Wednesday, September 3, 2014
EDITORIAL
Volume No. 34 Issue No. 1
Hypocrisy in police response damages citizens, democracy pg. 7
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The Great Experiment
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PERSON Contributor
Chloe Nevitt SciTech Editor
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Read more in Sport p. 24
Construction along McTavish St. is scheduled to continue until October. (L-A Benoit / McGill Tribune)
Work on McTavish Street water pipes to continue through October Construction not expected to obstruct Activities Night
TO TALK ABOUT RACE, ONE MUST LISTEN ABRAHAM MOUSSAKO Opinion Editor
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ecently I happened to find myself in conversation with a friend over the then-white-hot situation in the St. Louis suburb of Ferguson, Missouri, where the killing of unarmed 18-yearold Michael Brown at the hands of local police erupted—thanks to a perfect storm of factors—to become an international flashpoint. In our conversation, the friend mentioned that the one thing that was clear from this incident is that America was in need of a ‘new conversation about race.’
Continued on pg. 9
Montreal calls for regulation of e-cigarettes
Student bands return to OAP MAX BERGER Arts & Entertainment Editor
BLANK BULLETS
When I sat down to talk to guitarists Peter Baylis and Joe Peplowski of the Montreal-based alternative rock band Blank Bullets, there was one pressing question on my mind. “Yeah, there’s a guy at work who always calls me Littlefinger,” laughed Baylis when I asked him if people bring up the resemblance his name has to Game of Thrones character Petyr Baelish. “It’s mostly just there where I get it.” Another famous name that Baylis has drawn comparisons to is Robbie Krieger, who he portrayed in the Doors cover band he and Peplowski started in high school. “I had this friend and he was exactly like Jim Morrison in my eyes,” said Baylis. “He actually talked to Joe about it because Joe played piano and we needed a keyboardist. And I knew Joe, and I was like, yeah, lets do this!” While the Blank Bullets’ sound isn’t quite like The Doors’, Baylis likes to channel them and other classic rock artists into his playing. According to him, the whole band has an eclectic mix of primary influences. “Each guy kind of has his own taste in music,” explained Baylis. “Our singer likes that ‘90s, kind of Pixie-ish era. Our drummer’s into beats and rap, he likes Limp Bizkit a lot also. I’m more of a classic kind of rock guy, and Joe’s really into
more modern rock.” Unsurprisingly, their sound has changed and evolved a lot as they now prepare for a follow-up to their self-titled debut EP; however, they’ve seemed to settle on more of a fixed sonic direction. “At first, the band was new and we were kind of like experimenting a lot, and now we kind of find what we’re best at,” said Peplowski. “We have more of a process and we’re using that for our new songs so that they’re all getting a similar vibe now rather than our first album which was a bit all over the place.” Blank Bullets plans to be performing quite a bit around Montreal this year, including two September shows in the Plateau and an October show at Petit Campus. But for now, the two-time OAP veterans—and McGill Engineering students— are looking forward to Round 3. “McGill has a really nice campus and to look upon that on the stage is just such a nice scene,” said Baylis. “And the crowd is great too,” added Peplowski. “The beer is cheap, and no one has any homework or anything. They’re there to drink, and people that have been drinking are really into the music.” Blank Bullets performs at OAP on Wednesday Sept. 3 at 6 p.m.
Continued on pg. 14
s a cultural hub, Montreal is always quick to adopt the newest trends. It comes as no surprise, then, that when the coolest thing since smoking became ‘smoking,’ Montrealers began using e-cigarettes. Cigarette smoking is one of the leading causes of death, killing nearly six million people globally every year, as estimated by the World Health Organization (WHO) in May 2014. Individuals are not only constantly looking for ways to quit, but also for safer alternatives to cigarettes. Consequently, the market for smoking cessation aids is colossal, the U.S. alone has had sales reaching over $1 billion this year, according to a new report from Mintel on smoking cessation aids. E-cigarettes are electronic cigarettes that use heated water vapour to give its user a dose of nicotine. As a cessation aid, they are supposed to be delivered in smaller and smaller amounts until the smoker is no longer addicted. The rapid rise of e-cigarettes has been prompted by widespread aversion towards- the taste and feel of nicotine patches and gum. E-cigarettes, which are remarkably similar in shape to real cigarettes, thus serve as a saving grace for many smokers. While the concept appears sound, problems have arisen recently due to a lack of market regulation. Unlike most cigarette smokers, e-cigarette users don’t really know what they are actually inhaling. “There’s no control of the manufacturing process,” stated Christopher Labos, a cardiologist from the division of Epidemiology, Biostatistics, and Occupational Health at McGill University. “[Tobacco companies] are not conspiring to put something in the e-cig. The process [for e-cig producion] is just not up to par, and contaminants [during manufacturing] are leeching in unintentionally.” Traces of diethylene glycol, a component of antifreeze and nitrosamine, a known carcinogen, have been found in e-cigarettes.
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