It was Sunday night and we were all enjoying a friendly dinner, until someone accidentally dropped the Z-bomb. Normally I wouldn’t have noticed, but this time it caught my attention, because I hadn’t even known “Zionist” wasn’t appropriate for dinner conversation anymore. At least that’s the impression I got when one of the girls at dinner objected to her friend labeling her a Zionist” the way someone might not want to be called a liberal or a conservative” in front of everyone.

An article titled “Second thoughts about the Promised Land” in the January 13th issue of The Economist cites a survey by Steven M. Cohen, a research professor of Jewish Social Policy at Hebrew Union College-Jewish Institute of Religion, that found that only 17% of American Jews call themselves Zionists. The number of American Jews who consider themselves pro-Israel far exceeds that number.

So, why are so many pro-Israel American Jews avoiding the term Zionist? In a phone interview with Prof. Cohen, he explained that there are divergent definitions of the word: “Zionism believes there is something strongly lacking from Jewish life outside of Israel, either Jews will assimilate or Judaism outside of Israel is distorted or Jews will always suffer anti-Semitism — but in common parlance, especially in America, especially recently, it comes from [another] definition, that means bolder pro-Israel ideology.” With Zionism attached to a specific, more right-wing pro-Israel ideology, it also invites a backlash, which explains the dinner Sunday night.

David Twersky, the Director of International Affairs and the Council for World Jewry at the American Jewish Congress has another explanation for the decrease in Jews identifying themselves as Zionists. Twersky links the aversion to the word to the changing identity of American Jewry. “Zionism grows out of circumstances in which peoplehood and ethnicity matter and as they decline among American Jews, the substance out of which Zionism grows begins to evaporate.”

Despite falling on the liberal side of the Israeli political spectrum, I’ve always called myself a Zionist. That’s why I was surprised when my friend wanted to keep her Zionism under wraps. For me Zionism has never had a political connotation. Left-wing, right-wing, as long as you believed in the idea of a Jewish state’s right to exist, you were a Zionist. Or so I thought. But somewhere along the way (some might argue immediately after Israeli independence), the meaning of “Zionist” changed.

One way or another, the definition and the very nature of Zionism is evolving. But, that won’t keep me from using the word at the dinner table.

Sylvester Stallone holds Talia Shire in this scene from the 1976 film classic “Rocky.” (AP Photo/Files)

The bar has been set almost impossibly high for this year’s commencement. And in a situation of such impossible odds, is there really any question of the right candidate? If there’s one man is qualified to meet insurmountable expectations, it’s Sylvester Stallone. And after last year, is there any reason he shouldn’t speak?

Last year around this time Penn’s seniors waited anxiously for the administration to announce their pick for commencement speaker. Who would they choose for this auspicious occasion of Penn’s 250th graduating class? Bill Clinton? George W. Bush? The ghost of JFK? Surely they would pull out all the stops for the semiquincentennial.

So who was the illustrious dignitary chosen to follow in the footsteps of UN Secretary General Kofi Annan? None other than Jodie Foster, naturally.

Officials cited Foster’s filmography as evidence of her concern for “particular social issues,” such as “the parent-child issue [and] violence against women.” Foster further demonstrated awareness of the “parent-child issue” by quoting Eminem, a rapper whose own sensitivity to the issue is well documented.

So why shouldn’t Stallone address this year’s graduating class? Stallone’s most enduring character, Rocky Balboa, ranked #7 on the American Film Institute’s list of top 100 Film Heroes. He’s no ordinary icon. He’s been immortalized in stone.

More than that, Stallone can draw on his life experience to offer something for everyone. As a director, his films which include four of the six Rocky films and the classic sequel to Saturday Night Fever, Stayin’ Alive, have grossed over 360 million dollars domestically. That feat, coupled with his involvement in the Planet Hollywood franchise makes him uniquely suited to teach the next generation of Wharton entrepreneurs to “eat lightning” (costs) and “crap thunder” (revenue).

Furthermore, Stallone wrote and directed Rocky IV, heralded by some scholars as the greatest Cold War movie of all time. I would argue the movie actually ended the Cold War itself. Students of political science, history and international relations have a lot to learn from the auteur behind this film.

And with 22 writing credits including all six Rocky’s, all three Rambo’s, and the brilliant Over the Top, the Italian Stallion can speak to Penn’s aspiring writers as well.

Still not convinced? The Oscars don’t lie. Jodie Foster has won two Oscars in her lifetime. Stallone? Equally blessed with two.

This year Stallone pulled off the ultimate comeback with the writing/directing/acting opus, Rocky Balboa. Stallone speaking at Commencement 2007 may be “a million to one shot,” but that’s exactly why he’s the right choice.

OAR at Fling 2006 (Toby Hicks/The Daily Pennylvanian.)

Tonight at 8:30 in Irvine Auditorium, SPEC held its first Spring Fling committee meeting. Let’s hope they’ve learned a few things from recent history, otherwise we’re all in for another rough Fling. With the right combination of consultation and promotion, SPEC can make sure that Fling doesn’t disappoint.

In recent years Penn students have watched with a mix of jealousy and shock as our Ivy League colleagues were treated to shows by hip-hop royalty Kanye West and Snoop Dogg at Cornell’s Slope day and indie rock gods The Shins and Wilco at Brown. Even Yale found a way to be cooler than us by bringing Ludacris to their spring concert.
Meanwhile Spring Fling, one of Penn’s greatest traditions, hasn’t quite kept up with Penn’s reputation as the party ivy. In 2005 students practically rioted (okay, so Penn kids don’t riot, but they sure didn’t buy tickets) with the selection of Cat Power, Sonic Youth and Citizen Cope.

Last year SPEC overcompensated by picking O.A.R., a choice that was at least four years too late. They were right to attempt more consultation with the student body, but they played it too safe.

After all, all 3 of their 2005 picks followed up fling with stellar years. Cat Power’s The Greatest debuted at #34 on Billboard and received an A from Spin. Sonic Youth’s first album after Fling, Rather Ripped was picked as one of the best albums of the 2006 by both
Pitchfork and
Rolling Stone. Meanwhile, Citizen Cope is on the rise too. In the past year his music has been featured in episodes of Conan, Entourage, Scrubs and the new Justin Timberlake vehicle, Alpha Dog.
The subsequent success of SPEC’s Spring Fling choices shows that Penn students might not be the best judges of talent. It also shows another glaring weakness in the Spring Fling process. SPEC’s job isn’t over when they choose the bands. They still need to sell the tickets. Last year they took the easy route by choosing name recognition over talent. They shouldn’t be afraid to take risks as long as follow up with promotion.

The problem with Spring Fling 2005 wasn’t that the musicians weren’t talented. The problem was they weren’t well-known to most Penn students. With promotion as simple as a web site with links to the band’s music and building some decent awareness and buzz on campus SPEC can avoid some of its recent missteps.

Another add/drop period is upon us and with it all the usual frustrations and mishaps. As a second semester senior this is an especially delicate process. I’m trying to cram those few remaining general requirements into my schedule without disrupting my social and sleeping schedule. The past week has been a quest for that ideal, but elusive class. The one with no friday recitation, a 4.0 professor rating, a 1.0 course difficulty rating, no farther east than 36th Street and no earlier than 11 a.m. Maybe these aren’t the easiest standards to fulfill. Still, I find myself wishing for a better registration system. If not to help out my classmates and me (senioritis and all), at least to improve the process in general.
Since coming to Penn, one of the things that has annoyed me the most is the complicated registration system.

At UCSB, a school twice the size of Penn, the registration system was simple, effective and relatively stress-free. But here at Penn the system is so messed up that people have to rely on ‘illegal’ programs like Class-Buster to enroll in the classes they want. Rather than recognizing Class-Buster as a wake-up call, the University responded by discouraging students from using the program and warning them about giving out their Pennkey, as if that was the most pressing issue at hand.

There are several ways to improve the process. Some of the best would involve a complete overhaul of registration including when and how students pre-register for classes. Serious reform would require a lot of time, research and consultation between students and administrators. Until then, there is simple way to improve things for students: expand the search options for registration on Penn InTouch. Students should be able to search for classes by date/time and also by sector of the curriculum so that they can easily find classes to fit their schedule. Penn students can already search for classes that fulfill Quantitative Data Analysis, it would be a easy and useful tool to search by sector or date and time.

We’re Penn students and we’re busy. Between classes, clubs, volunteering and jobs it’s hard enough putting together a decent schedule. Allowing different search options won’t completely fix a system that’s clearly broken, but it will help Penn students deal with it a little better in the mean time.

By now, I’m a Penn vet, but when people find out I transferred from UC Santa Barbara, which depending on who you ask is either a cesspool of debauchery (a little from column A, a little from column B?), people are shocked.

How could you leave? Which is better, Penn or UCSB?

The best way I can illustrate the transition from UCSB to Penn is this: Open the DP op-ed section of the DP . What are you reading today? You’ll find a collection of well-written, provocative columns on campus issues. Meanwhile, 2800 miles west at UC Santa Barbara my former classmates are being treated to an op-ed section that’s provocative, for different reasons.

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