This week Vox underwent a regime change. In a clash of titans, Baby Connor “Sparklecakes” Jones conceded his throne as Vox overlord to Julia “TB” Tanaka. Although discharged of his duties, Jones’s legacy will never be forgotten. Frequent Vox reader and casual troll, GFK, could barely contain his emotions:

meh

Life post-Vox can be an adjustment for some. However, before Jones can rebuild the scorched ruins of his social life and return to the world of the living he has one last debt to pay. Zombie Muammar Gaddafi said:

where’s the obligatory 4/20 post? did you “forget”?

Following the ban on the on-campus keg limit, Vox has been buzzing with excitement about the upcoming Georgetown Day festivities. What’s more, she finds herself uncharacteristically impressed with GUSA, and she is not alone.  heading to dixie said:

Wait, GUSA actually did something? No lie, slightly impressed

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In an email to students this afternoon, Chief of Police Jay Gruber announced that DPS will be increasing security on campus in light of the recent acts of terrorism in Boston. Last night, in particular, 26-year-old Sean Collier, an MIT police officer, died in an armed confrontation with the men suspected of perpetrating the Boston Marathon bombings.

Gruber says there will be an increase in police presence in the short term on campus. “There will be an increased number of uniformed public safety officers on campus,” he said. “We are also coordinating closely with the Metropolitan Police Department to mobilize resources as needed in our area.”

He additionally encouraged students to remain vigilant and report suspicious activity when they encounter it. “Vigilance is important. If you are off campus, we also suggest that you remain aware of your surroundings and report any suspicious activity,” he said.

Though he also cautioned that Georgetown has received no specific threats either: “Please know that this message is precautionary and there are no threats to campus at this time.”

D.C police has been under increased alert for the past few days as well. Just Tuesday, an unnamed police force removed the trash cans from the immediate area surrounding the Capitol building, since the Boston Marathon bombers planted their bombs in trash cans. A school district in New Hampshire even decided it would cancel its upcoming eighth-grade school trip to Washington, D.C. over security concerns.

If you haven’t looked at any news outlet today, Boston Police have a massive manhunt underway for one of the suspects of the bombings Dzhokhar A. Tsarnaev. Police are going door-to-door in Watertown, Mass. looking for Tsarnaev and anyone related to the bombings. The other suspect, his brother, was killed last night in a shootout with police.

Ahead of Vox‘s favorite day to enjoy nature, D.C. gives us another reason to be glad Georgetown is located in such a liberal city.

A new poll released today by the Drug Policy Alliance and the Marijuana Policy Project found that 63 percent of residents supported enacting Colorado-esque legalization schemes here in the District. A further 78 percent of residents said that they would like to expand D.C.’s medical marijuana law so that doctors could prescribe cannabis to patients for any condition whatsoever. (The current law has quite restrictive limits on what conditions doctors may prescribe marijuana for.)

67 percent would like to see fewer police resources devoted to catching people who smoke weed. More than 4,000 people were arrested for marijuana possession in D.C. last year.

Mike Debonis over at the Post notes that, three years ago, the District was fairly evenly split when it came to the issue: 46 percent in favor to 48 in opposed. D.C. is likely following national trends which now show that a majority, or a near-majority, of Americans support the legalization of marijuana.

This most recent poll, however, has people talking about the possibility of a 2014 ballot initiative either decriminalizing or legalizing marijuana in the District of Columbia. Mason Tvert, the Marijuana Policy Project’s director of communications, told HuffPost D.C. that advocates of legalizing marijunana “will be talking to community leaders and elected officials about various options for adopting a more sensible marijuana policy in D.C., including the possibility of a decriminalization ballot initiative campaign as early as 2014.”

Who knows? If a measure does get sent to the ballot box, we might finally see droves of Georgetown students registering to vote in D.C.

Photo: Zervas via Flickr

Bo, not to be confused with the First Dog of the same name, was playing around with his owner on the front lawn when the Voice‘s Backpage Editor Tiffany Lachhonna happened to walk by. He couldn’t be more content with the simple pleasures: green grass, attention, and sticks, as the photo above attests.

The White House announced earlier today that Georgetown’s very own President Jack DeGioia will be part of the exclusive presidential delegation to attend the mass for the inauguration of the Pontificate of His Holiness Pope Francis. The Mass begins at 9:30 a.m. local time on Tuesday, on the feast of St. Joseph.

Leading the delegation will be Vice President Joe Biden, whose relationship with Catholic Church hierarchy remains strained after, you know, being pro-choice and all. Some bishops have gone so far as to say that Biden shouldn’t receive Catholic communion. Also, the contraception mandate kind of riled up that whole group of people.

Among the other Catholics in the delegation is former Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi, herself quite pro-choice as well. When she met with Pope Benedict in 2009, he reportedly took the time to lecture her on her duty as a Catholic to use her political clout to limit the use of abortion. “His Holiness took the opportunity to speak of the requirements of the natural moral law and the Church’s consistent teaching on the dignity of human life from conception to natural death which enjoin all Catholics, and especially legislators,” the Vatican wrote. For her part, Pelosi shrugged it off and emphasized their discussion about poverty and climate change.

The inclusion of Republican New Mexico Gov. Susana Martinez makes the delegation bipartisan. Unlike the rest of the delegates, the pro-life Martinez’s reputation remains untarnished in the Church. Sitting Republican Speaker of the House John Boehner declined the White House’s invitation, citing the need to focus on his work in D.C. and (probably) to avoid another opportunity for public crying.

The mild-mannered DeGioia has been somewhat of a controversial figure among Catholics and conservatives especially. An entire blog is dedicated to cataloging all of Georgetown’s purported aberrations from good Catholic teaching, which isn’t even to mention the famous alum who wants to get Georgetown’s status as a Catholic university revoked. The Cardinal Newman Society has taken out GeorgetownScandal.com at various points in time to organize petitions against University actions, such as its decision to invite the pro-choice graduation speaker Kathleen Sebelius.

While it’s fitting that the president of the first Jesuit university in the United States will attend the inaugural mass of the first Jesuit Pontiff, with such a controversial group of people, there’s bound to be some awkward conversations. It doesn’t help things since the last time Pope came to D.C. in 2008, Benedict snubbed Georgetown for a visit, instead, to Catholic University.

Photo: Hilary Nakasone/Georgetown Voice

Between protests, a visit from the Secretary of Defense and the kickoff of this year’s GUSA campaign, Vox had a busy week. All you trolls out there must have felt like a bunch of kids in a candy shop … or maybe like a bull in a china shop. Anyway, here’s the best of what you came up with:

It seems as though Marc Gerson’s sentencing last week has left Walter White high and dry:

hey georgetown students hit me up

Fortunately for Walter, Not the DAE came to the rescue:

@Walter White: want to meet up somewhere?

Vox is sure they are meeting for some meaningful conversation, and maybe to enjoy the fresh air.

Secretary of Defense, Leon Panetta, visit to campus last week also caused a stir, but not enough of a stir, as studNet pointed out, to awake the clip-boarded wrath of GU Occupy :

No you’re-murdering-our-children protest? Looks like Occupy doesn’t wake up early.

Of course they do, studNet. Unlike some people who read this blog, they were all in class.

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In an email blast, the Office of Student Housing informed students of the special housing guest policy during the 2013 inauguration. For the period between Friday, Jan. 18 and Tuesday, Jan. 22, students are permitted to host a maximum of two guests, which they must register with the housing office beforehand.

The email includes a friendly reminder that, as always, subletting isn’t allowed.

They also suspect that students will want to “gather” in townhouses and apartments during the long weekend. Although Housing hopes student gatherings are “fun and safe,” party rules still apply.

Due to the long holiday weekend, we are expecting students will want to gather in apartments and townhouses. We want you to have a fun and safe gathering and to remind you that University policies remain in effect.

The University adopted a nearly identical policy during the 2009 inauguration, even though this year’s email doesn’t include the line “we reserve the right to limit the number of parties in a given area.”

The District is bracing for hundreds of thousands of visitors on Inauguration Day, though 2013′s affair is expected to be more subdued than 2009′s.

The full email is posted after the jump.

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Every year, Vox tackles the various vices many students engage in during their college years: drinking, drugs, sex and smoking. As a disclaimer, Vox isn’t advocating underage drinking or the use of illegal drugs, and most of this information comes from outside sources, not firsthand experience.

Drinking

Despite what some tour guides reassured your parents, drinking is a sizeable part of social life at Georgetown for many people. If you look for a party on the weekend, you will always find one.

During New Student Orientation, many freshmen will wander the neighborhood in packs listening for noise that might signal a party. We advise freshmen who find parties to avoid inviting their entire floor or drinking everything as soon as they can.

If you’re over 21 (or have an ID that says you are) and prefer bars, here are some of the more popular nearby options:

• Chadwicks (3205 K Street): Good happy hours and champagne brunches.
• Epicurean (On campus, under Darnall): Offers karaoke, and is usually occupied with doctors from the hospital.
• Old Glory (3139 M Street): Strong drinks, good barbecue; the covered back porch with a bar makes it convenient for smokers.
• Rhino (3295 M Street): Sketchy, but good wings and a good chance of spotting Real World cast members or Kobe Bryant.
• Rugby (1065 Wisconsin Ave): As part of a Ralph Lauren store: very, very preppy.
• Third Edition (1218 Wisconsin Ave): Relatively cheap, lots of dancing; famous for having its exterior used in St. Elmo’s Fire.
• Tombs (1226 36th Street): The closest bar to campus and filled with students, but also the strictest with IDs.

How strict a given bar is with accepting fake IDs varies from bouncer to bouncer. In the past, fake ids have been confiscated at Third Edition, so be wary. Generally, Vox would discourage you from trying your fake at Third Edition or Tombs.

If you’re looking to buy your own alcohol, the best bets are Towne (1326 Wisconsin Avenue), Wagner’s (1717 Wisconsin Avenue) and Dixie (3429 M Street). Vox recommends you get to know the employees are Dixie–they’re a friendly and often inebriated sort. Wisey’s also sells beer and wine.

Booey’s is a great alternative to overpaying for drinks at a bar. Although its only open until midnight, the pitchers are cheaper than most places in Georgetown.

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Last Monday, Georgetown woke up to the news that a resident of Burleith put up a sign encouraging students to walk to the “S.N.A.P. bus stop” several blocks away. A self-proclaimed proud burleither thought the idea was a good one.

they should make a SNAP bus so you can throw up in there instead of on my lawn

don’t Georgetown students ever have to study?

Every spring, the Voice dedicates one issue to feature the best of Georgetown photography, taking submissions from the Hilltop’s creative community. Last year, Keaton Bedell (COL ’13) won with this powerful image, titled “Levitation.” To see the rest of last year’s winners, click here.

The winning photo in this year’s contest will be featured on the cover of our April 26th issue, while the following top photos will be featured on the inside spread. Both color and B&W photos are accepted.

To participate, please send your high-resolution photos to photo@georgetownvoice.com before midnight on Tuesday, April 24th. Make sure to include your name, school, and graduation year. Feel free to include a blurb about the photo and a potential title.

In previous years, Hoyas have submitted impressive displays of photographic skill. Check out the best of 2010, 2009 (Vox‘s favorite), and 2008 for inspiration!