King's Watch - Mar. 2012 by The Watch

march 2012. Volume Xxix. Issue Vi

Table of Contents march 2012. Volume Xxix. Issue Vi

Editors’ Note No girls allowed Charlotte Harrison without borders Philippa Wolff King’s Cross Siobhan Fleury food revolution Niko Bell ¡La Lucha Continua! Charlotte Harrison The hockey grail Christian Pollard So you want to be a king’s student? Davis Carr Dine on in Dijon Rebecca MacDonald Significant scar Jonathan Briggins The View from Guatemala Charlotte Harrison More Cheers, Less Tears David Salenieks the price of cheap drinks Kai Miller Editors-In- Chief Evelyn Hornbeck Charlotte Harrison

treasurer

Simcha Walfish

Production Manager Davis Carr

Publisher

Ben Harrison

copy editor

Philippa Wolff

photo editor Alex Estey

Online Editor Jon Finn

3 4 5 6 8 10 12 14 17 18 20 22 23

Board of Publishers

James Shields, Dave Etherington, Paul Pritchard, Nick Gall, Alex Boutilier, Fred Vallance-Jones

But if the watchman see the sword come, and sound not the trumpet, and the people not be warned; if the sword come, and take any person from among them, he is taken away in his iniquity; but his blood will I require at the watchman’s hand - Ezekiel 33:6 2

Editors’ Note We’ve had quite the run. Since we took over last April, King’s has a new president, a new canteen and new budget cuts. And through all of that, we’ve taken a different direction with The Watch. If you reread our editors’ note from last April, it sums up our mandate: to serve the King’s community. And what we gave you was a hard look at how things work here. From some sober second (and third) thoughts on a major union enterprise to the school’s administration’s disregard for student voices, we’ve worked hard to hold those in power in our community to account—to “comfort the afflicted and afflict the comfortable.” That’s the oath editors of this publication must take. Certainly King’s deserves dedicated people to not only record, but to question and discuss. And we’re damn proud of what we—and our fantastic contributors— have done for this magazine, and for the school. You’ve heard it before, but it doesn’t stop being true: the Watch is what you make it. Treating this space as though it were useless, powerless, hopeless only makes it so. But treating this forum as an opportunity to inform and empower our community gives it the credibility it needs. We need. You’re right: the content isn’t always perfect and the copy isn’t always spotless. But a lot of people put a lot of restless hours into these pages because they believe student journalism can change things. If more King’s students can take off their cynical caps and believe too, we could have a much finer publication. We’ve come a long way since our first issue, and so has King’s. The last issue of this exec is an homage to the places King’s has taken us or will take us : to Israel to share ideas about journalism (p.5) or on a train to Montreal together (p.6); to El Salvador to promote democracy (p.10), or to Guatemala to capture pain and beauty (p. 20); to an exchange in France (p.17), or to a new learning experience in these halls (p.15). These stories show that when we leave King’s, we take it with us, too. And as we leave The Watch, we take with us the truest value we uphold: “See the sword, sound the trumpet.” Thanks for everything, King’s. We’re passing it off to the new exec (under the WATCHful eye of Char, who returns as publisher), and this mission it now theirs. If you want to keep us up to date about your travels (or talk to the new editors), you can always find an ear at watcheditors@gmail.com. Best, Evey and Char

news

No Girls Allowed

The Boys’ Club takes a stand for women’s rights Charlotte Harrison

The Boys Club, a discussion group for male-identified people which began at King’s, wants guys to consider gender equality a men’s issue. The club recently joined a protest against a Q104 radio contest they deemed sexist. The campaign was called “The Male is in the Czech,” and gave men the chance to win a trip to Prague, where the winner would meet a group of “Czech beauties” through a dating service. The contest ended on International Women’s Day (March 8), which Boys Club founder Omri Haiven called “ignorant”. “I don’t even think they thought about the significance of that day,” he said. NSCAD student Derrick Dixon was the first to speak out against the ad. Boys Club member John Wasteneys took up the cause and created a Facebook group to share his indignation. The contest was brought up at several Boys Club meetings, said member Sam Krawec in an email. “The Q104 contest emerged as a clear example of gender-based oppression, and a number of us felt compelled to respond,” said Krawec. “Sexist and hyper-sexualized depictions of women, the use of women as prizes, and the promotion of a wild male sex drive are (all) aspects of a rape culture that the Boys Club is committed to ending.” The Boys Club and others involved in the protest contacted Q104 repeatedly to urge them to end the contest. Several complaints were also submitted to the CRTC, said Krawec. The Campaign was named “Shame on Q104.” The protest at the Q104 headquarters on March 8, which the Boys Club helped organize, attracted a few dozen protesters. Reactions from Q104 staff members and fans were dismissive, said Krawec. “(They) continue to insist that we are overreacting to something they see as normal—despite us telling them that the normality of rape culture is exactly what we are protesting.” While Q104 made no apologies for the contest, the protesters’ voices were heard in national media, including Metro and the CBC, thanks to a statement made by Halifax MP Megan Leslie in the House of Commons. Leslie had received a petition

“People don’t like to admit that genderbased oppression is a men’s issue” 4

with 700 signatures, signed by members of the Boys Club and other concerned community members. “This is the environment we’re asking women and girls of Halifax to live in, one where they’re offered up as trophies,” Leslie told the House on March 8. “As a woman, I am furious.” The Boys Club was formed out of a similar sentiment: anger at the oppression of women and at stereotypical portrayals of gender roles in the media. KSU External Vice-President Haiven and Campus Safety Coordinator Laurel Walsh started the group in the fall to create a safe space for “guys to talk about issues that affect their gender,” said Haiven. This includes sexuality, “male privilege and the role of male-identifying people in feminism,” said Krawec. Haiven says he was inspired by a speech at the Take Back the Night march in September, where Halifax District Labour Council President Kyle Buott described violence against women as a “men’s issue.” “I wanted to really advocate for that message...People don’t like to admit that gender-based oppression is a men’s issue,” said Haiven. The meetings began as round-table discussions, where members put questions or statements concerning masculinity in a hat. “We drew them, read them aloud and tried to answer them together,” Haiven. “The interesting thing about the Boys Club is that it very quickly started to extend beyond the King’s campus,” said Haiven. The group now includes Dalhousie, NSCAD and Saint Mary’s students, as well as community members. “It slowly evolved, and it keeps on evolving in each meeting.” Meetings now include general discussions and guest speakers. “The initial idea was that it would be an event, but it was so successful that we decided to make it into a group of its own.” Will the Boys Club continue to be involved in protests like the Q104 campaign? “I think that all discussion groups of this nature are activist,” said Haiven. “By virtue of its existence, the Boys Club is a radical organization. In the discussions that we have, we’re already subverting the norm ... but my primary focus is that the group continue to be a forum for guys to get together and talk about their shit.”

without borders

news

Journalism profs see potential in Israel exchange Philippa Wolff

King’s journalism professors are enthusiastic about interacting with Israeli universities following an academic pilgrimage to Israel over the winter break. Journalism professors Kim Kierans and David Swick travelled to Israel for five days to visit four universities and talk to Israeli journalists. They were invited by Bar-Ilan University in Tel Aviv. “Every time that you think of getting together with journalists in other places or journalism teachers, in my experience, there’s a spark that happens and it can be quite enriching and we can learn a lot from each other,” said Swick, who was a last-minute fill-in for School of Journalism Director Kelly Toughill. “Over there, in Israel, their discussion is quite broad,” continued Swick. “It was so refreshing to see a broad discussion of these important issues (related to Israeli politics) from one side to the other. It was a real functioning, democratic media where you got full sides,” “If you interview visiting Israeli activists who are against the government, you will take heat (in North America). … What a shock that in that country (Israel), the spectrum of discussion is wider than it’s really allowed to be here.” Kierans said that this trip may lead to further interaction with Israeli universities, including student and faculty exchanges. “There’s one university that emailed back and said that they’re interested (in an exchange),” said Kierans. “It’s a university that we were most impressed with as far as the journalism and the facilities and the fit. I have no idea if it’s going to happen or not.” Toughill noted that evaluation of the trip and its possible outcomes has not yet begun. Journalism students were divided over the idea of a potential exchange with an Israeli university. “I think Israel is a really interesting place for journalists to be right now, and the opportunity to send students there would be fantastic,” said second-year student Emma Davie. “I don’t believe an exchange to Israel says anything about King’s stance on the Israel and Palestine debate.” Fellow second-year Dan Malone disagreed. “The school can be neutral by offering the same exchange opportunities at Israeli and Palestinian universities and letting students decide,” he said. “By deciding to study and thus live in Israel, a student is tacitly supporting the Israeli government.” “You can’t be neutral when one side is responsible for your education,” Malone continued, noting that the Israeli government funds Israeli universities. Toughill said the suggestion that one shouldn’t travel somewhere they disapprove of “concerned” her. She added that criticism is “premature,” as the exchange does not exist yet. “Students will be presented with opinions they agree with and opinions that they find repugnant in all sorts of different countries and environments,” she said.

Yet the trip recently met with controversy when the Halifax Media Co-op published Jim Guild’s negative opinion piece, which suggested that it meant solidarity with Israel in the ongoing conflict between Israel and Palestine. Toughill said that no such solidarity exists, stating that the King’s journalism school is neutral in the Israel and Palestine debate. “He (Guild) confuses going on a junket as a journalist and going on a paid trip to explore journalism education,” said Toughill. “They’re two fundamentally different things that should not be confused.” Guild later told The Watch that he didn’t understand how the School of Journalism could regard the trip as “innocuous.” Guild said that he thinks it “convenient” that the journalism school showed interest in Israel after being offered a “freebie” trip. “I think this was a completely appropriate trip,” Toughill later said. “I have no regrets about it whatsoever.” Toughill said that funding from host countries is “really common” for academic faculty trips. She noted that Canada is among the countries who sponsor such trips. “I say loud and clear that (in journalism) it’s always a bad idea to take free stuff, so I weighed that out,” said Swick. “Here it was largely billed as something where you are in conversation with these people and you are not reporting. It’s a different context than reporting.” Carleton University journalism professor Peter Johansen, who teaches a third-year ethics course at the Ottawa institution, agreed that since the professors went as faculty members and not journalists, there is no ethical issue. “If the basis for concern is that people are uncomfortable with Israel’s politics, then that is a political, not an ethical, concern,” Johansen said in an e-mail. “We were very clear,” said Kierans, “that this was not a political mission. It was an educators’ one.” As for similar exchanges with Palestinian universities, Toughill says she has “a great deal of enthusiasm.” Kierans agreed. “I would welcome an exchange with a Palestinian university.”

“He confuses going on a junket as a journalist and going on a paid trip to explore journalism education”

news

King’s Cross

The King’s Express is a sustainability success Siobhan Fleury

King’s Express organizers Juliana Lufkin, Daniel Brown and Emma Norton. Photo by Alex Estey On April 16, 24 King’s students will kick off their summer breaks with a trip on the King’s Express, their own personal train car. They will enjoy the company of friends, cut down on carbon emissions and witness the making of a tradition as they begin their journeys home. Departing from Halifax Station early in the afternoon, the train will make a 21-hour journey to arrive in Montreal at nine o’clock the following morning. While some passengers see the Express as a direct route home, others, including three students responsible for organizing the project, are along to enjoy the ride. Daniel Brown, Emma Norton and Juliana Lufkin were at the heart of the planning for what is to hopefully become a King’s tradition. The project was born when Dr. Wayne Hankey, founding director of the Foundation Year Programme, mentioned the idea in a conversation with Brown. “He had really done his homework,” said Brown. “He grilled me on how crazy it was that I’m into sustainability when I would fly in from Vancouver for school every year.” 6

Brown shared the idea with Norton, and the project continued to take shape. “It took a few months of proposals and presentations,” Brown commented. “We needed a clear, coherent vision of what we wanted before we could really start putting pressure on people.” When Brown proposed the idea to Sustainability King’s, Lufkin volunteered to help with the organization. Together, Brown, Norton and Lufkin communicated with VIA Rail to make the King’s Express a reality. “We decided what we wanted from VIA Rail and what we could provide,” said Norton. “There have been some rumours that VIA Rail wasn’t very cooperative, but they were really supportive and excited to work

“We needed taking the train to be a real no-brainer”

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with us,” Norton said. “This isn’t something that they do a lot, but they were really interested in having students on board.” Brown explained that the cost of tickets was integral to the success of the project. The King’s Express needed to be a financially competitive option in comparison with other ways that students tend to travel. “We needed taking the train to be a real no-brainer,” he said. According to Lufkin, 24 of 48 available tickets were sold. Norton commented that ticket sales for the King’s Express were good, considering this year’s circumstances. Many students were hesitant to buy tickets because they had been expecting Dalhousie professors to strike until about six hours before sales closed, she said. Students worried that taking the train could interfere with their academic commitments if the semester were to be extended. Still, “sales were successful enough that we can guarantee that the train will be running in years to come, which is the most important thing,” said Norton. The environmentally-friendly aspect of the project is one close to Norton’s heart. Taking the train as opposed to flying reduces carbon emissions by 92 per cent. “Sustainability is about the environment, but it’s also about people, and the economy as well,” said Norton. “This is a tradition that will last, and it will really help build the King’s experience. This is a way that students will be able to get home from school every year, and the carbon reductions could be really significant.” Brown embraces the antiquated feel of the this new custom. “I see it as an extension of the wonderful formal meal tradition,” he said. Brown predicts that students taking the train can be expecting a unique sendoff from the King’s community: “There will be bagpipes, and hopefully many faculty and staff members to bid us farewell.” Brown commented that students riding the train are welcome to dress in formal attire, if they so choose. Lufkin looks forward to taking the King’s Express as a leg of her journey home to Maine. “It’s just generally a brilliant idea, but I think the similarities to the Hogwarts Express from Harry Potter are most exciting for me,” she said. “And the fact that it’ll be a whole day after exams spent chilling out with friends while going home.” “It’s just going to be fantastic,” she went on. “Everyone should bring musi5262 Sackville Street, downtown Halifax (902) 425-2140 cal instruments, card games, whatever they like to do to relax.” 101 Portland Street, downtown Dartmouth (902) 444-2140

“This is a tradition that will last, and it will really help build the King’s Experience”

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Canada’s oddest comic book stores! 7

feature

food revolution Niko Bell

The King’s Alternative Food Cooperative Association has changed our school in the last two years. With KAFCA members on every committee and at every meeting, King’s has built a new canteen, planted a new garden, and made food politics the student issue of the year. But since KAFCA’s catering services came to a dramatic end this fall, the collective has been remarkably silent. This month, the Watch spoke to two members to find out about KAFCA’s metamorphosis.

Haiven:

what does Kafca hope to accomplish? Omri Haiven:

We set out with KAFCA with the radical concept of students controlling the food that they eat. I think that concept has really permeated the entire college. You look at what happened with the canteen. A lot of people who were part of KAFCA were also part of envisioning the canteen. I think the imagination necessary to even envision a new canteen was a result of the work that KAFCA did. Food is a really current political subject for a lot of people here who are interested in changing the world political and social justice wise.

Emma Wolfe:

KAFCA has gone through a lot of changes this year. Last year KAFCA was able to be involved in a lot more big political stuff; this year it’s become much more about grassroots getting people knowledgeable about local, sustainable food. That means getting as many people as possible to know what a CSA is and how you get one.

why is food a student issue? Wolfe:

Food is an everybody issue, and I think students are a group of people who are able to respond to it really well. Especially students at King’s. We’re intelligent and globally minded people. There’s something really incredible going on right now. I keep hearing it in so many places. The number of food decisions you make in a week is massive, whether you’re a student or not. Students are in a position to take on the kind of neglect of the last couple of generations, of that area of our lives. But I can’t think of a group of people it shouldn’t be an issue for.

That’s a really good question. Maybe it would help if I told you the founding story of KAFCA. I was part of a group along with the people who founded the loaded ladle, and we were a working group of NSPIRG. So, in some ways KAFCA is a result of NSPIRG’s work. Our goal was to take away the corporate dominance of food on the university campus, and to reinstate some food sovereignty. Food sovereignty is the idea that the people who interact with it directly should have control of the food. In the university setting especially, food is integral. It’s one of the few things that everyone participates in on campus. Before there were very few food options on campus that weren’t dominated by corporations. Then there was Fresh which later became Local Source, but they were really on the periphery. And I think what these groups have done is inspire students to see food as a ground zero site of struggle to take control of their own education. The university is, at its core, a community. And part of that community is the food that it produces. I think that if the food that we get here is exactly the same as the food you can get across the country, because it’s Aramark, Chartwells or Sodexo, then I feel that reflects badly on our food culture and the culture of our university.

Wolfe:

We’re a community that likes to take on social issues like this. It’s amazing how much something as simple as deciding to make the Galley a locally sourced business can be. I think as far as being a student and setting up your own rules for your whole life, having this global wave of interest right at this time puts us in an incredible position.

It seems a little strange that the KSU is holding a Kraft Dinner cookout to protest

students having no money, and at the same time promoting high quality food.

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Haiven:

Well, I don’t think anyone in our grandparents’ generation would have ever questioned the idea of organic. To them, organic was just food. So I think the idea of high quality food is a misnomer. What we’re trying to do is provide students with the nutrition that we need to create the kind of community that we want here. When we talk about the contrast between the Kraft Dinner cookout and the Galley canteen, I think it’s important to realize the integral issue of consent. There was a referendum that was passed, and a student initiative, rather than an imposition—which is what is happening with the government’s current tuition fee hikes.

So, where does KAFCA go next? Wolfe:

My goal for KAFCA has always been just to bring it to as many people as possible. It’s hard to take something that last year was such a place of bonding and excitement and have it turn into much more of a dinner club, as much as that is still an incredible thing to offer at King’s. You can make a decision tonight to go and eat from the superstore, or come and experience this other way of eating. To me that just leads into a lot of other political issues.

Haiven:

I’d like to see KAFCA maintain its status as a society like the KTS or the Haliburton society. The sort of society that is integral to our community and really reflects our values. Coming out of the boycott, we had two demands: one was to create the canteen, and the other was to create an independent advisory committee on food issues on campus. And while the canteen is student-run, there are significant chances that it could diverge from the views of KAFCA. KAFCA is concerned with looking at every single meal that we eat, and that’s not what the canteen does.

Niko Bell

These interviews happened separately, and were edited for clarity. 9

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¡La Lucha Continua!

Halifax students observe Salvadorian elections to promote democracy Charlotte Harrison It’s been 20 years since the end of a bloody civil war in El Salvador, but the bloodshed isn’t over yet. Journalists in community radio stations see friends killed and family members threatened. Voters see violence committed at polling stations. Canadian mining companies may be responsible for hiring thugs. But there is hope for a more democratic future. King’s journalism student Rachel Ward travelled to El Salvador this month with JD Hutton, a Dalhousie international development and economics student, to observe and report on the March 11 legislative and municipal elections. Ward, who also studies political science, was motivated by a desire to prevent rampant election fraud by the right-wing National Republican Alliance (ARENA) party. “As an observer, you’re impartial. You can stand around and take photos, and just your presence prevents people from breaking the rules.” Ward said. “Those who might be inclined to commit fraud know that non-partisan are present, and that is a very powerful deterrent,” added Hutton. Hutton became involved in Salvadorian politics in 2008, when activists came to his political science class looking for observers to go to El Salvador. He attended a meeting and ended up observing the Salvadorian presidential elections in 2009. Hutton chose to return this March out of a desire to reconnect with people he’d met and to continue overseeing this “fascinating process.” Ward came along to do some reporting and to learn. Ward and Hutton were part of a group of about 30 people, including members of the American National Lawyers’ Guild. They spent a week and a half touring the country, meeting journalists, politicians, literacy circles and women’s groups. “They gave us a sense of what’s happening in El Salvador besides the political parties, and a chance to understand what actually are the politics of this country,” said Hutton Their visit to a small community radio station, Radio Victoria, was 10

especially significant for Ward. “I was quite aware of the situation of journalists in Central American already because that really hits me,” Ward said. “There have been a lot of murders...We went up to the radio station, he told us how his friends have been killed, and he’s on the run because he’s had death threats. And it’s because of Canadian mining companies.” “Control of the media in El Salvador is highly concentrated in a few powerful corporations, and independent media is limited and weak,” explained Hutton. “In the few instances where they require a license or have a broad audience, they face threats from thugs.” While it isn’t immediately obvious who is operating behind these thugs, says Hutton, many suspect that it’s the Canadian mining company Pacific Rim, which has been trying to build a mine in the area of Cabañas (northern central El Salvador). “At the very least, threats are coming from local politicians or companies that have been bought-off by the (mining) company, or who realize that if the mine goes through, they’ll make lots of money off of it,” said Ward.

Rachel Ward and JD Hutton in El Salvador

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“We went up to the radio station. He told us how his friends have been killed, and he’s on the run because he’s had death threats”

Participant in a right-wing ARENA rally beside a left-wing FMLN campaign poster. Rachel Ward

Ward said that politicians have “additional motivation to threaten and push forward policies that would benefit the mining company because they stand to make a lot of money off the situation.” Hutt explained that there is already lots of evidence to suggest that politicians are making money outside their regular salaries. “You see several cars appearing in their driveways that their basic salary could not afford.” Hutt said they may be involved in narco-trafficking. On election day, Ward was in San Salvador—a city with 24 candidates for each of the 8 political parties—while Hutton was in La Union, a northern town. This election was the first with the right-wing ARENA party in opposition since 1989; the left-wing Farabundo Martí National Liberation Front (FMLN) party won the 2009 presidential election. In this election, the ARENA party claimed 33 seats, while the FMLN party won 31 seats. There are 86 seats in total in the Salvadorian legislature, with the remaining 22 seats filled by smaller parties (the Grand Alliance for National Unity took 11 and the National Coalition won 7). Both Ward and Hutton are hopeful for the future of democratic elections in the country. “This is the cleanest election,” said Ward. “Much cleaner than the one JD saw in 2009.” As Ward explained, past elections have seen people bussed in with fake IDs to vote for the ARENA party. Ward heard of only one such bus in this election. “We just saw minor things, like cutting corners in the vote counting— nothing that would disqualify the polling station from being valid.” “There were three instances of violence in polling stations, and those have been re-voted in,” said Hutt.

Another positive change in this election was having polling stations in residential communities. “The polling stations were much closer to their homes, so it made it much easier. Voter turnout was higher. A lot of these people had never voted before,” said Ward. Because of these residential polling stations, more government policies were targeted at rural and poorer communities, including literacy groups and rural health clinics. Both Hutton and Ward are eager to continue spreading the word about Salvadorian issues they witnessed. Ward is working on a radio documentary for the CBC and plans to write articles. Hutton says they will also be “pressuring politicians” on certain issues, especially foreign Canadian mining companies. “The big thing that someone acting in solidarity with a foreign country can do is just get the word out. The way that Canadian international media reports on issues there isn’t completely accurate,” said Hutt. “We try to get the voices of Salvadorian people directly to a Haligonian audience. We want to share those stories and update people on what’s going on.” “El Salvador is going through a stage of transformation right now. It started in 2009, the first ever peaceful transition of power,” said Hutton. “This election has proven that power can go back and forth between opposing parties peacefully, and I think that’s very encouraging.”

Hutt and Ward will host a report and discussion on Salvadorian politics at Just Us! Cafe on Spring Garden Rd. on Thursday, March 29 at 7 p.m. 11

Ian Gibb

The Hockey Grail After the glorious pomp and circumstance of a ceremonial puck drop and two national anthems, the inaugural Kingâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Cup hockey game opened at a furious pace. The Alex Hall team was heavily favoured, and took the lead halfway into the first period as John MacDonald scored on a breakaway. The terror of letting in the first goal did not discourage the Bays, and they began pressuring offensivelyâ&#x20AC;&#x201D;but to no avail. It took until the last two minutes of the period for Jake Saltzman to score on a beautiful point shot that hit the crossbar before entering the net. The game was tied 1-1 heading into the second period. The middle frame started quickly for Alex Hall as 12

Ian Gibb

Christian Pollard

Connor Rosine

Ian Gibb John MacDonald netted his second of the day just minutes in. Down again, the Bays were starting to get pushed up against the ropes by a faster, more skilled team. They again rallied to tie the game—this time on a beautiful solo effort by star forward Tyler Publicover, who beat Alex Hall goaltender Charlie Bourne with a slap shot from the top of the circle. The game went into the third and final period tied at 2-2. Chances for both teams resulted in save after save for both goaltenders. Dylan MacAteer was between the pipes for the Bays and kept his team in it with a flurry of dazzling stops. He was awarded The Bays player of the game for his efforts. The game stayed tied until Alex Hall defender—and opposite player of the game—Nick Twarog landed a massive body check which resulted in a penalty. The Bays did not waste their powerplay opportunity, and just seconds into it Tyler Publicover scored his second of the game to put his team ahead. With three minutes to play, the Zamboni driver insisted on

Ian Gibb

keeping the rink’s incredibly important schedule, and simply invited himself onto the ice. Feeling robbed of a chance to tie the game, Alex Hall was disappointed, but defeated. Final score 3 for the Bays, 2 for Alex Hall. Despite the controversial finish, the Inaugural King’s Cup went off without a hitch. The King’s Cup now resides in the Wardroom’s trophy case for all to see. But to drink of the sacred cup? This is a privilege permitted only to the winners.

advice

So... You wanna be a king’s student?

Davis carr brings you the low-down on what your dal/King’s degree really means... Course registration started earlier this week. This is a time of opportunity and dread. Deciding what to major in is one of the toughest decisions you’ll make— ever. But don’t worry. We’ve done it before, and we’ll do it again. Here is a collection of advice from upper year students on your degree program options at Dal and King’s.

Early Modern Studies Justis Danto-Clancy

I chose to study EMSP because I loved the Descartes lecture given by Neil Robertson in my first year. Although this seems like a rather silly reason to settle on a degree, I learned over the subsequent three years that I had made one of those storybook decisions. My initial interest in the doubtfulness of some French guy blossomed into an incredible exploration of the way that we learned to think in modernity. Not only did the interdisciplinarity of EMSP keep me interested and invested in class, but it also gave me the ability to write a thesis that combined my interests in Arabian history and in French Enlightenment thought. Consequently, my undergraduate thesis became a work for which I cared very deeply and, upon its completion, felt as though I’d actually accomplished something significant. Working with the roster of professors in EMSP was a great pleasure, and I am confident in saying that EMSP not only informed my degree, but also my life. I have built lifelong friendships agonizing over impossible Hegel and I have understood my own hypotypotic memory through Voltaire. I have understood motivation and teamwork in new ways through Robespierre and I’ve understood my own capacities for patience in trying, repeatedly, to plow through Montesquieu.

German & EMSP Noah White

I started to study German in second year as a language credit, and it just so happened to fit perfectly with EMSP, they even share several professors. I am very interested in just about anything German now, especially Goethe, and EMSP has provided an incredible foundation, as well as historical context for all thought around that period. Both departments have complimented each other better than I could have imagined and have allowed me deeper insight to aspects of my studies I may otherwise have missed completely. I can’t imagine a interdisciplinary combined honours degree better suited to me.

music & EMSP Lauren Bryant-Monk

Music and EMSP are a really great fit because the Early Modern period encompasses the three major time periods in music history (Baroque, Classical and Romantic). Since music often reflects what’s going on in society, EMSP helps to put the music that you study and perform into a historical and philosophical context, which really enriches the music. However, music classes require a lot of time to do well. You’re required to be in one or two ensembles and to attend noon hour recitals, department performances and master classes if you’re taking applied study, and you’ll need to devote several hours a week to practice and rehearsal. It takes a lot of dedication and, figuring out your degree requirements can be a little tricky, but it’s a really rewarding and engaging degree if you’re ready to put in the work.

History of Science and technology

Charles Bourne I have always been interested in capital-S “Science”— the

thing that sits at the centre of technology news stories, popular science magazines and sci-fi novels. Yet my abilities in math and science courses dwindled as I aged; I knew I would never be able to produce those cool things I so enjoyed reading about. Then I found HOST— the History of Science and Technology program. Without needing an inch of math skill, I could learn, write and think about science. I had the pleasure of studing the long and fascinating history of an institution that increasingly dominates our world. But HOST surprised me. My profs asked me to think about science in ways I had never imagined. I found myself more on the outside looking in at science, rather than entrenched in its depths. Seeking to understand and represent science as a kind of intimate outsider carries a lot of responsibility. While scientists are often trained almost uniquely to plough into their specific specialty and produce papers, historians and philosophers of science are tasked with understanding its many complex relationships with the rest of the world. Sometimes I envy the focused nature of scientists’ work. But while it’s neither as simple nor as flashy as the Science I imagined, HOST has given me a deep appreciation of the meaning of science, its role in our world and, perhaps most importantly, a lesson that I will always have more to learn.

contemporary studies

Davis Carr

The rule of thumb is that if you liked Sections 5 and 6, you’ll like CSP. For me, CSP was like a breath of fresh nihilistic air. In CSP, we get to turn the tradition on its head, and launch into some serious critical thinking. CSP covers the modern world, from Hegel onwards. Political Science, IDS, History, Anthropology, English, and Philosophy are some of the most common degree pairings. The nice thing about CSP is that it will compliment pretty much any combination. It gives you a good background in theory, but its intense writing-based nature will give you an advantage in your Dal classes (and make you look great at cocktail parties). The core classes are very challenging—in my year, almost half the class dropped it the day the first paper was due. Keep with it. CTMP 2000 is a necessary evil if you want to get into the upper year programs, which are considerably more intersting. CSP is a program that benefits greatly from shopping around. I suggest going to all of the classes you’re even slightly interested in during the first week. Most CSP classes are open, so you don’t have to worry about them filling up. Get a sense of the prof, the reading list, and the work load. Sometimes the most random classes are actually the most fun. Once you find your philosophical niche in CSP, take advantage of directed readings courses. The CSP thesis is also significantly shorter than the other King’s programs, so get ready for your friends in HOST and EMSP to resent you come fourth year.

Bachelor of science

advice

Anna Bishop

It’s an unusual phenomenon— when I’m at King’s I feel like I’m a Dal student undercover, and when I’m at Dal I feel like I’m a King’s student undercover. To those few of us working on our BSc’s while still being officially King’s students, it’s a common feeling. I’m still unsure whether being in FYP-Science preserved or eroded my sanity during that whirlwind year. Though it made my workload even crazier, what with the extra midterms, finals, assignments and labs, I still found it extremely refreshing to be able to crack open a textbook and use a completely different part of my brain. When you’re exhausted from debating about whether Nietzsche’s morality is nihilistic or life affirming, memorizing plant reproduction methods is strangely comforting. I used my science textbooks as a refuge of facts in a world where nothing made sense anymore. Unlike FYP, where there is no such thing as a right or wrong answer, my science courses gave me the comfort and satisfaction of knowing that there was only one answer, and if I studied hard enough I would probably get it right. A time that really stuck out for me was when we did the Darwin lecture at the same time that I was learning Darwinian evolution and genetics in my first year bio class. Compared to the FYP lecture, which spent two hours on the social, historical, scientific and religious implications of Darwinian evolution, the first-year bio lecture which was lackluster: composed of PowerPoint slides, it had one devoted to Darwin, the main point being that he ‘discovered evolution on the Galapagos.’ I suddenly realized how much was lacking in the teaching of contemporary science. There was no context, no background, no appreciation of why that scientific view came when it did and its repercussions in society, no critical reflection on evolution itself. There was merely a name and a picture on a lecture slide, and a couple of notes to memorize for the final exam.

CSP & English Siobhan O’Beirne

There is a lot of overlap between the theory that I do CSP and the literature I do in English. It’s great to be in a program that lets me take what I learn in one and apply it to the other. CSP is great for that because you there is so much freedom in what we do. Having said that, English was a bit of a cop-out. Not that it’s a bad program—like any program, it has some good classes and some bad classes—but I don’t know if it was the right program to take. I think people, especially first-years, should take the time to really think about what they are interested in before they just go ahead and decide “yeah, that’s got some cool-sounding classes in it”. Talk to advisors, take a class or two in that department, and then choose what you want.

advice

Journalism

BenSoHarrison you’re a FYP journalism student. You’ve slogged through every bleary-eyed

Tuesday morning class (or most of them) while your weary FYP companions slumber on. You’ve crammed for every news quiz with your faithful Chronicle Heralds in Prince Hall. Hell, you may have even written a story for us, or at least learned to discern between The Watch, The Zine and The Gazette. Now that you’ve got first year under your belt, you may as well slap on a press pass and get right into the thick of journo work, right? Slow down, Speed Racer. In second year, you’ll learn how to use all the gear: voice recorders, video cameras, and a whole mess of online multimedia.You’ll figure out how to blend them together online to tell the best story possible. The profs will teach you how to make professional-looking media, and at times, spending an entire semester doing this will seem very tiresome. But the first time you fuck up an interview because the volume levels on your Zoom recorder were too low will be all the motivation you need to practice, practice, practice. In second semester, you’ll work with the Peninsula News. This means you’ll be venturing outside of King’s to hunt for stories. My advice? Strike up a conversation with someone you’d normally never talk to. A conversation with my plumber led to my first story with the CBC. Third year is great because you get to pick from a range of useful and interesting electives, like Narrative Non-Fiction and Photojournalism, along with the required Ethics, Research, and News Media and the Courts. They say fourth year kills you, but makes you much stronger. With workshops, the honours project and the internship, it’s a busy and productive year intended to prepare you for the ‘real world’. Stick it out and you’ll be ready to scrum with the best of ‘em.

A few words of Advice... Davis Carr

It feels like yesterday that I was sitting in my dorm room, writing out all of the possible degree programs and courses I could take. Unfortunately it was three years ago, and for the first March ever, I am not signing up for classes. And while this fills me with deep, deep sorrow, it also gives me the opportunity to drop some wisdom bombs on all you ickle first-years.

on choosing your program

Right now it feels like the rest of your life will be determined by the choices you make this week. Ignore this feeling. This feeling is a lie. The courses that you pick in March are by no means set in stone. Keep exploring your options, all throughout the summer. If you’re still interested in the classes you’ve picked, that’s great. If not, change them. If you keep refining your choices, chances are you’ll end up in classes/a degree program that you’ll love. If not, then you’ll be stuck in English just because you already know the language. If you’re torn between two classes, sign up for both and then drop one in September. The max number of courses you can register for is six. So fill up your time and then drop the class you like the least. Don’t worry about getting a job. For the most part, a BA is a BA. Choose a program you love, not a program that you think will get you a job. Chances are you’ll be unemployed after your graduate anyway, so you might as well have fun

SOciology / Social Anthropology & English

Sarah Wilson

I use a lot of the same theories and writers for both my English and SOSA classes, only in English I use them to talk about books and in SOSA I use them to talk about social interaction, people’s stories, and their communities. For me, it’s easier doing two degrees easier when one leads into the other. SOSA covers Sociology and Social Anthropology; in first year, I didn’t know what either of these subjects were, let alone how they were different. Luckily, the professors are very helpful, the classes are interesting and accessible, and you don’t have to commit to one side of SOSA or the other until your third year. Take the time to shop around, ask questions, try some electives, and see what interests you.

on going shopping

I’ve looked forward to classes all summer only to abandon them after reading the syllabus. The only way to know for sure if you want to take the class is to go to it and get a feel for the prof and the material. Go to classes that your friends are taking. Go to classes you’re not signed up for. Go to classes because you went to the wrong room and are too embarrassed to leave. Go to classes and drop it as soon as you realize you will be working in groups all year (I’m looking at you GWST 2800X/Y). Although you can continue to do this in the second week, it’s much harder to catch up and usually a lot more awkward. So take advantage of the chaos the first week of classes brings and go for it. As fourth-year Yamini Coen puts it, “Don’t settle for a degree you’re not interested in; you’re paying your money to have an entertaining education.”

On Honours

You don’t have to get an Honours degree. If you want to do any kind of MA or PhD program, then yes, you will need Honours. But if you already know that you want to be a, oh I don’t know, teacher or something, you don’t need Honours. If you know you don’t want to do graduate studies, you don’t need Honours. Otherwise, it’s not a bad idea, because it looks good on resumes (I think? I’ll let you know if it helps me get a job—ha, good joke, CSP student) and if you do want to do any kind of graduate studies, you’ll probably need it. Sometimes the registrar’s office can push those Honours degrees hard. Don’t feel pressured.

Dine on in Dijon

King’s student Rebecca MacDonald experiences the tastes of France Hello King’s! I am writing this article from Dijon, a lovely city in the Burgundy region of France, about two hours east of Paris. I am doing an exchange program through the Dalhousie French Department with the Centre International d’Etudes Francaises (CIEF) at the Université de Bourgogne. This is my first time in France, and so far I am having a wonderful experience. My host family is absolutely fantastic. From the moment we met at the train station, they have been welcoming and accommodating in every way. I also have two roommates from Indiana with whom I get along very well. From my perspective, living with a host family is certainly the best way to become familiar with the culture and improve language skills. My fluency and comprehension have improved significantly since I arrived; I can now keep up in conversation with my host-siblings. As for culture, my host parents prepare delicious French cuisine every night. In case you were curious, the stereotypes are true: we have wine, cheese and baguette with each meal. I am becoming a real cheese connoisseur! Unfortunately, I cannot bring any cheese through Canadian customs, so I am really making an effort to eat as much as possible while I have the chance. At the CIEF, I have 21 hours of class per week. I have mandatory courses in Oral Expression and Comprehension, Written Expression and Comprehension, Grammar and Writing Techniques, as well as a class about French Civilisation and a class of Familiar French. So 20 hours per week, I learn to speak properly and for one hour we learn how to speak in slang. Vachement hyperclasse! Additionally, students in my level must take 6 hours of culture courses. My roommates and I have elected to take the Wine and Gastronomy classes as well. We are learning a lot and we are very excited for the upcoming wine-tasting. France has an incredible railway system that makes traveling very easy. Three weeks ago I went to Paris for a weekend with a group of friends. I saw most of the main tourist attractions, including the Eiffel Tower, l’Arc de Triomphe, the Jardin

Rebecca Riordon de Luxembourg, and the Champs Elysees, among others. My school also puts on excursions for us; we’ve been to Lyon and the Loire Valley, and in April we will tour Provence. I also have trips planned for Nice, Corsica, Switzerland and Germany. Europe has been much less overwhelming than I had expected. To date, I have not experienced any culture shock. That is not to say that everything is the same as Canada, but I was pleasantly surprised by how easy and efficient everything has been. Some differences include ambulance sirens, narrow sidewalks, stone buildings, less green space and giant keys. There are literally bakeries on every corner—my goal is to try a pastry from each one in Dijon. I am well on my way to accomplishing this goal. The one thing that has most surprised me during my time in France is that many people I encounter immediately recognize that I am Canadian. Apparently I speak with a “joli accent canadien” that sets me apart from les Français. This was surprising for me because I didn’t realize I had an accent, as I have only ever spoken French in school. In any case, most people think it’s cute, which is a bonus. And at least nobody mistakes me for an American (no offence intended to Americans). Au revoir! Bizous de Dijon!

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Significant Scar

Kaanayo Kwachukwu forgives, but doesn’t forget his wrongful imprisonment Jonathan Briggins

Alex Estey A scar on the arm of Kaanayo Kwachukwu, a one-year journalism King’s student from Nigeria, reminds him daily of two weeks he spent in jail in August 1994. Kwachukwu was born and raised in Nigeria, where he was the oldest of six children. He grew up in poverty, living in a 10 by 12 foot mud thatch hut “like the one you see on your screen every Sunday.” He slept on a bedbug-infested double bed with his siblings, while his parents and grandmother slept on the hard floor. His father died when Kwachukwu was young, so he had to put his siblings through school. He completed school, pre-school through to university, in 18

Nigeria, graduating with a bachelors degree in language linguistics at Abia State University. After graduating, he did a year of military service, also known as youth service, required for Nigerians who pass through a Nigerian university and are 30 years old or younger. “If you don’t want to do (youth service), that’s okay. But you never get government jobs, you don’t get employed by the government, and you don’t get to contest in any elections. Technically if you don’t do that, you’ve kind of given up your citizenship,” said Kwachukwu. Kwachukwu was hired to be a reporter with an

profile

alternative nation wide news magazine that provided news seperate from what the from military government tried to prescribe. As somebody who likes to stand in the front and not hang back in the shadows, he would help organize rallies against the government. “I didn’t like the system. I was poor, looking for an easy way out of poverty. You get to blame the government for everything that has gone wrong in your life. I started pushing and pushing and pushing,” said Kwachukwu. He was sent to Jos, Plateau State, a Muslim area in northern Nigeria, for military service. In August 1994, he heard a knock on the door. To his surprise, he was arrested and charged for belonging to a secret cult. The dictatorship charged people they thought were enemy of the state. For Kwachukwu, “that was a very frivolous excuse because we knew how the system works.” While in jail, he was tortured as they tried to force him to admit he belonged to a cult so they could put him in a military trial. He was water boarded and not fed during those two weeks. “I came pretty close to giving up the ghost but I said, “No, I have more things to do in this life then just succumb to torture’,” said Kwachukwu. “I knew I was going to see my mom again. I wanted to see my siblings and friends again. For me these were the driving forces that helped me remain focused and hopeful that I wasn’t going to die.” His arrest became a hot topic in the media after his friends tried to find him but couldn’t. After this attention, he was released. Even after his release, Kwachukwu was continually harassed by the military. On his arm, Kwachukwu has a scar from a Swiss army knife-like weapon. His arm was cut by air force squadron leader D.S. Bello, who told Kwachukwu, “I’m going to give you something so that you will never forget me.” Looking at the scar, he doesn’t hold any bitterness. “This is one of those prices you have to pay to be who you are. I’m not angry, I’m not upset, it’s just the way it is,” said Kwachukwu. Last year on a visit to Nigeria, he went looking for Bello, but found out he had died nine years ago. Kwachukwu says this makes the whole thing more painful because he didn’t get the closure he is looking for. He hopes to meet the Bello’s family one day. “It would be nice to get to know them and tell them what happened and express that I’m not holding it against them.” After 21 years in Nigeria, Kwachukwu moved around several different countries before coming to Canada in 1999. He wanted to come to Canada after his uncle studied there and was a “big guy” when he came back. He has been a news junkie since childhood. Growing up, one of his family’s only possessions was a Panasonic shortwave radio that would pick up a few stations including BBC News. After finishing his journalism degree at King’s, he wants to become a media consultant in Nigeria. He is also working on an African politics blog with a focus on Nigeria. “Africa’s my home. I’m a product of the two countries. I’m so proud that’s the way it is.”

“I have more things to do in this life than just succumb to torture”

The View from Guatemala Photographer Ian Gibb brings the colours of the Highlands to Halifax Charlotte Harrison

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Former King’s student Ian Gibb is giving Halifax the chance to see Guatemala through his eyes— or rather, through his lens.

Gibb, an aspiring documentary photographer, is showing 20 images of his travels to Guatemala in an exhibit titled “In Sight” at the Public Archives of Nova Scotia. The prints on display are also available for purchase. Gibb travelled to Guatemala last fall with a friend from King’s, where he spent five weeks. “I was ready to go anywhere; I just really wanted to get a trip under my belt.” For the first two weeks, Gibb travelled with the human rights delegation, with a group called Breaking the Silence. This group is involved in fair trade farming and in supporting human rights defenders in the country. For Gibb, it was important to go with a group instead of with a charity. “That whole concept seems sort of demeaning to me. We’re handing people things and saying that we know better, and here’s what you need. Breaking the Silence is a lot more grassroots and is interested in working with people there for the goals that they’re trying to achieve.” Being with this group gave Gibb credibility among Guatemalans: “I could shoot where I wanted.” The colours of Guatemala caught his attention, and many of the photos on display show brilliant blues and blood reds. “It’s a really beautiful country...I guess the biggest thing was the amount of life that seeps into everything; wildlife and nature is really prevalent everywhere...In Canada, we’ve done a really good job of eradicating nature in our cities. There, you felt like you were always at the edge of the wilderness.” Though he spent some time in the capital, Guatemala City, most of his travels were in rural areas in the highlands. Gibb describes the tone of his exhibit as “bleak.” “There are a few images that are a bit more playful...but a lot of them have a really austere feeling to them, which is what I wanted. That’s not necessarily what the atmosphere is all the time there, but that’s part of what I felt.” The pictures also invoke a sense of separation from this foreign culture, said Gibb. “There are a lot of images of people turned away, walking away, facing away, looking away. It’s part of a disconnect between here and there.” “In Sight” opened on March 16, with about 100 people attending. The 20 photos on display are large format, wideangle prints on heavy-stock matte paper. “They’re more empty composition that have a lot of free space.” Many also feature a mystery, such as a face in a background window. “I really like ambiguous photography and fleeting looks, the heel that’s raised off the ground...I love indecisive moments.” Gibb is optimistic about his first gallery showing, and considers the rental to be a worthy investment. “I really wanted to get myself out there, and I wanted it to be under my own

“I really like ambiguous photography and fleeting looks...I love indecisive moments.” creative control...It was really important for me to have that flexibility. I’m going to use this exhibit to leverage other ones in the future, and I wanted to make sure I was happy with it.” Yet he struggles with some of the ethical implications of the photos. “When I shoot, I usually don’t talk to the people because I don’t want them to pose...Something that I’m wrestling with is selling these prints and using the images of people without their explicit consent...It’s an important issue in dealing with what is art and what is profit.” While he’s interested in photojournalism, Gibb says documentary photography offers a chance to tell a more in-depth story. “My favourite photographers are the ones that really spend time in a place, and not just go to try and get a news story, then leave. I’m more interested in long term.” Though his work with community housing in Halifax has offered him many potential subjects for documentary photography, Gibb is wary of exploitation. “It’s a tricky area because if you want to tell those stories, you have to make sure you’re not stepping over boundaries.” Gibb completed the Foundation Year Programme four years ago and completed a year at Dalhousie before studying photography at the Centre for Art and Technology. He hopes to one day work for an NGO on document projects. “That would be my dream job...going into places where there’s something really important being done and letting the group use the photos to promote what they’re doing.” For now, Gibb plans to return to King’s in the fall to finish a degree in journalism. “I really want to learn how to concisely tell stories, and to try to use that to inform my photography. I want to learn how to really get to the heart of something and be honest.”

Gibb’s exhibit runs until March 31 at the Public Archives of Nova Scotia (6016 University Ave.) For more information, see his website: iangibbphotography.com

opinion

More Cheers, Less Tears

David Salenieks thinks punishments for partying are too harsh A number of first-year students recently suffered the consequences of all the fun they were having. As any first-year knows, Dean Hatt recently decided to blitz the innocent troublemakers with a series of suspensions, liquor bans, fines and threats of legal recourse. What’s curious is that the punishments were vindicated by such thoroughly constructed cases. Yasch Na, who is notorious among Patrol members, received 12 incident reports when called into Dean Hatt’s office to receive his punishment. The question emerges: why weren’t these infractions dealt with immediately, in a way that allowed for cooperation and not merely censure? Many students were shocked, some even appalled, by such quick and tough punishment. There is a feeling that the actions taken against them did not allow for an opportunity to cooperate. Perhaps the whole year has been an opportunity to cooperate, but all the same, these penalties seem more intent on submission. Devastatingly, the dream had come to and end. There would be no more antics. Cochran Bay had many running jokes, one of which involved calling Patrol members “snitches” with varying degrees of sarcasm and crassness. The joke was ill-received. Ted Danson, whose room in Cochran Bay regularly attracted the attention of Patrol before he was fined $150, wishes people realized that he was acting out of desperation. “I just wish Patrol realized that things haven’t been easy for me in my life,” said Danson. “I had a rough childhood and, when I misbehave I’m just hoping someone will realize it’s an outcry and save me.” If you get this joke, you might see the humour in calling Patrol “snitches.” Dean Hatt thinks that the rules, as established by the Code of Conduct, allow “considerable leeway in handling situations on a case-by-case basis, which helps avoid detached punishments that ignore the student behind the act.” Evidently Hatt has no tolerance for sarcasm. Beyond this instance, Patrol and some students seem unable to find common ground. Is there a natural tension, that of youth against authority? Or is regarding Patrol as authority the issue itself? After all, these very same people fraternize with the firstyear troublemakers when not on duty. Patrol’s only authority lies in filling out incident reports. They tell first-years to stop being loud, or stop smoking out their 22

window, or to get off the roof, etc. but can only penalize students by what they convey in incident reports. Dean Hatt describes Patrol as “peer support.” He went on to say that they are a part of the King’s community just as much as all students, staff, and faculty. He attributes the tension between Patrol and students to “the decision to disregard Patrol.” Gabe Davis, a second-year at King’s who prefers to be called Wave Wavis, thinks “first-years and patrol have never really got along, because they kill people’s buzz, but there hasn’t been the kind of animosity between students and Patrol that there is this year.” He went on to say that the first-years seem to be especially inclined to mischief, “but Patrol should have thicker skins; they should expect a certain amount of bitterness when they ruin people’s fun. Also, Patrol not being able to handle people kind of sucks, because it’s nice that they are giving jobs to fellow King’s students, and we don’t want them to hire legitimate campus police.” Doubtless, no student wants Dal security at King’s. Whether Patrol needs to change their tactics or students should be a bit more respectful, all King’s students can take pride in differing from Dalhousie. Bitterness between Patrol and first-years is certainly detrimental to a sense of community. The obligation to maintain that community is all of ours. The intoxicated conduct of first-year students is surely an expression of how enamoured they are with King’s. If not, let’s hope the neer-do-wells scamper off to Montreal.

“The dream had come to and end. There would be no more antics.”

the price of cheap drinks

opinion

Kai miller was first in line for the wardroom birthday. Twice. This weekend, we’ll be celebrating our campus pub’s 32nd (factcheck) birthday party. There are a few Wardy Birthday traditions we can expect to see on Saturday: lineups starting in the early afternoon and snaking up past the J-school, jealously guarded tables of stockpiled beer, and the forcible expulsion or grievous injury of John Adams. One Wardroom tradition we won’t see this year, or ever again, are the stepped drink prices. In case you weren’t around to experience a classic Wardy birthday, it went something like this: in order to celebrate the Wardroom’s illustrious and affordable history, the evening would start with drinks costing a quarter, and every fifteen minutes the bell would ring, and the crowd would groan as prices would increase by twenty-five cents as we recapitulated Wardy prices from its founding to the present day. The students who had lined up all day would stock up on beer at the beginning of the night while it was cheap, and crowd every horizontal surface in the bar with beers for later. Meanwhile, the less fortunate would be stuck paying as much as two dollars for their beer. It was a noble and dignified King’s tradition, like signing the Matricula or smoking in Plato’s cave. This year, though, drinks will stay at the same price all night. To make up for it, the DSS will do what it does best and buy everybody lots of drink tickets. The reason we can’t have our Wardy Birthday pricing is because of Nova Scotia’s minimum drink prices. These are set at $2.50 per 12 ounces of beer, 5 ounces of wine, or 1 ounce of spirits. These prices were instituted by the province in 2008 in response to a couple of drunken brawls outside the Dome on dollar drink nights. The province’s reasoning was that cheap drinks contributed to the mayhem, and the problem could be mitigated by getting rid of cheap drinks. This reasoning is dumb. We can all agree that drunken brawls outside the Dome are bad. But there are already laws against serving patrons past the point of intoxication, which the Dome broke. Rather than punish the Dome for over-serving by, say, revoking its liquor license, the province decided the most prudent course of action would be to reward them by improving their profit margin. Now that the Dome doesn’t need to compete on prices with the Palace or any other bar downtown, they can encourage the same level of over-drinking as ever with a hefty increase in

their profits to boot. It seems like the province has no serious objection to over-serving; they object only to over-serving poor people. Caught in the crossfire, of course, are all the campus pubs, curling clubs, legions, and other club-house style establishments that used to provide a place where their patrons could enjoy a pint or three without breaking the bank. These places, our Wardroom included, were never the site of massive drunken brawls. But our innocuous student-run business was punished for the irresponsible behaviour of a corporate bar downtown. It’s not all bad, though. The price increase gave the Wardroom a chance to trade up from Moosehead beer to Garrison, so we can drink better beer and support local business. And as wages and prices everywhere else inflate, $3.25 (the legal minimum for a real pint) is starting to look like a pretty good price for beer again. Still, I’m going to miss the Wardroom Birthday.

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