sign up at the Ath for the dinner. Check out who else is going and invite your friends on facebook.

P.S. Everyone who steps up and applies will get a (very CMC) surprise gift.

With just twenty-five ticks left, on Zach Parise’s beautiful goal off of a rebound, US Hockey tied our neighbors to the north in the gold medal game for men’s hockey only to be outlasted by the Canadians in overtime . I think I am finally coming out of my gold-medal-game coma, but it is probably only because of a certain vandal. Sidney Crosby’s stick and gloves “went missing” after the celebration– something tells me an American pulled off this cunning heist. Nothing like stealing priceless memorabilia to avenge a loss. Even if it wasn’t a patriot who managed to steal the dreaded Canadian’s gear, the Olympics were not a complete loss for the American skaters.

No, I am not talking about the silver lining of the second place medal or even the moral victory of doing better than expected (Team USA was a long shot to medal at all). No. I am talking about how cool USA goaltender Ryan Miller looked in that mask of his. Featuring a tatted and ripped Uncle Sam and a menacing bald eagle, the words “Miller Time” (which, the IOC made him cover up because they claimed it was advertisement) and “Matt Man,” a tribute to Miller’s cousin Matt Schoals, who died from bone marrow transplant complications in 2007, Miller’s mask was easily the coolest of the Olympic masks, with honorable mention to Swiss goaltender Jonas Miller’s for looking like someone taped on some pictures printed on computer paper.

Miller, the goaltender for the Buffalo Sabres, is only one of many who seem to be expressing themselves in between the pipes these days. NHL goaltenders tend to have a little more style than their Olympic counterparts…or at least what they lack in style they make up for in…creativity? Most goalies have illustrations related to the team or town in which they play (perhaps this is contractual?), but some are more expressive. Avalanche goaltender and Slovakian Peter Budaj has a Slovakian version of The Simpsons character Ned Flanders on the backside of his mask. Marty Biron’s mask is an odd tribute to Canadian lumberjacks. Antero Nittymaki of the Philidelphia Flyers earned the nickname Frank from former coach Ken Hitchcock after the mobster Frank Nitti–his helmet: Frank Nitti shooting a tommy gun and smoking a cigar. Carolina Hurricane John Grahame displays his love for NASCAR and scantily clad women on his mask. And then there is Kari Lehtonen. One of his masks contains two cartoon characters with swords and a picture of Lil Jon on the back. Another one displays female characters from the video game Final Fantasy X. I mean, really?

Expression is hardly limited to hockey. College football players have recently been in an embroiled battle with NCAA over eye-black expression. Former USC running back and current New Orleans Saint, Reggie Bush, was the first well known eye-black artists. He used to put his area code, 619, in silver ink in his eye-black. Former Florida Gator quarterback, Tim Tebow, displayed biblical quotes under his eyes over the last four seasons.

The NFL, widely dubbed by players as the “No Fun League,” has managed to limit player expression. They have cracked down on post-play celebration and any sort of organized display of attention-grabbing not related to things going on the field of play.

This sort of expressive censorship is dangerous, however. Ryan Miller’s mask was nearly banned by the IOC. Apparently “Matt Man” was a major point of contention. The NFL would not grant an exception for Chad Ochocinco, who wished to wear the number of Chris Henry, a teammate who passed away this year. Major League Baseball has done a great job finding the right time and place for exceptions to uniform rules, allowing pink bats on Mother’s Day and entire teams to wear number 42 on Jackie Robinson Day.

I understand why the NFL does what they do. Most of the time, player expression is not about something important or worth protecting.  Enough is enough. Expression is one thing, but so many players in professional sports have made things about themselves. The team should be above the players, especially considering how much these players are role models for young people.

Editor’s Note: This sports column is a regular feature from “The Nightcap” crew,  made up of Ari Zyskind, Ned Schooler, Nathan Barnett, Dan Campbell, and Kevin Shuai, a group of 5Cers who air a weekly radio talk show on KSPC. You can listen in online at KSPC.org (click “Hear us Online via Live365”) every Monday from 8-10 PM.

Many students feel that the room draw process is as arbitrary as drawing names from a hat.

In the past, students applied for apartments in groups of four, entering a weighted lotto in with each student was assigned a point value based on his or her number of credits.  This system divided students by semester as well as year, making it nearly impossible to get an apartment if you were a semester behind (or even one class short of completing a semester) without having another member of your apartment balance you out by being a semester ahead.

Under the upcoming system, which the administration plans to announce soon, there will be no more arcane points totals and unforgiving margins of error.  Students will simply be sophomores, juniors, or seniors, aligning the system with that used by the registrar’s office and making it rather more generous in the process.  This system will allow students who are behind academically, even to the point where they will be December graduates the year after their proper graduation date to be counted as members of their entering class for the apartment lotto, benefiting students who took a semester off or otherwise ended up behind in credits.

The committee also considered a scheme in which each member of a group would be assigned an individual lotto number and the group could use the highest of them in consideration for an apartment but it was poorly received by the Deans and abandoned.

The new College Park apartments will be integrated with the revised lotto system.

The same night, the Pitzer Student Senate was throwing their biggest party of the year up on their campus. They brought in a great mash-up group, Super Mash Bros, which cost them $5,000. There were some other expenses and the whole party was probably close to $10,000. I’m sure it was a lot of fun. I wish I could have been there.

A few weeks before the Pitzer party, ASCMC got an e-mail from one of the organizers of the party. In the e-mail, the girl, a Pitzer freshman, asked ASCMC to help fund the party. After a few more e-mails, the same girl came to request money from the ASCMC Senate. The ASCMC Senate wound up giving $200 to the party (the Senate budget is ~$10k for the whole year and receives a few similar requests a week). Andrew Cosentino added another $300 from his SAC fund, bringing the total contributed from ASCMC to Pitzer to $500.

To put this in perspective, $500 is a substantial amount for ASCMC to contribute to Pitzer for a party that relatively few CMCers would actually attend. Pitzer has given ASCMC less than $1,000 this year and we gave them $750-1,000 for Kohoutek alone.The Super Mash Bros contribution of $500 was given based on the premise that CMC students would not be charged or turned away from the event. We didn’t anticipate many students going to the Pitzer party over the Wedding Party, but we wanted to make sure students had another option anyway.

The day of the party, some organizers of the party at Pitzer contacted ASCMC again. They wanted more money — the party had gone over budget and they would be in debt by over $2,000. They asked for another $500 from multiple people within ASCMC.

When they unexpectedly called me, I was changing into my suit before hurrying back to help set up the Wedding Party an hour before the dinner started. I was rushed, stressed, and wearing 48 hours of Las Vegas (what a week). The conversation went something like this:

Pitzer Girl: Hey, this is *****, we need $500 more for the Pitzer party tonight.
Me (confused): Uh, who told you to call me?
Pitzer Girl: Andrew said he couldn’t give any more money from his fund so we’re calling you for $500 more.
Me: …but we gave you $500 total. The party is tonight. It’s not reasonable for us to make a split judgment for $500 more right now, I’m sorry.
Pitzer Girl: If we don’t get $500 more from ASCMC, we won’t let CMCers in. Or we’ll charge them at the door.
Pause.
Me: …Oh?
Pitzer Girl: Yeah sorry, that’s the way it is.
Me: Alright then.
Pitzer Girl: ?
Me: We don’t negotiate with terrorists.

Epilogue: We took back the initial $500 commitment and married some people instead. Pitzer charged CMC students $5 each. Few CMCers showed up. Definitely not 100. They would have been better off with our $500 had they cooperated. (And I’m reminded of my Game Theory midterm…)

This account of the story is obviously supposed to make me and ASCMC sound cooler than we really are, but let’s ignore that. The real point is, Pitzer really tried to extort ASCMC. Not cool, Pitzer. If we weren’t like the America of the Claremont Colleges Consortium (or like Rome when Romans were super chill and running the world) and sly econ wizards (interesting fact: 11/18 of ASCMC’s Board are econ majors), we might have just given into Pitzer’s demands. But not on our wedding day. Not in America.

*Props to Andrew Cosentino ‘11 for coming up with the idea for the Wedding Party and executing it beautifully. Also credit to Ben Kraus ‘11 and the rest of ASCMC for help with planning and execution. I sincerely hope ASCMC’s next Board of Directors makes even bigger moves.

The first part is what happens when you take the number of words Professor Brock Blomberg says on the March 5th Mixtape, multiply it by where you would find the maximum of -x^2+102x+52, then subtract the number of Grammy Awards Lupe Fiasco has won, multiplied by the approximate number of decades B.o.B. has lived. Order of operations apply. Look to the north.

But it’s all in the second part, which was made popular in the 1980s by Eddie and further popularized by artists such as OutKast and Ludacris.

The first person gets two passes. The second person gets one.

The allegations, which were generated primarily on a series of comic blogs and quickly spread via sites like Reddit and Digg, could bring legal action against both Radical Comics and Simmons himself.  Incarnate, according to a summary that (until today) was published on Radical’s website, is billed as an action-horror type adventure.  Perhaps you’ll enjoy this little gem as much as I did:

They cannot die.  They feel no pain.  They hunger for human flesh.  They are Revenants.  Centuries ago, the Revenant known as Mot was worshipped as a God.  Now, he walks the Earth in search of a purpose to his immortality= but when a secret society discovers a way to kill Revenants, Mot and his fellow immortals must make a choice: hunt or be hunted.  Nick Simmons’ breakout American Manga title reveals a world that challenges even the imagination, planting its tongue firmly in cheek, then biting it off. . . And swallowing it.

Of course, there’s only one problem with this whole idea: it’s not actually his.  Tite Kubo’s Bleach is one of the best-selling comics (or, if we are going to get technical, manga) in the world, selling over 52 million copies worldwide.  Bleach has spawned its own TV spin off, with video games, full-length animated movies, and extensive licensing deals.  The plot of Bleach revolves around Ichigo Kurosaki, a teenager who does battle with supernatural “Hollows” who consume people’s souls.  Oh, and there’s a secret society too– the Soul Society, that hunts the Hollows.

These similarities in plot, while a bit suspicious, aren’t enough to justify the postponement of the series, as Radical has done.  Comics frequently contain a number of these elements; with so many authors generating stories involving such stock elements as “the undead,” “secret societies,” and “angsty teenagers,” one comic is bound to to feel like a derivative of another.  Indeed, yesterday (March 1) Simmons released a statement in which he claimed similarities in the works were intended as “an homage to artists I respect.”

But the evidence of outright plagiarism continues to grow.  Image comparisons, such as this one on LiveJournal present some damning side-by-sides of panels from Kubo’s title, which is drawn in black  and white, and Simmons’s, which is in color.  As if that’s not enough, this article on Topless Robot links to several other galleries, and also includes some tremendously unflattering comments Simmons (or an impostor) made on a Facebook group accusing him of plagiarism, including one that reads “I never even heard of Bleach! Who would name a comic after laundry detergent?”  So much for that homage.

A full list of candidates is available on our election page, where the title of each position is linked to a page with the statements from the candidates.

Dorm Affairs Chair (SAC): Nico Brancolini, Alexander Reichert

Nico Brancolini, CMC ‘11

Hey everyone. My name is Nico Brancolini. I am a junior from Bloomington, Indiana. I transferred to CMC my sophomore year from the GWU in Washington D.C. I would love to be the Dorm Affairs Chair. I have been a Dorm President every semester I have been here. In that capacity I have helped plan a number of TNCs and larger events like last year’s Masquerade Party and the Haunted House. I am organized, efficient and meticulous—all traits I see as essential to this position. If elected I would focus on more inter-dorm events—campus-wide capture the flag tournaments and Beer Olympics— and try to bring back some more traditional parties like the infamous Jello-Wrestling Party. I would also try to breathe new life into TNCs. Instead of the standard themes I would use ones like a “Seven Deadly Sins” party, a “Gatsby Party,” with a roaring 20s theme or an “Around the World Party” where dorm rooms would be serving the national beverage of various countries. I would be happy to hear campus-wide input for these and other events and would do everything in my power to provide an exciting and varied collegiate experience.

Alexander Reichert, CMC ‘11

Complacency – Smug satisfaction with the status quo.

As a Junior I have used my three years here to take advantage of all that CMC has to offer; from the social scene to the reading room I have embraced the motto of “Work Hard, Play Hard” to the absolute fullest. I love this place for what it is, yet I would like the opportunity to make it that much better. I fear that we have reached a level of complacency in our social scene and as your DAC I will work to break from the status quo. It is a problem that TNC’s can only be distinguished by the quad they are thrown in. It is also a problem that we say we take advantage of this great consortium’s benefits, yet at the same time have walled ourselves out of the 5C’s social scene spotlight. But most importantly, we cannot let the opinions and wishes of the silent majority at this school to continue to be drowned out by the highly vocal minority. A DAC must be able to hold events that do not solely focus around drinking but are enjoyable for all, such as regular comedy shows on Friday nights or local musicians playing sets on Sunday afternoons. It is time we demanded more creativity, more memorable events, and more locations (like this weekend’s Wedding Party). Let’s work together to enhance the level of parties here on this campus, bring back our social scene superiority at the 5Cs, and get away from an exclusively alcohol centric mentality. My drive and ideas, coupled with your critiques and input, will make for truly wonderful year.

Social Activities Chair (SAC): Matt Richardson, Seth Winterroth

Matt Richardson, CMC ‘12

Dearest CMCers,

Apparently when Will Farrell attended USC he flooded his frat house, and transformed it into a battleground for mock Viking warfare. Legendary. While I don’t see this party theme going over very well with Mr. Nauls (ehh, I’ll look into it) – I do intend on introducing some fresh and legendary party themes to both CMC and the 5C’s that we can certainly talk about for years to come. Here’s just one look at the kind of creative and unique event I’ve already come up with, and intend on pursuing if elected…

Smiley 90’s: A one-up of Pomona’s acclaimed Smiley 80’s party. Since we all wistfully reminisce over our beloved 90’s one-hit-wonders, let’s spend a sunny day on Green Beach listening to these gems, then cap the night with a performance by a big time 90’s band, like Sugar Ray or Third Eye Blind (for whom I’ve already begun speaking with a booking agent about availability)

Due to limited space in this column you will have to attend election speeches Tuesday at snack to hear about some other ideas, such as: A Midsummer Night’s Dream, Pardi Gras, and the Sagehen Mobile Bash.

Experience
As president of Wohlford, I have volunteered to organize, set up, and DJ, 3 of the last 5 TNC’s; I have also developed experience in event management over the last two years by helping set up various other parties/events. I am creative, driven, and love to foster a good time. I’ve got plenty of fresh ideas that I would love to filter into the position of SAC, and believe I have proven myself capable of handling the responsibilities of student activities in a larger arena.

P.S. I promise to get you a new and improved Party Inform by Wednesday afternoon at the latest… so all you TNC thrift shoppers, can do your thing.

Much Love,
Matty Rich

Seth Winterroth, CMC ‘12

I love the parties we throw at CMC: the Pirate Party on Green beach, gettin’ my B&G on in Claremont Hall, or even watching friendships momentarily dissolve during a rowdy game of flunky ball. I am committed to making the parties we love bigger and better, appeasing the school wide appetite for “beats,” and creating fresh ways to promote the latter half of our CMC credo: “work hard, play hard.” But, with this commitment comes a desire to reestablish the intended duties of the SAC position. As long as I have been at CMC the SAC position has been defined by the duty to throw parties. Recognized almost exclusively as the “party inform guy,” the position itself has developed a singular focus, based on “ragers” that monopolize the majority of the budget. While I love our parties, like many others on our campus, I appreciate complimenting my nights with the Captain with sunny fun in Santa Monica or Glass House concerts in Pomona. At CMC we are well-rounded individuals and our social interactions can and should consist of more than they do presently. I will work with the Dean of Students office to sponsor off campus trips to places other than the farmers market, bring in a wide variety of musical performers (some Kid Cudi, Vampire Weekend, The Avett Brothers, Andes mountain flutes anyone?), and collaborate with the other 5Cs to break down barriers through memorable social interaction.

With the help of the CMC Forum I will establish a system of surveys that puts the power in your hands. My term as SAC will be a democratic one, and you will define my role. I am committed to putting in the effort to create events that contradict the CMC social stigmas, embrace the entirety of our student body, all while holding true to what CMC does best. Bottom line, I am going to improve our party lifestyle and fuse it with an influx of diverse social engagements, making my term one you will remember.

Social Life Chair (SLC): Grace Cowan, Hannah Gordon

Grace Cowan, CMC ‘11

If elected, my main focus would be to expand the selection of alternatives and to improve the ones we already have, like Hub Quiz. The main role of the Student Life Council Chair (SLC Chair) is to provide alternatives to the parties. I want to have more options for the student body including food (maybe even a food fight), movies (like a midnight showing of Iron Man 2), and any other ideas that the students would find entertaining.

Hannah Gordon, CMC ‘12

Hey fellow CMCers! I’m Hannah. I am running for SLC (that’s the dry event committee chair, just an fyi). I’m having a great time at CMC this semester and now I want to give back to the student community. I think ASCMC is a great opportunity to get involved and meet really cool people.

As SLC chair I would be in charge of awesome events like Hub Quiz, movie nights, cookie decorating etc. Now that it’s getting toward the end of the year, I think it is time to branch out and spice things up a little. Lets get everyone out of their bubble of friends to exciting, and potentially embarrassing, events like Karaoke, taboo competitions, and ping pong tournaments.

Looking forward to seeing you at the speeches on Tuesday!

Editor’s Note: Because the ASCMC Constitution forbids candidates from online campaigning and the authors of comments cannot be exactly identified, we have disallowed commenting on this and all other election-related posts.