The rosy-fingered hand of Morningside Heights.

It’s actually Wednesday afternoon! Which now means that it’s Pizza Wednesday. That’s right, Boringside enthusiasts—Nussbaum’s deal formerly known as “Pizza Sunday/Monday” has become an everyday offer. Morningside heaves a collective sigh of contentment and not-as-broke-ment; weight gains ensue.

Aaaand speaking of eating, a tipster reports seeing a “hilarious number” of graduates, still swathed in gowns, dining with their families at our very own Campo. Which makes each of those graduates just about the most clothed person that has ever been at Campo, ever. Ever.

Last but not least, we have a Squirrel Man sighting for you folks at home! He too donned a robe this week as he walked about campus and used his hands to attract squirrels.

Boringside: because you don’t have anything better to do with your summer freedom.

Girl handwriting on a boy hand via Wikimedia Commons.

Name, school: “Roxanne” Unger, CC

Claim to fame: Two things: COÖP Coordinator and sophomore year I ate only one color every day for a week with my roommate Nora Rodriguez. Blue day was the hardest (blueberries and Hpnotiq).

Where are you going? I’ll probably get a professional job or career at some point. Once that’s accomplished, I’m sure I’ll be really busy with meetings, conferences, teleconferences, conference calls, and office gossip –not to mention all the pant suits and memos. So I most likely won’t be reachable by anyone but business associates and professional colleagues. Your best bet will be to try my beeper.

Three things you learned at Columbia:

1. Rooftops are accessible –don’t take no for an answer.

2. Mice are inevitable, and they will parade about your kitchen like they own the place. I’m talking to you, Melissa.

3. Sometimes you’ll win a free meal at Community by making a dress out of trash, and sometimes Community will burn down before you’re able to use it.

“Back in my day…” Ferris Booth wasn’t all-you-can-eat. I recently ventured back, blacked out, and emerged 2 hours later having eaten my weight in egg salad. Thanks, Columbia?

Justify your existence in 30 words or fewer: If a Fahrenheit 451–type situation were to come about, I’d be able to recount most of the original Star Wars trilogy by heart. The prequels can go up in flames for all I care.

Is the War on Fun over? Who won? Any war stories? Who knows if this perennial struggle will ever truly be over, but think it’s fair to say that the seniors won a decisive victory this year with 40s on 40. The night, however, was not without casualties. In hot pursuit of known criminal Javi Plasencia, I barrel rolled (or was it tripped… I don’t remember) over a chain fence on college walk. In the process I lost my phone and my dignity.

Would you rather give up oral sex or cheese? Whoever chooses oral sex for this question has never tasted manchego.

Advice for the class of 2015:

1. Pass/fucking/fail. You should do this every semester. You can always uncover it, so it’s a win-win

2. Never feel guilty about taking a nap. When you need sleep, you need sleep. Personally I think it’s almost always worth it.

3. Don’t freak out if you don’t meet your BFFs in the first week of school. There are sooo many incredible people at Columbia, and you’ll find amazing friends!

4. Do COÖP!!! One of the best decisions you’ll make!

Any regrets? No regrets! I loved my time at Columbia, and I wouldn’t change a thing. I will, though, say this: We’re in this together, COÖP, never tell anyone.

Bwempire State Bwuilding

The Empire State Building will be given over to Columbian peer-honoring this evening. Continuing the tradition of the last two years, the lights will be white and blue to celebrate graduation.

2011, we salute you!

Phallic much? via Wikimedia

Name, school: Grace Laidlaw, Columbia College

Claim to fame: Director of Nightline (Dec. ’09-Dec. ’10); Scriba, then Whip of the Philolexian Society; Writer for CCT; Maker-upper of puns

Where are you going? Stay tuned. I know I will.

Three things you learned at Columbia:

1. That clothing can be purchased by the pound.

2. That switching to the 2/3 is usually worth the risk.

3. That the swim test requirement is serious business. (The “24 hours after your last exam” rule, not so much.)

“Back in my day…” Uni was Pinnacle, 5 de Mayo was Bengal Café, dining points were worth having, and the Morningside Bible Guy didn’t go below 110th.

Justify your existence in 30 words or fewer: My last UWriting essay was about morality in Titus Andronicus. I titled it “Unsavory Characters.” (… Get it? Get it? Eh, eh?)

Is the War on Fun over? Who won? Any war stories? Honestly, I think we’re doing okay. Then again, I may be biased because I never got over the novelty of staying up late. I still think there’s something inherently fun about being awake after dark, and I’ve found plenty of fellow night owls at Columbia; Philo afterparties routinely last until daylight, and Nightline counselors are up until 3 a.m., even on school nights—really, they haven’t got a choice.

Would you rather give up oral sex or cheese? Hrm. I’m guessing head cheese is out either way?

Advice for the class of 2015:

1. Take advantage of free campus theater. Latenite and the KCST spring show in particular are not to be missed.

2. Beg, bribe, or blackmail your way into Nicholas Dames’s Lit Hum section.

3. CC/SEAS kids: If you want a single as a sophomore, apply for LLC housing.

4. Reach out to people. It’s easy to drift apart from the friends you make freshman year, but it’s not inevitable.

5. Relax. No one else has things completely figured out, either. And in case you ever just need to talk, there’s this really great hotline you can call…

Any regrets? Wish I’d stayed indoors more and found an SPF that would protect against fluorescent lighting. I once very nearly got a tan.

Having being directed all around campus yesterday by Public Safety officers and people in ponchos concerned Bwog did not have a press pass, Intrepid Underclassmen Peter Sterne finally found the press section and settled in to watch the commencement of SEAS Class Day. After a procession of old alums, professors, and administrators, KevSho took the stage, asked Prezbo for permission, and kicked off the festivities.

The first to speak was the president of SEAS 2011, Amanda Tan. Both she and valedictorian Norases Vesdapunt drew on their experiences as international students trying to fit in at Columbia. While Tan delivered heartwarming anecdotes, such as her “first immigrant holiday—Thanksgiving—spent with the family of a fellow Columbia engineer,” Vesdapunt spiced up his speech with jokes. Before coming to Columbia, he recalled, he underwent a crash-course in American culture, learning, among other things, the real meaning of “3rd base.” Once he got to Columbia, he fit it just fine, though he did have to explain to some of his peers that his home nation of Thailand is not the same place as Taiwan!

The keynote speaker, Ralph Izzo, MS ’79 PhD ’81, and current head of a company involved in green energy tech, spoke about the importance of engineering knowledge in the world. He recalled his fondest memories of Columbia, “sitting with friends around an old coffee table solving the world’s problems.” Unfortunately, he admitted, he never actually succeeded in fixing the world, which means there are still plenty of problems—chief among them the development of clean and sustainable energy—left for the Class of 2011 to solve.

Dean Feniosky Peña-Mora started his speech by making the newly minted engineers stand up and thank their families and professors, including two visiting professors from Italy nicknamed “the fancy ones” in honor of their eccentric (to American eyes, at least) graduation robes. He then moved on to advice, telling the grads they should strive to use their specialized knowledge to contribute to their communities, no matter how small their contributions may seem. Alluding to chaos theory and the idea that a butterfly flapping its wings can lead to a hurricane on the other side of the world, Peña-Mora told the Class of 2011 to “go forth, flap your wings, and make us proud!”

PrezBo, the only non-engineer to speak, began by thanking “Dean Feni” and lamenting that “I wish I knew what you know.” He went on to explain that most of the world’s problems require technological solutions, and hence engineers. But he cautioned that these “problems are not just technical problems; they’re also human problems.” If only there was an educational program that combined the technical knowledge of engineering with the humanism of the liberal arts—oh, right.

Perhaps the most interesting speech came from Joshua Gaspard, the designated “grad student speaker” who is receiving his second MA at Columbia after getting an undergrad degree at West Point. Gaspard said Columbians would change the world, and predicted that the Class of 2011 includes someone who will cure cancer, someone who will develop a clean and sustainable form of energy, and someone who will develop a financial program and make billions of dollars. “But all joking aside,” he argued, “99% of you will have no global impact on the world.” Unexpectedly, the graduates erupted in uproarious, and perhaps nervous, laughter. Taken aback, Gaspard explained that while most graduates will not make world-changing discoveries, they will have real impacts on the thousands of individuals in their neighborhoods who will rely on them to better their lives. It was a nuanced point, and one that the audience seemed to appreciate.

Finally, it was time to read off the names of the graduating undergrad and grad students, which Bwog estimates numbered about 1,200 and took a half-hour. Afterward, it was time for “Stand, Columbia,” “Roar Lion Roar,” and snacks on Hamilton Lawn. Unfortunately, Bwog did not see any Jell-O shots this year, but we did spot some adorable Blue-and-White cookies.

Congrats to the Class of 2011!

Photos by Hans Hyttinen

The Government, circa 1862

In addition to telling you who are the best writers and journalists of every shape and size in the world, the J-School is now going to turn a critical eye to the workings of the American government. Columbia Journalism School announced yesterday the creation of The New York World, a publication that will “provide New York City citizens with accountability journalism about government operations that affect their lives.”

Accountability journalism is a set of journalistic practices set forth by former Washington bureau chief of AP, Ron Fournier. These disregard some of the fundamental tenets of journalistic ethics, such as commitment to evenly report on all sides of an issue, and instead call for reporters to write what they believe to be the truth behind, say, a politician’s statement, presenting a nuanced opinion instead of taking it at face value.

New York World will be a website that allows citizens to see, among other things, how tax dollars are spent and how services are allotted in the city; it also promises to be a news service for local news agencies, providing them with city data and other information.

The publication is currently hiring recent J-School grads to work alongside faculty and current students on the project. Bwog, although not above scoffing at journalism “students,” can’t help but wonder what sort of interning opportunities might arise. Undergrads need jobs too!

Bureaucracy from Wikimedia Commons

Name, school: Jonathan Jager, GS/JTS

Claim to fame: You may remember me from such places as the Marching Band (former Drum Major and Head Bananager) and various campus theatre events (CMTS, KCST, CUP, CUPAL, and the Theatre Department). I was also in an episode of BwogWeather.

Where are you going? Uptown to live, downtown to work. I’ll be moving to Washington Heights and working as an assistant at Big Heart Theatrical. Also looking for freelance composing/arranging/conducting gigs. Let me know if you find any.

Three things you learned at Columbia

(all courtesy of old class notes)

1. About half of English literature is just references to what’s in the Core.

2. The best professors are the funniest professors.

3. Taking notes about historical events in dialogue is much more entertaining.

“Back in my day…” We had real protests. Where are all the hunger strikers/Ahmadinejad-related fiascoes/liberals making the Catholic League angry?

Justify your existence in 30 words or fewer: I turned a vuvuzela into a melodic instrument. I can also tap dance horribly, but shamelessly. I think this redeems me as a human being.

Is the War on Fun over? Who won? Any war stories? The War on Fun is a result of the Columbia bureaucracy realizing they have bureaucratic powers. I dealt with this every week during football season. But if you are nice to the right people, you can get pretty much anything you want at this school. As for stories, during the Hunger Strike, I was part of a group that “counter-struck” by standing on the Sundial eating and reading The Joy of Cooking aloud. That’s not really part of the War on Fun, but this seemed like a good place to share that story. Also, if we tried it today, Public Safety would probably stop us.

Would you rather give up oral sex or cheese? I gave up cheese 7 years ago when I found out I was lactose intolerant, so this is a non-issue. But if giving up oral sex meant I could digest dairy again, I’d do it in a heartbeat.

Advice for the class of 2015: Spend a summer (or 3) in New York. You can either do all the readings and never go to class, or always go to class and never do the readings, but only one of those options frees up your evenings. Take advantage of the free/cheap cultural offers you can get as a student like you roofied them. And this sounds trite, but seriously, go to a sporting event, especially a football game. What else are you really doing on a Saturday afternoon anyway? Student athletes are people too, and they appreciate a cheering crowd. Plus, I like to think the Marching Band is entertaining.

Any regrets? Not taking Lit Hum when I had the chance. Then I would have gotten all those Core references.

Looks like the Business School really did not like the accusations leveled at them in “Inside Job”, the 2010 Oscar-winning documentary about some of the people believed to be accountable for the 2008 financial crisis. The film equally criticized giants of Wall Street and some economists from Columbia, Harvard, NYU, MIT. These academics, including Dean of the Business school R. Glenn Hubbard, were alleged to be concealing conflicts of interest, by accepting handsome payments to advise on public economic issues. The B-School’s new policy changes have clearly been made with the intention of greater transparency.

According to Spec, a new policy, instituted last week, would require B-School professors to “publicly disclose all outside activities—including consulting—that create or appear to create conflicts of interest” in a section in their CV, which is to be updated at least every six months. This section would “list all outside organizations to which [the faculty member] provided paid or unpaid services during the past five years.” Professors are now also required to disclose similar information in their yearly Financial Activity Reports.

Columbia came out very badly in the film (see clip below), where interviews with the faculty got extremely uncomfortable. The Business School likely hopes that this new policy, more rigid than general University policies, will restore some credibility to the school and return it to the halcyon days when all the B-School did was throw parties in Uris and teach kids about the benefits of hygiene.

Name, school: Akhil Mehta, SEAS

Claim to fame: Former publisher of the Columbia Spectator and one time water polo “freshman phenom”

Where are you going? First to Europe with Doug Yolen and Keshal Patel, then to a cubicle in midtown.

Three things you learned at Columbia:

Columbia always thinks of you as a liability, especially when you think throwing oranges at Ruggles from John Jay is a good idea (its not).

For 99% of people on this campus, it is possible to get 8 hours of sleep a night without sacrificing academics, fun, or friends.

How to efficiently model stochastic processes, simulate random variables, assign probabilities to anything, optimally bid at auctions, and manage inventory. These skills are surprisingly applicable in the real world.

“Back in my day…” JJ’s was the place to be and actually had good food, there were hunger strikes, protests, and “bias incidents”, and the Morton Williams receipts said “Welcome class of 2011”…oh wait, that still exists.

Justify your existence in 30 words or fewer: When the Toronto Maple Leafs win a Stanley Cup I will be the guy with the sign that says “Now I can die in peace.” Also, I’ve worn a kilt.

Is the War on Fun over? Who won? Any war stories? I think the seniors won the war on 40s on 40; that was an awesome evening and went undisturbed. I don’t have any personal war stories, a combination of being friends with RAs and abiding by the “if they can’t see it, hear it, or smell it, it doesn’t exist” rule.

Would you rather give up oral sex or cheese? One is a means to an end and one is an end in itself. If you can get the end, I say give up the means.

Advice for the class of 2015:

1) Find an activity that you’re passionate about with people you like. You don’t have to be the best at it, but the people you meet will become some of your best friends at Columbia.

2) Explore the campus – there are tunnels, roofs, hidden study (or do something more scandalous) spots, and a room full of pillows.

3) Live in John Jay – if you want quiet and solitude, close your door. If you want to hang out with people, they’re always around. And you’d be surprised how many people you can fit into a John Jay single; I think our record was 30.

4) Take floor hockey, it’s the best PE class

Any regrets? Not taking a Gulati econ class, missing the 114th Varsity Show, never watching a football game, doing an RA sponsored citywide scavenger hunt sophomore year, not being able to take a language, only figuring out CampusFood was awesome two weeks ago, and only taking floor hockey four semesters.

Bwog feels a tinge of resentment towards these accomplished ladies for making us feel like such couch potatoes, but only couched in the warmest of feelings.

Congratulations to Kaley Hanenkrat and Elizabeth Reynolds, BC ’11, the most recent (as-of-today) BC alums, to be awarded Fulbright grants. Julia Philips, BC’10 and Britain Hopkins, BC ’09, also received grants.

Elizabeth will be working on a project in China, looking at how the commercialization of thangkas (Tibetan silk paintings) has influenced Tibetan cultural identity in China. The Asian and Middle Eastern cultures major she plans to pursue a doctorate in East Asian Studies after completing her Fulbright project.

Before joining the Peace Corps and working towards a PhD in political science, Kaley will spend her Fulbright year studying post-Orange Revolution activism in Ukraine.

We’ll be posting names of Columbia recipients when they’re released!

Lovespud via Wikimedia

If you didn’t get a chance to pick up a copy of the May issue of The Blue & White on campus, you can still peruse the highlights on Bwog. Read about the shockingly sincere history of Barnard’s Greek Games, an interview with the renowned physicist Brian Greene, and forthcoming is a a harrowing (and fictional) account of the muscles that guard the cheeses at Westside. Every month we try to capture a somewhat droll snapshot of life on campus in our Postcard from Morningside. This month, it’s all about the cranial fashion!

Illustration by Stephen Davan

Name, school: Alyssa Lamontagne, Columbia College

Claim to fame: In the immortal words of the Barenaked Ladies, “I have a history of taking off my shirt.” I wish that weren’t so true.

On a more serious note, I was the Editor in Chief of C-Spot for the last two issues, the token silly old man in King’s Crown Shakespeare Troupe, and most importantly, I founded the Columbia Class of 2011 Facebook Group, which rocketed a simple loudmouthed Canadian to fame and fortune for approximately two weeks.

Where are you going? I’ll be living uptown for about a month while looking for a job until I move to White Plains with my handsome American boyfriend. I’m Canadian and so I get a year to work in this fine country until I get shipped back up North. All of this is just to pass the time, of course, until I write the great Can-American novel or else find myself a grumpy, embittered public school teacher with three cats and two chin hairs, which I assume will grow as soon as I fail to achieve my dreams.

Three things you learned at Columbia

1. A few people here actually believe Canada is made of permafrost, but most people don’t. The idea that Americans are fairly knowledgable about other countries isn’t popular in Canada. There are a lot of extremely intelligent, open-minded people in this country who have made me want to stay, even though I’ve had people back home call me a traitor.

2. Some things just aren’t worth fighting about. I used to argue about everything before I got here, especially politics. A year on John Jay Nine with my dear but super conservative friend Big Texas taught me that some people are just never going to agree with you no matter what, and often it’s far more pleasant to change the subject than to sit there arguing over a fence in Arizona.

3. Sometimes it feels really great to get naked with your friends. After a few months of hiking your breasts up to your neck it’s easy to feel that your body exists only for the amusement of others, which is kind of scary. Getting naked with the people you care about in a non-sexual way invokes a freedom and a feeling of personal ownership over those great boobs of yours, even if it’s only in a shirts-off-o’clock context.

“Back in my day…” Obama wasn’t president. No matter what your politics are, it has drastically affected the way Columbia students perceive ourselves within America. After Obama became president we were innately tied to the American identity, despite being perceived as an ultra-liberal institution. I’ve seen some of my friends go from being ashamed of their country to moderately cool with their country.

But that’s just, like, my opinion, man.

Justify your existence in 30 words or fewer: I’m aggressively friendly and may have even helped introduce you to a new friend. That friend might be me, but that’s even better, right? Right?

Is the War on Fun over? Who won? Any war stories? Half of the parties I attend in EC are still broken up by public safety, so I’m going to give a resounding no to that first question. Then again, ever since the Bond Party first year (the glory of which we have come close to but never been able to duplicate), I haven’t considered a party legitimate unless it’s broken up by the NYPD and you’re running down the stairs in a giant pack of girls in underwear, desperately trying to chug a stolen forty before you get out on the street.

It’s not conclusive, but from the murmurings I hear about the next few days, I think we may win it by the end.

Would you rather give up oral sex or cheese? I would gladly choose death.

Advice for the class of 2015:

- Like my friend Mke Kennelly said, have a few different friend groups. If you expand your base, you’ll never be stuck going to something alone and awkwardly standing in a corner just because your friends didn’t want to go.

- The best cure for a hangover is a bottle of vitamin water and an egg and cheese from Nussbaum.

- Make friends with your dorm’s security guards, and treat them nicely. That goes for anyone that you encounter. In the world. Ever.

- Get a job. Get multiple jobs. And go to them. Now’s the time to learn how to be a real person.

- Get internships. Shitty, unpaid internships or paid ones, it doesn’t matter. You will need them so you do not become a crazy homeless cat lady like me.

- Get naked and love your body and accept compliments with grace. Accept insults with humor. Enjoy your jiggly bits.

- You may have one or more mental breakdowns while you’re here, but everybody hurts sometimes. Don’t be afraid to ask for help, because that shit is free for the first ten sessions.

- Have fun in the manner that most suits you. If you want to stay in on Friday nights and have LAN parties, then do it, but relax, for God’s sake.

Any regrets? I regret nothing that I’ve done; I regret only those things I didn’t do.

Name, school: James Dawson, CC 11

Claim to fame: Pissing off Eric Foner. I wrote a Spec article suggesting that Columbia should do more to promote conservative scholarship (i’m fairly progressive), and Foner didn’t care for it. At all. He started out his 280-person “United States in the era of civil war & reconstruction” class with a rant about why I suck.

Where are you going? Yale law school in the fall. And then to Austin, Texas.

Three things you learned at Columbia

1. People who do crazy amounts of work are doing college wrong.

2. Not all investment bankers are bad people.

3. The shortcut on koopa troopa beach.

“Back in my day…” this question was not asked on senior wisdoms. Seriously, though, back in my day, there used to be tennis courts overlooking broadway where noco is now. My Columbia tour guide called it “the best place to play tennis in the city.” So much for that.

Justify your existence in 30 words or fewer: My dad is a timber farmer. I know how to fell a tree. Also, the names and parties of all 100 senators. I’ve been to every state? Intramural kickball champion?

Is the War on Fun over? Who won? Any war stories? There was, of course, the notorious ruggles paint party in 2009. an entire suite covered in finger paintings, Jackson Pollock knock-offs, and one really creepy clown (it glowed in the dark). It took two hours of folks walking in and out of ruggles literally covered in paint for the poor public safety lady to realize something was up.

Would you rather give up oral sex or cheese? My high school economics teacher once used “consumption of cheese cubes” as the perfect example of diminishing marginal returns. Not so with oral sex.

Advice for the class of 2015

For some reason—and I really do believe this—the smartest people i’ve met here have also been the nicest. Be kind!

Otherwise: do independent studies, make time for pleasure reading, do the stop and chat on college walk, be a tour guide, do intramurals. Listen to this american life!

Final pearl of wisdom: if you show up at columbia and someone you meet seems cool to you, ask them out. People tend to get involved in relationships quickly. Don’t get left behind.

Any regrets? Not taking sailing for my pe!

Name, school: Avi Edelman, BC (see below)

Claim to fame: President of EAAH, Co-author of “Columbia students living in sin” policy, that guy who gives Spec quotes about safe spaces…

Where are you going? First, being Camp Director of a sleepaway camp in bumblefuck, MD. Next, juggling knives in Union Square until someone offers me a film job. Then, directing Fat Bitch 3 starring Tracy Jordan.

Three things you learned at Columbia:

1. You get unlimited license to complain about the Columbia community if you do something to try to make it better. You also get unlimited license to host celebrations for every success and unlimited license to launder ABC/SGB money into buying supplies for said celebrations.

2. It doesn’t feel so bad to pull all-nighters on homework if you’ve spent the day and evening doing things you love and being with people you care about. Plus you can always sleep after college when you are unemployed.

3. All Bwog comments are funny, none should be taken seriously, and all written by the same person. And I know who you are, Jim Applegate!

“Back in my day…” some students got so mad about the quality of food in John Jay that they went on strike. The food didn’t improve, but we got global core and ethnic studies out of it.

Justify your existence in 30 words or fewer: The other day, President Spar told me she would let me transfer to Barnard for my last week of college!

Is the War on Fun over? Who won? Any war stories? Let’s be real. We like the war on fun. We need the war on fun. If we didn’t have a common enemy to unite us, what would we do? Go to football games?

Also, no bar will card you if you show up in drag. Good option until you turn 21. Or after…

Would you rather give up oral sex or cheese? Anyone whose ever had some good fromage à trios knows you can’t have one without the other.

Advice for the class of 2015:

Please sing this advice to the tune of “Tic Toc” by Ke$ho. Preferably out loud in a public setting.

Wake up in September and you’re now in college (what up kids)
Good thing you got advice from a senior’s knowledge
‘Fore you leave, get involved cuz you give a damn
And find those really special friends (like my brother, Sam)!

I’m talkin’ campus it is awesome
But do not be a bum bum
Explore the city some some

Your classes will be great great
But your friend don’t overrate rate
Real bonds you can create

CU, baby blue
Do the things you love to do
Next year, have no fears
Do not stress about careers
Make it last, have a blast
It will all go by too fast

Colum-bia
Colum-lum-bia

Use your brain, keep it sane
Butler is a house of pain
When it’s nice, don’t think twice
Go outside (that’s good advice)
Enjoy it all, spring and fall
Nostalgia will find you all
Colum-bia
Colum-lum-bia

Also, get some rain boots. The drainage here sucks.

Any regrets? If I had only known transferring to Barnard would be so easy…

Endeavour's launch today

Space. The final frontier. That’s true today more than ever, as the space shuttle Endeavour soars into the heavens for the final time (after multiple expensive delays)! Now that Endeavour has launched, after a final flight from the Space Shuttle Atlantis next month, manned space flight in the United States will be grounded for quite some time, with NASA focusing its limited budget on unmanned missions. Partially as a result of the 2003 explosion of Space Shuttle Columbia, NASA moved to quickly end the Space Shuttle program. They planned to develop a successor, but Obama nixed that plan in favor of giving almost $270 million to private companies to build new spacecraft. Obama would like to see humans on Mars by 2030, but the government has no concrete plan to make this happen.

Most Americans will take some solace in the fact that the commander of this final launch is Mike Kelly, husband to Gabrielle Giffords, the Arizona congresswoman attacked by a gunman earlier this year. Columbians have another reason to feel proud—the pilot on this final spaceflight is none other than Columbia alum Greg Johnson, MS ’85, whom the Blue and White interviewed last year. We also have the advantage of living in New York and partying on the Intrepid, which will soon be home to Enterprise. And of course, Columbia contains the Goddard Institute for Space Studies, and we can keep debating what they should be doing—without worrying about what’s actually possible in (or just above) the real world.

It may be a long time before we boldly go where no one has gone before, or even just where no one has gone since 1972. But one thing’s for sure: whenever the US restarts its manned spaceflight program, Columbia will play an integral role. Live long and prosper.

Update: A Bwogger happened to be on the scene and set us this home video of the launch. Cool stuff:

Photo via NASA