When my parents told me our family's winter vacation plan, I groaned. The prospect of heading to the West Coast sounded entertaining. But renting a car to drive from San Fransisco to Los Angeles? With my family? Mom, Dad, you've got to be kidding.
We hadn't taken a road trip since I first came to Duke-a rented van filled with all my worldly possessions, my parents, my brother and my sister. Mom, she touched me! Dad, I hate this radio station, can't we try something else? I don't remember how many times Dad threatened to put up a taxi-style window between the front and back seats.
Three-and-a-half years later, and we tried it again. But as it turns out, three and a half years can make a girl's siblings much more likable....
Despite my surprisingly enjoyable vacation, I am glad to be back in the swing of things-and I'm especially glad to present you with this edition of TowerView. We've got an impressive diversity of stories, starting with this issue's cover, an in-depth look at Duke's troubled football program by Brody Greenwald and Kevin Lees. Mary Carmichael's piece on robotics paints an eerie portraits of where technology can take us, and Phil Tinari's analysis of Duke's "multicultural" discourse poses questions about whether the school's leading panelists have forgotten their purpose. Dave Ingram returns to the election we'd like to forget in his examination of whether third parties could ever survive in our political system. And Randy Lioz rejoins TowerView's staff after a semester in Spain, where he learned more than just the language.
All in all, we've put together an issue that I know will challenge your perceptions of the world around you. Besides, anything is better than being smushed into the backseat of a Lincoln with your brother and sister.
- Jaime Levy, editor
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