The McGill Tribune Vol. 25 Issue 14

OPINION: A cavalcade of canny and comical columnists.

Curiosity delivers. V ol. 2 5 Issue 14

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FEATURES: A different take on th e holiday season.

SPORTS: T he R edm en fail yet an o th er of life's tests.

Tuesday, Novem ber 2 9 , 2 0 0 5

S O C I E T Y OF M C G I L L U N I V E R S I T Y

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BEN LEM IEU X Back in the glory days of Le Swimming, members of McGill band Vanderpark were part of the young and wellrespected downtown music community. Now, after years of laborious studies, intermittent touring and some acoustic gigs at the Main's landmarks—Jupiter Room, Swimming and elsewhere—and McGill's famous Open Air Pub, the young gunslingers have graduated and are primed for the non-stop rocking lifestyles they've all beén eagerly awaiting. After a snuffed Montreal show/CD launch, which fell through as a result of Le Swimming's unexpected closing, the band was back home Friday night to play for fans and old college buddies in a double bill with the Dust Jackets.

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"University was actually like a blockade," admits ace lead guitarist Marcus Wong after the show. "When you're doing your studies, you're actually just waiting and saying, 'Okay, when we graduate we're going to take it seriously and jam every day.' That's the only thing I was thinking about for the past four years of my life. It was, 'When are we going to be able to hit the road and just make it real­ ly solid—play for as many people as we can and make it our full-time jobs?"'

Though the members of Vanderpark are only begin­ ning to adjust to the idea of the band being the most cen­ tral part of their lives, their stage performance would seem to indicate that it has been their full-time job for ages. The virtuous sextet skillfully weaves a sonic netting

s 2 0 0 5 comes to a dose, old news is new again and coming back to haunt McGill. The Muslim Students' Association has announced that it is preparing to take its case against the uni­ versity to the Quebec Human Rights Commission to protest the lack of prayer space on cam­ pus. It promises to be an eventful, nondenominational holi­ day break for McGill.

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G o o d luck o n fin a l e x a m s a n d p a p e r s &3ÉS W ish in g you a safe a n d happy H oliday S easo n a n d a w a rm th a n k you fo r in creasin g th e T rib u n e’s re a d e rs h ip th is s e m e s te r.

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cover photo by VLADIMIR EREMIN

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M ARIT M ITC H ELL In the wake of two official complaints to the Students' Society Equity Commissioner about content in The McGill Tribune, the SSMU Media Board—a group mandated to oversee official SSMU publications—met last Monday to discuss the com­ plaints and make recommendations.

Filed by Arts Representative Max Silverman and Natalie Kouri-Towe, the complaints objected to the content of two opin­ ion columns by Tribune columnist Brandon Chudleigh. Silverman and Kouri-Towe claim that the two columns, "Loolê do matter" ( 1 .0 9 . 0 5 ) and "I'm starting to reconsider ugly women" ( 11 . 10 .0 5 ) contained sexist and homophobic material.

Response to the complaints has been twofold: Equity Commissioner Aruna Krishnakumar conducted an investigation, and the Media Board convened to hear Krishnakumar's report A fte r m eeting fo r tw o hours Nov. 18 and an addi­ tional th ree hours Nov. 21 , the M edia Board decid­ ed not to vote on w heth er the Tribune violated its editorial po licy... R ather, the Trib une proposed and agreed to devise several w ritten policies. and develop long-term solutions.

Media board is a standing committee of SSMU Council charged with overseeing all of SSMU's official publications.

Through an informal process, Krishnakumar—who deter­ mined that the columns violated the SSMU equity policy-and Tribune Editor-in-Chief Liz Allemang agreed that the Tribune would print a statement recognizing that some students may have been offended by the content of Chudleigh's columns.

Media Board first assembled on Nov. 18 at the insistence of Leon Mwotia, SSMU vice-president clubs and services and a member of the Board. Also present at the meeting as voting

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members were Vice-President Operations and Finance Eric van Eyken, TV McGill President Naomi Gilbert, two Tribune senior editors, one SSMU councillor and one member-at-large.

"This is parallel but separate to the actions of the equity commissioner/' Mwotia said. "We took a look at the case from the complainant [Silverman], and we listened to the report from the Equity Commissioner and listened to a report from the Tribune, and that's about it."

After meeting for two hours Nov. 18 and an additional three hours Nov. 2 1 , the Media Board decided not to vote on whether the Tribune violated its editorial policy—which states that the Tribune will not publish sexist, racist, homophobic or libellous material. Rather, Tribune representatives proposed and agreed to devise several, written policies, including a memorandum of agreement with SSMU, an ethics policy and a revised constitu­ tion. The measures do not affect the Tribune's editorial autono­ my, and must be completed by March 3 1 .

Allemang deemed the ruling reasonable.

"The documents that we will be producing before the end of the year are, for the most part, projects that we had intended to compile long before the investigation or Media Board," she said.

Allemang said that the paper has been cooperative throughout the process, but maintains that she "had not antici­ pated such uproar and believe[s] that it was at no point in time warranted."

Silverman and Krishnakumar refused requests for com­ ment.

Mwotia said that reaching a Media Board verdict on whether the*Tribune violated its editorial policy is of secondary importance.

"The board passing judgment on whether the Tribune has stepped out of line or not would not achieve any more than has already been achieved," he said. "It is my fervent belief that the Board has achieved long-term solutions, so at this point [passing judgment] is really neither here nor there." ■

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This Week in McGill Athletics f i t , Nov. 4 Martlet Soccer host QSSF semi final 6 30pm* F it. Nov. 4 VolleybaM vs Sherbrooke (W) 6pm & (M) 8pm Sal.. Nov. 5 vs Martlet Hockey v s Concord»* 2:30pm Sun., Nov. 6 Red men Rugby host QSSF final 1pm

GRAPHIC BYJAMES G0 T0 WIEC If some students have their way, our cover would look like this every week.

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"When you want to speak with children, it's very sponta­ neous," she said. "But this isn't possible with an interpreter."

In March, as Larose was wrapping up the mission in Sri It has been almost one year since a devastating tsunami hit Lanka, a second earthquake struck Indonesia, and she was sent southeast Asia, killing more than 2 0 0 ,0 0 0 people. In the wake of the disaster, thousands of aid workers hurried to help out. to the island of Simeuleu.

"There was already an MSF team there helping, and they Brigitte Larose, a Montreal social worker, traveled to the region with Médecins Sans Frontières in January and came to McGill were shaken up by the second earthquake," she said. "MSF even sent a psychologist to the island to help the team recover, Thursday to tell students about her experience.

MSF has offices in various countries around the world, but because they were afraid for their lives."

As she was travelling to the island, Larose met some aid most of their activités are organized out of five operational sec­ workers who were leaving. She said that some of the people she tions in Europe. Larose travelled to Tangula, Sri Lanka with MSF spoke with couldn't cope with the uncertainty of an earthquake.

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"When you're in a conflict zone in Africa, you can deal with While most MSF missions involve doctors and nurses, the rebels," she was told. 'You can tell them what to do with Larose said, in Sri Lanka there was no need for them.

"In a natural disaster, you're either dead or you get medical their guns. But when you're in an earthquake, you feel para­ lyzed—you can't do anything." help after one or two weeks," she said.

Larose said that she accomplished less on her second mis­ The team consisted only of herself, an administrator to look after hiring and money, and a "logistician" to build temporary sion.

"In Indonesia, it was hard to get participation of the shelters for displaced people.

Larose worked with women and children in Sri Lanka for women," she said, because they were not convinced that MSF could help them. She also found it more difficult to work with three months, helping them address psychological trauma resulting from the loss of their loved ones and homes. She said the community because there were no established ties with she organized an exhibition of photos taken by the children in MSF when she arrived. Before Larose arrived in Sri Lanka, one the community to help them express their emotions through art. member of the team was already there building shelters, and so had established a link with the community.

Larose said she was limited in her ability to interact with Larose said one of the best aspects of working for MSF is children, she said, because of the language barrier. .VthÊJëlative freedom. « " J ^ ° ----- - "" -• JAM ES G O T O W IE C

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"When you do humanitarian work you have to be creative, but you are allowed to be creative," she said. "I work for the gov­ ernment now, and there is lots of protocol to respect. In human­ itarian work there is less protocol."

"W hen yo u 're in a conflict zone in A fric a , you can deal w ith the reb els," she w as to ld . "You can tell them w hat to do w ith th e ir guns. But w hen yo u 're in an earthquake, you feel p aralyzed —you can't do an yth in g ."

-B rig itte Larose, M SF vo lun teer However, Larose was quick to point out that her autonomy was both an advantage and a disadvantage: she was the only social worker there and so had no colleagues to consult with.

Larose closed her presentation by noting that one of the hardest parts of a mission has been returning home.

"It's always a shock when you come back," she said. "It's hard for people to connect with your experience."

Priya Figurado, U4 Physiology, was impressed with the pres­ entation.

"I want to become a doctor, and I've wanted to join MSF for a really long time, but I really didn't know what it was about," she said. “I'm from Sri Lanka, so I have family that was directly affect­ ed by this. It was kind of a double whammy for me, both about MSFartd-abotit'Sri,'Lankaf <v:»< m <* * .

the mcgill tribune | 29.11.05| news

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More than one third of grads fail licensing exam R O B ER T C H U R C H McGill and rankings: everyone's been hearing about them lately. Be it Maclean's magazine—in which McGill finally shares the top spot with Toronto, after a decade of sitting in second-place—or The Globe and Mail, there seems to be no shortage of ranking bodies ready to heap praise on McGill for its supposedly high-calibre education.

However, as recent provincial licensing exam results show, McGill trails far behind Université de Montréal in the percentage of medical school graduates who pass the exams to earn certification as family medicine practition­ ers.

Quebec, which currently faces a province-wide short­ age of about 8 0 0 family practitioners, administers a licensing exam to medical school graduates at the end of their two-year residency program. If successful in the exam, graduates become licensed in various fields and obtain the right to practice in Quebec. In the field of fam­ ily medicine, 14 of 3 9 McGill students failed the licensing exam in 2 0 0 5 , amounting to a roughly 3 5 per cent failure rate. In comparison, 5 9 of 6 0 Université de Montréal graduates, or 9 8 per cent, passed the exams. Failing does not necessarily mean that students will not be able to practice medicine—they can either retake the test, as seven McGill students did, or choose not to practice in Quebec.

Administration officials were quick to point out that 11 of the 14 students who failed the test attended med­ ical school elsewhere before completing their residency at McGill. Principal Heather Munroe-Blum said that the fail­ ure rate does not reflect poorly on the medical school or the university.

'This is quite a specific situation," she said. These are Quebec med school scores. Remember, many of our

students don't take them, and students that don't plan to practice in Quebec don't take them. They are a tiny indi­ cator on medical performance, and on medical academic performance."

Munroe-Blum argued that the ranking methods of various media outlets have more credibility because they base their scores on many diverse categories, with test scores not being one of them.

"The Maclean's ranking, the Globe and Mail University Report Card, and the Times Higher Education Supplement are robust indicators of the quality of pro­ grams," she said. To be on all three in one year is even more comforting to me because it's on three totally differ­ ent comprehensive ranking exercises [that] McGill's done superbly, and we're the only university in Canada that has done so."

Dean of Medicine Dr. Abraham Fuks told the Montreal Gazette last week that the problem can be traced to the students' unfamiliarity with the methods of examination in Quebec.

"We're not proud of it. We understand there is a problem," Fuks told the Gazette. "It's unusual. So what's going on here? We've never had so many non-Quebec students in the program before. ... That doesn't mean medical training in the rest of Canada is bad—or that this batch of residents wasn't smart enough. But students who were not trained in Quebec are not familiar with the exam formats used in Quebec."

Maclean's magazine recently ranked McGill as the No. 1 medical-doctoral university in Canada, tied with the University of Toronto. The UK's Times Higher Education Supplement named McGill as the top university in Canada, and McGill was the only Canadian school to be listed in its ranking of the top 2 5 universities in the world.

in any activities of the Tribune."

—A r ts R e p r e s e n t a t i v e M a x S i l v e r m a n , w h e n a s k e d to c o m m e n t o n h is c o m p la in t to th e E q u ity C o m m is s io n e r a b o u t c o n t e n t in t h e

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D A N IEL AM IN As classes end this week, campus groups are com­ ing together to mark World AIDS Day and raise awareness of the disease at McGill. Students will have the chance to attend speeches, documentary screenings and a candle­ light vigil, all organized around the theme of "Confronting the HIV/AIDS Crisis: Our Personal, National and Global Commitments."

Vanessa Redditt, a member of the McGill Global AIDS Coalition, said the group plans to distribute informa­ tion about HIV/AIDS and organize a petition to the feder­ al government demanding improvements in its response to the pandemic.

There's a lot our government can do," said Redditt, who hopes the events will also allow students "to try and look at how we can actually each play a role in fighting the pandemic."

Several student groups have collaborated to organize the events. The McGill Global AIDS Coalition, McGill International Health Initiative, MSF McGill, CANFAR, Make Poverty History McGill Campaign, and World University Services are all involved.

On Dec. 1 , the date recognized internationally as World AIDS Day, Henk Rossouw, a South African journal­ ist visiting McGill as a Sauvé Scholar, will deliver the keynote address. Rossouw will discuss his recent sixmonth stay at a rural clinic in South Africa. There, he says, he witnessed "AIDS being treated without treatment,

because the antiretroviral medicines hadn't arrived." He also plans to tell the stories of some of the doctors and patients at the clinic.

Rossouw said that while World AIDS Day is impor­ tant, it does not go far enough.

"For most of us in southern Africa, every days is AIDS Day," he said. "We can't afford to let one day slip by with­ out making an effort to combat the disease."

World AIDS Day organizers hope that by raising awareness they can put pressure on the government to increase its contributions to fighting the disease. They also hope to make a statement of solidarity with those suffer­ ing the effects of the disease, and to reduce the stigma faced by those living with HIV/AIDS. "There remains a stigma as well as a huge lack of access to drugs," said Jodie Turner, a McGill medical stu­ dent who has studied the relationship between HIV and tuberculosis.

Fellow medical student Ngan Nguyen expressed hope that the disease is beginning to receive greater attention.

"If s doing for global health what the Vietnam War did for war," she said, "uncovering the insanity, bringing it into your living rooms and exposing all of the private interests that serve to sustain great socio-economic inequalities." ■ Henk Rossouw will speak Thursday at 6 :3 0 p.m. in Leacock 132 . The lecture will be followed by a candlelight vigil on the steps o f the Arts building.

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new s I 2 9 . 11.05 | the mcgill tribune

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NEWS

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SPECIAL

o many students on campus our SSMU Executives exist as shadowy figures, moving from the occasional class to their offices and on to meetings with McGill admins with stealth more characteristic of Jason Bourne or James Bond. Therefore, it's perfectly reasonable to ask: What exactly have they been doing? Never fear, for the Tribune is on the case. Read on for our evaluations of the execs and SSMU Council.

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President Adam Conter: For the first time in two years, SSMU's fearless leader has broken with tradition and actually remained president into the fall semester. This in itself is impres­ sive, but after coming out of nowhere last year to win the election, Conter has also shown that even those who haven't been involved in SSMU since their first day on campus can be successful execs.

Many involved in student life sighed in disgust when he won, knowing that someone with so little experience would be negotiat­ ing the important memorandum of agreement with McGill (which, at it happens, is now more than six months overdue). Fortunately, Conter quickly got up to speed on his portfo­ lio and has been able to bring some direction back to SSMU. Conter knows his stuff and can hold his own against members of the administration. This hasn't yet scored him the right to sit on the Board of Governors, but the intransigence of McGill's highest governing body is, to some extent, beyond Corner's control. Extra credit for shaving his head for breast cancer.

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Vice-President University Affairs M ax Reed: This is the year of the halfway com­ petent SSMU exec, and the acclaimed Reed is no different. He's enthusiastic about his position and, freakishly, seems to enjoy sitting on the many, many committees that are part of the VP UA's portfolio. In fact, he seems to enjoy the bi-weekly council gathering more than is healthy for a man of his age. Nevertheless, Reed has been responsible for many of this year's positive developments—SSMU's submission to the Principal's Task Force was well received, and he's planning another submission to the Master Plan Task Force to procure more space for students. He's also been active on Senate, pushing the room-booking fee issue and helping to set up the Ancillary Services Committee so that it serves students instead of the administration.

Vice-President Communications and Events Roz Freem an: Freeman racked up several accomplishments early in her term, not the least of which was a successful Frosh.

She unceremoniously dumped Molson in favour of a better beer contract, and although Boréale may taste just as bad, less student money is being spent on it. She shut down the unpopular 4 Floors and has recognized that students don't want to do most of their partying on campus, turning to professional event promoters to throw events at various downtown clubs and bars. So far the events seem to have been a success. Things aren't all smiles in Freeman's portfolio, however, as she still has not solved the "annoying SSMU e-mail" problem and doesn't seem to care about issues brought up at council, rarely ask­ ing for the floor to speak on motions. Also, while SSMU's Web site seems finally to have fpund a French translator, a number of links remain sous développement.

Vice-President External Affairs Aaron Donny-Clark: The other acclaimed member of this year's exec has been making an effort to get McGill's apathetic student body out to events, but based on the "protest" at the Liberal convention a few weeks ago, he does­ n't seem to be getting much traction. Donny-Clark has been active in la Fédération étudi­ ante universitaire du Québec, SSMU's provincial lobby group, and has been successful in getting them to focus on Prime Minister Paul Martin's forgotten promise of $4 -billion in federal transfers for education. But his External Affairs Committee clearly bungled the deci­ sion to pull out of the Canadian Alliance of Student Associations, a federal lobby group, making the recommendation to SSMU Council without student consultation, and leaving McGill undergraduates without representatives in Ottawa. Fortunately for Donny-Clark, most students don't seem to care one way or another.

Vice-President Clubs and Services Leon Mwotia: If we had asked Mwotia on elec­ tion night for his thoughts on what he’d have to deal with this fall, it's unlikely he would have guessed at even half of what has ended up on his plate. Between demands from the Muslim Students' Association for rooms in Shatner during Ramadan and the uncer­ tain future of the Union for Gender Empowerment, Mwotia has come down on the unpopular side of many issues important to students. It's certainly impressive that he has stood by his principles throughout this process. Unfortunately, Mwotia's unpopular stances are sometimes disliked for good reason, and his focus on streamlining SSMU services could stand to be toned down. That being said, Mwotia is able to admit when he's wrong—a rare quality in a SSMU exec—and for the first time in a while, we have a VP Clubs and Services who is actually accessible to students.

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Vice-President Operations and Finance Eric van Eyken: The VP Ops has added to this year's uncharacteristically cohesive—indeed, dare"we say, modestly successful-exec­ utive by revitalizing Cert's, at least a little. Of course, whether Gert's completely reverses its money-losing ways is still an open question. Van Eyken also moved Sadie's to the first floor of Shatner, where it is sure to do more business. Sadly, he has failed to publish SSMU's financial statements, as required by the Society's Constitution, and he seems con­ tent to allow the Society to run a huge surplus, instead of moving to modify the SSMU fee and give students a “tax cut." Of course, if SSMU continues subsidizing public-policy debates of questionable efficacy and relevance to students-the recent Kyoto demonstra­ tion comes to mind, worthy as the cause may be-that nasty surplus problem could eas­ ily be solved.

ALL PHOTOS TAKEN BY KIYOKO GOTANDA

SSM U Council: Oh, where to begin? This year's council is a mixed bag. While there are fewer members who speak just to hear their own voices, there are few members willing to speak at all. And while this makes for shorter meetings—which we appreciate—it doesn't con­ tribute to a healthy debate on issues. Council members often lose their sense of perspective, debating for a mere 2 0 minutes on the impor­ tant issue of withdrawing from CASA, then turning around and spending 3 0 minutes questioning Conter on how much money McGill should spend on campus garbage cans. While few councillors actually speak during Council, fewer still seem to know Robert's Rules, meaning that meetings often degenerate into shouting matches and never-ending "points of inquiry." A stronger Speaker with a more thorough knowledge of the rules would help, but it would help even more if councillors paid attention to what others said instead of feeling sorry for themselves.

Furthermore, few councillors seem to ask for their constituents' opinions on important questions, preferring to stick to their own circle of friends.

There is still time for councillors to redeem themselves, though. The Trib suggests they spend December reading up on the rules of par­ liamentary procedure,,and consulting with their constituents to-see where they stand .on the issues council will, consider .next.. «. , « . » « .

the mcgill tribune | 2 9 .11.05 | news

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RICHARD TSENG The Muslim Students' Association is preparing to file a complaint with the Quebec Human Rights Commission any time from this week to mid-January, says MSA President Nafay Choudhury. With the administration and the weather growing colder, Choudhury says the MSA can no longer rely on the hope that McGill will find and fund a prayer space to replace the former space in Peterson Hall, which the university reclaimed last spring.

Jennifer Robinson, associate vice-principal (commu­ nications), said that McGill allows students to pray individ­ ually anywhere on campus, citing examples of students who do so in libraries and other private areas. She said the MSA has long threatened to file a human rights com­ plaint but have yet to follow through, and if they do, the university is prepared to deal with it.

"We believe we have no legal obligation to provide this particular group of students with permanent space for their religious activities," she said.

The MSA dissented in an official document titled Stance Regarding Campus Prayer Space at McGill, released Nov. 18 online.

"The MSA beckons McGill to conform to the [Quebec] Charter's basic principle: all institutions 'must accommodate people with special needs, including reli­ gious needs.' A religious need then becomes a human right" The MSA and members of the administration have met 15 times in the past year to discuss the prayer space issue. In addition to praying outside on campus, the MSA has staged public debates and peaceful demonstrations such as the sit-in outside the James Administration Building in September.

Choudhury said that although the MSA has long been prepared to file a complaint with the Commission,

the student group only began to seriously consider it after an Oct. 7 meeting, in which he claims McGill administra­ tors retracted their former promises to help find and raise funds for a prayer space near campus. According to Choudhury, prior to the retraction, McGill had been com­ mitted to fundraising and helping students find a prayer space "every step of the way."

Robinson said the university's position has stayed constant.

"There was never a change," she said. "The only thing that became very clear [during the meetings] was that they're saying it's the university's responsibility.

There's another group, the Ismaili students, [who] have space off-campus... Every other group arranges for its own space off-campus."

For Choudhury and the MSA, a prayer space is nec­ essary for academic participation by devout Muslim stu­ dents, whose faith demands they pray five times a day.

Choudhury said the MSA will not file a complaint if McGill sets aside a quiet room that can accommodate 3 0 stu­ dents at any given time.

Spending any money on finding a Muslim prayer space, Robinson said, would detract from the university's primary goal of providing academic resources for students and researchers alike. Moreover, she cited the university's commitment to remaining a secular institution that does not provide special treatment to religious groups of any kind.

Choudhury asked that students be understanding and accommodating in the coming months as Muslim students move inside to pray where'they can.

"It's getting awfully cold outside and it's getting real­ ly difficult to pray," he said. "This isn't a situation we want to put anybody in, but circumstances dictate that we must. If people find us praying in places that make them uncomfortable, please understand that [some] students do have to pray." ■

, • The trial of Saddam Hussein resumed yesterday in „ j ,..

Baghdad, with the prosecution calling the first of up to 3 5 T C w i l f t i 0f their witnesses. Former US Attorney General Ramsey Clark arrived in Iraq over the weekend, where he is slated to assist the embattled Hussein defence team. Also in Iraq, *>*** ** if e'8 hf members of the Sunni Arab minority were apprehend­ 'd4 ' ilf V ed in Kirkuk for allegedly plotting to kill Iraqi judge Raed Juhi, , ku i who prepared and submitted the indictments against Hussein « P J W f jn j u|y a The fourth Harry Potter film, Harry Potter and the Goblet o f Fire, remained the most popular movie in theatres 1 æ M 1 over American Thanksgiving weekend and brought its twonWwt weekend gross to US $2 0 1 . 1-million, far outpacing its Potter I i i ' p i predecessors. • An Australian man was arrested on fraud , charges last Wednesday for racking up 17.6 -million frequent flyer points, apparently without ever stepping foot on an airplane.

Is B * Austin Perrot, 4 5 , used a computer irregularity to credit himself with the points while working as a Melbourne customer service !èi tÜrtflb supervisor for Singapore Airlines. • The former champion-holder hwÈ frt for World's Ugliest Dog, a 15 -year-old hairless California pooch named Sam, has died. Sam's appalling appearance earned him HW» worldwide notoriety and invitations to appear on TV and radio pro­ grams all over the world, where he even got to meet Donald itm Trump. See, there's hope for anyone, Roseanne. • A Japanese m m spacecraft attempting to gather asteroid material and return it to Earth has apparently been successful and will be beginning its àiSlH lî return voyage by December, according to Japanese space agency àf&k» JAXA. The probe, which is currently orbiting the sun between Mars and Earth, must start its return by Dec. 10 or it must wait another two years before it can try again. If successful, Japanese officials I t f * say it will be the first return of asteroid samples to earth; a 2 0 0 1 NASA effort failed. • Kris Kringle better keep his front yard clean m u as hundreds of thousands of British tourists descend on Finland's arctic community of Rovaniemi, the official home of Santa.

Norway, Finland and other Scandinavian countries are preparing t fw p to call in additional air traffic controllers to handle the extra flights.

Sources: Yahoo! News, Associated Press, Reuters, The Globe and Mail, Associated Free Press

V 1M c G i l l Alumni Association presents

December Exam Coffee Breaks T h e A lu m n i A s s o c ia tio n w o u ld lik e to w is h y o u g o o d lu c k o n y o u r e x a m s!

Come enjoy complimentary snacks and Refreshments. Look out for us at: JAMES GOTOWIEC The prayer space dispute is about to take another twist and is headed to the Human Rights Commission.

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Sat. & Sun

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November 28, 9:00 to January 12, 17:00

8 4 Men & 4 Women

Mon. Wed. & Thurs.

Gymnasium 1&2 Fieldhouse A&B

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1 7 h 0 0 -1 7 h 5 5

A e r o b ic s R m .

F r i.

POW ER YOGA

1 7 h 3 0 -1 8 h 2 5

A e r o b ic s R m .

S P IN

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S a t.

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IN F O R M A T IO N : 3 9 8 - 7 0 1

I

W I N T E R F IT N E S S A N D R E C R E A T IO N C O U R S E S DAYS TIME

COURSE KIDS' AQUATICS Olympic Way - White {3 -14 yrs) White Adv (3 -14 yrs) Green (3 -14 yrs) Blue (3-14 yrs) Bronze (3 -14 yrs) Silver (3 -14 yrs) Gold (3-14 yrs) AQUATICS Adults Learn To Swim (Level 1 Beainner) Adults Learn To Swim (Level 2 & 3 Intermediate) Swim (Private) Swim (Semi-Private) Swim Fit (Cardio-Respiratory Endurance) Stroke Improvement DANCE Ballet Belly Dancing Contemporary Dance (StudentsONLY- AuditionRequired) Flamenco Hip Hop

Irish Dance Jazz Intro 1 & 1!

Jazz Inter li & III Latin Dance Middle Eastern Dance Social Dance Swing Dance - Lindy Hop 1 Swing Dance - Lindy Hop II FITNESS & WELLNESS Aerobics - Classic Cardio Body Works Body Design Boot Camp Cardio Jam Core Basics CPRXFirst Aid CPR Re-Cert Fitness Appraisal Fitness Instructor Training Hatha Yoga 1

Saturday

Saturday

36.51/53.90

WKS 8

18:30-19:25 11:15-12:10 18:30-19:25 11:15-12:10

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• Register in the Client Services Office of the Sports Centre - Monday through Friday 08:30 - 18:00 hrs. • Registration starts November 28, 2005. • Non-members registered in courses may use the facility only during their designated class times.

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COURSE MARTIAL ARTS Aikido

11:15-12:00

Mondav Saturday Wednesday Saturday by appointment by appointment Tues 8 Thurs

36.51/53.90

8

Capoeira Judo Karatedo Kendo Kickboxing Kickboxing - Savate 1 Kickboxing - Savate II

18:30-19:25

15.65/20.00 11.30/15.65 32.17/66.93

1/2 hr 1/2 hr 8

Wednesday

18:30-19:25

23.47/40.86

8

Friday Mondav Wednesday Friday

16:30-18:30 17:00-17:55 17:00-17:55 19:40-22:00

73.02/94.76 36.51/58.25 36.51/58.25 31.30

10 10 20

Wednesday Tuesday (beg) Thursday (beg) Friday (beg.)

Friday (adv) Thursday Tues & Thurs Tues 8 Thurs Monday Tuesday Sunday Tuesday Thursday Thursday

19:00-20:25 18:00-18:55 19:00-19:55 19:00-19:55 18:00-18:55 20:00-21:30 17:00-18:25 18:30-19:55 19:00-20:25 19:00-20:25 16:00-17:25 20:30-21:55 18:00-18:55 19:00-19:55

48.68770.42 32.17/53.90 32.17/53.90 32.17/53.90 32.17/53.90 47.81/69.55 78.24/121.75 78.24/121.75 38.25/55.64

10 10 10 10 10 10 10 10 8

47.81/69.55 38.25/55.64 32.17/53.90 32.17/53.90

10 8 10 10

Monday 8 Thurs Mondav 8 Wed Saturday Tuesday & Thursday Tuesday & Thursday Monday 8 Wed Monday & Wed Sat January 28 8 Sunday, January 29 Sat, January 28 by appointment Monday Mon & Wed

17:00-17:55 12:00-12:55 12:00-12:55 16:00-16:55 18:00-18:55 18:00-18:55 19:00-19:S5 08:00-17:00

34.77/78:24 34.77/78.24 17.39/39.12 39.99/83.45 39.99/83.45 34.77/78.24 39.99/83.45 99.97/108.66

10 10 10 10 10 10 10 1

Squash inter

09:00-17:00

58.25/66.94 39.99/44.34 204.29/234.72 30.43/65.20 30.43/65.20 30.43/65.20 47.81/91.28 38.25/73.02 30.43/65.20 38.25/73.02 38.25773.02 38.25/73.02 38.25/73.02 34.77/78.24 204.29/234.72 47.81/73.89 47.81/73.89 47.81/73.89 38.25/81.72 38.25/81.72 39.99/44.34 39.99/83.45 39.99/83.45 57.38/100.84

1 1 14 8 8 8 10 8 8 8 8 8

Tennis Inter

10 14 10 .

10 10 10 10 1 10 10 10

Ice Climbing Kayakinq Snow-Shoeing (refertoprinted receiptfordeparture times4location)

86.06/125.18 57.38/100.84 39.99/83.45 34.77/78.24 39.99/74.76

10 10 10 10 8

Tues & Thurs Mon & Wed Tues 8 Thurs Monday & Wed Mid Cutz Wednesday Personal Trainer Development Tuesday Pilâtes Thursday Pilâtes Friday Pilâtes 1 & Il Mon & Wed Power Yoga Tues & Thurs by appointment Private Weight Training Tuesday 8 Thur Step & Pump Tuesday & Thur Step & Sweat Tuesday 8 Thur Spin Tuesday 8 Thur Monday 8 Wed Spin & Trim Tuesday & Thur Spin - Race & Pace Monday 8 Wed Step Extreme Mon. 8 Wed. Tae Box Thursday Tai Chi FITNESS & WELLNESS (PAY-AS-YOU-GO) Monday Step Saturday Tues Tae Box Sunday Aerobics Wednesday Boot Camp Thursday Body Design Friday Spin Friday Power Yoga Hatha Yoga II

10:30-11:15

COST

2 0 0 6

19:00-22:00 08:00-08:55 12:00-12:55 16:00-16:55 18:15-19:25 19:30-20:40 08:00-08:55 16:00-17:10 17:15-18:25 17:00-18:10 18:30-19:40 18:00-18:55 19:00-22:00 13:00-14:15 13:00-14:15 14:30-15:45 13:00-13:55 17:00-17:55 13:30-14:25 08:00-08:55 08:00-08:45 18:10-18:55 18:00-19:25 19:10-19:55 16:30-17:25 17:00-17:55 20:00-21:25 18:00-18:55 11:00-11:55 17:00-17:55 12:00-12:55 17:30-18:25 17:00-17:55 17:00-17:55 17:30-18:25

$2.17/$7.39 S2.17/S7.39 $2.17/57.39 $2.17/$7.39 $2.17/$7.39 $2.17/$7.39 $2.17/57.39

Moo Kwantj Tae Kwon Do Shaolin SPORTS Fencing i Fencing II Hockey 1 Hockey ii Skating Skating (Private) Skating (Semi-Private) Squash Intro

Squash (Private) Sauash (Semi-Private) Tennis Intro

Tennis Advanced Tennis (Private) Tennis (Semi-Private) OUTDOOR PURSUITS Cross Country Skiing Equestrian

STAFF FITNESS Aqua Fitness Badminton Belly Dancing Body Design Easy Rider Latin Aerobics Riders on the Storm Hatha Yoga 1 Hatha Yoga II In The Ring Intro to Pilâtes It'sQuittin' Time- Stress ReleaseYoga Pilâtes Power Yoga Lite Recess Tennis Tai Chi

DAYS TIME

COST

WKS

78.24/121.70

10

69.55/134.75 62.59/106.05 62.59/106.05 62.59/106.05

10 10 10 10

47.81/113.00 47.81/113.00

10 10

69.55/134.75

10

19:30-21:25 19:00-20:30

62.59/106.05 47.81/91.28

10 10

Tuesday 8 Thursday Mondav 8 Wed Monday 8 Wed Friday Friday Wednesday Saturday Saturday by appointment by appointment Mondav Mondav Tuesday Tuesday Wednesday Wednesday Thursday Thursday Friday Friday Friday Friday Friday Saturday Sunday Monday Thursday Saturday Sunday by appointment bv appointment Monday Thursday Friday Friday Monday Tuesday Wednesday Thursday TuiSaiiy Wednesday Friday by appointment by appointment

08:00-08:55 19:00-19:55 20:00-20:55 13:30-14:45 14:45-16:15 15:00-16:15 10:30-11:20 11:30-12:20

40.85/75.63

8

40.85/75.63 45.20/62.59 53.90/71.29 47.81/65,20 33.03/50.42 33.03/50.42 15.65/20.00 ....11 30/TS''6'S....

22.60/35.64

8 8

22,60/35.64

6

16.52/20.87 12.60/16.95 29.56/42.60

45 min 45 min 6

Saturday Sunday Saturday Sunday Sat. February 18 Wednesday Sunday, January 15 Sunday, January 22 Saturday, February 4 Saturday, February 18 Saturday. March 4 Sunday, March 19 Monday 8 Wed Monday 8 Wed Monday 8 Friday Tuesday 8 Thursday Tuesday 8 Thursday Tuesday 8 Thursday Monday 8 Wed Tuesday 8 Thursday Tuesday 8 Thursday Monday 8 Friday Monday and Wed Friday Tuesday 8 Thursday Monday 8 Wed Monday, Wed, Friday Monday 8 Wed Monday 8 Wed

Tuesday 8 Friday Mon 8 Wed 8 Fri Mondav 8 Wed Monday 8 Wed Tuesday & Saturday Mon., Thur., Fri. Tuesday, Thursday 8 Friday Tuesday, Thursday 8 Friday Monday 8 Wed Monday 8 Wed

18:00-19:55 17:00-19:55 16:30-17:55 17:30-19:25 19:30-21:25 20:00-21:55 09:00-10:55 15:30-16:25 20h30-21h25 20h30-21h25 19:00-20:25

16:00-16:45 17:30-18:15 16:45-17:30 17:30-18:15 12:15-13:00 13:00-13:45 16:00-16:45 16:45-17:30 08:30-09:15 09:15-10:00 14:30-15:15 15:15-16:00 16:00-16:45 10:45-11:30 11:30-12:15 16:45-17:30 17:30-18:15 11:30-12:15 12:15-13:00 15:00-15:55 16:00-16:55 09:00-09:55 11:00-11:55 14:00-14:55 16:00-16:55 15:00-15:55 16:00-16:55 16:00-16:55 14:00-14:55 10:00-10:55

8 1/2 hr 1/2 hr 6

29.56/42.60

29.56/42.60 19.99/24.34 13.90/18.26

1 1

13:00-14:55 10:00-11:55 13:30-15:25 13:30-15:25 All Day 21:00-22:30 All Day

22.60/26.95 22.60/26.95 126.05/134.74 126.05/134.74 65.20/69.54 86.95/104.32 39.11/43.47

2 2 6 6 1 8 1

12:15-13:00 12:30-13:15 12:00-12:45 12:30-13:15 13:00-13:45 12:30-13:15 13:00-13:45 13:00-13:45 12:00-12:45 13:00-13:45 12:00-12:45 16:30-17:15 12:15-13:00 12:00-12:45 12:30-13:15 13:00-13:45 13:00-13:45

$13.04 $13.04 $13.04 $13.04 $13.04 $13.04 $13.04 $13.04 $13.04 $13.04 $13.04 $13.04 $13.04 PTÔ4 $13.04 $13.04 $13.04

13 13 13 13 13 13 13 13 13 13 13 13 13 13 13 13 13

o r w w w .a th le tic s.m c g ill.c a

M c G ill

opinion

W h i p It

T h e boy w h o c rie d d y s le x ia

\

G uest Soap

BRANDON CHUDLEIGH

P o t can h e lp th e e c o n o m y , s tu p id ADAM SMITH dvocating a continued ban on marijuana, as Genevieve Jenkins did in the pages of this paper last week, is completely off base for a number of reasons. She says that it can't be argued that pot should be legalized because alco­ hol and tobacco are equally bad yet already legal, but she's wrong. The reason those things are legal, despite their ill effects, is that society accepts them as such. Marijuana has now reached essentially the same stage. Like it or not, a lot of people are smoking pot these days, and our anti-marijuana laws are no longer in line with the will of the peo­ ple.

Jenkins writes that "once the government becomes involved [with pot], it would be respon­ sible for covering the health care cost for marijua­ na-related health problems." She also complains that "Canada supposedly spends $4 0 0 -million a year to enforce marijuana laws and that this would only increase if it were legalized." However, she is wrong on both counts.

When someone gets lung cancer, the govern­ ment doesn't ask how they got it and refuse to pay for the treatment if it was caused by marijuana smoking; our universal health care system already pays for all marijuana-related health problems. As for increased enforcement costs, that is ludicrous.

If pot were legalized, legitimate growing business­ es would start up. Rather than having grow-ops hiding in basements, these sanctioned operations could take advantage of economies of scale and produce pot at a much lower cost, driving the grow-ops and dealers out of business. The only costs would be setting up the same sort of regula­ tory system that is now in place for alcohol and tobacco, which should not be very expensive.

Marijuana is part of the underground econo­ my, so it is hard to say exactly what effect legaliza­

A

tion would have on its price, but there should be enough of a reduction for pot to be cheaper than it is now, even after the government slaps a nice fat excise tax on it. Indeed, the added tax revenue

If pot were legalized, legitimate growing businesses would replace basement growops. These sanctioned operations could take advantage of economies of scale and produce pot at a much lower cost, driving the grow-ops and dealers out of business. is perhaps the biggest argument in favour of legal­ ising pot. It could help pay for the health problems it is already causing, as well as an improvement in anti-drug programs.

There is no point in moralizing on this issue.

Pot is already illegal, yet its use is widespread.

Pundits may go on and on about its evils, but that isn't going to stop people from smoking it. The time has come for the powers that be to take a sensible, practical approach to this issue.

Legalizing marijuana would not only bring in more tax revenue, it would also allow the government to regulate the industry and better control the cannabis trade to protect consumers.

It may surprise you to learn that I don't smoke pot; I can't stand the stuff. However, the fact is that the government needs to get with the times.

People are using marijuana, and that's not going to change any time soon. The government should make the smart decision to legalize it, tax it and regulate it. ■ Adam Smith is a U2 Economics student, and he's already heard any lame joke you could make about his name.

s another frenetic semester comes to a close, we enter into one of the more painful months of the academic calendar. There are many reasons that I loathe December, and though finals are high on my hit list, they are a distant second from my biggest exam period headache.

Because just as December is a whirl­ wind of caroling (and menorah-lighting, lest I be accused of being insensitive), it is also the season of far-fetched excuses and the "fake crazy."

As hordes of tired undergrads enter reluctantly into the final stretch, legions of their classmates scramble for a way to get out of it. I once sat on a train with a professor from the University of Guelph who detailed the technique one student employed to avoid her Intro to Psych final. Prior to the exam, she claimed that her dear old granny had bit the dust, then before the rescheduled exam, the dis­ traught young woman sobbed that grandpa's heart had suddenly failed.

And so she systematically killed off her family—I'll assume only in the figurative sense—until her lies unraveled.

Of course that was at Guelph, where the agricultural stench on cam­ pus adversely affects students' ability to create an airtight illusion. McGillians, on the other hand, seem to be a little more sophisticated in their con artistry.

Case in point: the effective liars that I know—the truly pathological, who pull this charade in every class—have the unprecedented ability to plot their ruse in detail. It starts with a minor twitch here or there, escalates to a cry­ ing episode during office hours, and then progresses to fits of incoherent babbling that increase in frequency as

A

November lulls on. By the time that World Religions final rolls around, the seasonal psychotic has roommates, professors and James Admin wrapped around his or her weak, clammy finger.

The fake crazy's ruse starts with a minor twitch here or there, escalates to a crying episode during office hours, and then progresses to fits of incoherent babbling that increase in fre­ quency as November lulls on.

The rationale that hours wasted at health services waiting for a doctor's note—aka the Get "Out of Jail Free card—and the energy exerted in faking a case of the runs could be better spent studying is lost on those deter­ mined to get out of actually doing work. This is especially true of those who are well-versed enough in this art that they perhaps get a bit too much into character. Evidently, it is possible to fake crazy to the point of becoming legitimately crazy. Madison (and Jalen, Mackenzie, Logan and Tristan), have you met multiple personality disorder?

In an ideal world, I wouldn't care about lazy students left to their own devices. Hell, I am one of those lazy students. But while I, too, procrastinate all semester, I respect my profs enough to put in my three hours of half-assed cramming the day before and write the fucking exam. If you're not willing to show your prof due regard, at least have the courtesy to show up at the gym, read over the exam, write a cou­ ple things down and then faint dramat­ ically atop the card table. ■

K le in iu m

T h e (m is ta k e n ) legacy o f E in stein JONATHAN KLEIN he end of 2 0 0 5 marks the conclusion of the United Nations' designated "International Year of Physics," so named in remembrance of Albert Einstein's annus mirabilis, or "miracle year,” of 1 9 0 5 . In this year, Einstein pub­ lished four papers that changed the face of science: They pro­ vided evidence for the existence of atoms, the kinetic theory of gases, and the quantum theory of light, along with introduc­ ing the world to E=mc2, the single most famous equation in history.

In his time, though, Einstein was much more than just a scientist. He became an international intellectual celebrity whose opinions on religion, politics and other subjects were solicited and valued just as highly as his scientific discoveries.

His all-around aptitude was such that he remains the only American citizen to ever be offered political office in a foreign country, as Israel offered him the opportunity to become its first President.

Indeed, the enormity of Einstein's genius is so pervasive that even one of his mistakes has become part of our cultur­ al canon.

At one point or another, everyone has no doubt heard Einstein's famous exhortation that "God does not play dice

T

with the universe." The statement comes from a famous argu­ ment between Einstein and fellow Nobel-winning physicist Neils Bohr over interpretations of quantum mechanics.

Einstein deeply believed in a deterministic universe, where measurements could be made precisely and accurately. Bohr was arguing in favour of a theory where no certainties exist, and the only calculations that can be made are on the proba­ bility of a result occurring. Even in problems where probabili­ ties came into play, Einstein felt that an underlying reality that behaves in a deterministic manner must exist behind the probabilistic one.

Nowadays, a person attempting to lend intellectual cre­ dence to a theory based on a foundation of absolutes—and looking to support the belief that things happen for a reason— is likely to invoke Einstein's quotation as evidence.

Theologians may point to the statement as Einstein's endorse­ ment of a divinely guided, purposeful world. Similarly, a sup­ porter of intelligent design might use it to demonstrate that chance has no role to play in biological development, and attaching Einstein's name to their theory might seem to lend if scientific credibility. The problem with citing Einstein in such a case is that he was wrong.

In fact, God does play dice. Bohr's ideas, now known as the "Copenhagen interpretation" of quantum mechanics, are indeed the ones expressed in modem QM, which has proved to be perhaps the single most successful scientific theory to date. Even in theory, QM cannot predict the outcome of a measurement. Even something as simple as the position of a particle cannot be elucidated; only the probability of finding the particle in a given location can be known.

Since that fateful argument, much evidence, both exper­ imental and theoretical, has come out in favour of Bohr's inter­ pretation of QM, yet Einstein's erroneous quotation continues to be trotted out by anyone who can make it fit their objec­ tives. Einstein's mistake is even more widely known that Bohr's success.

It is important to always remember that authority is derived from the message, not the messenger. Even a state­ ment from such a mind as Einstein's must be checked against experimental data and theoretical findings to ensure its verac­ ity. And, maybe, the fact that such a fundamental scientific principle can be learned from one of his mistakes only serves to further demonstrate Einstein's brilliance. ■

9

The

the mcgill tribune | 29.11.05 | opinion

M cG ill T rib u n e

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EDITOR-IN-CHIEF Liz Allemang editor@mcgilltribune.com

“Decisions are made by those who show up.”

—Unknown

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ell, this is it. With fall semester winding down, exams soon upon us and an alltoo-short Christmas break just over the horizon, we can all take some time to reflect on the fall that was.

And oh, what a fall it has been. Between prayer space for Muslim students, allegedly dis­ criminatory blood drives, and controversial clubs and services, there has been a lot of chatter around campus and the Shatner Building about what the Students' Society should be doing with our fees. That students are taking an interest in what their money pays for is healthy. But what they're saying is not.

Many students seem to feel that since they pay fees to the Students' Society, they are entitled to weigh in on and approve of every decision the Society's executive, council and clubs make.

Hardly a week goes by when campus papers don't receive angry letters from these students pointing out the errors in our elected leaders' ways. "Students pay the fees," these letters often imply, "therefore students must approve.”

- The list of objectionable uses (or the objec­ tionable lack of use) of student money has grown by the week. The catalogue now includes every­ thing from granting Christian group CRU status as an interim club, to giving space to Hema-Quebec for blood drives even though they don't allow gay men to donate blood, to the publishing policies of this paper, to not providing Muslim students with all of the prayer space they requested during the month of Ramadan. In this last case, students are paying fees for Shatner, the argument runs, so they should be entitled to use it.

The simple fact is that paying fees does not entitle students to take issue with every decision that is made in the SSMU office or by a SSMUfunded club, service or publication. Simply shelling out a few dollars does not give a person any greater intrinsic rights than the thousands of others who pay the same amount and may feel differently. Obviously, there is no way that every student is going to be happy with how every penny of SSMU's $3-million-plus budget is spent,

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but this is why we have representative democra­ cy. We vote for SSMU reps because we count on them to handle the day-to-day operations and decisions involved in running the Society, and we trust them to consult with us when they feel it's necessary.

Rather than this system shutting the average undergrad out from the political process, as some claim, it allows us to go about our lives as regular students, without having to consider both sides of every issue and then vote in a plebiscite each week. Does this mean that we can't hold our SSMU officials accountable for their decisions? Of course not. But there are more effective ways to go about it than merely fomenting displeasure in an insular group.

The first method is to-surp rise!-get involved, as actions really do speak louder than words. Don't agree with what SSMU is doing?

Don't carp in the campus press hoping that someone of importance will read what you have to say. Instead, go speak to Council, volunteer to

DARK

H U M O U R

by Jamie

sit on committees, visit the execs, make yourself heard—in short, work within the system. Yes, it will require a significant commitment, but if you don't really care enough to get involved, you shouldn't be whining about it in the first place.

And what's the easiest way to get involved?

Vote. This is one right that our student fees do guarantee us. Last year more than 35 per cent of the McGill student body cast a ballot in the SSMU elections—and there is no reason that number should go in any direction but up. With a federal election coming up, this principle applies more than ever. As a campaign for $4-billion in transfer payments from Ottawa gets underway, our stu­ dent leaders are demanding that federal politi­ cians listen to what we have to say. But if we're not exercising our right to vote, there is no reason for them to give us the time of day.

Complaining-even loudly-can only go so far. To truly make ourselves heard, we must first be involved. ■

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ecently, Queer McGill has been crying out about its members' exclusion from HémaQuébec blood drives. This is due to rigorous screening policies that prevent men who have had sex with another man (MSM) since 1977 from donating. The obvious reason for this is the large HIV/AIDS infection rate among this specific demographic.

Some are claiming discrimination, saying that Héma-Québec does not want their blood because they are gay. I beg to differ. The policies do not single out gays any more than they do dia­ betics or anémies, who are also not allowed to donate. They are in place to keep the blood sup­ ply healthy and infection free. This is not discrim­ ination. This is just common sense.

If you still disagree, wake up to reality. The homosexual population is still the largest infected demographic, accounting for 420,790 of 886,575

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cases in the United States, according to the 2004 update of the UNAIDS/WHO epidemiological fact sheets on HIV/AIDS and sexually transmitted infections. That is nearly 50 per cent of the infect­ ed population, well above the rate for heterosex­ uals and even that of intravenous drug users. No one can deny the fact that being a MSM increas­ es one's chance of infection.

Now, you may have heard statistics that claim women 19-24 are the cohort with the quickest-growing infection rate, implying that HIV is easily transmitted through heterosexual sex. But any basic stats class would teach you a thing or two about statistics: They're all relative ! Yes, the heterosexual infection rate is the fastest-growing, having increased by nearly one-half since 1996, while the MSM infection rate has only increased by one third during that time period. But please, take the time to realize that even with the

increase in the heterosexual transmission rate, the percentage of new infections in heterosexuals stands at just 24 per cent, while 40 per cent of all new HIV cases are still found in MSM. Plus, While women 19-24 may be the cohort with the quickest-growing infection rate, any basic stats class will teach you some­ thing about statistics: they're all relative! because there are far fewer MSM than women, a much higher percentage of MSM are contracting HIV. While I agree that Héma-Québec's policies need to be progressive, blood donation is not a right. It is a privilege. And, most importantly, there is no way that social equality should ever take precedence over human life. ■

The McGill Tribune is an editorially autonomous newspaper published by the Students' Society of McGill University, in coNaboration with the Tribune Publication Society. Letters to the editor may be sent to letters@mcgilltribune.com, and must include the contributor's name, program and year, and contact information. Letters should be kept under 300 words and submitted only to the Tnbune Submissions judged by the Tribune Publication Society to be libellous, sexist, racist, homophobic, or solely promotional in nature will not be published. The Tribune reserves the right to edit all contributions. Editorials are decided upon and written by the editorial board. All other opinions are strictly those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the opinions of the McGill Tribune, its editors or its staff. Please recycle this newspapei.

10 opinion | 29.11.05 | the mcgill tribune

Funambulism

D o n ’t h a te m e because

C R ISTIN A MARKHAM

A-musings

R a n d o m th o u g h ts

tp o

o n M o n tre a l DAVID BLYE ith December coming quickly, here's an ode to our fair city's quirks—before it gets to the peak o f winter and coherent thought is replaced by indiscriminate cursing.

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Despite having lived for over three years in the biggest Francophone city outside of Paris, I feel that my French has not improved at all. In fact, it has quite possibly regressed.

VIA Rail has the sweetest deal in the country.

They overcharge for tickets, overcharge for snacks and are constantly late. Any other business would have gone bankrupt years ago. But those trains are still constantly sold out. That's the business we all need to be in.

When picking courses, the most important factor is not the material or the prof. It's whether the course fits into your sleeping/drinking sched­ ule (though the two are eternally linked). Any appearance of Friday, 9:35 or both on Minerva are very dangerous—heck, anything before noon is pushing it. If you are somehow in a position where class and sleep clash, find a friend quickly.

I'm sure Tam-tams is great, and I have noth­ ing against it, but Sundays between September and February are a special time when I enter the Temple of NFL. Heaven forgive what I do to the person who mentions Tam-tams during the Packers-Vikings game. Especially if I find out they're from Minnesota.

When you're out with your friends, it's almost guaranteed that you will see at least three people you somehow know and didn't start the night with.

And at least one is someone you didn't want to see.

Am I the only person who has a problem with people riding their bikes on the wrong side of a one-way street? Aren't bicycles vehicles, like cars?

We all make fun of our friends in Kingston for going to the same four bars every night. But someI'm sure Tam-tams is great, but Sundays between September and February are a special time when I enter the Temple of NFL. Heaven forgive what I do to the person who mentions Tam-tams during the Packers-Vikings game. how I've managed to become so set in my ways that saying I go to the same four bars would be placing me at three bars too many.

Is indie rock really that good? Or is that the people who listen to it have become so trapped in their own little elitist bubble that they fail to see all the different music out there, regardless of label?

Or maybe indie rock really is just that good.

How many of us chose McGill over other schools simply because the legal drinking age in Quebec is 18? And how many were ticked off when they found that the concept of "legal drink­ ing age" is a strange one in these parts?

If people want to live in the Plateau for the atmosphere, I'm all for it. But keep thinking about it in the middle of January during your long walk home from class when the wind chill is minus 30.

And finally, how many mornings have you uttered the phrase "And I'm never drinking again,"?

And how many of us have ever actually upheld that vow? ■

I’m fe s tiv e

I f you were to ask my lovely room­

nades them with Dean Martin's "I've mate, Dana, what it's like to live with Got My Love to Keep Me Warm." And me, she would probably give me a last, but certainly not least, the rave review. I edit her papers in Christmas Carol dog (or as he prefers exchange for candy; I know how to pro­ to be called, the Jingle Pup) comes out gram the VCR; I don't steal her food, of storage. That's right—I am a 22-yearand I always make enough smoothie old woman with three-and-a-half years for two. Just don't inquire as to her opinion of me in the The Christmas season is officially on in month of December. During my apartment the day after Halloween. those four weeks, my poor, M y desktop picture changes from a snap­ innocent roomie is bombarded with the dulcet tones of Frank shot of drunken friends to a photo of my Sinatra's Christmas carols, poodle wearing reindeer antlers, and my blinded by string lights and outgoing voicemail no longer teaches regaled with stories of my heartwrenching performances callers a word of the day, but serenades in nativity plays. The Christmas- them with Dean Martin. loving lunatic I become during the holidays is a far cry from the sarcas­ of university education, and I own a tic and mocking cynic who normally stuffed animal that barks Christmas car­ lives within me. ols when you squeeze its paw. Don't While pessimism, skepticism and judge me. general misanthropy will always have a It's true that my love of Christmas place in my heart, constantly mocking may just be a coping mechanism that the world around me can be really distracts me from all the stressors that exhausting. That's why every year December brings. After all, exams just around Christmas, I let the awkward don't seem as bad when my advent and hyperactive 11-year-old girl in me calendar is providing me with a daily take the reins. That way, I can give my supply of chocolate, and I'll happily tol­ inner sarcastic bitch a chance to rest up erate the ice and slush on campus as for the coming year. long as the Christmas lights are still up.

To spare Dana, I fight the urge to But fortunately for Dana, this is cover my apartment with tinsel as long just a passing phase. As years previous as I possibly can, but I declare the have demonstrated, my rapturous holi­ Christmas season officially on in my day-induced joy will culminate and apartment the day after Halloween. My explode on Christmas Eve, and dissi­ desktop picture changes from a snap­ pate by Boxing Day. The wry, sarcastic shot of drunken friends to a photo of girl will make her triumphant return, my poodle wearing reindeer antlers. well rested and ready to bitch about My outgoing voicemail no longer teach­ how New Year's is over-hyped and es callers a word of the day, but sere­ Valentine's Day is for saps. ■

In the Right

D o n ’t lis te n t o t h e le fty a la rm is ts k LEIGH ASLATEEI

L eave it to the leftists in our campus press to trivialize an important source of post-secondary funding. On Nov. 21, a Daily article proclaimed "Sold: McGill's Faculty of Management," while one day later, this paper chimed in with "Schools for sale: Management faculty goes to highest bidder."

These headlines refer to a 222-million gift—the largest single donation made to a business school in Canadian histo­ ry—from the Canadian Credit Management Foundation and its president, Marcel Desautels. As a result, the now-renamed Desautels Faculty of Management has money earmarked for research, endowed chairs, building development and scholar­ ships.

This comes on the heels of a ï20-m illion donation to the Faculty of Music by McGill alum Seymour Schulich back in October. Here's what an official from the Canadian Federation of Students, quoted in the Daily, had to say about Schulich's gift: "Such private donations may compromise the quality of education by infringing on academic freedom. Even when there is no stated link to curriculum or academic freedom, that 220-million will always be on the minds of administrators."

What a novel idea: Donating millions to a music school for the veiled purpose of impeding academic freedoms. Perhaps Schulich plans to start issuing diktats on choral and band arrangements.

Rather than being a bane, philanthropists like Desautels and Schulich are a godsend to post-secondary education, given both the scope of their generosity and their insight into how the money should be spent. Schulich has donated 2100million to Canadian universities, and it's not all going towards research chairs or glossy new buildings. He's funded 450 scholarships across Canada, including a 226-million gift to the University of Western Ontario's School of Medicine & Dentistry that will provide more than 100 of that school's neediest stu­ dents with 215,000 to 220,000 annually.

Meanwhile, Desautels' foundation has given about 250million to Canadian universities, which includes funding for a research chair at McGill to look into ways of improving health care delivery. And now Desautels is lobbying the provincial government to match his donation to the Faculty of Management.

So contrary to what the campus press or the Graduate Association for Decorporatized Education might tell you, we're not "selling out" or auctioning ourselves off to the highest bid­ der when we accept Desautels' or Schulich's philanthropy. In fact, there's nothing overtly corporate about McGill's recent jackpots: Desautels' CCMF is a charitable foundation endowed from the sale of a business, and Schulich is a pri­ vate donor.

Still, the whole anti-corporate tirade obscures the most important objectives of post-secondary education. Universities are at the heart of the knowledge-based economy. While we learn for the sake of learning, we are also here to build human capital. As Claire Morris of the Association of Universities and Colleges of Canada writes, "Students educated in an interna­ tionally competitive, research-enriched university community are essential to wealth creation in a knowledge economy. In turn, the wealth they create is vital to improving and sustain­ ing our health-care system, our social programs and the qual­ ity of life we all enjoy in our cities and communities." The achievement of this policy goal makes corporate sponsorship of an engineering or management faculty just as important as government sponsorship of a Canada Research Chair.

There's no good reason to sound the alarm on either individual or corporate philanthropy, barring a deal with too many strings attached. But in these cases, the Desautels and Schulichs of the world stand to gain nothing from their endowments, other than well-deserved legacies and the quiet comfort of having made a difference. As far as corporate giv­ ing is concerned, a relationship between business and postsecondary education is entirely in line with the objectives of higher learning. By applying an anti-capitalist litmus test to prospective donors, we are selling ourselves short ■

the mcgill tribune | 29.11.05 | opinion ] 1

L e tte rs t o th e e d ito r Cheerleading: like figure skating, but on the ground Despite Mohit Arora saying that he doesn't buy into stereotypes about cheerleaders "Gimme an H! Gimme an O!," 15.11.05), he just bought into every one. So here is my defence of cheerieading.

First of all, cheerleaders do not stand at games looking bored, but rather perform difficult and exciting stunts.

Because Arora is personally not interested in the cheerlead­ ers does not make them worthless. Rather, if he took a look at what they are doing, he might be surprised and enter­ tained.

Second of all, the sport of cheerleading also involves competitions. The McGill cheerleading team has been preparing for national championships, happening in about 10 days. The competitions are like those in many other "respected" sports, and the teams are judged on the difficul­ ty of their routines and their performance quality (sort of like figure skating or gymnastics). To see what the team is real­ ly about, I would advise attending their open house on Nov. 30.

Jacqui Wilson U2 Political Science and History

Highest bidder story a low blow In a recent discussion with a former classmate, I learned of the $22-million donation made by Dr. Marcel Desautels to the Faculty of Management Of course I turned to the Tribune for more information ("Schools for sale," 22.11.05). I was saddened to see the negative tone taken in the article, particularly the headline. Taking the position that the university has whored itself to the corporate devil for useless amenities is overly cynical.

I agree with Professor Chauvin: The reality of public funding for education is such that private donations should be welcome. Private donations can pay for facilities and fac­ ulty that you would otherwise go without or would be paid for with a tuition increase, and we all know how we feel about the latter option.

The fear with private donations is that the donor will start dictating the academic terms. If Dr. Desautels were real­

ly such a dictator, he could start his own university with that kind of money. Until Management students are forced to take out their student loans with the Canadian Credit Management Foundation, students should sit back, relax and go back to complaining about high tuition.

Raquel Kirsch, BCom '03, LLB '06 Tribune Assistant Editor-in-Chief 2002-2003

Key to drama success: cast self In response to the recent kafuffle about a lack of roles for the talented actresses at McGill ("Where are all the Y chromosomes?" 15.11.05), I suggest changing the system from within its bounds.

There are several avenues for getting involved in the­ atre. Annually, McGill's theatre companies change their exec­ utive committees, and select the plays to be performed in the coming season. Behind-the-scenes executive positions give an actor a rounder understanding of theatre; however, directing seems the best answer to Rei Jacklefs call for enough roles to display the overflow of female talent.

Directors propose the shows that they want to put on, which could include, for example, an all-female production of a male-dominated show. This would be a unique propos­ al, and thus not one likely to be rejected. Plus, as director, presumably you could cast yourself. When an actor or actress appears in one show at McGill, suddenly he or she seems to be everywhere, so it is hard to get a break. Self­ casting does require some discretion, though, and since pol­ itics operate here, as in any community, just involving your­ self in theatre by any means possible will give you the added edge of a reputation.

On that note, there are often postings on the Arts drama board for plays seeking designers and stage man­ agers; and if you can't wait until next year to direct, or you want to write the perfect play into being, better note the fastapproaching McGill Drama Festival deadlines.

Come on, man, she obviously took the difficult side Genevieve Jenkins is very wrong about marijuana ("Canning Cannabis," Nov. 22). I don't support the legaliza­ tion of marijuana. I do support its decriminalization, but above all I support an informed debate.

She argues that marijuana should be illegal because, allegedly: 1. It causes psychosis; 2. It is too expensive to regulate; 3. It has health risks; 4. The government would have to pay for its negative health consequences; 5. Government revenue from "sin taxes" ought not to increase.

The trite reply is that, even if she's correct, we are already suffering all of these ills because laws against pos­ session are not really enforced. Instead, police forces across the country target dealers and growers, who usually fund organized crime. Consequently, there is no significant legal deterrent to marijuana consumption.

Of course, she's not correct. Marijuana is linked to psy­ chosis only in the way every other intoxicating substance is (pills, gasoline, booze, etc.), and I suspect is more correla­ tion than causation. Its regulation has already been effected

by Health Canada: THC levels and general production stan­ dards are calculated for marijuana's medicinal use. No infra­ structure and no supervision beyond what already exists need be established.

Marijuana has health risks, but so what? We already treat them, and provided one's use does not extend to pub­ lic secondhand smoke, it is entirely a personal choice (anal­ ogous to exercising or eating at McDonalds). And I have no qualms about sin taxes to compensate society for the costs incurred by the behaviours they attach to.

M att Keen Alumni I

Christina Barry Players' Publicity Director

We won't be publishing letters over the break, but that doesn't mean you can't send them! Don't let our inbox (tee hee) sit empty. Letters@mcgilltribune.com.

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to be sexist or homophobic—we would not have pub­ lished them if we did. The Tribune, like all student news­ papers, is a product of hundreds of decisions made each week by editors, writers, photographers and designers. We are well aware that readers will not be happy with all of them, and we encourage you to let us know which ones you deem unsatisfactory. However, just as the words we use as Tribune editors and writers are important, so too are the words that readers use when they criticize us. Words like "sexism" and "homo­ phobia" are not intended to be thrown around lightly.

Use them with caution, lest they lose their power. ■

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Pursuant to the two formal complaints filed with the Students' Society equity commissioner and her resulting recommendation, the Tribune recognizes that some students may have been offended or felt discrim­ inated against by material in two opinion columns pub­ lished earlier this year: "Looks do matter" (1.09.05) and "I'm starting to reconsider ugly women" (11.10.05). We regret any emotional distress that students experienced, because that was certainly not our intention.

While we respect the fact that some readers found the material offensive, none of the 20 members of the Tribune's diverse editorial board believed these pieces

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THE HOLIDAY 111 SPECIAL i i

fea tu res

It s beginning to feel a lot like. . .

C h r is m u k k a h ?

G a t h e r ‘r o u n d

th e fire a n d

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h o l i d a y s a p l e n t y in t h e v e r y here's a reason why the upcoming weeks are collectively known as "the holiday season." It's rare indeed to have so many celebrations and traditions in a single month. For some of us, we think only of one, be it Christmas, Chanukah or perhaps only the end-of-finals boozefest, but there's much to learn about and experience in December. It's not at all uncom­ mon for families today to celebrate a mixture of traditions, so why not at least know what's going on around you?

After all, someday you might find yourself in the centre of a celebration completely new—but even if you're armed with back­ ground information, part of all the fun is the surprises waiting behind the door or under that shiny paper...

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(Dates are given for this coming season, as not a ll holidays follow the Gregorian calendar.)

a b o u t th e

n e a r fu tu re

For those who actually celebrate Christmas as a religious holiday, the hubbub seems a bit over-the-top: After all, Easter is typically considered the most significant Christian holiday and early Christians didn't even celebrate the birth of Christ until a fourth-century bureaucracy made the call. But is that really what Christmas is about?

Although the Christian culture so long predominant in North America may have led us to believe that Christmas is all about the birth of Christ, ifs actually been around much longer than that (without the same name, of course). The winter solstice, which falls on Dec. 21, has been celebrated by Europeans for centuries because lighter days will inevitably follow. This time of year marked the Yule celebration for Scandinavian Norsemen; the German worship of the god, Oden; the Roman worship of

Chanukah—the Festival of Lights Dec. 26, 2005—Jan. 2, 2006

In Dr. Nissan Mindel's The Complete Story o f Chanukah, readers learn of the his­ tory behind the Menorah and why Jews all over the world light candles for eight days.

After a hard battle against Greek persecu­ tion in the Jewish year 3622, the leading group of the Maccabees liberated Jerusalem and restored the Temple. But when they went to light the Menorah, they found only a small vial containing a single day's worth of oil. Much to their delight, the oil lasted for eight days; hence Chanukah lasts for the same length of time, com­ memorating "the miracle that proved G-d had taken His people under His protec­ tion."

Contrary to its distinction among nonJews, Chanukah is not the most important Jewish holiday, nor is it particularly religious (the lighting of the Menorah candles and the accompanying prayers are the only offi­ cially spiritual parts). Chanukah is not even mentioned in the Torah. However, this by no means diminishes the family gathering significance of the holiday; traditions here include eating mainly fried foods—again to commemorate the oil's miracle—especially latkes, or "potato pancakes," dreidel games and "gelt," gifts of money. Presents for children became common because Chanukah often coincides with Christmas, and, according to Tracey Rich of JewFAQ.org, "as a way of dealing with our children's jealousy of their Christian friends."

But why the different spellings of the holiday's name? Part of the problem is that there is no exact translation of the Hebrew word. "Chanukah"—with [ch] pronounced as a guttural, "throat/' [h], is the closest and most often used spelling. "Hanukkah," also quite common, is the English transliteration of the Hebrew word.

Spelling variations don't end there; you'll often see two Ks, two Ns, or two of both! Most sources, however, agree that there is no "real" spelling in English, and none is more official than another.

—Lise Treutler

Christmas Dec. 25, 2005 There's a Christmas tree of lights at the end of McGill College; there are wreaths and reindeer and Santa Clauses in every shop window; every kid on the street is devouring candy canes faster than a Quebecker downs poutine: It must be the post-Halloween Christmas craze. Because it has been integrated so thoroughly into commercial culture, Christmas is an ubiqui­ tous theme of the holiday season, regardless of your religious leanings.

lars of Islam. Every Muslim, as long as they are physically and financially able, is obliged by their faith to complete the journey during their lifetime. Every year, millions do so over the five-day period, gathering in the holy city of Mecca, Saudi Arabia to eat, pray and share the experience.

In recent years, Hajj has become so popular that the Saudi Arabian government—driven by strained resources to provide food and shelter for around three million pilgrims—has imposed quotas, including the maximum number of participants each year, the maximum from each country and the need to apply for a special Hajj visa through an accredited travel agent.

The Koran states: 'Truly the idolaters are unclean; so let them no t... approach the Sacred Mosque"—this means that according to Islamic law, only Muslims are allowed to visit Mecca (and other holy cities), a law designed to "preserve the sanctity of the holy cities," in the words of Huda Dodge, a Muslim con­ vert and scholar.

During Hajj, pilgrims wear the ihram, simple white clothing designed to free the mind of all thoughts of wealth or prestige Any signs of wealth, such as excessive jew­ elry or perfume, are forbidden—one must remain in as natural a state as possible dur­ ing Hajj to encourage and symbolize a state of devotion.

After Hajj, Muslims return to their home countries and are often honoured as "Hajjis—one who has performed the Hajj" by friends and family who welcome them, spiritually refreshed, with celebrations.

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Soyala New Year Festival Dec. 21, 2005—Jan. 9, 2006

Saturn, known as Saturnalia; and the Roman Juvenalia, a celebra­ tion in honor of Roman children.

Once pagan religions had been displaced by Christianity in the Middle Ages, Christmas celebrations were one of the easiest ways to make people go to church, but the post-mass parties turned into something akin to Mardi Gras. There has been much back-and-forth between religions about the legitimacy of the actual date of Chrisfs birth and the idea of appropriate celebra­ tion—Oliver Cromwell's Puritan posse cancelled Christmas in 1645, and officially, it was illegal in Boston from 1659 to 1681.

In the 19th century, Christmas was reborn through the imaginations of Washington Irving and Charles Dickens, in The Sketchbook o f Geoffrey Crayon and A Christmas Carol, respective­ ly. Thanks to these two brilliant men, who revamped a muchdebated holiday, North Americans can rest easy with their consumerized Christmas.

—Genevieve Jenkins

Hajj Jan. 8, 2006 Hajj is the annual Islamic pilgrimage to Mecca, an important journey for any Muslim, as the pilgrimage is one of the five pil­

The Hopi, Pueblo and Zuni Native American tribes celebrate the Soyala New Year Festival, a time of purification and renewal. Celebrants clean their homes and do their best to observe personal restraint during this time of reflection. Like many other holidays during this time, the Festival marks the beginning of a new cycle. In her article "Wisdom for the Earth," writer Deborah Knighton Tallarico describes how symbolic "fires" are extinguished to mark new beginnings; at the end of the Festival, the kiva fire is relit, fresh coals are distrib­ uted to homes and the celebration ends with dancing and joy.

The very spiritual Hopi tribe "follows divine instructions and prophecies received from the caretaker of the world, Maasaw"—they maintain an official Web site, complete with visitor information, at www.hopi.nsn.us. It's not a coincidence that the Soyala New Year Festival starts on the Winter Solstice, as the Hopi time their religious practices and ceremonies with the phases of the moon and, of course, the solstices. For the Hopi, this Festival is one of the most sacred.

The Pueblo people are descendants of the Anasazi tribe, claiming the oldest living culture north of Mexico. Their kivas are built in underground chambers perfect for secret ceremonies, with a hole in the ground symbolic of the "entrance to the lower world" and "the place through which life emerged into this world," according to Indiana Universit/s Web page for the study of Native American peoples ( inkido.indiana.edu/w31Owork/romac/native.htm).

The Zuni, a Pueblo tribe, consider the sun to be the vital ingredient for life—their language uses the same word for "day­ light" and "life." The Sun Father, along with the Earth Mother and Moonlight-Giving Mother, is one of the three "most powerful supernatural beings." The Zuni community starts the celebrations on the solstice with each household going out together to plan prayer sticks—for various deities and the deceased—together in a

I small hole by their home. Each family member plants their own collection of prayer sticks, regardless of age, gender or status within the community.

Sun God returns, reborn, to the light the world, it is, in the words of the late Wiccan author Scott Cunningham, "a reminder that the ultimate product of death is rebirth, a comforting thought in these days of unrest." ■

-L T

-L T

New Year's Jan. 1,2006 The Spanish eat grapes to celebrate. In Venezuela, yellow undergarments are worn for good luck. The Chinese rejoice in the occasion with paper-cutting activi­ ties, lanterns, firecrackers and street processions. The Japanese hang straws in front of the house for happiness and fortune. In the southern states, black-eyed peas and turnip greens are eaten. Everywhere around the world, festivities are held, kisses and gifts are exchanged, signif­ icant events are remembered, and friends and families gather to reflect on past mistakes and celebrate a new beginning. What about you? How do you celebrate the new year?

If you will be around New York on New Year's Eve, you might want to hit Time Squares and witness the famous Waterford Crystal Ball—a six-foot sphere, enveloped in more than 500 Waterford crystals-make its descent from the top of a building at the stroke of midnight. Or, if Europe feels more exciting, you can always join the Scottish Hogmanay and watch fireball shows, torchlight processions and fireworks, or enjoy an Austrian morning listening to the traditional New Year's concert performed by the Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra. Better yet, celebrate by breaking dishes like the Danes, throwing water out the window like the Puerto Ricans, and joining the world's largest street parade like the Bahamians.

For cultures following different calendars, New Year's is not necessarily celebrated on Jan. 1.

For example, Iranians celebrate New Years on March 21, as they welcome a new spring by plant­ ing barley and wheat. The Jewish New Year (Rosh Hashanah) is celebrated around September and October to honour the creation of the world. The Chinese New Year, meanwhile, typically falls somewhere between Jan. 17 and Feb. 19. One of the most celebrated events of the year, the fes­ tivities brings together families and friends for week-long festivities of dragon dances, gift giving, fireworks and feasts.

A M E R IC A N EAGLE O U T F IT T E R S

—Daisy Tao

Rohatsu Dec. 8, 2005 Rohatsu is traditionally celebrated on the eighth day of the twelfth month of the lunar calen­ dar. Though different Buddhist sects differ on their chosen date for the celebration, "Rohatsu" lit­ erally means "December 8th" in Japanese, and is the celebration of the day Siddhartha Gautama, the Buddha, reached enlightenment-another chance for every Buddhist to achieve the same.

According to Buddhist scholar Shodo Harada Roshi, Rohatsu is especially important for monks and in-training monks: "In Zen dojos everywhere, people intensify their training energy in prepara­ tion. The Rohatsu sesshin, an intensive meditation retreat, is the consummation of a year's train­ ing,. a time when everyone faces the final reckoning of a year of practice."

The sesshin last for eight days, ending on Rohatsu. On the seventh day, monks stay awake in meditation throughout the night, just as Siddhartha Gautama did under the Bodhi tree, to better follow his path to enlightenment. As the Buddhist tradition dictates everyone has the potential to become enlightened-everyone is a Buddha inside-Rohatsu is all the more special for the enlight­ enment connection.

Lama Surya Das, in an article entitled "Buddhism's Gospel," writes of his own conclusions after attending his first sesshin: "According to Tibetan masters, Buddha's own enlightenment is possible for any of us, through following the Eight-fold Noble Path-comprised of ethical self-discipline, meditative mindfulness, wisdom, generosity and love—to the end. Many people have experienced enlightenment through reproducing the Buddha's experiment." But it is his closing statement that best rings true for all on Rohatsu: "It is beautiful to be a seeker. But seekers should one day become finders, elders, teachers. Why postpone that? A new world awaits." / ------------------ ---- ■ — ........... ......... ......

-L T

Yule/Winter Solstice Dec. 21, 2005 Yule, the pagan and Wiccan holiday, always takes place on the solstice and is one of the eight sabbats on the Wheel of the Year. Yule marks the return of light—as the days begin to get longer after the sol­ stice, the shortest day of the year. Yule thus marks the return of the Sun God, born of the Moon Goddess, to light the world for another "turn of the wheel.”

Though pagan mythology draws from a myriad of sources, such as ancient Celtic or Egyptian myths, many of the practices associated with Yule and the other sabbats are common over all traditions.

The 'Yule log," often seen in grocery stores as a cake, originates from this cele­ bration of light. Lighting the Yule log, tradi­ tionally oak or pine, is a favourite custom for holiday celebrants; often Wiccans carve figures of the sun into the wood before lighting it as reminders of what the log symbolizes and honours. After Yule is over, a piece of the log is saved and stored safe­ ly away to light the next year's log.

Similar to the plants and decorations used to celebrate Christmas, homes are often decorated with fresh evergreens, holly, ivy and mistletoe—fresh to commem­ orate the coming of light and life, even in winter (the fresh greenery aspect, accord­ ing to high priestess Dorothy Morrison, draws from the ancient Egyptian celebra­ tion of the birth of Horus, and their belief of greenery as a magical growth tool).

Many begin their celebrations before dawn so they can enjoy the sunrise as part of their celebrations; some begin their ritu­ als then, while others wait until afternoon to honour the Sun God during sunset.

Because Yule is the time when the

L I V E Y O U R L IF E Congratulations, ladies! For the w ay you Live Your Life at McGill.

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Q uebec • M o n tre a l • Trois-Rivières

THE HOLIDAY SPECIAL

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T h e g en e sis o f g e n e ro s ity When we give, when we help, do we ever ask ourselves why?

CRISTIN A MARKHAM he holiday season often brings out sides of people that you never knew existed—perpetually grumpy and cynical friends start stringing up lights and singing carols, pretentious, film snob roommates whip out copies of Home Alone and siblings stop their relentless mocking just long enough to ask how you're doing. While everyone reacts to this time of year differently, one characteristic that we supposedly all share is generosity. The evening news bombards us with schmaltzy human interest sto­ ries about incredible acts of kindness, and friends insist on regal­ ing us with tales of the tremendous munificence they've per­ formed. But what is the motivation behind these acts of generos­ ity? Do people give because of the inherent happiness it gives them, or because, in some way, they're getting something in return?

Even the greatest philanthropist would likely admit that gen­ erosity is not in a person's immediate best interest. Granted, there is that warm fuzzy feeling that you can only get from hold­ ing the door for a stranger or letting a friend take your last Rolo, but there's much more instant gratification in breezing through the doorway and scarfing down that chocolate. In the most unadorned terms, why do something for someone else when you can do something for you? Because as egocentric, self-cen­ tred human beings, we have found ways to make even an act of generosity into an act of self-service.

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breakdown." Not surprisingly, spending his days washing hair and listening to the Blue Rinse Crowd bitch about their incompetent gardeners was leaving Nolan a little unfulfilled.

"I found after my first week that, not only was I feeling sig­ nificantly less self-loathing, but all the other volunteers were there for the same reasons." Whether they had recently lost a grandparent with whom they wished they had spent more time, or if they were just trying to infuse some meaning into their seemingly meaningless lives, it seemed that all of Nolan's col­ leagues were in the same boat.

D r iv e n b y a h i s t o r y o f h e l p i n g w h e n h a n d y

This giving-to-get mentality is not, as one might assume, just a product of our self-centred, commodity-driven society. Even the native people of the Pacific Northwest had the faux-generos­ ity down to a science with the Potlatch. The now-outlawed tradi­ tion was an intricate gift giving ceremony that often left a tribe in complete indigence. A tribe would scrimp, save and stockpile for the entire year, putting aside anything that they could do with­ out. Finally, two tribes would meet and exchange gifts of food, pelts, furs, weapons and even slaves. The goal was to show your tribe's ultimate generosity by giving more lavishly than the other tribe. Some groups, however, were so set on being seen as the more generous—and therefore superior—tribe that they would give more than they could afford to part with, leaving their own people impoverished and starving.

S e lfis h o r s e lf le s s ?

G e n e ro s ity , ju s t fo r fu n

People often donate time or money for what they believe are selfless reasons, but in truth are just attempts to assuage a guilty conscience, or to fight their way out of a hand-basket to hell. When once I applauded a friend for stopping to give change to a homeless man outside the Milton gates, she replied, "Well I can't exactly brush him off while wearing two hundred dollar boots, listening to a three hundred dollar iPod and drinking a six dollar coffee. I mean I'm selfish, but I can't justify that'.' While shelling out a few coins isn't a very high price for a clear con­ science, some people go so far as to join volunteer organizations in an effort to sleep better at night. Nolan, a hairstylist in Westmount, started spending time at a retirement home every week because his day job "was driving [him] to either a mental

While harder to find and less fun to talk to, there are still those non-cynics who share their spare time and money just because of its intrinsic value. The good people at Generosity.com are most certainly propo­ nents of this behaviour, and have started "The Generosity Game" to prove it Their goal, as outlined on their Web site, is to not only

encourage random acts of kindness between strangers, but to set off a kind of "Mexican Wave" of kindness. This chain reaction is facilitated by the cards they provide on their site, which read, "It's your turn! This is for you! Now it's your turn: go do some­ thing good for someone else. Do it anonymously. Pass on this card." These cards are to be handed to the recipient of the act of kindness, in hopes that he or she will pass it on. By not speci­ fying what the good deed must entail, they hope recipients of the card will be not only more willing to give according to their own means, but free to do something creative.

Though true random acts of kindness are few and far between, their effects are impressive. As I recently boarded an STM bus that was decorated with balloons and streamers, the driver handed me a lollypop when I paid my fare. When I asked the reason, he smiled and answered, "Just because!" I laughed and took my candy, but as I rode home, I noticed something rarely ever witnessed on public transit—every single passenger, without exception, was smiling.

You can be bitter and insist that acts of generosity are noth­ ing but selfish attempts at self-improvement or you can be a relentless optimist and adamantly proclaim that they are per­ formed out of complete altruism and love for humankind.

Whatever the motivation may be, the outcome seems to be the same. As long as people get free candy on their crowded and often dreaded ride home from work, they won't care what the reason is. ■

W o r ld AIDS D ay G iv in g a little o f o u r s e lv e s GENEVIEVE JEN KIN S et ready to add a ribbon to your extensive collection of cause-support flare:-Dec. 1 is World AIDS Day and you should be wearing the Red Ribbon. The World AIDS Day organ­ ization says the ribbon should be worn "as a sign of support for people living with HIV and as a symbol of hope for the future." Like cancer and non-violence, two of the other ribbonsupported causes, AIDS is something that touches all of us, threatens all of us. Unlike cancer and violence, AIDS still has a certain stigma attached to it—remember Philadelphia!—and can make its victims feel alone, ignored or misunderstood in their suffering. At McGill, students have rallied to the cause of World AIDS Day, transforming the Day into an entire week of activ­ ities intended to get the information out to students.

Organized by Vanessa Redditt, U2 International Development Studies, of the McGill Global AIDS Coalition, the week of AIDS information sessions, lectures and documentary screenings concludes with a keynote speaker in Leacock and a candlelight vigil at the steps of the Arts building on Dec. 1, with poetry, spoken word, speeches and music. Planning for the extended World AIDS Day has been underway for months, according to second-year medical student, Rajesh Girdhari. In preparation for the week, Girdhari attended WAD planning meetings and helped find funding and get publicity for events. His hands-on participation: "Repeatedly burn­ ing my fingers with a glue gun making the little red AIDS awareness ribbons."

Despite the bureaucratic roles WAD organizers have taken on in recent months, they're typically more concerned with the human side of AIDS. Girdhari says, "I got involved with WAD because of my interest in global health and previous encounters with HIV/AIDS-afflicted patients throughout the world--in Montreal, Wisconsin, Kenya, Ecuador, China. I wanted to do something to help fight the pandemic now."

Ross Margulies, one of the founders of McGill's Make Poverty History campaign, became involved in World AIDS Day because it fits the agenda of MPH. One of the biggest problems with AIDS/HIV is that it affects developing nations disproportionately. "We could drastically

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change the average lifetime expectancy in the developing world by ending developing coun­ tries' debt, but we haven't done that at all," says Margulies, U2 Joint Honours Political Science and IDS. "Right now, change is stagnant."

Girdhari likewise stresses that not enough has been done about HIV/A1DS and that organ­ izations like WAD help to bring about changes in society. "We need to remember those who have lost their lives to this disease and look at the broad-reaching social, political and econom­ ic consequences of the pandemic," Girdhari says, showing the deep emotional commitment WAD organizers all seem to have. He continues, focusing on the practical issues as well, "HIV/AIDS places incredible strain on communities already burdened by poverty; it goes beyond simply a health issue to one that touches almost every aspect of society. WAD aims to look at the.links between socioeconomic inequities and HIV/AIDS; WAD is a forum that seeks to address all of these issues."

Continuing in a pragmatic but far-reaching vein, MPH and WAD are encouraging students not only to participate in the forum, but also to become personally involved by signing a peti­ tion addressed to Paul Martin and purchasing T-shirts (at cost) that read: "HIV Positive" on the front. 'The point," says Margulies, "is to make people ask, 'What does that mean?' and to help eliminate the terrible stigma still attached to AIDS." McGill students have been very sympathetic to the cause. Says Reddit, "I think a lot of McGill students are interested in AIDS and responsive to ways they can help. However, more voices and action are needed to make our governments listen to this problem and fulfill their commitments to fighting AIDS." With a whole week of activities to garner attention, this year's World AIDS Day will likely draw an even larger crowd than last year when, says Girdhari, over 500 people attended the Dec. 1 candlelight vigil. Margulies expects the vigil to be quite a show: "I think the vigil will be a powerful culminating event. The events of December 1 are definite­ ly the highlights, but I think everyone should at least get out to one event during the week." ■ If you want to learn more about World AIDS Day, look for posters on campus or visit

www.worldaidsday.org where you can read the stories o f AIDS victims and download your Virtual Red Ribbon. iUZt r* * *

the mcgill tribune | 2 9 .11.05 | features 15

What traditions/holidays do you celebrate?

"Catholic traditions: Christmas, Easter, etc."

"Every day that McGill gives me days off for!"

"My birthday—and that's it."

"Diwali, Christmas, Onam, Vishu, Easter and New Year's."

"Eid, Ramadan and all breaks that McGill gives me!"

Have you changed your celebration methods from what you were raised with?

“No, I still do the same celebrations with the same family members!"

"No, because there's nothing like tradition."

“No, I like presents—keep Christmas coming!"

"No, traditions are awesome."

"I just do things on my own, without my family now, but thç same traditions are kept."

EDITORS

What's your favourite memory of the holidays' "Mushroom pierogies—Polish food!" jS "That one Christmas I lost my virginity with ents downstairs..." .^ * ¥ 5 "When my mom cried for a month < "Eating Lindt chocolate while beii Florida." «, "Going to warm cities in the^fibl In one word how describe the holjd^F “Joyous." jd m k f "FREEZIN

" D ru o k ^ w ^ L S s

U NC ENSO RED

All work and no play make editors long for the holidays!

See, we're regular folks, just like you. Asked and answered, the Tribune editorial board shares their innermost thoughts in response to the question, What do you want to accomplish this holiday season?

Adam Myers, Sports Editor: "I want to spend some time with my good buddies—we're all going away together."

Andrew Segal, Managing Editor: "I want to have a good time with my family on our trip to New York, and, I guess, do well on my GREs (I know that last part doesn't have anything to do with the holidays, but I really want it to happen all the same)."

Ben Lemieux, A&E Editor: "When I was younger, I used to use the holiday time off to con­ struct an intricate web of traps around the house to capture Santa... well, try. This year, I'm going to fucking get him. He's grown slow and unalert in his old age..."

Dave Blye, Sports Editor: "I'm going to watch football and generally take it easy."

Genevieve Friesen, Design Editor: "The holiday season, for me, is the time that I get to see my fam­ ily—and also sleep in until school starts again."

Genevieve Jenkins, Features Editor: "Our cross country team has arranged to buy gifts for the chil­ dren in a large, underprivileged family, and we raised about $215 for a gift basket with food, etc. so they can have a nice dinner. Also, my best friend is in the US army, stationed in Iraq, and a lot of people in her platoon don't have friends and family sending them letters and gifts; I've asked my team to write holi­ day letters for the soldiers."

James Gotowiec, News Editor: "I want to go home and earn some money before Christmas, catch up on all the sleep that 8:30 classes have made me miss and spend time with my girlfriend to make up for being in Montreal for the past four months."

Jennifer Jett, Managing Editor: "I want to build or rebuild ties with extended fam ily... but also decompress from the stress of this semester and start looking for a job."

Liz Allemang, Editor-in-Chief: "I would like to get to and from Toronto by train without hours of unexpected delays. This break will be one of joy if I don't cross paths with a single derailment or rerouting through Ottawa. Every year, VIA. Every single year."

Traci Johnson, Copy Editor: "I am going to revel in my time at home, let my grandparents spoil me rotten and get in qualtiy time with the cousins."

Lukas Bergmark, Photo Editor: "This holiday, I would like to read four novels, gain ten pounds and get reacquainted with my dusty old PlayStation and play some Jedi Power Battles multiplayer with my brother. I'm also looking forward to cutting down a Christmas tree with my family and decorating it. I generously plan to allow my parents to fly me home so that they may have O the wonderful gift of having me home for the holidays."

Vladimir Eremin, Photo Editor: “Drinking, snowboarding and more drinking... and then maybe even more drinking. You know: Christmas, New Year1s, Russian Christmas and Russian New Year's! I hope that will keep me busy for a week or two." ■

AMERICAN EAGLE

Marco Avolio, Online Editor: "Three things: finish my honours essay, edit a short film and nor­ malize sleeping patterns. And yes, I will spend some quality time with video games."

Niall Mackay Roberts, News Editor: "I'd like to get all my Christmas shopping done in under six •hours. The mall is a horrible place and the less time I'm there, the less money I'll put myself further into debt. Speaking of which, I'd like for my employer back home to give me a raise."

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Robert Church, News Editor: "I want to go relax in TORONTO with my family, get some skiing in and think up new and; exciting ways to offend more groups at McGill. Next up: white people and how ridiculously pale they are."

Lara Bekhazi, Production Manager: "I want to recover from my most draining semester yet... and get all my summer work, winter courses and job applications in order! Plus tanning and shopping, of course."

Spenser Sproul, Design Editor: "I'd like to take care of my grand­ parents while I’m at home, since I only see them twice a year. I'd also like to catch up with old friends and my siblings. I'd like to be a more helpful part of the Christmas decorating process."

Lise Treutler, Features Editor: "I'm afraid of Toronto. I usually hole up at my mum's for a few days during the holiday season and leave only to visit my father in Mississauga. But this year, I want to get up the courage to face the city and actually see some old friends!"

Tiffany Choy, Design Editor: "Um m ... this holiday season I want to set regular hours of sleep! No, seriously—regular hours of sleep would be good..."

L I V E Y O U R L IF E C o n g r a tu la tio n s , K aren ! F o r b e in g c h o s e n a s A m e ric a n E a g le O u tfitte rs B ra n d A m b a s s a d o r for McGill U niversity.

K a re n h a s d o n e a n e x c e lle n t jo b th ro u g h o u t th e s e m e s t e r of s h o w in g u s h o w you Live Y our Life a t McGill. T h a n k you for all o f y o u r h a rd w ork a n d b e s t of luck in th e fu tu re .

FILM

H a rd t o M atch T he W o o d y

A l l e n film t o

d e f y a ll o t h e r s what he's going through."

For his part (pun intended), Rhys-Myers ( Bend It Like Beckham, Alexander) claims that, despite the various turns and the full gamut of emotions required from his character, the beau­ ty of working in a Woody Allen film is that everything feels like second nature.

"Woody doesn't cast actors with whom he'll have to sit down four hours a day coaxing them into a role," explains RhysMyers. "He'll cast you because he knows you can do the job, and you're 80 per cent the character when you wake up in the morn­ ing. ... Being overtaken by obsession is something I know about.

I have to be obsessed if I want to be successful. There's nothing in Chris that doesn't exist in Jonny."

He adds, in a pleasant moment of candid spontaneity, "Woody would never do what Francis Ford Coppola did in

BEN LEM IEUX

Many people come to forgone conclusions about some of Hollywood's more respected, but occasionally redundant, direc­ tors. We've all grown accustomed to (read: weary of) John Woo's token dove shot preceding the protagonist's climactic trouncing of multiple baddies; Tony Scott's visually abusive overuse of choppy editing and tobacco lens filters; and last but not least, Woody Allen making arguably the same film for the past 30 years.

This year, with the late December release of Match Point, things are going to change. Penned and directed by the celebrat­ ed Brooklyn funnyman, there is little about this film aside from the sporadic touches of markedly Allen-esque dark-meets-absurdist humour that could stylistically link this sombre romance/drama to any production he has manned in the past.

Supporting actor and semi-professional lady-killer Matthew Goode—best known as Mandy Moore's romantic opposite in Chasing L ib erty-says of the legendary comic director, "he actually prefers and loves drama, but he has real problems writing it. He can make it a bit heavy handed sometimes."

Match Point is certainly no exception. Its’ gleeful, light opening and cast of charming, witty and, above all, gorgeous actors, including Scarlett Johanssen and the adorable Emily Mortimer, would seem to signal a lighter, fluffi­ er piece. However, what kicks off with main character Chris Wilton (played with deftness and nuance by Irish heartthrob Jonathan Rhys-Myers) in a fruitful pursuit of romance, stability and all related elements of the "good life," degenerates over the film's two-hour running time into a profoundly shocking story of deceit and the kind of human folly from which people just can't recover.

"I thought from the script, when I first read it, that Jonny's character was meant to be this incredibly charming person," notes Goode. "But [Allen] went about it in a much more complicated way. The audience mem­ bers get to put themselves into the same position, and .even though he plays a Goode and Rhys-Myers—enough enticement to see the film by themselves. deplorable character, you can understand

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Apocalypse Now, and sit down for three weeks talking Marlon

Brando through his role. Woody wouldn't do this! He'd just get someone else who knew what they wer,e doing. Really, he'll be the first to tell you—he's not that dedicated. And at 70-years-old, why would you be?"

And yet, in the golden years of his career—which could eas­ ily be given to the professional path of least resistance—Allen has chosen to abandon all the stylistic and scriptural trademarks from which his career, fame and fortune have stemmed. He has cre­ ated an audacious, intricate,' gloomy and, above all, challenging film—one that could easily create a sense of alienation in one of the most well-established fan bases in Hollywood.

On the issue of the myriad of archetypal expectations sur­ rounding most Allen films, Goode says, "He's been having that problem for a long time. He's such a prolific filmmaker. He's been producing nearly a film every year— there's such pressure on him that, in a sense, he can never really win." The inherent paradox, as Goode so perfectly summarized, is that "People want him to make movies like he has done, and when he does that, people say, 'Ugh. It's exactly the same as Annie Hall' or 'It's always the same format.'"

Though Allen deals with the same themes that underline the bulk of his other work, his treatment of love, deception, lust, indecision and excruciating pangs of guilt in Match Point is a far more visceral and intense depiction of all these things. The plot is well conceived and razor sharp. The characters are as real, their motives as tangible as the person sitting next to I you in the theatre. Unlike in Allen's average, 1 exaggerated neuroses pieces, the vraisem­ blable, fragile human element is the essence of | this film.

"I think it's kind of like a lesson about what happens to you if you don't discipline yourself, keep yourself in check," says Rhys-Myers. "If v ' you're convicted of murder and you spend 50 years in jail, well, you've got a chance at parole. jm How could you be paroled from yourself? From I knowing deep, deep down inside your heart ■MB that you've done something wrong" ARTE-TV.COM How, indeed? ■ Match Point opens Dec. 25.

CANVAS

Throw the w ho down the well?

STEPHANIE BAUDHUIN lad in dusty jeans and ten-gallon hats, the crowd at a generic American country music club echoes the words of "Borat" as he sings on stage: "Throw the Jew down the well/so my country can be freed (so my country can be freed)." But the joke isn't necessarily on them.

Sacha Baron Cohen, aka Ali G, is a renowned British comedian, scaling his way up to the American "comedy elite." Playing a variety of characters on the Showtime hit Da Ali C Show, he stages fake interviews in which he mocks the clueless guests, or should I say "guinea pigs," with outrageous or asinine questions. For some, his antics are "innocent and funny," but they are nonetheless made up of misogynistic and anti-Semitic comments.

Through the character "Borat," a Kazakh journalist seeking to understand America, Cohen seems to use peo­ ple typified as "rednecks" to prove that anti-Semitism exists in what many have come to know as one of the

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most democratic and egalitarian societies in the world.

For Borat's musical debut, Cohen chose his audience deliberately. The club patrons fit the redneck stereotypewhite, rural Americans, presumed functionally illiterate, with conservative tendencies provoking them to fear the "un-American." In the video, it appears as though their "Other" of the day is the Jew. Thus, the educated "come­ dy elite" can further revel in the ignorance and antiSemitism of the American South.

When taking into account the highly sardonic nature of Cohen's song—given that he himself is Jewish—it's easy to reach the same conclusion. He set a trap he was sure the prey would fall for—treating public reaction as a for­ gone conclusion. Might he be instinctively expecting ene­ mies where there might not necessarily be any?

I am dubious of the notion that Cohen's faux demonstration of anti-Semitism drew many genuine reac­ tions. When closely examining the clip—available on vari■ ** *%■

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ous Web sites, including www.campchaos.com—you'll quickly realize only the minority is singing/clapping, while others seem offended and miffed. Ultimately, to the majority of the public, Borat and his song appear as noth­ ing more than a distasteful joke, erroneously interpreted as valid proof of anti-Semitism.

Many of us, somehow like those in the video, laugh at contemporary comedians like Cohen. We are enter­ tained by stereotypes such as Borat—who largely misrep­ resents Kazakh citizens and has provoked threats of legal action from the Kazakhstan Foreign Ministry—because we understand they represent ironic and extreme behaviour.

Even though some in the video are cheering, they seem more likely to have taken the performance as a joke than to have used it as an occasion to express their antiSemitic views. The point is, comedians like Cohen can never be sure whether their audience recognizes the irony or truly finds the joke funny at face value. ■

the mcgill tribune | 11.29.05 | a&e 17

FILM

P u re as th e d riv en slush I n d ie film

tr e k s th ro u g h

—

Pure, an independent work by K. Amérique and local director Jim Donavan, was filmed in Montreal. It tells the story of Misha, who is desperately trying to get her life together in order to escape her uninspiring job and the city in which she lives. Hoping to start school, Misha tries to curb her love for the after-hours underworld. But when she and her friend Josh finally take off and arrive in down­ town Montreal, Misha ends up introducing him to the world of trance music, ecstasy and walking home at eight in the morning.

Josh has a deep secret: "My mind plays tricks on me sometimes," he tells Misha early in the film. Wait, make that two secrets, because it isn't long before he starts falling hard for Misha, which only makes her life more complicated. She's already in an entanglement involving her best friend's ex-boyfriend and a hot young bouncer whom she once dated.

She still wants to go to school and get her life in order, but with each passing moment it becomes harder and harder. The club scene calls with temptations and prospects that just won't leave Misha alone.

What's more, her expected grant money falls through.

There's only one word for the club scenes: seductive. Pure depicts the club scene and the after-hours underworld in an invit­ ing and tantalizing way—it makes youT/vant to be there. As producer Vito Balenzano commented, "The director wanted to depict the envi­ ronment, the setting, the people— what really goes on in those night clubs. ... We have something spe­ cial here in Montreal; nowhere else you go is quite like it."

If you have never been to an after-hours club. Pure is the perfect movie to sell you on the idea. The film exposes a whole part of MONTREALMIRROR.COM Montreal that is waiting to be expe­ rienced and that few people know Misha and Josh-living and loving in the fast lane of Montreal's trance scene. about.

Furthermore, the dilemma

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O. Unsurprisingly, given its name, The Beautiful Country is imbued with spectacular shots of landscape. The title refers to both Vietnam and America, the two countries spanned by the narra­ tive, which centres around a kid named Binh. The son of a Vietnamese moth­ er and an American soldier who promptly took off after the war, Binh is a tall, pale outcast in Vietnam. Seeing no other choice, he links up with his younger half-brother and a Chinese prostitute played by Bai Ling, and boards a dilapi­ dated refugee ship for America to look for his father. Every single review of this movie gives away the ending, so beware.

Photography. Emp/re-Canadian Centre for Architecture-1920 Baile— opens Dec. 8 For centuries, architecture has been one of the hallmarks of a highlystructured, strong, powerful society. The Greeks had their fancy-columned temple, the Romans had their aqueducts and the Coliseum ... and now America's made its mark by clustering skyscrapers in every urban centre.

Empire explores this connection by juxtaposing photographs of Washington, D.C. by photographer John Gossage with pictures of surviving Egyptian archi­ tectural relics taken by Hermann Vogel in 1868. Call 939-7026 for more infor­ mation.

Theatre. Crime and Punishment—Ludger-Duvernay Theatre—1182 StLaurent-Dec. 13-17—8 p.m.

Director Alexandre Marine is renowned for his overwhelmingly individual interpretations of old classics. He takes plays in danger of growing stale from age and makes them profoundly his own. Seeing his MO applied to Dostoyevsky's story of the aftermath of a murder should be interesting. On top of the skilled writing in the original, which touches on ideas of guilt, twist­ ed logic and revenge, Marine's contributions are bound to add a few extra lay­ ers. Call 871-2224 for tickets.

Music. The Dandy Warhols—Spectrum—318 Ste-Catherine O .-D ec. 2 I once asked my friend Adrian whether the Dandy Warhols' third album, Thirteen Tales From Urban Bohemia, was any good. He thought for a good two minutes before answer­ ing in the affirmative. The dilemma comes from the fact that every single song on said album sounds like a rip-off of a dif­ ferent band. So, they're derivative and unfocused, but write great songs in a myriad of different styles. I think that's good. Plus, the single "Bohemian Like You" is as infectious as bird flu, except much more fun. Doors open at 8 p.m.

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SCIENCE

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MELISSA PRICE Physics students at McGill are few, strong and deter­ mined. It takes a stronger will than most to slog through pages of equations in order to work out properties of largely theoretical particles. This is probably why my mandatory introductory physics courses in first year had the population density of Nunavut by the third week of class: Like me, a lot of people decided to stay home and try to puzzle everything out on their own time.

Imagine my surprise, then, when I showed up for Dr. Brian Greene's talk last Monday and found Leacock 132 packed to the gills. To the gills. If a fire had broken out, we would have been doomed. People filled all the seats, all the areas around the seats, parts of the stairwells and every square foot on the stage not already occupied by Greene himself.

Suffice it to say, the lecture was quite well attended.

What's more, the audience was a diverse mix, consisting of both bearded professor-types and students of every ilk.

They were not to be disappointed.

Greene, a professor at Columbia University, is the author of The Elegant Universe and The Fabric o f the Cosmos, two books exploring the nature of the universe.

He is also one of the foremost physicists working on

string theory, which, to make a long story extremely short, is an attempt to answer the question of what the universe "is." He's been blessed by the fact that he is both mindbogglingly intelligent and a dear, captivating speaker. Over the course of his talk, he set down the basis for our cur­ rent understanding of the universe, from Newton's gravi­ tational equations to Einstein's theory of general relativity, pausing periodically to present stunning, computer-ani­ mated visual aids demonstrating how massive bodies warp the fabric of space-time. He then moved on to the completely theoretical terrain of string theory.

To put it simply, string theory suggests that the most basic elements of the universe—the smallest indivisible particles of which everything is made—are "strings" of energy that vibrate in different ways, kind of like cosmic spaghetti. Of course, there's a gargantuan amount of math to support this idea, but Greene didn't get into any of that, and it's a testament to his skills as a speaker that, based only on an hour-long talk, we still sort of got it. It was the kind of talk that causes you to catch yourself star­ ing at walls the next day and thinking about quarks.

One more thing: As Greene was leaving the stage, I heard a girl behind me comment, "He's hot" "Yeah," her friend agreed. "He's so freaking smart" My faith in humanity is renewed. ■

compiled by Melissa Price

Film. The Beautiful C ountry-now playing at various theatres, including the AMC Forum at 2313 Ste-Catherine

M o n t r e a l 's w ild s i d e that Misha faces is easy to relate to: finding the balance between work and play. "Everybody faces that question in their lives," says Balenzano. "People can say, 'I remember being there' or they can say, 'I'm going through that right now; I love what I'm doing, but there has got to be more.'

The main character has to figure out what she w ants... with a bit of moderation."

All in all, Pure is as pure as it gets when it comes to the characters and their timeless problems of love, dreams and reality, not to mention the authentic afterhours soundtrack. It captivated audiences at all of the fes­ tivals in which it was featured, and was nominated for Best Director by the Directors Guild of Canada, which is no small feat for a film by an independent Montreal direc­ tor.

If you want to see the movie, which has already left theatres after a two-week stint, watch out for its rumoured run at Cinema du Parc (3575 du Parc), as well as its DVD release in February. For more information, or to listen to some of the hottest trance music out there, visit www.purethemovie.com. ■

SAN A YUSUF

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THEATRE

a&e | 2 9 .11.05 | the mcgill tribune

A re th e y kidding?

MUSIC

T h e B o o k o f Bless

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LEAN N E KILR O Y In the glittery darkness of Montreal's hip Wunderbar, a short, pasty guy in a black suit walked around, shaking hands and talk­ ing emphatically with guests at the launch of The Book o f Bless, the latest album from Montreal artist Bless. It took a while to real­ ize that this was the man of the hour, MC Bless—a growing star in the North American hip-hop scene. Once he had control of the mic, there was no mistaking it—Bless is on the rise.

With the title of Montreal's premier hiphop artist firmly under his belt, Bless did not seem to mind being introduced as "the little guy him self at Tuesday's launch of his first independent album, released Nov. 1.

Nobody noticed his short stature once he had a mic in his hand and his charismatic personality flooded the room along with his music. Fortunately for Bless, his lack of height has also not prevented him from becoming a veritable success by the age of 21. Having caught the break-dancing bug at age eight, he was recording tracks in the stu­ dio by the tender age of 12. At age 16, the Montreal native had already earned a repu­ tation in the city's hip-hop scene.

"I never did anything else with my life," he explained to the pumped-up crowd at the launch. "I can't program a VCR or use the Internet, but goddammit I can rap." And rap he does—despite the fact that he's a skinny white boy and his young age, Bless has played sold-out venues across Canada and is the first Canadian to be featured in a Def Jam video game (alongside such hiphop greats as Snoop Dogg, Busta Rhymes and Sean Jean). He has even launched his own record label, Platinumberg Entertainment.

Some of the 14 tracks on The Book o f Bless, such as "Me, Myself and I" and "Keep Rising," are token egomaniacal ballads with catchy backup vocals and riffs. However, Bless doesn't miss an opportunity to preach (no pun intended). In his next single, "Somethin' Missing," he tries to "spread a lit­ tle love around, cause that's what's missing from music today... that's what's missing from the world." Is Bless what's been miss­ ing from your world? If so, you can find just about all the information you could ever want at www.bookofbless.com. Don't let his appearance fool you and don't say you weren't warned—this little guy is going to make it big. ■

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Seven Valleys. He translated parts of the text into

A RIELA W EIN BACH

music and added sounds of rain, solar wind storms and FMRI brain wave data. He is a talent­ Marty and Wendy Quinn adapted The Seven Valleys by Bahé'u'lléh to the stage in order ed drummer, but his singing is extremely unim­ to make the dense text accessible to all audi­ pressive and sounds like drawn out talking. In ences. Bahé'u'lléh was the prophet founder of one particularly bizarre sequence in the Valley of the Bé'hal faith. He wrote The Seven Valleys in Love, he plays tablas and sings along with the 1855 as a response to a request to explain the recorded music while being "dissolved in the fire pathway to Cod. The Quinns present the text in of love."

The Quinns' intention of bringing a 19ththe context of two lovers' journey to find each century sacred text to a 21st-century audience other and the essence of God. Unfortunately, their attempts at dramatization only further through contemporary dance, music, art work and theatrical convention was a noble undertak­ ensconce the text's meaning.

The lovers travel through the Valleys of ing. However, the final production is overly dramatized, poorly staged and awkwardly per­ Search, Love, Knowledge, Unity, Contentment, ■ formed.

The brain wave data is a nice touch, Wonderment, and True Poverty and Absolute Nothingness. Each valley represents a quality of though. ■ God and a spiritual stage human beings mustCall the Centaur Theatre Box Office at 288pass through on their way to finding God. All of the dialogue comes directly from the text, recit­ 3161 for more information. ed in the form of conversation between the lovers and as monologues.

Images from the text are painted on silk sheets attached to frames on wheels and serve as "doors" to the valleys. During the dance sequences choreographed by Wendy Quinn, the Quinns drag, spin and fling these doors around the stage. The dancing is inappropriately timed and the movements are obscure. It is often diffi­ cult to understand how the Quinns can keep straight faces during the positively ludicrous dance routines.

Marty Quinn has developed a method of transforming data into music, and he used this LUKAS BERGMARK method when he composed the score of The

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the mcgill tribune | 2 9 .11.05 | a&e 19

B O O K S

R E V I E WS

T h e b e lle -p ro ’s b e s t Q W F

c e le b ra te s

LAUREN CONSKY Attendees at the 2005 Quebec Writer's Foundation Awards at Lion D'Or on Wednesday seemed down­ right effervescent. These amiable lit­ erary types from the Quebec arts community came out in a show of support for largely unrecognized Anglophone writing. This year's awards are especially significant, as they coincide with Montreal's desig­ nation by the United Nations Educational Scientific and Cultural Organization as the 2005 Book Capital of the World.

Tracy McKee from Montreal's Global Television hosted the awards, where three nominees were announced from five categories: The QWF Translation Prize; the A.M. Klein Prize for Poetry; The Mavis Gallant Prize for Non-Fiction; The McAuslan First Book Prize and the Hugh MacLennan Prize for Fiction.

McGill's own Marci Denesiuk shared the McAuslan First Book Prize for her book, The Far Away Home (NeWest Press), with Dimitri Nasrallah. Jurors awarded the prize

E n g l i s h Q u e b e c ’s l i t e r a t u r e

to Denesiuk for her memorable characters, attention to detail and ability to make each story lift off the page. "[This novel is] beautifully writ­ ten, by understatement and indirec­ tion creating powerful moments of recognition," elaborated jurist Anna Asimakopulos.

Other winners included Fred A. Reid for his translation of Truth or Death: The Quest for Immortality in the Western Narrative Tradition

(Talonbooks), Erin Moure for her poetry in Little Theatres (House of Anasi Press), Fred Bruemmer for his autobiographical work Latvia in Survival: A Refugee Life (Key Porter Books), and Neil Bissouundath—a more established CanadianTrinidadian writer—for his fictional work, The Unyielding Clamour o f the Night (Cormorant Books).

Sherwin Tjia, former "Hipless Boy" columnist for the McCill Daily and creator of the Pedigree Girls car­ toon strip, was also short-listed for his "pseudo-haiku" collection The World is a Heartbreaker (Coach House Books), a book that contains 1,600 easily digestible three-line poems. Although he didn't win, he

didn't look too upset chatting with fans near the bar.

"You know, judges are fickle," Tjia explained. "I wrote a very weird book. I'm surprised it made the shortlist. ... I've got poems about the beauty of a shit stain on a tissue.

Judges can't say, 'We gave an award to a person who writes about wiping their ass.'" True—but his work still managed to turn a few heads.

This evening also underscored the importance of recognizing English-language writers in Quebec, as there are more from this province than Mordecai Richler and Leonard Cohen.

The prize, which consisted of $2,000 and a plaque, may not be as prestigious as others in Canada—like the recent Governor General's award—but that's beside the point "When the rest of Canada thinks of Quebec writers, they don't think of a community of more than a million people who speak English," explained QWF President Ian Ferrier. "[Our job] is to point out the good people writing here [in Quebec] for future recognition in the rest of Canada." ■

A lu m n i A s s o c ia tio n c o rd ia lly in v ite s

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John Mayer Trio. Try! It doesn't take a musical genius to understand that the bulk of John Mayer's studio work up until now—though it sent two back-to-back albums soaring into platinum territory—was lyrically vapid, sonically uninven­ tive and ultimately lacklustre in every respect What the majority of music listeners fail to take into consideration— probably because it isn't among his heavily publicized traits—is that Mayer is one of the best guitarists of the 21st century. No, I'm not kidding. The tragedy of Mayer's career may have been his loss of self amidst the money, the Grammys and the horde of impressionable teenage beauties who doubtless fling themselves at his feet after each show. The result is that he may never be remembered, as he deserves to be, as the Eric Clapton, Johnny Winter or Stevie Ray Vaughan of his generation. Try!, recorded in Chicago's iconic House of Blues earlier this year, is Mayer's saving grace. The cover does not feature the prototypical glam shot of a generic handsome pop star on the rise, but dark lettering noting nothing more than the band members' names. The liner notes are simple, reminiscent of producers' comments on the inner jacket of an old Columbia jazz record. Then there's the music. Try! kicks off with the vibrant, up-tempo funk-influenced "Who Did You Think I Was?" before delving into the depths of R&B pop with a com­ manding cover of Hendrix's "Wait Until Tomorrow" and digging to the very core of blues with "Out of my Mind,” "Daughters" and Ray Charles' eternal "I Got a Woman." The rhythm section, composed of renowned session bassist Pino Palladino and Blues Brothers drummer Steve Jordan, is steady and consistently inventive, while Mayer's guitar solos are fresh, meaty and display a breathtaking virtuosity that'll rock your socks all night long. This is merely the beginning.

Crazy Frog. Crazy Frog Presents... Crazy Hits.

There are some things in this world that are beyond sub­ jective. It's difficult to get away with wearing too much brown. Stalin was an utterly deplorable and profoundly apathetic human being. If you derive any enjoyment from listening to Crazy Frog, you are, categorically, a mental midget. That's just the way things are.

Trio Daniel Lessard. Pas-à-Pas. Everyone who speaks of Montreal's music scene is referring to a recent indie rock trend. But what about the jazz scene? All too often we forget that our fine city is the home of legends such as Oscar Peterson, Charlie Biddle, Leroy Mason and Johnny Scott, as well as McGill and Vanier College—which boast two of the finest jazz performance programs around. The latest addition to the fine, established Montreal tradition of smooth jazz is the Daniel Lessard Trio's Pas-à-Pas: a fluid, soothing, dreamy cross between swing, rumba and cooler-than-cool jazz, as well as a success­ ful experiment with the unusual piano/bass/guitar trio format. The record's nine tracks are a fine harmony of original songs composed by each of the Trio's members and true-blue classics by the likes of George Gershwin and Sye Coleman. Each song is approached with the ingenuity and liveliness of Lessard's piano, Jonathan Braën's steady, rhythmic bass and McGill alumnus Carlos Jimenez's warm, intimate guitar tones—reminiscent of the great Jim Hall or Ottawa's own Jake Langley. A thoroughly enjoyable listen from start to finish.

H

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compiled by Ben Lemieux

From First to Last. D ear Diary, M y Teen Angst Has a Bodycount. Ever since Curl Up And Die's 'You'd Be Cuter If

I Shot You in the Face," it seems like screamo bands keep trying to outdo each other with ironic song titles. With titles such as "I Liked You Better Before You Were Naked on the Internet" on From First to Last's track listing, it's hard not to think that you've heard all of this before. Trust Epitaph, though: They rarely sign bad bands. D ear Diary is almost refreshing to hear, standing out among the recent slew of generic screamo bands. FFTL sounds like Thrice meets I Am The Avalanche. Tracks range from sweet and senti­ mental to hard and heavy, each song holding its own. Sentimental and intro­ spective lyrics, multiple singers all sounding broken hearted, heavy guitar, acoustic guitar—what else could you want from a screamo band? Double bass? Got that too. Word on the street is that these guys put on a crazy live show, and after listening to the CD, it's hard to expect anything less. Dear Diary offers high hopes for their upcoming show at El Salon. Noteworthy songs are "Note to S e lf and "Dead Baby Shakedown (Bonus Track)." The former is available for listen on www.epitaph.com —Dan Pujdak

C om e on o u t a n d t a k e th a t w ell-d eserved study b re a k . F u n tim es w ith friends w ill d efin itely recharge y o u r batteries!

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From First to Last w ill p la y live D ec I a t El Salon (4 3 8 8 St-Laurent).

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W e ’ve said it before and w e’ll say it again: agai Features wants you! N ot in a romantic, nandnc holding, borderline sexy. way— it’ll be strict!) t iy professional (unless you like that o th er stuff, floozy).

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a&e | 29.11.05 | the mcgill tribune

THEATRE

T h ra sh in g gay-bashing P la y e x a m i n e s in f a m o u s h o m o p h o b i c ELIZABETH CAM PBELL In 1998, Laramie, Wyoming bore witness to the bru­ tal assault of Matthew Sheppard, a young gay college stu­ dent who was beaten, tied to a fence and left for dead in a field by two young townsmen. The event shocked the country. Just days after the attack, actors from the New York-based Tectonic Theater Project went to Wyoming to talk to Laramie residents. Over the next year, they collect­ ed more than 200 interviews from the townspeople. The Laramie Project is the result of their efforts.

The play, which opens at Players' Theatre on World AIDS Day this Thursday, sets out to show the different reactions of the people of Laramie during the tragedy, which spanned far beyond the evening of the attack. The characters include both Tectonic actors and the citizens of the town. Julianna Cammarata, whose roles include the deputy who first found Sheppard, insists that the play passes no judgment on the situation. "[The play] really lays it out—not just the facts, but the emotional facts," she explains. "It lets the audience sort it out." The dialogue comes straight from the interviews, and the characters are all real people.

The production is minimalist, with a modest set and only a few articles of clothing to distinguish one character from another, but the actors' performances clearly convey the heavy subject matter. Of note is Jason Stroud's re­ enactment of David Sheppard's renowned speech exon­ erating one of his son's attackers from the death penalty.

What The Laramie Project represents is theatre with a

c rim e

purpose; the production has pledged all of its proceeds to AIDS Community Care Montreal. Actor Marc Goldfinger finds The Laramie Project extremely powerful. "It reflects gay values and homophobia. It's all a mosaic of different opinions and feelings and this play shows all the angles."

Indeed, director Liz Singh believes that the strength of this play is that it provokes people to openly discuss important issues. "It embodies everything that I believe about theatre having a role to play in the community," she says. With strength and substance, The Laramie Project will not leave you indifferent. ■ The Laramie Project runs Dec. 1-3 and 9-10 a t 8 p.m. and Dec. 3 and 10 at 2 p.m. Call 792-5283 for tickets.

LUKAS BERGMARK

Sparsely decorated but never lacking depth-77je Laram ie Project.

EU-Canada Y oung J o u rn a list Award Students are invited to enter by February 10,2006

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Win a trip to E urope F o r f u r th e r in fo rm a tio n a b o u t th e Y o u n g J o u rn a lis t A w a rd C o n ta c t: ( 6 1 3 ) 2 3 8 - 6 4 6 4 in f o @ e u c a n y ja .c a w w w .e u c a n y ja .c a 'MIEUISt B S U H l mil :®riimyMi..TMiti «ira »

the mcgill tribune | 2 9 .11.05 [ a&e 2 1

H a v e y o u b e e n a b a d b o y th is y e a r?

W rite fo r A&E. a rts @ m c g illtrib u n e .c o m

G o t m u lticu ltu ral soul?

Vanderpark— strength in diversity Continued from cover.

Downward dog

of sunshine pop, reggae, blues, funk and straight-up, uncompromising, downright catchy rock 'n' roll—all in a tightly-wound delivery that is guaranteed to keep feet tap­ ping all night long.

To encapsulate the variety of styles and dynamics that enter into the band, singer/guitarist Dave Stulberg explains, "We all come from different places in Canada, we all come from culturally different backgrounds, and everyone brings in their own style and their musical influences to the table.

So we may be playing a pop-rock song, but I have no prob­ lem throwing reggae in there, so long as it fits the tune."

Though the lads of Vanderpark have been around for ages, it is only recently that their act has seriously begun to pick up speed. With the nationwide launch of their debut album A ll Your Hands, the band reaches exponentially more ears across Canada with every tour date.

"We've had some ups and downs recently with the issue of having to find a new drummer—that's a really big blockade," Wong says of Vanderpark's inactivity over the past months. Though clearly jovial and passionate about his. music, he observes with a more pragmatic tone, "You can't work on your promotion as much as you would like to if you're static. If there's no ability to play a show, there's no product to sell. That's our goal now. We have our new drummer, he knows our tunes, he sounds good with' us.

We're going to go as hard as we can from here on out, hopefully visit Montreal more often."

Judging by the audience's reaction to one of the band's few stops back home since their return to Toronto, they wouldn't mind a few more visits either. ■ Catch Vanderpark a t McGill's SnowAP in January. All Your Hands is available from www.vanderpark.com or in most music stores.

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sp o rts B A S K E T B A L L — R E D M EN

SEASON

PREVIEW

Y oung R e d m e n rem ain c o n fid e n t C a g e r s s till h o p i n g f o r g r e a t t h i n g s d e s p i t e f o u r l o s s e s , k e y in ju r y CHRIS MACLEAN The cast of McGill's men's basketball team is noticeably dif­ ferent from previous years, and considering that the squad went just 2-12 last year when it was led by now-departed stars Derek Armstrong and Denburk Reid, you could excuse Head Coach Craig Norman if he was willing to write off the season. But even though the Redmen feature 10 rookies, have lost four straight games to start the regular season and are now missing their best big man, Norman still believes his players can accomplish some­ thing in 2005-06.

'This is definitely a rebuilding year and as we are reshaping McGill's basketball program; there will be some growing pains," Norman said. "The process doesn't happen overnight. However, we are definitely not writing off this season. This is a great firstyear class that we have; they just need a chance to grow togeth­ er, and I really believe they could be a special group. They have great work ethic, remarkable resilience and they work incredibly hard in practice. I believe that we are one game away from breaking out, and if we just stick with it, the success will come."

So far, though, the Redmen haven't accomplished much, and Friday's 74-62 loss to Bishop's at Love Competition hall was a consummate example. McGill began the night with a lot of energy, running up a 13-6 lead seven minutes into the game.

But they couldn't sustain the momentum, and Bishop's—led by 6'8" centre Jeff Szita, who scored his team's first 13 points and 28 in the game—went on a 14-2 run over the final four minutes of the first half leaving the score 34-31 at the break.

In the second half, the game picked up tempo, as both teams went into run and gun mode. This favoured the Gaiters, who started the second half with a 20-6 run by way of their out­ side shooting. While third-year guard Chris Horwood and sec­ ond-year point man JP Begly—considered veterans on this extremely young team—tried to spark a comeback, Bishop's responded by raining threes, keeping the Red 'n' White at bay.

Norman, who before coming to McGill rebuilt the Royal Military College's basketball program and took the Paladins to the brink of the national championship two years ago, took notice of his veterans' play.

"Begly and [third-year guard Daniel] Martin have shown tremendous leadership as captains this year," he said. "They set a great example in practice day in and day out. Horwood played courageously tonight He was aggressive and tenacious, every­ thing you want in a player. The first-years need to pick up on

THE

RED

that."

Redmen not running for full 40 In their first four games of the season, the Redmen have shown a tendency to keep things close for the first half of the game before fading away in the second half. Norman believes that the team's youth has lot to do with this.

"This is a really tough conference, and we are by far the youngest team in it," he noted. "Against Laval the other night we had 10 guys who were younger than their youngest guy. To make the jump from high school ball to CIS is a huge transition for these first-years. It's really like a baptism by fire, but if they stick it out, they will have success."

However, Norman does take some solace from the fact that the Redmen aren't being blown out of the water from the start.

'These guys have shown that they can compete with any­ one; they just haven't been able to do it for the full 40 minutes yet," he said. "Once they learn to compete at this level for the full 40 minutes, which will happen eventually, you're going to see some wins. I will admit there's some frustration with the results, but underneath we are really improving a lot."

Second-year starter Sean Anthony made a similarly opti­ mistic assessment.

"The way this conference is set up, with four out of the five teams making the playoffs, means that it favours whoever gets hot at the end," Anthony said. "We are improving by so much every game, other teams will level off, but with our young guys, we can only continue to improve.”

control the boards a lot more than we did today, and allows us to do a lot of other things."

Undoubtedly, the loss of Lamoureux is going to hurt the Redmen in their upcoming games. However, it also means more playing time for a young core of players of whom Coach Norman is incredibly proud. If they can continue to progress, the Redmen—with Lamoureux back at the pivot—could surprise a lot of people at the end of the season. ■

Big injury to best big man sets Redmen back The Redmen might take a while longer to hit that peak, though, as they received some bad news in the middle of Friday's game. Starting centre Olivier Lamoureux—who had led the Redmen with 10 points—had to leave the game after falling hard on his non-shooting wrist while attempting to finish a drive to the bucket with a dunk with just two minutes left in the first half. Shortly after the contest, the Redmen learned Lamoureux, who just transfered from the University of Massachusetts, had suffered several fractures to his wrist. He underwent surgery on Saturday and will be out for at least six weeks.

"It was pretty obvious in the first half of the game what the absence of Olivier in the middle means to us," Norman told the Gazette following Saturday's 85-71 loss at Concordia, the team's first game without Lamoureux. "Having him there helps us to

VLADIMIR EREMIN

Redmen can't step back from an 0-4 start.

ZO N E

McGill athletes hurt by one man’s stubbornness ADAM MYERS journalist's job is not quite as simple as just reporting the news. Every day, journalists must make important decisions about how to report the news and who will be affected by the public exposure. We often must weigh our loyalties against the public's right to meaningful information.

As the sports editor for the Tribune, and of course a stu­ dent of McGill, I have recently been caught in a bind.

Throughout the semester, information has surfaced that has caused me to consider the ethics behind reporting the news.

I was tom between exposing information that portrayed McGill Athletics very negatively and my duty, as a journalist representing thè student body, to report on the questionable operations of the athletics administration.

Aside from the negative press McGill Athletics received from the hazing scandal—and deservedly so—I wrote a story on Oct. 25 examining life for an athlete on a low-profile team at this university. The story consisted of reactions from both a member of the tennis team and Athletic Director Derek Drummond, with each given the opportunity to explain their side of a funding dispute. This story, however, did not sit well with Earl Zukerman, McGill's sports information director and athletics webmaster. Zukerman, believing the story was a personal shot at him, decided to act his shoe size rather than

A

his age and revoke the Tribune's press credentials for Redmen and Martlets games. My attempts to mend this rift with Zukerman have resulted in him yelling into the phone and hanging up on me.

As the only campus paper with a sports section, the Tribune prides itself on giving the athletes of McGill muchdeserved coverage. In a big city like Montreal, the profession­ al media prefer to cover professional sports, leaving the Trib as the sole outlet reporting on the vast majority of McGill's teams. By rescinding our paper's press credentials, Zukerman has decided that he, himself, is bigger than the athletes and more important than the sports we attempt to cover. This is an extremely childish move by a person whose job is to assist the media in giving McGill Athletics positive coverage.

Equally ashamed should be Professor Drummond. As AD, we expect more from him than we do from Zukerman, yet he has not risen to the occasion. Instead of helping to repair the relationship between our section and McGill Athletics, he has sat idly by, while many McGill teams and athletes have lost out on coverage.

So my apologies go out to all the athletes at McGill.

Having the ability to play a sport at the CIS level is truly a

remarkable feat that should not go unnoticed. But, because of Zukerman's self-righteous actions, we have not been able to provide the coverage that they have warranted. Likewise, I feel badly that the students and athletes' family members who read this paper have lost out on important information about the teams that we all should support as members of the McGill community.

But ultimately, we have to stick to our principles, and that involves covering stories in an unbiased, accurate man­ ner. This means that when the athletic department has con­ ducted itself inappropriately, it will be portrayed negatively in these pages, even when there might be consequences.

It is very unfortunate when highly educated people like Professor Drummond fail to understand this notion, and let goofballs like Zukerman ban the press from athletic events.

They are both forgetting that this is not about me, but about the students and the athletes who are entitled to read about McGill sports in the school paper. So long as Zukerman wants to stubbornly and selfishly continue with his personal vendetta against me and the Tribune, athletes and students lose out. McGill Athletics' reaction to this has been abysmal, but considering the department's handling of the hazing scandal, I am not at all surprised. ■

H A Z I N G

S C A N D A L

the mcgill tribune | 29.11.05 j sports 2 3

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fine, home posteason ban

ADAM MYERS Much as McGill might like it to, the hazing scandal that hung over the university and its football team for the first semester just won't fade away.

On Monday, the next chapter was written as the members of the university sector commission of the Quebec Student Sport Federation handed down sanc­ tions to be placed on McGill in regards to the Redmen's forfeiture of the final two games of the foot­ ball season. McGill received penalties that will affect the administration this year and the football team and its members two years into the future.

"The sanctions handed down against McGill include an approximate fine of $30,000 that will be handed down by the QSSF," the Quebec conference's press release read. 'This amount includes the reim­ bursement of the expenses and loss of revenues of universities affected by the withdrawal of McGill, the additional production costs caused by the change of venue of the televised game of October 22nd, as well as an amount determined in the administrative and technical rules and regulations of the QSSF university sector for any case of withdrawal.

"McGill will not be able to have a Quebec confer­ ence home game televised for the 2006 and 2007 seasons," it continued. "McGill will not be able to host a Quebec conference playoff game for the 2006 sea­ son. The football team will also be subjected to a one year probationary period during which it must not break any administrative QSSF rule or regulation."

In addition, should the Redmen make the playoffs in 2006, they would be unable to take part in the con­ ference's revenue sharing. McGill will also have to pro­ vide the QSSF with the student-athlete code of ethics and commitment forms signed by its players and coaches for the 2006 season.

The final sanctions were handed down after a del­ egation representing the QSSF met with McGill officials

on Nov. 16. The QSSF then met again on Nov. 23 and unanimously decided to enforce the sanctions. Tom Allen, commissioner of the Quebec University Football League, which falls under the jurisdiction of the QSSF, noted that the conference felt that McGill should have to be held accountable for its actions.

'The financial part of the sanctions is to compen­ sate the institutions loss of revenue because of McGill's decision to forfeit," Allen explained. "Because of [McGill's] decision to forfeit, we felt there should be some competitive sanctions. Depending on where they finish it could be a competitive sanction against the team."

Allen noted that the sanctions related only to the administration's decision to cancel the final two games of the season. He made it clear that they had nothing to do with the hazing itself, or how McGill dealt with it.

"Our sanctions have nothing to do with the situa­ tion at McGill," he said. "It is an academic issue. These sanctions are a result of the ramifications of the pro­ gram for forfeiting the season."

“I think people have to understand that iTsmot so much about the sanctions," Allen added. 'The league is very supportive of McGill and the actions they have taken in terms of their handling of the situation. The league is 100 percent behind McGill."

McGill had faced some criticism—from the hazing victim, his father and the media—for taking too long to react to the allegations and only canceling the season once the 1-5 Redmen had been eliminated from .the playoffs.

Football Head Coach Chuck McMann said that he was unable to discuss any of the penalties handed down—including the potential loss of a home playoff game should the Redmen be eligible for one—on a directive of Jennifer Robinson, the universit/s associ­ ate vice-principal (communications). Robinson could not be reached for comment.

IMAGES

BOX

SCORE

Bishop's 74 @ McGill 62 Saturday, Nov. 26 at Love Competition Hall SCORE BY PERIODS: Bishop's 34 40 - 74 McGill 3131-62 STATISTICAL LEADERS: Points: Bishop's: Szita (7-11 1418) 28, Nicolas (5-7 0-0 15).

M:cGill: Begly (5-11 2-2) 14, Lamoureux (4-6 2-2) 10, Horwood (4-6 0-0)

10.

REBOUNDS: Bishop's 25 (McCooyee 7).

McGill 28 (Letourneau 9).

ASSISTS: Bishop's 6 (McCooyee 2).

We were going to profile Olivier Lamoureux of the Redmen basketball team, but he broke his arm during this play in Friday's game. Sorry.

McGill 5 (five players with one each).

MOHIT ARORA

I t's been an ugly week in sports, hasn't it? The NHL went through a rough time, with the players union beginning to unravel after the sketchy confirmation of Ted Saskin as its head honcho, followed closely by McGill Chancellor Dick Pound doing his best Jose Canseco impression and accusing a third of the league's players of abusing per­ formance enhancers. Meanwhile, the Terrell Owens saga reared its ugly head one last time before (we hope) going gently into that good night.

And speaking of ugly, ladies and gentlemen, your 2005-06 Toronto Raptors!

Despite the bad news coming from every direction, though, I found a silver lining when I flipped to ESPN Classic and saw a replay of Game six of the 1992 World Series. Watching the Toronto Blue Jays defeat the Atlanta Braves to capture the title for the first time, I realized that, com­ pared to the early nineties, things are actually much better.

Don't get me wrong: I'm a die-hard Blue Jays fan, and that cham­ pionship and the one that followed the next year remain the crowning achievements in my armchair athletic career. But watching that game for the first time since I wore out my 1992 World Series commemorative video from repeated viewing, I felt like I was instantly transported into a bizarro world where people simply had no judgement. Were the nineties really tacky enough to rival the infamous decade that preceded them? Judging by the tape of that game, the answer is a resounding yes.

The first thing I noticed was the hair. Kelly Gruber, Mike Timlin and countless others were sporting the mullet—back in a time when selfdeprecating humour wasn't part of its charm. Instead, it was simply cool to have those flowing locks mingling with the back of your collar.

Not to be outdone was the box cut, represented well by the likes of Joe Carter and Devon White. Then there was Juan Guzman, who somehow combined both! How is that even possible? Don't tell me that the Guzman box cut/perm/tapered mullet/rat tail doesn't outshine the Flock of Seagulls look. When I saw Juan get his hat knocked off and champagne poured on his head, I ran. I ran so far away.

And the fans were even worse, decked out in Body Glove and L.A. Gear. My God, the neon! It's enough to explain the popularity of boy band du jour Color Me Badd. And why was everyone wearing windbreakers? Was there some indomitably stiff breeze that I somehow blocked from my childhood memories? I hoped for a second that this was some parallel universe, like when Marty McFly lost the sports almanac he picked up in the future, and when he returned to 1985 he found Hill Valley *to be a run-down ghost town destroyed by a now mega-rich Biff Tannen. Sadly, it was all too real.

Granted, I'm no Karl Lagerfeld, and this is supposed to be a sports column, so let's stick to the topic. Here's food for thought: The best play­ er on the Braves in that series was none other than Deion Sanders, who almost single-handedly beat the Jays despite playing with a broken foot.

Sanders, who demonstrated in his NFL career that he was taught how to tackle by Screech Powers, was the gutsiest player in the World Series.

Is that damning evidence of the era, or what?

That’s a prime(-time) example of how things are better today. Now, our idea of tough includes Curt Schilling's bloody sock and Owens—yes, him again—making an improbable return from a broken leg to catch nine passes in the Super Bowl.

In fact, the whole climate surrounding sports has changed.

Consider that back in the early nineties, professional wrestling still main­ tained that it was real. Now, Vince McMahon calls his product “sportsentertainment," which is still a vague half-truth, but it's a start Though I'd rather the WWE simply bill itself as "male soap opera featuring glori­ fied stuntmen," this ambiguity lends itself to plenty of unintentional comedy.

For example, I recently saw current WWE champion John Cena on Off the Record. It was a candid interview, with Cena out of character and discussing with host Michael Landsberg the business of wrestling and things like the development of characters and storylines. The thing that got me was that although Cena and everyone else involved with wrestling openly acknowledge that it's scripted and completely fake, he still acted as if he's actually a champion of something! I mean, he just admitted he's an actor! It's as if Kiefer Sutherland appeared on Late Night and said, "Conan, I gotta tell y a .J'v e had the worst day!"

Back in 1992, if I'd mouthed off to a guy as big as Cena, I'd fear for my life. But now I just think, what's the worst that could happen? If he somehow read this and tracked me down, all he would do is throw a punch stopping six inches short of my face while simultaneously stomping on the ground loudly. And knowing that my nose will likely remain intact makes me realize that we live in enlightened times. So enjoy the holiday season, knowing that the present is the best gift of all.

24

sports | 2 9 .11.05 | the mcgill tribune

H O C K E Y — REDMEN

W EEKEND

W RAPUP

Like Spinal T a p ’s s p e a k e rs , R e d m e n go t o I I W in

a n d tie e x te n d

M c G i l l ’s r e c o r d

s tre a k

"If going s going continuetotobebelike like ofof186 theRedmen Redmena ahard hardgame gameSaturdav Saturday "Ifs totocontinue 186minutes minutesand and3737seconds seconds the that," Raymond said while discussing without allowing a goal fell just 4:42 night, with neither team letting up on the hard fought game. "Thafs part of short of breaking the CIS record that the gas until the final buzzer sounded Climbing to first place is one the fun [of being in first place]. Ifs a the Redmen set a week and a half at the end of overtime. When the thing; staying there is a whole other game ended deadlocked at two, test to stay up there, we appreciate ago. story. that. Thafs why we come to the rink Mathieu Leclerc rounded out McGill was the more disappointed of McGill found out just how tough every day even when the fatigue fac­ the scoring as he lit the lamp on a the two teams, as the Redmen outit is to be the top dog in Ontario tor is there." breakaway goal at 12:52 of the sec­ shot Guelph 43-24 and had two University Athletics after facing off goals waved off. However, Guelph ond frame. Defenceman Steven against two conference mid-McGill tames Lions but shutout Pearce found Leclerc with a great goaltender Ken Ritson was stellar, dleweights this weekend. Both York streak ends pass as he was coming out of the turning away 41 shots. and Guelph gave everything they had McGill came out hard against penalty box. "[Guelph] worked hard out in an attempt to derail McGill's unde­ York on Friday night, out-shooting the there," Raymond said. "You've got to Pearce, in just his second year, is feated season, but the Redmen man­ Lions 15-6 in the opening frame and one of the "veteran" leaders on a give them credit. It's frustrating not to aged to increase their unbeaten getting a goal from leading scorer young McGill defence which has score but that's the way it goes. streak to 11 by dumping the Lions 4Shawn Shewchuck, who put home a been consistent night in and night Tonight we didn't capitalize on our 1 on Friday before playing the Doug Orr rebound while the Redmen out. With such a young defensive power-play chances and all of a sud­ Gryphons to a 2-2 tie Saturday. The were on the power play. Midway corps, Pearce and 2004-05 CIS all­ den it's a tied game. The result was 11-game run is the longest the through the second, the Red 'n' rookie team member David Urquhart different tonight because we didn't Redmen have ever gone without a White found themselves up 3-0, have had to take on more of a lead­ capitalize on our chances." loss to start a season. courtesy of goals from Benoit Martin ership role, a role that Pearce feels McGill has certainly benefited Head Coach Martin Raymond and Eric L'Italien, but the goose egg that they both have relished. from some luck this season, but the saw the results of these games as an wouldn't remain on the scoreboard "[David and I] are both a little bit Redmen didn't get much Saturday. In indication that the Redmen can't for long, with York forward Sean older and experienced," Pearce said.. the third period, forward Marko afford to let up if they plan to stay on Langdon ending the shutout streak at "[Coach Raymond] put more pres­ Kovacevic fired a howitzer that top.

11:07 of the second frame. The run sure on us early in camp. We need to clanged off the crossbar. While it stay calm and lead by our experience. looked like the puck had crossed the goal line, it was ruled no goal. Rookie We're playing well as a team."

Guillaume Demers almost scored the Redmen spend Saturday kissing winner later in the frame, but the net their sisters as breaks go Guelph's Your Partner in Survey Data Collection was knocked off its moorings. Finally, way % with seconds remaining in regulation, The .500 Guelph Gryphons gave winger Lucas Madill slid the puck M ontreal call center n A M MCQUILLAN M rm m i DAN a m

consumercontact

through the crease, but captain Pierre-Antoine Paquet just missed pushing it by the line.

What, no shutouts?

For the first time all season, the Redmen ended the week without recording a shutout, meaning the team remains stuck on seven white­ washes and has not yet broken the CIS single-season shutout record of eight. However, the Redmen's goalies—statistically the best in the nation—were still on the top of their games, as Mathieu Poitras turned aside 22 shots Friday night and rook­ ie Jean-Michel Filiatrault responded by stopping the same amount the following night. Filiatrault, who entered Saturday's game with a per­ fect save percentage and a 0.00 GAA, saw his shutout streak come to an end on Saturday after a remark­ able 191 minutes and 55 seconds.

McGill closes out the first half of the season Tuesday in Ottawa against the Gee-Gees, and with a win or tie, McGill will start the second portion of the season as the only undefeated team in the country. But the Redmen will have to be on their guard, because as they now know, it isn't easy being number one. ■

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the mcgill tribune | 2 9 .11.05 | sports 2 5

BASKETBALL — MARTLETS

W EEK E N D

W RAPUP

S w e e t-s h o o tin g G a ite rs sink McGill W o m en

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LIN D SAY FELLO W S One weekend after their huge upset win over Concordia, and one day before playing the Stingers again, the Martlet bas­ ketball team worried about a letdown. It turns out their premo­ nition was right on.

The women were left rattled Friday night after losing 73-57 to ninth-ranked Bishop's at Love Competition Hall. Despite a strong effort, the Martlets were unable to hold off the Gaiters' and their leading scorer, Emilie Crofton, who racked up a gamehigh 28 points.

The young McGill team was discouraged early on, as it struggled to hold off Bishop's and gain any offensive leverage.

"I believe we played 18 minutes of Martlet basketball," said a frustrated Head Coach Ryan Thorne, noting that his team was­ n't at its best for the entire game.

The Gaiters dominated from the opening tip-off and con­ tinued to set the pace with a 20-12 run midway through the first quarter. The Martlets led briefly at 31-30 with 2:43 remaining in the first half, but Bishop's regained the momentum, scoring 10 straight points and securing a comfortable 40-31 lead at the

M

National Defence

U

S a tu rd a y

break. Crofton scored 18 points and nailed four three-pointers in the decisive half.

In the second half, though the Martlets persisted aggres­ sively, Bishop's continued to pull away, out-playing McGill with solid passes, rebounds and outside shooting.

In addition to failing to mount a second-half comeback, the Martlets had a couple of injury scares during the final 20 min­ utes. Forward Isabelle Provencher left the game after she hit the floor with a turned ankle under the basket, and guard Christine Kennedy collided head-first with the bottom barrier of the bleachers while attempting to keep a Martlet ball inbounds.

Thankfully, she walked away unscathed.

Though Thorne may have been disappointed overall, he had nothing but praise for the hustling Kennedy.

"I was very pleased with the play of some of our young players, particularly point guard Christine Kennedy," he said.

"She came in off the bench and really sparked us at both ends of the court."

Martlets play leaves Stingers buzzing Friday night1s defeat against Bishops may have been disap­

pointing for the Martlets, but they seemed to quickly put it behind them against Concordia on Saturday, holding a consis­ tent lead on their way to a 68-48 win.

"Saturday's game against the Stingers was a much better overall effort," Thorne said. "Our starting five jumped out to an 8-0 lead, and we never looked back."

Although Concordia stuck around, McGill responded with aggressive play, drawing several fouls and scoring when neces­ sary. Rookie shooting guard Vanessa Danisi paced the Martlets with a career-high 16 points as the whole team got in on the act; six players scored six or more points.

"If this weekend has taught us anything, it is that we are talented enough to compete with the best teams in the coun­ try, but are lacking the experience and consistency necessary to beat them," Thome said. "It's a long season, and I believe it will all come together when it counts most."

As Thorne noted, the women's basketball season is just a quarter of the way in, and the stretch run is still over two months away. Plus, with a .500 record in conference play thus far, it seems that the Martlets may prove to be a contender in the Quebec conference after all. ■

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26

sports | 2 9 .11.05 | the mcgill tribune

REPORT

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Women's Soccer After last year's heartbreaking defeat a t| I nationals, Head Coach Marc Mounicot went into (the season believing that this, would be a rebuild-] ling year and that the Martlets might struggle. But; (the Martlets proved that even in “off" years, they] [are still a power to be reckoned with.

The 2005 Martlets put up some big numbers.

I They finished with a Quebec University Soccer] (League best 11-1-2 record, including an undefeatled 6-0-1 record at Molson stadium, and won their] I third-consecutive QUSL title, defeating Université I de Montréal 1-0 in a thrilling extra time final.

Offensively and defensively, the Martlets were: I the best in Quebec. The team led the QUSL with 134 goals in 14 regular season games, including] [nine from rookie striker Magalie Kokler. On [defence, the Martlets remained top notch. Led by [QUSL co-player of the year Shari Fraser, McGill sur­ rendered just seven goals and earned eight] Ishutouts.

At nationals, the team came up just a little |short, falling 2-1 in the semi-final to the eventual [national champions from Victoria. But they salIvaged the season by defeating Calgary 1-0 in the [bronze medal game.

With almost the entire starting XI returning, [the Martlets' future is bright, and next year could ■finally be the year that they get that CIS champi[onship monkey off their back.

Grade: A MVP: Shari Fraser Player to watch: Magalie Kokler —David Blye

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Redmen and Martlets cross-country A very successful year for the McGill cross country-team resulted in a Quebec championship and a trip to nationals. While the wins were expected-the Martlets have claimed 18 straight Quebec titles and the Redmen have taken first in seven of the past 13 years—it was the outstanding individual accom­ plishments that really set this team apart.

Nine runners were named to the Quebec all-star team, led by Jeff McCabe and Lauren Whyte, who were named Quebec cross-country athletes of the year. Whyte improved on that honour by placing sev­ enth out of a field of 127 to earn first team all-Canadian status while pacing the Martlets to an impres­ sive fifth-overall finish on the tight course at the CIS championships in Halifax. The Redmen also had a solid showing, finishing eighth at nationals and eighth in the final poll.

Grade: At Outstanding male: Jeff McCabe Oustanding female: Lauren Whyte Persons to watch: Elspeth McGregor, Adrian Walton —Adam Myers

Martlets rugby For Head Coach Vince DeGrandpré's squad, things are starting to resemble Groundhog Day—except that the happy ending found by Bill Murray and Andie MacDowell may not be in sight for the Martlets.

It was another one of those seasons for the ruggers: They again ran through Québec undefeated, stretching their conference unbeaten streak to 62 games and trouncing Ottawa 38-0 to capture their seventhstraight Quebec University Rugby League title.

But, again, the Martlets failed to translate regional dominance to success on the national level, as McGill finished fourth at the CIS cham­ pionships, losing to Guelph in the bronze-medal game. This marked the third-straight year McGill has gone to nationals and come home without a medal, and the team has yet to win a gold medal during its spectac­ ular run.

McGill clearly has no shortage of excellent players; centre Sandy Simpson twice set the Quebec conference record for conversions in a game and centre Laura Belvedere was named an all-Canadian. But it will take additional tough competition and experience against the nation's top teams—both of which may be impossible for the Martlets to get so long as they remain in the QURL—for the women to finish first in the country and end the recurring nightmare.

Grade: AMVP: Sandy Simpson Player to watch: Kathryn Butler —Andrew Segal

Redmen Soccer This season for men's soccer can pretty much be summed up in one word: disappointing. Despite beginning the year ranked number one in the CIS poll after an 8-0 thrashing of Concordia, the Redmen failed to even qualify for the Quebec playoffs, let alone defend their national silver medal from 2004.

It seems as if this year's team never adjusted to new Head Coach Philippe Eullafroy's possession style, as the Redmen finished under .500 with a 5-6-1 record. Things do look promising for the future. Many of the team's key players were in just their first or second year of eligibility, meaning that the core nucleus of this team will remain together for at least two more seasons. That could mean big things for a young squad expecting a breakout season to come soon.

Men's Rugby If one thing is clear from this season, it's that McGill Concordia are the two dominant teams in the Quelx c versity Rugby League. Unfortunately, it was the Stingersl ) were the more dominant when the two clashed.

The 2005 edition of the Redmen rugby team entered season as the defending QURL champs on the heels ofJ year's undefeated performance. While they started red . . . with three straight shutouts, and finished the regular ■ season in first place, the Redmen found a nemesis in the!

- Concordia Stingers. During the regular season, Concordia ? handed the Redmen their lone loss and though the Redmen would even the regular-season series with a win in their second meeting, when the teams battled in the con­ ference final, it was the Stingers who had the last laugh Concordia held off a late Redmen charge to beat McGill 2018 and dethrone the Red 'n' White as rugby kings in ■Quebec.

While unable to repeat as champs, the Redmen can ■ look forward to next season, where many of the starting XV will return, and many of this year's backups will have anoth­ er year of experience.

Grade: B MVP: Mark Ihnatowycz Player to watch: Olivier Lavigueur

-o el

Grade: C MVP: James Scholefield Player to watch: Alec Milne -A M

Football What can be said about the Dr. Broom All-Stars that hasn't yet been noted by the rest of the Canadian media? On the field, the team was terrible. Before the season was cancelled, the Redmen were just 1-5 and dropped all five games against Quebec University Football League opponents, including their first ever loss to Université de Sherbrooke.

Off the field, the team was a disgrace. The events of Aug. 27 were unacceptable; the way the team tried to handle the fallout was, while admirable, still not enough. Finally, there was the lazy and unprofessional way the university handled the fallout of the incident. While the team was awful and the action inexcusable, the fact remains that the university made the decision to cancel the remainder of the 2005 season weeks after it occurred, and only after the Redmen were officially out of the play-offs.

The only thing that could be considered good was the play of the receiver corps, which managed three 20-catch wideouts, including Greg Hetherington who had a team best 34 catches for 416 and four TDs in just five games.

Grade: F MVP: Greg Hetherington Player to watch: Tim Kraemer -D B

ALL PHOTOS VLADIMIR EREMIN

last call

th e mcgill tribune | 1.9.04 | sports 2 7

AROUND

compiled by DAVID BLYE and ADAM MYERS

STANDINGS HOCKEY (M)

W

L

T

OT

PTS

L

W

; HOCKEY (W)

T

PTS

McGILL* (Far E.) 9

0

2

0

20

Mc g ill

7

1

0

14

RMC* (Mid E.)

4

6

3

0

12

CONCORDIA

5

2

1

11

UQTR(FE)

9

2

1

0

19

OTTAWA

3

3

1

7

OTTAWA (FE)

7

4

1

1

16

CARLETON

0

9

0

0

CONC'DIA (FE)

3

4

2

3

11

QUEEN'S (M E)

4

8

0

0

8

TORONTO (ME) 0

11

1

0

1

RYERSON (M E)

11

1

0

1

0

“"Represents division leaders OUA hockey ranks the two division lead­ ers first and second, and then ranks the remaining six team according to total points. Six team£ make the playoffs.

W

V-BALL (W)

L

GF

GA

LAVAL

10

0

30

3

McGILL

8

2

24

11

MONTREAL

8

1

26

6

SHERBR'K

6

4

24

14

UQTR

3

9

13

29

BOX SCORE

BOX SCO RE Saturday, Nov. 26, 2005 McGill 5. Carleton 2 Carleton's Ice House FIRST PERIOD: 1. McGill - Valerie Paquette (V. Davidson, P. Mason) 09:53 Penalties: Carleton - Tara Buchanan (Rough), 12:05 McGill - Amanda Carmichael (Interfere), 18:54 SECOND PERIOD: 2. Carleton - Caitlin Cadeau (M. Higgins ) 0:25 (PP) 3. McGill - Kailey Robertson (V. Davidson, N. Smith) 0:51 4. McGill - Kristin Leuszler (V. Paquette) 7:50 5. Carleton - Ashley Moloughney (unassisted) 15:55 (PP) 6. McGill - Shauna Denis (unassisted) 17:10 (SHG) Penalties: Carleton - Vicki Smith (interfere), 3:23 McGill - Kristin Leuszler (slash), 5:34 McGill - Kristin Leuszler (hook), 8:16 Carleton - Brieta Chisholme (hook), 12:19 McGill - Brittany Privée (interfere), 14:25 McGill - Patrice Mason (interfere), 15:26 THIRD PERIOD: 7. McGill - Christine Hartnoll (S. Denis) 04:24 Penalties: Carleton - Kristina Romeo (interfere), 01:46 Carleton - Jessoca Bradley (interfere), 07:36 Carleton - Laura Jackson (rough), 14:07 GOALTENDERS: CARLETON: Valérie Charbonneau (L, 60:00, 5GA, 38 saves) McGILL: Catherine Herron (W, 60:00, 2GA, 19 saves) SHOTS BY PERIOD Period 1 2 3 T McGill 16 10 17 43 Carleton 5 11 5 21

Friday, Nov. 25, 2005 McGill 4, York 1 McConnell Arena FIRST PERIOD: McGill - Shawn Shewchuk (C. Gauthier, D. Orr) - 5:44 (PP) Penalties: York - T. Penrose (Slash), 5:03 York - J. Carney (Highstick), 7:01 MSGill - E. Stilling (Slash), 10:15 York - J. Crozier (Hold), 14:04 McGill - B. Martin (Interfere), 15:50 McGill - C. Churchill-Smith (Slash), 17:51 McGill - S. Pearce (Slash), 19:21 SECOND PERIOD: McGill - Benoit Martin (M. Leclerc, S. Pearce) - 3:28 (PP) McGill - Eric L'Italien (C Churchill-Smith, G. Demers) 8:48 York - Sean Langdon (T. Harrison) - 11:07 McGill - Mathieu Leclerc (S. Pearce ) - 12:52 (SH) Penalties: York - S. Langdon (Trip), 1:39 McGill - Y. Turcotte (Rough), 4:54 York - D. Montgomery (Rough), 10:39 McGill - M. Leclerc (Interfere), 10:47 McGill - K. Davis (Slash), 11:50 THIRD PERIOD: (no scoring) Penalties: McGill - C. Gauthier (Hook), 6:40 McGill - M. Leclerc (Highstick), 14:02 York - M. Smith (check from behind minor, game), 15:22 McGill - B. Martin (Highstick), 15:27 York - B. Grennier (Rough), 15:27 York - G. Clarke (Rough), 19:40 McGill - Y. Turcotte (Rough), 19:40 GOALTENDERS: York: Kevin Druce (L, 5-6-1; 60:00, 4 GA, 35 saves) McGill: Mathieu Poitras (W, 6-0-1; 60:00, 1 GA, 22 saves

PENALTIES (No./minutes): McGill: 5/10 Carleton: 6/12

SHOTS BY PERIOD: Period: 1 2 3 Total York 6 10 7 (2 3 ) McGill 15 13 11 (39)

PENALTIES (No./minutes): McGill: 5/10 Carleton: 6/12

NFL Picks

POWERPLAY: York: 0/9 McGill: 2/6

Tampa Bay (-3.5) @ New Orleans Dallas @ New York Giants (-3)

MOLSON CUP THREE STARS (by Randy Phillips, The Gazette)

Washington @ St. Louis (+ 3) Minnesota (-3) @ Detroit

1. Mathieu Leclerc, McGill 2. Ken Davis, McGill 3. Benoit Martin, McGill

Oakland @ San Diego (-11) ATTENDANCE: 612 Atlanta @ Carolina (-3) Buffalo (+ 3.5) @ Miami

THE

HORN

Martlets undefeated streak ends against Stingers Winger Janie Brassard scored a power play goal at 15:04 of the third period as the fourth-ranked Concordia Stingers rallied for a 4-3 victory over number three McGill on Sunday.

The loss was the first of the season for the Martlets, who fell to 7-1 in the Quebec women's hockey conference.

Concordia improved to 5-2-1.

Heading into the contest, the McGill women had given up just five goals, but it was Concordia's all-star goaltender Cecilia Anderson who came out on top, mak­ ing 19 saves in the win. Kalie Townsend kicked aside 28 in a losing cause.

Down 3-2 after two periods, the Stingers tied the game when Mary Jane O'Shea scored at 13:37 of the final frame. Also scoring for Concordia were Andrea Dolan and Marie-Pier Cantin-Drouin. McGill scorers were Kristin Leuszler, and freshmen Vanessa Davidson and Amanda Carmichael.

Both the Stingers and Martlets have a month off for exams and holiday break. They will resume play at Concordia's 37th annual Theresa Humes Tournament, Jan. 6-9.

Redmen, Martlets rest track stars at opening meet Heather McCurdy was one of six McGill athletes to earn a medal and the only one to capture a gold, jumping a distance of 11.05 metres to win the triple jump at Saturday's McGill Open. The meet, the first local indoor competition of the season, featured a wide array of ama­ teur track clubs along with university teams from Queen's, Sherbrooke, Vermont and McGill.

The only other McGill medallists were Joanna Williams, who won silver in the women's high jump with a jump of 1.6 metres, and rookie Charles-François AkaTrudel, who won silver in the men's triple jump (12.57m ).

• Marie-Josée Le Jour of the St. Laurent Selects was the only person to break a Fieldhouse record. She tossed a distance of 17.63 metres to win the women's weight throw, breaking the mark of 17.59 set by Sherbrooke's Nathalie Thenor in 2002.

David Pedneault, a competitor for the Perfmax-Racing club, won the highlight event, the men's 60m sprint. He finished in 6.96 seconds, well short of the Fieldhouse record of 6.56 by Nicolas Macrozonaris. McGill's David Faille was second (7.00), followed by Bianco Richard of Club.Multi-Sports les Vainqueurs (7.11).

Marie-Andrée Leblanc of the Sherbrooke Vert & Or captured the women's 60m dash in 7.73 seconds.

McGill's Vanessa Horobjowsky and Maryse Dubreuil, both native Montrealers, finished second (7.92) and third (7.99), respectively.

Queen's posted the top university results at the meet, winning eight events on the men's side and five in the women's division.

Laval volleyballers sweep McGill The Laval Rouge et Or showed the Martlets that even though they may have improved significantly, they're still far from competing with the country's top team.

Undefeated and top-ranked Laval came away with a 3-0 victory over fifth-ranked McGill, winning 25-23, 25-17 and 25-9. On the men's side, Laval defeated the Redmen 3-1.

Laval improved to 10-0 atop the Quebec conference while the second-place Martlets dropped to 8-2. McGill senior Christine Borisov had 11 kills and two digs in a los­ ing cause. Rookie power hitter Jennifer Thomson added seven kills and five digs, while Valerie Savard was credited with five kills, five digs and a perfect 3.0 passing ratio.

Maxime Lefebvre, a fifth-year libero, had seven digs and a 2.25 passing ratio.

In men's play, Laval took a tight match that lasted an hour and 37 minutes. The set scores were a better indica­ tor of how close the match was, with Laval winning 2519, 13-25, 25-19 and 27-25.

"It was our best team effort of the season," said Head Coach Simon Berleur, in his first season at the helm of the Redmen. "We are a young team and it showed in the end as we were a little nervous out there when it got close."

Paul Grinvalds had a solid outing for McGill. He racked up 16 kills and three aces. Tym Frank added 15 kills and Sean Lynch led the team in digs with 15. It was a tough loss for the fourth-place Redmen (1-10) as Laval improved to 7-3 and moved 12 points ahead of McGill for the third and final playoff spot, with eight matches remaining.

The Redmen have six weeks to regroup over the hol­ iday break and will resume play on Jan. 13 when they host the Montréal Carabins. The McGill women are off for the exam break and will return to action at the Gee-Gees Quality Hotel Tournament in Ottawa, Jan. 6-8.

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