DOXA
December 2023 Vol. 25 No. 2
Table of Contents
2 --- Letter from the Editors 3 --- So the Election’s Over ... Now What? Hannah Peters 5 --- Master of Puzzles (A Parody of Metallica’s Master of Puppets) Morgan Z. Wilson
6 --- Reading Classic Books for Very Specific Situations Ella Reimer-Epp 7 --- shockwave Jenica Sul 8 --- Confronting the Future Kennedy Martens 9 --- Median John George 12 --- Hot People Problem 101: Looking at yourself for too long in the mirror until you are late for class Trisha C. Boodhoo
13 --- Untitled Tai Linklater 14 --- Explosions R.C. Prof Quotes
Cover and page 2 photographs by Amélie Hasker Page 11 photograph by Mike Thiessen
Dear readers, In case you didn’t know, there have been two editors of the Doxa for the past year and a half. Katie Wilson has always written the letter from the editor during this time, and I, Mike Thiessen, am of the opinion that she consistently does a very fine job. However, I figured I’d take a crack at it, as my time at CMU is wrapping up at the end of this semester and this will be the last Doxa issue that I work on. Better late than never, I suppose. I have come to very much appreciate student publications in the last several months. Make no mistake – I’ve been appreciating the Doxa for all the years I’ve been here, and especially so as co-editor. After spending some time working in the local news realm this summer, though, I’ve really come to see it all in a new light. The publication and distribution of the writing of students is absolutely crucial. It has been fascinating to see the ways in which CMU students have appreciated, criticized, joked about, and poked at the institution, sometimes all in the same issue! Students/young people making their voices heard on current events is a powerful and generative action, and I believe that the Doxa is thus a powerful and generative magazine. Regarding creative work (which, I admit, I have a particular affinity for): in my opinion, there’s nothing quite like seeing your own art in a published work, alongside your fellow artists. It’s fantastic that the Doxa can serve as a channel for this feeling, as a place for the first piece of work that a creative individual to be seen by the masses. In short, I think the Doxa is really great. I hope you think so too. This issue we present to you a lovely mix of political commentary, poetry, book recs, reflections on reflection, and “not non-fiction … (but) not fiction either.” My final act as co-editor will be to impel you, the reader, firstly to make sure to read this great issue in addition to your final essay writing and exam studying, and secondly to make use of this great amplifier that you have in the form of this publication. Read and be inspired. Sincerely, Mike Thiessen (he/him) and Katie Wilson (she/her), editors of the Doxa
So the Election’s Over ... Now What? by Hannah Peters
October 3rd has come and gone. We did our homework, cast our votes, watched the results roll in, and paid witness to history. History that you helped create. With your vote, you shaped Manitoba’s government and will change the province in ways we can’t begin to guess. And that’s exceptional. It’s exhilarating. It’s a privilege and a responsibility and truly a joy. And it’s just the beginning. Maybe your instinct is to pay attention during the election cycle and to ignore politics the rest of the time. This is natural. We’re busy after all, and the world’s depressing, and the news is difficult to stay on top of. Totally understandable! But I would like to offer an alternative approach. One where you, as the wise, caring, empathetic individual you are, choose to stay engaged and to better the world. With this goal in mind, I offer a checklist of sorts, a compilation of general guidelines and habits to help you meaningfully engage with and stay informed about politics and current events. 1.
Stay curious.
First off, I find it helpful to enter the conversation from a place of curiosity. Allow your curiosity to drive your engagement, rather than anger, obligation, or apathy. Ask questions. Don’t feel intimidated by the things you don’t know. Just enter the conversation and pursue the topics that interest you. Further, don’t just take in information, but engage. Question what you’re hearing. Think about the implications. Dig deeper and wonder about what a piece of news might mean, or why the information is presented in the form and manner it is. Truly, there’s no wrong way to do it! Just keep engaging and listening and thinking about the world we inhabit and the people and power dynamics within it. 2.
Remember your voice.
As John Boopalan is constantly reiterating, “let your voice emerge!” You have good things to say and contribute, and you can become a powerful force for change when you choose to be. You may feel underqualified or less knowledgeable about politics than others. Full disclosure, I feel that too, even as a political studies major! We all feel imposter syndrome, yet the beauty is that we all bring different knowledge and perspective that enriches the conversation, rather than detracting from it. So, you may not
have an encyclopedic knowledge of Manitoba’s MLAs. But maybe you study psychology, or business, or history, and can add a new and unconsidered dimension to the conversation. Or you might have experience working in a certain industry, or living in a different part of Manitoba, or dealing with a certain health issue. Whatever it may be, you bring something important to the conversation! You have a valuable perspective. You deserve to be part of the discussion, and you are smart enough and thoughtful enough to be there, even if you don’t feel like you know politics backwards and forwards. So, remember your voice, and remember your power to transform the conversation. 3.
Stay in touch.
We often assume that the politicians hold the power when in fact we the constituents are the powerbrokers, and the MLAs are responsible to answer to us. You elected these leaders, and their entire job is to represent you. So have your say! Phone, email, show up in person! No matter the format, let your concerns be known and hold them accountable for what they support and how they vote. And if you find yourself worried about how to express yourself or articulate your concerns, find comfort in the fact that a good part of the message is in showing up itself. To send an email or call shows your commitment and the importance of the issue to you, the constituent. Just your presence within the representative’s sphere and within the conversation will send a message and influence how they think about and prioritize issues. So why not engage with your MLA? 4.
Keep it nuanced, y’all.
I borrowed this phrase from my favourite podcast, Pantsuit Politics, and I firmly believe it can transform our politics and our engagement with the world. Politics is in its most natural state black and white. Us vs them, the righteous vs the evil, the right vs left, etc. But what of our lives exist in these extremes? Isn’t the majority of our lives lived in the grey? I urge you to embrace a vision of life that dwells in the nuance. Reject simple, dualistic narratives. Resist the urge to demonize the other side and to fully endorse your own side. Politics is people. And people are complicated. Don’t assume the other side is always operating in bad faith. Look for points of agreement. Look for their humanity. Seek greater empathy and understanding and reject a simplistic, reductive worldview. And don’t let your own side off so easily, either. Engage with their platforms and actions. Think critically and don’t wholeheartedly endorse all their actions or assume they are always right or good either. ‘Cause again, humans. To conclude: You have every right to be a part of the political discourse. You have good thoughts and important questions. Engage with your peers, your family, and your representative, and as you do so, search for the nuance and avoid the extremes. Because you are up for the challenge, and you can transform the discussion and the world around you if you only choose to engage.
Master of Puzzles (A Parody of Metallica’s Master of Puppets) by Morgan Z. Wilson
End of puzzling play, crumbling away I'm your source of self-deduction None can hear your prayer, the riddle isn’t clear Leading onto your reconstruction Searching, all will see Completion is all we need Dedicated to How I'm solving you A decipher disaster Bemuse your master The pieces burn faster Confuse your master, master Master of puzzles, image of wings Twisting your shape and smashing your schemes Vincent van Gogh, and several odd things Doughnuts are made with whipped cream Master, master Doughnuts are made with whipped cream Master, master Trying to find a way, always in dismay The problem isn’t any clearer Pyrrhic victory, piece of broccoli Break the pieces like a winner Searching, all will see Completion is all we need Dedicated to How I'm solving you A decipher disaster Bemuse the master The pieces burn faster Confuse the master, master Master of puzzles, image of wings
Twisting your shape and smashing your schemes Vincent van Gogh, and several odd things Doughnuts are made with whipped cream Master, master Doughnuts are made with whipped cream Master, master (master, master) (Banter, banter) Where’s the schemes of this disaster? (Casper, Casper) Now’s the time to improvise (Harder, harder) All you do is get harder (Shatter, shatter) This puzzle is oversized Solve me! I think I see a cat; no, a brown rat Just a rhyme without a reason Never-ending maze, it puts you in a daze Procrastination with greater reason Is this a blue sky? Now you’ve made them cry I will run through you Now I solved you too A puzzle disaster Bemuse the masters The pieces burn faster Confuse the masters, masters Master of puzzles, image of wings Twisting your shape and smashing your schemes Vincent van Gogh, and several odd things Doughnuts are made with whipped cream Master, master Doughnuts are made with whipped cream Master, master
Reading Classic Books for Very Specific Situations by Ella Reimer-Epp
Some say that readers have two hobbies – buying books and reading books – but I would like to suggest that a third hobby should be added to this list. The act of recommending books is one that many readers such as myself find themselves in the midst of far too often. I think my friends are tired of me talking about these classics, so I thought, why not tell all of CMU about them instead? Perhaps you saw some of these books in your high school English classes. (Maybe you even cried over one of them in your Grade 10 classroom *cough cough* I did *cough cough*). Or perhaps Paul or Sue has made you read one of these in class this semester. Or perhaps you will identify with one of these Very Specific Situations and you’ll find yourself with a neat little book for reading after exams. Whatever the case, please enjoy some classic book recommendations for Very Specific Situations… Are you thinking of getting a sugar daddy? Read Jane Eyre by Charlotte Brönte Are you in the mood for a gothic thriller/mystery that also tackles feminism and gender roles? Read Rebecca by Daphne du Maurier Do you secretly admire your school photos that your parents have hanging in the living room? Read The Picture of Dorian Gray by Oscar Wilde Are you stuck in a relationship with your half brother? Read Wuthering Heights by Emily Brontë Are you a political science major and obsessed with the song Old Macdonald? Read Animal Farm by George Orwell Do you hate books and love arson? Read Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury Did you girlboss a little too close to a man and you’re wondering what to do? Read Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen Does it feel like everyone around you is getting engaged and it’s freaking you out? Read The Portrait of a Lady by Henry James Do you want to read a book that’s a crossover between Survivor and Stand By Me? Read Lord of the Flies by William Golding Are you looking for an action, murder mystery and romance all in one book? Read The Three Musketeers by Alexandre Dumas Do you love talking to Kenton Lobe about farming? (Or did you love all of the walking scenes in The Lord of the Rings?) Read Grapes of Wrath by John Steinbeck Are you thinking of throwing a party for the girl you love even though you know she doesn’t love you back? Read The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald I daren’t say more about these books; you need to decide how you feel about them yourself. Happy reading!
shockwave by Jenica Sul
shockwave noun: a sudden wave of increased pressure– the unendingness of now is all over mind scattered slathered in every-always-never mind matters grey, white, always forgetting the pink of alive blind to time crying for an hour and not knowing why capsule too strong bind task to eternity grasp straws impossibly i’m made of electricity and oft unfit to drive babysit the toddler and throw tantrums in your off time crime is kindness dishevelled until it can’t be recognized and i am here not-never there whenever always, i.
Median by John George Smoking Potassium For S Koop It comes naturally to him. He holds the peeled banana like a cigar and exaggerates his phantom smoke rings to make them almost visible to our eyes. The beauty comes from the way he performs for no one but himself; I’ve seen it before. You can see in his eyes that he can hear the jazz noir themes and feel his long hair draped over a smoking jacket. Creating the confidence a cigar brings. My friend next to me makes a silly face that is satirical and contains true awe. We have a laugh at this but see action in each other’s eyes, one pair from a man across from us who shows a cigar lighter. A regular lighter carries the taste of pentane and hexane; this lighter has butane gas. Immediately the four of us are going outside into the dusk. “We should get off campus,” one of us says. With wide smirks, the four of us stroll out of the building and go to the sidewalk. “Don’t do it there, it’s still on campus,” a voice like mine says. “Go to on the median.” “Median? The sidewalk is fine.” The headlights hurdle across in front of us in blinding streaks, growling through our paths. “No, the median is off campus.” After some hesitation, the man with the butane lighter crosses to the median and we follow with the man holding the banana in a V of his fingers. He holds the banana in his teeth with his hand like he did a few minutes ago. At first, the tip of the banana only cooks, going from ripe, to well-done, to acrid. After that it smokes from the end and the man blows steam into the cold dusk air. After another pull from the banana he hands it to me and I attempt to take a drag. It doesn’t function like a cigar. My lungs expect smoke but they only get clean air with banana aroma. On the exhale, there’s thoughts of permanent tracheotomies you see on cigarette packs, rotting mouths, black tongues, and decaying bronchial cells. As we went back to campus, which was in front and behind us, something in me thought that there was stupidity to it, but there was far too much excitement and fake banana smoke to believe that it should have been prevented. Someone howled and we joined in that instinct of feeling.
Bananadine Especially in the company of the Senior Residence Assistant. The thing I said was “well actually!” after mentioning the lack of cannabis of campus. Two hops off the springboard before checking if the pool was drained for the season. I can lie, I can kind of lie, I can tell the truth, and probably a fourth or fifth thing I cannot see in the quick vivid moment. As I’m innocent I tell the truth. “What is it, just say it.” He smiles, he’s calm. He knows I’m too honest and knows whatever, it is fine, maybe strange, but fine. So, I tell him about the article I wrote (next to this one) and then tell him, “I won’t do my plan on campus, but on the median.” *** When I was at home I couldn’t find any zigzag paper, so back on campus now, I found some scrap paper from an Ezekiel study guide. It was a page cut out from the centre, without the two lines of margins, and without the beginning or ending of each line of text. I have a banana peel cut up fine and dried, ready to roll. I sprinkle the peel on a square of cut up text: “…whose observance man shall live. […] But… …against me in my wilderness: they did not walk… …rejected my ordinance, by whose observance man… …I thought I would pour my wrath upon them… …to make a full end of them. But I acted for the sake… …should not be profaned in the eyes of the nations, in… …ought them out. And my eye spared them, so that I… …or make a full end of them in the wilderness. More…” I managed to roll it into an extremely poor inefficient one-hitter. When I look up at the SRA his eyes are wide with the expression that usually leads to him saying, “John…” “I have it now, do you want to see it?” I say in an act of honesty. He considers shaking his head when I pull out my fist from my jacket and unroll my hand. It lies on my palm, staring to unroll itself with loose banana peel coming out the end that isn’t rolled up like a joint tip. Across the body it says: Over The The Face Of Yahweh
He looks back at me and says, “Just make it up, you have it, just write something fictional.” I picture what it would look like outside and I can’t think exactly what it looks like out there. I can’t remember if there’s snow or not, or if all the leaves are down. “I’m not smoking this on campus, it would be on the median. It’s peculiar to have the word of Yahweh on your lips. The median is right by the cop house and I find myself shoeless on the snowy grass with a lighter. There’s an intrigue in inhaling bible scripture to inhale some holy sacrifice. An intrigue to the violence: the cops passing me, my red feet on the snow, to the words of God going like a wind down the trachea and staining bronchi lining. There is the spark, the flame, and then the pull of smoke.
Hot People Problem 101: Looking at yourself for too long in the mirror until you are late for class by Trisha C. Boodhoo Did you ever just see yourself in the mirror and think: Holy Lord! I am hot! People would argue that this would be considered as a narcissistic trait, but I politely disagree. We all look at ourselves in the mirror for a long time sometimes and it could be for different reasons. We could just be looking at our appearance to see if we are presentable, to regulate our emotions and see if we are being in sync with what we think we are feeling, or simply because we want to make sure that we still look exactly like what we looked like yesterday or the day before. Mostly, we, as hot people, look at ourselves for self-criticism and self-validation, which in today`s society can get pretty intense to tackle and cause us to be late for class. Looking at yourself in the mirror can surprisingly be healthy for it allows us to connect and see ourselves which, were it not for mirrors, we would have been unable to. If there were no mirrors, we would only be able to perceive ourselves through others, and imagine the tragedy of not being able to see ourselves wearing an Iconic outfit or with an amazing hairdo! Mirrors can aid in helping you boost your self-esteem and gain self-validation, as long as you are the only objective about what you see and that you are neither criticising or idealising yourself. In fact, mirrors are powerful enough that they can change your whole perspective about yourself and see parts of yourself that is hidden to everyone except you. Mirrors are tools for self-discovery, and in a modern society where we tend to copy others, mirrors indeed help us become our authentic self. You will be able to be more in tune with yourself and tap into an inner strength, not to forget to tap into your inner hotness and sexiness by simply using a mirror in the correct way! While mirrors are great objects and powerful tools, they are often not appreciated, for they can sometimes evoke the wrong sorts of emotions. In our society, where social media is prevalent and pictures of beautiful models and influencers are circulating on platforms and covers of magazines, it is rather hard not to compare ourselves to them even if we do know that most of them have either photoshopped their pictures or spent an absurd amount on cosmetic surgery and botox. I, myself, like every other person, spent long hours in front of the mirror just criticising my appearance, thinking that my nose was too big, wishing that my eyebags disappeared or that I could just have better cheekbones like Bella Hadid. Self-doubt, insecurity and self-dissatisfaction often ensued with me feeling overwhelmed and even go as far as ruining my whole day just because I did not feel pretty enough. Besides these common feelings, some people often even develop Body Dysmorphic Disorder which causes them to get intense feelings of body-image disturbance and while fearing mirrors, they also crave them to make sure that they look perfect enough every couple of minutes. However, we can choose to flip the coin and use mirrors intentionally while also ensuring that we rewire our way of thinking and feeling. As with every other habit, this will of course take time to form and for us to become good at it. However, it could become one of the best habits that changes everything in your life. Since I started changing the way I use mirrors and implement practices, my confidence level has gone from a 10% to a 145%. My first exercise was
to stand in front of a mirror and just practice self-acceptance. I affirmed that I accepted myself the way I was, beauty and flaws included, stared in the mirror and just smiled. I feel the gratitude of having a functioning body and embrace my uniqueness for I am the only one with this body who helps me live and enjoy life every single day. Another practice that changed the way I viewed myself, was by practicing positive affirmations in front of the mirror or simply being my own hype man. The fun part is that you can even play with the words! I would look at myself and say something as basic as I am beautiful or go further and say I am so hot that whenever I walk by, I make people`s heads turn. You will actually be surprised at how easily your mood is affected by this simple practice. Looking at yourself too long in the mirror is indeed a hot people problem that we unfortunately have to deal with every single day, especially us students. However, is it really a problem if you are able to boost your ego and confidence before you go tackle that long and heavy class? I would say it might even be worth it to be late a couple of minutes to class if I can just increase my hotness level by looking at myself in the mirror. However, a more plausible approach would be to start staring in the mirror earlier so that you are on time for class. But sometimes, you got to do what you have to do, especially when your hotness is at stake! ______
Explosions by R.C. A moment of clarity and suddenly speaking becomes incredibly clear and your heart becomes naked. A weep, a cry, a howl to the desperate night. The thoughts come to you in rapid expansions, with your hands working quickly to keep up with your mind, your heart. Waves of lines expand towards you with your mind on the cusp of discarding the clarity.
Prof Quotes “Hear that airhorn, blow your brains out.” - David Balzer “In this class, there will be no physical violence ... outside, go for it.” - John Boopalan “I thought I had to tear up my Ph.D. but I repunched the numbers and said, ‘Oh, I’m not stupid!” - James Magnus Johnston “Once you’ve taken this course, the burden is going to be upon you.” - Wendy Kroeker “At least the philosophers aren’t deliberately being assholes, they’re just confused.” - Chris Huebner ~~~ PROF QUOTES: RODENT EDITION ~~~ “We’re speaking moistly all the time. Gerbils? Not so much, because they’re in the desert.” - Rachel Krause “I have a rat aura, which means the rats come find me!” - Wendy Kroeker “Is that a raccoon, and do I want to eat it?” - Chris Huebner
‘til next time...