McGill Tribune Vol. 31 Issue 18

Tribune The McGill

Published by the Tribune Publication Society Volume No. 31 Issue No. 18

Tuesday, February 14, 2012

Asbestos investigation J-Board reforms Editorial Valentine’s Day cards Saliva HIV test Valentine’s playlist Martlet volleyball

3 4 7 15-16 17 20 21

Academy award predictions (12 & 13)

Police evict students from sixth floor offices

Students gather in the lobby of the James Administration Building on Feb. 7 in solidarity with the sixth floor occupiers. (Sam Reynolds / McGill Tribune)

Students spend nearly six days inside the James Administration Building without reaching agreement on demands Carolina Millán Ronchetti News Editor Last Sunday morning, the nine students who remained on the sixth floor of the James Administration Building were peacefully evicted by the police. The students had occupied the sixth floor for 118 hours.

On Feb. 7, a group of 21 students entered the office of the Deputy Provost (Student Life and Learning) Morton Mendelson following a rally to protest the administration’s rejection of the fall referendum results regarding QPIRG and CKUT Radio. The occupiers demanded that the administration accept the referendum results, which would enable QPIRG and CKUT to continue to

exist and would allow opt-outs to go offline. They also demanded Mendelson’s resignation. Over half of the students left over the course of following five days for varying reasons.

The police evicted the remaining students just before 9 a.m. on Sunday. In an email to students, Vice-Principal (Administration and Finance) Michael Di Grappa explained that standard police procedure was applied, with security personnel first reading a formal eviction notice.

One of the occupiers, who wished to remain anonymous, told the Tribune that security first forcefully entered the occupied office.

“It wasn’t clear that it was the

police coming in,” she said. “Security guards pushed the door open, forced their way in, although we had a cabinet in front of the door to secure ourselves inside. One of my friends has a big bruise because he tried to stop the door from opening.”

The occupier said that as soon as her co-occupier saw police from the corner of his eye, he stepped back. The group had previously decided to leave peacefully if police arrived.

“We talked to lawyers before, and even while we were inside [James Admin], we were in contact with lawyers making sure [we knew what to do], especially with police,” the occupier said. “[We] expected that the police were coming … a lot

of us felt uncomfortable with being arrested and having a criminal record. So we decided that if police [came], we were going to leave peacefully.”

According to both Di Grappa’s email and the occupier, a security guard read the notice, which stated that the occupiers had five minutes to collect their belongings and leave of their own accord. If the police had to physically remove them, the police could charge them with resisting arrest.

“We were pretty well organized because the day before we had heard that we might go into negotiations with QPIRG and the administration, so we had cleaned up the place and organized all of our things,” the oc-

cupier said. “We just had to collect the papers and fully consolidate all of our things.”

After collecting their belongings, the protesters walked out of the building peacefully.

The email further stated that the occupiers were offered first aid, assistance, food, and contact for counseling services. “[The first aid and assistance] were mentioned [to us] in passing, it wasn’t like they had people there just in case people were hurt,” the occupier noted.

The occupier said that there was food in a tent set up outside James Admin, where two people had spent the night. The nine occupiers See “6PARTY” on page 5

NEWS

CAMPUS

McGill community reacts to sixth floor occupiers

Students voice concerns with tactics used by occupiers, SSMU points to larger grievances within the community Erica Friesen News Editor Last week’s occupation of the James Administration Building received much attention, as students and organizations responded to the tactics and motivations of the occupiers. The protest, a reaction to the McGill administration’s rejection of the CKUT and QPIRG referendum results of last fall, came to an end when the police evicted the nine remaining occupiers on Sunday.

Several organizations have openly declared their support for the occupiers, including “McGill Alumni for Real Change,” who wrote a letter denouncing the McGill administration.

“We are outraged—but in no way surprised—by the university administration’s continued disrespect for students, their initiatives, and the basic principles of democracy,” they wrote.

However, some student societies have been quick to express their disapproval of the occupiers’ actions. The presidents of the engineering, management, arts, and science students’ societies signed a let-

ter collectively condemning the way that the occupiers’ tactics “alienate” students instead of encouraging greater student participation in campus dialogue.

Beni Fisch and Diego Zuluaga Laguna are two of the creators of a Facebook event called “The James 6th Floor occupiers do NOT represent me.” The page, which was started only one day into the occupation, is a reaction to what they call the “radicalization” of campus politics since Nov. 10.

“Speaking for myself, I was rather apathetic towards campus politics back then [Nov. 10],” Fisch said. “I was one of those students who just wanted to go to class, write my exams, get a good grade, et cetera, but it’s become too radical since then … this [the occupation of James Admin] was kind of the last straw.”

Fisch and Laguna’s event claims to represent the “silent majority” of students on McGill campus who do not agree with the tactics the occupiers used. By the time the protesters were evicted on Sunday, the event had received over 2, 000 attendees. Laguna, however, does

not expect the student reaction to stop with the end of the occupation.

“Even though they’ve left the building … they don’t seem to have relinquished [their] tactics. It’s not clear whether they would use the same tactics again if they had the chance, and it’s precisely those tactics that we are against,” Laguna said. “This has been a movement in progress. It hasn’t just been a result of the occupation of the James Building itself—our goals go much further than just having the occupiers end their occupation.”

Further action by the group will involve the formation of a new campus body that will be open to everyone and will focus on creating positive change at McGill “without the use of confrontational tactics.”

Co-creator Harmon Moon will also continue to collect signatures for a letter to the McGill administration, SSMU, and PGSS condemning the actions of the occupiers. The letter had around 400 signatures by the end of the occupation.

However, other students have found groups like “The 6th Floor Occupiers do NOT represent me” to be problematic because of their

use of language—for example, the group’s “condemnation” of the sixth floor occupiers. At last Thursday’s SSMU Council, councillors and gallery members discussed the polarizing effect that this kind of language can have on students.

“I hear people calling the occupiers ‘radicals,’ Shyam Patel, VP Finance and Operations, said. “If we want open dialogue with a safe space, we need to not refer to each other with specific labels … We need to be realistic with this. Things are not going to change overnight … we need to progress slowly.”

“Occupation is a legitimate tactic,” Carol Fraser, VP Clubs and Services, said. “We have to realize and remember that it is something that people use when they feel frustrated, when they feel like their elected representatives don’t represent them, and when they feel like they have no other choice.”

Fisch, however, said that he thinks this language is necessary considering the campus’ current political climate.

“The problem is that when you have 20 people who are trying to impose their views, and use coer-

Occupation timeline DAY 1 Tuesday Feb. 7

DAY 3 Thursday Feb. 9

cion methods to get their way over essentially almost 23,000 other students, you see that the campus is already polarized,” he said. “And the whole purpose of [our] group is to show that our disagreement is not with their final goals but with their tactics.”

Because of the widespread reactions they received from students, SSMU Council issued a statement in which they recognized the motivations of the occupiers, but looked forward to a “constructive outcome” to the situation. Although the occupation is now over, SSMU executives such as Emily Yee Clare, VP University Affairs, are aware that the protest has wider implications for the McGill community.

“It’s part of systematic grievances that people have at McGill,” Clare said. “It has to do with MUNACA; it has to do with Nov. 10; it has to do with so many forms of disempowerment.”

DAY 5 Saturday Feb. 11 - Building remains closed

- Building remains closed

- Ten occupiers remain

- 11 occupiers remain

- Admin refuses QPIRG's offer for three-way negotiations

- 23 people in sixth floor, 40 in lobby

- Occupiers meet once with Jim Nicell

- James Admin Building staff evacuated

- Dr. Tellier attempts to check in on ill student

- Occupiers talk with Jim Nicell through the door, refuse to keep negotiating

- 10 a.m. CKUT reach agreement with admin - 11:30 a.m. occupation begins

- Occupiers negotiate with Associate VP (University Services) Jim Nicell in person - Around 5 p.m. lobby protester sent to join negotiations on sixth floor - Two or three phone conversations between Jim Nicell and occupiers throughout the day - 9 p.m. people no longer allowed to re-enter building, internet disabled - Lobby occupiers stay overnight

- 5 p.m. power cut to sixth floor - Harmon Moon sends petition to admin denouncing occupation - Presidents of AUS, SUS, MUS, and EUS send letter condemning protesters' tactics

- Building remains closed -11:30 a.m. lobby occupiers leave - Occupiers talk with Jim Nicell in office with window, refuse to leave new office - Occupiers talk twice on phone with Jim Nicell - Facebook group "The James 6th Floor occupiers do NOT represent me" created

- Nine protesters remain - Occupiers asked to leave within five minutes or charges pressed

- Around midnight, protesters receive food supplies

- Seven people camp outside James Admin Building

DAY 2 Wednesday Feb. 8

DAY 6 Sunday Feb. 12

9 a.m. police evict occupiers DAY 4 Friday Feb. 10 - Building remains closed - Around noon, washroom access denied - Protesters reformulate demands - QPIRG suggests threeway negotiations including occupiers

Photos by Danji Buck-Moore

- Failed attempt to send food to sixth floor

- McGill releases protocol on student demonstrations via email

- Several people camp outside James Admin Building

- Building opens for cleaning

Curiosity delivers. |

NEWS

| Tuesday, February 14, 2012

3

CITY

McGill announces internal investigation on asbestos

Anti-asbestos activists demand independent investigation on influence of Quebec asbestos industry on research Kyla Mandel Managing Editor In a letter sent to McGill University on Feb. 10, a group of 32 individuals called on McGill University to perform an independent and transparent investigation into the influence of the Quebec asbestos industry over Professor J. Corbett McDonald’s epidemiological research on the health effects of chrysotile asbestos.

This was in response to the message sent by Dr. David Eidelman, vice-principal (health affairs) and dean of medicine, on Feb. 9, stating that an investigation into Professor McDonald’s research would be conducted by Professor Rebecca Fuhrer, chair of the department of epidemiology, biostatistics and occupational health, and a Canada research chair.

“The outcome of Prof. Fuhrer’s review will determine whether there is a need for a more detailed investigation, in accordance with our standard policies and procedures,” Dr. Eidelman’s message reads.

Kathleen Ruff, a senior human rights adviser at the Rideau Institute, explained why the letter was sent to McGill.

“We have absolutely nothing

to say about Professor Furher, we’re sure she is a totally wonderful person, it’s nothing to do with her,” Ruff said. “[But it’s] an inside, internal investigation with the department of epidemiology investigating itself ...

This sets up a tainted situation.”

In addition to the complaint that an independent investigation should be conducted, the letter raised the concern that McGill’s public statements regarding Professor McDonald and his research “show bias and misrepresent the issue in question, making an internal investigation suspect.”

The letter stated that the Quebec asbestos industry funded McDonald’s research with the aim of showing that “controlled use” of chrysotile asbestos posed no health risks. Chrysotile asbestos represents 95 per cent of the asbestos ever sold, and 100 per cent of the asbestos sold in the past two decades throughout the world. “[McDonald] not only did research that was very pleasing to the asbestos industry, [but he also] put forward the message that they wanted—that chrysotile asbestos is virtually innocuous,” Ruff said.

“It is true that Prof. McDonald drew different conclusions about the

possible safe use of asbestos than most authorities do today. Holding scientific views that are different from those of the majority does not constitute research misconduct,”.

Eidelman’s message states. “The World Health Organization’s 2011 monograph also acknowledges that the subject of the health risks of chrysotile remains a controversy.”

“Consensus is as clear on asbestos as it is on tobacco. Chrysotile asbestos is deadly ... there is no safe exposure level,” Ruff said.

“It’s just like making a fuss about the difference in fatality from falling from the 20th floor in comparison from the 16th floor,” Fernand Turcotte, Professor Emeritus of Public Health and Preventive Medicine at the University of Laval, said of the research. “In a human health point of view, it’s the same thing. Any manipulation of this fact is pure sophistry; it’s really an attempt to obfuscate the issues.”

In 2002, the same complaint was made to McGill regarding the influence of the asbestos industry over McDonald’s research. Over a year later, a two paragraph letter was received in response, explained Ruff.

“That’s not an investigation,”

she said. “So because of the fact that McGill has already refused to address this issue properly, this is why right now is the opportunity for McGill to do the right thing, to finally show integrity on the asbestos issue, to stop acting in a way that looks like it’s colluding with [the asbestos industry].”

“McGill University is a famous institution and its credibility is being used by peddlers of asbestos around the world,” Turcotte said. “McGill [must] make it clear ... that it has nothing to do with the shenanigans of those asbestos peddlers.”

This was the motivation not only for requesting an independent investigation, but also for calling for the resignation of Roshi Chadha, a member of McGill’s Board of Governors and director of Seja Trade Ltd., a company that exported asbestos from the Jeffrey Mine in Asbestos, Quebec.

An additional letter was sent on the behalf of asbestos victims to the Board of Governors calling for McGill to remove Chadha as well as to “support us, as victims of asbestos, and stand strongly against the Canadian asbestos industry.” “[The aim was for McGill] to literally clean any kind of circum-

stances that could be interpreted as meaning that McGill supports the asbestos industry,” Turcotte explained.

Dr. Eidelman’s message ended by stating that “McGill currently receives no research funding from the asbestos industry.”

In an email to the Tribune, McGill’s associate director of media relations Julie Fortier said that McGill will not be commenting further on the issue.

With Quebec only a few weeks away from potentially reopening the Jeffrey Mine, timing is critical.

“Everywhere [public health professionals] meet the obstacle of the powerful asbestos lobby. And what is the weapon [that] the asbestos lobby has in its hands? It’s McDonald and his studies,” Ruff said.

“So it’s a very critical moment, [a] critical historical moment and it’s time for McGill to be on the side of health finally.”

CAMPUS

McGill administration recognizes CKUT’s existence QPIRG still in negotiations over existence and offline opt-out system, has until Feb. 17 to submit referendum question Carolina Millán Ronchetti News Editor Last Wednesday, the administration announced that it recognizes, in principle, the existence of CKUT Radio. The administration had previously rejected the results of the fall referendum, in which CKUT and QPIRG each posed a question calling students to support the organizations’ existence and a move to make opt-outs available offline.

Following negotiations, the administration offered to recognize CKUT and QPIRG’s existence on the condition that they ran two separate questions on the winter referendum, one regarding the organizations’ existence, and one making the organizations’ fees non-opt-outable.

CKUT agreed to this compromise on Tuesday morning at around 10 a.m., just an hour and a half before students occupied the sixth floor of the James Administration Build-

ing, explained Caitlin Manicom, outreach and funding co-ordinator for CKUT. “The agreement was just before the occupation started, which the occupiers didn’t know,” Manicom said.

“We told them on the first night, we made it clear that we were negotiating and were still negotiating.”

The sixth floor occupiers did not leave that night.

“QPIRG was still in negotiations and we wanted to support them as well,” one of the occupiers, who withheld her identity, said.

Manicom noted that having a non-opt-outable fee is crucial for the financial sustenance of the radio station.

“The overhead costs of producing radio increase every year, and we have a lot of costs that we can’t get rid of in terms of licensing, general production costs, maintaining equipment to produce radio … that puts such a strain on running a radio

station.”

Although the occupation did not directly affect CKUT’s negotiating process, Manicom noted that it had an effect on campus dialogue.

“We had already reached an agreement prior to the occupation, but I think that what the #6party occupation did was open up a lot of dialogue, be it negative or positive,” she said. “I think what was very useful about the occupation was that people were forced to think about the fact that the McGill administration had not recognized the student democratic vote.”

QPIRG still in negotiations On Friday evening, QPIRG proposed three-way negotiations between the administration, the sixth floor occupiers, and QPIRG. Kira Page, member of the QPIRG Board of Directors and McGill alumni, explained the rationale of the decision.

“We really wanted a speedy

resolution to the occupation. We feel that the #6party students were being treated cruelly and being [denied] bathroom and water access, and we thought that needed to end quickly,” Page said. “As one of the organizations who was affected by their primary demands, it might be helpful to be part of that process to speed it up.”

In an email to students, Michael Di Grappa, Vice-Principal (Administration and Finance) wrote that the administration would not negotiate the fall referendum with the sixth floor occupiers.

“As the administration has said from the beginning of the occupation, we will not enter into negotiations on the specific demands of the occupiers, as we will not negotiate with anyone disrupting university activities in this manner; we will continue to work with QPIRG to try to come to an agreement on the referendum issue,” Di Grappa wrote.

Page noted that QPIRG will not keep asking for the sixth floor occupiers to participate in negotiations, now that the occupation is over.

“We’re not affiliated with #6party and they existed mostly for the purposes of the occupation,” she said. “I don’t think students who are occupying a building have any negotiating power after they stop occupying the building.”

QPIRG will continue to negotiate with the McGill administration this week. The organization has until Feb. 17 to submit a question for the winter referendum.

“I imagine that everyone is feeling tired and tense given the past week,” Page said. “I hope that we can keep negotiating in good faith and coming to the table to come to a good resolution to this ongoing dispute.”

NEWS 4

Tuesday, February 14, 2012 |

NEWS

| Curiosity delivers.

STUDENT GOVERNMENT

SSMU Council discusses changes to J-Board structure Winter referendum question could allow Board of Directors to overturn decisions with a 4/5 majority Erica Friesen News Editor Last Thursday’s SSMU Council approved three referendum questions concerning the Judicial Board (J-Board), in a continuation of attempts to bring the J-Board’s activities into compliance with Quebec law while retaining its value as an unbiased student body. The J-Board was recently discovered to be working against Quebec law due to regulations that require the SSMU Board of Directors (BoD) to be the highest authority in SSMU. The first referendum question involves amendments to the SSMU Constitution that will clarify that the J-Board is not the highest authority in the society. Instead, it will recommend rulings to the Legislative Council, which will only be considered binding when they receive ratification from the BoD. However,

the BoD will only be able to overturn the decision of the J-Board by a 4/5 majority, in order to retain the J-Board’s value as an unbiased body.

The question of J-Board reform was contentious for some members of the gallery. Former SSMU President Zach Newburgh questioned whether the J-Board actually violates Quebec law.

“An independent judiciary is a value that’s enshrined in liberal democracies,” Newburgh said. “This referendum question in particular decides to destroy that value in the context of the Student Society of McGill University. If we are comfortable with doing that, then you may pass this referendum question and put it to a vote of students, and effectively downvote democracy through democracy.”

SSMU President Maggie Knight, however, asserted her trust in their lawyer, who detailed the

legal concerns regarding the J-Board in a memo to VP University Affairs Emily Yee Clare on Jan. 25.

“To my knowledge we have no reason to doubt the competence of our legal counsel,” she said. “We have already met as a council and as a Board of Directors to discuss our concerns about what [have] been described to us as ambiguities between our constitution and Quebec law… out of what I understand to be due diligence to protect the SSMU from liability.”

Clare emphasized the fact that SSMU has not relied solely on the advice of one lawyer, but also showed the referendum questions to the members of the J-Board.

“They were very open to all the changes we proposed,” Clare said.

“So in addition to our legal counsel, we have also had approximately six law students look at it as well.”

The second referendum ques-

tion, which addresses the procedural accountability of the J-Board, seeks to make the J-Board’s rules of practice publically available to all members of SSMU. The final and most contended referendum question addressed the composition of the J-Board, which is currently formed by five McGill students who have completed at least four semesters in the faculty of law.

The referendum question would see the addition of two non-law students to the board, with the condition that these students must have never held a political position on campus.

Debate on the referendum question stemmed mainly from the question of whether students with no legal training would be capable of addressing the type of cases addressed by the J-Board.

“I think that there are people who are not in the faculty of law with the ability to interpret proce-

dures and to engage in such discussions,” Knight said. “This is really just intended to bring an additional level of scope to the representation on the Judicial Board while clearly stating that the majority must always be members who have some degree of legal expertise.”

However, some representatives felt that the J-Board does not need the additional students.

“I think an important thing to keep in mind is that the J-Board is not a representative body,” Arts Representative Justin Fletcher said.

“I think this might create potential conflicts of interest and [set] a bad precedent.”

Students can vote on these referenda during the winter elections period starting Mar. 8.

CAMPUS

First SUS GA on record will discuss tuition increases The formation of a strike committee will be among the motions presented at the SUS GA on Feb. 29 McKenzie Kibler Contributor The Science Undergraduate Society will hold its first General Assembly on Feb. 29. The list of motions, while not yet finalized, will include one motion opposing tuition increases and another concerning the formation of a strike committee similar to the motion presented at the AUS GA on Jan. 31.

Akshay Rajaram, president of SUS, said the “special GA” came about as a result of a petition signed by 125 science students and submitted to the speaker of SUS Council, Matthew Dolson, by a group called the “Science Mobilization Committee.”

Several science students opposing tuition increases formed the Science Mobilization Committee to rally other science students behind the issue. At the GA, Committee members will present the above mo-

tions condemning tuition hikes and forming the strike committee.

“People who are currently in school are probably not likely to drop out because of the tuition hikes, but they will certainly have to pay more and it will prevent people who are looking to attend university from being able to do so,” Aidan Drake, a member of the Mobilization Committee and a mover of the strike committee motion, said.

His motion was based on the AUS strike committee motion, but noted some wording changes, such as using the term to “inform” rather than to “educate” students about tuition increases. Additionally, the motion features a clause enabling the strike committee to organize strike activities if a motion to strike passes at a strike-specific GA, which would have a quorum of 500 undergraduate science students.

The committee would be nonhierarchical, feature no formal positions, and would require a “basis

of unity” from members both in ideology (the opposition of tuition hikes and belief in moving towards a strike) and methodology (a nonhierarchical, non-oppressive organization).

The concept of a “basis of unity” was an object of much discussion at the AUS GA, some believing it gave way to bias in disseminating strike information and possible consequences.

Drake said he opposed an amendment creating a separate committee, as was proposed at the AUS GA, because of a lack of a clear mandate. He said he feels it is a separate issue and requires its own motion.

“If you have it in the same motion, that motion is doing more than one thing,” he said.

Kevin Liang, president of the Freshman Undergraduate Science Society (FUSS), which represents U0 science students to SUS, said that SUS does not want the science

faculty to take a stance.

“It wants to be politically neutral,” Liang said.

Liang was still undecided on the issue. Most science students, he thought, also felt this way.

“I feel like for science, we’re not as involved in the political actions of McGill as [is] arts,” he said.

“SUS council hasn’t taken a position regarding the tuition increases for Quebec students or the strike proposals,” Rajaram, who could not comment on his expectations of the debate, said.

Besides the tuition increases and a strike committee to oppose them, there is little else that will be discussed at the General Assembly.

“The arts and science committee wanted their own seat [on SSMU Council],” Liang noted. “Right now it’s just the arts seats and the science seats.”

There has been little publicity for presenting motions to the GA. Drake claims this is due to the little

publicity provided for the GA itself, stemming from a current lack of venue.

As of Feb. 5, there had been no mention of the GA or motions in any science listserv.

The GA will run according to Roberts Rules of Order, with an amendment specifying that no additional motions from the floor will be considered. The location remains to be determined. Students who have at least 100 signatories may submit a motion by Feb. 15.

“I would encourage other groups to put motions forward: that’s what the democratic process is for. That’s why we have GAs,” Drake said.

Want to contribute?

Send an e-mail to news@mcgilltribune.com for more information

Curiosity delivers. |

NEWS

| Tuesday, February 14, 2012

5

SPEAKER

Dr. Palmer discusses liberalism in North Korean context Audience members raise concerns about regarding facts presented by Dr. Palmer, a senior fellow at Cato Institute Kegan Chang and Kyle Ng Contributors A talk by Dr. Tom Palmer on tyranny and oppression in North Korea on Feb. 7 was met with mixed reactions. Hosted by Libertarian McGill and the Institute for Liberal Studies, the speech focused on the nature and principles of freedom.

Palmer, a senior fellow at Washington’s Cato Institute and vice president for international programs at the Atlas Economic Research Foundation, discussed his experiences from his 2010 trip to North Korea, and his expectations for the country’s future.

“People who say ‘here’s what’s going to happen’ are lying or deluded,” Palmer said. “I met a lot of North Korea specialists. I’m not one of them … but even the specialists say: ‘we don’t have a clue.’”

Palmer compared his understanding of North Korean society to the dictatorial regimes of Eastern Europe prior to the dissolution of the Soviet Union. According to him, the constant North Korean parades and other state functions are designed to make the individual a part of a ‘machine,’ which Palmer compared to the gears and dials in his watch.

Palmer used North Korea as an example for discussing the role and benefits of liberalism, com-

NEWS Last Monday, Feb. 13 marked the end of the Arts Undergraduate Society (AUS) Winter Special Referendum. The referendum posed a question amending the AUS constitution to make the General Assembly the supreme governing body of the AUS instead of Council. The change in the governing structure of the AUS would allow the student organization to become eligible to join Coalition Large de l’Association pour une Solidarite Syndicale Etudiante (CLASSE), a Quebec-wide temporary coalition of students opposing tuition increases.

Being part of CLASSE would enable McGill to participate in demonstrations and actions taken by the group to oppose tuition increases and for McGill to be represented if CLASSE engages in talks with the government.

A special referendum can take place when it is convened by at least eight senators or by 150 signato-

Palmer speaks on his recent experience in North Korea and expectations for the future (Simon Poitrimolt / McGill Tribune) menting that “the rule of law is an element that cannot be overstated in its significance.” He also proposed that free trade is an important part of developing a country, and spent some time discussing the correlation between liberal values and socioeconomic development.

A group of around fifty students, faculty members, and members of Libertarian McGill attended the talk. While several attendees expressed their appreciation for Palmer’s knowledge on the subject of liberalism, others had very different opinions.

Professor Jim Thomas, a visit-

ing professor at McGill’s department of East Asian studies, felt that Palmer’s speech was troubling due to its emphasis on liberal values. Thomas also drew attention to Palmer’s factual inaccuracies, especially those surrounding the role of free trade in the development of the Republic of Korea, the causes and results of famines in North Korea, and the overall mindset of the leadership.

“By propagating the illusion of irrationality, instability, and changeability in [North Korea], we serve American and other international interests who benefit from those representations,” he said.

in brief CLASSE Referendum ries. This specific referendum was prompted when arts students submitted a proposal with 150 signatures to AUS president Jade Calver.

Kevin Paul, a member of the Mobilization Committee (Mob Squad) commented on the reasons behind the referendum question.

“The referendum was called because of growing student grievances with the school administration and the Quebec government,” Paul said.

By joining CLASSE, the AUS would be in a stronger bargaining position with the government, since pressure would be greater in a larger student coalition force.

“I think giving this power to the General Assembly will actually get more student involvement and allow better representation of student interest,” a U2 arts student, who asked to remain anonymous, said. “Putting controversial topics like opposing tuition hikes through General As-

sembly sheds a lot of light on the issue and it draws in many more considerations from different perspectives.”

However, some arts students are concerned that making the General Assembly the supreme governing body will erode a collective voice and efficacy.

“When you let more people make decisions, the decision-making process can definitely slow down because you need to deal with a lot more perspectives and inputs,” Robert Chang, U1 arts, said. “This might make the AUS a whole lot less cohesive and effective because people have different opinions for different things. You’re almost guaranteed to clash on something as important as tuition hikes.”

– Jimmy Luo

Thomas questioned Palmer’s assumption that it was impossible to predict the actions of North Korea, saying that the country will likely “remain more or less as it has over the last 70 years or more.”

In an email, Gregoire Legault, U3 honours East Asian studies and co-president of EASSA, also expressed concern about factual inaccuracies in Palmer’s talk and the McGill Libertarian Society’s choice to invite him to speak on the subject of the DPRK. “The talk was reductionist at best [and] dangerous at worst, especially for the students who never

had a chance to analyse North Korea from an academic perspective,” Legault said.

However, Matt Bufton, from the Institute for Liberal Studies, said that he had no problem with Palmer’s choice of subject or the critical discussion that stemmed from it.

“Our mission is to get people thinking and talking about ideas, so an engaged and curious audience is exactly what we like to see,” he said.

“We knew that Dr. Palmer was wellversed in the history of freedom around the globe, and felt that his visit to North Korea would provide a starting point that would be current and of interest to McGill students.”

Adelle Archer, president of Libertarian McGill, said that she was satisfied with the event and that, to her, the most interesting part of the discussion hinged around the SinoU.S. relationship regarding North Korea.

“The different scenarios [Palmer] outlined hit some important points, such as the undesirability of having South Korea expand north with U.S. troops,” Archer said. “[I was] delighted that challenging questions were posed, as they extracted informative and thought-provoking responses from Mr. Palmer.”

6Party cont. continued from COVER “We had to move 50 pounds of food in a tent, couches, and blankets,” the occupier said. “I thought it was ridiculous that they were making us do that. We were also told that we were not allowed on campus for the rest of the day.”

Di Grappa’s email further mentions that the nine occupiers “gave the security agents a letter of apology to the staff who work in this area.”

“We did not give a letter of apology—I was one of the people who wrote it,” the occupier said. “It was a letter recognizing the inconvenience that we had caused to the staff that were working there and apologizing for eating their food when we had no personal provisions left.”

In his email, Di Grappa explained why the administration decided to call the police.

“University activities had been obstructed for five days, and after many attempts to talk to the protestors about leaving the building peacefully, tactics to make the protestors uncomfortable in the space

and after discussion of other options, we were no closer to a resolution,” Di Grappa wrote.

Di Grappa noted that the administration was not willing to negotiate with the occupiers about their demands.

“We do not believe that negotiations on key matters concerning the university should take place under occupation or threat of occupation,” he wrote. “For example, negotiations on the referendum need to take place with QPIRG only, not the occupiers (CKUT and the administration had an agreement). Therefore, we were prepared to talk only about how the occupiers might leave, while the occupiers wanted to negotiate only on their demands.”

Doug Sweet, director of McGill media relations, said that the James Administration building reopened Sunday morning for cleaning.

“It was a bit of a mess but it certainly had not been trashed,” Sweet said. “We’re very glad [the occupation] ended peacefully, and we’re looking forward to having a big conversation with the community about what is acceptable on campus.”

NEWS 6

Tuesday, February 14, 2012 |

NEWS

PANEL

| Curiosity delivers.

Genocide prevention panel seeks to learn from the past

Experts discuss need for intervention Julia Chu Contributor Last Wednesday, a panel discussion on the topic of genocide prevention, with a focus on mobilising international intervention, took place at McGill in Chancellor Day Hall. The event was hosted by the Montreal Holocaust Memorial Museum, McGill’s Centre for Human Rights and Legal Pluralism (CHRLP), and the International Justice portfolio of the Faculty of Law’s Human Rights Working Group. The featured speakers were Kyle Matthews from ‘The Will to Intervene Project’ at the Montreal Institute for Genocide; Rebecca Hamilton, the author of Fighting for Darfur – Public Action and Struggle to Stop Genocide; and Professor Payam Akhavan of the faculty of law, who acted as moderator.

Louis-Philippe Jannard, the Human Rights co-ordinator of the Montreal Holocaust Museum was the one to originally approach the CHRLP with the idea of organising a panel. Jannard explained that the topic of genocide prevention is relevant today because of a need for international assertiveness on the issue.

“Although many genocides have happened in the last century, and although the international community adopted various tools and institutions since World War II to prevent such gross human rights violations, countries around the world remain very hesitant to intervene to put an end to tragedies that are still occurring today,” he said.

The discussion began by evaluating the lessons learned from the Holocaust to frame the historical context and provide a starting point for discussion of how the world has progressed in its treatment of the issue.

“Some crimes so shocked the conscience of mankind, that we don’t ask who the victims are, we don’t ask if we belong to the victim group and therefore have a stake in rescuing them,” Akhavan said.

“We simply ask whether it is a part of human conscience and decency that we cannot remain indifferent.

This is in the core of the notion of crimes against humanity … and this is the true universal lesson of the holocaust. But while we [said] never again in 1945 … [today] the vow of never again has become ever again.”

Citing examples like the genocide in Darfur as examples of more recent genocides that collectively resulted in the slaughter of tens of

(Simon Poitrimolt / McGill Tribune) millions of civilians, the panel broke down the course of intervention mobilisation at both the international and grassroots level.

“Decision-making of international affairs doesn’t necessarily take place at the UN, they actually take place in national capitals,” Matthews said. “To mobilise international political will or intervention is to first mobilise domestic will … countries and national governments have done very little ever since we signed the genocide convention in 1948. We tend to let things fall apart, respond as the events are turning, and don’t say why we’re acting too late. That is not a sustainable way to help our planet.”

Aware of the growing capacity for citizen engagement in interventions, the speakers explored possible solutions for situations where the interests of a country’s elite circle of executors do not align with the majority.

“It’s incredibly easy to get people to care about people who they will never meet,” Hamilton said.

“They can hold their elective representatives accountable, and they can do it through relatively straightforward mechanisms. One thing that was done in the Darfur case was to introduce scorecards, grading every member of congress on how they responded to Darfur ... what’s amazing was how quickly it was effective. Within one or two days of introducing scorecards you had not just staffers but senators themselves calling into offices … [asking what they could] do to get a better grade.”

Members of the audience appreciated the varied insights on mobilising genocide intervention.

“I particularly enjoyed the … point of view of the mobilisers,” Louise Lavigne, a U2 law student, said. “I’ve never really heard the perspective of someone who is involved in getting people to notice the issues of genocide from the bottom-up … I appreciated that element.”

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opinion editorial

The flaws of the admin’s provisional protocol The most significant event on campus this week was not the 118 -hour long occupation of the James Administration Building. It was the administration’s response. Last Sunday, in an email to the student body, Vice Principal Anthony Masi unveiled a “provisional protocol,” a set of guidelines which lays down university laws on what forms of political protest the university is prepared to tolerate.

Not only were these guidelines hastily drawn up without any student consultation, but they are also remarkably vague and open to interpretation.

According to the second clause of the protocol, protests can now be stopped if they “impede the conduct of university activities.” This clause effectively allows the administration to stop any protest that makes any noise or gets in anyone’s way, and it is hard to imagine a demonstration, protest, or occupation which could not be declared an impediment in some way.

The clause has been taken from Article 5 of the Code of Student Conduct, a fair enough place from which to draw university guidelines,

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sibility of students having a say. The sole hope students may have have that their opinions will be acted upon lies only in a vague platitude from Heather Munroe-Blum which says, “elements of these rules might eventually change.”

Certainly, the tactics of the occupiers were reckless, unrepresentative, and without forethought. It is not unreasonable that the administration needs to take measures to avoid being routinely shut down by small groups of occupiers, and we acknowledge that valuable university property and sensitive records ought to be protected from damage or destruction. But the fairest way to do this is not to rapidly enact protocols which could empower the administration to smother protests entirely. These protocols appear to be an overtly defensive act, one designed to keep the university running at the cost of the right to protest.

We believe that the best way to stop protestors habitually occupying offices is to listen to the grievances and not just silence them. If the administration wishes to do so, it must truly regain the trust of students; it needs to start showing that

they are prepared to listen to student concerns. They need to act in a way that shows a degree of consideration. It should not be acting on its own accord and then paying petty lip service to “dialogue” long after the administration has already gone ahead and made an executive decision. Furthermore, the administration must realise what their actions symbolise to certain members of the student body. For these students, the administration is unpopular for not appearing to have the best interests of students in mind. The administration may have been right to turn down the QPIRG and CKUT referenda for a lack of clarity, but many students see this action as an attempt to persecute two groups who help a sense of community among students.

Dean Jutras’s report cited the key concerns of all he interviewed as centring around clarity and community. By imposing the protocol for an indefinite amount of time, the administration is clearly disregarding the spirit of co-operation, community, and consultation that Dean Jutras proposed.

been and will be non-violent cannot entirely dispel this fear.

Ultimately, this occupation has not led to dialogue on either side, although it has generated a great deal of discussion about tactics. The blame for campus-wide frustration cannot be placed solely at the feet of the “Partiers.” The administration’s failure to effectively address student grievances and communicate its positions and rationale set the stage for the recent escalations. There is student dissatisfaction with the administration’s unwillingness to recognise the CKUT/QPIRG referenda results. Furthermore, we understand that some students have lost faith in their elected representatives’ ability to play a part in shaping McGill policy, such as with the use of the McGill name or the extension of the Deputy Provost’s term.

The appearance of a rift in the student body allows for concerns to be attributed to small special interest groups. In reality, the matters being discussed do not belong to a specific group of students, but are in fact relevant to all of us. Actions, such as

the disruption at the last Board of Governors meeting, have impacts: anyone wishing to speak on behalf of other students, whether elected or not, must be held accountable. After all, we expect this from the administration. Student representatives require a degree of legitimacy with the McGill Administration in order to incur change within “established channels.” At this point, some in the Administration may feel it to be pointless to negotiate or work with students. This is counterproductive to the well being of the entire university community.

Sunday morning, we heard that the “Partiers” were peacefully evicted. In the interest of moving forward, we hope that the concerns raised by students throughout the last months will be concretely addressed. Students need to be brought more consistently to the table and negotiated with in good faith.

commentary An open letter from the SSMU & MCSS Senate Caucus

T: 514.398.6789

Brown Student Building

but the Tribune has noticed that Masi has omitted the second part of Article 5, which crucially adds, “Nothing in this Article or Code shall be construed to prohibit peaceful assemblies and demonstrations, lawful picketing, or to inhibit free speech.” Dropping this part of the clause is unacceptably disrespectful to McGill’s right to free speech and peaceful assembly.

The Tribune also believes that the introduction of the provisional protocol shows that the administration has learned the wrong lessons from Nov. 10, and has ignored the Jutras report’s findings. Dean Jutras clearly outlined that it would be “naive to expect that the boundaries of peaceful assembly can be set in stone in advance.” Yet that is exactly what administration is seeking to do; they are establishing a code before the thorough dialogue recommended by Jutras has even taken place. McGill students were promised an open forum to debate the limits of free speech. Now that the parameters have already been outlined, we do not have faith that it will permit more than a retrospective debate, with only a slim pos-

The SSMU & MCSS Student Senators would like articulate our reactions to the events of the last month. From consultations with the student body, it is clear that the vast majority of McGill students want the same things: accessible education, consultation, open communication, and a better campus life.

There is a diversity of legitimate tactics to accomplish these goals, including occupation and elected representation.

As today’s student representatives, our ability to speak directly with the administration is a result of the activism of the 1960s, and for that we are grateful. In 1968, students were given seats on Senate and the Board of Governors after a series of occupations, sit-ins, and pressure tactics from students, staff, and professors. Years later, it is easy to forget the historic impor-

tance of direct action in furthering the goals of students. Yet, many of the fundamental grievances—lack of consultation and administrative accountability—are still very much present today.

The recent occupation can be seen as the accumulation of months, if not years, of feeling disenfranchised with the McGill Administration. We, as Senators and your peers, sometimes share this feeling of being unheard and frequently question what real impact we can have. However, the decision by the “6th Floor Partiers” to use the satirical “Milton Avenue Revolutionary Press” to distribute their communiqués obscured their message and irreparably damaged public support.

Satire and direct action are different tactics of dissent and should remain distinct. Similarly, while a “party” atmosphere is less threatening than the November 10 occupation, it should be understood and acknowledged that many support staff who work in the James Administration Building felt scared and threatened; reassurances that all actions have

columnists Compass Rose Noah Caldwell-Rafferty noahcr@mcgilltribune.com

Rooting for the grassroots It was the week before Christmas in 2009, and an air of disappointment hung over environmentalists around the world. The UN Climate Change Conference in Copenhagen had just ended in failure, only weeks after world leaders strode confidently into the downtown Bella Center, brimming with hope for the future of the planet.

Instead of a comprehensive framework for emissions reduction, a skimpy accord was drafted—but

On the Record

James Gilman

jgilman@mcgilltribune.com

QPIRG and CKUT can cash in on the occupation This past Sunday McGill finally appeared to have run out of patience with the James Administration building “partiers” and had police escort them out. Unsurprisingly, the occupation ended without McGill meeting the group’s demands.

However, the occupiers were certainly successful in sparking conversation on campus. While much of the (often heated) debate has focused on the occupation itself and the method of protest these students chose to use, there is also discussion

Chronicles of a Curioso

Tara Richter Smith trichtersmith@mcgilltribune.com

The power and perils of anonymous protest Approximately 2,500 years ago in a democratic Athens, Socrates said, “Children nowadays are tyrants. They contradict their parents, gobble their food, and tyrannize their teachers.” I’m guessing Athenians didn’t give them the power to vote. Perhaps because our prefrontal cortices aren’t developed to their fullest biological potential, students seem similarly dismissed by the administration. Which is why, passing the party at James Administration on Wednesday, I have to hand it to the protestors for the idea of combining shock value and a good

not adopted—which stated simply that climate change was a real issue, and that action should be taken.

More than two years later, we now see that Copenhagen was a critical turning point, when our attitude toward climate change shifted from “mitigation” to “adaptation to the inevitable.”

Recent events confirm the current apathy toward mitigating emissions. Following the Obama administration’s rejection of the Keystone XL pipeline, Prime Minister Stephen Harper flew across the Pacific Ocean to tie down a deal worth billions, in selling tar-sand oil to China.

By creating this partnership, Canada is complicit in the emissions outlook to which China has subscribed, namely that if economic growth requires fossil fuels, then fossil fuels we shall burn (China is still conof one of the issues the occupation was meant to highlight: last semester’s QPIRG and CKUT referendum questions.

To recap, two almost identically-worded referendum questions were passed by large majorities.

The questions sought student support for the continued existence of QPIRG and CKUT, the renewal of their $3.75 and $4.00 (respectively) per semester opt-outable fees, and reinstating in-person opt outs. In January, McGill announced that the results would not be observed, as the questions—and therefore the results—were unclear. This led to a predictable uproar and protests that the administration was ignoring student democracy.

Yet no one can be surprised by the decision. The administration made it very clear that they wouldn’t be changing the form of the opt-out system, and indicated before the time; rocking out to dubstep is infinitely more enjoyable than clutching a sign in subzero temperatures in an outdoor march. Last week’s surprise party didn’t do wonders for proving our maturity to the Powers That Be, but it sure got their attention.

Unfortunately, stunt activism and stick-it-to-the-man protesting seem to be the only way to get a reaction. Marching a la Vietnam-era simply doesn’t turn heads anymore.

Throwing shoes at presidents during press conferences, occupying entire financial districts in tents, and exposing confidential information on websites like Wikileaks, however, definitely does attract attention. Hactivist group Anonymous has picked up on this stunt activism trend.

The loosely-knit group Anonymous is nearly ten years old, but governments paid little attention until it flexed its cyber muscles.

Recent activity includes leaking a phone conversation between the FBI

sidered a developing country and is therefore exempt from Kyoto Protocol targets).

The argument for economic growth over emissions reduction is a compelling one, and was echoed last week by Joe Nocera of the New York Times, who praised Stephen Harper’s energy policy by writing, “At least one country in North America knows where its national interests lie.” However pragmatic, this tone is tempered by a resignation of our will to mitigate emissions, which negatively affects public perception of the environment, and therefore discourages the public to act sustainably.

At stake are the small-scale environmental initiatives which over the last few decades have blossomed in communities across the continent.

A small endeavor like planting a tree vote took place that they considered the questions unclear and that the results likely wouldn’t be accepted.

For QPIRG and CKUT the worst that could happen from this is having to run another referendum question each, meaning another campaign to put together, a delay in their negotiations with McGill over new Memoranda of Agreement, and the very unlikely possibility of a “no” vote.

However, the groups have been in negotiations with McGill over partial recognition of the results.

In fact, CKUT has already come to an agreement with the administration that will see McGill recognize the referendum result as support for CKUT’s existence while requiring them to run a second fee question this semester. QPIRG could come to a similar agreement. In the end, both groups may end up running new referendum questions this March, and and the Scotland Yard, hacking the military legal firm Puckett & Faraj, exposing confidential documents from the 2005 Haditha Killings trial, and posting the personal information of Oakland city officials online.

From targeting government websites in the U.S., Mexico, Poland, Italy, Ireland, and Finland (to name a few) and big businesses like Sony and Universal Music, Anonymous has made the Powers That Be very aware of its presence.

While other activists may be given jail sentences for resisting policemen and causing a ruckus, the brilliance of Anonymous is that anyone and everyone can become a member and there is no central governing body or boundaries. In fact, an online video claiming to have been released by Anonymous announces, “We are not a group. You cannot join us. We are an idea.” A pretty proactive idea, apparently: a current trend attacks websites using a downloadable program called the

is predicated on the belief that every level of society is responsible for its share of sustainable good work. But this social contract could be shattered if those in charge fail to pull their weight and mitigate the most destructive industrial emissions.

Local sustainability must have the incentive of global sustainability to work. “Planting trees cools the urban heat island effect, cleans the air, brings in more biodiversity and generally creates a more pleasant environment,” Professor Isabel Galiana told me last week. “Local initiatives should strive to seek out these co-benefits.”

As of now, small-scale environmental initiatives are still running strong, including on our campus. “I want to reduce the niche allure associated with the term (sustainability) and instead make it a concept both have the chance to benefit from this.

If required to run a second question, QPIRG should seek a fee raise. A straightforward question, asking for approval of, say, a $4.00 opt-outable fee, is almost guaranteed to pass. Last semester’s question passed with 65.6 per cent, and the invalidation of the results has energized QPIRG supporters. There is no way the administration could reject the results of such a question on the basis of clarity.

While the occupation may have stirred up anti-QPIRG sentiment, as long as the fee is opt-outable it’s difficult for all but the most ardent opponents of QPIRG to oppose it.

Moreover, a fee increase could help QPIRG make up some of the revenue lost due to opt-outs. If QPIRG feels entitled to a certain level of funding, then limiting opt-outs is only one way of achieving this­—raising their Low Orbit Ion Cannon. Using mass media websites like YouTube, Twitter, and 4chan to reach a global, noncensus population, they name a date for an impending attack and carry it out. Being in English, not Engineering, I have little idea how this Low Orbit Ion Cannon thingy works. I imagine that magical fairies wave wands and the targeted website becomes unreachable via the world wide web. Using the Low Orbit Ion Cannon, Anonymous has proven that they can contend with the biggest, baddest, and richest of the one per cent.

The James Administration protestors have faces and names attached to their actions, and they will, as the administration has assured us, be held accountable for their actions. But the scattered members of Anonymous are hidden like needles in a stack of needles. What does being anonymous allow us? We are freed from convention, inhibition and fear; our actions stand for them-

accessible to everyone,” Snax Cafe Sustainability Coordinator Miriam Dreiblatt told me. “It would be entirely unsustainable to imagine implementing these projects without the aid of other students.”

Dreiblatt has tapped into the hidden power of small-scale initiatives: they are inclusive and therefore spread outward like wildfires.

In the face of governmental apathy toward climate change mitigation, then, perhaps it is the job of small-scale initiatives to keep alive popular support for battling global warming. As Professor Galiana said, “If a particular country or province is seeing the rise of many such initiatives, it may induce the government to adopt aggressive policies.”

In the ten months until the next UN Climate Change Conference, let us hope she’s right. fee, instead of increasing their funding base, is another.

CKUT, however, should use this opportunity to make their fee non-opt-outable. CKUT should make the same argument that both the Daily and the Tribune have (successfully) made: that campus media should be non-opt-outable in order to protect their editorial independence from opt-out campaigns.

In the end, both groups took a risk by running questions that hadn’t been vetted by McGill. Yet the administration’s goal isn’t to defund QPIRG and CKUT, rather it is to keep the online opt-out system as is.

A second referendum campaign isn’t a terrible price to pay for taking that risk. Indeed, both groups may end up benefitting from all of this.

selves, independent and removed from the baggage of who we are or have been ... and from the repercussions. Herein lies the problem: if you do not take responsibility for an action, are you really standing up for anything?

The U.S. Department of Justice’s website temporarily combusting from online traffic is a mischievous, though ultimately relatively harmless, example of hacktivism.

But the line between activism and terrorism has historically been a messy one. Anti-governmental activism can become anarchic, and mob mentality can turn lethal. To use a Spiderman quotation, with great power comes great responsibility, and there is such a thing as too far. This applies to Anonymous as well as the local McGill community: when it comes to activism, get heard and go bold. But don’t go bonkers.

Curiosity delivers. |

OPINION

Tuesday, February 14, 2012

9

McGill by storm, and throwing my weight behind one of two extremes is an awful waste of precious column space.

The year I enrolled at McGill, a quasi-libertarian, right-wing reactionary base was forming against an entrenched far-left contingent on campus. This polarization grew, and its parallels have arrested not only the voice of moderates, but the very way our campus talks about issues.

The most recent examples are the debates surrounding the occupation of the James Administration Building. There has been such a variety of absolutist descriptions thrown about

that it would seem our campus is made up entirely of either fascists, communists, militants, exhibitionists, or some other sort of -ists.

I am writing this neither to demonize nor celebrate the occupation. I am writing to call for some nuance, some moderation, in the tones, words, and actions we use to communicate it. Is it not possible to deplore the disruption of people’s work spaces while admiring—what one professor has called—the moxie of the occupiers? Or for a broader example, is it not possible to disagree with tuition hikes but acknowledge the Principal’s efforts to increase ac-

cessibility to the administration?

Where one stands on different issues have neatly been lumped into discrete camps, with little room to move around, little room for common sense. This blatantly ignores the fact that many—if not most –of us will have a foot in both camps, depending on the issue. Passion for a cause does not have to see compromise as weakness, especially when, for a vast majority of issues, generous dialogue is needed and will occur somewhere around the middle. It is so easy to define any group—from the occupiers to those who are criticizing them—with a limiting label.

It is much more difficult to truly try and understand where people are coming from. Too rarely in the last few years has the middle ground, the place where thoughts are offered to others, not shoved into them, been walked. So much so that the catchword ‘dialogue’ has become a piece of satirical tripe.

There is no reason why this needs to continue. If the actual ends here is to truly communicate about what happens on our campus, then the different voices do not need to shout to be heard.

These super-sized tankers would then navigate through hazardous, narrow fjords to B.C.’s rocky north coast destined for refineries in China and California.

Besides the powerful oil corporation lobby, the Alberta and federal governments, as well as “Ethical Oil,” the PR booster for oil corporations, are the major actors promoting the Northern Gateway Pipeline.

However, their arguments are few, weak, and unconvincing.

Enbridge and the federal government say the Gateway pipeline project would provide new jobs.

As great as they make this seem, Gateway would only create approximately 3,000 temporary jobs during construction and approximately 560 permanent jobs in B.C. and Alberta.

B.C.’s coastal seafood and ocean recreation industries currently employ more than 45,000 people.

Therefore, for every job the provinces stand to gain, they would be risking 80 existing jobs, a risk that hardly serves as justification for building the Gateway pipeline.

Additionally, pro-pipeline actors have argued that the Gateway pipeline would help alleviate Canada’s reliance on the United States as its only major market for oil. In principle, economic diversification of export markets for energy is a good thing. However, instead of sending the bituminous crude overseas, it makes more economic sense

to refine the bituminous crude in Alberta or Eastern Canada and then export the valued-added petroleum products. This way, more permanent jobs and wealth would be created and retained within Canada, and the considerable environmental risks to British Columbia would be avoided.

In addition to the economic and environmental issues raised by the Gateway project, four other key policy issues deserve mention: national interest, national security, fair process, and the rights of indigenous groups First, why doesn’t Canada have a national energy policy? Oil is a non-renewable resource whose “peak” has passed, which means that new discoveries of oil are insufficient to meet global demand.

Therefore, Canada’s national interest would be best served by a national energy policy that will ensure self-sufficiency and measured development of its oil reserves.

Secondly, why has Canada allowed Sinopec—a corrupt state-controlled corporation from China that is directly and indirectly funding the Gateway project—to control Canada’s oil reserves in Alberta? Foreign control of a strategic resource is not in the best interests of national security.

Thirdly, why is the government of Canada waging attacks on environmental charities and citizens who are opposed to the Gateway pipeline

and to rapid development of the tar sands by China? These unwarranted attacks are prejudicing the Judicial Review Panel (JRP) of the National Energy Board that is holding environmental hearings on the Gateway project. In the public interest, the JRP needs to act fairly and be unfettered.

Lastly, the federal government seems untroubled by the colossal environmental risks that the Gateway pipeline would impose on the way of life for many First Nations’ communities. The pipeline would cross over 700 fish-bearing rivers in B.C. and endanger the Great Bear Rainforest,

a vital sanctuary for wildlife and the world’s last temperate rainforest.

Also at risk of pollution are the boreal forest and some of Canada’s most important rivers, an environment in which First Nations have lived sustainably for generations.

The federal government should continue the moratorium on tanker traffic on B.C.’s coastal waters and relegate the Gateway pipeline proposal to the dustbin of ill-conceived ideas.

I am not calling for another occupation. As is true of all backto-back parties, another occupation now would soon become tiresome; we would probably end up letting Richard Martyn-Hemphill the issues pass out before we’ve actually had a chance to deal with Calling for an AFTER-PARTY! them. Instead, like all good after parties, this needs to be a much more The sixth floor occupiers of the mellow, reflective affair, something James Administration Building have that has to happen in a very different left after a week-long “party.” It was setting.

This setting must be one of a raucous affair involving balloons, cake, and pumping music, with shiv- slow, deliberative talk, where people ering security guards playing the role listen, and wait their turn to speak. of bouncers. And now that it’s over, Once their turn, they should be willI believe the time is right to call for a ing to compromise. In short, an attitude of tolerance rather than one of decent “after-party.”

dogma is needed. We should keep in step with the rules of after-party civility by avoiding just scolding the partiers for being “inappropriate” or “childish.” For what would that achieve? And when has a truly successful protest ever been “appropriate” anyway? Neither should we howl at the administration as though they were the party-pooping neighbours who churlishly called in the cops. For was it not the same people who let the “partiers” have their venue for a whopping 118 hours?

These chats need to be creative, not destructive. That’s why I’m for an after-party to help us grasp at some pan-student coherence.

Commentary Johanu Botha Gimme some nuance!

Despite three years of writing opinion columns on this campus, I have a dismal track record of actually voicing any opinions about this campus. This is because it is remarkably difficult to inject a sense of nuance into discussions that take

Commentary Bea Britneff The new pipeline offers little but a sticky situation Why should we, as global citizens, be concerned about a new $5.5-billion pipeline flowing from the Athabasca tar sands in Alberta to Kitimat, a coastal port in northwestern British Columbia? First, we are consumers of oil. Second, we need to move from fossil fuels to clean energy in order to prevent global warming. But there are other serious economic, environmental, and social issues at stake.

Enbridge Inc., an energy corporation based in Calgary, Alberta, is the architect behind the Northern Gateway Pipeline. The corporation focuses largely on crude oil and natural gas transportation and distribution.

Enbridge Inc. wants to build two 1,100-kilometre pipelines through which unconventional bituminous crude would flow from Bruderheim, Alberta, to Kitimat, British Columbia; condensate used to dilute bitumen would flow from Kitimat to Bruderheim. At Kitimat the bituminous crude would be loaded onto enormous oil tankers.

Off the Board

LEADERSHIP TRAINING PROGRAM

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These workshops were created to give you the chance to develop and build on your leadership and life skills. Attend a minimum of five workshops throughout 2011/12 academic year and receive a certificate of completion.

Come and see these workshops on the downtown campus:

Passing the Torch: Succession Planning Thursday, March 8, 5:30-7:30pm Make sure that next year’s executives won’t have to start from square one! Plan, prepare and organize yourselves so that next year’s members will be able to learn from your experience.

Indigenous Leadership and Leadership Skills Thursday, March 15, 5:30-7:30pm There is a wealth of wisdom and distinct insights about leadership and leadership skills that can be found in indigenous cultures that can deeply enhance one’s understanding and awareness. Enrich your own journey to being an inclusive and inspiring leader through this workshop.

To register and for more info, visit: www.mcgill.ca/firstyear/leadertraining/workshops you can also drop by the First-Year Office in the Brown Building, Suite 2100 or call 514-398-6913

10

Tuesday, February 14, 2012

OPINION

| Curiosity delivers.

Letters to the editor

A symbol for the supporters: why you should wear a green circle if you support the tuition hike The tuition hike is a polarizing subject. On one side, you have those who accept it, believing it will help maintain the quality of education and that the degree they are pursuing is an investment. On the other side, opponents claim that higher education fees will lead to less people attending university. Although both sides are legitimate points of view and each should be allowed to freely express its position, there seems to be a total absence of “ProHike” supporters in the public, even if this position is adopted by many students. You see students wearing red squares and handing out flyers to rally for manifestations but you never see people promoting the tuition hike, or even openly identifying themselves as supporting the raise. This needs to change: the tuition hike supporters must defend their position, confront those

who promote the strike, and openly show their allegiance. This is why the green circle movement was created: to give a way for supporters to identify themselves as such, and to oppose to the red square symbol. By defending their position, “pro-hike” students will contribute to a more rational debate, something which we critically need. So if you support the tuition hike, wear a green circle pinned to your bag or coat and “occupy” public space as much as strikers do, because remember: there are a lot of people who support the tuition hike. They only need to stop hiding.

with

the tax experts

I GOT MY MONEY’S WORTH

–Maxime Rivard, U3 Engineering,(514)250-1207, founder of “ ouVERTement pour la hausse/Openly for the raise” movement.

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I take advantage of it every year. Best of all, they get students like me an average refund of $1,000.*

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$ No one to write to on Valentine’s day?

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Email editor@mcgilltribune.com

95

And FREE SPC card** hrblock.ca | 800-HRBLOCK (472-5625) © 2012 H&R Block Canada, Inc. *Average is based on all student returns prepared at H&R Block in Canada from January 1, 2011 to May 2, 2011 for 2010 tax returns. The average refund amount calculated for students was over $1,100 CAD. This amount cannot be guaranteed and varies based on each individual tax situation. **$29.95 valid for regular student tax preparation only. Cash Back service included. To qualify for student pricing, student must present either (i) a T2202a documenting 4 or more months of full-time attendance at a college or university during 2011 or (ii) a valid high school identification card. Expires July 31, 2012. Valid only at participating H&R Block locations in Canada. SPC Card offers valid from 08/01/11 to 07/31/12 at participating locations in Canada only. For Cardholder only.

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The McGill Bubble

By Sam Reynolds

A2012 cademy

* best writing : original * best writing : adapted * best director

awards

Who will win: Midnight in Paris

By Chris Liu and Alex Knoll

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*

Best Actor

best actress

Who will win: Jean Dujardin (The Artist) Before the Screen Actors Guild (SAG) awards, this category looked like a fight between Dujardin and George Clooney (The Descendants). Once the SAG went to the effervescent Frenchmen, the race appeared to be closing in on an early end. Neither Brad Pitt (Moneyball) nor Clooney gave their best performance in their respective films.

Demian Bichir is extremely lucky to have even been nominated, having starred in a film (A Better Life) most won’t have heard of, let alone seen. Gary Oldman's nomination is much deserved, but it's very unlikely that he'll be able to make

Who will win: Viola Davis (The Help) While the Best Actor category remains up for grabs, the Best Actress category is just as contentious, Davis could easily lose to Meryl Streep, whose portrayal of Britain's first female prime minister won her the Golden Globe. With Davis earning a SAG award for her performance, she nevertheless is still likely to maintain her edge all the way to Oscar night. Michelle Williams has too much illwill directed at her in the role to mount a real challenge to the two front-runners, as does Glenn Close. Rooney Mara, like Bichir in the male category, is simply lucky to have been nominated.

up all the lost ground necessary to pull off an upset. And who's on the outside looking in? Michael Shannon (Take Shelter), Michael Fassbender (Shame), and Ryan Gosling (Drive).

Who deserves to win: Viggo Mortensen (A Dangerous Method) This film should have been nominated for several awards. Mortensen’s portrayal of the enigmatic Freud completely steals the show. His presence is both demanding and subtle, and leaves one wanting to know Freud in real life.

A Dangerous Method was underrated in many ways, but largely for Mortensen’s spectacular performance.

—Alex

Who deserves to win: Rooney Mara (The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo) Mara’s character is unlike any we have seen on the big screen, She’s a dynamic character for sure, and her suitable strange character in Dragon Tattoo added enormously to the story’s intensity. You may find yourself fascinated by her, yet curious about her bizarre nature. She leaves much to the imagination; at once you may want to know more about her, despite the frightening demeanor she evokes.

—Alex

Who deserves to win: Michael Fassbender (Shame) In many ways, the Academy members are very much like small children.

Nothing exhibits this tendency better than the members' deep-seated aversion to the NC-17 rating. Fassbender had a better year than any other male actor (sorry Gosling), and in Shame he didn't just bear his body, but also his soul. Having given the most courageous performance of 2011, Fassbender's exclusion from even a nomination is nothing less than injustice incarnate.

—Chris

Who deserves to win: Kirsten Dunst/Brit Marling While I have nothing unpleasant to say about the nominees, I cannot help but feel pained by the exclusion of these two from Oscar recognition. Dunst at least picked up the Best Actress at Cannes for the mastery with which she maintained her character's volatile cocktail of emotions. Marling has been overlooked, despite being the most electrifying new talent of last year.

—Chris

Woody Allen should easily be the frontrunner for this category, although he has refused to show up to any of the ceremonies. Midnight in Paris is more reminiscent of his earlier work, from which he has strayed in his most recent screenplays. Like most of the categories, the award-winning criteria is unclear. But the word that resonates here is “original”, which captures the essence of Midnight in Paris. It is groundbreaking in its conception, and the script brings this out beautifully. Let’s not pretend we personally knew any of the literary figures depicted in the movie, but we can safely say the script gave us a good taste of what they were like.

Who deserves to win: Midnight in Paris Allen serves a profoundly pertinent message in a subtle way, and he does so with success. The romanticization of a time prior to the high-tech world in which we live today is a common trope, and Allen exploits our yearning for a return to the simplicity of the past. He shows us how this has always been and will always be the attitude towards modernity, and he depicts it beautifully.

—Alex

Who deserves to win: Another Earth Intelligent teen with bright future makes an ill-fated decision, sees astronomical anomaly, ruins her life. From this star-crossed origin springs forth a poignant, challenging, and rewarding story, one that binds a pained, gravitational interplay of two suffering souls with fundamental questions of free will and moral redemption.

Plus it has a killer closing shot.

What more could a cinephile ask?

—Chris

Who will win: Moneyball The adapted screenplay race is a neck-to-neck competition between The Descendants and Moneyball, and we're leaning towards the latter partly due to Sorkin's name, and partly due to intuition, but a win here by The Descendants would surprise no one. What would be surprising is the award going to The Ides of March or Hugo, the former being fortunate to have made it this far, and the latter likely riding its strength elsewhere.

Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy is a classic spy tale full of nuanced and rewarding twists and turns, but it is precisely its labyrinthine structure that will turn off enough voters to deny it a win.

Who deserves to win: Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows - Part 2 Full disclosure: I am not a fanatical Harry Potter devotee.

However, I did grow up with the books/movies, as did most students our age. After over a decade of Harry Potter films, it would be nice for the Academy to recognize its monumental success. If this is too idealistic, A Dangerous Method should have been nominated as well.

—Alex Who deserves to win: Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy Spy tales are meant to be labyrinthine, Cold War antics never go down smooth, and Tinker Tailor really ought to win this category.

Its screenplay maintained a riveting atmosphere of constant antagonism and tension, and the result is a form of pure thrill that penetrates with a determinism none of the other nominees can rival. The unity in form of The Descendants covers a shallower range of emotions, and Moneyball offers neither style nor substance.

—Alex

*

best picture

Who will win: Michel Hazanavicius (The Artist) As the winner of the Directors Guild of America Award, Hazanavicius has this category locked in; the history of these two awards are a near perfect mirror, and this year is likely not contentious enough to buck the trend. It’s a shame, because Hazanavicius is the only one of the five that cannot be called a proper auteur.

The strongest challenger is Martin Scorsese, but something like Hugo just doesn't seem to have the proper gravitas, given his monumental body of work. The Academy likes Alexander Payne, and likes Woody Allen even more, but neither are in a position to foil Hazanavicius. Opinions on Terrence Malick's film are simply too divided; his nomination is to recognize his courage in making something like The Tree of Life, but not for the film itself.

Who deserves to win: Hazanavicius (The Artist) While I’m unconvinced that The Artist should win any other award of the night, Hazanavicius deserves this one. The film doesn’t stand out as best picture of the year, but it undoubtedly required a whole lot of talent to direct. Dujardin won Best Actor at the 2011 Cannes Film Festival, although the praise should be more directed at Hazanavicius. It takes a lot of courage directing a movie without speech, and Hazanavicius deserves this recognition for achieving it with charm and elegance.

—Alex

Who will win: The Artist

The Descendants and The Artist are the top contenders, no doubt, and we favour The Artist, for its tribute to old Hollywood. The story is charming, the setting is timeless, it’s silent ... and black and white. The Academy loves films that take risks, especially when they work. Does The Artist deserve the win solely due to this risk factor alone? Probably not. However, the film has received positive acclaim from critics and common folk alike. Its silent, black and white nature does not take anything away from the movie, nor does it add to it. Perhaps that’s a good thing; being silent and colourless is not its central feature. It’s not too complicated; in fact, the plot couldn’t be more straightforward. This charming simplicity, even in the absence of dialogue and colour, is why The Artist will win.

Who deserves to win: Midnight in Paris In case you can’t tell, I fell in love with this movie. It’s a nostalgic masterpiece. Though none of the nominated movies are incredibly deserving of the award, Midnight in Paris is the one that comes closest. The concept is unique and everything about the film is beautifully crafted, with particular mention to the ideal depiction of certain literary geniuses of the 1920s.

Using charming Paris as its backdrop doesn’t hurt either. This film should win for its innovative idea, brought completely to life and flawlessly executed.

—Alex Who should win: Another Earth What does “Best Picture” mean? And has anyone posed this question to the Academy? More often than not, they've defined best as “what is most suited to our particular taste,” to the detriment of many worthy films (The Social Network anyone?) Another Earth was exceedingly underrated and underviewed, yet one struggles to find a film with more philosophical depth and artistic virtuosity. The day that a Sundance darling wins in the big leagues is the day Hell freezes over. But one can dream.

—Chris

Who deserves to win: Terence Malick (The Tree of Life) While The Tree of Life is the most polarizing of the films helmed by these five, it’s also the best example of a work that embodies its director's distinct artistry. Few other films in 2011 could compete with the monumentality and totality of Malick's vision, and those that do don't hold the Palme d'Or. If the only criterion for this category was talent, then the statue would be Malick's.

—Chris

Image sources: babble.com, inquirer.net, scottalanmendelson.blogspot.com, vakroti.blogspot. com, thatfilmguy.co.uk, rottentomatoes.com, onlinemovielists.blogspot.com

Student living restaurant review

Three breakfast venues to keep your bellies full A closer look at some delicious places you can go for a classic Montreal brunch Colleen McNamara Contributor

I

n Montreal, we are spoiled with an eclectic mix of quality eateries. Considering the fact that the island of Montreal has slightly over 5,000 restaurants, combined with the shameful truth that, if my student budget allowed, I would gladly eat out for every meal, I have done my fair share of exploring the many breakfast joints in the city. Whether you want to go on an adventure up to the Plateau or are feeling lazy after a night out and want to keep it simple in the ghetto, there’s a great selection to curb that insatiable craving for classic Canadian breakfast food.

third trimester. Eggs Benedict with French toast and the most garlic-y, delicious potatoes, comically humongous club house sandwiches with fresh cut fries, or omelettes that are falsely advertised as made with “three eggs” (looks more like six), makes sure you get the most bangfor-your-buck. The only un-hip thing about L’Avenue is its popularity to mainstreamers: be prepared to wait in line for at least a half hour on weekends and 10 minutes on weekdays.

Too hungry to wait in line?

“Café El Dorado” right across the street survives off those too starving to brave the L’Avenue line. And it’s pretty good, too.

Beauty’s - 93 Avenue du Place Milton – 220 Rue Mont-Royal (Corner of St. Milton (Your Backyard) Urbain) Beauty’s is arguably the most iconic breakfast place in the city.

This self-proclaimed “first place to serve breakfast in Montreal” has all the qualities of a classic diner.

Large, comfortable booths, paper placemats, and a simple-yet-pleasing menu selection characterize the vintage aesthetic of the restaurant. Serving classic breakfasts with eggs, hash-browns, bacon, and toast, combined with Jewish comfort food selections such as challah bread grilled cheese, Beauty’s lives up to all elements of a traditional diner. And if you’re really yearning for a time-warp that stretches beyond the décor and history lesson on the menu, order a massive beauty’s smoothie that comes in a cool tin cup. The line is usually long, but the service is great and you’ll always leave with a full, satisfied belly.

L’Avenue – 922 Avenue du Mont-Royal Est. (corner Berri) The hipness of the Plateau oozes out of the massive front window of L’Avenue. Blaring music, spray-paint covered walls complete with a hanging motorcycle, and bathrooms that take you into a psychedelic trance will make you wonder if you’re in a restaurant, or at a massive party on the trendy side of town. The unmatched originality fuelled by extremism is emulated in each dish: be prepared to leave this place feeling like you’re in your

Where else can you go to in your pajamas, with remnants of last night’s makeup smudged on your face and no shoes, simply because you were too tired to remember to put them on? Unpretentious Saturday mornings at Place Milton are the Tokyo Thursdays of the breakfast world. Sure, a freezing draft from the door interrupts your meal every 30 seconds, it’s so cramped you can hear people three tables back chewing their food, and the servers are so stressed out it seems like they just want you to leave. But there are few places in this city where you can get three eggs, two sausages, bacon, toast, potatoes, a massive crepe, and bottomless coffee for the accommodating price of $9. Or if you want to opt for something other than a grease-laden breakfast, you have the option of a smoked salmon and cream cheese bagel. The guarantee of Place Milton is consistency: you always know exactly what to expect, you have your staple breakfast choice, and, like always, you’ll regret not having cash on you once you remember that inconvenient, typical Montreal lack of a debit machine.

While these are only three of the many, many choices Montreal has to offer, each provide something unique, while remaining true to the essence of a hearty Canadian breakfast. Save up your pennies and get out of bed to go for a nice brunch with friends. There’s just no better way to start the day.

Enjoy a cappucino with your breakfast at Beauty’s (annaisafoodie.blogspot.com)

R T

Roses are red, violets are blue, The Tribune wishes a happy Valentines Day to you! cut here

Join me at Place Milton for a ménage a trois?

My love for you is non-opt-outable.

Will you occupy my bedroom?

Midnight Kitchen?

My treat. yes no

MRO: I

U

You’ve been occupying my mind all year.

To: From:

To: From:

Phone#:

Phone#:

To: From:

To: From:

Phone#:

Phone#:

To: From:

To: From:

Phone#:

Phone#:

Science & technology Environment

Life Sciences Complex awarded LEED gold certification

Grass on the roof and other green building practises get new complex a gold rating in environmental sustainability Leigh Miller Contributor

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ast month, the McGill University Life Sciences Complex was awarded a Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) gold certification. The Life Sciences Complex is composed of two brand new buildings, the Francesco Bellini Life Sciences Building and the Cancer Research Building, in addition to the existing McIntyre Medical Sciences Building and Stewart Biological Sciences Building. The stamp of approval from the Canada Green Building Council recognizes sustainable practices used throughout the design and construction of the complex.

LEED was first launched in 1998 by the U.S. Green Building Council. It was designed as a tool for evaluating green buildings, and setting goals for architects and designers to focus on sustainability.

New buildings and major renovations can earn a basic certification, or silver, gold, or platinum certifications. To earn a LEED certification, buildings must meet certain pre-requisites related to building construction, water efficiency, and energy performance, and earning additional

Energy and Atmosphere A certain level of energy efficiency is required for certification. Beyond that, the building could include complex energy monitoring systems or even its own renewable energy source.

green building components

Materials and resources At the very least, the building must have recycle bins. Recycled building materials could also be incorporated, and construction waste minimized like in the Life Sciences Complex.

water efficiency Buildings should demonstrate water use reduction. Credits are given for innovative wastewater technology or water efficient landscaping.

Indoor environmental quality Good air quality is the minimum, with ventilation, daylight, views, and lowemitting paints and interior materials all potential credits.

site selection Erosion prevention during construction is required and buildings can earn points for things like access to public transportation, or habitat restoration.

LEED eco-certification has standards in various areas of building. (Ecohouseplan.com, journallocal.co.uk, yorkblog.com) credits for innovative green design.

The more credits a building earns, the higher its certification level.

A few core components of the LEED program are responsible use

of resources, reduction of pollution inside and outside of the building, and utilization of the full life cycle of materials. These ideas translate into five pre-requisite categories:

sustainable sites; water efficiency; energy and atmosphere; materials and resources; and indoor environmental quality.

Buildings earn credit for fea-

tures like green roofs (there’s one on the new Life Sciences Complex) because they improve energy efficiency by adding another layer of insulation. At the same time, a green roof counters the urban heat island effect, a phenomenon where densely-populated urban areas tend to be warmer than their surroundings due to the heat retention of buildings.

At McGill, designers faced the challenge of making the new cancer research laboratory energy efficient.

They reduced energy usage by using natural lighting, sensors that control ventilation for maximum efficiency, and heat exchangers to trap heat that might be lost through the ventilation system.

Other features of the project include a system for recycling rainwater in toilets, the use of sustainable building materials (30 per cent were recycled, and 20 per cent were locally sourced or produced), and the incredible feat of diverting 96.4 per cent of construction waste from landfills.

More information about the new Life Sciences Complex, including a short film, is available on the McGill website.

research

Efficacy of saliva test could forever change HIV testing

McGill research finds HIV saliva tests nearly as effective as conventional blood tests, especially for high-risk groups Farah Hanani Sam Contributor

According to a recent study published in The Lancet Infectious Diseases, saliva-based HIV test results may be only two per cent less accurate than conventional HIV blood tests.

The research, led by Dr. Nantika Pant Pai, a medical scientist at the Research Institute of McGill University Health Centre (RI-MUHC), compared results of blood tests and an oral fluid test, OraQuick HIV ½, taken from field research data from five worldwide databases. Researchers found that the saliva test is 99 per cent accurate for detecting HIV in high-risk populations, and about 97 per cent accurate in low-risk populations. The traditional blood test detects the virus at a success rate of 99.8 percent.

“The beauty of it is you can get your results in 20 minutes. Apart

from speed, self-testing is non-invasive, provides privacy, and convenience,” Pai said. “As we have proven, it is also fairly accurate.”

The FDA-approved OraQuick HIV ½ works in three simple steps: the patient swabs a cotton stick around the gum lines of the mouth, puts the stick in a provided solution, and waits 20 minutes before reading the result via an indicator line on the device. The whole process can be done privately and does not require any medical personnel.

The device was developed to address the stigma that often accompanies more public forms of HIV screening. Many are uncomfortable being seen in a public testing facility due to fears of ostracization. For many individuals, the time taken journeying to testing facilities, waiting, and returning for follow-up visits has a negative economic impact.

In many ways, HIV testing is viewed similarly to a trip to the dentist—

deemed tedious unless absolutely necessary.

Pai summarized the problem succinctly.

“People don’t want to show up.

And there is no way they are going to show up without encouragement,” she said. “If you look at the bigger picture, the more untested people are out there, the more likely that they are going to infect others.”

Pai hopes that the new test, following the latest findings which have proven its efficacy, combined with the attractive confidential setting, will encourage more people to get tested, and aid in acquiring timely information about antibodies in the blood.

The public health sector, however, is reluctant to embrace the notion of HIV self-testing. Despite proof of its accuracy, results from OraQuick HIV ½ are still considered to be only ‘preliminarily positive,’ and the public is encouraged

to follow up with a confirmatory lab test. Another concern is that the solitary self-test is not accompanied by ample support in the event of potential adverse psychological outcomes such as stress, depression, or emotional breakdowns. From a public health perspective, self-tests pose difficulty in tracking HIV data for annual surveillance. There are also fears that the test could make public health efforts redundant by empowering people to self-diagnose their disease. Despite these concerns, Pai contends that the efficacy of the system requires a positive attitude.

“Once you adopt the optimistic attitude, self-testing can work if public health settings are willing to absorb it,” she said. “It can help provide linkages with, for example, support systems like perpetuallyopen counselling hotlines and medical personnel advice. It is all about creating an alternative paradigm.

Coupling with self-tests will, in fact,

strengthen the traditional lab-based testing. You are tapping into groups that never even bothered to get tested before, who now visit facilities to do follow-ups.”

Dr. Pai’s next project furthers her vision of the future of HIV testing.

“We’re looking at creating an Internet app for mobile phones.

From the app, users can obtain reliable information on HIV, watch videos on how to do [a] self-test, and access counsellors—all in a confidential setting.”

This innovative project, which combines HIV self-testing with the power of the Internet, has won Dr. Pai one of 2011’s Grand Challenges Canada’s Rising Stars in Global Health awards, along with a $100,000 grant.

arts & entertainment literature

Dragons, magic, and totalitarianism In final book of epic Inheritance Cycle, Paolini finds his voice Emma Hambly Contributor Inheritance is about dragons, their riders, an elf princess, and an evil, all-powerful king. But at its core, the last novel in Christopher Paolini’s Inheritance Cycle is a coming-of-age novel. Throughout his adventures, the main character, Eragon, undergoes drastic change, which coincides with the growth and improvement of Paolini as a writer.

Inheritance is a vast improvement over the third book in the series, Brisingr, which suffered from a stark lack of action, over-writing, and heavy-handed morals. The fourth and final book is anything but—violent and explosive, but subtle and thoughtful. Inheritance is an excellent ending to Eragon’s story; the fulfilment of three books’ worth of hopes and prophecies.

The Inheritance Cycle begins with a poor farm boy, Eragon, chancing upon a brilliant blue stone in the woods. The stone turns out to be a dragon egg, and Eragon becomes the first Dragon Rider in almost 100 years. His world, Alagaësia, was once the domain of Dragon Riders, but now endures the will of Galbatorix—a Rider who killed his own dragon. In his quest to restore order, Eragon learns sword fighting

and magic, as his dragon Saphira learns to fly and fight with tooth and claw. The two join the Varden, a rebel group comprised of humans, dwarves, and elves each bent on destroying Galbatorix.

Inheritance details Eragon’s final stretch to dethroning the cruel king. It won’t be easy. The Varden has to capture fortresses along the way, and press on despite the kidnapping and torture of its leader.

Eragon faces not one, but two powerful enemies. He must somehow defeat his half-brother Murtagh, also a Dragon Rider, who swore an unbreakable oath to Galbatorix. If our hero or his friends fail, they lose Alagaësia forever.

One of the dichotomies Inheritance wrestles with is the mundane and unbelievable aspects of war.

Either way, Paolini is determined to tell battle stories that don’t hinge on brute force alone. We read about the strategies, politics, and diplomacy of war, which lend the fantasy some reality. Conversely, creative invasions, daring escapes, and mythical power sources are thrilling, but often seem to rely on deus ex machina. There can only be so many miracles. Still, the plot is inventive, being more about cunning than steel clashing.

The king Galbatorix is not an ordinary villain. Unlike comparable

villains, Galbatorix has been keeping himself hidden for three books, sending nightmarish creatures to do his bidding. And when at last we meet him, he is not the mad king everyone perceived him to be. Galbatorix is not deranged, but rather suave, and convinced that his rule is just. After all, his tenure has been an age of peace. With the king, Paolini asks intriguing questions: is totalitarianism ever a viable option? And are bloody revolutions worth introducing violence into a world long free of it? Galbatorix poses such conundrums to Eragon and his allies as he invokes the title of the book.

He offers them their due inheritance: riches, titles, and power in exchange for eternal servitude.

These tantalizing words, along with Galbatorix’s overwhelming command of magic, mean that defeating him will be near impossible.

Eragon only stands a chance once he has discovered his “true name,” a phrase that encapsulates his being and unlocks his potential. Once Eragon accomplishes this difficult task, his friends remark that he is changed. He is more sure of himself, more eloquent. Eragon is proud.

In this way, Paolini is just like his protagonist. Inheritance is flawed, yes, but there is much to admire about it. The novel oozes

Paolini saves his best for last in Inheritance. (readingrevels.com) with the confidence of a writer who finally understands what he wants to say—that he’s nowhere near done

writing. Readers can look forward to more from a writer who has uncovered his own true name.

FILM

Woody Harrelson rampages in Rampart Police flick transcends heroic cop formula Ilia Blinderman Contributor In his second directorial feature, Oren Moverman firmly eschews the rules of hard-boiled cop cinema. Instead, he offers a surprisingly human story of a man born 30 years too late—Rampart is what Dirty Harry may have been if Eastwood’s Harry Callahan, .44 Magnum, and trademark of the “Do you feel lucky?” one-liner, had patrolled the Los Angeles beat in 1999.

Rampart is set in the heat of a real-life scandal involving the LAPD’s Rampart division, wherein members of its elite anti-gang unit framed, shot, and beat citizens without provocation. Despite the undoubtedly Hollywood touch of adding a lone hero to the story, Moverman wisely resists this motif and serves up meatier fare by focusing on one of Rampart’s errant officers.

Detective Dave Brown (Woody Harrelson) is cut from tough 1970s-era cloth. By the midpoint of the film, Brown has thoroughly roughed up a thug in the backroom of a store, suffered accusations of murdering a serial date rapist, and been pilloried by the public after beating a suspect into the hospital’s intensive care unit.

While Brown fits the description of the genre’s cocky misanthrope detective, Moverman endows him with a rare depth. Brown does not willingly choose solitude— while he has a home and a family, he sleeps in the shed behind the house that his daughters and two ex-wives share because they cannot tolerate him. And to make the situation worse, his ex-wives are sisters.

In his attempts to deal with others, his inability to entertain their perspectives makes him impossible to bear. When a black officer accuses him of corruption, Brown is dismis-

sive and assumes that he is simply jealous of a white man. He is being neither evasive nor consciously racist—his views on race relations and police work simply take root in a past time, and haven’t progressed since. Perhaps his eldest daughter is right when she confronts him saying, “You’re a dinosaur, Date Rape.”

Despite his rigidity, Brown seems to know that he carries a good deal of sin on his shoulders. He subsists on cigarettes, barely sleeps, and generally tries to drive himself into the ground. This is a man who hates himself. Brown seeks oblivion and absolution, drinking, taking pills, and sleeping with any attractive woman who will have him. He is fatally flawed; a man incapable of changing his ways will never be able to forget them.

Harrelson plays Brown masterfully. He is like a tightly-wound coil, and we continuously expect him to explode. In one of his best perfor-

Harrelson gives an equally dispicable and honest performance. (collider.com) mances, Harrelson deftly showcases his talent in playing a multifaceted character with fury as his only main tool.

The cinematography consists of many close shots, confronting the viewer with Brown’s sweaty face and violent gaze, ensuring that we

see the totality of what he is.

After watching Rampart, one comes away with the uncomfortable feeling of having seen an ugly, yet starkly honest side of a human being. Maybe it’s by identifying with some aspect of it that we can truly appreciate it.

Curiosity delivers. |

Arts & Entertainment

out and about

Misery loves company

Mix Tape for Heart Break is naughty fun for the unattached

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| Tuesday, February 14, 2012

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Rebecca Feigelsohn Contributor For the single and broken-hearted, the days prior to Valentine’s Day are filled with annoyance, bitterness, and a dash of jealousy. While single students rebuff all things red and heart-shaped, making plans to burn their ex-lovers’ things, the couples of the world smile, frolic, and get to have all the fun—but who says singles can’t be in high spirits too?

This V-Day, take your cue from the Concordia Co-Op Bookstore’s Mix Tape for Heart Break, and fill your loveless Anti-Valentine’s Day with friends and humour instead.

The show marketed itself as “X-rated fun” with “saucy surprises, which may leave you feeling flushed.” I was half expecting a sombre burlesque show where performers were clad in black leather, S&M style. Ironically enough, I couldn’t even bribe any of my friends to accompany me to the Anti-Valentine’s Day event, so I walked in anxiously, knowing I would be an awkward single spectator. If it wasn’t bad enough that I was alone, I somehow managed to miss the memo that although doors opened at 7:00 p.m., the show didn’t even start until 7:45 p.m. Cue uncomfortable lingering and text messaging everyone that I know.

Although initially disappointed to see the shop decorated cheerfully with miniature cupids dangling from the ceiling, it was evident that the night would be a variety show of mixed-bag talent, and I was no longer concerned I would be called on stage for some X-rated fun; it was

Performers sing away the V-Day blues. (Karla Stasiak / McGill Tribune) not that kind of show. The first act started off on the right foot, when Lizzy, a Concordia student, read an excerpt from her published book of short stories. “Role Play” had the audience howling as Lizzy recalled the dirty-talk she exchanged with a past lover who had an affinity for Russian culture and would yell things like, “Oh, my borscht!” during sex.

Next, Alex Chow was called to the stage with his highbrow violin act based on Italian musician Paganini’s work, who is rumoured to have slept with eleven women in one night and composed thematic pieces based on his encounters. Chow called his rendition “Ode to Douche Bag,” and the titles he played ranged from “No Strings Attached,” “The Lazy One (In Bed),” and “The Kinky One.” It was the perfect mix of sophistication and vulgarity.

The showstopper, and my favourite act of the night, was Nat King Pole’s musical style. The drag

king had the audience begging for more as he took popular songs and inserted his own lyrics, adding a comedic, queer flare. His songs included a remix of Supertramp’s “Give A Little Bit,” Cyndi Lauper’s “Girls Just Wanna Have Fun,” and Justin Bieber’s “Baby,” as well as his own composition entitled, “Drop the Beaver,” which he asserts will be the next Canadian classic.

FLIST!, also known as Montreal musician and composer Charlie Twitch, finished off the evening with his vocal and dance performance, which was perhaps the most dismal and solemn of the acts, but deeply poignant nonetheless.

My first Anti-Valentine’s Day experience at the Co-Op was unexpectedly entertaining and enjoyable.

Despite my single status, it inspired me to keep my spirits jovial this holiday season.

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Phèdre: Phèdre Though I was alone when I first watched the video for Phèdre’s “In Decay,” I still threw some nervous glances around. The scene was nothing less than Dionysian paradise: golden elixir pouring down naked bodies, followed shortly by sex-plumped lips, all within a panoply of thick verdant vegetation and decadent gastronomy. It was a feast for the senses, and this hypersensuality is no less diminished on Phèdre’s self-titled debut.

Opener “Tragique” features an aged, low-fi synth haze, a goldentoned morass out of which emerges the faintest sign of life: an indomitable melodic sensibility. With “Aphrodite,” the disc dives into glitching, twitching pop accents swirling around vocals and lyrics that themselves operate within an idiosyncratic realm of icy, steeled logic—hot mess meets cold fusion.

The LP is big on atmosphere, a toocool-for-school sexuality that is absent of haute couture arrogance; in the hands of Phèdre, unabashed hedonism just looks so damn fun.

Songs frequently use driving, deterministic bass lines with powerful hooks, an irresistible combination. Particularly interesting is the interplay of the different vocalists, which contrast and foil each other not just in pitch, but in tone, volume, and texture; it’s rather like a six-year-old trying her hands at counterpoint, and the effect is endearing, if not polished. The simple melodic lines are, together, much greater than the sum of its parts. Get lost in the sensuality, but be warned: you won’t want to leave.

–Chris Liu

Tuesdays 5:30 p.m.

110 Shatner

Van Halen: A Different Kind of Truth Supposedly created from Eddie Van Halen’s scrapped guitar riffs and discarded studio tapes, Van Halen’s A Different Kind of Truth marks the band’s first record in 14 years, and the first to feature original lead singer David Lee Roth in almost 30.

The album faithfully reconstructs the band’s early sound and wisely chooses not to evoke any traces of their later synth-pop ambitions or the tediously sappy love songs that doomed them throughout the late ‘80s and ‘90s. Rather, it’s a project that’s dedicated entirely to a tried-and-true formula in which Roth’s oddball presence shares center stage with Eddie’s awe-inspiring guitar solos. This simple method yields an album that matches and in some cases (“She’s the Woman,” “Blood and Fire,” “You And Your Blues”) surpasses their most adrenaline-fueled classics.

While 20-year-old Wolfgang Van Halen is a welcome addition on bass, the absence of Michael Anthony’s backing vocals is the album’s most glaring setback. To fill the void, Roth experiments with a new vocal tic in which he occasionally growls and snarls a few lines before leaping into the final chorus. If he thinks himself seductive by doing it, he’s the only one.

After years of strained relationships, replacement singers, and critically panned ventures, Van Halen fans would have settled for any new material as long as it featured David Lee Roth. Luckily, Truth doesn’t just exceed expectations—it’s the best album Van Halen has made in nearly three decades.

–Nick Petrillo

Follow us on Twitter @mcgill_tribune

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Tuesday, February 14, 2012 |

Arts & Entertainment

| Curiosity delivers.

The February Playlist: Valentine’s Day Special Whether you like it or not, Valentine’s Day is here again. Here’s our favourite picks for the hopeless romantics...and just the hopeless.

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could be good Montréal en Lumière

Copycat

Doldrums

Various Locations

AUS Lounge Wednesday, Feb. 15 5:30 p.m.

Casa del Popolo 3873 rue St. Laurent Thursday, Feb. 16 8:00 p.m.

Thursday, Feb. 16 until Sunday, Feb. 26

T

his ten-day program features performing arts, fine cuisine, and exhibitions throughout the city. Their 13th annual celebration holds events around the clock. Tickets available per event. Visit www. montrealenlumiere.com for more information.

broke?

Foreve

want to see free movies?

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catch up on the latest music?

Write for A&E!

fter two years of interpreting drawings made from countless participants at McGill who swear they “can’t draw,” McGill undergraduate Aquil Virani has created an interactive painting determined to prove them wrong. Entry by donation.

ndie artist Airick Woodhead (assuming the alias ‘Doldrums’) brings his electronic art-rock, heavily sampled pop melodies, and meticulous live mixing to Casa del Popolo this Thusrday. $7/10.

arts@ mcgilltribune.com

SPORTS

VOLLEYBALL— Martlets 3, Laval 2 (17-25, 22-25, 25-19, 25-23, 15-6)

Martlets brush with elimination but win thrilling upset McGill shocks favoured Laval in RSEQ semifinal series; earns a birth to CIS championship Christopher Nardi Sports Editor This weekend’s faceoff agains Laval’s Rouge et Or in the RSEQ semi-finals was undoubtedly the greatest challenge the Martlet volleyball team faced this season. Coming off a 5-10 season and sporting a minus 11 set differential, the team barely edged out a weak Sherbrooke team to qualify for the playoffs.

On the other hand, the Rouge et Or were coming off a strong season in which they finished second in the RSEQ with a 10–5 record and a plus 11 set differential, which gave them the home-court advantage in the series. Throughout the season, Laval defeated the Martlets three times in five games, with all three of those wins being 3-0 shutouts. The weekend promised to be chock-full of great volleyball, and it certainly didn’t disappoint.

The first game, played in Quebec City, was a hard-fought game in which Laval came out with the win.

Playing the entire five sets, McGill looked prone to begin the upset when they won the first set 25-17, but the Rouge et Or fought back and took the next two sets 25-19 and 26-24. The Martlets managed to tie it at two, but their opponents won the tie-breaker to go home with the first match. Despite the frustrating outcome, senior middle-blockers Kaiva Mateus (16 kills, two aces and four blocks) and Genevieve Plante (10 kills, one ace and two blocks)

The Martlets’ resilience propelled them past Laval in an upset series win. (Sam Reynolds / McGill Tribune) had very strong games, but Laval’s Donna Ouellet was a rock on defence with 10 blocks, and Catherine Laurin was unstoppable offensively with 17 kills.

With the season on the line, the

THIRD MAN IN In 2006, goaltender Rick DiPietro signed a 15-year $67.5 million dollar contract with the New York Islanders. Since then, he has missed most of the last three seasons due to injury, and has performed atrociously when he has played. Yet despite his injuries and poor play he will still make $4.5 million each year and serve as a large burden on the Islanders’ cap space. Like the NHL, the NBA and MLB are stuck with honouring guarenteed contracts. On the other hand, the NFL allows teams to cut players at will; the only guaranteed money for players are signing bonuses or bonus clauses built into contracts. If a player is performing poorly, that player can be cut without any compensation.

So the question arises: should the NHL and other leagues, in light

of the multitude of bad signings, allow contracts to be unguaranteed and allow players to be cut without significant compensation?

The argument in favour of unguaranteed contracts is simple: if a player isn’t performing up to their contract’s expectations, why should a team have to be stuck with them?

However, when in sports do people get do-overs? It is the General Manager’s responsibility to accurately scout players and decide how much each player is worth. If a GM overpays for a player, it should fall on them. They shouldn’t be able to cut the player without compensation and be exempt from their mistake.

Teams like the Detroit Red Wings have become a powerhouse this past decade by signing players who were under the radar. Their

Martlets came back to McGill hoping to forget their previous losing effort with a strong outing. Their memory was refreshed though, as this time Laval won the first set 25-17 and then the third set 25-19

to put the Martlets within one set of elimination. Yet the Martlets never gave up and due to their resilience, they edged out a 25-23 win to tie the game at two. By then, momentum was fully on McGill’s side as

the team completed their incredible comeback in the third set with a 15-9 win. Kaiva Mateus once again led her team offensively with 14 kills, all the while registering two aces and five blocks, with third-year power hitter Emily Kyte close behind with 11 kills and one block.

With the RSEQ finals in sight, both teams headed back to Quebec City in order to determine who would face first-place Universite de Montreal. Once again, the Martlets started the match poorly, allowing themselves to be pushed to the brink of elimination once again when they dropped the first two sets to Laval 25-17 and 25-22.

But, like the previous game, the McGill squad never gave up and, led by mid-game substitution Victoria Pelleter, the team roared back to win three straight sets, bringing them to only their third presence in the RSEQ finals in team history and qualifying them for the CIS national championships. Apart from Pelleter, it was third-year setter Marie Lapointe’s time to shine offensively, as the veteran scored 16 kills while Mateus, the team’s offensive leader in both previous games, became a defensive juggernaut, leading the team with a superb 12 blocks.

The Martlets now face topseeded Montreal University for the RSEQ title. The matchup’s three games will be played over the next two weekends, with the first game on Feb. 17th.

You’re Not Fired! stars, like Pavel Datsyuk and Henrik Zetterberg each made under $3 million (relatively cheap for their skill level) until fairly recently. If GMs and owners around the league really don’t like long-term contracts, then they should stop by collectively lowering the number of years they put on contracts. Of course, for big time players there are bidding wars that inevitably drive up the number of years and salaries. But again, if a player isn’t worth the risk, then there is nothing stopping the GM from not signing them.

Finally, there is the issue of injuries. While an injured player’s contract shouldn’t be counted against the salary cap, it is horribly unjust for the player to be cut without compensation. These athletes are at times putting their health at risk

during their jobs, essentially fighting for their franchises. Therefore, the injured player who had previously earned the trust of a franchise’s management enough to be given a contract, should not be left out to dry.

While some may believe this argument is being overly sympathetic to athletes who make millions of dollars to play sports, consider these counter points. Firstly, it’s not like the owners of teams are going hungry because of bad contracts.

The players are the ones that draw the fans, which generates the revenue, so they need to be given the respect of the guaranteed contracts they earn. Secondly, and more importantly, the players that are being cut are generally not the big name athletes. Instead, they are the ones who often are paid the league’s min-

imum salary and who’ve sacrificed a large portion of their lives to making it to professional sports. If they’ve earned a contract from a team, they don’t deserve to be given the boot.

Plus, much of sports media and humour comes with the terrible contracts handed out to mediocre players. Imagine if the Canadiens were given the chance to cut the infamous Scott Gomez and his $7.5 million contract. Where’s the comedy in that?

While fans may be upset that an overpaid player is weighing down their team, guaranteed contracts should be a part of the sporting world.

—Adam Taras

22

Tuesday, February 14, 2012 |

Sports

| Curiosity delivers.

Hockey — Martlets 6, Ottawa 0

60 minutes of dominance: Martlets shutout Ottawa Melodie Daoust and Katia Clement-Heydra combine for eight points in the victory Jeffrey Downey Contributor It was business as usual for the McGill Martlets in hockey action this past Friday, as they rolled over the Gee-Gees 6-0 for their 33rd consecutive victory over the Ottawa natives. McGill was propelled by strong performances from forwards Melodie Daoust, who garnered a hat-trick and an assist, and Katia Clement-Heydra, also with four points, adding a goal and three assists of her own.

Head Coach Peter Smith was pleased with his team’s effort on Friday. “I though we had a great start.

Coaches always talk about playing for 60 minutes, and I thought we had a solid 60 minutes,” Smith said.

Right from the onset the Martlets showed their dominance and tenacity, opening the scoring just two minutes into the first after a brilliant display of give and go passing between Leslie Oles and scorer Ann-Sophie Bettez. Following these opening fireworks, McGill experienced its only goal-scoring dry spell of the contest, rounding out the first period with just the single goal, despite peppering Ottawa net-minder Stephanie Mercier with 12 further shots.

The second period began in

McGill continues their dominance in the RSEQ prevailing in both contests this weekend. (Sam Reynolds / McGill Tribune) similar fashion as the first with the Martlets’ second line, partially consisting of Daoust and ClementHeydra, begnning to catch fire, finding the back of the net just 58 seconds into the frame off the stick of Daoust. The duo continued their exceptional play into the middle of the second, where Daoust again found

the back of the net following a brilliant display of stick handling, and into the third, as they collaborated on McGill’s final two of three goals to seal the deal for the Martlets.

Smith praised the chemistry and contributions of Daoust and Clement-Heydra. “That line, along with Kim Ton-That has really devel-

oped some chemistry over the last half-dozen games. They create a lot of scoring chances and they’re doing a really good job moving the puck,” Smith said. “They’re good individual players, but they’ve learned to play within the structure of the plan we have in mind, so I think it’s really paid dividends for them.”

Super bowl Commentary

Observations of a new England patriot An exchange student writes about watching the big game overseas Adam Sadinsky Contributor The ref made two diagonal motions towards the turf, raised his hands in a point above his head, and with that the crowd was lost. Or maybe they were just falling asleep.

Such was my experience on Super Bowl (mostly) Monday at an Australian pub … in England. Although statistics have recently borne out that only the UEFA Champions League Final draws a larger worldwide audience than the Super Bowl—which caused much excitement among my new British friends who had proven the “American” wrong—(American) football fever was alive and well in the United Kingdom late Sunday night.

I learned early on that watching the Super Bowl in a foreign country is a sort of duty for American expats: you might not enjoy it, but as a proud Yankee you’d better be there.

Surrounding me was a fashion show

of NFL jerseys, many of which were of teams that hadn’t even made the playoffs. One was even wearing a New York Jets shirt … with Brett Favre on the back no less. Logically, this guy should have stayed home for a night of self-reflection rather than proudly displaying his allegiance to the one organization in the NFL with a deep hatred of both teams playing in the big game. “I went to New York last year and bought this shirt [clearly at a discount] and I thought I’d wear it because it’s not often you get to watch American football,” he said.

Perhaps that’s why everyone there “just didn’t get it.” It is understandable then, that on the largest stage of them all, I may or may not have overreacted to certain things.

Patriots stop the Giants short of a first down? Stand up and cheer.

Ahmad Bradshaw breaks free for a big gain? The world is coming to an end. Very quickly, my actions began to raise the ire of the passive

fans around me, including one wearing a Tom Brady jersey and 2004 Super Bowl champions hat. Either they didn’t recognize the magnitude of these plays, didn’t understand the game in general, or just didn’t care—probably all of the above.

After biting my tongue so as not to disturb the atmosphere of traditional English politeness, I could no longer contain myself as Eli Manning drove the Giants down the field. My hands were chilled, I was shaking, and it’s possible that the words coming out of my mouth were incomprehensible (and we won’t even get into how difficult it was for those surrounding me to understand the astute decision to let the Giants score a touchdown and preserve the clock). I had become as much of a spectacle for many in attendance as the game that was gripping me and toying with my emotions.

When the contest came to its tragic end, I made for the exit like the building was on fire; not want-

Ultimately, it was McGill’s discipline and superb technical skill that was the difference, as the GeeGees often found themselves falling behind the feverish pace put forth by the skilled Martlets. In the end, Ottawa managed only 11 shots to McGill’s 39 and committed five penalties to McGill’s zero, which helped pave the way for the Martlets’ victory.

McGill won their second contest of the weekend on Saturday, 6-1, on the road against Carleton.

With only one more match before the RSEQ semi-finals, which are set to begin Feb. 22, the Martlets find themselves coasting in with the top seed and their eyes set on yet another title.

Smith continues to stress the need to continue improving and to remain focused, preventing any complacency from arising in the dressing room.

“We always are working on things. Every practice there is a focus of things we want to get better at. But overall, it’s been a good year in terms of development and preparation,” Smith said. “I feel real good about where the team is heading into the playoffs, but we’ll continue working hard.”

sports in brief

Swimmers shine at RSEQ Finals ing to be subject to ridicule, and trying to get home before the clock struck four (in the morning). But no one said a word to me. Despite the fact that I was—as a friend later described it—“in a dark, dark place,” no one, not even the token Giants fans in attendance, felt it proper to rub salt in my wounds. The politeness and ambivalence towards the game that had annoyed me just minutes before ultimately helped ease my post-game depression.

American football came with all the excitement of a one-nightstand and appropriately left by the time the sun rose. By morning, all eyes were turned closer to home: on Friday, John Terry had been stripped of England’s captaincy, and by Wednesday, national team manager Fabio Capello had left his job. Now it was my turn to watch the spectacle as an entire nation became consumed with its favourite pastime.

The Martlet and Redmen swimming teams competed in the RSEQ championship this past weekend. The Marlets captured the Quebec university title for the first time in eight years, placing ahead of Laval by a narrow margin. A few standouts were Lei Lopez, Laura Mendonca, and Sophie OverneyRagan, who each collected two gold medals. Leanne Roach also earned the annual leadership and citizenship award for her fundraising work for the Cedars Breast Cancer Clinic.

The Redmen finished second behind Laval and were led by Steven Bielby, who was named the RSEQ men’s swimmer of the year.

He collected four gold medals at the meet. Other multiple gold medal winners included Marc-Andre Benoit, Tyler Manning-Dahan, and Michael Luck.

Twenty McGill swimmers are headed to Nationals, which takes place Feb. 23-25 in Montreal.

—Steven Lampert

Curiosity delivers. |

Sports

too shabby for a Harvard graduate.

Fortunately for the media, Lin’s last name is quite flexible in that it makes for great puns. Some of the highlights: Linsanity, Lintensity, Linderella, and “All I do is Lin.” If he got down on his knee and ‘Tebowed’ after a win, we’re pretty sure the world would stop rotating.

Around the

W

ater cooler

In case you were too busy occupying a building, here’s what you missed this past week in the world of sports ...

BASKETBALL — Jeremy Lin dominated the headlines this past week in the NBA and has become the most compelling story in sports since the ascendancy of Tim Tebow. Lin continues to play at an extremely high level, as he has led the New York Knicks to five straight victories. He even outdueled the

Steven Lampert & Christopher Nardi Athletes we love

Sidney Crosby

Topping our list is a player whom the NHL truly misses. Not only is Crosby the league’s best player when healthy, his drive and passion for the game is unmatched. Spectators know when he’s on the ice, and we hope to see him back sooner rather than later.

Get better, Sid. Mwah!

Tim tebow This is probably the

most polarizing choice on our list, but Tim Tebow made almost every football game he played in exciting and compelling. While he may flaunt his religion, he is incredibly philanthropic, especially with his efforts in the Philippines. We may not worship him, but there’s no denying he is a great role model. Plus, Tebowing is really fun.

NBA’s top scorer Kobe Bryant on Friday night in front of a raucous Madison Sqaure Garden crowd (the fans went crazy after every bucket).

Lin’s accomplishments are even more impressive considering he has accumulated the most points by a player in his first four career starts since the NBA-ABA merger—not

TENNIS — Vancouver played host to the first round of the Davis Cup, the premier international team event in men’s tennis, with a bestof-five series between Canada and France. Milos Raonic, Canada’s lone tennis star, fared well in his first match by defeating 35th-ranked Julien Benneteau. However, Raonic and partner Daniel Nestor were unsuccessful in their first doubles match, losing in straight sets. France boasts an even bigger star in the ATP with Jo-Wilfried Tsonga, who is currently ranked 6th in the world.

Tsonga defeated Canadian Vasek Pospisil handily in the series opener, and claimed the series for his fellow countrymen by taking down Frank Dancevic. France moves on to quarterfinals to play the United States, taking place Apr. 6-8.

FOOTBALL — The Super Bowl has passed, and yet, the big game continues to be a source of news. New England Patriots’ star tight-end Rob Gronkowski was the subject of controversy last Mon-

| Tuesday, February 14, 2012

day, after he was filmed partying after the Pats’ Super Bowl loss to the New York Giants. Rodney Harrison, former New England Patriots’ safety and current NBC broadcaster, was disgusted with Gronk’s actions and called him out, saying that Gronk “disrespected himself.”

Gronkowski’s conduct was also put under the microscope earlier in the season when he posed in a picture with adult film actress BiBi Jones.

He was forced to apologize on behalf of the Patriots, and clarify that his actions were not a reflection of team conduct. The chances that betting lines appear on the likelihood of Gronkowski making a sex tape by 2014 are increasing by the day.

HOCKEY – Hockey news was once again dominated this week by the amazing news that Sidney Crosby … skated! That’s right, the Pittsburgh superstar took to the ice, alone of course, which led twitter fans to recommence operation #crosbywatch. In other, also shocking news, the hometown Habs have won four in a row, making fans believe that the Habs are getting the act of God they needed (see: Catholic Church’s plea for prayer). Finally, the NHL announced that the Leafs will be playing in the Winter Classic in “The Big House,” making for one extremely exciting outdoor event next season.

or not to Love

23

scoreboard (Scores since Feb.6) REDMEN BASKETBALL Lost 57-56 @ Laval MARTLET BASKETBALL Won 67-46 @ Laval REDMEN HOCKEY Won 5-0 @ Concordia Won 3-2 @ Ottawa MARTLET HOCKEY Won 6-0 vs. Ottawa Won 6-1 @ Carleton REDMEN INDOOR SOCCER Lost 1-0 vs. UQTR MARTLET INDOOR SOCCER Won 4-1 vs. UQTR REDMEN SWIMMING Finished 1st of 5 @ RSEQ Championship MARTLET SWIMMING Finished 1st of 5 @ RSEQ Championship MARTLET VOLLEYBALL Lost 2-3 @ Laval (RSEQ Semis) Won 3-1 vs. Laval (RSEQ Semis) Won 3-2 @ Laval (RSEQ Semis)

Valentine’s To Love Day Roger federer

Few tennis players have had careers like Roger Federer, and his dominance with the racquet for the past decade has been a joy to watch. Not only is he quite possibly the greatest men’s player of all time, he’s incredibly modest and a family man. What’s not to love?

Jeremy lin

There is no doubting that it’s quite early to put Lin on this list, but I’m basically forced to do it based on his play and the spontaneity of his story. The Harvard graduate is winning (or ‘Linning’) fans over and has become the most compelling figure in the NBA.

Roy halladay Toronto sports athletes we fans have not been kind to castaways of late (see: Vince Carter and Chris Bosh), but Doc Halladay remains close to the heart of almost all Blue Jays’ fans despite bolting for Philadelphia two years ago. Halladay is arguably the best pitcher in baseball and is one of the few ‘good’ guys to have yet to win a ring. That said, Go Phillies!

love to hate

Lebron james Few athletes

can boast the notoriety that LeBron has garnered in the last few years.

From his one hour televised “decision” to his off-court antics, mixed in with countless fourth quarter disappearances, LeBron makes David Copperfield look like an amateur.

Alex rodriguez

A-Rod isn’t exactly a likeable athlete. He has has grown considerably worse throughout the last seasons, making him a constant source of frustration for the Yankees fan base. Not to mention, in 2009, he admitted to using steroids, eliminating any notion that he would become one of the best ever. Oh, and he has also accumulated over $300 million in contracts during his career. Geez.

ben roethlisbergeR

Definitely one of the most hated active quarterbacks, Roethlisberger seems to have become a pro at putting the ball where it isn’t supposed to be, on and off the field.

chad ochocinco

The twitteractive “Ocho” has no restraint when it comes to social media or antics on the field.

Though he has become considerably tamer under Bill Belichick, fans still starkly remember his infamous stint in Cincinnati, capped with his name change to his jersey number.

sean avery By far the most

outspoken character in hockey, Avery is notoriously known for the creation of the Avery Rule in the NHL. He may be buried somewhere in the minors right now, but we all know that somewhere, somehow, Avery is haunting some defenseless goaltender.

Image sources: rivercitysportsblog.com, losingmyreligionblog.com, bornrich.com, coolsportsplayers. blogspot.com, blog.zap2it.com, healthomg.com, businessinsider.com, mmamania.com, inquisitr.com

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