You thought Midnight Madness was all for show, but the Hoyas will already be playing for keeps next Friday. Top-rated prospect Greg “The Doctrine” Monroe will be in attendance for the annual celebration that marks the first minute college hoops teams can start official practice (I wonder if he’ll have to wait outside for a ticket?). Monroe has already put the Hilltop on his short list of possible destinations, and recruiting-industry bigwig rivals.com says Georgetown may have a leg up on landing the brainiac big man. Better make some noise, Hoya fans, ’cause the McDonough facilities aren’t going to impress as much as the digs at his next stop.

-Mike Stewart, Managing Editor

Suffering for fashion? Well, let the Voice tell you what’s up this fall.  View the fantastic photos in gallery format here.

Also this week:

-The University will be making some changes in response to the alleged hate crime on September 9.

-Still, the editorial board wonders why administrators kept the assault under wraps for so long.

-The Darjeeling Limited is only showing in 19 theaters nationally this weekend, and 3 of them are easily accessible from Georgetown (the Loews, E Street, Bethesda).  Taylor Hobson reviews the newest Wes Anderson offering.

-Men’s soccer plays tough but can’t catch a break… except for the broken injured ankle senior captain and Voice player of the week Mike Glaccum played on.

Plus Burmese Monks, alcohol policy and more in this week’s Voice.  Available at all fine locations on campus.

-Mike Stewart, Managing Editor

It’s homecoming weekend, when alumni and students alike revel in Georgetown traditions like Jack the Bulldog, the Fight Song and of course Georgetown’s glorious football tradition.  What, you didn’t know about the powerhouse Hoyas Hilltoppers?  Tony Francavilla digs into Georgetown’s past to tell the tale of the Great Gilroy and Georgetown’s must successful season.

Also from this week’s magazine:

-DPS carrying mace and batons should be a reality by next year, reports Crystal Chung.

-The speech is over, but the debate definitely isn’t: the ed board weighs in on Mahmoud Ahmadinejad’s appearance at Columbia (let dictators choke on their own words), while Or Skolnik offers a well-reasoned counterargument.

-Jheanelle Brown, communications director for the GU NAACP, responds to the Jena 6 controversy and the viewpoint expressed in this column from the Hoya.

-Sara Carothers reports on a unique performance lined up for the Davis Center, and GU student Joshua DeMinter’s innovative response to the Black Atlantic Project.

-Thinking of wandering away from the tailgate long enough to catch this year’s homecoming game?  Phil Perry looks at how the Hoyas and Cornell stack up.

And so much more in the magazine and on our website.   Until next week, you keep on writing us letters and we’ll keep on bringing the news.

-Mike Stewart, Managing Editor

This week’s issue is full of goodies. I’ll let it speak for itself:

-Thinking about going abroad? Or are you a returnee battling for credit while missing the experience? Check out Madeline Reidy’s feature on where your study abroad money goes (or went). Rejected headlines include “Mo Money, Mo Problems” and “OIP on U.”

-The Georgetown community remembers 9/11/01 six years later. We here at the Voice add our best wishes to all those affected.

-BIG news on the continuing party policy saga: Metro keeps a list of “problem houses” where each new complaint will result in immediate arrests, report Juliana Brint and Crystal Chung. The news echoes Metro’s new arrest-first policy (reported by the same duo) and comes amidst rising neighborhood complaints about the Georgetown policy, reports Lynn Kirshbaum.

-In response, the Voice editorial board tells Metro to get their priorities right.

-Anthony Francavilla penetrates the world of D.C. bocce (Italian lawn bowling). I, for one, will be signing up next year.

-Size doesn’t matter, but artistry does at the D.C. Shorts film festival, writes Tae Jung Choi.

-Louisa Aviles argues that a favorite target of supposedly enlightened activism shouldn’t be dismissed so quickly. It’ll give you some food–and clothes, and medicine, and toys, etc.–for thought (at low, low prices).

Check out the rest of the issue over at the main site or in print–it won’t disappoint. As always, we look forward to your comments, which you can send to thevoice@georgetown.edu. Take it easy, folks.

-Mike Stewart, Managing Editor

Avid readers of The Washington Post were regaled Wednesday morning by Hope C. Bogorad’s letter to the editor ridiculing student complaints about Georgetown’s new alcohol policies. Besides being based on multiple logical fallacies–most notably, straw man (claiming that Georgetown students can’t complain about anything else while the country is at war, even though activism on both fronts is not mutually exclusive) and poisoning the well (more on that later), with a nice bit of spotlight (believing all 18-25 year-olds should be drafted because of a few quotes from Georgetown students against an unrelated policy), ad hominem (we must always pass out when we drink) and special pleading (unless, of course, Hope spends all her days solving the dilemmas of Iraq and Afghanistan) thrown in. That’s five fouls in 50 words; it’s the logical equivalent of fouling out five minutes into a game without scoring. And that’s before even touching the obvious grammatical error in her first four words (which should read “if there ever were“).

What’s more, she bemoans the “appalling behavior” of Georgetown students (this is the well being poisoned). Let’s count up every single one of the actions Post article depicts students taking: 1. Not having parties at a “typical party spot.” 2. Feeling blindsided by a rule change that did, in fact, come without discussion. 3. Creating a Facebook group. 4. Bringing home a case of Bud Light and not have many people over to drink it. 5. Offering various docile quotes in opposition to the party. 6. Allegedly holding noisy parties, with no direct quotes about it. Appalling!!!

Most disturbingly, let’s take Hope’s argument out to its logical conclusion: students who are willing to be vocal about infringements on their rights to assemble peaceably and (especially for the many students who are 21) to imbibe alcohol (which actually very rarely involves passing out) should be sent to Iraq and Afghanistan, where they would risk death. Students who want to enjoy weekends the same way college students (before, during and after Hope’s generation) have traditionally done should be forced to risk death.

Rest assured, Hope, that we would never harbor any similar wish for you. We just hope you’ll think responsibly in the future.

-Mike Stewart, Managing Editor

I know it feels like forever since last Thursday, but there’s finally a new Voice to make you, in the words of Kanye, harder, better, faster, stronger. You may want to pick it up to read on Friday night, since the new party rules have effectively killed the campus party scene, Kate Mays reports. Other highlights include:

-Four months after a fire threatened its existence, Phil Perry finds Eastern Market thriving even as rebuilding continues. Chalk up a victory for community spirit and fresh, delicious produce.

-Boldly going where no Hoya has gone in over 50 years, Alex Buzbee comes justaboutthisclose to making the Redskins, Anthony Francavilla reports. Could he end up playing on Sundays?

-University President Jack DeGioia speaks about college rankings, alcohol policy, lecturing in China and more. John Lawless has him On the Record for you.

-Has the “new” Leo’s been sufficiently ruined for you? Sara Carothers suggests something completely different: Malaysian.

-The Villa is one way to get a culture exchange in Italy. Answering a job offer in an unsolicited e-mail and boarding a bus to nowhere in particular is another, Sarah Harman found out this summer.

-The Voice Ed Board puzzles over the relaxed SFS language requirement. This may be a Catholic school, but speaking in tongues is an acquired skill these days.

That’s just a small sampling of the flavors that make up this week’s tasty issue. Thanks again for reading, and hit us up with any news tips, comments, questions or concerns.
-Mike Stewart, Managing Editor

Classes got you down? Grab a copy of the Voice on the way–unless you really enjoy reading the syllabus… Here’s a few highlights:

-You’ve seen the ambulance (hopefully not from the inside), but what’s a night in it really like? Clare Malone rides along with GERMS and lives to tell the tale.

-The Voice editorial board adds its props to GERMS while it continues to worry about the state of D.C. schools.

-Emergency text-messages may not be so reliable, according to the company that provides them. Will Sommer reports.

-MetaTube? Dan Cook takes a look at the best YouTube videos about… YouTube. It’s always endearing when technology becomes self-aware.

-Finland may not have fjords, but it’s one step closer to football thanks to Hoyas quarterback Matt Bassuener, Phil Perry reports. Anthony Francavilla catches up with GU Sailing, which quietly remains Georgetown’s most successful sport.

-Voice Editor-in-Chief Tim Fernholz brings his righteous anger down upon the new party and alcohol policies, and explains why you should too.

The next issue of the Voice could star you! Bring yourself to Leavey 413 on Friday, August 31 at 5 p.m. to get involved. Everyone welcome, no experience necessary (although it never hurt).

As always, thanks for reading, and drop us a line if you’re so inclined.
Posted by Mike Stewart, Managing Editor.

Along with the basketball royalty on hand for the Hoyas’ 100th birthday celebration (Phil Perry explained why it’s not the 100th anniversary), savvy fans might have noticed D.C. Mayor Adrian Fenty seeing and being seen, particularly in front of the student section (non-pep band side) during the second half of the Marquette game.
He failed to raise his arms in the air and draw in his breath during Georgetown free throws. Shame.

Maybe he’s parsing his ability to takeover Georgetown as well.

Posted by Mike Stewart, Associate Editor

It’s election season again at Georgetown, which means in a few weeks and after numerous appeals Martha Swanson will have handpicked a successor to Twister. Nevertheless, students will still be granted the privilege of participating in mock elections, and it appears this year’s ultimately meaningless battle for hearts and minds will be fought on YouTube. Here’s a breakdown of the videos: (more…)

The section of Google’s web page called Google Labs is a little bit like Disney World.  It’s where you can try out all of Google’s cool new Google things while they’re still working on them. And none is cooler than this little guy right here, called “Google Trends,” where you can look up roughly how many people are searching for any given thing and where most of those searches are coming from.

Maybe that doesn’t sound that exciting, but check out all the things you find out about the world and maybe even your hometown (I sure learned a lot about mine!):

• The UK is obsessed with “monkeys,” with different cities holding spots 1-8 on the top 10 (Sheffield is #1)
• Don’t make out with Canadians.  They have the top 4 cities for “cold sores” (Edmonton, Calgary, Vancouver and Ottawa)
• People in Cairo, Egypt love “fat women,” clocking in miles ahead 2nd-place St. Louis, Mo.
• St. Louis does care the most about “fat men”
• Philadelphia, Pa. (my hometown!) loves “beer”; Vancouver, Canada comes up again for “liquor” (Canadian cities own the top 3), and Portland, Ore. is the place for “marijuana”
• St. Louis also has an inexplicable love of “poop” (Philadelphia 7, Washington not on there despite everyone on the Hill being so full of crap)
• Hicksville, New York is the town most in a “Billy Joel” state of mind; Harvard kids, too (Cambridge, Mass. 7)
• We now know what those Egyptians are doing with those fat women, as Cairo also came up #1 for “sex”
• no American city cracked the “sex” top 10, proving we’re holding up a little false modesty compared to the rest of the world
• People in Birmingham, UK have nothing better to do than look at “porn”; in fact, it seems to be a UK-wide thing.  Los Angeles is the only American city on the list.
• Spanish-speaking countries dominate those trying to find “Jesus” (Latin America in particular); Dallas, Tex. comes in 10th.
• Spanish-speaking countries also appear to be finding the 80s, as La Paz, Barcelona and Buenos Aires were the top 3 searchers for “Duran Duran”
• Despite their collective reputations, Philly, New York and D.C. may be the most polite places in the world, based on the number of searches for “thank you”

So, there’s just a bit of the glory.  Go ahead and waste hours.  It’s too much fun.

Posted by Mike Stewart, Feature Editor