Volume 35, Issue 3 (January 26, 2017)

graffiti January 26, 2017

Illustration by Nikoo Aleyasin

Contents 4

35 Photo by Daniel Muntaner

Graffiti Editorial Board EDITORS-IN-CHIEF Cassidy Bereskin Elizabeth Wolfenden DIGITAL EDITORS Angela Cui Caitlin Heffernan DESIGN EDITORS Charlie Littler Daanish Sayani STAFF ADVISORS Mr. Zohar Ms. Bulgutch Ms. Hahn

SECTION EDITORS FEATURES Jo Faisman Anastasia Zaritovskaya EXTERNAL Charlie Littler Matthew Ferguson INTERNAL Alyssa Joynt Joshua Chong JOURNALISM FOR HUMAN RIGHTS Olivia Willows Hodman Abukar ARTS & CULTURE Parnian Hossein Pour Hana Sharifi SPORTS William Lloyd Yuchen Qian OPINION & HUMOUR Lauren Kim Chantelle Nejnec ILLUSTRATION Leia Kook-Chun Madelaine Fischer PHOTOGRAPHY Daanish Sayani Alice Liang

ADVISORS Sarah Fallah Janna Getty COPY EDITORS Genevieve Crispin-Frei Steven Lee Jazzy Chung Daanish Sayani Campbell Bolland Lujayn Mahmoud Jaquelin Hollo BUSINESS MANAGERS Caitlin Chichora Erin Fortune

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Features

Photo by anonymous

What’s up with weed?

Illustration byAngela Miljanovic Illustration

by Angela Miljanovic From Afro Man to Bruno Mars, cannabis has become a regular topic of conversation for everyone, teens included. Weed, pot, or blunts — even the lingo has welcomed marijuana with more than open arms.

24.4% of Canadian youth to 8% of Canadian adults are reported to have tried marijuana, that is more than triple youth to adults. Weed has many different effects on its consumers, especially youth.

In the short-term, weed can cause feelings of euphoria and relaxation. It can also treat a variety of health issues such as glaucoma and epilepsy.

There is, however, a fine

line between medicinal use and recreational marijuana use, as the latter can have particularly negative effects. After smoking, one can experience red eyes, faster heart rate, and fainting. After multiple uses, it can cause a severe chronic cough, chest problems, and, in teenagers, it may affect brain development and increase the risk of psychosis.

Many teenagers know this, but smoke weed nevertheless.

“As [teenagers] are influenced by social media about the use of weed, it became a trend…

That’s why most teens use it… However, I use it when I am stressed or need a break

because it clears my mind and lets me relax… I do not use it very often,” says a Grade 10 student at North Toronto. According to another NT student, there is a “huge amount of stress placed on teens, either by parents, school, or themselves, and they use marijuana as an escape.”

With the recent gush of marijuana dispensaries, there is a debate to be held over safety. Some believe that the dispensaries will better control or regulate marijuana use; others say that it makes weed easier to access.

To put both sides to the test, I went to a few of these

dispensaries to ask around.

None of the three dispensaries that I visited asked for a doctor’s note, and the only time they brought up any kind of identification was when asked about qualifications for a membership, which is needed to purchase marijuana.

What was even more interesting was how long they have been around. Some marijuanaoriented stores such as Friendly Strange’ have been open as long as 18 years — long before talk of legalization.

As it turns out, both sides are wrong. It is fairly difficult to purchase weed without an ID, though — as a result of the

fake ID epidemic and increasing numbers of drug dealers in schools — this doesn’t adequately keep marijuana from teens. Dispensaries do not stop teenagers from getting marijuana and they do not effectively monitor who walks into their stores. But to be fair, legalizing marijuana will not completely take out the illegal use of it, because right now, with all of the dispensaries, teenagers are still getting pot from their local drug dealer, not their local marijuana dispensary.

There is a lot of confusion surrounding marijuana laws, which will likely not be clear until at least the spring of 2017. The government has put forth a nine-member panel to discuss unclear parts of the already existing laws. Many areas require some sort of clarification. For instance, whether someone can grow their own stash, how old do people have to be to purchase, how many grams can people buy, where to smoke? In Colorado and other states in the U.S. where marijuana is legal, the age at which people can purchase is the same as the drinking age, 21. However, in Canada, there are different drinking ages in different provinces. Does this mean one will be able get marijuana at 18 in Montreal, but 19 in Toronto? There has also been no talk whatsoever about how much to buy. People can make their own beer, but, as of now, people cannot grow their own stash. Before marijuana is legalized, a tediously lengthy process needs to occur. In the meantime, many teenagers will keep doing the typical ‘teen’ thing and smoke weed.

5

Sacrifice in the name of knowledge or slaughter?

You stand with a gleaming scalpel in your hand, realizing that in a couple of minutes, you will look into the clouded eye, now peeking from a black tray and breathing out formalin. In a couple of minutes the scalpel becomes your right hand, your mentor, your servant. In a couple of minutes, the lone eye fixes its gaze on you, desperately trying to keep its treasures intact. Yet, despite doubt and disgust, you succumb to the call of curiosity, unlocking the chest full of clinical knowledge. There exist varying opinions on the ethics of dissections. While some argue that dissections are unnecessary slaughter, oth-

were later used to educate medical students, artists like Leonardo da Vinci and Michelangelo, wanting to make their illustrations more accurate, also conducted dissections. In the 1500s, Andreas Vesalius told his students that dissections are more effective than textbook diagrams. By the 1900s, dissections became a common practice in schools.

Now, dissections are sewn into the school curriculum; a Biology course without a dissection lab is like a vertebrate without the vertebrae.

Yet, the ethics debate is ongoing.

What about dissections in a high school setting?

Three science teachers at

the wild, but accepted as donations. For example, if a pig died of natural causes and was later found to be pregnant, her otherwise doomed fetal offsprings get sent to schools or labs for dissections. Furthermore, when a cow is butchered, its eyeballs and other parts also get shipped to labs as some organs do not have a culinary use. These animals are treated with the utmost respect. In Canada, the Canadian Council of Animal Care (CCAC) ensures that animals are used under ethical and proper conditions.

What would have gone into a disregarded abyss of garbage has been momentarily resurrected to extract valu-

I remember my first dissection of a sheep’s heart.

Simply beautiful. It introduced me to the world of real Biology and real science. My brain was gladly absorbing the structure starting from the superior vena cava to the aorta as from alpha to omega. No diagram ever provided such insight into the heart, enabling me to visualize the way it works. Valuable knowledge of the heart, the brain, and the eyeball is rooted in my mind just as future bills will be rooted in my wallet once I pursue a successful career in medicine.

In this era of career-worship, high school compels us

path. Perhaps dissections can ignite a forest fire of interest, lighting up a career path in the direction of medicine.

Although many still believe that dissections are ruthless and gross, let me say the following. Would you save a piglet’s life? It may not even survive, having its mother killed while in the womb. Or would you agree to getting that fetal pig donated to a research lab or school, where its anatomy can be examined and contribute to the huge discovery of a future vet? What if that pig ends up being the first link in a chain leading up to a major advancement in medicine? What if it ends up

able knowledge and experience. In fact, two-thirds of Nobel Prizes for medicine or physiology awarded since 1902 have been discoveries made involving the use of animals for dissections. As a result, dissections reuse past lives for future reference and benefit.

Mr. Bellamy, Grade 10 science teacher at North Toronto, shared a story of a student getting nauseated and fainting during a class dissection. As Bellamy remarks, “[the student] fell, hit her head on the table, but still finished the lab once she was feeling better.”

If a person does not wish to perform a dissection due to religious or moral reasons, he or she may leave the classroom. At North Toronto, students have the choice.

into early priesthood for the shrine of the famed career ladder. Dissecting animals can inspire teens to become veterinarians, doctors, or take on any other profession that involves knowing anatomy. Medical students on several forums share their stories of how they were inspired to tie their lives with medicine as a result of dissections. One of them, a person with username shinsplinter posted that he/ she “became fascinated with anatomy in general back in seventh grade when [he/ she] did [his/her] first dissection.” As Ms. de Sousa, another Biology and Chemistry teacher at NT admitted, “dissections in Grade 12 are important so students have a chance to try everything,” to settle on a chosen career

triggering the development of a crucial vaccine that will save hundreds of people? Of course, these are just possibilities. But if that’s all you see, you’ve missed the point.

Dissections are the backbone of Biology, presenting us with some of the most useful information. Dissections do not only show us organs and tissues, but also the ways of life and the ways of nature. Whether you feel like a butcher or an explorer, we all are in the same boat.

If you don’t have a religious or moral objection to dissections, next time you do a Biology lab, suck it up, step out of your squeamish bubble, and try to appreciate the sacrifice made for the sake of your learning.

Illustration by Alice Liang ers believe they’re valuable learning tools .

With the potent voice of society behind our backs, we are forgetting that we owe the progress in Biology and medicine to such practices as dissections. Dissections, though seemingly ruthless and cruel, is not pointless murder. A dissection is a sacrifice to the altar of science in the proud name of knowledge.

Humans have always taken interest in the secrets of anatomy and physiology. In around 350 BC, in his book, Parts of Animals, Aristotle described how he gained understanding of anatomy while performing dissections of animals. He called this a natural knowledge worthy of a philosopher. Though dissections

NT ardently believe that dissection “is a valuable tool.”

According to Mr. Roche, a Grade 11 Biology teacher, “Over time, emotions are separated from the lab.”

According to the results of a poll conducted of 63 NT students, 41 claim dissections are a worthy sacrifice.

Only one third of students claim not to be interested in dissections. Many of the people who said “dissections are cruel” conceded that they do learn a lot from them. The anti-cut students may find dissections abominating as a result of religious convictions, vegetarian diet, or opposition to animal cruelty.

There are, however, several reasons to carry out with the sacrifice. Many animals are not taken from

Succumbing to the temptation of cheating

Illustration by Lucy Cheng Organized crime is the backbone of modern civilization. Cheating is the academic equivalent. Although, in an ideal world, cheating shouldn’t exist, the very existence of a societal setting necessitates its covert proliferation among the student body. Similarly, just as gang members don’t reveal their affiliation to organized crime, cheaters don’t confess. In a society where categorizing students into numerical tiers based on rigid guidelines is

the norm and the categorization is increasingly indicative of a student’s future success, it comes as no surprise that cheating is common practice.

In a survey conducted of 127 North Toronto students from Grade 9 to 12, under 60% said that they would cheat on an assignment.

Sixty three point seven (81) of the total surveyed revealed that they had cheated at least once, and 54% of those 81 said 3 or more times. Interestingly, most of those who

didn’t admit to cheating selected “too lazy or can’t be bothered with the subject” as their justification. Consequently, students who were actually in need of help were more likely to cheat than those who were capable, but simply too lazy.

Even one of the highest ranked (top 10) students in Grade 11 admitted that, “In grade 9 math class, [she] had a test on word problems and […] didn’t know how to do them, so [she] pulled out

[her] package and copied it […] and the teacher didn’t even care.” This nonchalance doesn’t end at a class-level.

Brian Zhang, another Grade 11 student, recalled in his Grade 10 history exam that “after the teacher walked out of the room, all [he] could hear was people yelling out answers and copying each other’s work.” As a result of teachers turning blind eyes and tests being administered incompetently, the people expected to enforce standards are incentivizing students to cheat, eliminating the risk and normalizing the behavior.

Assignment cheating is now being increasingly scrutinized. Larry Chen, a student at the University of Ottawa, says he often gets requests from friends who “emphasize how much they need [the marks] and end up trying to leverage friendships to get [him] to do assignments for them.” He recalls an instance when a friend — having not read the assigned reading — asked him to write an entire English class report for him. Several other people surveyed echoed this sentiment, claiming that requests to write essays on someone’s behalf are rarely incentivized by money, but rather by guilt-tripping. Moreover, they stated that most help started as “reading and critiquing the essay,” but gradually devolved into “rewriting whole parts of the essay.”

They agreed that most students ask for help from those who are “intelligent,” with the intention from the start to have them rewrite rather than criticize.

Tutors and essay-writing websites are also becom-

ing more profitable. Simply searching “essay writing services” on Google yields dozens of results with legitimate-looking websites whose prices range $5 to $200+. Whether they are often used or are reliable is a statistic usually well hidden by the companies that run the businesses. A Redditor by the pseudonym “Cpt-SA_to_ Zrn-5” said that, while many websites are of questionable reliability, she had successfully managed to get several near 100% essays from a website for as low as $15. According to the user, her peers had also garnered favourable results by using the website.

With low price points and positive results, it’s no surprise that students often rely on services like these.

Between the summer of Grade 9 and 10, I took a course from an outside academy for English. After every session, the teacher would tell the students his email and invite them to send their schoolwork should they feel the need to have it revised or edited. Although it would not be accurate to say that the teacher was soliciting money for essays, it raises the question of whether or not paid tutors are complicit in cheating culture, particularly in cases where the help that the tutor provides is significantly more than editing.

The interconnectivity brought on by the dawn of the new millennium has made it unbelievably easy to access resources regarding how to effectively cheat and get essays written for cheap.

Given the availability of such resources, the temptation to cheat is evermore present.

Toronto Reference Library

Charlie Littler

With five floors and over 1.6 million books, the Toronto Bloor Reference Library is not for the faint hearted. The library maintains a serious, quiet atmosphere (except on the first floor), providing you with an excellent place to go to cram for an exam or speed-write your essays. The library has tons of seating, ranging from large tables to individual cubicles, and even has a botanical writing area. The library also offers 3D printing, access to archives, music, and practice rooms among many other services. While most of the books are reference only (meaning you can’t take them home), their collection is perfect for conducting research on any topic you can think of. Books on the American Revolution? Physics? The entire Twilight saga? You name it, this library will probably have it. However, the size of the library can have some cons. Elevators can take forever, so taking the stairs is often better. More people means there’s a greater chance that your stuff to be stolen, so go with a friend, bring a computer lock, or just don’t leave your stuff out of eyesight. The first floor is dedicated to a large computer lab (you have to book on the website) and group tables. Food and drink is technically only allowed on the first floor, but as long as you don’t eat or drink near anything irreplaceable or right in front of the librarians, you can usually get away with a coffee and the stray muffin on upper floors. Speaking of the librarians, they are immensely helpful, but it’s often easier to find the call numbers of the books online before you venture to the help desk or risk standing there for 30 minutes with a librarian who thinks you’re 10 and is trying to give you a picture book on the Second World War. Most important, however, is that there is no shortage of outlets to charge your devices, and the wifi is free, though a bit unreliable at times.

Examining my privilege I spent my childhood in a bubble.

The elementary school I attended was in an area in Toronto that is well known for its high-income residents.

I grew up with friends who spent weeknights playing tennis at The Club, weekends skiing at their chalets in Collingwood, and summers sun tanning at their cottages — I mean mansions — in Muskoka. While every morning I went through the motions of the “typical” before school routine, my school was anything but typical.

I washed my face, brushed my teeth, ate my breakfast, and gripped the straps of my oversized backpack as I trudged up the big hill to school where I would play tag with seven year olds who had just come back from a quick weekend trip to Turks and Caicos.

My family, living just across the bridge from this wealthy area, was not quite as well off as my peers. We didn’t have a cottage or chalet, and we weren’t members of any fancy clubs. But, we lived very comfortably. We had everything we needed and almost everything we wanted.

The large disparity between my friends and me was a source of confusion during

my childhood. When examining my haves and have not’s, I came to believe that compared to my friends, they had a lot of “haves” and I had a lot of “have not’s.” My family only owned one property in mid-town Toronto, and it was significantly smaller and older compared to the custom- built six bedroom, four bathroom homes that my friends lived in. I didn’t get all the new toys they did, and I didn’t get to take weekend getaways to tropical locales.

I came to believe that my friends were leading average lives, and my family was poor — that I was somehow at a disadvantage because I didn’t have everything they did.

What I didn’t realize was that although my house may have been smaller than my friends, and I didn’t get all the new toys, or attend the same dance, swim, and skate classes at The Club, I had enough. In fact, I had more than enough. When I examine my childhood now, I realize that my perception of wealth was highly skewed. I hadn’t yet learned that many people don’t have everything they need, nevermind everything they want. I hadn’t yet learned of the many privileges I had been afforded in my life.

I hadn’t yet learned that

from the moment I was born, I have been at an advantage.

My parents were able to afford a home in a good school district in which parent and alumni councils are able to write fat cheques to ensure their children are getting the best education possible. My parents didn’t have to work two jobs each to put food on our table. Rather, they were able to come from work at 6:00pm, greet me with a smile and a hug, cook me a nutritious dinner, and ask about my day. They had the time and money to read me the newspaper, introduce me to adult concepts, and take me on trips overseas to learn about the rich cultural history of different countries.

My parents had the means to easily set me up for success later in life–something that very few parents can do.

My family’s wealth will help pay for a degree, maybe even two, from a prestigious university. This $40 000 piece of paper, as well as my WASP-y sounding name and fair skin, will help be obtain secure employment far easier than others — all of this I now know. And, if I fall on hard times, if despite all my privileges I find myself needing assistance, I will receive it. My family will support me and help me get back on my

feet. I will always lead a comfortable life, and I am aware that is a security that most people simply do not have.

I feel guilty. I feel guilty because I pretend that my privilege is justified because I am progressive and liberal and try to understand the ways in which other people are less fortunate than I am.

I try to educate myself on all the “isms” and “phobias” to make myself feel better about my privilege. I try to convince myself that I am being a good person by using my privilege to contribute to charities and organizations that help disenfranchised individuals. But, I know I will never be able to truly understand all their hardships, not only because I am rich, but because I am white, I am cisgender, and I am ablebodied. No matter how much I educate myself, no matter how much I participate in activist causes, or contribute my time and money to those who have less, I will never be able to fully understand the complexities of their struggles — I will always just be an ally. As much as I whine about all the inequalities and injustices in the world with my equally privileged and liberal minded friends over Sunday brunch, I will never live them. And that is some-

thing that I find hard to swallow. I feel guilty. I feel guilty because I will always be at an advantage in life, and my advantage puts others at a disadvantage.

A recent realization that I have come to is that, at age 17, I have done nothing to deserve my privilege. I haven’t worked harder than anyone else — I simply got lucky. I just happened to born to two young, universityeducated professionals who would soon become highly successful in their respective fields. I didn’t choose to have white skin or an able body, just like someone else didn’t choose the opposite. It was the luck of the draw and I happened to draw the right card. And because of this, I will always be in a position of power and I will always be at an advantage.

While I will continue to struggle with some level of guilt and look for ways to reject this bubble of wealth and privilege that surrounds me, I am confident that who I am — the accomplishments that I achieve and the societal contributions I make — will be the result of a life-long commitment of continuing to examine my “haves” and my “have-nots” and understanding that I have enough.

8

The plastic “epidemic”

Illustration by Sabrina Leung Imagine detesting the way you look your entire life.

Imagine trying to finally talk to that crush of yours, only to have the seeds of courage you’ve planted for years wilt away with every step you take. So you decide to change that. You can feel yourself becoming more confident, charming, and cherished. You are satisfied, but everyone else thinks differently. The old feelings of judgement and disappointment creep back — this is not what society wants from you either. You go back to feeling ashamed of yourself every single day, every single minute, and every single second under the eyes of vultures. You feel helpless because no matter what you do to yourself, it seems as though you’re living up to others’ expectations. In a Western society that emphasizes the importance of looking “natural,” this is the reality that you must face.

People live feeling trapped in self-consciousness, wondering in doubt, and struggling to acknowledge that they will be judged on the first thing others see: their outer appearance.

Today’s technology has reached its peak in its ability to alter our appearance into whatever we wish it to be.

But many individuals cannot

bring themselves to accept the opportunity because society equates the idealism of “accepting and loving who you are” to condemning the actions of changing parts about yourself. This unfortunately prominent misconception of plastic surgery only forces the person seeking solutions to retract to his or her shell, miserable and desperate.

Plastic surgeries have been practised, developed, and refined since the early 1800s. To Western populations, however, they are still deemed unnecessary, wrong, and even unethical.

With increased exposure to cosmetic surgeries in younger generations, controversies have emerged.

To Westerners, “Plastic” connotes something extremely negative when it is paired with surgery.

Instead of the popular notion that it means “fake” or even “materialistic,” plastic is derived from the Latin word plasticus or the Greek word plastikos, which means able to be molded. Going under plastic surgery should be viewed as crafting a clay that shapes one’s flaws into perfection.

As an active social media user, I am speaking on behalf of most Canadians when I say that I feel attacked

when I am bombarded with posts that demand so much political correctness. It is hard to not come across a single post about “personal freedom” or “loving yourself.” Ironically, while the encouragement for increased use of cosmetic products is welcomed, plastic surgeries

“But isn’t plastic surgery just another way for people to express who they are?” are approached in a contrary manner. Just looking at the recent Kardashian news on Facebook confirms that people who have gone under plastic surgeries are like circus animals: pointed at, judged, and humiliated by the masses. But isn’t plastic surgery just another way for people to express who they are?

Plastic surgeries are heavily criticized for being unnatural and unethical.

However, to struggle helplessly with something that is impossible to be changed naturally, to be haunted by a voice in your head that your reflection embodies a hideous monster, to resent everyone who can’t help but judge you is far more wrong.

Telling someone who is not comfortable with herself to“love yourself” is as helpful as telling someone with severe depression to “be happy.” Loving yourself is to feel satisfied, confident and content with who you are. I wear makeup because I like looking at myself with bigger eyes, flawless skin, and fuller lips, not because I am unhappy with who I am.

Similarly, plastic surgery is just a paint brush that draws the image you want to see of yourself. There is nothing “fake” or “concealing” about making an independent choice to express who you think you really are.

As a South Korean female, the concept of plastic surgery is not as alienating as it is to Canadians. In South Korea, almost 7.5 million people, including 20% of the women between the ages of 19 and 49, have gone under the knife. Even in United States, where plastic surgery is considered “superficial”, there has been a “continued growth in cosmetic procedures” performed according to a new data released by the American Society of Plastic Surgeons (ASPS).

More than 90% of girls aged 15 to 17 in North America have wanted to change at least one aspect of their physical appearance. Dr. Song, the president of ASPS, says plastic surgery is “becoming more common and accepted in men,” resulting in a 35% increase since 2000.

Those against plastic surgery blame the statistics on high societal expectations, but this “preconception of who you [should] be,” as Anastasia Zaritovskaya, an NT student puts it, will always exist and “you’re the only one who can determine who you really are.” If you think you have a blemish, there is now technology available to fix it. In Korea, where people see beauty as key to success, cosmetic surgeries are viewed as necessary for better employment opportunities and a happier life. *Karen Lee, a first-year student at the University of Toronto recently expressed what she believed were the benefits of plastic surgery

during an interview. She has always struggled with self-image issues resulting from her small eyes and flat nose. After receiving plastic surgery over the summer in Korea, she felt “happier than ever, more confident than ever… and more grateful than ever for having fixed what [she] had always hated about [herself].” However, after returning to Canada, she feels “attacked [by] many Canadians [who think that she] made the ‘wrong’ choice.” She doesn’t understand why plastic surgery is such a big deal, because even though her appearance has been slightly altered, she is “still who [she] is — Karen Lee, a normal student [studying at the] University of Toronto.” As someone who has known Karen for years, I witnessed her suffering finally come to a stop as a result of her choice.

For decades, plastic surgeries were seen as private affairs. However, since they have become more mainstream and relatable, so have the waves of criticism.

Plastic surgeries and their benefits are tempting, but many fear the repercussions will affect their status after the procedures are done.

One Grade 11 student at NT says she and her parents believe she needs plastic surgery to “be satisfied about [her] looks… but if [she] gets the surgery, [she] is afraid that people will think [she’s] fake and only attractive because [she went] under the knife.” She feels conflicted because “people who [don’t] fit with beauty standards are frowned upon, but plastic surgeries are generally stigmatized [by western society] as well.” If you are going to be judged either way, wouldn’t it be better to disregard what others think and choose the option that will help make you feel satisfied about yourself?

Plastic surgery can change your life forever. Instead of succumbing to its negative stigma, see it as something that allows for freedom of self-expression, the right to fix personal defects, and as a pathway for internal happiness. The world doesn’t revolve around your personal choices — you do. The technology that can prevent you from feeling guilty, ashamed, and vexatious finally exists.

Use it to your advantage. It’s your life, it’s your decision, and it’s your call.

9

Posting for post-secondary

Illustration by Angela Weng An increasing number of Grade 12 students are broadcasting their postsecondary acceptance successes through social media platforms, predominantly Facebook. Posts such as “Accepted into [insert college or university name here] Class of 2021!” have become banal.

While these acceptance posts are benign — and while the students who’ve been accepted to these institutions have every right to be proud — their byproducts may not be.

Between 2015-2016, over 100 post-secondary acceptance posts have cropped up on my Facebook feed. Overwhelmingly, the number of likes that these posts gen-

erate correlates with their institution’s QS world rankings and inversely correlates with their acceptance rates. A pattern is apparent: the higher the number of likes, the more prestigious the institution, and the more difficult it is for students to get into the particular institution.

For instance, a Columbia University acceptance status posted on December 12th, 2016, generated 934 likes while a Queen’s University status posted seven days later generated 225.

According to the QS World University Ranking of 20162017, Columbia University is 20th in the world; Queen’s University is 223rd; Columbia’s acceptance rate is

6%; Queen’s is 42%. A York University status posted on December 16th, 2016 generated 71 likes, which is 154 fewer than the number Queen’s received. As anticipated, York University is ranked lower than Queens

by QS (451- 460th in the world) and has an acceptance rate of 80%. According to statistics gleaned from 100 acceptance statuses posted between 2015-2016, institutions with acceptance rates below 10% generate on average 5X the number of likes than those with those over 50%. Moreover, institutions with QS rankings in the top 30 generate on average 3X the number of likes as those from 100-120.

According to Lucas Wong, a Grade 12 student from Earl Haig, “Acceptance to prestigious schools devolves into a bit of a pissing contest when posted to Facebook, causing divisiveness instead of encouraging social collaboration.” Wong affirms that Facebook “like” disparities reduce institutions to “edgy zingers such as “if you can hold a fork, you can get into York.” As a result of the Facebook “like” gap, less prestigious post-secondary institutions are subtly stigmatized.

Emma Della Rocca, a Grade 12 student at Loretto Abbey Catholic Secondary School agrees with Wong, claiming that as a result of Facebook culture’s emphasis on prestige, “It suddenly becomes less impressive when you announce getting into a “less prestigious” school. It makes those that choose to go to those schools feel less

accomplished and maybe even less intelligent.”

In addition to feeding the stigma, acceptance posts seem to be intensifying senior students’ anxieties regarding their own postsecondary fates. A Grade 12 student at North Toronto who finds herself anxious about getting into university maintains that “Facebook magnifies the stress that acceptances provoke.”

Della Rocca finds herself part of a Facebook group chat on messenger with 20 students — all of whom applied to Western University’s

“Acceptance posts seem to be intensifying senior students’ anxieties regarding their own postsecondary fates.”

MIT program. A few of the Facebook group members have been accepted to the program. “Everyone panics when a new person gets accepted and instantly asks for their average. These accepted students have exceptionally high averages, so

they were accepted early, but even so it still causes insecurity and anxiety,” says Della Rocca, who’s convinced that Facebook acceptance posts “do more harm than good.”

Seeing these acceptances on Facebook almost forces you to compare your academic abilities to others,” she continues.

Aware of the anxietybreeding nature of these posts, many Grade 12 students are trying to share their accomplishments without catching their peers in the net of stress. Jocelyn Rough, a Grade 12 student at North Toronto, shared her Queen’s Commerce acceptance through Snapchat. Rough “didn’t want to rub it in others’ faces [as she] knows applying is very stressful and thinks Snapchat is [a better medium for sharing the news with] closer friends.” Moreover, while Rough’s Snapchat friends were aware that she got into Queen’s Commerce early because of a specific scholarship, many of her Facebook friends would not have had this knowledge. Posting on Facebook, Rough says, would have only exacerbated the stress.

While Facebook is perpetuating the stigma and magnifying the anxiety, fortunately, its impact is, as Wong says, “rarely the deciding factor in which post secondary institution students attend.

Students should prioritize their own research and think for themselves instead of being pressured by others who may not have their best interests in mind.”

Northern District Library Hana Sharifi

If you’re currently on the search for a convenient spot to study after school, you have come to the right place. The Northern District Public Library is just the spot for you. Located a mere five minutes away from North Toronto on 40 Orchard View Blvd (the street next to Urban Outfitters), this Toronto Public Library is perfect for those of you looking for somewhere to study right before or after school. It’s advantageously located right in the Yonge & Eglinton neighbourhood, so you can grab some Tim Horton’s or Starbucks before your intense study session and head over to Northern District. There are plenty of tables to sit at — some are large group tables and some are smaller individual alcoves, so you can come on your own or with a study group. The free WiFi actually works well (yes!), and there’s a pretty large collection of computers for anyone to use. If all the computers are occupied, don’t fear! There are special reserved computers that can only be taken up for a small portion of time before they must be given up to someone in the queue. It’s nice, friendly, spacious, and so easily accessible. So what are you waiting for?

Time to watch some Youtube vid —I mean, study!

Photo taken by the Toronto Public Library

External

Photo by Elizabeth Wolfenden

Women’s march makes history The rhetoric of the 2016 election insulted, demonized and threatened millions of people around the world, but no one expected the worst.

Trump’s victory was a huge wake up call, causing us to be confronted with the question of how to move forward in the face of national and international fear and uncertainty. This included Teresa Shook of Hawaii, who created a Facebook group on November 9, the day after the U.S. Election. She hoped her friends would join her on a march on Washington D.C. to protest Trump, but she had no idea what she created. By the morning, over 10,000 women had already committed to the march.

From there, other Facebook groups emerged that eventually came together to create the Official Women’s March on Washington.

Soon after, a mission statement emerged that stated, “We support the advocacy and resistance movements that reflect our multiple and intersecting identities. We call on all defenders of human rights to join us. This march is the first step towards unifying our communities, grounded in new relationships, to create change from the grassroots level up. We will not rest until women have parity and equity at all levels of leadership in society. We work peacefully while recognizing there is no true peace without justice and equity for all.”

Almost 500,000 people

showed up in Washington D.C. on January 21, the day after the inauguration.

But they were not alone.

More than 2 million people marched across the U.S. in New York, Los Angeles and Chicago and around the world in Canada, Australia, Germany and the U.K. Crowd Scientists at the Manchester

“The air was thick with feelings of love, support, and solidarity.”

Metropolitan University in Britain estimated that the crowd at the Women’s March was roughly three times larger than the crowd at Trump’s Inauguration.

Thousands of people travelled to Washington for the flagship march, including over 600 Canadian women who piled onto coach buses for the 8-hour trip. Marion Adams, a Torontonian marcher said, “We are feminists in Canada but I think part of that is sticking up for women all over the world.

If you see a bully, you can’t just be a bystander. We don’t want to idly stand by just because it’s going on south of the border.”

Despite its name, this wasn’t just a march for women and women’s rights.

It was a march for everyone and whatever they wanted to say. Every sign had a different message on it. People advocated for immigrant rights, Black Lives Matter, Muslim rights, LGBTQ rights, disability rights, sexual assault victims and much more. But no matter what someone was there for, everyone would support it. Whether the chant of the moment was “black lives matter,” “this is what a democracy looks like,” ”my body, my choice” or, “we’re not going anywhere,” each marcher chanted with the same conviction as the person who started it.

There was no shortage of men attending the event ei-

ther. Sporting their own pink hats and signs saying, “This is what a feminist looks like,” they were there in full support, powerfully chanting, “her body, her choice!” alongside their female counterparts.

There was serious speculation before the march started about whether violence would break out. The day before, during the inauguration, 300 people angrily took to the streets. Rioting, window breaking and pepper spray were involved, resulting in the arrest of 90 people. However, the Women’s March had a very peaceful, positive atmosphere. Every once in awhile, a wave of cheering would make its way through the crowd and echo throughout the city. The air was thick with feelings of

Photo by Elizabeth Wolfenden

love, support and solidarity. Soldiers in full uniform danced on top of their army vehicles and sang along. Not a stone was thrown, not a hateful word was uttered and not one arrest was made in any of the march locations.

The Women’s March on Washington sent a bold statement to Trump’s government on his first day in office. A presence was shown in numbers too great to ignore, reminding Trump that he did not win the popular vote and we are here, we are watching and we are not going anywhere. Another march is already in the works for April 15, with the goal of pressuring Trump to release his tax returns. Organizers hope there will be many more protests throughout Trump’s presidency.

A tale of a Syrian girl

Photo by Cindy Cui for The Reckoner Graffiti is collaborating with The Reckoner, Marc Garneau Collegiate Institute’s studentrun newspaper. The following article was written by an MCGI student and was published in The Reckoner’s December edition.

Bombs were falling.

It was the middle of math class. We didn’t really think much of it. We rarely went to school anyways, maybe just three days a week, to avoid the shelling. We heard bombs fall all the time, and the cacophony had just become a part of our daily routine.

Things were normal, or at least as normal as they could be in the midst of a civil war.

Suddenly, everything began shaking—the glass windows shattered, desks and tables toppled over, tiles fell from the ceiling. My school had been hit.

Just as we had practiced so many times before, my classmates covered our heads and ran into the basement.

It was like clockwork. There,

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we waited for what felt like 30 minutes. I was sick with worry, and my stomach began to hurt. We’d never been hit before.

Finally, things quieted down, and my fellow students began to walk out on the streets where they thought it was safe.

But it was a trap, and another set of bombs hit.

We panicked. People were running and tripping and falling...many were bleeding.

I watched helplessly as my classmates got killed.

Later that day, my brother and I decided to use an alternate, safer route on our way back home. We were less familiar with those streets, and began to argue about which way to go when we arrived at a fork in the path. My brother urged me to go one way, while I insisted on the other.

Eventually, he got frustrated and forced me onto the path he preferred. After much resistance, I quieted down once I realized that bombs had

hit the path I had originally wanted us to use. Narrowly escaping death was an everyday activity in Syria.

My family decided that our life in Syria had become unbearable. My siblings and I couldn’t go to school, my parents could not find work, medical care was inaccessible, and everything had become so expensive. We had to leave. Luckily, we had a car that could take us to Lebanon, which closely neighbours my city of Homs.

We even had some close friends there to live with.

Many other families were not so fortunate.

My education in Lebanon was not much better. I was the only Syrian student at the school, and everyday I would be bullied by people telling me to leave. They said they did not want me to live off their money. They didn’t understand that I wasn’t living off their money—my family was surviving on our

own. However, I couldn’t transfer to one of the Syrianonly schools, because there were only middle schools available, and I was in high school at the time. I also struggled a lot because the students in Lebanon learned everything in French, with which I was unfamiliar. I cried often at that school, and was terribly unhappy.

Within a month, I had left.

Instead of school, I spent my days apprenticing at a hair salon where I learned some styling techniques.

My parents registered my family under the United Nations program, and after a year in Lebanon, we were relocated to Canada. Leaving Syria for Lebanon was a big step for me, but getting onto a plane and travelling across the sea was even bigger. Without a doubt, I was glad to leave home. I was grateful that my family was going to be safe. At the same time, I would have to adjust to a completely new life and culture in a different country.

I didn’t know what to expect.

I was happy to find that everyone in Canada is so welcoming. I have been here for sixteen months, and all the classmates and neighbours I have met along the way have been so supportive. I still struggle with the English language, but am progressing well. I enjoy going to school again, and am really interested in my Grade 9 science class. Above all else, I value the freedom I have in this country. The freedom to learn, play, relax, and experience adolescence.

Living in Canada has taught me to be more serious in my studies, read more books,

and be patient and determined. I have learned to be more adaptable to adverse situations. I understand the importance of listening to others, regardless of their age, and not judging people by their looks. I now realize that everyone is struggling with something, and that I should help people as much as I can.

Because of this, I volunteer with the organization Dubarah, which helps welcome Syrian newcomers to the country. I assist new immigrants with learning the English language, and sometimes help teachers by translating from Arabic.

I also help Syrian students adjust to Canada’s education system, and show them study tips and how they can apply to university.

Prior to the war in Syria, I was a normal, Grade 9 student. My family and I liked travelling, and I visited my cousin often. I enjoyed going out with my friends, dancing, and exploring the city. The past four years have been life-changing, to say the least.

Although my family immigrated to Canada, the majority of my relatives are either still in Syria, or have moved to small, neighbouring countries. Despite this, I have never felt alone. The staff and students I have met at Garneau make me feel welcomed and supported.

While I still keep in touch with my other relatives, I know that I now have a new family that I can rely on and confide in. MGCI, my new neighbours, my friends, they have become my family.

The TTC William Lloyd

As you read this blurb, keep the following equation in mind. The quality of a study spot can be easily represented through the equation E/P= S (E being efficiency, P being Procrastination, and S being the specific study spot’s score). Any spot that increases efficiency, while limiting procrastination, receives a high study spot score. Without a doubt, one of the most underappreciated study spots in Toronto is the TTC. I do concede that in many situations attempting to study on the subway is futile, as trying not to awkwardly fall into the person standing beside you when you aren’t able to move any of your limbs freely is already a hard enough task. Despite this, under the right conditions, the subway provides the ideal study environment (remember the equation). To start, the presence of a concrete timeframe, provided by your upcoming stop, is a motivator to get as much work as you can done before it’s time to get off. A long study session can often feel overwhelming — with the end feeling out of sight — but on a subway ride, I work significantly more effectively. Knowing that you only have 15 minutes left for instance, motivates you to get as much done as you can. It is hard to have this mentality for hours on end. In addition to the natural motivation that the Subway provides you with, the lack of wifi and cell reception (for the most part) also creates an environment conducive to effective studying. Procrastination is limited. With this in mind, studying on the TTC only works at some times, and for certain types of work. It only works well if you are planning on getting some extra work done or for some last minute studying before school, as I usually choose not to ride the yonge line up and down mindlessly from 9:00am to 5:00pm on a Saturday studying. Although you aren’t able to spread your notes and various related sheets and textbooks all around you, if you are wanting to review your notes or do some practice questions for example, the subway is a great place to study.

Fidel Castro: the good & the bad

Photo taken for CNN As news of the death of Fidel Castro spread, some Cubans cheered whilst others mourned. For some Cubans, El Comandante was and will always be a Cuban hero — the man who toppled the tyrannous regime of Fulgencio Batista, promising social and economic change and fighting for the little man. For many others, he was a tyrant responsible for the significant problems that Cuban people faced.

World leaders responded to Castro’s death with polarizing opinions. For instance, Donald Trump tweeted, “Fidel Castro is dead! …

“Today, the world marks the passing of a brutal dictator who oppressed his own people for nearly six decade.” Bashar al-Assad and Narendra Modi, on the other

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hand, described Castro as “a great leader” with one of the “most iconic personalities of the 20th century.” The most notable response came from Trudeau, who characterized Fidel Castro as “...a larger than life leader who served his people for almost half a century.” As one could have guessed, these comments caused significant backlash.

The discordant responses to Castro’s death reflect the debate surrounding his legacy, a legacy which is neither black nor white, but both, with shades of grey in between. Here goes an attempt to look at the good and the bad.

The Good: Fidel Castro was the longest serving non-monarch before he transferred power to Raul Castro in 2006. Dur-

ing this period he survived 638 assassination attempts according to Fabian Escalante, the former head of the Cuban Secret Service.

But putting aside all of the negative aspects of Castro’s rule, Cuba is significantly better off today because of certain policies Castro employed. Regarded most favourably for his impact on Cuba’s healthcare system, Cuba’s life expectancy and infant mortality rates today are substantially better than most other South American countries, rivaling many European countries and having lower infant mortality rates for children under five than the US in 2013. Margaret Chan, director-general of the World Health Organization, described the Cuban healthcare system during

a 2014 visit by saying she “sincerely hope[s] that all of the world’s inhabitants will have access to [the same] quality medical services, as they do in Cuba.” Pretty high praise, especially for a country with a gross national income of just over $18,000 PPP dollars. Similar to the investment in healthcare, the government’s focus on the education system has paid off with Cuba recording educational scores unparalleled to most developing countries, as well as a 99.8% literacy rate amongst adults according to the CIA World Factbook.

The Bad: Through his mass executions of the senior Batista officials he overthrew, Fidel Castro, from the start, established the tone for the

next 49 years of his rule.

From there, matters only worsened as he prosecuted, incarcerated, tortured, and executed his own people.

As José Miguel Vivanco, the Americas director for Human Rights Watch put it, “As other countries in the region turned away from authoritarian rule, only Fidel Castro’s Cuba continued to repress virtually all civil and political rights.”

Throughout his tenure, Castro repressed expression and speech in an unrivalled way, limiting all mediums of expression. He was willing to go to incredible lengths to enforce these censorship practices, giving no regard to human rights in the process.

The part that pains me most of all is the fact that Fidel Castro had all the elements of a great leader, and he had the potential to substantially improve Cuba.

He was a truly captivating leader who managed somehow to still be adored by a large portion of Cuban’s even by the end of his time in office. The son of a sugar plantation owner and a law student at the University of Havana, Castro was definitely not a member of Cuba’s large marginalized population. Castro, a man that was given many opportunities in a country where so many people had so few, truly cared about changing this configuration of wealth and opportunity. To what extent he achieved this is another question. Whether you liked him or not, Fidel Castro was and will always be one of the most legendary revolutionaries of all time.

Rachel’s Coffee House Matthew Ferguson

Rachel’s coffee house is not only a great place to get a cup of coffee, but an excellent study space as well. Located only a few blocks south of NT, Rachel’s proximity makes it a convenient location to drop by after school for a productive study session. If you don’t live in the vicinity, Davisville subway station is situated shortly down the street. Rachel’s has a great variety of comfortable seating options and a simple yet sophisticated atmosphere with minimal yet fitting décor. The music it plays tends to be either classical or light jazz and is reasonably quiet so you’re less prone to distraction. Wifi is also available so long that you request the password from a staff member. The mention of an independent coffee shop makes many of its quality. Coffee prices range from $1.80 to $2 for a large and a wide selection of high-quality caffeinated, green, and herbal teas are available at $2.95 — they come in nice teapots. Espresso-based drinks such as lattes are slightly more expensive with prices ranging from $3.30-4.45; the same applies for smoothies and a variety of other cool drinks. Sandwiches with side salads are able for $7.45-8.50, an array of scrumptious homemade baked goods can be purchased for prices under $5, and salads are $8.50. As a family-owned business, the staff are all very welcoming and kind and are likely to remember your name should you frequent their shop often.

All in all, Rachel’s has the ideal study environment, extremely friendly staff, and excellent pricing.

Photo by Matthew Ferguson Photo by Matthew Ferguson

Praise for Obama’s legacy Now that U.S. president, Barack Obama, is leaving the oval office, it’s time to reflect on his legacy.

In his first term, Obama worked to reform the healthcare system. He came up with the Affordable Care Act, which faced strong opposition in the form of protesters looking to “kill the bill.” Many of his colleagues advised him to not follow through with the bill if he wanted a second term in office, and pushed him to reach a settlement, even if it fell short of his original goal.

Obama countered, “When you have people saying that this isn’t the right time, when you have people worrying more about the politics of it than what’s right and what’s wrong, I want you to think about the

millions of people all across this country who are looking for help.” The bill would eventually pass through congress, giving 16.7 million people health insurance. Fay Asimakopoulos, an NT grad pursuing an undergraduate degree in the U.S., “thought Obama did his best when faced with the constraints of a Republican senate.” Obamacare led to a drop in the rate of uninsured Americans from 16.4% to 8.6%. Additionally, the legislation has made it difficult for insurers to discriminate against patients with preexisting conditions and has allowed children to access their parents health care.

Throughout Obama’s terms, shootings have seen an increase in media attention and gun sales have

surged. Despite this, the homicide rate has declined by 13%. In fact, since Obama took office in 2008, there has been 229,078 fewer violent crimes, resulting in a 16% drop.

Furthermore, Obama channeled a significant amount of investment into all levels of education with his American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, leading high school graduation rates to reach a record high of over 83%. He added a presidential memoranda stating that science must be a prominent factor in government decisions to restore scientific integrity.

He eliminated restrictions on scientific research set by Bus, supporting biomedical and the stem cell research.

Of course, it is impos-

sible to go without mentioning Obama’s efforts in doubling federal spending on clean energy research, quadrupling solar and wind power to decrease carbon emissions (the US carbon emissions decreased by 12%) and his oversight over the Paris Climate Agreement to protect the environment and air quality.

Obama received the presidential office in the midst of an economic crisis. In response to the meltdown, Obama, with his American Recovery and Reinvestment Act and countless other initiatives, developed 10.7 million more jobs. Now, unemployment is below 5% and long-term unemployment dropped by 614,000 due to a 15-year high in job openings. As a result, the stock

market is stronger than ever.

All of this contributed to an approval rate of over 50%.

Although Obama’s legacy may be overshadowed by an era of political turmoil and uncertainty, there’s much we can respect him for.

Henry Wilson, a politically engaged Grade 12 student at North Toronto, believes “president Obama has done a service to his nation these past eight years, and suspect the history books will reflect positively on his time in office.” Wilson sees Obama as a “cool, capable, and commendable leader that is leaving his country in a better position than he found it.” For that, Wilson says, “Obama has earned my respect.”

Police work to improve relationship with teens As a teen, it’s common to think that you’re invincible — that you can do no wrong, that nothing bad will happen to you, and that you’re above the law. But when it does, you do, and you’re not, Toronto’s Police are there to deal with the damage. At 53 Division, North Toronto’s division, officers have their hands full with over 15 high schools that fall within their parameters.

When we send a Snapchat, we think that after our friend sees it for 10 seconds, it will disappear. Presumably forever. After a sit down with Staff Sergeant Matthew Moyer and Officer Tim Somers, it turns out this couldn’t be farther from the truth. Major social networks such as Snapchat, Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, and all major service providers like Rogers, Bell, and Telus, have agreed to keep everything in a data base. That risky text you deleted? Still floating around somewhere. The snap you only wanted your best friend to see? Snapchat has it.

While this may seem concerning, it’s all in an effort to curb what both officers agreed is the most common crime committed by high school students: cyber bullying and harassment. “Anonymity breeds bullies,” says Somers, who is in charge of community outreach at 53 Division. It’s hard to argue with the fact that high school students love being

anonymous online. A couple years ago, Ask.fm was popular; then there was Yik Yak; now there’s Snapchat. These are all perfect environments for cyber bullying to fester.

But what do we do when we get that one text that makes us feel a little uncomfortable? The one that’s a little too aggressive, a little too suggestive. “Calling 911 seems too serious,” says Somers, “and if I told a room of 100 students to come chat with me at the station tomorrow how many do you think would actually come? None.” The fact of the matter is that young people want nothing to do with the traditional communication methods used by police.

Who wants to be the person to call 911 over a tweet?

Or walk into the station to report that conversation you had last night over text?

Nobody.

The police realized this after dealing with the after effects of online harassment. When they get called into conflicts like domestic disputes where teens are lashing out after being harassed, the same thing happens every time. “Everybody says they didn’t see it coming, but nobody saw the signs,” Moyer says. These kind of things made the police more reactive when they really want to be preventative. “We’re first and foremost in community service, we’re more concerned with people’s safety than solving

crime.”

With this in mind, the Toronto Police launched an online presence meant to better connect with students. You can now find Toronto Police on Twitter, Facebook, and many community outreach officers such as Tim Somers will even give out personal phone numbers. This is all in an effort to make the police more accessible to young people, removing the negative connotation kids our age hold against the police.

After interviews with a couple North Toronto students, it became apparent that very few would actually go to the police if they found themselves in a less-thandire situation. Gabrielle Brownstein states that she would only contact the police if it was “urgent” or she felt “seriously threatened.”

Both Grace Sommerville and Catriona Roche echoed her response, giving a definitive “no” when asked if they would think about calling the police for anything less than an emergency.

While previous methods of communication may seem too serious for the incidents that young people commonly deal with, both officers hope their online presence will make kids feel safer. “If you send us a message that you’re in a bad situation, whether at a party, or around things you don’t feel comfortable with, we’re more concerned with getting you

Illustration by Angela Miljanovic out of that situation rather than persecuting whatever is actually going on,” says Somers.

While a good portion of policing will always have to be aggressive, knocking down doors and arresting criminals isn’t all that cops do. It’s important for us as students to realize that most of these people are

simply looking out for our well-being. As a whole, the police service has made a major effort to reach out to a demographic that has historically not gotten along well with officers. Students should know that there are people out there looking out for their safety, with the resources to help them and the promise of anonymity.

Internal

Photo by Alice Liang

From Gorenkoff to Mack: NT’s new administration

Photo by Alice Liang After ten and a half years of working hard and playing hard, Mr. Gorenkoff is shedding his red and grey clothes in order to bring his expertise to Lawrence Park C.I. He leaves the Norseman horns in the hands of Mr. Mack, who will be assuming the role of North Toronto’s tenth principal at the start of February.

This change has been bittersweet for the staff and students of North Toronto, who have relied on Gorenkoff’s leadership for the past 10 years. It has also been hard for Mr. Gorenkoff, who has appreciated

the “amazing sense of family” that NT has to offer.

“The staff and the students and the parents, there’s just such a warmth here,” he said. “When you’re part of that spirit and that passion and that sense of community, it’s a great feeling.”

Mr. Gorenkoff’s favourite moments have always been seeing the “really smart” NT students “in action,” taking part “in debates, and in presentations.” He believes those moments are what has kept him going as an educator. But as principal of NT, he is most proud of the planning he contributed

to the building of the new school. He got involved in working with the architects and builders, while consulting with the teachers of each department to accommodate their needs in the new building. Despite the long hours, 25 every week, Mr. Gorenkoff felt extremely fortunate for the opportunity, because, “in Toronto, very few principals get to build new schools.”

Even though Gorenkoff is sad to leave, he knows the benefits of administration changes. There were a lot of changes in the board that occurred at the same time.

Leaside, Northern, Forest Hill and Oakwood all experienced changes in administration. After 5-7 years, the general expectation of the TDSB is that a principal will move schools in order to keep the system fresh. This brings a new pair of eyes to each school’s community, sharing the wealth of expertise; therefore, if one principal has a strength or particular experience, they can bring it to another school.

“I was here for 10 and a half years,” said Gorenkoff, “it’s a long time in the scheme of things. I think that [the TDSB thinks] I can do a good job at Lawrence Park.”

He is excited about the challenge that working at a new school poses, and for making new relationships

with the people there.

While it’s sad to see Mr. Gorenkoff go, it’s also exciting to see Mr. Mack rise to the new challenges that being principal will bring. Throughout his role as principal, Mr. Gorenkoff emphasized extracurriculars. Mr. Mack plans to take a different route, focusing more on maintaining a healthy balance between extracurriculars and academics for students who he believes “are oversubscribed in terms of what they do.”

Mr. Mack has been co-chair of the Wellness Committee

“While it’s sad to see Mr. Gorenkoff go, it’s also exciting to see Mr. Mack rise to the new challenges that being principal will bring.” for a number of years (along with Ms. Hayden), which he said has been the highlight of his years as vice-principal. His goal as principal will be to promote mental health and provide support for these issues in the community.

North Toronto is fortu-

nate, as Mr. Mack already knows the inner workings of the school. It is common for new principals to come to new schools with no knowledge about the community.

But with his expertise about the school, the transition will be smooth and Mack will be able to make changes that benefit our community. Mr. Gorenkoff has no doubt that Mr. Mack is a great fit as principal. “He is very poised, very confident, very efficient, [and] he has the best interest of the school in mind,” says Mr. Gorenkoff.

As of now, Mr. Mack wants to keep the school running as is. However, he has plans for the upcoming school year — including his own version of “Work Hard, Play Hard” — which he hopes to consolidate over the summer while vacationing in France.

NT is sad to see Mr. Gorenkoff go, but we haven’t seen the last of him; he will be attending North Toronto events such as Maytime Melodies and Commencement. In addition, Mr. Mack promises that he won’t change the code on the parking garage so Mr. Gorenkoff can visit anytime.

On behalf of NT’s staff and students: Thank you Mr. Gorenkoff and good luck Mr. Mack!

So long, farewell, auf wiedersehen, goodbye

such as the Les Miserables medley at this past Fall Fare, to classical ones, like Mozart’s Requiem, one of her favourite pieces of repertoire she has ever been involved with at NT. For ten years, Ms. Ratzlaff has been a staple in the music department and in the NT community. “NT has

been a unique, great fit,” she reflected. She commented on how NT is full of people who are willing to take risks and try new things, and how rewarding it has been to see so many students thrive in her classes.

It is not just at NT that Ms. Ratzlaff shows her devotion to music. She is also the founder and director of VIVA! Youth Singers of Toronto, teaches private vocal lessons, is part of a professional Toronto choir, and plans to return to U of T this summer to lead courses for future vocal teachers. Aside from a beach vacation with her husband, Ms. Ratzlaff is excited to continue her development as a singer and a teacher during her retirement. She looks forward to finding more opportunities to perform, so keep your eyes out for the name Carol Ratzlaff up in lights on a marquis.

Aside from her thanks for many wonderful years, Ms. Ratzlaff’s parting message to the students of NT was one of distress. She believes that not enough people are planning to pursue a teach-

ing career. It is a profession which she believes inspires people and touches so many lives. She feels that “the best way to [affect change] is by being a teacher.”

When I was approached to write Ms. Ratzlaff’s farewell article, I was hesitant.

Not because I didn’t want to write it, but because I was afraid I wouldn’t be able to do her justice. She has given me and countless other students so much more than just a singing education; she has provided us with a safe and comfortable environment where we can take risks, where we can experiment and grow, and where each student has a chance to shine.

“Students here are willing to trust you, and I’m going to miss that a lot” she said.

Well, Ms. Ratzlaff, we are going to miss you too. For me and many others, class is not going to be the same, but we are all so grateful for the time we’ve had together.

Thank you for all you’ve given us, and we hope you find success in your future.

on. She has showed us that success can only be reaped through hard work. This lesson, and subsequently, the piece of advice she left us with, has helped us in other aspects of life, not just in math.

After retiring, Ms. Lu intends to travel, relax, and

maybe even hit the gym.

She is already planning to spend time with her loved ones in her hometown of Shanghai.

Ms. Lu has said that she will miss everyone here at North Toronto, especially her students and the math department. She will also

be missed by all of us. North Toronto will not be the same without her vibrant presence. With much love, we bid farewell to Ms. Lu as she enters a new and exciting journey. We wish her nothing but happiness.

Photo courtesy of Ms. Ratzlaff Sadly, in the upcoming months, we must say goodbye to our beloved vocal music teacher, Ms. Ratzlaff.

Ms. Ratzlaff has devoted countless hours to the vocal music program through choir rehearsals, extra music theory and history help, and by simply taking the time to talk and connect with her

students. Some of her warmest memories of NT are of students coming to spend time in the vocal room just to hang out, which shows just how comfortable students feel in her classroom.

Over the years, Ms. Ratzlaff has helped direct many different works at NT concerts, from popular pieces,

Farewell to Ms. Lu After 24 years of teaching math in the TDSB, Ms. Lu, one of NT’s most beloved, caring, and determined teachers, has decided to retired. In the past, Ms. Lu has avoided the idea of leaving, deleting the emails reminding her that she is eligible for retirement. Neverthe-

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less, recently, Ms. Lu has decided that it is time for her to leave and start a new chapter in her life.

Throughout her 24 years of teaching, Ms. Lu has taught her students to not be hesitant when solving difficult problems, and, instead, tackle them head-

Trespassing in the name of academics Mr. Zohar

Where to study: three suggestions that will take you from keener to sophisticate. 1. Abandoned classrooms. Teachers are supposed to lock classroom doors behind them, but we often don’t. No place quieter than an off duty classroom.

Don’t make a mess and enjoy being queen or king of the castle. 2. University of Toronto libraries. Take a thermos of hot chocolate, your laptop, and note-books and go library hopping at the U of T. Start at Knox (like studying in a church), move on to Trinity (exceptional privacy), try out Medical (feel smarter just being there), and end at Vic (soak in the culture). If you just want to pass the time, go the periodical room at Robarts and read magazines you never knew existed. 3. Hotel lobbies. This one’s for the more confident amongst you. Dress nice, clean anyways, and head to the lobby of a classy hotel. They usually feature deep, luxurious chairs, fascinating people watching, and an air of sophistication. Great bathrooms are another plus. People will think you’re a busy VIP and wonder if you’re famous. Photo taken by the University of Toronto

The NT sibling phenomenon Having a sibling is far from easy. From the moment one child becomes two, three, or four, the competition to vie for a parent’s affection begins. There’s a constant battle for who gets the last cookie or who wins hideand-seek. Naturally, comparisons between siblings arise. Fast forward a few years, and this competition develops into who has the coolest clothes or the most friends. This competitiveness worms its way into the school environment.

Being a high school student can mean striving to earn good grades, participating in a variety of extracurriculars, and navigating the social landscape.

Balancing all these aspects can be hard. According to students, the experience becomes more challenging when they feel like teachers

are comparing them to their sibling(s).

Tamlyn Kook-Chun, the younger sister of Leia Kook-Chun, finds that there are some “pros and cons to getting the same teacher [as my sister did].” “On the pro side, I can look at my sister’s work for reference. Since Leia gets high marks, her work is good to look at in order to see what the teacher wants,” she says. She continues: “The con side is, of course, the comparing. I do feel like they compare the two of us sometimes, especially if they mention my sister in a conversation I’m having with them.”

There is a common misconception that siblings are very similar, or, in the case of twins, identical. You have the same parents and grew up in the same home, so how different can you

be? According to a research study conducted by Robert Plomin, siblings may have similar or identical physical characteristics, but personality wise, they can be practically strangers.

From an adolescent’s perspective, getting higher grades or more recognition in extracurriculars at school is the surest way to attract a parent’s attention. Charlie Latimer, twin of TJ Latimer, explains how he feels when he receives marks, “If it is a worse mark [than my brother], I don’t feel very good because I like to do better than him. If I get a worse mark he says that he is smarter than me, but if I do better I say I am smarter than him. If I get a lower mark than him, I usually try to work harder on the next assignment to try to beat him.”

Kook-Chun expresses

similar sentiments. “Whenever I get a higher mark than Leia, I’m very happy; I beat my awesome big sister at something! Especially when it comes to art class and assignments. Because she’s so good at it, I’m super happy when I get better than her,” says Kook-Chun.

When students are compared to their siblings by their teachers, a psychological pressure can be created and it can be detrimental to learning. Latimer has been compared to his brother since middle school. “Before grade 7 we were never in the same class, and then in 7 and 8 we were in the same class, so that is when teachers started to compare us.

Teachers that we share but are not in the same class for will compare us [at North Toronto]. They will say ‘your brother did better than you’

or ‘you did better than your brother’.” The act of comparing children, especially siblings, creates a vulnerable environment that can diminish a sibling’s belief in themselves and their unique capabilities.

Two identical apples can be compared. Two identical cell phones can be compared. But two identical siblings whose personalities and behaviours diverge cannot and should not be. Comparisons can lower a sibling’s confidence and make him or her feel inadequate.

Instead of comparing, there should be a positive learning environment and the potential of every student should be harnessed. Each sibling needs room on the stage to shine, and that can’t happen when one is hidden behind the other’s shadow.

program.

Throughout her years at North Toronto, Ms. de Braux has noticed that many more students are considering college as a post-secondary pathway.

The negative stereotypes surrounding less popular post-secondary options seem to be on the decline as students realize the need

to make their own decisions and ignore pressure from peers and family. As Grade 10 student Meagan Leider puts it, “It is ultimately up to the individual to pick which option best suits them after high school.

Only they can choose an environment that will allow them to grow and reach their full potential.”

The college complex North Toronto is known for its high academic standards. Consistently ranked as one of the top schools in the TDSB by the Fraser Institute, many North Toronto graduates continue their education in prestigious university programs. According to guidance counsellor Ms. de Braux, nearly 90% of NT graduates continue their post-secondary education at a university.

This figure is well above the national average of 36%, as reported by Statistics Canada.

Grade 10 student Hana Sharifi believes that North Toronto’s university-centric mentality has created a stigma that university is superior to other postsecondary options such as college, apprenticeships, and the workforce. She says North Toronto “courses are mainly directed in a university direction, and the intense academics are meant to prepare us for [university].” Currently in the Grade 10 careers course, Sharifi admits that “North Toronto students generally believe university is the better pathway, partly due to the stereotypes surrounding college, such as that college students have a lower average and are less interested in money.”

This mentality can close many doors for students who feel pressure from family and peers to take the university route. Many North Toronto students dismiss the idea of entering college and programs linked to it. Pathways such as the highly successful TDSB Dual Credits Program are rarely a topic of discussion within North Toronto’s walls. The free program allows senior high school students to take introductory college courses such as psychology, machining, and animation at a local community college. As the name suggests, participants in the program earn a college credit and a high school credit for the same course. Many of the courses offered in the program are not offered at North Toronto, partly because they are geared towards students entering the college stream and require more specialized equipment or facilities than NT has.

Few North Toronto students enrol in it. According to Ms. de Braux, less than ten Grade 11 or 12 students are a part of the program each year. Although some Career class sections briefly discuss the dual credit option, many students, such as Grade 11 student Leia

Kook-Chun, did not know what the program entailed.

Grade 12 student Ethan Pella, who is enrolled in the Dual Credits Program, believes that many of his peers are uninterested in the program not because of the courses offered, but because of the kind of credit that is awarded. “There are many courses that students find interesting” he stated.

“But, they are often deterred because [the credit offered] is a college-level credit, which would be useless for those looking to go to university.”

According to Ms. de Braux, college related programs (such as the Dual Credits Program) are not immune to the stigma. She states that many students believe that programs such as the one offered by the TDSB are for disengaged students and students who lack the required number of credits to graduate. In contrast, Ms. de Braux believes that, “The program is amazing for those who are considering college or just want more options.” She also notes that the guidance department often encourages 5th year students who are looking for more course options and students considering college to enrol in the

Illustration by Steven Kenny

The Chipotle Cowboy

Photo courtesy of the Chipotle Cowboy Many NT students see him on a regular basis, but most of us do not know who he is.

Plenty of us wonder what he does, why he always wears that hat, how he interacts so well with squirrels, and why he is always there. His name is actually Wayne and he was once interviewed by Graffiti about ten years ago, and claims that the students used

to be cleaner and less likely to litter.

Wayne lives above the Yonge and Eglinton centre, which explains his omnipresence; the neighborhood is just an extension of his living room. Contrary to what you may believe, he does not own Chipotle or the hot dog stand. He is not a landlord of any kind, or a professional

squirrel whisperer. Wayne dropped out of school in Grade 10 and got his first job building caskets. Over the years, he pursued other construction and traderelated jobs, but was lucky enough to eventually find a position that he loved and found fulfilling. He worked nights at Bombardier, building airplanes for thirty years.

He truly loved his job and on his hat, you can see he has a small golden circular pin from Bombardier and a pair of small, symbolic handcuffs denoting that “more or less [he] was tied into [his] job for thirty years.”

Wayne has been retired for a year and a half and now enjoys Korean dramas and people-watching. Above all else, he likes to help others. He appreciates “seeing what’s under [people’s] skin,” and says that “they’re all human, they all have different stories and different stories are what make different people interesting.”

Wayne enjoys making friends with people in the neighborhood, making little kids more social by talking to them, and feeding the animals nearby. Wayne

helps set up the corner hot dog stand and Chipotle by hosing off the sidewalk in the warmer months. He has also caught people stealing recycling bins from the fronts of stores, and he can often be seen picking up trash. He believes in Karma. He says that occasionally, when he is collecting garbage, he will come across $20, $50, or even $100 bills. He believes that it is the universe’s way of thanking him.

Wayne would give the following advice to teens today: Note the importance of getting a good education as, nowadays, it is hard to get a job. While Wayne does not regret his decision to drop out of high school, he knows that he got lucky. He

urges young people to “enjoy [their] time, because time flies,” and advises everyone to keep stress out of their lives. He admits that “a lot of people want [his] life,” and believes that this is because of his ability to keep stress at bay. Wayne also likes to live free of secrecy and strongly believes in doing what you love. He is an interesting character with a lot of life experience. Wayne reminds us that every single random passerby that we encounter is a person with their own lives, struggles, hopes, and experiences. After all, “they’re all human, they all have different stories and different stories are what make different people interesting.”

Illustration by Nikoo Aleyasin

Deconstructing the December 6th assembly This article contains content which some readers may find difficult and upsetting.

Illustration by Sabrina Leung

On December 6th, 1989, a man walked into École Polytechnique and systematically murdered 14 women. Nathalie Provost, a survivor of the attack, recalled that, “He told us he was there because we were feminists and I just replied that we were not feminists, that we were just studying in an engineering school and that he would be able to come and study with us and then he shot.”

December 6th, 2016, marked the twenty-eighth anniversary of the massacre at École Polytechnique.

On that day, five hundred thirty-seven kilometres southeast of École Polytechnique, North Toronto held its annual violence against women awareness assembly. It was lead by the White Ribbon Campaign. The assembly paid tribute to the 14 women whose lives were lost and

raised awareness of violence against women that continues to happen, in the post-Montreal Massacre world.

The assembly is incredibly powerful, but it can’t emphasize all the issues that still go on today. In 1993, the UN General Assembly’s Declaration of the Elimination of Violence against women set a framework for how to eradicate this problem. But after 24 years, it is a known statistic that half of all women in Canada have experienced at least one incident of physical or sexual violence since the age of 16.

According to Jake Ballantyne, head of the White Ribbon Campaign at NT, the assembly’s intention at the start of “the assembly was focused on pointing out the terrible things women have had to go through in the past.” By the end, “it was intended to be more hopeful as in ‘all is not lost’.

The assembly does focus more on the experience of

women rather than promoting equality, but then again, there are things like the White Ribbon Campaign that intervene and talk about the importance of gender equality and what men can do to end violence.”

Ballantyne says that there are ways people promote gender equality and to pay attention to “the little things. We’re always taken aback at obvious violence and abuse, but the simple action of telling some guy to ‘shut up’ if he’s making fun of a women for no reason can go a long way. It shouldn’t be that hard.”

Gender equality is an important goal in today’s society. No one should be at an advantage just because they have a Y chromosome instead of a second X. While nothing will change over night, getting more men involved in promoting gender equality will go a long way to stop violence against women.

Student profile: language and it makes the whole experience more enjoyable. If you don’t have one certain person to talk to, enroll in one of the TDSB language learning courses. I did that for Mandarin and I started picking it up really quickly.

I had one of the best teachers ever. If you don’t want to do that, there are good apps out there. I’d recommend either Memrise or Ankidroid because they supply you with words that you will actually say in conversation. I also definitely stress the importance of music. It helps you learn words that you wouldn’t learn in a dictionary. Music is like an urban dictionary in that sense.

Photo by Daanish Sayani Every issue, Graffiti interviews a student who brings noteworth ualities and ex eriences to North Toronto. This issue, that student is . is a Grade 12 student here at North Toronto. She is a polyglot, which means that she knows how to speak several languages, includin Lithuanian, Mandarin, and American Sign Language (ASL). In addition, is a stilt walker for The SwizzleStick Theatre. For this issue, I had the opportunity to interview and learn more about her interests and experiences.

How did you become interested in languages?

Well, most of it happened because of circumstance. I was born into three languages: English, French, and Lithuanian. But I learned some in school and I had a deaf friend who helped me learn ASL. When I saw that I could pick up languages quite easily, I started trying to learn more. My interest in languages peaked when I realized how satisfying it was to be able to carry out a conversation in a foreign language with someone else. It’s the coolest feeling ever.

Is there anything specific that you want to accomplish with these languages?

Well, the next language that I want to learn is Italian because it’s so close to French and Spanish. Even though I was born into three languages, I’m not really fluent in any language. I have trouble with English, so I’d really like to work towards becoming fully fluent in at least one language.

What are your interests outside of languages?

I really like basketball and I played on the provincial team for a while. I really like music as well. I used to play the guitar and bass. I also used to play trombone in band. Right now, I’m teaching myself piano. I also really enjoy producing. Music kind of ties into learning a language because it’s the perfect way to learn figures of speech and play on words. I really like Lithuanian rap, so while I’m listening to that, I can pick up cultural references. It’s a good way to practice because I don’t really speak Lithuanian anymore, so when I listen to music, I can practice through that.

What are some tips and tricks you can offer to other language learners?

You need someone to practice with. Katherine Li (Grade Eleven NT student) and I are really close friends because we can both speak English, French, Spanish, Mandarin, and sometimes even Latin together in conversation.

It’s fun in that sense if you have a person to talk to when you’re learning a

What are the drawbacks of being a polyglot?

I really have a problem when people say, “Oh, you’re fluent in x language?

Can you say the equation of gravity?”. Why would I know that? Why would I know that off the top of my head? If you want to ask me things about the languages that I speak, ask me things that will apply or that you can use yourself.

There are so many people who want to test you. It’s really annoying. I’d say to everyone trying to learn a language, beware that people will not believe you unless you show them solid proof. There haven’t been many people who just accepted that I speak a language without demanding proof.

What kinds of things do people ask you to prove your knowledge about a language?

I would appreciate it if people asked how to say, “Hi, how was your day”, “I did this during my day”, or “How do you say mom and dad?”because those make sense. But I’ve had some people say, “Tell me all the ingredients in the food that I just bought for lunch.” There is no way that I would know how to say corn syrup in all nine languages. I’ve also been asked to “Translate my sheet of homework for me.” Even my Mandarin teacher asked me to translate a whole sheet of paper in Mandarin for extra points. I thought, first of all, I have to translate this into a bunch of different languages in order to understand, and then I have to translate it into one dominant language. And it wasn’t simple. It wasn’t just stuff that you could think of right away. People think that you’re a wizard when it comes to languages.

I understand that you are also a stilt walker. Can you tell me more about that?

The way I describe stilt walking to people who have never heard of it is, basically, you know those really tall people in parades and circuses? Those are stilt walkers. I learned at a MAS (Music, Art, and Silts) camp on the Toronto island and I have been doing it for five years now. It took about to week to learn. You start on smaller stilts that are made from hockey sticks and then eventually move up over time to much bigger ones like the ones I use. There is a very connected community in Toronto. Along with the SwizzleStick Theatre, there is also Shadowland, who we practice with on the island sometimes.

Stilters are invited to pretty much every type of event and we’ve got every costume imaginable (including a giraffe costume). It’s a lot less scary than people think as stilts feel like an extension of your legs. The only rules in stilting are to never stand still and if you’re going to fall, do so on your knees first.

What do you like most about stilt walking?

I love being able to interact with everybody and see how excited kids and adults can get upon encountering a stiltwalker. I also like getting to be in a bunch of once-in-a-lifetime events such as the Toronto World Pride Parade.

How tall are your stilts?

My stilt height depends on whether my gig is going to consist of mostly dancing or mostly walking around. When I have to dance, my stilts are typically shorter. My average stilt’s height are 4 1/2 ft to 5 ft tall.

The Green Beanery Sarah Fallah

Located on the southeast corner of Bathurst and Bloor, The Green Beanery is one of the Annex’s greatest finds. The smell of freshly brewed coffee greets you the moment you step through those glass doors. Is coffee not your scene? Not to worry! The Green Beanery has plenty of other options, including vegan. With an abundance of seating on cushy chairs, this coffee house is perfectly supplied by natural light; the perfect place to crack open that English book and start reading, or to just procrastinate and use their free wifi. If you are a no music, no sniffle, dead silent kind of person, this coffee shop may not be for you as the cheery staff may have you humming some Indie song as you wait for your savory crêpe. It may be far from the familiar Yonge and Eglinton corner we all love, but the Green Beanery is easily accessible; the Bathurst subway station is conveniently located across the street. Besides, the vegan peanut butter banana muffins are definitely worth the subway ride.

Photo taken by the Green Beanery

Journalism for Human Rights

Photo by Elizabeth Wolfenden

The never ending war “You racist!!” — a saying that one can expect to find on the internet virtually every single day. An online back and forth banter about who is racist, fascist, or sexist is now almost always between ‘Social Justice Warriors’ (SJW’s) and those who decide to express right-wing beliefs. During the recent Trump campaign, the last thing anyone wanted to do was express right-wing beliefs online because of the inevitably immediate backlash: a torrent of notifications full of hateful messages. It is perfectly normal to have clashes over topics as charged as politics, but has it gone too far? Before Trump’s campaign, it was considerably rarer to see the loaded banter that has become commonplace. Now, when logging onto Facebook and Twitter, no one shies away from phrases like “republicans are racists!”

This war between SJW’s and right-wingers seems never ending. Adding fuel to the flame consists of simply disagreeing with a certain belief. You may ask, what constitutes a “good” reaction to someone who blatantly and disrespectfully disagrees with you? Well Trevor Noah, a comedian from South Africa, demonstrated exactly what a “good” reaction is on his show “The Daily Show,” when his guest, Tomi Lahren, vocalized her controversial political beliefs.

During the comedic interview, both Trevor and Tomi expressed their sides of their arguments on an ar-

ray of pressing issues. While clearly disagreeing with one another, both managed to be respectful. Topics like police brutality, Black Lives Matter, Colin Kaepernick’s protest, and Donald Trump were brought up, and as expected, opposing views were offered. Tomi, a political commentator and television show host, is a proud conservative — Trevor, a proud democrat, on the other

Americans who protested Donald Trump’s victory.

“When you are protesting a fair and free election, that, to me, you’re going to get called on your sh*t a little bit. It’s a time to clear the streets, accept reality. Time to move on.” Lahren made sure to add the Trump campaign slogan, “Make America Great Again” at the end of her controversial argument, the cherry on top for some

confronted. This is often a case demonstrated online, where it is much easier to harass and insult people than it is in real life.

A student from North Toronto who identifies as conservative and is a fan of Tomi Lahren claims to actually have enjoyed the interview: “I think Trevor was decent enough to let Tomi speak instead of shutting her down or talking over

Illustration by Leia Kook-Chun hand. Most of the interview was humorous, as demonstrated with Trevor’s sarcastic first question: “Why are you so angry?” Lahren then insisted that she was “not that angry,” to which Noah satirically responded, “You are angry about everything, it seems.” Ultimately, she said that “Sometimes people just need to be called on their sh*t,” speaking to the

more than others. While it is sufficiently obvious that Tomi is loud and proud about her beliefs, some are not as willing to take harsh criticism, and subsequently cower away from voicing their opinions. Those with far right-winged beliefs are almost always on the receiving end of backlash, sometimes even suffering harassment or assault when

her like so many political commentators on CNN do, or any news outlet really.”

Describing the struggle of expressing their beliefs, the student said “People are so quick to call you a racist, or say things like ‘only white people say sh*t like this’, when in reality you’re going to meet people of all different races who will disagree with you and say things that

you find crazy”. The student believed that “even if you think what I say is just ‘white people sh*t’, [you should] just converse with me instead of screaming at me.” When asked about recent controversies regarding the Trump presidency, they responded: “I think saying ‘Trump supporters are racist’ is ridiculous.

Obviously some Trump supporters take it too far but not every single American who supports Donald Trump’s presidency is racist, sexist, or islamophobic. It’s definitely common that people with similar views to me will purposely not speak up in class during discussions, because everyone will immediately jump on you, and it’s not always the most pleasant feeling”.

It is beyond normal to have disagreements in politics, but reacting in violent or unreasonable ways has truly never solved anybody’s problems. No matter which “side” you are on, as Trevor Noah said, “Our goal should be to destroy these ‘bubbles’, not each other.” Trevor tweeted shortly after hosting the Daily Show, saying that “[Tomi] is always welcome on [his] show.” Tomi and Trevor truly demonstrated a great way to confront people you disagree with; with communication, a little bit of humour, and the overall shared feeling of wanting to solve an issue greater than an argument between two people.

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Two pipeline approvals in Canada Here in Canada, we recently had two major pipelines approved by the Liberal government: the Kinder Morgan Trans Mountain Expansion Project and Enbridge’s Line 3. Regarding the new developments, Prime Minister Trudeau said, “Canada is a country rich in energy of all kinds. There isn’t a country in the world that would find billions of barrels of oil and leave it in the ground while there’s still a market for it.”

Almost half of the NT students surveyed said they were not educated enough to have a clear stance, but of those who did, half of the

responses agreed that PM Trudeau should have had more discussion with the First Nations people directly affected. Aboriginal communities have revealed that they did not get much choice in the decision, despite Trudeau previously promising he would have thorough conversations with the very people who would be directly affected by the building and usage of any potential pipeline.

In response to this, Bailey Weber, a Grade 11 student, said that “[she] feels bad for Aboriginal people; their rights have been repeatedly stomped on.”

In his announcement, PM Trudeau said there would be 23,000 new jobs as a result of these pipelines, and he promised that “billions of dollars in government revenue at all levels” would be generated — billions of dollars to be invested in hospitals, roads, and clean energy initiatives.

“Denying the pipelines is not the way to go, however, the issue that the natives bring up is pressing, and something the government must consult and investigate in before the construction,” says a Grade 11 student.

While these two pipelines were approved solely because

they meet the clean environment initiatives and ultimate goals of the country, the government dismissed the Northern Gateway pipeline because it was “clear that [the] project [was] not in the best interests of the local affected communities, including Indigenous peoples.”

Trudeau assured Canadians that these approved pipelines will be as safe as possible and they still intend to phase out coal powered electricity by 2030 in Canada, while increasing clean power sources.

Trudeau acknowledges that climate change is real

and happening all around us. Nevertheless, he is very aware that the transition to a clean energy economy will take decades of investment.

And as he said, “good jobs and strong growth” provided by these two pipelines will help pay for it. Pipelines don’t necessarily come exclusively with negatives, and we don’t hear many people talking about the positives they can provide when done as efficiently and safely as possible. It’s important to keep the end goal of clean energy in mind, and to remember that our government is doing so too

Women play sports too

“Wife of a Bears’ lineman wins bronze medal today in Rio Olympics.” This “wife of the Bears’ lineman” was Corey Cogdell-Unrein, who happens to be a three-time Olympic trap shooter. Not only is she a three-time Olympian, but she is also a two-time Olympic Bronze medal winner. Unfortunately, this backwards reporting is commonplace in the female sports world. In fact, the majority of female athletes’ successes do not appear in the news media at all.

Sociologists at the University of Southern California and Purdue performed a 20 year study of network and cable, which revealed that 96% of sports news is about men.

During the Vancouver 2010 Winter Olympics, the Canadian women’s ice hockey team won a gold medal. Following their win, they left the ice, celebrated

gomery, who was caught drinking beer on live television following his gold medal win during the 2010 Vancouver games, were given titles such as, “Gold-medal champ hard-core Canadian” Montgomery’s beer drinking has since become a joke, with Illustration by Grace Huang his website saying, “Jon with cigars, beer, and chamcelebrated his victory with pagne, and returned to the his famous “beer walk” in ice approximately 30 minWhistler, BC — reflecting his utes after the gold medal zest for life, pride at being ceremony. Members of the Canadian and love for great team were underage, and a beer.” As a result of sexism subsequent investigation inherent in the reporting was launched by the Interof women’s sports, the way national Olympic Committee that the two incidents were following the incident. To portrayed differed tremenreport on the event, British dously. tabloid The Daily Mail, reThe reporting of athletes’ leased an article titled “Guzaccomplishments in the Rio zling champagne, swigging Olympics showed significant beer and puffing cigars… similarity. This past summer, how the Canadian women’s American swimmer Michael ice hockey team celebrated Phelps tied for a silver medwinning gold.” Many of the al, while his teammate, Katie commenters who voiced Ledecky, set a world record. their opinions on the article To report on these medal said that the team deserved wins, the Associated Press to celebrate however they ran a story titled, “Phelps pleased. Others, however, ties for silver in 100 fly” with believed that their meda subtitle of, “Ledecky sets als should have been taken world record in women’s 800 away. freestyle.” As Hana Sharifi, Concurrently, articles a Grade 10 student at North reporting on Canadian Toronto stated, “Often, the skeleton racer, Jon Mont-

success of a female athlete will be the smaller article in the news, even if it was a greater success than the male athletes.”

There was plenty of outcry following the publication of the article, due to the implication that Michael Phelps tying for silver held more importance than Katie Ledecky winning gold and breaking a world record.

Many claimed the headline to be sexist, with others justifying the Associated Press’s decision simply based on Michael Phelps’ fame, which, as such, would sell more papers.

One Twitter user said that, “[Katie Ledecky] dominated, as expected. Phelps lost, unexpected, and he’s insanely famous. Has nothing to do with gender [sic]”. Grade 11 student Janine Smith similarly wrote that the female athletes are, “treated in proportion with popularity.”

It is far likelier that male sporting events will be advertised compared to female sporting events. The 2015 women’s FIFA Cup had significantly less advertisement than the men’s FIFA Cup in 2014, and many people showed a lack of concern. As grade 11 student Katherine Kian said, “It’s an unfortunate reality, but even I wouldn’t sit down to watch a female soccer game.

Maybe it’s just because I grew up watching the [Premier League] and supporting a male team. I do know about the female team I support, and I honestly do not care about them.”

Alongside the lack of reporting of female athletes and sports, the pay female

athletes receive can be significantly less. In March 2016, five of the top players on the U.S.A National Women’s Soccer team filed a complaint with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission regarding wagediscrimination. In 2015, following the women’s FIFA cup victory, the total women’s team’s profit ended up being 6.6 million USD, whereas the men made just under 2 million USD each. While U.S Soccer pays 12 players at least 1 million USD, of which a proportionate six are male and six are female, the best paid female made 1.2 million USD, whereas the best paid male made 1.4 million USD. The trend continued, with number 25 on the female list being paid approximately 239,000 USD less than her male counterpart, and number 50 on the male list making 10 times as much as the female player in the same rank. U.S Soccer pays the female players biweekly salaries, which the male players do not receive. This salary is counted as part of the equal pay argument, since the female team play more games year to year while they are obligated to win these games to earn their bonuses.

The bottom line is that female athletes are not given equal chances, whether it be reporting styles, viewer interest, or playing opportunities. The women playing sports deserve better chances to make equal amounts of money, and for their successes to be fairly reported on, without comparison to males.

Reproductive rights under Trump

Photo by Elizabeth Wolfenden During his campaign for president, Ohio governor, John Kasich, appealed to both moderate republicans and right-leaning democrats with his platform. Although fiscally conservative, he has a moderately liberal stance on a number of social issues including immigration reform, education, and health care. His one exception, however, is abortion. During his time as governor, he has signed 17 bills restricting abortion in one form or another into law, earning him the title of the nation’s “most pro-life governor” from Ohio’s Right to Life movement.

Just two weeks following the Trump presidential victory, Gov. Kasich signed into law senate bill 127, which bans abortion after 20 weeks

of pregnancy and has no rape or incest exception. The new law was quick to receive a wave of both criticism and support, with supporters arguing that the 20 week point of the pregnancy is when the fetus first experiences pain, and critics pointing out the bill actually violates the 1973 supreme court Roe V. Wade ruling which gives women the right to abortion until around 24 weeks of pregnancy.

When questioned about the bill, Kasich stated that he “agree[s] with Ohio Right to Life and other leading, prolife advocates that SB 127 is the best, most legally sound and sustainable approach to protecting the sanctity of human life.”

Opponents of the bill argue that these cut and dry

abortion restrictions fail to recognize the unique circumstances that can occur during a woman’s pregnancy.

According to NARAL ProChoice Ohio director Kellie Copeland, “once a woman has made the decision to end a pregnancy, she needs access to safe and legal abortion care in her community.

[Gov. Kasich’s] actions will fall hardest on low-income women, women of color, and young women.”

Bill 127 isn’t the only setback for women’s health we’ve seen since the Trump election. In early January, the Senate voted to dismantle the Affordable Care Act, meaning that insurance companies will no longer be required to cover contraceptives. Some forms of birth control can cost up to $50 a month, and without the Affordable Care Act, many women will not be able to afford the expense.

In a time of great strides for women’s health care around the world, these new laws seem regressive. Many women are retaliating to the new measures by holding events such as Women’s March on Washington, which attempt to fight back against the government and spread awareness of the importance of women’s issues.

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One step forward, two steps back

Illustration by Hana Abdelmeguid The Arab Republic of Egypt is well-known for its pyramids, Cleopatra, and sadly, sexual harassment and assault. Because of widespread sexual harassment, Egypt has become one of the most dangerous countries in the Arab world for women to live (according to a poll conducted by Thomson Reuters Foundation). There is an underlying rape culture that is far worse than the one Canada is familiar with. And, with this comes the question of the social acceptabil-

ity, and whether there are solutions to this everlasting problem.

A 2013 UN study discovered that 99.3% of women and girls in Egypt have been sexually harassed in some way. Compare that to Canada, where under 80% of women are harassed.

Here in Canada, people have raised their voices regarding women’s rights. Nevertheless, an underlying culture affects both countries and makes victims feel unsafe and not want to report.

Why aren’t women reporting? In Egypt, it is almost a daily routine for women to get harassed and it is well-known that there is not much the police will do. Rape culture exists, the blame is shifted, and justice is often not served. This problem exists in Egypt, but the rest of the world is not immune. It exists here in Canada. Grade 11 Egyptian student, Nancy Awadallah, thinks that Egyptians need to be more worried about this matter: “Egypt is a wonderful country, but it does have its flaws, [and] sexual harassment is the one that affects me the most”. She is “definitely concerned [and] thinks that more people should be concerned because right now, they don’t enforce the law.” Nancy also claims that most of these problems are caused by society allowing men to think they are superior to women.

The difficult truth is that

the people taking action are not getting the results they deserve, in both Egypt and Canada. This is not to say that no one is taking action; it is just to say that there are people who do not necessarily want them to succeed.

There have been dozens of campaigns and initiatives led by Egyptian women and men to combat this legally ingrained notion that women are inferior to men.

Some of these include Nazra, One Girl is Worth 100 Men, HarassMap, and #SpeakUp. However, many of these movements continue to go unaccomplished. Some get quickly shut down; others do exactly what they are meant to do. Campaigns such as I Saw Harassment, help women feel safer in the streets, empowering them to report to the police when incidents do occur. Campaigns use Social Media to address the problems Egyptian women face, and have

built a network of support for women who have gone through sexual harassment.

During the Egyptian revolution, men and women stood side by side and fought for a collective goal. But after February 11th, Mubarak was no longer president, things went back to normal.

There have been many attempts by conservative groups and the Egyptian government to crack down on these initiatives. This has not been helpful in eradicating the sexual harassment problem. Campaigns continue to fight for women, even when obstacles get in their way.

The fight for what is right is hard, but it needs to be done. Moving forward, young Egyptians need support and assistance to bring the movement to where it needs to be. Egyptian men, women, and youth need to stand united on an issue that has persisted for years.

Need for more than He and She

Photo by Tom Yun, News editor at The Varsity Political correctness has become one of the most controversial topics over the past year. With the rise of far right politicians and SJW culture, the topic has been hotly debated.

Contrary to the beliefs of many young Canadians, our country is not immune to the debate. Our story comes from the U of T campus, where Professor Jordan Peterson recently opened up about his dissent for Bill C-16, a piece of legislation proposing the outlawing of harassment based on gender identity. The bill is intended to prevent Genderqueer and transgender individuals from being discriminated against based on their identities.

In the fall of 2016, Peterson began releasing a series of youtube videos aimed at combating what he believes to be an “overly politically

correct” culture. The videos were focused on opposing the aforementioned Bill C-16, a bill that Peterson claims would be an infringement on freedom of speech.

In doing so, the professor chose to target LGBT individuals by professing that he refuses to use gender neutral pronouns.

Naturally, on a campus like the University of Toronto, it wasn’t very long before there was significant opposition to Peterson’s perspective. It wasn’t long before students had mobilized against Peterson, some going as far as to demand that he be fired.

Peterson, who has dubbed himself the role of a “martyr for free speech”, has since capitalized on the attention by bringing a film crew into his lectures and posting them online — a venture that

he has profited immensely from.

Whether you’re pro-peterson or anti-peterson, it’s past due for an important reality check. While the way in which Peterson approached the issue of political correctness is certainly rooted in bigotry and ignorance towards the experiences of trans individuals, he has a point. In perhaps too many words, Peterson calls attention to a debate that may very well be as old as democracy: free speech. Rather, what role should the government have in policing our speech and everyday interactions? While the method is rooted in hate, the true message of Peterson’s videos do have a point, namely that creating any piece of legislation that limits a person’s ability to say what they want is technically an infringement on free speech.

The issue that many have with his videos is not the topic of free speech, but rather, it is his approach to the topic and relatively singular understanding of the actual legislation that has met significant resistance.

In an article by the Toronto Star, Toby Young, a lawyer with the Human Rights Legal Support Centre, identifies Peterson’s reaction to bill C-16 as a “mischaracterization.”

The most common misunderstanding of the Bill is that it will lead to people being jailed or tried for using incorrect pronouns. The reality is

vastly different. The majority of hate speech allegations get dismissed when taken to a court of law. In fact, unless assault can be proven, there is almost no possibility to the claims being taken to court in the first place.

As NT grad and current U of T student Ema Ibrakovic points out, “Every single law is up to judicial interpretation. If a [free speech] case sounds ridiculous to you, chances are it’ll sound ridiculous to an expert in legal interpretation as well.”

Ibrakovic goes on to say that that this misinterpretation is what has driven her, along with many others, to conclude that “most of the people that are strongly opposed to the bill are actually against it due to transphobic reasons and hide behind the free speech card.”

Students at U of T have taken their protests to the extreme, likening Peterson to Trump and demanding he be fired. This highlights one of the major problems with a bipartisan political divide, namely the tendency for either side to neglect important topics and issues in favour of gerrymandering. It is true that progress requires us to fight consistently and unrelentingly for a cause, yet propagandic claims do nothing more than alienate the opposition and perpetuate a hostile political environment. It’s about due time we realize that democracy is a collective fight of the people, not a war of ideology.

There are topics that must be discussed and solutions that must be found. When we as a people chose to understand and listen to others, we are creating a more effective democracy.

However, it would be unjust to push blame entirely to the left. Progress must also come in the form of rightwing advocates understanding that the human rights debate simply cannot be boiled down to ideology and individual freedoms. It concerns the lives of real individuals.

At some point, the world is going to have to come to the realization that being LGBT is not a political orientation, nor is it appropriate to target the well-being of people in the community as means to make a political statement.

The phrase, “Liberal Echo Chamber,” has been thrown around a lot in the past year.

This is largely the result of an increasingly divided political environment and a media that is scrambling to understand it, or rather, to push blame.

The 2016 election has left liberal news sites and communities with a scary uncertainty of what is to come.

While it is true that the coming years will be difficult for left-wing supporters, the time has long since passed to enforce the division between the left and the right.

Perhaps it’s time we started listening to one another and make efforts to understand the political diversity in North America.

The problem with Pence Many people across the globe who were shocked when Donald Trump won the U.S. election fearfully await his complete inauguration into the presidency of the most powerful country in the world. Some are ecstatic; others are devastated. With a growing list of controversial actions still under scrutiny by the media, alarm has risen about America’s upcoming four years. Unfortunately, Trump isn’t the only person of power causing the distress of millions of people in their own homes and communities.

Michael Pence, America’s new Vice President, has made it clear that he

is against abortion rights and transgender rights, and supports conversion therapy, an obscure treatment to ‘cure’ homosexuality. He believes that women should be forced to take care of children they might not want — with money and time they might not have — and that transgender individuals should not be seen as equals in society.

Pence also thinks it is justifiable to put people through a traumatic and inhumane experience simply because they have different love interests.

Conversion therapy is used to “turn” anyone who is LGBTQ+ straight, by any means necessary. Often,

this includes a spiritual or religious component, and, in extreme cases, electrical shock therapy that is used to condition the patient into associating who they truly love with pain and fear. It is typically a two-part process; the first teaches the patient to hate themselves, striping them down to the core; then they rebuild them from scratch.

This consists of months of verbal and emotional abuse, chalking up the patient’s homosexuality to traumatic experiences from childhood that may or may not have happened. Many claim that there is an alarmingly high suicide rate after the first step. Allegedly, people un-

dergoing the treatment take their lives regularly, with a few therapists encouraging it as “at least they won’t be gay anymore.” The second step involves rebuilding the patient and imposing on them the proper way to live, starting from simple actions such as how to walk, talk, act, and dress. By this point in the process, the recipient believes that something is wrong with him or her.

Anyone forced to endure this for such a long time would experience detrimental — possibly in lasting and irreversible ways — effects on his or her mental health.

The fact that someone of such high power and prominence supports this brutal

treatment is terrifying to all who have been through it, including those who might be forced to endure it in the future. Pence’s views have shaken the already marginalized LGBTQ+ community, causing only more pain among people who want to be seen as equals.

As Pence takes on his new role as vice-president of the U.S., he finds himself in a position to effect change. Hopefully in Washington, he will be more progressive and considerate and make the right decisions for America

Arts & Culture

Photo by Daanish Sayani

Toronto by neigbourhood: Distillery District Featuring the largest and best preserved Victorian industrial architecture in North America, the Distillery District has become one of Toronto’s hottest neighbourhoods. From the moment you walk in, it’s impossible not to be entranced by its charming red brick buildings and quaint shops.

The fascinating historic

a negative effect on business. In 1990, 153 years of business later, the Distillery ceased operations. Luckily, when it was bought by Cityscape Holdings Inc. in 2001, it transformed into a magnificent tourist attraction dedicated to arts, culture, and entertainment.

Its unique red-brick atmosphere was completed using

Photo by Charlie Littler background of the Distillery District’s establishment adds to its character. It all began in 1832, when brothers-inlaw, James Worts and William Gooderham founded the Gooderham and Worts Distillery. During its prime, Gooderham and Worts was acclaimed the largest distillery in the world. Despite the Distillery’s early success, the outcomes of World War I and the prohibition had

District’s acclaimed restaurants are perfect for any mood.

After dining, you can roam the streets and visit one of the 80 shops, boutiques, galleries, and cafés.

These unique one-of-a-kind shops and galleries pride themselves on offering fresh urban styles, vintage designs, and mouth-watering treats.

the overpowering smell of decadent truffles and rich hot chocolate will lure you in. Whether you’re a pure chocolate lover or craving a scoop of gelato, SoMA is the place for you.

The Distillery District also offers more substantial dining. The Distillery boasts a variety of restaurants that cater to different cultural

something a little more special. You’re in luck: The Distillery District hosts music festivals, special markets and performances. Unfortunately, the Christmas Market has ended, but be sure to check it out next year if you love all things festive. During the springtime, the Distillery District hosts Sunday Markets, the best stop to

Photo by Hana Sharifi over 600,000 red brick pavers that make up the pedestrian walkways.

In addition to admiring its beautifully restored red-brick buildings, there are numerous activities that you can spend your time engaging in.

The Distillery District boasts a wide variety of dining, shopping, and special events.

Whether you’re in the mood for cozy comfort food or fancy cuisine, the Distillery

Take some time to visit a few of the shops, especially if you’re on the lookout for a unique vintage find or an artistic decor for your home.

The Distillery District also an array of modern and practical designs to contrast the rustic feel.

If you’re tired, pop into a café for a goodie. A personal recommendation is SoMA, an irresistible chocolate store.

As you walk past the door,

preferences. There’s Boku, if you’re in the mood for sushi, El Catrin, if you’re in the mood for Mexican food, and we can’t forget about Mill St. Brewery, if you’re in the mood for comfort food by the fire. It’s undeniable that Distillery District restaurants are the quintessential places to celebrate.

If you’re already familiar with the Distillery District, you might be looking for

buy maple syrup, preserves, honey, meats, cheeses, and other artisanal treats.

The Distillery District has plenty going for it as one of Toronto’s most popular National Historic Sites. No matter how many times you visit, the iconic red-brick streets and picturesque oneof-a-kind boutiques won’t fail to please. Next time you have a free weekend, check out the Distillery District.

Kim’s Convenience: a review

Illustration by Leia Kook-Chun Kim’s Convenience (KC) is a comedy that portrays the life of the Kim family, who owns a convenience store in Toronto. The Kim family consists of the cheerful Umma (mom), the ever-so blunt Appa (dad), the ambitious Janet (daughter), and the once-rebellious Jung (son). KC explores the generational conflict between immigrant parents and first generation Canadians with a sitcom style.

A Grade 11 student mentions that “Some parts [of

KC] are extremely relatable.

For example, when the father takes his daughter’s photographs without consent, or when parents embarrass their kids like in the scene where the mom unexpectedly shows up at her son’s workplace.” Although, on the show, these incidents seem exaggerated and unrealistic, they emphasize the inescapable generational gap between parents and children.

A Chinese first-immigrant parent explained that the show resonates with her, as

she previously owned a convenience store and shared the characters’ obstacles. In addition to its inept sense of humour, the series addresses immigrant issues that are not commonly sympathized within typical American and Canadian broadcasting. “Police hear accent, they don’t take serious,” Appa explains to his daughter. KC confronts the language barriers that many Canadian immigrants struggle with in their everyday lives. The show deals with stereotypes and misunderstandings of the family.

Racial prejudice is portrayed when a mechanic asks Appa if he knew the acronym DVD stood for Digital Video Disk, to which Appa responds “yes”. The mechanic then replies, “Well, I guess you would… I hope that didn’t sound racist.”

But KC isn’t just for an Asian audience. Non-Asian viewers also applaud the show. A Grade 11 Caucasian student points out the appeal of

an Asian cast: “I think this show is good because it’s not just portraying Asian immigrants, it’s portraying Canadians that just happen to be Asian, which is what makes the show so relatable.”

Although the show has been highly praised since its debut, it has also been criticized. A Korean immigrant parent of an NT student dislikes the show because they believe it portrays Koreans as incompetent, impoverished, and low-class imbeciles.

Criticisms have also regarded the fake Asian accent performed by actor Paul Sun-Hyung Lee (Appa), who does not naturally speak with an accent. Some would consider this stereotypical and offensive. However, others would argue that the show demonstrates how fake Asian accents can be used in a non-racist context. The accent is a part of the character’s identity; without it, the show would be unrealistic. Appa immigrated from

Korea and made a life for his children. He is not to be undermined because he can not fully communicate in English yet.

Moreover, KC illustrates the cultural differences that immigrants face through Appa’s character as he sways between his traditional conservative values and his liberal environment. For instance, in the first episode, viewers try to determine whether Appa is homophobic when gay customers enter his store.

He, however, offers them a “gay discount” to prove that he is not homophobic. This is unravelled through his heartfelt interaction with a drag queen customer later on in the episode. Like many immigrant parents who face cultural differences, Appa tries to understand.

All in all, Kim’s Convenience is a milestone for immigrant and minority communities that Torontonians should watch and enjoy.

Wearing society on our sleeves When I think of expression, I think of art. I think of the graffiti plastering alleyways on Queen Street. I think of the performers in the tunnels leading to the subway trains. Above all, I think of what people wear. Fashion packs a punch. Often, the first thing I notice about someone is how they present themselves; are they wearing something that defines them? Fashion statements represent not only the person wearing them, but what society deems attractive and appropriate. As such, fashion reflects society’s political views and mirrors its economic state.

I consider fashion to be a luxury. If “Confessions of a Shopaholic” has taught me anything, it is that you really can shop until you drop — drop your credit rating, that is. Rebecca Bloomwood, a star from the movie “Confessions of Shopaholic”, found herself drowning in debt, and thus was forced to sacrifice her fashion indulgences to save money. When money is short, trendiness takes the backburner and frugality becomes key. This can be seen in “The Hemline Theory” developed by economist, George Taylor.

He noticed that in the 1920s,

women’s hemlines were shorter to show off their soft, silky stockings. However, when the market crashed in the late 1920s, some women could no longer afford such luxuries and hemlines became longer to hide their bare legs. It has also been observed that the more adorned the trend, the more prosperous the economy.

Glitter on clothing and accessories indicate economic growth, as flamboyant styles are used to express what the consumer can afford.

Current day fashion demonstrates a positive economic trend. Last winter’s Fashion Week showed extravagant glitter, sequins, fur, and leather. These materials are noteworthy.

They scream lavishness.

Last summer’s “ugly sandal trend” was further evidence of lavish spending. This unattractive and unreasonable fad hints that the individual sporting it has extra money to put towards daring fashion.

The fashion industry is also a reflection of society’s political landscape. Fashion designers use their platforms to shine a light on important political statements. For instance, People for the Ethical Treatment

of Animals (PETA) used a campaign poster in 1994 to highlight the importance of ethical fashion. With the help of some of the most prominent models of the 90s, the seductive shots featured the tagline, “We’d rather go naked than wear fur.” They successfully shocked the fashion industry, using a provocative shot to encourage the idea that sustainable fashion is risqué and stylish.

Additionally, during his 2015 Chanel Spring-Summer show, Karl Lagerfeld staged

a protest advocating feminism. Cara Delevingne led the models in a riot, chanting encouraging slogans including “Feminist but Feminine” and “Ladies First.” Not to mention, throughout the 2016 American Presidential Election, numerous designers disassociated themselves with Donald and Melania Trump. In response to his racist, homophobic, and sexist opinions, fashion designer Sophie Theallet penned an open letter calling for a fashion boycott of the soon-to-be First Lady of the United States. The French fashion designer stated, “As one who celebrates and strives for diversity, individual freedom, and respect for all lifestyles, I will not participate in dressing or associate myself in any way with the next First Lady. The rhetoric of racism, sexism, and xenophobia unleashed by her husband’s presidential campaign are incompatible with the shared values we live by.”

However, other designers weighed in on this political issue. Diane von Furstenberg bravely commented that “Donald Trump was elected and he will be our President.

Melania deserves the respect Illustration by Cindy He of any First Lady before

her. Our role as part of the fashion industry is to promote beauty, inclusiveness, diversity. We should each be the best we can be and influence by our example.”

Some may argue that fashion and politics don’t coexist. Even Marc Jacobs has said that “…with politics and fashion, you’ve always got to be a bit careful because somebody’s going to get offended or somebody’s going to feel it isn’t right.”

Fashion has the ability to make a global difference; fashion has influenced society to donate to lifechanging causes that aid people across the world.

For instance, Michael Kors’ “Watch Hunger Stop” campaign is spreading awareness about world hunger through “…[sales] of the 100 Series Watch…[enabling] 100 children in need to receive a nutritious meal through the WFP’s School Meals program.”

Fashion mirrors and affects society’s economy and politics, respectively. Next time someone tells you to walk a mile in their shoes, do it. You can tell a lot about their economic state and political views through their choice of shoe.

REBEL: a review Wen Bo

Photo by Wen Bo Before the winter break, I was able to experience the show of a lifetime: DVBBS at REBEL Nightclub. At the amazing show, the Torontoborn electronic duo dropped banger after banger, from its classic tracks such as “Tsunami,” to its brand new collaboration with hip-hop

star Juicy J., “Moonrock.”

The night was insane.

The venue, however, not so much. According to blogTO, before it was renovated and relabeled as REBEL, the nightclub was known as the Sound Academy. If you’ve ever been to what used to be known as the Sound

Academy, you would know that it’s a hassle to get to.

Located in The Port Lands, the Sound Academy requires you to take several buses and embark on a ten minute walk in order to reach it.

From there, you are required to wait in a long line outside of the venue before arriving

at a full body security check and are then made to wait in yet another line to get your ticket scanned.

Upon entering the venue, notice the theme here, you have to wait in another line for the coat check, which basically extended through the entire 45,000 square foot club. Despite the rigid security check and the nightclub’s zero-drug tolerance, that night, a 19 year-old girl died from an overdose and six more were hospitalized.

After about an hour of waiting in line, we got our coats stored — with a cost of $3.50 for every item stored — and went to the stage area where we quickly found costs were sky-high. If a bottle of regular water costs $5, I couldn’t possibly imagine the price for a soft drink or beer.

The design of the venue, especially the movable chandelier, was a straight copy off of the Omnia Nightclub in Las Vegas. The sound

system at the club wasn’t amazing either; the bass was often too loud, so much so that you could hardly hear any of the upper range and the kick could be uncomfortably felt in your chest and knees. The sound followed you right into the bathroom, where speakers in there made it awkwardly just as loud as outside.

Before DVBBS played its set, artists Loud Luxury, Shaun Frank, and Ramriddlz performed. Adding to the poor sound system, Ramriddlz managed to break the speakers by the end of his performance, and required a ten minute repair before the show could continue.

Finally, at around one in the morning, DVBBS came on stage, and the crowd went wild. Overall, I think one of the only things REBEL actually got right was its Instagram caption for this show: “Snowstorm outside, tsunami inside.”

The Nutcracker: a review Madeleine Weseley Every year, the National Ballet of Canada performs The Nutcracker.

This annual production is an excellent seasonal performance that brings families together to enjoy the magic of the ballet.

This year, I attended the matinee performance on December 27, 2016. I saw the role of the Nutcracker portrayed by Naoya Ebe, and the role of the Sugar Plum fairy danced by Tina Pereira.

However, it appeared that the true stars were the kids who played Marie and Misha, the siblings transported to the magical land. Both of these prodigies are students at the National Ballet.

The dynamic between them really made them seem like siblings, especially during the scenes in which they fought. The performance was magical to watch, and the dancers made even the most difficult movements look easy.

During Act I Scene 3, the dance between the Snow Queen and her icicles takes place. The

Snow Queen was danced

by Tanya Howard, and the icicles danced by Kota Sato and Jack Bertinshaw.

During this scene, pieces of paper gently fall to the stage, making it look like there really is a snow storm occurring inside the Four Seasons Centre in downtown Toronto.

Moreover, like anything live, there were some slight mishaps. Despite him slipping, he did not miss a beat and the magic of the scene was not lost.

There was also a small slip during Act II, between the sugar plum fairy and the nutcracker. While being put down from a lift, she appeared to slip on the stage. Both victims of the slippery stage did not let this faze them, and continued on with their performances as though nothing had happened.

Some other highlights from the performance included the cannon dolls, played by the host of CBC’s Laugh Out Loud, Ali Hassan, and the Senior Producer of CBC’s Comedy, Tracy Rideout who were specially brought in

to help fire the streamer cannon during Act I scene 2, The Battle of the Tsar of the Mice.

Some of the most memorable scenes included the food fight between Marie and Misha, the scenes in which the chefs, also students of Canada’s National Ballet School, chase a loose chicken across the stage, and when the Flock of Lambs comes onto the stage. The incorporation of many students of varying ages in the show can lead to some adorable moments, like when the Flock of Lambs, who are probably 5-6 years old, go looking for their parents in the audience and get side-tracked.

The Nutcracker is an amazing way to spend two hours, and it transports the entire audience to a mystical world. Although it has concluded for the year, I would highly recommend a visit next year.

Photo by Madeleine Weseley Photo by Kathleen Campbell

The best movies of 2016 Soraya Bakhshi

The year 2016 was, without a doubt, one filled with drama, politics, tragedies, and disbelief. Whatever your outlook may be on this past year, I think we can all agree that with the new developments in technology, the film industry has surely taken off.

Deadpool This superhero movie, starring Ryan Reynolds, ranks number one for North Toronto’s top movie pick of 2016. Having earned over $760 million at the box office, Deadpool captured audiences worldwide, young and old, despite being R-rated. The story revolves around a young man (Ryan Reynolds) diagnosed with terminal cancer.

A treatment is introduced that is said to cure his illness and give him superpowers.

Though his treatment enables the power of accelerated healing, it also leaves him disfigured. His mutant figure results in a plot for revenge against the man behind the project.

Suicide Squad The famous cast, intriguing plot, and catchy soundtrack that had everyone humming “….I’m just a sucker for pain,” earned a total of $745 million

at the box office. Despite the mixed reviews, Suicide Squad was one of the most profitable movies last summer. The characters seem to have had more to do with the success of the film rather than the concept itself. If you’re wondering why your neighbor, your best friend, and your younger cousin all dressed up as Harley Quinn for Halloween, you clearly have not watched this movie.

say that Finding Dory did not disappoint. In this sequel, the tables turn as Dory (Ellen DeGeneres) goes missing after memories of her childhood come flooding back to her, resulting in an ongoing search led by Nemo and Merlin. The movie reached out to all ages, but definitely had 2000s kids feeling pretty old. Finding Dory also takes the spot for highest earning animated film of the year.

Zootopia Possibly the cutest animated animal duo of all time captured the hearts of not only children around the world, but teenagers and adults as well. Earning over $1 billion at the box office, Zootopia was a quirky, creative, and hilariously clever movie.

The film follows officer Judy Hopps (Ginnifer Goodwin) as she embarks on a mission to solve a mysterious case involving lost animals with her partner in crime, Nick Wilde (Jason Bateman).

Captain America: Civil War This star-studded superhero movie crushed box offices worldwide, bringing in over $1.1 billion. The rivalry and tension that rise between the Avengers in the film result in an action-packed movie that had audiences sitting on the edge of their seats. As one of the few Marvel-based films released this year, Captain America definitely dominated.

Finding Dory After over a decade-long wait for the sequel to Finding Nemo, 2016 brought to the screens Finding Dory. With an earning of over $1 billion at the box office, it is safe to

Fantastic Beasts The long-awaited film based on the novel by J. K Rowling takes on another approach to the magical world of Harry Potter. The spinoff follows writer Newt Scamander (Eddie Redmayne) in New York City’s secret community of witches and wizards, seventy

years before Harry Potter’s adventures began. With a total of $607 billion earned, Fantastic Beasts had many Harry Potter fans excited and ready to embark on this new adventure.

Now You See Me 2 Though box office earnings fell slightly after the first movie, the sequel still had audiences worldwide excited to see what the Four Horsemen had in store. A slight cast change did not disappoint, and the movie still earned well over $300 million at the box office. The phenomenal illusions continued, playing with the human mind as usual and leaving everyone wondering the same thing: “How did they do it?”

Nerve Earning over $80 billion in box office sales, this teen crime film was surely a guilty pleasure for all, and made girls everywhere swoon over Dave Franco. The movie follows a high school senior (Emma Roberts) as she becomes buried in a game of truth or dare, being manipulated by anonymous watchers. She becomes allied with another teenager (Dave Franco), turning the game

into a test of loyalty, trust, and courageous life or death decisions.

Doctor Strange This superhero film based on the Marvel Comics follows former Neurosurgeon, Stephen Strange (Benedict Cumberbatch) as his life turns around in the hands of a sorcerer who trains him to defend the world against evil.

Earning over $650 billion, the film was a great success, selling out show after show.

Moana This animated Disney musical follows a spirited Polynesian teenager (Auli’I Cravolho) who dreams of sailing the Pacific ocean to prove herself as a master “way finder”, and finish the quests of her ancient ancestors. Along the way, she meets former demigod, Maui (Dwayne Johnson), and they must accept their differences to successfully undo a curse and save her people. Earning over $285 billion in box office sales, Moana was an empowering film, introducing diversity to the Disney community in a cute and loving family film

The demise of Vine Lauren Kim

Photo by Vicky Ye Condolences to avid Vine users. On October 27th, 2016, Twitter announced that it is closing down Vine.

With the introduction of new social media platforms every day, it is tough for different apps to keep their users engaged. Though apps like Musically and Housepart have dwindling popularities, Vine is the largest social media platform facing its

demise.

Vine — the app that allows users to post six-second loop-able videos online — first launched in January of 2013 and gained instant popularity with smartphone users. Despite Vine’s initial success, Twitter shut down the app. The limitations of the platform, the growing number of users leaving the app and the rising popular-

ity of other social media platforms such as Instagram, Snapchat, and YouTube, have caused Vine to fall from fame.

There is a limited extent to which one can use apps like Vine. Vine is at a disadvantage as its only use lies in creating six-second videos. These six seconds can encourage creativity but they can also be constraining, hindering the app’s long-term prosperity and profitability. Six seconds is not a lot, especially for prospective advertisers whose commercials typically run longer on YouTube. As a result, many of Vine’s top users (who have millions of followers) have moved on to different platforms, leaving Vine behind to collect dust.

According to Markerly, a platform that tracks online influencers, “52% of [Vine’s] top users (those with 15,000 followers or more) left the platform as of January 1, 2016.” After seeing their favorite Vine celebrities move on to other social media platforms, average users

are now abandoning Vine, following behind like a herd of sheep. The transfer to other social medias has been simple for big stars like Liza Koshy, a Viner turned YouTuber who had 5.1 million followers on Vine; she now has over 5.3 million followers on YouTube.

Moreover, the analytics firm, Tubular Labs, found that the “average ‘loops’ on Vine videos for the top 10 accounts are down 29% from May 2015 through March of this year.” Imagine watching each runner in the 1500m race run past you as you lag behind. This is what it feels like for Viners with dwindling views. As a result of the social media industry’s increasing competition, Viners have become disincentivized to devote their time to add content to their Vine accounts.

YouTube, Instagram, Snapchat, and Vine have all been competitive platforms that each provide users with a different means of communication. There are reasons, however, for why

YouTube, Instagram, and Snapchat have been able to stay in the race while Vine admitted defeat. It all comes down to ads and user experience. YouTube provides a solid and reliable source of advertisement. It also presents viewer statistics, which help creators monetize on ads. Moreover, its target market is broad and allencompassing while Vine’s is exclusively made up of children, teens and young adults. Instagram has been able to stay competitive through improvements and additions of features such as loopable videos. Snapchat distinguishes itself by making its users’ conversations more private and intimate.

Innovative filter features have also given Snapchat a competitive edge.

Vine, once the top ranked social media platform in the App Store, has since fallen from its throne. While it was once in the top five most popular apps, it is now in the 200’s. Sorry Vine, we’ll miss you. You had a great run.

2016: the year of Rap and R&B Elizabeth Wolfenden

ANTI by Rihanna This was the first album in which we truly saw Rihanna’s cool, gritty, island girl vibe come through, demanding for freedom and respect. The album starts with the sassy, sharp beats of “Consideration,” when she belts, “I got to do things my own way darling, you should just let me, why you ain’t never let me grow?” This message sets the tone for the rest of the album.

Although “Work” became a hit single, this album was made to be listened to as a whole, with a chill, soulful yet sassy mood throughout. The hypnotic vocals on her cover of Tame Impala’s “Same Ol’ Mistakes,” take the song to a new level, while her gritty, belting vocals on “Higher,” transport you to a vintagey, smoky jazz bar.

The Life of Pablo by Kanye West The Life of Pablo is a very messy album, but that’s the whole point. Kanye is a messy guy and he knows it. This album seems to have been a way for him to reveal his self-awareness and release everything he has been feeling about himself into music. He acknowledges his public persona in songs like “Famous,” where he plays the misogynistic douche-bag the world expects him to be. But then he shows his insecurities about fatherhood, married life and friendship in songs like “FML,” “Wolves,” and

“Real Friends.” Kanye’s musical genius did not disappoint as always.

Untitled unmastered. By Kendrick Lamar Coming out a year after Kendrick’s hugely successful To Pimp A Butterfly, this album is a celebration of his success against all odds, “Pimp, pimp hooray!” It is overflowing with jazzy, funky, smooth beats and the effortless cool Kendrick always gives off.

It doesn’t lack his political and social commentary either. In “Untitled 3”, he asks for advice from an Asian man, an Indian man, a black man, and a white man, each giving their own perspective on life. In “Untitled 7,” he warns of the effects fame can have, saying he, “came in the game with a plan of beatin’ the odds, what an accomplishment, broken promises, kept my focus anonymous ‘till I dealt with the consequence.” Turns out, even Kendrick’s rejects are amazing.

Lemonade by Beyonce On first listen, this album seems like it’s just about Jay Z’s infidelity, but it’s much more complex than that. Beyonce’s Lemonade powerfully empowers black women, celebrates black southern culture and references the Black Lives Matter movement. She has always advocated for female empowerment, especially that of black women, but this album brought it to a new

level. Both the visual and musical albums take you on a journey through the stages of hardship, human emotional experiences we can all relate to. Beyonce made incredible political and social statements this year that will forever change how artists make albums and use their influence.

the music industry in “No Problem” with a sass and lightheartedness only he could achieve.

Chance famously refuses to sign to a record label or sell his music. “I don’t make songs for free, I make them for freedom,” he professes. The entire album has a soulful yet playful vibe that will never get old.

99.9% by Kaytranada This album expertly stews together R&B, jazz, soul, funk, electronic and house music into one mixing pot. Every song is a jam and if this album doesn’t make you dance, you’re not human. Kaytranada emigrated to Canada from Haiti with his family when he was a baby. The family retained a strong sense of national pride, allowing Kay to be inspired by the African rhythms and Dominican merengue that defines Haitian music.

It’s easy to hear this influence.

If you’re making a party playlist, “Glowed Up” and “You’re the One” are necessities.

Blonde by Frank Ocean Even though we were left in silence for four years after Channel Orange, we were more than satisfied with Blonde. The psychedelic pop R&B album was named a musical masterpiece as soon as it dropped. Ocean continues to be influential in the way he addresses sexuality in his music. This album’s lyrics leave his desires and his lovers’ genders neutral, making his words of love and desire universal. Ocean uses minimalist rock guitar and keyboard to create the twangy, twitchy beats and chill, moody aura. In “Nights”, a guitar riff slowly morphs into a poisonous hip hop jam, in “Pink + White,” Beyonce’s backup vocals send shivers down our spines.

Coloring Book by Chance the Rapper Chance the Rapper is incredibly talented artist with limitless versatility. He paints an intimate picture of his hometown of Chicago in “Summer Friends”; He makes us leap out of our seats with the dance tune of “All Night”; He shows a deep soulfulness and gospel faith in “Blessings”; He also takes down

grief and healing.” In “Mad,” she gives black people permission to be mad about the injustice they have experienced. With the powerful statement of “Don’t Touch My Hair,” she takes ownership of her black heritage and culture. The album is also peppered with “Interludes,” in which her loved ones, including her dad and mom, talk about their experiences with racism and black pride. “I was lost in a vacuum between integration and segregation and racism... that was my childhood.... I was angry for years,” her dad, Mathew Knowles, describes.

A Seat at the Table by Solange With beautiful vocals and swaying rhythms, Solange soulfully celebrates black culture and blatantly addresses societal injustice. She herself called it her, “project on identity, empowerment, independence,

“Awaken, My Love!” by Childish Gambino Childish Gambino, aka Donald Glover, is one of the most talented people alive. Thriving as a rapper, singer, songwriter, actor, comedian, writer, producer and director, he has done it all. With this album, he continues to impress. The funky, relaxed beats are great for easy listening and background music, with a few upbeat exceptions in between.

This album is said to have been written for his new son, to whom he sends advice and messages of love and support. With the funky beat and raspy vocals of “Redbone,” he tells him to always, “stay woke,” as people will always take advantage of those who remain ignorant, “now don’t you close your eyes,” he says.

they came with a high price tag (one specialty milkshake cost us $8.50 plus tax), however, both milkshakes were visually pleasing and Instagram worthy. Even the rims of the milkshake cups were embellished with sprinkles that matched the flavours of the milkshakes. Taste-wise, they were overwhelming at first, but met our expectations. The names and flavours were witty and innovative. Peace Treats is certainly worth the hype. The gimmick and overall vibe of the store made the experience special.

Our next stop was Arctic Bites, a dessert place made famous over social media for its rolled ice cream.

Similar to Peace Treats, the decor inside Arctic Bites was simple and clean with white walls and marble countertops. The ice cream flavours offered were unique, with flavours including milk tea, taro, and Nutella peanut butter. Prices were comparable to Sweet Jesus at $6.50 per cup. Thankfully, the portions were huge. We ordered two of the most popular

flavours, a milk tea flavour called “Thai Me Up”, and taro a flavour called “Taro With a Twist.” Each order came with its own set of complementary toppings. Through a window, we were able to watch the ice creams being made; this was a significant part of the experience.

Both the presentation and taste were phenomenal. Arctic Bites definitely caught the crowd with its eye-catching concept. It was hype-worthy. The production of the ice cream, the cute photos, and the flavours distinguished the shop from its competitors.

Photos can be deceptive. First-hand experiences reveal more than what’s projected on social media. Both dessert locations capitalize on creative ideas, specific styles, and exclusive menus that bring something new to the dessert market. The desserts were beyond our expectations. If you have a sweet tooth, love aesthetic photos, and are willing to take a trek, you should definitely check them out.

Worth the hype Annie Doane & Subin Park

Illustration by Tamlyn Kook-Chun Trends are constantly evolving. Each year, a special few clog our social media feeds.

In 2016, social media was flooded with pictures of mouth-watering desserts: ice cream covered in a mountain of toppings, intricate cupcakes, and milkshakes made of everything, just to name a few. Social media is a powerful marketing platform, encouraging millennials to

add the places that these desserts came from to their “must visit” list. But as much as we love these beautiful desserts, many of us can’t help but wonder if they are worth the hype.

This year, Sweet Jesus generated significant hype.

People became excited about showering their soft serves with bizarre toppings. However, after their visits, some

were just not that impressed.

Hana Sharifi, a Grade 10 student at North Toronto, felt disappointed with Sweet Jesus. “I felt that the taste couldn’t be justified by the price and insane line up.” We wondered if this was the case with the other various trendy dessert places, so we decided to visit a few for ourselves.

Our first stop was the Sweet Jesus of gourmet milkshakes, Peace Treats.

Peace Treats is a treat bar located inside of a clothing store called Peace Collective on Ossington Avenue. The store is designed with clean white walls, marble counter tops, and aesthetically pleasing neon lights. Their menu includes hot drinks, classic milkshakes, and specialty milkshakes, which are loaded with toppings.

We ordered their most popular items, “Go Shawty It’s Your Birthday,” a vanilla milkshake accompanied by a slice of vanilla cake and “Amusement Park,” a cotton candy milkshake topped with cotton candy and a cotton candy lollipop. Regrettably,

Opinion and Humour

Photo by Henrik Fung

Drivers hate him!

Biking in Toronto is too dangerous. I should know, as I bike to and from school every day. I cannot count the number of times that I’ve almost been hit by a car this year alone.

Between angry pedestrians and reckless drivers, biking to school isn’t the cakewalk it should be.

Each morning, on my way to school, I ride on the sidewalk for a short bit.

Otherwise, I would have to cross Mt. Pleasant and then cross back over again, which would add around five minutes to my trip.

I only do this for a few blocks, but I can tell you that no matter how careful I am, there is always someone pissed off at me for doing so. These people are not particularly nice about it either. I have been yelled at, sworn at, and even threatened just for riding on the sidewalk.

Unfortunately, this doesn’t only happen on sidewalks. One day, I was biking home from school with my friend on the road. We were approaching a stop sign and an older lady, who was walking on the sidewalk, suddenly started crossing the road. My friend and I braked hard, and as we did

she looked up and immediately began to lecture us on how we should have stopped earlier. She was clearly in the wrong, but decided that we were to blame because we were teenagers riding bikes. But the part that really got to me was that right after this happened, a driver slowed down beside us and began to lecture us as well for the same incident.

I find it incredibly unfair how we, as bikers, get blamed by both pedestrians and drivers for things that clearly aren’t our faults.

I remember back in grade nine when I first started biking to NT. I was told by my parents that I wasn’t allowed to bike on Mt. Pleasant because it was too dangerous. I was a small fish that could easily get fried on the road if drivers or I weren’t careful.

Even without my parents saying this, I was afraid of the road for the very same reason. This forced me to ride on the sidewalk which, as I mentioned before, pedestrians were not happy about. Something really needs to be done so that people are able to ride their bikes without causing conflict. The city has

made a few changes to the law to try and help. For example, as of the beginning of this year, drivers must stay at least one meter away from bikes while they are moving. However, the problem is more of an issue on whether drivers will follow the law, if police will enforce it, and if it will add to this war going on between bikers and the rest of the world.

I have conflicted emotions about this “bikers vs. world” war. I started driving last year and now I do have an idea of where drivers are coming from.

It is incredibly annoying to be stuck behind a slow moving bike. This becomes worse if it is a two lane street and you can’t pass them without risking a head-on collision with an oncoming car. Admittedly, some bikers are reckless, too. Bikers who cut out in front of cars, or jump out onto a street without warning, can cause serious accidents, and can be just as dangerous as a reckless driver. It is imperative that bikers understand that they play a role in this conflict too.

Transportation is one of Toronto’s biggest issues.

From construction block-

Photo by Henrik Fung

ing roads, to the TTC being snail-like at the best of times, people need alternatives for getting around.

Biking is a solution to this problem. You can travel far distances in short periods of time, you can go where cars can’t, and you can burn fat rather than gaining it. The problem with biking is that you face stigma and the chance of

being run over. Nevertheless, the issues surrounding biking in Toronto are fixable. For things to be fixed, drivers and bikers need to see each other as friends, not enemies. The streets of Toronto should be available to all, whether on bike or in car, and it’s up to everyone to make that happen.

A year in review fully incomplete look at some of the other events of 2016.

THE GOOD: The Olympics Were Not a Disaster Sure the pool was green and there was the whole Zika issue, among other issues, but overall, I guess it turned out fine.

Leo Got an Oscar Finally, the meme can die.

Illustration by Steven Kenny This was originally meant to be a lighthearted list of the top worst moments of 2016, which should’ve been easy (so I thought) until I realized that most of the bad things that happened this past year fell into one of these categories:

1. Deaths, terrorism, and other things best left out of the Humour section.

2. The U.S. election, which no one needs to hear anymore snark about anyways.

Instead, here is an unapologetically superficial and woe-

Music So many artists gave us much-awaited material this year. Beyoncé, Frank Ocean, Kanye West, Drake, and Lady Gaga all released albums... and MattyBRaps published his memoir.

Betty White is Still Here A man named Demetrios Hrysikos created a GoFundMe to protect the 94-year-old actress from 2016. It met its goal in hours, but since Betty was still alive and well,

the money was donated to a theatre. The collective sigh of relief that was felt worldwide is reported to have briefly interrupted telecommunication signals.

THE BAD: Obama is Leaving America’s dad has to find a new job so we’ve been left with this new caregiver who probably lied on his resumé and makes everyone kind of uncomfortable. Hopefully America’s mom, Michelle, will be back in four years to pick us up.

Obama’s Dogs are Leaving Sure they’ll still, like, exist on this Earth (thankfully), but there will no longer be official White House photography of Bo and Sunny playing soccer with men in suits.

Brexit Alternatively known as “Britain spends thousands of years dragging countries

involuntarily into its empire, but as soon as it’s had enough of the EU, it can just vote its way out of that one”, alternatively known as “that thing that was apparently very Important but doesn’t seem to have affected me in any way but it had something to do with Nigel Farage right?”, alternatively known as “Make the UK Racist Again”.

THE BIZARRE: Dabbing Who knew something so simple could be so popular yet so infuriating? You can’t even go to a sporting event without seeing every child under the age of 14 doing it every time they’re shown on the Jumbotron.

Water Bottle Flipping I don’t mean to attack everything Student Council has ever done at an assembly, but then again, why?

Catfishing experts Catfishing: To lure (someone) into a relationship by means of a fictional online persona.

For all you geezers who have been living under a rock for the past few years, that’s the online definition of catfishing. Yes, that is a fraction of this great skill or art, but I believe that what my friend Nicole and I do is much more than just “luring someone into a relationship.” Yes, you heard it right, we catfish people from time to time with fake accounts for the benefit of others, but before your mind wanders into what it possibly means to be a catfisher, let me paint you a picture.

You’ve been in a comPhotos courtesy of writers mitted relationship for all his pictures on Instaa year with a nice boy gram? How about his new who you met at your best lab partner, Jenny? You’ve friend’s cousin’s friend’s always hated Jenny. You party. Ever since you laid want to confront him, but eyes on his greasy quiff, you have no proof, and you sparkly blue eyes, and don’t want to seem crazy. spiked peach fuzz, you Well that is precisely knew he was the one. A where we come into the year passes and you notice mix. It’s 100% acceptthat he hasn’t been there able to suspect that your for you lately. His attitude significant other may be towards you changes, and cheating and of course, he hardly makes plans with most of the time, it’s hard you anymore. Could it be to uncover proof that your the one who comments on partner is a cheating jerk.

And no, screenshots of them liking another’s picture are not adequate. Well that was exactly Nicole’s case.

“I began suspecting that my long time boyfriend was cheating but I had no idea how I could possibly confront him without proof and without him thinking that I was a psychopath.”

That was when we collectively decided to create a fake account, accumulate fake likes and comments,

follow him, and like a few of his pictures. He then liked our pictures back.

We DM (direct messaged) him, and he responded.

We waited until he threw an advance and then my friend revealed herself.

Well, that was supposed to be how it ended, but of course, knowing Nicole, she created this online relationship with him for a month and then, *gasps* asked to meet up with him.

I know what you’re think-

ing. She failed to mask her psychotic nature. But he deserved it. Take a look at some screenshots of their conversations throughout.

When Nicole showed up at his house (the spot they were supposed to meet), he still denied it. Some men are unbelievable, aren’t they? Soon after, many of our friends caught wind of this and wanted to try our service out for themselves.

That was how our obsession with finding cheaters came to be.

Don’t get me wrong, we don’t do this to mess with people, to ruin people’s lives, or to laugh at them.

We’re out here trying to expose two-timers, to make our friends the happiest they can possibly be, and to try out the most effective flirting techniques (totally kidding, we’ve already got that nailed).

What should this teach you about relationships? Don’t cheat. It’s that simple. And if I still didn’t convince you, we’ll expose you soon enough.

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On income inequality The name itself, income inequality, seems absurd. Is income meant to be equal? Income can only be determined by the production of wealth; there isn’t a set amount of money being distributed unfairly. Just because someone has more does not necessarily mean that someone else must have less. Economics is not a zero-sum game. The majority of the rich are not rich because they steal, manipulate, or defraud. They are rich because they produce. It would be anti-intellectual for one to base his or her opinion on one’s possession of wealth and not production of it. Bill gates is not rich because he stole your money or unfairly accrued it; he is rich because he founded a company with innovative products that now make up large portions of the global market share.

The arguments outlining why income inequality is a real problem stem from the same sentiment that the world should be fair. The fact of the matter is that the world is unfair and — for the foreseeable future — there will nothing you can do about it.

We don’t choose what we look like, when we are born, or where we are born. You can be born poor or rich, tall or short, healthy or sick. While this is an unfortunate reality, it is reality, nonetheless. Attempts to solve or accommodate for these cosmic inequalities is known as cosmic justice.

Cosmic justice seeks to rectify the inequalities and injustices that are arbitrarily borne out of natural human conditions.

In a society based on traditional justice, every child has the opportunity to go to pri-

mary and secondary school, but only those who excel and can afford the expenses or get a scholarship are permitted to learn at institutions of higher learning. In cosmic justice, it is seen as unfair that many students cannot go to university either because of innate flaws or inability to afford it.

So the government begins interfering and giving out loans to every student who can get into university but can’t afford it. Now there are more graduates than ever. A

attempt to create real equality of opportunity, advocates of cosmic justice have disadvantaged an entire generation.

What was once the highest you could excel is now the bare minimum for joining the workforce.

The advocates of cosmic justice who have crippled the value of higher learning are now launching a new crusade on the super rich or the 1%.

Income inequality has become a widely discussed issue and it all began with a flawed

americans under the poverty line whose incomes are stagnant. There is a multitude of problems with that assumption, beginning with the idea that the 1% is an actual class or definable group. Recent data from the Internal Revenue Service shows that more than half of the people in the top 1% in 1996 were no longer there in 2005 and among the top one hundredth of the 1%, three quarters of them were not there by the end of the decade. Most Americans in

snapshot of data regarding the incomes of Americans at a specific time. The data showed incredible disparity between the incomes of the top 10%-1% of Americans and everybody else. Most would find this troubling, but in reality, it is not. It is almost assumed that rising wealth inequality is this dreadful and alarming phenomenon that must be dealt with. What is assumed is that there is a class of people consistently making absurdly large profits and sitting on piles of money while there are still 45 million

any bracket of income are not likely to stay there for much longer than ten years. Data from the U.S. treasury department suggests that 53% of American households will be in the top 10% of income at one point in their lives. The top 10% of income beginning at $150,000 dollars before taxes. The idea that the poor remain poor and the rich only get richer is fundamentally inaccurate.

The second problem is that stating how rich the top 1% are while mentioning how poor the bottom are implies

Illustration by Cindy He super smart generation ready to take on the world right?

Wrong.

The value of higher education was not that it made people smart, but that smart people could focus their skills and excel. Now that everyone can get a degree, the value of a degree has fallen sharply in the eyes of employers, while the monetary cost of getting a degree continues to rise as a result of the never-ending government loans. University graduates are now unemployable and shackled with debts that they can’t pay off. In an

some level of causation and responsibility. Poverty is not caused by the most well off and it is not the responsibility of the well off to have the money that they’ve earned taken away. Even if the extreme wealth of the 1% was to be highly taxed and redistributed, what would that really accomplish? If you were to take the entire salary of Mcdonald’s CEO, Stephen Easterbrook, and redistribute it equally to all McDonald’s employees, each employee would only make an extra $1.68 a year. The disparity between CEO pay and worker pay has become a popular source for displaying income inequality, but as clearly shown, any form of redistribution is a pointless exercise.

Ultimately, the issue is complex. Nevertheless, it is important that as the generation that will be voting in the next national election, we stay informed and continue the discussion. The narrative and the result always stay the same. Endlessly glorious and altruistic government initiatives eventually fail when the supply of money from the pockets of the rich eventually dries up.The following words spoken by the great economist Thomas Sowell have always rung true to me: “I have never understood why it is ‘greed’ to want to keep the money you have earned but not greed to want to take somebody else’s money.” As a generation, it is our responsibility to ensure that the economic system that has awarded us our right to life, liberty, and property is not compromised.

Oops, I popped a boner!

Illustration by Hana Abdelmeguid

According to the MerriamWebster Dictionary, the definition of a ‘boner’ is “a foolish or careless mistake”. However, official dictionary definitions do not always match common definitions. One grandmother was a victim of modern slang, as whenever she made a mistake, she would say “Oh no, did I pop a boner?”. This was a source of great discomfort, for those listening, until she was told what the new meaning of ‘boner’ was. The saying quickly died after that.

She is not, however, the only victim of culturally appropriate sayings and

terminology. A great Aunt described a cashier as being “black but not black-black... he had nice hair”, which was “horribly awkward” to the younger generations.

Another Grandmother lovingly calls each of her female grandchildren “pussycat”. Sometimes, she shortens it to “pussy”.

Disassociate the term from its more popular meaning is tough, especially when it has been used by the President of the United States in such a vulgar manner. Hearing it from the mouth of your grandmother can be “shudder inducing”.

Sometimes, you can’t even blame boners on genera-

tional differences. I know a woman who has an aversion to the word “fart”. When her kids were growing up, she didn’t want them using that particular f-word, so instead she instructed them to say “poo-noise”. This continued until her son had the misfortune to mention “poo-noises” at school…

Older generations often run into trouble when it comes to changing slang and social views. While it can be funny, it can also be very embarrassing. Please help prevent the popping boners by informing your family and friends when they make a mistake.

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Confessions of an almost herbivore

Illustration by Jocelyn Tang “Why don’t you eat meat?” is a question that I receive on a weekly basis, and, to be completely honest, don’t know how to answer without being labelled as the stereotypical, triggered, know-it-all animal worshipper. There is a huge stigma around being vegetarian or vegan — I find myself feeling nervous or even ashamed when attempting to explain my diet to a confused, self-proclaimed carnivore. But why should I be ashamed of a diet that does nothing but good for not only animals, but for myself and the environment?

I’m going to be that stereotypical know-it-all for a minute and explain the benefits of these diets. There are many reasons why people stop eating meat, a few being weight loss, health benefits, eco-friendliness, and of

course, sparing the lives of animals. Plant-based food is low in saturated fat and when the diet is followed by eating healthy and taking vitamin B12 (the only supplement necessary), vegetarianism and veganism can help to shed weight. Furthermore, these diets have been shown to prevent heart disease and reduce the risk of cancer.

According to Dr. Michael F. Roizen, going vegetarian can add 13 years to your life. As for the environment, switching to a meat-free diet reduces carbon emissions. In addition, 30% of the Earth’s land mass is used to raise animals for food and 70% of grain grown is fed to those animals, contributing to famine, not to mention the immense amount of water that goes into livestock agriculture. The last reason,

however, is what motivated me to change my diet.

If you told my 12-yearold self that in 4 years I would no longer be consuming steaks, chicken wings, burgers, patties, or even hot dogs, I would have choked on the ribs that I was surely eating. I was practically addicted to meat, so much so that I walked around calling myself a carnivore while repeating the same excuse as every other meat-eater: “I can’t possibly live without it!”. I saw meat as an object separate from its origin: the animal itself. This was a sort of a defence mechanism that I used because I loved animals and couldn’t bear the thought of taking another living being’s life for my own pleasure. However, every time I visited a farm, the gutwrenching feeling of guilt would return and I would find myself staring into the eyes of a calf, apologizing in advance for its future. As time went on, I became more and more educated about vegetarianism and its benefits.

My close friend, who is now vegan, decided to try out this diet and I saw how easy it was for her to integrate it into her daily life. When asked why she first decided to go vegetarian, she said, “At first it was for health reasons because my mom and I were

trying to find a diet that helped with weight loss. I cut out meat but I was struggling to keep up the diet, so I did research and discovered the way animals were being treated. This motivated me to keep going, so I continued cutting out animal products like eggs, fish, and eventually dairy. Of course, health is important, but it’s really the animals and the environmental impact that push me to keep up my vegan diet and lifestyle”. Even after my friend went vegetarian, I still couldn’t see myself cutting out meat until one fateful day when I realized that I could no longer handle the guilt.

A little over a year ago I came across the organization, PETA (People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals) on Facebook and I began scrolling through their page. I had seen documentaries before like “Food Inc.” that expose the treatment of animals in food production factories but I had never seen footage as raw and honest as those videos. I spent hours researching factory farms and modern agriculture and was so utterly disgusted by what I found. In response to watching these videos, I marched downstairs and exclaimed to my mom that I wanted to be a vegetarian.

She laughed and continued

to cook her lamb chops. My parents were extremely unsupportive of my decision to stop eating meat. I currently eat fish and seafood from time to time just to keep them from going insane.

My point is, it can be difficult to completely change your diet to that of a pescatarian, a vegetarian, or even a vegan, but if you really want to, stop making excuses. Start slow by cutting out different types of meat by making a schedule for cheat days as you would any other diet. Eventually, you will no longer crave it.

Soon enough, even the smell of McDonald’s won’t affect you. Although the food you consume may seem insignificant in the grand scheme of things, every person does make a difference.

As for me, I’ve been on a mainly meat-free diet for over a year now. I’m currently a pescatarian and I plan on being a full vegetarian once I move out and have full control of my diet. In addition, I try to live a vegan lifestyle by avoiding products with leather and fur. I buy crueltyfree makeup. Animal welfare is a passion of mine. If animal welfare, health, or the environment is of interest to you, I highly suggest that you reconsider your diet.

Ask Crystal

Hot topic of the month: toxic friendships My friend has been really competitive about marks lately and puts me down when I do better than her… she also gets really jealous when I talk to my other friends… it’s so weird! I don’t get it. :( -Crafty Narcissistic My friend is so desperate for attention and pity!! Everyday she complains and says “I’m so sad!” She keeps lying about EVERYTHING!!

How can I confront her?

-Always Tale-telling Lately I feel like my best friend is trying to cut me out of her life so she can be closer to my other best friend… also whenever I tell her I have a crush on someone she starts to like them too. What’s up with that??

-Keen to Steal my Friends This month the NT askfm received many questions regarding toxic friendships. Before you make any hasty decisions that you may regret, evaluate your friendship. Is it worth the stress they cause you? Is this a repetitive source of anxiety in your life? If you truly value their companionship, try to confront your issues by talking it out with them. Better to talk in person than over text because misinterpretation is very common. Sometimes what seems like drama is just a misunderstanding. However, if they act as a constant source of distress for you, consider cutting them out as a favour to yourself. Although you may feel guilty or insecure about cutting a friend loose, your wellbeing should come first. Remember, it is also important to be respectful to that person. Name calling and derogatory terms should not be used since this is childish and immature. Even though you may have been suffering for years, try to avoid insults and instead, remain calm and collected to end on good (okay, neutral) terms with people. Best of luck!

XOXO, Crystal To send in questions to Crystal, send your questions to the NT Ask Column (ask fm): http://ask.fm/NTaskcolumn

35

Sports

Photo courtesy of Jocelyn Rough

Feeling out of my league When you were young, you wanted to be a superhero.

As you fastened the tie around your neck, your new identity gave you abilities and powers. Even as you outgrew your cape you never stopped wearing it.

As I grew up, my experiences added more capes to my identity. This past summer, I earned my newest cape; my Team Ontario field hockey jacket.

It started with tryouts.

This was where I noticed the jacket; some players had it, while others did not.

It had the Canadian flag embroidered on the left arm, a logo over the heart, and the word ‘ONTARIO’ across the back. As the tryouts progressed, I realized that this was what I wanted.

I never wanted to go to tryouts. Anxiety would seep into every inch of my body, but each time, I mustered up enough courage to drag myself onto the field. As each tryouts progressed, I felt surrounded by superior athletes and my confidence began to fall. The more that anxiety picked at my spirit, the worse I played. It was diminishing. Regardless, I would pick up my bag, trudge onto the field, and start all over again, bare, with no jacket to protect me. However, I was fortunate enough to be able to continue this cycle by making the team. As the team began training, that steep hill my confidence was plunging down gave way to flat ground as my develop-

ment began.

You don’t earn your jacket until halfway through the season. However, the girls who had previously played for Team Ontario could be seen wearing them. Now it was my turn. Every week, I worked 45 hours at sports camp, trained 14 hours on

sity players, followed by two games against the U16 provincial teams. Accelerate. As a bead of sweat trickled down my back I felt fatigue course through my legs. Reach the line. Exhaustion set in as a result of my first full week of work. Pivot. This was where I spent my summer Friday

my two 2.5 hour practices.

I caught a glimpse of what hard work felt like.

I also saw the unwritten side to a story. There are many sacrifices that must be made in terms of prioritizing time with your family, social, and personal life.

These decisions are like waking up in the middle of

Photo courtesy of Jocelyn Rough the field, and ran sprints on my “days off”. I knew that there were athletes training more than me, but there were more doing less.

One particular Friday, after I finished working for the day, I was greeted at practice by having to run the beep test with univer-

nights; not on the beach, not at a party, not at a barbecue. Beep. I raced from work to practice, being sustained by nutritious Tim Horton’s dinners. Repeat.

The next morning, my body protested the extent of my work, so I made sure to have a good warmup before

the night needing to have to pee. You can either bear the walk to the bathroom without your blanket for protection, or struggle to sleep with a cramp wedged in your bladder. I chose the unheard-of option. I would chug a bottle of water every night before bed, accept-

ing the fact that I would be woken up at 2 AM to brave the walk to the bathroom.

The weather in which our season occurred did not require a jacket; it rarely required long sleeves. The first time I wore my jacket was at Nationals. I had tried it on a couple of times in the giddy way you model new Christmas clothes, but this was the first time I would actually be wearing it.

I had earned my position as a starter, but I made mistakes, so I was pulled off. A lot. I would play for fifteen minutes and be pulled off. I would be told by my coach that I had cost my team a goal. Instead of letting my mistakes tear me down, they fuelled my determination to analyze and change my actions. The next game I would start for twentyfive minutes, screw up, and be pulled off. I learned and analyzed again. I would play for thirty minutes, fail, and be pulled off. But then, I was put back on. By the end of the tournament, I played close to an entire game.

As last season gets further away, and the weather gets cold, I wear my jacket.

Each day, whatever weather I brave, the weight of this experience can be seen on my shoulders. My cape cannot be untied, my jacket cannot be unzipped, and neither can be outgrown.

What price are you willing to pay to earn your next cape?

Logo liabilities

Illustration by Angela Miljanovic The Cleveland Indians were founded in 1894 and became a major league franchise in 1901. Back then, racism wasn’t considered a pressing social issue, so the team’s name wasn’t thought to be controversial. While being the most prominent example, the Indians aren’t the only sports team to have a name related to the First Nations community. Other examples include the NFL’s Washington Redskins and the NHL’s Chicago Blackhawks.

As time has passed, these names have become increasingly scrutinized, being called inappropriate and racist. For example, many people take offense to the Cleveland Indians logo — which sports a cartoon caricature of a Native American face with red skin, big teeth, and a feather protruding from the headband — calling it derogatory towards Native Americans. A question has arisen: What are we going to do about it? Do we change the names and logos

that have been around for over a century? Or, do we keep them around to keep the team’s logo tradition alive? To many, these logos are seen as disrespectful and racist reminders of a different time. However, to those who support these teams, changing the logo would be a disrespectful insult to their team’s rich history.

The controversy surrounding these logos hit an all-time high this fall, when an application by First Nations activist, Douglas

Cardinal, to ban the Cleveland Indians from playing in Ontario, reached court. The judge dismissed the application on several grounds, primarily the team’s long history and that the Indians have a trademark right to use their name and logo in Canada.

Given this decision regarding what’s arguably the most offensive professional sport logo, it doesn’t look like these teams will be legally forced to change their names or logos anytime soon. Nevertheless, there are still other ways to make them more respectful. There has recently been a proposed logo change for the Chicago Blackhawks. The proposed logo is an actual Blackhawk.

While this change would appear to be a relatively easy one, the backlash would be huge. The Blackhawks’ current logo has been voted the best in the NHL by The Hockey News on multiple occasions and is extremely popular with the team’s growing fan base. In addition, many minor league teams, such as the North York Hockey League’s Willowdale Blackhawks use the same name and logo as Chicago, further establish-

ing its popularity. Of course, if Chicago took action and changed its logo, minor league teams may follow soon.

Many people consider a sports team’s name and logo its identity. Forcing a team to change its name and or logo is seen as an insult to the team, and, more importantly, its fans. Aside from moral and ethical positions, powerful economic factors act against the movement to change offending team names or logos.

The reality is that the number of people who support these teams happens to be much larger than that of those who oppose their logos. Small First Nations right’s activist groups are going up against teams worth hundreds of millions of dollars. For a difference to be made, a majority of the populace will have to protest these teams by boycotting the product. Right now, these teams’ logos aren’t losing them money. If these teams are ever going to change their logos, people need to stop buying the team’s products and make the logo a liability. Otherwise, the status quo may never change.

for how well they play, and some might even find it unfair that another player of equal or lesser skill is making more than them. Let’s take the example of one of Toronto’s most beloved players, Bismack Biyombo.

On July 2nd, 2016, Raps fans all over the country received the heartbreaking news: Biyombo had signed with the Orlando Magic, joining a stellar and already-loaded Magic frontcourt that boasts centre Nikola Vucevic and power forward Serge Ibaka, who was acquired in a draftnight trade with the Oklahoma City Thunder. This deal couldn’t be completed without a staggering 4 year $72 million dollar contract…

That’s $18 million a year!

While Biyombo loved Toronto and we certainly loved him back, he clearly had other ideas. This is not a rare occurrence in the world of sports, as 99% of the time players switch teams, not because they aren’t a good fit for the team, but because another offers a better con-

tract, the catch usually being more money.

Now I ask you, dear reader, do these players deserve such ludicrous salaries? In my mind, absolutely not. Professional athletes are making too much money in a society where salaries and wages are traditionally based on the value of one’s work, and their job’s contribution and value to society.

Teaching is one of the most economically important occupations because our future economy relies on the education and preparation given to its youth, yet teachers are paid astronomically less than the average professional athlete is. In fact, each basket Kobe Bryant scores earns him what the average classroom teacher would make in a year!

While big sports doll out big cash, there are far better ways in which this money could be spent, and prosports doesn’t seem like a worthy cause.

Overpaid athletes

Illustration by Charlie Littler In today’s society, one of the highest paying jobs, requiring little to no higher level education, is working as a professional athlete. When I use the term “professional athlete,” I mean a player

in one of the three major sports: basketball, baseball, or American football.

Just thinking about how much these players get paid brings up all kinds of ideas about where else these

astronomical amounts of money should be going.

Yes, you could also argue that lawyers or surgeons get ridiculously overpaid, and maybe they do, but at least their jobs consist of helping people, sometimes even saving lives. So, why do athletes get paid like they do? Shockingly, it’s part of the fans’ responsibility. Fans spend money on team merchandise, such as tickets, sweatshirts, t-shirts, and baseball caps. If the public didn’t have anything to do with what these athletes got paid, athletes like these wouldn’t even be making a fraction of what they are making now.

Professional sports is a big hit in today’s society. It is often a great excuse for a group of friends or family members to get together and enjoy a game. If the sport is economically important, its players will be getting paid more. Money is a big factor in the division and the potential downfall of a team. Players may think they aren’t getting paid enough

The early birds of NT lies in their love of swimming. Just like any sport, swimming requires lots of dedication. You have to put lots of effort in to get something rewarding out.

Maintaining this high level of dedication can be hard, especially when there’s a blizzard outside, the sun won’t rise for another two hours, and the pool is colder than the fourth floor this last December. It’s the love of swimming that keeps our team going.

The hardest part of any swim practice is the warmup.

The bitter cold, the inability to breathe, the aching muscles. It all makes for an extremely unpleasant time.

However, after those gruelling ten minutes, the body seems to jolt awake. The hardest part is over, and everything after that point either plateaus in difficulty or gets easier. It’s just like the first month of school. The very first week is like grinding your head into a brick wall. Having to adjust from kicked back summer days to the heavily scheduled routine of everyday school life is tough, but with each new

Illustration by Alice Liang Six a.m. is the time most NT swimmers wake up for practice. Twice a week, every week. There are options to swim at “the school which will not be named” down the

street after school, but most swimmers come out to the morning practices nonetheless. “Why?”, you might ask, “Why would someone wake up so early?”. The answer

day it only gets easier. Once a swimmer gets into a “routine”, everything becomes fluid and natural. There is no more shallow breathes or cold muscles, only strength and determination.

After the warmup, the swimmers are thrown right into a new exercise. Sometimes it’s 50m or 100m lengths; other times it’s drills for different strokes; occasionally it’s just a variety of each. These exercises include some learning and a lot of practice — similar to classes right now.

The swimming drills are the concepts that teachers teach in class, and the 50m or 100m lengths are the practice questions assigned for homework. Just like in school, you have to try your best with both or else you won’t succeed, and just like in school, all of this is building up to one big, grand, finale.

The first bell rings before class. There is a large group forming in the foyer. What is going on? Exam season has arrived for the swimmers.

It’s time for a swim meet.

This is what every practice

has been leading up to.

Every early morning, every painful warm up. It is time for our swimmers to showcase their skills in an test of sorts. They will compete for the best time in each event they participate in, racing against their own teammates as well as swimmers from other schools. From the regional meet, qualifying swimmers advance to OFSAA where they compete against the best in Ontario.

All of these important meets are still yet to come this season. The regional meet is being hosted at the Etobicoke Olympium on February 14th, with more after that.

Swimming is a fantastic sport and a great way to stay in shape. It makes normal wakeups feel like sleep-ins.

What’s not to love? If you have ever thought of becoming a swimmer, don’t let the gruesome description of warm up sway you. Go out and give it a try. If you find a growing sense of determination, you’ll know you’ve found the right place.

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Horoscopes Sagittarius (Nov 22— Dec 21)

Gemini (May 21 — June 20)

Get ready for an amazing month, Sagittarius.

Your house of families is very dominant until the end of February, making this the perfect time to bond with your loved ones. Be sure to make a special effort to spend time with your parents or siblings. You will also have a lot of positive creative energy this month. Channel it into a crafty endeavor, and try something new, like cooking, DIY projects, or art.

As far as romance goes, over this month, it is likely that you will recognize feelings for a friend you have known for a long time!

Stay on your toes, Gemini. February is going to be a crazy month. This is to be expected, with your ruling planet Mercury going retrograde after the twelfth. The best way to ensure your month runs smoothly is to avoid any hasty decisions or assumptions. Take the time to pay attention to detail and get organized. Any potential misunderstandings between loved ones can be avoided if you choose words carefully. Think before you act, Gem.

Capricorn (Dec 22- Jan 19)

If knowledge is power, Cancereans are the superhero sign this month. The Sun, Mercury, and Venus all travel into Pisces (your ninth house of knowledge) at various times this February. This is perfect timing, with the dreaded Mercury retrograde promising to bring misunderstandings. Though you may be feeling sharp, others may be confused and frustrated. Focus on what makes you great, and then spread understanding to make everyone around you feel the same way.

This month is all about opportunities for you, Capricorn. Towards the end of February, expect a wonderful academic surprise… (maybe it’s that uni acceptance you have been waiting for, or an amazing mark on a test). Also, if you have been thinking about getting a job, luck is on your side, and this month you are sure to ace any interview.

Love and relationships will not be your main focus for February — and that’s ok! Focus on school, work and family, but don’t hesitate to have a little fun on Valentine’s day.

Aquarius (Jan 20 — Feb 18)

The majority of your planets are in the Eastern sector of the chart this month. That means that you will be super focused to fulfill your objectives in life. Use your motivation to work hard for your goals, and you will be rewarded. February will be a month of pleasure and fun for you, full of partying and treating yourself to amazing new purchases. If there is one product that you have been lusting for, buy it, as it will be a perfect reward for your month of hard work. You will also have lots of love interests chasing you this month, but don’t let them get to your head — you may miss out on the one you’re meant to be with.

Pisces (Feb 19 — March 20)

Expect this month to be easy going and relaxing. After a busy few months, you deserve to relax…. (spa night anyone?). Keep up your hard work in school and remember to give yourself breaks and make time for fun social plans. Since the Sun enters Pisces in February, Jupiter will still be opposed to Uranus, encouraging rash actions. Be aware of this, and remember to focus on taking it easy.

Aries (March 21 – April 20)

February is great month for self-reflection, Aries. Between the second and the eighteenth, both Mercury and the sun arrive in Pisces, your sign of self-renewal. These celestial movements will prompt you to turn your thoughts inward, quiet your mind, and listen to your inner voice. This insight could help you tackle complicated relationship or friendship issues with responsible choices that will really start paying off by the end of March.

Taurus (April 21 – May 20)

Exciting news, Taurus. Your social life will be ramping up into full gear for almost all of February. This will be a direct result of the sun resting in Pisces, your friendship sign, after the seventeenth. The more you mingle, the better. Meeting new people and venturing out of your stable social bubble could help you make a lasting connection with someone you least expect. A tip to avoid the confusion of Mercury retrograde: Be sure to confirm dates, times, and places.

Cancer (June 21 — July 22)

Leo (July 23 — August 22)

This month, Mars is coming to your ninth solar house. What do any of those words mean? That doesn’t matter, because it’s making you so bold, outgoing, and enthusiastic that you don’t have time to think about it. You’re restless and looking for adventure, so don’t let your energy go to waste. Expand your horizons by taking opportunities to travel, learn more, or just do something new and say yes to whatever you can. You’ll find yourself living out your quirky adventurous indie teen movie fantasy in no time.

Virgo (August 23 — September 22)

If there’s one thing we know about Virgos, it’s that they’re incredibly detail-oriented and can be great when you’re doing “the most” on essays and projects. But your eye for detail might get you in trouble as you can be a little too critical of other people’s flaws and a little too vocal about it. Not everyone can be perfect, not even you. Listen to some Hannah Montana this month to help you remember that.

Libra (September 23 — October 22)

Worrying about Valentine’s Day? You shouldn’t — Libras are headed straight for their most romantic time of the year. Heart-shaped vibes are with you all month long, and whether you want something casual or serious, you’re bound to have fun with it. You’re in the perfect position to hang out with your friends more, flirt with whoever you’ve had your eye on, or take an existing flame to the next level. But make sure to clear up some you-time — you’re the scales, and it’s still all about balance.

Scorpio (October 23 — November 22)

You might be feeling a bit overwhelmed right now. Complicated relationships? Miscommunication with friends? Too much schoolwork and work-work? Yup, it’s all there. But no matter how chaotic your life feels, get some rubber boots and an umbrella and face the storm head-on. You’re a water sign, so the rain can’t hurt you. Stay as strong and feisty — but reasonable — as you are, and you can handle whatever comes your way. And according to science (probably), the brightest rainbows come after the heaviest storms.

Illustrations by Madelaine Fischer

Fun Stuff Making procrastination easy Name:

2016

NT Crossword

Complete the crossword below

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1

2

2

3 4

3

5 4

5

6 7 6

8 9

7

10 8

9

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Created with TheTeac hers Co rner.net Cro s s wo rd Puzzle Generato r

Across

Across

Down

2. We will build a _________

1. The act of sneezing but not really

4. Reading program consisting of Canada's recent young adult fiction titles

3. What we all want to leave behind 5. I have an apple i have a pen ugh

9. Where you can find out more about courses (Hint: carnival ride)

6. Place where you can pet cats without owning one

10. _______ organizes and authorizes championships of most major sports in Ontario

8. Lunch spot to buy kimchi fries

12. Pascal, Cayley, and ______

11. A treat that clubs use to entice you to go to meetings

7. Lawrence Park stole _________ (Hint: staff)

Down

3. The challenge that requires people to stand still while 'Black Beatles' plays in the background.

5. Beloved singer who passed away; sings 'When Doves Cry' and 'Purple Rain'.

7. President Obama visits this country which was the first visit by a U.S. president in 88 years, 9. Beyonce's iconic album.

10. Netflix's original show that everyone bingewatched in one day.

13. The ship name for the 'IT'couple that filed for divorce.

14 . Country that left the European Union.

1. Name of singer who FINALLY released an album after three years.

2. Last name of who was elected as president of the United States 4 . The Barbadian beauty who rejected Drake at the VMA's.

6. Country that held the Summer Olympics.

7. One of the most popular songs sang by The Chainsmokers and Halsey.

8. Gord Downie, who announced he had terminal cancer, is the lead singer of this fantastic Canadian band.

11. First name of actor who finally won an oscar.

12. The city where Kim Kardashian was robbed.

13. The only school area that you’re allowed to make a phone call in, not including lunch hours

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