Vol. 42, No. 17 THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 27, 2014 nyunews.com WASHINGTON SQUARE NEWS NYU’s Daily Student Newspaper Mary Jane reeks havoc in residence halls Speaker urges administration to monitor worker conditions in AD MARY JANE cont’d. on PG. 3 Hockey team heads to Nationals HOCKEY continued on PG. 8 MIGRANT continued on PG. 3 By JOHN AMBROSIO Nicholas McGeehan of the Hu- man Rights Watch, author of a forthcoming HRW report on condi- tions for migrant workers at NYU Abu Dhabi’s campus and within the city, gave a presentation on Feb. 26 at the Kimmel Center for University Life. The report, which will be pub- lished next month, outlines the abuses of the Kafala system, the laws that regulate the freedoms and rights of migrant workers in the United Arab Emirates, as well as the failure of Western organiza- tions with sites in Abu Dhabi, in- cluding the Guggenheim and Lou- vre, to meet the labor standards they have set for themselves. “When [migrant workers] arrive in Abu Dhabi, the dream, as you’d like to call it, turns into a night- mare,” McGeehan said. McGeehan said when he visited workers’ living quarters in Abu Dhabi, he found fire-prone shanty- towns with grime-coated kitchens and 12-person bedrooms. For Mc- Geehan, the restrictions the Kafala system places on migrant workers are more troubling than the living and working conditions. Under the Kafala system, em- ployers put workers from coun- tries like India, Pakistan and the Philippines into debt by charging recruitment fees, paying wages considerably less than promised, withholding pay and confiscating passports so they cannot leave the country, McGeehan said. “You might say NYU has set up in a country whose labor system facilitates forced labor, which is engaged in a very aggressive crack- down on freedom of expression, which of course is the foundation of academic freedom,” McGeehan said. “[The Kafala system] puts an inordinate amount of control into By KAVISH HARJAI Students living in Sec- ond Street residence hall and the C2 tower of Car- lyle Court residence hall recently received emails addressing issues related to increased marijuana use. Melissa Davison, resi- dence hall director at Sec- ond Street, sent an email to the residents of the dormi- tory on Feb. 20. “We would like to ad- dress an issue that has been greatly disturbing the com- munity in our hall,” Davison said in the email. “There has been a significant increase in the frequency of mari- juana being smoked in the building. Many residents have complained that it is not only unpleasant to live in an environment that con- stantly smells like weed, but it is affecting their overall well being.” Davison said people who have asthma, allergies and migraines may have their conditions aggravated by the increased presence of the smell of marijuana in the dorm. Dan Cassin, Tisch sopho- more and Second Street resident, said he agrees with the RHD’s email. By BRITTANY YU After defeating the fifth- ranked University of Connecti- cut Huskies 7-2 last Sunday, NYU Ice Hockey cemented its spot in the American Col- legiate Hockey Association National Tournament. Hosted by Northeastern University, the tournament will be held in Marlborough, Mass., from March 21 to 25. Under head coach Chris Cosentino, the program has slowly but surely estab- lished its dominance in the league over the past four seasons, improving upon each previous season. “Our experience, mindset and overall depth are our biggest strengths as a hockey team,” Cosentino said. This marks the team’s first appearance in the Na- tional Tournament since 2007. The road to Nation- als has not been easy, how- ever, as the team has been faced with an onslaught of injuries to key players from the start. Despite the Freshman Evan Ripley aims for a shot. VIA FACEBOOK.COM Members of Student Labor Action Movement protest outside of John Sexton’s office in Bobst. JOHN AMBROSIO FOR WSN SPRING BREAKERS - COURTESY OF A24 FILMS | ART BY CASEY DALRYMPLE | GRAPHIC BY CICEK EREL | OSCAR - VIA WIKIPEDIA.ORG | MONSTERS UNIVERSITY - COURTESY OF WALT DISNEY STUDIOS MOTION PICTURES OSCARS 2014 OSCARS on PG. 5 Oscar nominations overlook 2013 talent Find out who the Academy snubbed before the broadcast.
Transcript
Vol. 42, No. 17 THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 27, 2014 nyunews.com
WASHINGTON SQUARE NEWSNYU’s Daily Student Newspaper
Mary Jane reeks havoc in residence halls
Speaker urges administration to monitor worker conditions in AD
MARY JANE cont’d. on PG. 3
Hockey team heads to Nationals
HOCKEY continued on PG. 8 MIGRANT continued on PG. 3
By JOHN AMBROSIO
Nicholas McGeehan of the Hu-man Rights Watch, author of a forthcoming HRW report on condi-tions for migrant workers at NYU Abu Dhabi’s campus and within the city, gave a presentation on Feb. 26 at the Kimmel Center for University Life.
The report, which will be pub-lished next month, outlines the abuses of the Kafala system, the laws that regulate the freedoms and rights of migrant workers in the United Arab Emirates, as well as the failure of Western organiza-tions with sites in Abu Dhabi, in-
cluding the Guggenheim and Lou-vre, to meet the labor standards they have set for themselves.
“When [migrant workers] arrive in Abu Dhabi, the dream, as you’d like to call it, turns into a night-mare,” McGeehan said.
McGeehan said when he visited workers’ living quarters in Abu Dhabi, he found fire-prone shanty-towns with grime-coated kitchens and 12-person bedrooms. For Mc-Geehan, the restrictions the Kafala system places on migrant workers are more troubling than the living and working conditions.
Under the Kafala system, em-ployers put workers from coun-
tries like India, Pakistan and the Philippines into debt by charging recruitment fees, paying wages considerably less than promised, withholding pay and confiscating passports so they cannot leave the country, McGeehan said.
“You might say NYU has set up in a country whose labor system facilitates forced labor, which is engaged in a very aggressive crack-down on freedom of expression, which of course is the foundation of academic freedom,” McGeehan said. “[The Kafala system] puts an inordinate amount of control into
By KAVISH HARJAI
Students living in Sec-ond Street residence hall and the C2 tower of Car-lyle Court residence hall recently received emails addressing issues related to increased marijuana use.
Melissa Davison, resi-dence hall director at Sec-ond Street, sent an email to the residents of the dormi-tory on Feb. 20.
“We would like to ad-dress an issue that has been greatly disturbing the com-munity in our hall,” Davison said in the email. “There has been a significant increase in the frequency of mari-
juana being smoked in the building. Many residents have complained that it is not only unpleasant to live in an environment that con-stantly smells like weed, but it is affecting their overall well being.”
Davison said people who have asthma, allergies and migraines may have their conditions aggravated by the increased presence of the smell of marijuana in the dorm.
Dan Cassin, Tisch sopho-more and Second Street resident, said he agrees with the RHD’s email.
By BRITTANY YU
After defeating the fifth-ranked University of Connecti-cut Huskies 7-2 last Sunday, NYU Ice Hockey cemented its spot in the American Col-legiate Hockey Association National Tournament. Hosted by Northeastern University, the tournament will be held
in Marlborough, Mass., from March 21 to 25.
Under head coach Chris Cosentino, the program has slowly but surely estab-lished its dominance in the league over the past four seasons, improving upon each previous season.
“Our experience, mindset and overall depth are our biggest strengths as a hockey team,” Cosentino said.
This marks the team’s first appearance in the Na-tional Tournament since 2007. The road to Nation-als has not been easy, how-ever, as the team has been faced with an onslaught of injuries to key players from the start. Despite the
Freshman Evan Ripley aims for a shot.
VIA FACEBOOK.COM
Members of Student Labor Action Movement protest outside of John Sexton’s office in Bobst.
JOHN AMBROSIO FOR WSN
SPRING BREAKERS - COURTESY OF A24 FILMS | ART BY CASEY DALRYMPLE | GRAPHIC BY CICEK EREL | OSCAR - VIA WIKIPEDIA.ORG | MONSTERS UNIVERSITY - COURTESY OF WALT DISNEY STUDIOS MOTION PICTURES
OSCARS 2014
OSCARS on PG. 5
Oscar nominations overlook 2013 talentFind out who the Academy snubbed before the broadcast.
ON THE SIDE COMPILED BY THE WSN STAFF
2 WASHINGTON SQUARE NEWS | THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 27, 2014 | NYUNEWS.COM
This week’s snapshot theme is home. Here is today’s interpretation.
Media Research: Bigger Than EverMeet the president of Nielsen, Steve Hasker, as he
discusses TV ratings, consumer data and the influence of the audience in the world of media. The discussion
is at 239 Greene St. from 6:30 to 8 p.m.
NYU Entrepreneurial Institute Speaker SeriesJoin Brett Martin, a correspondent for GQ, who will be speaking on his piece, “Post-mortem of a Venter-backed Startup,” at the
Kimmel Center for University Life from 5 to 7 p.m. in room 805. He will review key points of the impact of mobile worldwide apps.
The Mosque in the Shadow of Church(es)Tonight at 6 p.m., the Hellenic Studies Center
(eighth floor of 285 Mercer St.) will hold a discussion on the early medieval Syria that transitioned from
SENIOR STAFFnews KAVISH HARJAI, ANN SCHMIDTarts CLIO MCCONNELLfeatures BRYNA SHUMANsports FRANCISCO NAVASmultimedia FELIPE DE LA HOZcopy THOMAS DEVLIN, PAIGE MANKINweb KIMBERLY HART, BENSON TSAI, LAVYA YALAMANCHIsenior editors TONY CHAU, ARIANA DIVALENTINO, MICHELLE LIM, STEFAN MELNYK, NEELA QADIR, DANIEL YEOM
DEPUTY STAFFnews LARSON BINZER, SCOTT MULLEN, AFEEFA TARIQbooks/theater DYLAN JARRETTfilm IFE OLUJOBIentertainment BOB TEOHmusic JAKE FOLSOMthe highlighter blog VALERIE NELSONfeatures HANNAH TREASURE beauty & style DANA RESZUTEKviolet vision blog GIANNA COLLIER-PITTSdining CHANDLER WESTsports CHRIS MARCOTRIGIANOmultimedia HANNAH LUU, LAWRENCE WUvideo ALEX LINZMEIER
OPINION PAGEopinion editor PETER KEFFERdeputy opinion editors CHRISTINA COLEBURN, OMAR ETMAN, NINA GOLSHAN
ADVERTISINGBUSINESS MANAGERELLEN MCQUEEN
CIRCULATION MANAGERCHLOE COFFMAN
SALES MANAGERALISON LIZZIO
UNIVERSITY AND ALUMNI COORDINATORCLAIRE MAHANY
SALES REPRESENTATIVESARIANA DIVALENTINO
GRAPHIC DESIGNERJILLIAN BRANCHAUD
SALES ASSOCIATESEMMA HOWCROFT, ZACH MICHEL, ANA SCHULER
ADVISING
DIRECTOR OF OPERATIONS
NANCI HEALY EDITORS-AT-LARGE
HANQING CHEN, JONATHONDORNBUSH, RACHEL KAPLAN, JORDAN MELENDREZ, JONATHAN TAN
About WSN: Washington Square News (ISSN 15499389) is the student newspaper of New York University. WSN is published Monday through Thursday during NYU’s academic year, except for university holidays, vacations and exam periods.
Corrections: WSN is committed to accurate reporting. When we make errors, we do our best to correct them as quickly as possible. If you believe we have erred, contact managing editor Michael Domanico at [email protected] or at 212.998.4302.
STUDENT SPOTLIGHT
What was the weirdest thing that’s ever happened to you?“It was my first time altar serving, and I was really nervous. As I’m walking in, I trip over a power cord, get tangled in the power cord, snag my foot on the end of the cassock, and then crash into the holy bells. And then, lo and behold, John Sexton walks through the
doors of the Catholic Center and is asking for me. So that was the weirdest day of my life.”
What’s the coolest thing you’ve ever done?“My family, and especially my dad, has always been very big into racing cars. When I got my driver’s license, one of the first things my dad had me do was enroll in a track day.
So I was driving my dad’s BMW M3 sports car on a racetrack at over a hundred miles an hour. And in that moment I broke the clutch of my dad’s car. In my defense it was old
and needed to be replaced anyway.”
What do you like most about yourself?“My faith. I actually like that it’s not an easy thing to hold onto.
I like that it’s a challenge. On a slightly more vain aspect, I really like my teeth.”
Brandon Azan, CAS junior
WARD PETTIBONE/WSN
NYUNEWS.COM | THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 27, 2014 | WASHINGTON SQUARE NEWS 3
the hands of the employers.”Several NYU student groups have
taken up the cause, including the Stu-dent Labor Action Movement, who co-sponsored the presentation.
Gallatin sophomore Daniel Light-foot of SLAM said the group hopes the university uses an HRC monitor rather than their own.
“Human Rights Consortium has of-fered to independently monitor the labor standards but NYU chose to have their own monitor hired by them-selves,” Lightfoot said.
Lightfoot and McGeehan both said the monitor that NYU hired, Mott MacDonald, is misrepresenting the situation of migrant workers inside the U.A.E. and has repeatedly issued glowing reports of the working condi-tions at NYUAD.
Andrew Ross, sociology professor and a speaker at the presentation, echoed these sentiments and said orga-nizations like NYU were in a position to improve the conditions for all work-ers in the U.A.E.
“The much larger goal was really to try and use the brand names, NYU, Guggenheim, Louvre, to leverage bet-ter regional labor standards for the gulf as a whole and to really try and break the Kafala system, which needs to be broken,” Ross said.
Greg Bruno, director of Public Affairs and Community Relations for NYUAD, said NYU has and will continue to take steps to protect the rights of workers at their Abu Dhabi site.
“Since the earliest days of NYU Abu Dhabi, we have committed to ensuring the health and safety of those building, maintaining and operating our cam-pus,” Bruno said. “We take seriously any incident that appears to be in vio-lation of these commitments. Any and
all such claims are investigated imme-diately and, where appropriate, are ad-dressed promptly.”
Luis Morales, an NYUAD sophomore who attended the event, said McGee-han’s findings were not surprising, and NYUAD students were very concerned about the conditions of workers.
“I think that every NYU Abu Dhabi student is aware of the issues that are happening in the country,” Morales said. “I’ve been working on a project that helps some of the workers, and I can say there are students who are trying to do something.”
Following the presentation, mem-bers of SLAM led a brief protest outside President John Sexton’s Bobst office. As they recited chants, students from SLAM handed out flyers and waved signs whose slogans included, “I’m paying for what?” and “Who’s building NYU Abu Dhabi?”
John Ambrosio is a contributing writer. Email him at [email protected].
“It is incredibly annoy-ing to have that smell in the residence hall,” Cassin said. “I think that if a stu-dent smells it and it annoys them then they should re-port it to their RA or the RA on duty who should appro-priately handle it.”
Cassin said he does not consider smoking marijuana a normal part of college life and people who do smoke in dorms need to be mindful and respectful of others who are in the same area.
Marissiko Wheaton, RHD of Carlyle Court, sent an email on Feb. 23 to residents of the C2 tower regarding similar issues.
In the email, Wheaton said complaints and docu-mentation of marijuana us-age were specific to floors 6 through 10.
“I would like to ask that if you have any knowledge of who may be smoking on or around your floor, that you contact me immediately so that I can address this issue directly,” Wheaton said in the email. “We will continue to investigate this trend until it stops.”
Hosu Kim, sixth-floor resi-dent of the C2 tower, said she is not affected by the smell of the marijuana unless it seeps into her suite, but she does notice it in the hallways.
“I can understand that it is a part of college life and that there are limited places to smoke, but I also do think
it’s a little much that the hall-ways are smelling like weed 24/7 throughout the whole week,” Kim said. “I feel like, while the floor would smell like weed every now and then, it’s gotten bad enough to be brought to attention this semester.”
Jolie Glickman, Tisch sophomore and sixth-floor resident of the C2 tower, said she does not smell marijuana on her floor.
“Isolating the smell to floors 6-10 is ridiculous, as we all know that’s not how smells work,” Glickman
said. “[The smell of weed] certainly does not [affect] my daily routine.”
Wheaton said there needs to be more respect for nearby residents in light of the recent increase in marijuana usage.
“Please understand and respect that smoking in your room may affect your neighbors and their abil-ity to study and maintain a pleasant environment in their room,” Wheaton said.
Poly, Scientific American Magazine bring education online
Residence halls experience problems with overpowering marijuana smell
MARY JANE continued from PG. 1
By CASSANDRA CASSILLAS
Polytechnic School of Engi-neering and Scientific Ameri-can Magazine have teamed up to bring online continuing edu-cational programs designed for mid-career scientists, business people and technical personnel
to keep their credentials up-to-date and competitive.
The classes will be presented as “Active Learning Modules” and will run Monday to Friday, but students will have access to the classes 24 hours every day.
Active Learning Modules are high-quality production vid-
eos and graphics coupled with interactive elements to enrich the experience and retain flex-ibility and convenience.
The first of these classes, Cog-nition and the Aging Brain, is set to start March 17 and will end on March 21. It will be taught by University of Toronto neuropsy-
chology professor Brian Levine.Although these courses are
designed for mid-career profes-sionals, they will still be open to the public, Levine explained.
“I believe scientists have an ob-ligation to translate research find-ings to the general public,” Levine said. “This program provides a rapid and convenient way for users to get familiar with cutting edge topics.”
Scientific American approached leaders in many scientific fields to teach classes such as Disaster Management, Quantum Mechan-ics and Information and Sustain-able Agriculture: How to Feed the World. Don Lincoln of Fermi Na-tional Accelerator Laboratory will teach Mysteries of the Universe from June 16 to 20.
“For my particular program, the benefit will be to be able to talk with a public that is interested in the big questions,” Lincoln said. “Long term, like all of my science popularizations, I hope to not only tell the audience about my own little corner of science, but to let people know that scientific inquiry is an unparalleled way to answer timeless mysteries.”
Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine professor Jonathan Pevsner will teach Bioinformatics: How to Analyze the Human Ge-nome, which will run from April 7 to 11. Pevsner has high hopes for the program’s success.
“I agreed to teach this because it’s a great opportunity to learn — every time I teach a course it’s a huge learning experience,” Pevsner said. “In the longer term this form of learning is likely to be successful because it’s flexible in terms of format and schedule, it’s versatile.”
Robert Ubell, vice dean of On-line Learning at Poly, said he was excited for both the pro-gram and the partnership.
“We are among two of oldest scientific and technological institu-tions in America,” Ubell said. “We are deep into the history and proud to now be at the forefront of scien-tific learning and technology.”
Enrollment is now open for the March 2014 class session.
Cassandra Cassillasis a staff writer. Emailher at [email protected].
Groups advise university to take action against labor violations in Abu Dhabi
MIGRANT continued from PG. 1
The School of Engineering’s online courses begin in March.
FILE PHOTO BY RACHEL KAPLAN/WSN
McGeehan speaks about migrant working conditions in Abu Dhabi.
MATT CHU FOR WSN
Residents complained about the strong odor of weed.
FELIPE DE LA HOZ/WSN
4 WASHINGTON SQUARE NEWS | THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 27, 2014 | NYUNEWS.COM
New York City is the backdrop of many popular films, and some audiences may have been inspired to come to New York after watch-ing them. Become a movie star for a day by visiting one of these film’s iconic sites.
“Breakfast at Tiffany’s” (1961)
Pay homage to this Audrey Hep-burn classic. Stop by Macaron Café on 59th Street and Madison Ave-
nue to grab a chocolate croissant ($2.75) and a cafe au lait ($2.25) before strolling past the historic Tiffany windows. Pearls and sun-glasses are a must. (Tiffany & Co., 57th Street and Fifth Ave.)
“Night at the Museum” (2006)
Although the likelihood of chat-ting with a statue of Theodore Roo-sevelt or playing fetch with the atri-um’s dinosaur skeleton as Ben Stiller did in this comedy is slim, there is still something magical about the American Museum of Natural History. The museum offers five floors of exhibits to explore, in addition to a butterfly conservatory, IMAX theater and planetarium shows. Currently the IMAX theater is playing “Mys-teries of the Unseen World” in 3D,
showcasing phenomena that cannot be seen with the naked eye. (Natural History Museum, Central Park West and 79th Street. The suggested ad-mission price is $17 with student ID.)
“Sex and the City” (2008)
Channel your inner Carrie, Sa-mantha, Charlotte or Miranda by picking up cupcakes to go from Magnolia Bakery and heading up to midtown to study at the New York Public Library. The NYPL, the site of Carrie and Big’s would-be wed-ding, offers a change of pace from the monotony of Bobst Library. Enjoy your cupcake while study-ing in one of the library’s beauti-ful reading rooms. On your way home, swing by 66 Perry St. to visit the iconic exterior of Carrie Brad-
shaw’s apartment. (Magnolia Bak-ery, West 11th Street and Bleecker Street. New York Public Library, 42nd Street and Fifth Avenue.)
“Big” (1988)
If a little kid trapped in an adult’s body is not symbolic of the average college student, who knows what is. Follow in Tom Hank’s footsteps by visiting F.A.O. Schwartz and playing the giant piano that re-quires you to hop from key to key. Pose for a picture with the real-life toy soldiers outside and stock up on candy for late-night study sessions at the candy store on the first level. Maybe your Stern degree could even land you a job in toy marketing. (F.A.O Schwartz, 58th Street and Fifth Avenue.)
“Home Alone 2:Lost in New York” (1992)
Little Kevin famously encoun-ters a terrifying pigeon lady at the Gapstow Bridge in Central Park midway through the film. One of the most beautiful spots in Central Park, the bridge offers picturesque views of Wollman Rink, Victorian Garden Amuse-ment Park and New York City skyscrapers no matter what time of year. Take a seat at one of the many benches surrounding the bridge to do some people watch-ing. (Central Park, 59th Street and Fifth Avenue.)
While many NYU students spend their Sundays at Bobst Library catching up on work before their dreaded Monday classes, Tom McNulty, a librar-ian for Fine Arts, comes to work. McNulty will often sit behind the resource desk on the first floor, offering help to confused students trying to navigate the grand library.
6 a.m. McNulty wakes up bright and early to start the day.
12 p.m. McNulty heads to Bobst. He lives close to campus, so he likes to walk to work.
1 p.m. McNulty begins his shift.When he is not organizing books or answering students’ questions,
one would most likely find him helping a student with research in the contemporary fine arts, his area of expertise. The library also offers a series of classes ranging from basic research skills to more advanced, specialized topics, which McNulty assists with.
“Research skills are impor-tant for student work, but true research proficiency can be one of your most marketable pro-fessional skills,” McNulty said. “Regardless of your chosen field, gaining advanced research profi-ciency might lead to your dream job upon graduation.”
7 p.m. McNulty’s shift ends. However, he likes to stay at Bobst longer to catch up on work. He can often be found in his office
on the M-landing between the first and second floors reading a book. McNulty is currently do-ing background reading for an article he plans to write.
“My current research focuses on valuation issues related to the early work of major twen-tieth century artists,” McNulty said. “My most recent publica-tion is a book titled ‘Art Market Research: A Guide to Methods and Sources (second edition).’”
McNulty loves to read — when asked what his favorite book is, McNulty is unable to answer. With all the reading he has done for his job, He simply has too many favorites to choose from.
8 p.m. After a long day work-ing in the library and meeting multiple students for research help appointments, McNulty will leave the library. Although an entire day of his weekend is spent at Bobst, he enjoys his job and finds it relaxing.
“I love being a librarian,” Mc-Nulty said. “I work with creative students and faculty members on a wide range of topics, and there is never a dull day.”
DAY IN THE LIFE UVL CONTESTANTName: David BolognaHometown: Austin, TexasYear: Gallatin freshman Dorm: Rubin residence hallAct: Original tap dance What is your biggest inspiration?My biggest inspiration has al-ways been old Hollywood movie-musicals. There’s something so fun, enjoyable and artistic about them that is so unique. How long have you been per-forming, and what made you interested in performing in
the first place?I’ve been performing since I was seven. I started Irish dancing then got into musical theater. Then at 13 I started doing more tap and conventional dancing. It’s always been something that has intrigued me. It’s a rush that’s un-like anything else. What made you decide to par-ticipate in the UVL Prelims?Well, I attended the Rubin gen-eral assembly meetings, and they announced the event. It sounded like a great opportunity to per-form, so I decided to try. What was the first thing that went through your mind when you found out you were advanc-ing to the finals at Skirball?I was completely excited. It’s go-ing to be so fun. What would winning UVL mean to you?Winning UVL would be amazing, but honestly the night is really more of a celebration of everyone who has made it! I can’t wait to see all the other acts and be a part of such a big event. David Bologna is a staff writer for the Washington Square News.ILONA TUOMINEN FOR WSN COURTESY OF DAVID BOLOGNA
COURTESY OF PARAMOUNT PICTURES COURTESY OF 20TH CENTURY FOX COURTESY OF NEW LINE CINEMA COURTESY OF 20TH CENTURY FOX COURTESY OF 20TH CENTURY FOX
NYUNEWS.COM | THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 27, 2014 | WASHINGTON SQUARE NEWS 5
This year’s Academy Awards ceremony, on Sunday, March 2, will showcase a tal-ented group of actors, directors, writers, cinematographers, composers and more. These artists have done fantastic work on some of last year’s most memorable and applauded films. However, each year there is great work that falls through the cracks, whether it be due to logistical issues, lack of promotion, a difficult release date or lack of voter support. Whatever the reason, we are highlighting some of the best non-Oscar nominated work of the past year to remind readers of the excellent films and performances they may have missed in the craziness of Awards season.
As evidenced by the 10 nominations and zero wins for “True Grit” in 2010, Joel and Ethan Coen’s films are notoriously nomi-nated, but are rarely victorious at the Acad-emy Awards. For “Inside Llewyn Davis” to be their first film in five years without a Best Pic-ture nomination is a major oversight. While Hollywood is overrun with high drama and special effects, “Llewyn” is subtle and smart, making audiences think without preaching at them. The film asks us to grapple with the existential crises of an unlikeable pro-tagonist, a challenge that is easily under-taken thanks to the sharp wit and enlight-ened sadness depicted in this recreation of 1960s New York. — CLIO MCCONNELL
BEST PICTURE“Inside Llewyn Davis”
The Best Actor category is one that often exposes the politics of Academy voting, and this year is no exception. Perfor-mances such as Oscar Isaac’s Llewyn Da-vis in “Inside Llewyn Davis” and Joaquin Phoenix’s Theodore Twombly in “Her” have garnered praise from critics and other groups alike, but were completely re-buffed by the Academy this season. The publicized and extravagant roles of this year, like Christian Bale in “American Hus-tle” and Leonardo DiCaprio in “The Wolf of Wall Street,” are stealing the spotlight and acclaim, but actors like Isaac and Phoenix should receive respect for their portrayals of unassuming heroes. — NORA BLAKE
BEST ACTOROscar Isaac & Joaquin Phoenix
It is one thing for an actor to be good in a good movie and another thing entirely for an actor to be great in a mediocre film. Emma Thompson accomplished this feat in “Saving Mr. Banks.” The main draw of the film was Tom Hanks as Walt Disney, but the “Mary Poppins” creator P.L. Travers is the focus of the story. Thompson could have played Travers as the shallow, unlikable caricature she was written as, but instead she made Travers three-dimensional, preventing Hanks from stealing the show. Amy Ad-ams was fine in “American Hustle,” but her Best Actress nomination belongs to Thompson. — MARISSA ELLIOT LITTLE
BEST ACTRESSEmma Thompson
Whether you think “Spring Breakers” is self-indulgent pop art or poignant com-mentary on youth culture, many can agree that James Franco’s performance as Alien, a rapper and arms dealer in the seedy underbelly of Miami, was a brave undertaking. The role could have gone horribly wrong, from his ugly coun-tenance to his obnoxious voice. But Franco uses those traits to make Alien a fascinating character, a man with a crass lifestyle who still has a soft spot. By the end, audiences realize how much he cares for those titular spring breakers while never forgetting his lack of common sense. — ZACH GRULLON
BEST SUPPORTING ACTORJames Franco
Margot Robbie’s turn in Martin Scorsese’s “The Wolf of Wall Street” is nothing short of a powerhouse performance. Playing Naomi, the trophy wife of the Wall Street million-aire Jordan Belfort, Robbie could have easily made her character a caricature. Instead her performance has an intriguing depth, as seen in the film’s prolonged ar-gument scenes. Not to mention Robbie’s superb Brooklyn dialect, which makes it hard to believe that the actress hails from Australia. Perhaps it was the abundance of sex and nudity that turned the heads of the Academy in the other direction, but she certainly deserved a nomina-tion for her work. — DANIEL LIEBERSON
BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS
Margot RobbieWith “Mud,” Jeff Nichols stakes a claim as one of Hollywood’s most promising direc-tors. Nichols’ work is outstanding, from its un-likely blend of delicate romance and outlaw suspense to the startling emotional open-ness of his 14-year-old lead Tye Sheridan. The film draws us between the rich earthy hues of the Mississippi River and the weath-ered scuffing of a small town. Yet most excit-ing was the way Nichols guided his movie star lead into a sweaty, ambiguous fugitive, firing a liberated Matthew McConaughey into the stratosphere and forgoing the traits we know him best for. “Mud” is an authen-tic, vibrant American film and Jeff Nichols is a great American artist. — J.R. HAMMERER
BEST DIRECTORJeff Nichols
“Monsters University” is one of only two Pixar films to not receive a nomination for Best Animated Feature, a category invented in 2001 (the other is the abysmal “Cars 2”). Despite earning critical acclaim and $743 million at the box office, “Monsters U” lost its nomination to the less commercially successful “The Croods,” leaving the world to wonder if Pixar has lost its magic. Yet anyone who has seen the film can attest that this is not the case — just look at the hundreds of unique monsters created to portray a realistic depiction of college life. The Academy may have ended its love affair with Pixar, but Pixar’s golden age is far from over. — MARISSA ELLIOT LITTLE
BEST ANIMATED FILM“Monsters University”
A film that made the Oscar shortlist but not the final cut, Sarah Polley’s “Stories We Tell” is one of the most unique, per-sonal and well-crafted documentaries in recent memory. The film deals with the memory of Polley’s own childhood, as told by her brothers and sisters, her father and family friends, all leading up to Polley discovering a shocking and life-changing revelation about her heritage that forces her and her family to face some buried truths. An examination of family, marriage and the varying versions of the stories we tell, Polley’s film is an emotionally resonant achievement in documentary filmmaking. — IFE OLUJOBI
BEST DOCUMENTARY FEATURE“Stories We Tell”
GRAPHIC BY CICEK EREL | ART BY CASEY DALRYMPLE | INSIDE LLEWYN DAVIS - COURTESY OF CBS FILMS | OSCAR ISAAC - COURTESY OF CBS FILMS | JOAQUIN PHOENIX - COURTESY OF WARNER BROS. PICTURESEMMA THOMPSON - COURTESY OF WALT DISNEY STUDIOS MOTION PICTURES | JAMES FRANCO - COURTESY OF A24 FILMS | MARGOT ROBBIE - COURTESY OF PARAMOUNT PICTURES
JEFF NICHOLS - COURTESY OF SONY PICTURES CLASSICS | MONSTERS UNIVERSITY - COURTESY OF WALT DISNEY STUDIOS MOTION PICTURES | STORIES WE TELL - COURTESY OF ROADSIDE ATTRACTIONS
6 WASHINGTON SQUARE NEWS | THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 27, 2014 | NYUNEWS.COM
THE NEW YORK TIMES CROSSWORD & DAILY SUDOKU
ACROSS 1 Pudding flavor 4 Rapper Lil ___ 7 Take on13 Sea goddess
who rescued Odysseus
14 “Mit,” across the Rhine
16 Mixture of cement
17 “Deliver Us From ___” (2003 film)
18 Actress Rogers19 Less loose20 Member of a
boy band with nine top 10 hits
23 Supply line cutter
24 Fatigue25 Triple-platinum
Sinatra album26 Boundary river27 Western actor
Wooley29 Move like goo
33 Invitation info34 Top-heavy
35 Kitchen counter option
39 Some street gatherings
41 Befuddled42 Jordan’s only
seaport43 Color of el mar44 Crescent45 Enticed49 Calrissian of
“Star Wars” films
52 Expensive boot material
53 Bygone delivery56 “Titanic” or
“Avatar”59 Daisy’s love60 “The Time
Machine” people61 Decline62 Zenith63 Blacken64 Thrilla in Manila
participant65 Settings for
some escape scenes
66 Ten Commandments keeper
67 Do-over
DOWN 1 Buffs 2 Flip 3 “Beat it!” 4 Pack tightly 5 Poet who wrote
“If you want to be loved, be lovable”
6 Little ___ (early comic character)
7 ___ crow flies 8 Weather
warning 9 Beach bag item10 ___ Minor11 Black-and-white
horse?12 “The ___ Affair”
(Jasper Fforde novel)
15 Building unit21 Puffed cereal22 Angel food cake
requirement23 Represses, as
bad memories
27 “___ Bop” (1984 hit)
28 Royal messengers
30 ___Clean31 Actress/model
Kravitz32 Rescue letters33 “Huh?”34 It might be
under a tank35 Barnyard cry36 Snack brand
represented by Sterling Cooper on “Mad Men”
37 Houston sch.38 Cooler part39 Set-off chunks
of text40 Fin45 Its name may be
written with an ampersand
46 Make plain47 Food item
48 Smidgen
50 Less inept
51 The Graces in Raphael’s “The Three Graces,” e.g.
52 Smug look
53 One of the Argonauts
54 Deal
55 Sufficient, for Shakespeare
56 Obstruction
57 Zeno’s home
58 Thunder
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Federal push required for infrastructure repair
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NYUNEWS.COM | THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 27, 2014 | WASHINGTON SQUARE NEWS 7
High taxes hurt small businesses in EuropeGLOBAL ECONOMICS
By ADAM FAZLIBEGU
Federal Bankruptcy Judge Steven Rhodes introduced a timeline on Monday for Detroit’s bankruptcy plan. The timeline, which calls for a hearing to decide the plan’s ap-proval in mid-June, has received strong backlash from both pen-sioners and bondholders. The pro-posal would reduce Detroit’s debt to its creditors and allow the city to invest $1.5 billion dollars on improvements over the next 10 years, but instead of caring for the city’s financial sustainability, De-troit’s pensioners and bondholders are worried about their individual prosperity. Instead of focusing on personal gains, they should take balanced cuts now in order to save the city in the long term.
Detroit’s economy has long been fueled by manufacturing and con-tinues to serve as the home of the recovering American automobile industry. The city’s history is as un-stable as its current economic state. Though prosperous through the mid-twentieth century, Detroit slowly be-gan losing manufacturing jobs in the city to opportunities in the suburbs
in the 1960s, leading to a reduction in its working class. Later, Detroit faced the infamous 1967 riots and a growth in its drug trade, pushing the remaining businesses and middle-class families out of the city. Since 1950, Detroit has lost nearly 60 per-cent of its population.
Now, seven months after De-troit filed for bankruptcy, the city has come up with a solution to its insolvency. The proposal would grant certain unsecured creditors only 20 cents on the dollar. Retired cops and firefighters would only receive 96 percent of their pen-sions and other retired municipal workers around 74 percent of their pensions. It also includes a plan to invest $1.5 billion dollars in infra-structural improvements.
But Detroit’s creditors do not want
to hear it. Leaders of a planned pro-test in favor of pensioners gathered in a church on Sunday and promised to shut the city down if the proposal is approved. They offered an alterna-tive plan that entails cutting payouts to banks and bondholders. What the pensioners do not understand is that the proposal they are opposing is hostile enough to bondholders. The damage they are suggesting be done creates more risks and could increase future borrowing costs.
Detroit is bankrupt and $18 billion in debt. It simply cannot afford to pay off everyone. The faster its pensioners and bondholders come to a reason-able agreement, the sooner the city can rebuild and improve. If the in-volved parties cannot reach a consen-sus, much more will be at stake than pension payments. This proposal may decide Detroit’s fate. If the city and its people aim to restore Detroit to its for-mer glory, they must come together. Otherwise, Detroit will sink into fur-ther financial ruin.
Adam Fazlibegu isa staff columnist. Adam’sAngle is published every Thursday. Email him at [email protected].
By VITTORIO BISIN
In a campaign speech last month, Leader of the Labor Party Ed Miliband promised to raise the income tax rate among England’s wealthiest from 45 to 50 percent if elected prime minis-ter. The Economist jokes that his tax hike will only bring in the amount of money needed to buy a few English Premier League strikers. Although Miliband’s pledge seems to be politi-cally motivated — he might be vying for support from the working class at the expense of the elitist conser-vatives — his move may have unin-tended consequences. By raising taxes on England’s wealthy, the damage to businesses could be significant.
The same problem afflicts conti-nental Europe, specifically France. Last month, President Francois Hollande, who famously declared, “I don’t like the rich,” received court approval to tax salaries over 1 million euros at a rate of 75 per-cent. Like those of Miliband, Hol-lande’s political pet projects are strictly political. However, France is tiring of Hollande’s leadership. Hollande has finally been asked to answer for his country’s stagnant
growth. In response, the conflicted president took a political U-turn, promising a “pact of responsibil-ity” going forward. The “pact” entails heavy cuts in government spending rather than his admin-istration’s usual increases in taxes and subsidized job creation efforts. Considering the liberal platforms that he ran for president on, his supporters feel betrayed.
Miliband and Hollande aside, there is a rising trend among Eu-ropean nations to overburden the rich, hurting attempts at capital-ism. For all companies, higher taxes yield higher product prices for consumers. Aside from the standard incentivization argu-ment — workers taxed more have less incentive to work hard — the greater worry is that firms will
begin to leave Europe in search of more business-friendly econo-mies. With growth in emerging markets occurring much faster than in developed countries, the choice is becoming easier to make. How many French bosses (let alone Chinese ones) would rather launch a company in France than in China, or countless other coun-tries for that matter?
In a survey of 148 countries con-ducted by the World Economic Fo-rum, Spain, France and Italy were ranked 125th, 130th and 146th, respectively, as having the most burdensome government regula-tion. A different study that deter-mined the ease of doing business in a country ranks Spain one spot below Tunisia, France one spot below Armenia and Italy two spots below Belarus. If European officials want to improve their global standing, they must alter their economic trajectory. Busi-nesses will move abroad if they do not.
Vittorio Bisin is a contributing columnist. Emailhim at [email protected].
President Barack Obama proposed a major infrastructure plan in Saint Paul, Minn., yesterday, finally addressing the United States’s aging roads and bridges. The president’s pro-posal is a four-year, $302-billion initiative that will receive its revenue from closing tax loopholes, a measure both parties can support. But more than fixing roads, the undertaking crucially creates jobs. This proposal is a less-than-subtle method from the White House to usher in a new wave of stimulus through a program which gives the promise of tangible results.
The state of America’s infrastructure is so bad that of the country’s 607,000 bridges, over 65,000 are “structurally defi-cient.” More simply, one in every nine bridges needs significant repair. This deficiency is largely because most bridges were built decades ago and have outlived their expected lifespan. While the bridges are not near collapse, they are in need of dire repair and are evidence of the poor state of American infrastructure.
Without immediate action, the United States’s infrastruc-ture will fall behind that of other developed nations. The United States is home to some of the worst traffic conges-tion in the world and has a road fatality rate 60 percent higher than the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development average. The investment in infrastruc-ture will help fix the structural rigidity of roads and bridges and improve traffic congestion across the nation.
In the original stimulus bill of 2009, the Obama adminis-tration created a new program within the Department for Transport — the Transportation Investment Generating Eco-nomic Recovery, known as TIGER, which allows the DoT to fund a range of capital infrastructure projects. The program has been a notable success for the White House, with $3.5 bil-lion spent across 270 infrastructure projects in all 50 states. Obama’s announcement yesterday that a further $600 mil-lion would be given to the TIGER program demonstrates the high regard the Administration has for this initiative. TIGER grants are able to fund a broad spectrum of infrastructure projects at both the local and state level that are not eligible for other forms of federal funding.
Crumbling roads and unstable bridges are the new norm across the nation. Obama’s announcement yesterday qui-etly ushers in a new wave of stimulus for the nation’s de-crepit infrastructure. This advancement is a relief for state budgets that are reticent to spend on expensive, long-term infrastructure projects when more immediate demands require attention. Moreover, this is a welcomed announce-ment from Obama, using the bully pulpit to refocus the nation toward the decaying roads and bridges which they traverse each day.
8 NYUNEWS.COM | THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 27, 2014 | WASHINGTON SQUARE NEWS
many setbacks, this has allowed the younger players on the team to step up. Echoing Cosentino’s sentiments, assistant captain and CAS senior Tim Gumear cites the team’s depth as part of its success.
“Know[ing] that if someone goes down with an injury and we have someone just as good to fill in for them in the short term — that saves us the mental strain that most teams experience when someone gets hurt,” Gumear said.
Having the ability to run four lines on both forward and defense sets them apart from most opponents who are only able to run two lines, which means the opposing teams are likely to burn out more quickly.
CAS sophomore and forward Henry Thomson-Smith said an-other key to success has been the team’s cohesiveness and chemistry in the face of adversity.
“I feel that the character in the locker room has brought our team a long way,” Thomson-Smith said.
The players have managed to turn the obstacle of injures into a learn-ing experience.
“They have been able to create great chemistry throughout the team, which is something that I feel will be valuable in the postseason,” Cosentino said.
Cosentino’s ultimate goal is to bring NCAA hockey to NYU and New York City. After finishing the regular season with an 18-4-2 re-cord and ranking number four in the Northeast region, as well as going 11-2-1 in the Super East Col-legiate Hockey League and rank-ing number two, it looks like the program is well on its way.
In addition to a national pres-ence, NYU Ice Hockey is making itself known around campus. One of the highlights this season for
Gumear has been the newfound support of NYU students.
“Throughout my entire career here at NYU, I have never seen so many fans as we have had on a nightly basis,” Gumear said. “It’s great to see people take the ef-fort to get to the rink to cheer us on day in and day out. Creating that presence in the NYU Com-munity has truly made me proud to be on this team.”
NYU has been seeded in Pool A with Lindenwood and Utah State, as well as Florida Gulf Coast, who is ranked #1 in the Southeast di-vision and the team’s first oppo-nent in the tournament.
Brittany Yu is a contributing writer. Email her at [email protected].
Despite many injuries, teamwork and practice bring success
HOCKEY continued from PG. 1 NYUminton hones in on skills before upcoming tournaments
By KATHRYN JONES
Despite injury and lack of prac-tice time, the birdies of the NYU Badminton team flew past their competitors this season.
NYUminton, as the players call themselves, dominated matches against Princeton and Rutgers universities at Rutgers on Satur-day. After losing their first game, first-time mixed doubles pair graduate student Qian “Tina” Ma and CAS junior Karan Baweja adapted to win the last two games of their match.
Stern freshman Andy Xia said although singles player and graduate student Dong Wu lost against one of Princ-eton’s best players, the match was exciting.
“The level he played at that game was very impressive, con-sistent, explosive and patient,” Xia said.
NYUminton earned second place on Feb. 2 at the 2014 YO-NEX Northeast Collegiate Team Badminton Championships. During the premier year of Bos-ton Badminton’s tournament, 16 schools from the northeast region competed in two divi-sions in Westborough, Mass., from Feb. 1 to 2. NYU played in Division I and qualified for the finals but lost to Drexel Univer-sity, the one team they did not defeat in the regular season.
Matches against Syracuse University and Drexel left the players injured and fatigued the first day. Relying on IcyHot and team massages, NYU improved the next day.
CAS senior Mingqi Wu braved the second day of YONEX with a sprained ankle, and NYU-minton reversed the upset of falling behind new opponent
Cornell University with 4-5 to qualify for finals.
Since the team went to YONEX during the first week of the se-mester, Head Coach Devin Do-browolski and the team captains, Stern sophomore Wanmeng Zhang and Baweja, held a one-day practice session and team scrim-mage in Flushing to prepare.
“One thing that the team has con-stantly struggled with is adequate practice time,” Dobrowolski said. “It’s hard to become better than your competition when they can practice two, three or four times more than you can every week.”
NYUminton practices at Coles Sports and Recreation Center, sharing court space with the vol-leyball, basketball and tennis teams, as well as other club sports. The players have one team prac-tice each week on Sundays and a recreational practice for all club members on Fridays.
To keep up with other schools, Dobrowolski dedicates the first 30 minutes of practice to intense conditioning. Practice also helps Dobrowolski select the top 10 men and women to make the of-ficial team, out of NYUminton’s 75 active members.
Typically, the team competes with about six schools per aca-demic year, as well as other tournaments, playing against schools from across the nation in the Intercollegiate Badmin-ton Association. The season ended with a record of 4-0-1. With only five matches this semester instead of six, NYU-minton came close to the same record as last year, 5-0-1.
Kunta Wu, who spent six and a half years on the team before graduating from the Graduate School of Arts and Science in January, said the team’s close-ness is essential for success.
“I think the fiercest weapon of our team is our trust and team bonding,” Wu said. “We believe that as long as we are together, we can beat anyone.”
The team prepares for their first New York City Badminton Team Invitational Tournament on April 19 and the IBA championships in May. The captains look to improve the players’ accuracy and stamina before then.
Kathryn Jones is acontributing writer. Email her at [email protected].
Senior Paul Zazarnovsky stays focused on the ice.
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Members of the badminton clup prepare to receive the birdie.VIA NYUBADMINTON.BLOGSPOT.COM
