Author: Carrie

On Thursday, April 23rd, our very own Liza Behrendt debated talk show host Michael Graham on WTKK. She did a damn good job, I’d say.

Click here to listen.

Quite frankly, Graham’s focus on Officer Schroeder is entirely inappropriate on this topic. I can get into this later, but if he’s looking for an ideological fight on this issue, he can come find me.

Funny how Graham considers himself an aficionado on the Weather Underground enough to tell Liza that she made up her own facts. Well done, Michael Graham.

Finally, to answer Michael Graham’s question, no amount of bombs should revoke an individual’s freedom of speech.

In an attempt to distract myself from actual work, I came across this forum called Mass Cops – Massachusetts Law Enforcement Network. On it, they decided to post the Justice article relating to the closed-door faculty meeting and demonstration. The comments are absolutely HILARIOUS and I highly recommend that you take a look and laugh a little. I swear, laughter is more fun that you last remember.

Enjoy.

First and foremost, I send my sincere thanks to Jason Gray for encouraging President Reinharz to hold the forum for undergraduate students. Jason has proven himself to be a very valuable resource by advocating for the needs of the students. Simply put, he continues to impress me. In addition, I must extend a warm thank you to President Reinharz, as well as Peter French and Marty Krauss, for agreeing to hold this forum. Continue reading “Reflections on Today’s Forum”

To those who are interested in the latest news on the budget cut student meetings and issues, please feel free to add yourself to the listserv.

bbcc@lists.brandeis.edu

Finally, an article that I can fully support.

Go read Naomi Spector’s latest addition to The Justice here.

And for the barrage of comments that my title will undoubtedly get – it’s sarcasm. I promise.

Tonight! Castle Commons! 9pm!

Join Students for a Democratic Society and Democracy for America as we work to establish a student voice among the budget cuts. For those who are unaware of the issues going on within the language department, look beneath the fold!

Continue reading “Budget Cut Meeting – TONIGHT!”

First and foremost, if you have not yet cast your opinion in the Brandeis Water Bottle survey, I highly suggest that you do such right now. Thank you.

For those of you who have voted, you were greeted with the following question to which you casted a vote:

Recognizing the social, environmental and economic implications of bottled water, should Brandeis University reduce the sale and distribution of bottled water on campus?

It is difficult to deny that this question is biased in its wording. To me, the phrasing of “Recognizing… implications” prior to the question at hand suggests that whoever wrote it was angling for more “yes” responses. Personally, I support a reduction, if not elimination, of the sale and distribution of bottled water on campus. Still, I was more than a little dismayed by the bias that this question exhibits.

**Please note, the following post should NOT serve as an endorsement of any kind. Thank you. -Carrie

For those of us who walked around the Massell Quad on Tuesday, it was hard to miss the words written on the walkways with masking tape – “Vote Narayan.” A creative use of Union materials, no doubt, that could arguably be the reason he pulled up one extra vote over Savannah Pearlman which led him into the final round against Nipun Marwaha.

Narayan is a curious creature among the Massell Quad candidates as his fliers and facebook group do not dictate a platform. In fact, when speaking with him last night, he was open in admitting that he had no platform to his candidacy. While I would imagine this fact may deter others from voting for him, I find this stance to be oddly refreshing and a welcomed change of pace. Granted, specified platforms are the only items that stand in the way of turning Student Union elections into popularity contests. Still I cannot resist a qwirky, irrelevent poster which brings a sense of playfulness to the baseless tension and drama that these elections cause.

Continue reading “What’s with Narayan?”

Very rarely am I ever as upset as I presently am. Just a few minutes ago, I received an introductory e-mail from Senator-At-Large Justin Sulsky. This e-mail was written to all the first-years on campus. After giving a two sentence introduction providing the reader with minimal information, he segways into reminding all first years to vote in the Vice Presidential election. Directly following the link to vote, Sulsky moves into a full endorsement – with bolded text! – of Andrew Brooks.

Anyone with common sense can see that this endorsement was intended to abuse the naivete of first years who are less than familiar with Brooks’ schemes for Senate seats. My favorite line of all:

I support Andrew because he will bring a badly needed fresh perspective to the Student Union.

Apart from being utterly false, the above quote has poor sentence structure. Go below the fold for the entire contents of the e-mail.

Continue reading “Another Senate Seat Scheme”

As a new writer to Innermost Parts and a new student to the Brandeis campus, I see the value in reading through previous posts published on this blog. Granted, I only grasp a quick glimpse into the many dilemmas of the previous year, there is still so much perspective and insight from my fellow writers that I greatly value.

Take a look at the April 18th, 2008 post by Lev. My favorite quote of all:

We need to ensure that candidates who want to take action and transcend petty politics fill these seats.

In my case, I demand a candidate to take action, not just “want to take action.” I demand an activist, not someone who wishes to bring back “an activist spirit.” I demand passion, not politics. I am forced to question the validity of a man’s words when this man disregarded activism in one election and then made it one of his main platform components in another.

I am clearly a Brooks skepticist. But then again, who am I to question the motives of this man?

I am a voter, and that’s my responsibility.

Please extend a warm welcome to Carrie, our newest contributor here on Innermost Parts. – Sahar

As a first year here at Brandeis, I was overwhelmed by the turn-out this past Thursday night in the Shapiro Atrium as Barack Obama gave his acceptance speech for the Democratic Party’s nomination for president. While I am fully aware that this is a fairly liberal campus of individuals, there was something very reassuring about such a large group. While I suppose that it is entirely possible some were simply passing through for a trip to Einstein’s, there is no doubt that so many went out of their way to be there.

And as I sat there, in awe of our future president’s words, I thought: What if everyone in this room made an effort to help elect this man? What if, apart from their own vote, they helped to get out the vote of others, both on and beyond this campus?

Sure, we all have things that need to get done – things that perhaps rank above helping to elect the future leader of this nation – but what else is stopping you? Are you afraid of being labled a “crazy liberal?” Are you afraid of reaching outside of your comfort zone? Are you afraid of putting yourself out there? Well, my friend, some fears rank secondary to the fear of four more years of a failed war, four more years of the same failed policies.

So I urge you to break free! If you cared enough to take in Obama’s words that night, care enough to pass the message. Care enough to help change the country because if you won’t, who will?