The McGill Tribune Vol. 27 Issue 24

F R E E D O M O F F IL M U N D E R

R O A D TO TH E

A T T A C K ? P A G E 10

T R I B U N E G I V E S IT S P I C K S , P A G E 18

Published by the Students' Society of McGill University

www.mcgilltribune.com

F IN A L FO U R ,

Volume 27 Issue 24 • March 18, 2008

Acclaimed Students7Society VP steps down Peter Newhook declines the Finance and Operations portfolio Ken Sun Inan unexpected turnof events, acclaimed Students' Society VicePresident Peter Newhook, U3 finance and economics, tendered his resig­ nation yesterday from the position of Vice-President Finance and Op­ erations. Newhook had expressed second thoughts about the position around the same time that former candidate Rushil Mistry withdrew his candidacy on March 5. Newhook asserted that his uncertainty sur­ rounding the position, however, was independent of Mistry's withdrawal.

His official resignation, which came into effect as of 5 p.m. yesterday, came as a result of "personal things".

While choosing not to make further comments concerning the reasons behind his decision, Newhook stated that he would be pursuing full-time employment next year.

While Newhook will have no say indeciding the new incoming VP Finance, he indicated his preference for SSMU Council to announce a byelection for the position.

"There were some talks about making it an appointment, but I'm happythat it’sgoing to a by-election,"

he said. Newhook cited the position According to Elections McGill as a source of "really good experi­ Chief Electoral OfficerCoreyShefman, ence and a way to get involved and there will be special provisionsfor the contribute," as his original reasons for by-election, including 10 business running. days of nomination period starting SSMU President Jake Itzkowitz from yesterday, five business-days of stated that because Newhook would campaigning and five business-days not take office until June 1, the situa­ of online voting. Results are expected tion will be treated as if he declined to be released around Apr. 14.

At this time, two potential can­ the acclamation and the position is now vacant. Executive Committee didates have expressed interest in met in lieu of Council, as was neces­ the vacated executive seat: Tobias sary, and voted to hold a by-election. Silverstein, U2 finance, accounting "We're fortunate that it's still so and economics, and current SSMU early in the year," Itzkowitz said. "It's Speaker Yahel Carmon, U2 political science and economics. more democratic this way."

W h ile

C a rm o n

has

not

con­

firm e d th a t he w ill be ru n n in g fo r th e p o sitio n , he said th a t it was s o m e ­ th in g th a t he was seriously co n sid e r­ ing.

"There's a d e c e n t chance th a t I'm running," he said, a d d in g th a t if a n yo ne else c o n firm s his ca n d id a cy b efore he d id w o u ld "k n o w [h im ] b e tte r th a n [him self]."

W h ile it has n o t been p u b lic ly announced,

Silverstein

has

con­

firm e d his in te n tio n to run fo r th e VP Finance p o s itio n in an in te rv ie w w ith th e T rib u n e and cite d his e xp e rie n ce

See BY-ELECTION on page 4

Fokus on film

Caférama up for grabs

Student festival moves to Cinema du Parc

Food service to vacate space this summer

is a good event," she says. "For the John Semley purposes of promoting each other's Now initssecond year, the Fokus art...it's encouraging people to try FilmFestival, presented by TV McGill, [filmmaking] and makes the whole is set to stormthe screens of Cinema process much less intimidating]' du Parc with the best in student films With the university sadly lacking a culled from the McGill community. film program, the Fokus Film Festival The inaugural 2007 edition of the aims to stimulate the creation among festival saw over a hundred student students interested in the cinematic filmmakers, fans and members of the arts, offering valuable experience in local cinema community cramped conceiving afilmfrom script through into the confines of the Arts-West to post-production. With more than screening room to take in the art of twenty entries in the categories of McGill under-represented commu­ short, experimental, animation and nity budding filmmakers. non-fiction, as well as four groups "It was sweaty and hot and peo­ competing in the 72-hour film com­ ple were having agreat time,"says Kira petition (where a short film must be Leinonen of,TV McGill. Fortunately, conceived, produced and submitted last year's festival proved so success­ over the course of three days), this ful that the 2008 edition has been year's Fokus FilmFestival is bound to moved to Cinema du Parc, a venue satisfy student filmmaker and filmlikely to prove more accommodat­ goer alike, and further cement both ing. Harbouring hopes of packing the popularity and importance of this the theatre, Leinonen encourages now annual event. students to come out to support the For film previews and more in­ films of their follow students. formation see SKI on page 15.

"I really do feel strongly that this

As local businesses and student groups alike bid for Shatner Room 103, SSMU is making revenue-generating potential a priority in its decision. See ORGANIZATIONS on page 2.

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Organizations vie for Caférama space Students' Society to assess revenue-generating potential of bidders As with any other business, the Christie Lee real challenge for ACE. McGill was to With the expiration of Caférama's come upwith a proposal fromscratch, lease set for this summer, various busi­ fromfinding food suppliersto building nesses are competing to take over the astudent-oriented menu, inlessthana space inShatner.The OperationsCom­ month's time. UniversiTea Lounge will mittee charged with evaluating the be marketed toward health-conscious different proposals will release itsdeci­ and environment-friendly students sion by Apr. 9 and the group with the at McGill, offering mostly sandwiches winning proposal will gain athree year and organic food. contract with the Students'Society.

"Instead of food loaded with pre­ The Advancing Canadian Entre­ servatives, UniversiTea Lounge would preneurship chapter at McGill and aimto produce everything fresh with Midnight Kitchen are the two student the addition of stoves and ovens," groups bidding for the space inFebru­ Tulchinsky said. “We couldn't promise ary. If ACE wins, the current Caférama low prices since organic food choices space will be transformed into a stu­ tend to put a premium on prices. dent-run café under the name Uni- However, we arecommitted to provid­ versiTea Lounge with a percentage of ing healthy alternatives to students at the revenue directed toward domestic superior value."' violence awareness.

Despite the fact that a motion VadimTulchinsky, U3 finance and was passed at SSMU Council reaf­ director of ACE McGill, believes that firming clubs and services' priority in their proposal has certain advantages the Shatner building, VP Finance and over those of large franchising compa­ Operations Imad Barake said that the nies. Vice-President Communications Operations Committee also needs to Niki Hyde could not comment as she consider the proposal's revenue-gen­ iscurrent Photo Editorfor theTribune. erating potential.

"We believe that UniversiTea “Our first and foremost concern Loungewould be reflectiveofstudents' is to consider whether the proposal desire in providing late-night bever­ caters to students' needs and whether ages and snacks. There is currently no it would be able to promise a spacesuch space on campus which satisfies friendly environment," he said. "Given that," he said, adding that the café will the large complaints filed by student provide a comfortable environment groups about the lack of funding and for students to study and eat at the the financial strainthat the acquisition same time, another kind of space that of Haven Bookstore has put on SSMU's Tulchinskyfinds lacking on campus.

ADAMSCOTTI Students take advantage of a food service that will soon be leaving Shatner.

budget, the Operations Committee need to consider whether another stu­ dent-run operation can be supported on the budget."

If ACE McGill succeeds in taking over the lease, UniversiTea Lounge will be run by two individuals who coop­ erated with the group in the creation

o f th e project. ACE McGill w o u ld take on an advisory role and act as liaison b etw een SSMU and th e ow ners o f th e café.

"If o u r proposal gets adopted, w e h ope to engage in fu rth e r discus­ sion w ith SSMU a b o u t th e profit-shar­ ing system to ensure th a t th e owners

would be able to invest in the café project both financially and emotion­ ally,"Tulchinskysaid.

Other groups who are contest­ ing for the spot include Cafe Supreme, Java U, MTY Group, Sustainability Café and 9125-1510 Quebec Inc, the current Caférama operator. ■

EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEW—GILLIAN SORENSEN

Former external advisor promotes UN career Senior staffer expects new foreign policy from new U.S. President For the past few years, United Nations Founda­ tion Senior Advisor Gillian Sorenson has travelled extensively to lecture on-the values o f the United Nations, including a recent apperance at McGill.

We sat down with Sorensen, former Assistant Secretary-General for External Relations to former Secretary-General Kofi Annan, to learn about her career as a part o f the UN senior staff.

Why is it important that students learn and know about the United Nations? How is it di­ rectly relevant to us?

We need responsible citizens inthe world.

We are all connected, whether we wish it or not. Canadians, in particular, have always had a strong sense of commitment, responsibilityand capacity to help make the world a better place.

To me, that's not a burden but a privilege, but we need informed people to make the right de­ cisions and choices and that's what I'mtrying to do.

maximum.

With reference to your lecture "International Intervention and Humanitarian Crisis: Balanc­ ing Human Rights," here at McGill on March What frustrates you about the UN? Is it dis­ 4, how bad must it get before the UN may be couraging that some situations are unsolv- forced to disregard sovereignty issues?

For centuries, sovereignty was king and able?

First, we have solved many situations and countries normally did not go into other coun­ I think that the UN does not often get enough tries on matters of internal activity. Today, that credit for what the UNdoes achieve. That credit has changed; there are situations that we know should be there when credit is due. There are verywell, [which] aresituationsof crimes against other times when the UNcan't do what it would humanity and genocide.There are two corollar­ like to do and that isfor two reasons: One isthe ies to this: one is the responsibility to protect, lack of political will, meaning the UN gets its that isthe government hasthe responsibility to mandates from the member states. If the will do the best it can for its own citizens, to care for does not exist among those states to give them them, to educate and so forth. The other is the the order to move out, especially with peace­ right to intervene. When governments not only keepers, the UN can't just go on its own. The do nothing, but they do grievous harm, when it iscrimes against their own people, at the maxi­ other [reason] isthe lackof resources. mum level, then other countries do have the Do you thinkthat the U.S. should play a stron­ right to intervene. ger role in the UN? Absolutely. I think in January you'll see a Why did you choose to come to McGill? What very different approach to the United Nations isthe message you are trying to get out?

The last three years, since I left the UN sec­ with the new administration that comes in at that time and I hope that it will be much more retariat, I've been on the lecture circuit and the engaged and positive. I'mcertain it will be more reason is that I'mtrying to bring the UN mes­ sage out across the country, or inthis case out­ so than it has been inthe last seven years. side the border. I'mtrying to elevate this debate, Do you have a preference for one of the can­ to engage it in a more constructive way about the United Nations and the World, about why it didates?

I do, but either of the Democratic candi­ matters and what's at stake. McGill of course has dates, Senator Clinton or Senator Obama, will a fabulous reputation, very high stature; I was be much more pro-United Nations, much more very pleased to have an invitation to come here committed to international cooperation, to and talkto the McGill students and faculty.» development efforts, to collaborating with not — Compiled by Ines Beatrix ADAMSCOTTI just our best friends but with some of our ad­ versaries; that is to say using diplomacy to the Sorensen sees Democratic presidential candidates as best for U.S. - UN relations.

18.03.08 • The McGill Tribune ■3

www.mcgilltribune.com

CAMPUS

SPEAKERS ON CAMPUS

Arts Fund funds fun Editor sees ongoing conflict $271-K allocated; Gert's rejected T homas Q uail

The Arts Undergraduate Improvement Fund Committee held its annual meeting last Tuesday to allocate McGill's largest optoutable fee.

AUS VP Finance Elizabeth Mirhady ex­ plained that the committee tends to give money to groups where changes can be seen.

"I think the reason we had a very low opt-out rate isbecause this isafund that has avery real impact on students, and students can see it."

The committee, consisting of the Arts Undergraduate Society President, Vice-Presi­ dent Finance, andVPCommunications, along with12 departmental representatives, five de­ partment chairs, the Dean and the Associate Director of the Social Sciences Library, were responsiblefordivvying upcloseto $271,000.

At $24.50 per person per semester, the fee saw relatively small opt-out rates since the newsystemwas implemented lastyear.

Constitutional by-laws regarding the fee state that 40 per cent of itsfee must go to computer labs, four per cent to the Fine ArtsCouncil andthree per cent to the intern­ shipoffice.This leaves $140,000 remainingfor groups that applyfor funding.

These excess funds were divided amongst 15 groups including german stud­ ies, hispanic studies andTuesday Night Café Theatre to name a few. Most of the applica­ tions were for lounge furniture with a few notable exceptions. The department of East Asian Studies'received $837.71 to buy Korean action films, while AUS themselves received $3380:10 for walkie-talkies, a vacuum and a colour printer.

M irhady stated th a t applications are rigorously looked over and th a t resources are allocated based on a set o f stiff criteria.

"Their benefit to students, th e ir financial viability and h o w m uch th o u g h t and effort th a t had been p u t in to th e application."

The fund was set up over 10 years ago to create the Arts Lounge in the basement of Leacock. Since then, the fee has been in­ strumental in setting up the computer labs inFerrier, couchesthroughout the arts build­ ings and numerous other capital needs.

In an interesting bid headed by Stu­ dents' Society VP Finance Imad Barake, the Students'Society put together anapplication last weekend for funds to renovate Gert's.

The bid asked for $14,000 to improve the stage, sound system, furniture and lighting inGert's.

"Our proposal to AUIF was to renovate the performance area based on the results of the Gert's survey,"Barake said."Over 85 per cent of respondents [to the survey] wanted to renovatethe bar."

The co m m itte e rejected th e proposal on th e grounds th a t SSMU was placing th e onus on AUS to fu lly fu n d th e renovations.

"Another th in g th a t w e take into consid­ eration is if there is support from th e group itself. I th in k th e ratio o f fu n ding for th e pro­ posal was $500 from SSMU to $14,000 from th e AUIF," M irhady said.

Atwan paints less-than-rosy picture J ames G ilman

"I'd like to p o rtra y a rosy p ictu re fo r you a b o u t th a t p a rt o f th e world," said A bdel al-Bari Atw an, edi­ to r-in -c h ie f o f London-based Arabic language daily new spaper al-Quds al-Arabi, o n th e M id dle East, par­ ticularly Israel/Palestine, "b u t this is o u r area; w e kn o w it very well. We kn o w peace is extremely... far away."

A tw a n gave a lecture last Friday e n title d "Pales­ tine: The Way Forward", in th e Frank Dawson Adams A u d ito riu m to a sym pa th e tic crow d. The eve n t was organized by th e Badr Islamic Centre, th e Coalition for Justice and Peace in Palestine and Solidarity for Pales­ tin ia n Hum an Rights.

Despite th e title o f th e talk, A tw an a d m itte d he was n o t o p tim is tic a b o u t a possible peace settle m e n t b e tw e en th e Israelis and Palestinians, asserting th a t he d id n o t choose th e title, g o in g as far to call it a mis­ take. Instead, he discussed a n u m b e r o f issues affect­ ing Israel and Palestine as w ell as th e greater M iddle East, in clu d in g U.S. in vo lve m e n t in th e region, th e rise o f Iran and th e positions o f m od e ra te Arab states.

A tw a n cited th e polarization b etw een Hamas and th e President o f th e Palestinian National A u th o rity M a h m o u d Abbas's Fatah fa ctio n as a m ajor obstacle to w a rd s peace. He argued th a t Hamas's confron-

Barakewas disappointed withthe result and felt that the some of the responsibility should be shared by the AUIF to fund the renovations.

"The AUS fe lt th a t th e y shouldn't be paying for a bar th a t all students use. Even th o u g h an appreciable n u m ber o f students w h o use th e bar are Arts students.” ■

CITY

Concordians camp out Students brave the cold for change T heo M eyer

Living outside Concordia's Hall Building on Maisonneuve from 5:00 p.m. last Sunday until 5:00 p.m. Friday, Brian Chungwing, Adam Gold and Josh Redler of Concordia's John Molson School of Business tried to raise money and awareness for the home­ less last week as part of Five Days for the Homeless.The campaign went national this year after a three-year run at the University of Alberta.

"It's a great cause. I d o n 't m in d sleeping outside fo r five days," Redler said.

A ccording to Five Days fo r th e H o m e ­ less National Chair James M atsuba, th e cam paign's initial goals w ere a m eagre $500.

However, m uch m ore m on e y was raised and th e cam paign has g ro w n every year, raising $5,031 in 2006 and $25,356 in 2007.This year’s national cam paign has raised over $116,000.

"Over August, I was able to fly o u t fo Ottavya and a tte n d th e East Coast Leader­ ship Retreat," said Matsuba, a University o f A lberta student. "That's w h e re I first m et [C h u n gw in g] and Gold."

In addition to Concordia and Alberta, over 40 students fromthe Universityof Brit­ ish Columbia, Brock University, University of Guelph, University of Lethbridge, McMaster University, University of Northern British Columbia, University of Saskatchewan and Wilfrid Laurier University also participated this year.

The campaign's rules are relatively sim­ ple: participants have no pocket money, can only receive donated food, have no access to shower facilities and must remain outside except when attending class or extracur­ ricular activities. Students are only let inside if temperatures become low enough to en­ danger their health.

"[All th e fo o d ] w e g e t has to be d o n a t­ e d . .. b u t I eat b e tte r here than I d o a t home," Redler said, citin g friends and supporters w h o co nstantly b ro u g h t fo o d and drinks to

HUGEGALDONES Atwan denounces the israeli blockade of Gaza.

tational approach and Abbas's more reconciliatory angle have resulted in much friction and division.

"I cannot see a Palestinian national unity. I can't see some sort of unified front inPalestine,”he said.

Atwan was alsoverycritical of Arabgovernments for their excessive authoritarianism and tendency to kowtowto Israel and the United States, which isa po­ sition his newspaper often takes. This has led to cen­ sorship,and insome cases, bans of al-Quds al-Arabi in a number of Arab nations.

However, Atwan saved his harshest condemna­ tions for Israel and the U.S, claiming that Israel does not want peace, and that the governing coalition of Prime Minister Ehud Olmert is too weak to make substantive progress. He also condemned the U.S.'s involvement in the region, claiming that the U.S. is attempting to shift focus away from the Arab-lsraeli conflict to Iran, adding that the Bush administration is rallying support amongst Arab states for possible militaryaction against Iran.

"I wouldn't be surprised if [the U.S.] launched a war against Iran soon, maybe before the end of this year,"he said.

Atwan also denounced the recent Israeli block­ ade of hisnative Gaza as inhumane and claimed there was a deliberate media blackout of the situation in Gaza.

"We want peace; we want co-existence; we want to livewiththe Israelis; we want to have prosperity like everybody else inthe world, but they will not allowus to do so,"he said.

Director of Information and Research of SPHR McGill and U3 Psychology student Nour Kteily said that Atwan's occupation as an editor must give him an angle on the situation based on less superficial means.

"Just the emotion on his face when he's talking about it, clearly it'ssomething that means alot to him," Kteily said.

Laith Masouth, chapter coordinator of SPHR's na­ tional office, was impressed with Atwan's talk.

"He was very articulate in presenting the facts on the ground and what that entails for the future of the situationthere,"Masouth said."Thewider situation, not only inPalestine but inthe Middle Eastasawhole, isdeteriorating ina rapidway andthere's not much to hope for if we don't act now."*

p a rticip a tin g students.

A lth o u g h Redler was fo rtu n a te e n o u g h n o t to have class, C h u n g w in g and G old still had to a tte nd all o f theirs.

"That was th e to u g h e st th in g to do.

Every single class I passed o u t and fell asleep.

In class you feel safe, you're n o t w o rrie d som eone's g o n na co m e steal yo u r shoes," C h u n g w in g said w ith a chuckle.

The Concordia students also had gu e st sleepers every n ig h t w h o volu n tee re d to jo in th e m on th e pavem ent, in clu d in g C oncordia S tudent U nion President A n g e l­ ica Novoa and Concordia professors M artin M artens and M ahesh Sharma.

"The p rim ary reason I d id it is I'm requir­ ing all m y students to vo lu n te e r fo r a n o n ­ profit," M artens said."Every n ig h t th e re were drunks co m in g by to talk. I w o u ld 've d o n e m ore nights, b u t I d id n 't anym ore to take care o f m y dogs.”

C h u n g w in g stated th a t th e y had o rig i­ nally w a n te d to in clu d e McGill in th e event, b u t th a t th e M an a g e m en t Undergraduate Society .had to o m any o th e r events sched­

A U S TOW N H A LL Want to d isc u ss issu e s with the faculty’s adm inistration?

Com e d isc u ss advising, co u rse evaluations, interdisciplinary programs and other co n cern s with the D eans of Arts.

W e d n e s d a y M arch 19th a t 4 :3 0 in th e A rt s L o u n g e R e fr e s h m e n t s an d S n a c k s w ill b e a v a ila b le .

A re yo u in te re s te d in b ein g t h is y e a r ’s V A L E D IC T O R IA N ?

uled. "[MUS President Kelly M cA ndrew ] was able to sw ing by and show her support," C h u n g w in g said.

Both Redler and C h u n g w in g said th e experience greatly increased th e ir e m p a th y to w a rd Montreal's homeless p o p ulatio n .

Redler even d o n ate d his sleeping bag to a homeless m an on th e final night.

"I really h o p e th a t peo ple realize th a t ju s t because w e d o this fo r five days doesn't m ean it is over," Redler said."[The homeless] d o this

365 days a year." ■

The AUS is now accepting applications for the two V aled ictorians for the Ju n e 2008 graduating c la s s of the Faculty of Arts.

Application forms are available at the AUS offices in the basem ent of the L e a c o c k building.

C ontact VP A cad em ic Pat Boily, at academ ic@ ausm cgill.com for more information Deadline for A pplications: March 25**1. 2008 at 5.00pm

4 - News-18.03.08

The McGill Tribune

CAMPUS

SSMU welcomes new exec

Turner wins presidency in landslide Tribune Staff With a participation rate of 30.9 per cent of the student body or 5729 votes, the Students' Society's spring election brought out one of the largest voter turnouts in re­ cent memory. Last Friday, the results of the referenda questions and the new SSMU executive were revealed before a raucous crowd at Gert's.

This year's race for President between current Vice-President Internal Kay Turner and Arts Undergraduate Society President RJ. Kelfordwas one of the most contentious campaigns. With 54-5 per cent of the popu­ larvote, Turnerwon the election against Kel­ ford, with 39.5 per cent.

Although visibly disappointed, Kelford said that he hopes to remain involved in some aspects of student life in his final un­ dergraduate year next semester, though he •may direct his focus on voluriteerism and the AUS. Turner was elated with her success, cit­ ing the elected VPs as her ideal executive.

In the coming months, Turner said she will beginto learnthe President's responsibilities and build the connections to the adminis­ tration necessary to her portfolio, adding that she "won't be taking over the portfolio until May".

Samantha Cook was declared the new VP Clubs and Service, edging out oppo­ nent Johnson Fung with 514 per cent of the vote.

Cook said that she was excited to take office and hoped to work with Fung on his proposals for increasing SSMU's Web pres­ ence.

"I'm looking forward to working in SSMUand looking forward to working with the people who have been elected," she said. "I think we know Johnson Fung has some great ideas, especially with the Web stuff, and I really do want to support his en­ deavours."

The second-ever VP Internal will be Julia Webster, who plans to focus much of her initial efforts to decreasing the carbon

H e y !

footprint of SSMUevents.

“I'm really passionate and excited to work with the environmental committee and [to] make sure that Frosh is something that ismore sustainable thisyear,"she said.

In a race closer than expected, Devin Alfaro was elected as VP External, with 50.7 per cent of the popular vote, capturing 2,917 votes toTrevor Hanna's2,238.

"I'mvery happy with the results. I won by a solid margin," Alfaro said. "I think it's going to be agood year.There's going to be a lot of work but we have agreat team, and I feel the best people for thejob won."

Hanna, who conceded defeat the day before the results were released, was gra­ cious."! thought it would have been awider margin," he said. "I know [Alfaro is] going to do well next year and he's got my full sup­ port."

All five referenda questions.passed by significant margins, with the most antici­ pated question regarding the Daily Publica­ tion Society fee renewal passing at an over­ whelming 80 per cent affirmative vote.

"We expected to win. We didn't ex­ pect it to be as big as it was,”said DPS Board Member Jeremy Delman. "Before going into this, we were quite certain that we did have student support for both newspapers, but what this did show to us and the campus community was how much support there is out there."

The online opt-out system motion, which commits SSMU to lobby to end the current Minerva system, passed 65.6 per cent to 27.5 per cent. The clubs and services motion requiring SSMUto refrainfrommak­ ing decision that would endanger the exis­ tence of clubs and services also passed 81.3 per cent to 11.5 per cent.

The two remaining motions concern­ ing the Chief Electoral Officer name change andthe required SSMUauditing firmpassed with72.2 per cent and 68.8 per cent support, respectively. ■ — With reporting by Thomas Quail, Kate Spirgen, Ken Sun, Byron Tau and Vincci Tsui

D o n 't

m is s

BY THE NUMBERS

President Kay Turner 3121 Votes, 54-5%

RJKelford 2265 Votes, 39-5% Spoiled 343 Votes, 6.0% VP Clubs and Services Samantha Cook 2944 votes, 51 .4 %

Johnson Fung 2249 Votes, 39.3%

to

"I'm no stran g e r to n u m b e rs; I'm n o stran g e r to b ig num bers," he said.

Silverstein also em phasized th e p rio r­ ity he w o u ld place o n Haven Books.

"If I w e re to be elected, it w o u ld p ro b a b ly be o n e o f th e firs t th in g s I w o u ld deal with."

The o u tg o in g VP Finance, Im ad Barake, has n o t placed his s u p p o rt b e h in d e ith e r can d id ate , c o m m e n d ­ in g C arm on and Silverstein on th e ir differences.

Barake a d d ed th a t, w h ile th e req u ire d k n o w le d g e fo r ru n n in g th e VP Finance p o rtfo lio d iverges fro m ty p ic a l fin a n c e curricula, he w ill be able to pass on his k n o w le d g e to th e e le cte d VP o ve r th e sum m er.

"Regardless o f w h o w ins, I'll give a d vice [to h im ] b u t I'm n o t s u p p o rt­ in g anyone," Barake said, e m p h a siz­ in g th a t he w a n ts to leave th e c h o ice e n tire ly to th e v o tin g stu d e n ts and th a t he w ill o n ly fo cu s on th e m a n ­ d a te o f his p o rtfo lio . ■

Jose Diaz 1654 Votes, 28.9% Kevin Chambers 764 Votes, 34.5% Brad Milech 752 Votes, 13.1% Spoiled ’ 259 Votes, 6.5% ADAMSC0TTI

VP External

Newhook has declined the VP Finance position for "personal things."

Devin Alfaro

2917 Votes, 50 .9%

Trevor Hanna 2238 Votes, 39.1% Spoiled 574Votes, 10.0%

Sex-Ed shafted from Quebec high schools.

The Quebec Ministry of Education's holistic education reform will see sexual education classes slashed from its high school curriculum. The five hours-per-year of class time that was allotted for grades 7 through 11 will be eliminated within the next two years.

SEETHE FULL STORY ONLINE AT MCGILLTRIBUNE.COM

Source: Elections McGill

March 1 2 , 1:00pm - 2:30pm

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w ith m a n a g in g finances.

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1976 , 34.5%

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c G ill

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Dining Etiquette * March 11, 6-9pm

M

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Negotiating for Success March 11, 10:30am - 12:30pm

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Results to be seen in April

Spoiled 536 Votes, 94%

o n

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By-election to be held

,iJ i CAPS

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Swedish pop band ABBA's former drummer was found dead this week­ end outside his house inthe town of Arta—located inthe eastern part of Mallorca, Spain. According to reports, the death has been deemed accidental. Brunkert was said to have hit his head against a door, shat­ tering the glass and cutting his neckopen. Fellow band members were shocked, adding that Brunkert was "one of the best". • 8 to 12-million bees were released from captivity this Sunday as a truck carrying crates of the insects turned on its side. The bees were being used to help pollinate crops in the Californian valley of San Joaquin. The bees proceeded to take over a part of Highway 99 and stung aid workers and officers attempting to clear the wreckage of the accident off the highway. • Former aide to ex-Governor of New Jersey JimMcGreevey has come out and said that he was involved with numerous sexual trysts while McGreevey and his ex-Wife Dino were still dating. In 2004, McGreevey shocked the nation, revealing that he was gay. Inan op-ed this past week in the New YorkTimes, McGreevey's wife, said that Mc­ Greevey never explicitly told her that he was gay. Apparently, moments before he was to admit to his homosexuality on national television, he handed her a copy of his speech and walked away. • In other ugly di­ vorce-settlement news, former Beatle Paul McCartney has been ordered to pay 24.3-million English Sterling, or just under $so-million American dollars, to his ex-wife Heather Mills.This divorce has been the most sen­ sationalized English break-up since Princess Diana and Prince Charles separated over 10 years ago. The former model and charity worker Mills cited an intrusion of privacy by the British paparazzi as the reason for the split. • Two brands of pearjuice—President's Choice Organics Pear Juice from Concentrate for Toddlers and Beech Nut Pear Juice from concentrate with Vitamin Cadded—were recalled last week for arsenic levels that exceeded safety standards. Inan act of reassurance Monday, Health Canada told parents that the arsenic levels did not pose an im­ mediate threat but maintained that any unopened juice should be left that way.

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O

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OFF THE BOARD

Spitzer Mann-handling is an affront to justice

TINTED GLASSES

A real education includes free speech

Byron Tau

ItKat at iIinrrtM Gibson

KAPPALETTA@HOTMAIL.COM

I f Iwas so inclined, this column could abuse the government. It could articulate the most distasteful opinions around; it could even call for a collective uprising against the authorities^and no one could do anything about it. I can say pretty much whatever I want, because that is part of what being a Canadian is about. Freedom of expression is, for better or worse, a fundamental part of Western democracy and civilization. We hold our right to free speech as dear as we hold our right to due process—and any perceived challenge to said rights arouses fierce op­ position and fury. For proof of this one need look no farther than McMaster University, the site of a recent free speech rallyfollowing the university's controversial decision to prohibit the display of a banner containing the words "Israel Apartheid."

The event does raise some crucial ques­ tions about free speech on universitycampus­ es. A university should ideally be an inclusive environment that fosters open discourse and fruitful academic debate based on mutual respect. The expression of certain sentiments and opinions may detract from—rather than add to—this mission. Ironically, however, when universities choose to prohibit free ex­ pression inorder to stop protest, they usually end up causing it.

But if the McMaster officials thought that the banner itself would be inflammatory, they were chastened by the reaction against them.

The free speech rallyquicklydegenerated into the worst-case scenario of Jews-versus-Arabs, with both sides flinging hateful language and accusations at the other. Far from prevent­ ing conflict, the decision worked to increase the tension—not only were the participants angry at each other, they were also furious at McMaster officials.

There isa lesson to be learned here: pre­ venting the expression of an attitude that

some consider hateful does not do anything to get rid of it. When authorities prohibit ex­ pression, the point of view begins to fester— it perpetuates itself and becomes even more ingrained in the minds of those who share it.

It isonly through open discussion that the va­ lidity of any point of view can be ascertained.

An opinion must be expressed in order to be accepted, but by the same token, it must cer­ tainly be expressed if it isto be dismissed. The presentation of conflicting opinions along with a discussion of both sides' merits and flaws is the only way to handle controversial issues responsibly.

Most importantly, if people only ex­ press non-inflammatory, “acceptable" opin­ ions, then almost inevitably there will come a point when truth is suppressed. Individuals cannot be afraid that voicing their controver­ sial views will be prohibited, or else the sta­ tus quo will be unshakeable and society will stagnate. Sometimes people don't want their views challenged. Institutions don't want to deal with the controversy that revision of sentiment entails. Governments don't want to face the'challenges oppositional views cre­ ate. What it comes down to, however, isthat a society that inhibits freedom of expression is one that will become hopelessly dogmatic.

Canadian universities are full of intelli­ gent and opinionated individualsfromall over the world. While this fact makes them rather explosive incertain circumstances, it also ren­ ders them some of the most valuable settings on earth for productive dialogue about world issues. Preventing students from expressing their views on controversial subjects—even for the sake of avoiding destructive conflict— isa violation of student rights that we cannot permit. Even more importantly, however, it is asure-fire way to see that the most important issues facing today's youth remain emotion­ ally charged, volatile and unresolved.*

I n F. Scott Fitzgerald's classic Jazz age novel This Side of Paradise, the young Amory Blaine, hisfriend Alec and Alec's young female com­ panion are holed up in an Atlantic City hotel, as detectives search floor by floor, looking for an unmarried couple seen entering the hotel.

Amory, unaware of the gravity of the situation, is unconcerned. "Well, better let them in," he says. "You don't understand," cries Alec. "They can get me under'the Mann Act." New York governor Elliott Spitzer's resig­ nation over a prostitution scandal this week mirrored Alec's situation, as federal prosecutors at the Justice Department circled like vultures overhead, threatening an indictment. But his unfortunate maritial lapse was not simply the end of his political career. Rather, Spitzer's legal and political woes have dragged an ancient turn-of-the-20th century legislative relic—the Mann Act—back into the limelight and, along with it, the sordid (and racist) history of that particular statute.

Basedon the fact that onlythe states could legislate, regulate and outlaw prostitution, the federal government reacted in1910 by passing theWhite-SlaveTraffic Act. This was named col­ loquially for Congressman James Robert Mann.

The act banned both "white slavery" and the transportation of females across interstate lines for ."immoral purposes." The Supreme Court upheld this restriction in 1913 and expanded the definition of "immoral" to also include "de­ bauchery." By '1917, an act that was designed only to apply to prostitution was expanded in Caminetti vs. United States to include all consen­ sual extramarital affairs, leading to incidents like the one described in Fitzgerald's novel.

Still, all extramarital affairs and trysts with prostitutes were not investigated or prosecuted equally. Fromits inception, the act was not ap­ plied fairly or consistently. According to some historians, the Mann Act was part of the arsenal of JimCrow tools that Southern officials regu­ larly used to harass and punish African-Ameri­ cans. Indeed, some of the high profile figures prosecuted under the act—singer Chuck Berry, boxer Jack Johnson and actor Rex Ingram— were prominent and sometimes controversial

black figures w h o had achieved fa m e in an age o f sta te -sa n ctio n ed segregation. Trials c o n d u c t­ ed using M ann A ct-rela te d charges help e d p u t a d a m p e r on th e careers o f all th re e m en and all th re e served prison tim e.

When federal law enforcement officials were not using the act to harass African-Ameri­ can celebrities, they were using it to intimidate other controversial publicfigures. Charlie Chap­ lin is best known as the lovable silent film star, but he also caused a public stir by releasing the decidedly pro-war, anti-Hitler filmThe Great Dictator in a nation (and a government) still committed to neutrality. Chaplin's warmonger­ ing angered many within the government and probably led to his prosecution on trumped-up Mann Act charges in 1944. Further, in 1918, a prominent and controversial University of Chi­ cago professorWillliamI.Thomaswas dismissed from his lecturing post and charged with Mann Act violations—probably because of the anti­ war activities of his wife, his unorthodox views and his bohemian lifestyle.

Spitzerfitsthe model ofa typical Mann Act witch-hunt: a popular, famous and controver­ sial public figure being persecuted by unhappy higher-ups within the federal government.

Spitzer's moral judgment was undoubtedly poor. However, it seems that politics were at the centre of his downfall. Republicans in NewYork were facing an increasingly uphill battle against Democrats. The Bush administration's Justice Department Public Integrity section', which is responsible for investigating the conduct of elected public officials, had not even been scrutinizing Spitzer because of any suspected crime—they were just snooping into his bank­ ing history when they struck political gold. This same Public Integrity section was at the centre of the U.S, attorneys'scandal and, according to Tribe Magazine, has investigated 5.6 Democratic public officials for every one Republican.

W h a te ver really h a p p e n e d in th e Spitzer affair, o ne th in g is clear. Leaving archaic, rac­ ist legislative relics o n th e books fo r overeager federal o fficials to e nforce at th e ir w h im is a recipe fo r disaster and a travesty in a society th a t c h a m p io n s im p a rtia l justice. ■

±40°

Connectivity disconnect David Levitz DAVID.LEVITZ@MAIL.MCGILL.CA spend a great deal o f tim e c o n te m p la tin g th e m o d e rn h u m a n c o n d itio n — w h a t's w ro n g w ith it and h o w it co u ld be im p ro ve d . One co n clu sio n I've co m e t o — g re a tly c o n firm e d fo r m e by Carl Honoré's b o o k In Praise of Slowness— is th a t a lot o f o u r culture's stress on "speed" is unnecessary. O ne p a rticu la r w o lf in sheep's c lo th in g — n e w te c h n o lo g y — prom ises to m ake o u r lives easier, b u t can actu ally create insatiable a p p etite s fo r n e w stim uli, w re c k in g o u r a p p re cia tio n o f th e o n ly th in g w e re! ally have: th e l^ere and now. ' I I i j I

A t h o m e in lovely N o rth Florida d u rin g reading week, I spent a fe w days in m y dear, d e p arte d gran d m o th e r's kitchen m aking th e last batch o f ku m q u a t m arm alade I w ill g e t to make from her garden. This is a jo b w h ich dem ands great patience (or "slowness”) as each k u m q u a t is th e size a grape and contains tw o to six seeds. Just as th e sugar and th e pulpy, citrus-y fruits o f m y labour cam e to a boil, co n g ea ling in to w o n d ro u s orange goo, I heard an iPhone com m ercial from th e living room TV th a t to o k th e w in d o u t o f m e.T he ad goes like this: "If you love Facebook so m uch th a t you Check it every tim e you're at th e c o m p u te , ju s t th in k h o w great it w o u ld be to check it every tim e y o u 're ...w e ll, n o w h e re near yo u r com puter? Right on y o u r phone." As if spending m ore tim e on Facebook should be a priority!

Here's a n o th e r one: "All these years you've go n e th ro u g h th e

day w ith o u t e-m ail like this in yo u r pocket, o r stock updates like yo u r pocket, o r Internet like this in yo u r pocket, and you survived.The q u estion is: How7' These ads certainly d o grab y o u r a tte ntio n , kind o f like a p u n ch in th e stom ach. Half o f m e still believes th e y are an SNL skit. The sad, un d erlyin g message th e y convey is th a t th e present m o m e n t is never g o o d eno ug h . W hy e n jo y w here you are and w h a t you're d o in g w h e n there's so m e th in g b e tte r online? The

this in

e q u iva le nt Canadian Rogers ads are even m ore sickening: four teens are sitting in a car and th e girl in th e fro n t snaps an em bar­ rassing p h o to o f th e driver w ith her phone. She posts it online, and before he know s w h a t has happened, th e kids in th e back seat im m e d ia te ly see it on each o f th e ir personal In te rn e t-p h o n e screens and start laughing.

Just as diseases keep de ve lo ping h e w drug-resistant strains, o u r p o rta b le electronics m alady is e vo lvin g by th e day. I wish I had a nickel for every tim e I heard statem ents like, "Oh m y God, this is soooo m y n e w Facebook profile-pic!" o r "Oh m y God, th a t is to ta lly m y n e w Facebook quote!"Like tourists w h o c o m e to see th e o th e r side o f th e w o rld th ro u g h th e ir camera's view finder, som e peo ple here fin d it increasingly d iffic u lt to fin d m eaning in th e present unless it so m e h o w relates to virtual reality.

O f course, it's unrealistic to ask peo ple to give up th e ir phones. But there m ust be som e rules set in place to p ro te ct th e

sanctity of "reality?Inmy mind, there are two types of cell-phone users: the ones who receive acall saying,"Hey, I'mwith someone right now. Can I call you back in20 minutes?"and then the ones who take the call and put the person who took the time to meet theminpersonon hold.The second category isinneed ofa prior­ ity adjustment.

Underlying these types of relationships to technology is a deep boredom rampant inour culture and aconstant dissatisfac­ tion with the present. But how can it be confronted? I can only give one kernel of wisdom that has helped me. According to a book on Buddhist meditation that Iwas flipping through, we are constantly forming judgments about everything we see or do, and the result is that we often convince ourselves that we are bored or could be doing something better. The example given was that of doing dishes. Working to be present without judg­ ment or "mental chatter" we shouldn't think “doing the dishes: boring"but simply"doing the dishes: doing the dishes."

The idea that a person should need Facebook or stock mar­ ket updates available at every moment to survive the day sug­ gests a condition similar to drug addiction. Not too many years from nowthere will be rehab for the electronics-dependent and the bored. Part of theirtherapy should be washing dishes or even better, deseeding kumquats. ■

www.mcgilltribune.com

T rtbune

18.03.08 - The McGill Tribune • 7

EDITORIAL

Peterson deserves better than a metro

www.mcgilltribune.com

E d it o r - in - C h ie f

Tiffany Choy editor@mcgilltribune.com M a n a g i n g E d it o r s

Elizabeth Perle Kate Spirgen seniored@mcgilltribune.com P r o d u c t io n M a n a g e r

Andrew Dathan Frankel production@mcgilltribune.com N ew s E d it o r s

Thomas Quail Ken Sun VincciTsui news@mcgilltribune.com O p in io n E d it o r

Byron Tau opinion@mcgilltcibune.com F e a t u r e s E d it o r s

Meghna Marjadi Carolyn Yates features@mcgilltribune.com A r ts & E n t e r t a i n m e n t E d it o r s

Ezra Glinter John Semley

snew as the terrain of Facebook social advo­ cacy mayseem, amovement that hasseeped out of itsonline confines, dented local news­ papers with letters to the editor and entered local conversation with startling regularity is certainly a force to be reckoned with. Certainly, while Facebook looks increasingly like a legitimate venue for almost anything nowadays, the barrier between the concerns of the digital realm has become aw­ fully conflated with that of reality. And while such social movements aptly stimulate debate amongst members, they can often lapse into creating insular circles for perpetual self-validation.

The new movement to rename Lionel-Groulx metro after recently deceased jazz pianist and composer Oscar Peterson is one such self-validat­ ing exercise in politically correct masturbation. It acquired its self-important moralizing sea legs on Facebook but now seems poised to enter the local political and social consciousness at an alarming speed.

Based on the inconvenient fact that "Lionel Groulx opposed all non-Catholic immigration to Canada, supported the fascists during WWII and the Spanish Civil War, and acted to deny access to Canada to Jewish asylum-seekers during the Ho­ locaust" and that, "Oscar Peterson was born and raised in sud-ouest Montreal, isjazz royalty, à sym­ bol of triumph over adversity, a Grammy lifetime A

arts@mcgilltribune.com S p o r t s E d it o r s

Matt Chesser Aaron Sigal sports@mcgilltribune.com

cc.

2a É

b

a c h ie ve m e n t aw ard w inner, a C o m p a n io n o f th e O rder o f Canada, and a C hevalier o f th e O rdre na­ tio n a l.du Québec,"th is Facebook g ro u p labours to consecrate th e legacy o f Peterson w h ile u n d e rm in ­ ing th a t o f G roulx w ith o n e s w ift stroke o f th e pen.

But th is ty p e o f advocacy is fu n d a m e n ta lly spurious. W hite Peterson— th e M aharajah o f th e keyboard— is a b so lu te ly d e se rvin g o f having his m usical legacy recognized, ren a m in g th e m e tro is an id io tic so lu tio n . G roulx m ay have been anti-S e­ m itic and g e n era lly despicable, b u t th e p re c e d e n t th a t th is m ay set is th e slipperiest o f slopes.

If th e e ffe ct snow balls, w e m ay see claim s m ade against b u ild in g s, in stitu tio n s, currencies, m e tro stops, statues, m o n u m e n ts and o th e r p u b lic co m m e m o ra tio n s th a t celebrate th e likes o f a n tiSem ite W illiam Lyon M ackenzie King, n o to rio u s a lco h o lic John A. M acD onald and even o u r o w n beloved, sla veholding James M cGill. Hell, c a rto g ­

acceptable?

Such ahistorical p o litica l correctness is already w o rk in g its w ay in to serious debate. Beyond th e local G roulx-Peterson brouhaha, th e re is already a m o v e m e n t to renam e British Colum bia's Strait o f G eorgia as th e “Salish Sea," after th e Coastal Salish p o p u la tio n th a t lived th e re p rio r to th e British arriv­ al. Yesterday's M on tre a l G azette rig h tly p o in te d out, "ch an g in g a nam e as histo ric as th e Strait o f G eorgia is to be avoided," b u t such incessant and sym b o lic p o litic a lly co rre ct nam e changes are b e in g p ro ­ posed w ith s ta rtlin g regularity. . Besides th e fin a n cia l ram ifications o f ren a m ­ ing a m e tro s to p (in c lu d in g th e cost o f re-labelling every m e tro m ap and STM b ro ch u re in th e city), th e m o ve m e n t's id e o lo g ical d in t is m isin form e d. W ork­ in g to trite ly ce le b ra te th e significance o f Peterson is u ltim a te ly c o n d esce n d in g . A scholarship, a jazz c lu b o r even a statues seem m ore palatable o p ­

"W h ile Peterson— the M aharajah o f the k e yb o a rd — is a b so lu te ­ ly d eservin g o f h aving his m usical le ga cy recognized, renam ing the m etro is an id io tic solution." rapher A m e rig o Vespucci p ro b a b ly w asn't to o p ro ­

tio n s fo r c o m m e m o ra tin g Peterson, co n sid e rin g his

gressive on gay rig h ts— w h y n o t renam e o u r c o n ­ tin e n t to s o m e th in g m ore su ita b le and p o litic a lly

m u s ic a l legacy— n o t a grim y, d in g y M e tro s to p at th e in te rse ctio n o f th e ora n g e and green Lines. ■

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C o p y E d it o r

PARRY & THRUST

Crystal Chan

Of markets and artisans

copy@mcgilltribune.com O n l i n e E d it o r

Should the arts be publicly funded?

Femi Kassim online@mcgilltribune.com

C rystal C han and Byron Tau D e s ig n E d it o r s Crystal carefully sculpts an argument: In a demo­ Samantha Chang cratic country, political mandates concerning pro­ Conor Graham motion and funding of the arts should ideally be design@mcgilltribune.com based on what citizens want. Although not every­ body isinformed enough to actually divvy upfinan­ A d v e r t is in g M a n a g e r cial allocation, Canadian citizens have repeatedly Paul Slachta supported the general idea of public funding of the advmgr@ssmu.mcgill.ca arts (just one of many statistics: 85 per cent "agree that governments should provide support for arts P u b l is h e r and culture," according to Décima Research for the Chad Ronalds Department of Canadian Heritage). There is no rea­ son publicly funded cultural endeavours should not continue, if not grow.

Contributors Ines Beatrix, Charlie Cheng, Kathryn . D ingle, Lindsay Frank, H uge Galdones, M ich elle Geesaman, Kat G ibson, James G ilm an, Carolyn Grégoire, Thom as Lam berti, Christie Lee, David Levitz,Theo Meyer, Sara M cC ulloch, Erina M organ, Claire Pidsley, W illiam Robinson, M egan Schieck, A dam Scotti, Reneé S utton, Ali W ithers

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Byron paints a grimmer portrait: There's a p ro ce ­ d u re fo r a llo w in g citizens to fu n d w h a t th e y w a n t and shun w h a t th e y d o n 't— it's called a m arket econom y. A rt is a m arke ta b le c o m m o d ity , ju s t like g o u rm e t fo o d o r h a u t-c o u tu re fashion. Yet, g o v e rn ­ m en ts d o n 't subsidize chefs o r designers— th e y're le ft alo n e to face th e c ru e lty o f th e o p e n m arket and to succeed o r fail on th e ir m erits. Orchestras, theatres, visual artists and e xp e rim e n ta l film m akers, how ever, receive heaps o f state fu n d in g . Why? Be­ cause th e y sim ply can't survive w ith o u t subsidies in a m arket-based e c o n o m y w h e re p e o p le are u n w ill­ in g to pay h ig h prices to see a sym phony, an opera o r a d o c u m e n ta ry film . If e n o u g h Canadians are in ­ terested in M ozart, Matisse o r M am et, w h y are th e y o n ly w illin g to pay fo r such cu ltu ra l co m m o d itie s th ro u g h th e ir tax dollars?

Crystal chips away: In d ivid u al a rtistic

p ro d u cts can b e co m e m arketable c o m m o d itie s b u t a rt is abso­ lu te ly never th e same as a n o th e r fo rm o f g o o ds in

that its benefits are not measured in units. People are going to eat or not eat that filet mignon tonight, but a Matisse nourishes for centuries. One "experi­ mental film” may not have throngs shelling $10 a ticket at AMC, but the artistic influence, the experi­ mental equipment and newtechnology developed for such films have time and time again been ad­ opted by the mainstream. Those kick-ass dinos in Jurassic Park? Created by innovations from then National Film Board artist Daniel Langlois, whose probably then 'esoteric shenanigans' later became marketable. Art is not "subsidized" like a paycheque for artists too lazy to make something relevant; rather, publicfunding islike astarter loanthat helps artists get off the ground.

Byron draws a line: This public funding, however, comes with a whole host of problems. Art is often used to push existing boundaries, while taxpayers tendto likealowtaxburden. Often, thecombination is explosive—as demonstrated by the hullabaloo over the so-called "Piss Christ,"a controversial work of photography partiallyfunded bythe National En­ dowment for the Arts inthe U.S. Or take the current furor over an amendment to Bill C-10—which seeks to ban public funding for documentaries and other media projects that run contrary to public policy.

Such self-righteous, moralisticand conservative op­ position to sometimes legitimate works of art and points of view is an inherent problem that comes along with public funding—and one that could be avoided if there simply was no public funding.

bigger-picture benefits. StatisticsCanada notedthat the $7.7-billion2005 arts investment generated $40billion and 600,000 jobs—this can only be seen on a macroeconomic scale. Public funding is not insu­ lar. It encourages private funding through creating institutions for mediation like the Canada Council for the Arts that solicit large private donors. Unless you are in an autocratic state, the even stronger censoring hand than policy is the firm guiding— and limiting—hand of the market. The atrocious, vaguely-worded 1984-type Bill C-10 would prevent questionably immoral art from being realized—but no public funding at all, and everything would be cut. Artists need to censor themselves and compro­ mise their artistic vision in order to stay afloat in a purely market-driven arts exchange. Ifind appalling your suggestion fhat government censorship isjust a de facto price for public funding. When the gov­ ernment funds the arts, it must do so in a manner consistent with the rights to free speech unchal­ lenged in our constitution—this is why Bill C-10's proposed amendment iswrong.

Byron splashes paint everywhere like Pollock: Like h u m o u ris t P.J. O'Rourke once said, w h e n it com es to dem ocracy, we're all ju s t "a p a rlia m e n t o f w h o re s.'lts n o t th a t I s u p p o rt g o v e rn m e n t censorship. I m erely fin d it in e vita b le th a t artists w ill push th e b o u n d ­ aries on th e public's d im e and u p tig h t citizens w ill crusade againist th e ir tax dollars b e in g used in such a way. The best— and o n ly — so lu tio n to such a d i­ le m m a is to let th e m arke t take care o f e ve ryth in g .

Artists w ill always be able to fin d rich patrons and w e a lth y buyers— so let's p u t th e public's m o n e y to b e tte r use. ■

Suite 1200,3600 McTavish Crystal cleans up what she started: Again, govern­ Montreal, QC H3A1Y2 ment investment in the arts is paid back through T: 514.398.6806 F: 5H . 398.7490 TheMcGill Tribune isaneditoriallyautonomous newspapèr published bythe Students' Society of McGill University incollaborationwiththeTribune PublicationSociety. Opinions expressed do not necessarily represent those of the Students'Societyor McGill University. Letterstothe editor may besent to letters@mcgilltribune.comandmust includethecontributor's name, programandyear andcontact information. Lettersshould be kept under300 words and submittedonlytotheTribune. SubmissionsjudgedbytheTribunePublicationSocietyto belibellous, sexist, racist, homophobicorsolelypromotional innaturewill not be published. TheTribunereservestherighttoedit all contributions.

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8 - The McGill Tribune • 18.03.08

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The Department of Jew ish Studies

BiACHER AND GLASROT FAMILIES MEMORIAL AWARD FOR HOLOCAUST RESEARCH s ta b lis h e d in 2000 b y M r. a n d Mrs. J o s e f G ia sro t, su rv iv o rs o f th e H o lo c a u s t a n d r e s id e n ts o f M o n tre a l. O p e n to a n y s tu d e n t at M cG ill U n iv e rs ity , t h e a w a r d is p r e s e n t e d fo r e x c e lle n c e in re s e a rc h in H o lo c a u s t a n d re la te d stu d ie s, a n d p a rtic u la rly o n th e h is to ry o f th e g h e tto s o f W a rs a w a n d K o v n o [K aunas]. E ssay s p r e p a r e d in a n y c o u r s e o r i n d e p e n d e n t re s e a rc h m a y b e c o n s id e r e d . T h e a w a r d is a d m in is te r e d b y th e D e p a r tm e n t o f J e w is h S tu d ie s in c o o p e r a tio n w ith th e J e w is h C o m m u n ity F o u n d a tio n . T h e a w a rd w ill b e p r e s e n te d d u rin g th e C lo sin g E x e rc ise s o f th e D e p a rtm e n t o f J e w is h S tu d ie s in J u n e , 2 0 0 8 .

T h e v a lu e o f th e B la c h e r a n d G ia sro t F am ilies M em o rial A w a rd is $1000.

E

• The com petition is open to undergraduate and graduate students at McGill University. * Students must submit 2 typed copies o f their essays together with full contact information.

• Essays can be based on primary or secondary materials and work in all related disciplines w ill be considered. * Essay subm issions must reach the Department o f Jewish Studies Office, 3438 McTavish Street, no later than April 1 1 , 2008.

L -jiB h

flj, i f.Ém WMMÊ BBSiïÊ M ■W -

I n between calling the President of the United States a "donkey" and Spain's former Prime Minister a "fascist," Venezuela's abrasive Presi­ dent Hugo Chavez still finds time to continue his assault on private busi­ ness in his oil-rich nation. After being re-elected last year, Chavez turned his attention to advancing his program of nationalization. Having announced his intentions for a takeover of the tele­ communications and energy sectors, Mr. Chavez moved on to strong-arm the last remaining U.S. oil companies operating inVenezuela, ordering a re­ working of their contracts that would give the state-controlled oil company, Petrôleos de Venezuela (PDVSA), a majority stake in and effective control over these multinationals'investments..

Fortunately, there are some compa­ nies willing to stand up to Chavez. For almost a year he has been embroiled inadispute with Exxon-Mobil over the nationalization of the Texas-based oil giant's Venezuelan assets.

Last month, the courts wrote a new chapter of the conflict when they granted Exxon interim court injunc­ tions inseveral western nations, freez­ ing millions in PDVSA assets to ensure eventual payment of adequate com­ pensation for Exxon-s seized invest­ ments. It is hoped that this will send a message to Mr. Chavez that he must play by international rules. Chavez, however, had a message of his own in response, threatening to cut off oil exports to the U.S. Everyone, pre­ sumably even the president himself, knows that this issimply empty rheto­ ric. Oil exports to America account for around -three quarters of Venezuela's export earnings and a complete cut­ off would hurt his own country much more than his"imperialist"enemy.

Unfortunately for Venezuelans, their leader's actions affect more than just multi-billion dollar American cor­ porations. Venezuela's oil industry will continue to decline now that the bloated, inefficient PDVSA is at the helm and truly in control. Already, a wealth of talent and capital has fled this unpredictable environment, much of it for Alberta. According to The Econ­ omist, the country has seen a decline

in oil output for 10 consecutive quar­ ters and PDVSA's financial troubles are becoming more and more obvious.

The nationalization of the energy in­ dustry, acrucial step inMr. Chavez's in­ troduction of "2ist-Century Socialism", is an example of how Latin America's most infamous demagogue isrobbing his nation of a prosperous future and betraying those whose support swept himinto power.

No one doubts that President Chavez has the best interests of Venezuela's destitute in mind or that he truly cares for the poorest of the poor. Yet, evidently intentions aren't enough. Former Chief Economist of the Venezuelan National Assembly writes in the latest edition of Foreign Affairs that the statistics show that Mr. Chavez's government has done little to reduce poverty in Venezuela and that his famed social programs, de­ signed to help the poor, have had little effect. His system of fighting poverty involves no more than vote-buying handouts, stunting the growth of a well-rounded economy and increas­ ing dependence on a state flush with oil money. This is not the way to fight poverty. If and when the boom in oil prices subsides, it will become appar­ ent that he has pursued unsustainable policies and has inadequately utilized the country's natural wealth and it will be Venezuela's poorest who suffer.

It is an encouraging sign that opposition to Mr. Chavez is bn the rise. Venezuelans seem to be losing patience. His popularity is declining and he suffered arguably his worstever setback when voters rejected proposals for constitutional changes in December, avoiding a greater con­ centration of power in the president's hands. For the sake of all those he has deceived, Mr. Chavez should re-evalu­ ate his approach. If not, the people of Venezuela should declare that they've had enough, before it'stoo late. ■ Jam es Gilman is a Uo Arts stu­ dent, a Tribune news writer, and this week's guest columnist. He likes long walks on the beach. If you want to contribute a guest column, e-mail opinion@mcgiHtribune.com.

GOD IS DEAD. KAY TURNER CHEATED. FREE EDUCATION IS A TRAVESTY. FRED PENNER SUCKS. 9/11 WAS AN INSIDE JOB. LIBERALISM IS A DISEASE. GO LEAFS. DISAGREE? AGREE? WRITE A LETTER OR A GUEST COLUMN. E-MAIL SUBMISSIONS TO OPINION@MCGILLTRIBUNE.COM

T R TRUNK

C A L L F O R E D IT O R S

The Tribune is looking for candidates to fill editorial positions for the 2008-2009 academic year.

Available positions: News Editor (3), Opinion Editor (1), Production Manager (1), Features Editor (2), Design Editor (2), A&E Editor (2), Sports Editor (2), Photo Editor (2), Online Editor (1), Copy Editor (1), Managing Editor (2) Send CV, cover letter (addressed to Tiffany Choy) and 3 relevent samples (writing, photo, or design) to editor@mcgilltribune.com by March 28.

C am pu s

HEALTH

Syph: killing you slowly M egan Schieck

Syphilis: another reasonwhy condoms are so important.

The microbe responsible for syphilis is Treponema pallidum, whose spiral-shaped bacteria are generally referred to as spiro­ chetes. The microbe itself is quite delicate, meaning that it must be passedthrough direct bodyfluid contact with infected lesions.

Ifa pregnant woman has untreated secondary or tertiary syphilis, her child may also develop congenital syphilis. If not stillborn or miscarried, the baby will play host to a wide array of symptoms and isat greatly increased riskof death.

Syphilis cannot be spread by touching infected surfaces or by sharing clothes, utensils or other personal items. Diagnosis of syphilis is done with a simple blood test or a microscope exami­ nation of atissue sample scraped froma chancre.

Primary syphilis presents itself with a small sore, called a chancre, on the sex organs or the mouth. It is painless and disap­ pears on its own in3-12 weeks. There may also be some swelling of the lymph nodes near the affected area. Ifthe chancre isinthe

mouth, the swollen lymph nodes inthe neck may be mistakenfor athroat infection.The chancre isoften hard to find inthe mouth, anus or vagina; however, gentlemen, it will become very obvious to you ifyour penis has had anencounter of the syphilitic kind, so be sureto tell your partner(s) as soon as possible.

A few months after infection, the disease reappears in the cooler parts of the body as secondary syphilis. Rough, red lesions appear on the hands and feet and may spread up the legs and torso. This stage of syphilis is known as the"great mimic”because the rash is often mistaken for that of ringworm, poison ivy or chicken pox. The rash isfrequently accompanied by fever, head­ ache, muscle aches, fatigue and other flu-like symptoms. This stage will also appear to go away on its own.

At either of these two stages, syphilis can be treated very easily with an intramuscular shot of penicillin. If the infection has been present for more than a year, more doses may be needed.

Other antibiotics are substituted for patients who are allergic to penicillin.

Until the lesions heal completely, however, a person may

still be contagious, so a b ste n tio n fro m sex d u rin g tre a tm e n t is necessary.

If th e first a nd secondary stages g o untreated, th e disease settles in to latency. A t this p o in t, th e in fe c tio n does n o t cause sym pto m s and circulate in th e b o d y fo r years. The affected in ­ divid u a l is still contagious, th o u g h th e y b e co m e less so as tim e passes.

W hen th e bacteria chooses a resting place, th e disease en­ ters its te rtia ry and final stage. A t this reappearance, th e effects o f syphilis are p e rm a n e n t and o fte n fatal. The spirochetes settle so m e w h e re in th e body, a nd be g in c h e w in g aw ay a t th e tissue.

W here th e bacteria settle dictates th e ty p e o f d a m a g e done. In th e brain, te rtia ry syphilis causes de m e n tia , p ersonality ch ange and paralysis. Spirochetes seem to p a rticu la rly like to eat away at heart and b lo o d vessel tissue. This o fte n leads to an aneurysm , w h e re in a w eakened p a rt o f th e tissue balloons o u t w ith b lo o d and e ve n tu a lly bursts.

A n tib io tic s can sto p fu rth e r d e s tru c tio n by th e bacteria, b u t any organ da m a g e is p e rm a n e nt. ■

SILHOUETTE

Management contacts T iffany C hoy

It's not just about the network—it's also about how you use it. For the past 18 years, The McGill Marketing Net­ work has been a highly successful student-based initia­ tive helping students to connect with future employers.

Though services provided by the University, suchas Career and Placement Services, alsoexistto helpconnect students with recruiters, this organization is arguablyjust as—if not more—effectively placing students in direct contact with some of Canada's largest firms.This isdone through oppor­ tunities for face-to-face contact in networking events the club establishes with companies looking to hire.

"There is n o th in g m ore rew arding k n o w in g you helped som e o n e in th e ir professional developm ent," says cu rre n t M M N President Sonia Kovacic."l received on a w e e kly basis e-m ails fro m students th a n k in g us fo r th e ir first internship."

Like m any clubs and services o n campus, MMN's o u tlo o k wasn't lo o kin g to o g o o d in Septem ber. "It started

sponsored by O gilvy-O ne M ontreal. "We heard th a t over a dozen students w e re co n tacte d by com panies fo r inter­ views," says Kovacic.

MMN acknowledges that management students are not the only ones capable of marketing. "We encouraged any student acrosscampus who was interestedto become a member and welcomed students from all faculties," Ko­ vacic explains. A recent team composed of Management and Engineering students ranked first ina Ben &Jerry's ice cream challenge, keeping the podium clear of students fromConcordia'sJohn Molson School of Business, HECand UQAM. D espite this c o m p e titiv e spirit, M M N w o rke d in co l­ la boration w ith th e e q u iva le n t organizations at these u n i­ versities this year to p ro vid e greater possibilities and share resources.

"We w e ren 't very involved w ith o th e r schools before," explains Vice President Stefanie R osenblatt,"but p o o lin g re­ sources is m ore beneficial fo r all."

o ff in q u ite th e predicam ent," Kovacic says. "O ur students w ere d isa p p ointe d w ith us, o u rfa c u lty d id n o t k n o w us and o th e r universities d id n o t w a n t to w o rk w ith us."

Nevertheless, th e executive team was d e te rm in e d to keep th e c lu b g o in g . "We w ere m o tiva te d to give students

Left on the table this year is Happening Marketing, a competition between a dozen universities in Quebec in different fields of marketing. "Over 500 students will be par­ ticipating,"says Rosenblatt.

th e o p p o rtu n itie s w e w ished w e had,"says Kovacic.

The organization runs num erous events th ro u g h o u t th e year to o ffe r as m any o p p o rtu n itie s fo r th e ir m em bers to establish and c o n n e c t w ith th e ir n e tw o rk. T heir m ost

n e xt year, Kovacic is pleased w ith th e progress o f th e clu b this year. "All in all, I th in k w e w ere able to reestablish o u r relationships w ith o u r students and fa cu lty m em bers.

O th e r universities are already a p p ro a ch in g us to help p la n fu tu re events.” ■

grandiose e ve n t was a business lu n ch e on last w eekend,

TVMcGill Presents: Fokus TVMcGill's 2nd annual Fokus FilmFestival filmmakers will screen their 19,2008 at6:oo PM. The categories Fiction,Non-Fiction, and Animation, as well rhour filmfestival. "fs

Come support student filmmakir _ ; are $5.00 and includes entrance to the after-party at Pistol, where the winners will be trJpK r.cS j. Visit w w vy.tym cg ill.co m /fo ku s fo r m ore in fo rm a tio n , em ail | q p @ tv m c g ill.ta m te r tickets, o r ju s t s to p b y o u r o ffic e in th e “ ant o f S h a tiie iith e re 's always so m e o n e th e re selling tickets!

T h o u g h th e clu b is preparing fo r a sh ift o f executives

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H o w Carolyn Yates “An Act to amend the Income Tax Act, including amendments in relation to foreign investment entities and non-resident trusts and to provide for the bijurai expression of the provisions o f that Act” —Income Tax Amendments Act, 2006

When Bill C-10 was first introduced back in 2003 it caused little excitement. Short-titled The Income Tax Amendments Act, 2006, most of the bill deals with house­ keeping changes to tax law. In October 2007, it passed with all-Party support in the House of Commons and recently moved smoothly past its second reading in the Senate.

Which was where people started to worry.

The text of the bill is 560-odd pages long, but it’s just one clause that has captured public at­ tention in recent weeks—a clause which would give the federal government (specifically, Her­ itage Minister Josée Verner) the responsibil­ ity to ensure that “public financial support of [a] production would not be contrary to public policy.”

“There’s recently been an amend­ ment which puts a loophole in the way that films are funded in Canada such that after a film has been approved for funding of Telefilm Canada and it is produced, if the content is deemed to be offensive or not in the public in­ terest, which is extremely vague, then the tax credits for that film can be ret roactively taken away," says Professor Alanna Thain, who teaches cultural stud ies at McGill.

However, Verner and supporters main­ tain that current laws are illogical and the changes have been long in the making.

“Under the current rules, the creator of a film that includes content that may be subject to prosecution under the Criminal Code could technically still be eligible for a film tax credit under the Income Tax Act. This is a legal absurdity; a loophole that successive governments— first Liberal, then Conservative—have worked to close. This is a matter of good housekeeping, consistent with previous policy and what is done in other cultural sectors,” said Ver­ ner in a statement released March 3.

The practical implications for the film industry are a palpable reality. Under the current system, funding for Ca­ nadian productions is regulated by Telefilm Canada and if

'There's recen tly been an w h ich puts >hole in the w a y tha t film s are fu n ded in a loopn tt/Ê Ê Ê Ê such t hat after a film has been a pproved fo r fu n d in g o f _ ______ and it is produced, if the con ten t is deem ed to be offensive o r not in the p u blic interest, w h ich is e xtre m e ly vague, then the fo r tha t film can be retroac­ tiv e ly taken away."

the production is approved, those involved benefit from tax credits. If the bill passes, the Heritage Minister will have the power to revoke tax credits after the film has been made if the content is deemed offensive or not in the public interest.

“It’s essentially preemptive censorship,” says Thain.

“The terms in which they’re phrasing this—‘offensive,’ not in the public good’—are so incredibly vague that one of the ways it’s been described is as producing a chilling effect: that people won’t be willing to invest in anything that has even slightly risky content.”

B etter th an A n n e of G re e n G a b le s

People don’t usually think of Canada producing anything more risqué than Her­ itage Minutes, but in fact many films funded

by Telefilm Canada have non-mainstream sub­ jects.

Consider Young People Fucking, a romantic comedy featuring graphic sex and due for release this April, which some critics have blamed for the bill. Or The Sex Files. Or David Cronenberg’s Shivers, a 1975 film in which parasites turn people into sex-crazed monsters and which, despite outrage at the time, was one of the first publicly funded Canadian films to make money.

“Time and again Canadian filmmakers have said that they would not have been able to make their films without the structure of public funding in Canada... Our filmmakers have an opportunity to produce films that are outside of the mainstream and anything that interferes with that—anything that interferes with the right for ar­ tistic self-expression—is going to undermine the film in­ dustry,” says Thain.

Those backing the bill disagree, but still voice their support of Canadian content.

“We want to support Canadian content, we won’t stop anybody from producing any kind of movies. We just want to make sure that our fiscal measure will follow our law in Canada,” said Verner in a press conference on March 4.

“Part of what makes Canadian film interesting—and, I would argue, Canadian—is precisely its great diversi­ ty—precisely that it produces films that are outside of the mainstream,” says Thain. “Our industry is dominated by Hollywood; not only do most Canadians consume Hol­ lywood films, but with Hollywood North, even the abil­ ity of filmmakers to get resources... to shoot Canadian productions is really under threat. Anything that restricts public funding for Canadian films is itself a threat to CaEPICO.RU Risqué roles, like Diora Baird's in Young People Fucking, have been suggested as inciting the moral censorship of the Bill C-10 amendments.

18.03.08 - The McGill Tribune • 11

www.mcgilltribune.com

nadian content.”

One prime supporter of the bill is the Canada Family Action Coali­ tion, an interest group that describes themselves as having “a vision to see Judeo-Christian moral principles restored in Canada.”

“The film industry is violently opposed to C-10 saying it is ‘cen­ sorship.’ Yet it does not prevent any movie from production. CFAC was called barbari[c] at the Genie awards for asking that tax money cease being used for such un-cultural projects. CFAC has received dozens of hateful and disparaging emails. Because we dare call for responsible government use of tax dollars!” reads a statement on the CFAC Web site, which goes on to criticize the government for “caving” to the media and arts industry. No one from CFAC was available for comment.

Expansive public debate

Public outcry surrounding the bill, despite its earlier obscurity, has been swift and brutal. Groups like the CFAC are part of a compara­ INDEPENOENTCRITICS.COM tively small pro movement, while the online community in particular Atom Egoyan's Exotica is set in a Toronto strip dub; not exactly the type of has come out strongly against it. From online petitions to statements family viewing tax payers expect, claims the Canada Family Action Coalition. urging readers to contact their MPs to the Facebook group “Keep your censoring hands off of Canadian film and T.V! No to Bill C-10!” the outcry against the bill extends beyond the public and into Parliament.

The "It's essentially p re e m p tiv e _________. says The Bloc Québécois put forth a motion for the govern­ 'fen te rms in w h ich th e y're phrasing th is— 'o ffensive','not in ment to amend the bill as soon as possible, which failed, the ! ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ' — are so in c re d ib ly______ th a t one o f the while the Liberals, despite being the initial force behind the bill in 2003, are now equally against it. w ays it's been described is as p ro d u cin g a “The arts community has already widely condemned tha t p e o ple w o n 't be w illin g to invest in a n yth in g that the government’s attempts to twit the tax law into a means has even content.'' of censorship-by-stealth,” said Liberal Heritage Critic Mauril Bélanger in a press release dated March 5. “Liberals understand that artistic freedom is good public policy. We stand with Canada’s artists and the public in their desire to protect their freedom of expression.”

The artists themselves voiced opposition to Bill C-10 at the Genie Awards held at the beginning of March, when the bill had just started its rise out of obscurity.

“Censorship has had a little work done and is trying to make a comeback,” Sandra Oh (Grey’s Anatomy) said at the awards. “I don’t know about you, but that doesn’t sound Canadian to me.”

While debates rage over whether or not the bill should or should not be in place, others are concerned about whether or not it would even work.

“Censorship has proven throughout time to be a clumsy and often ineffective, if not counter-productive tool. Think of all the films or plays that have drawn full houses as a result of their being earmarked for censorship,” says Professor Richard Plant, of the Graduate Centre for the Study of Drama at the University of Toronto. “There are po­ tentially serious problems inherent in the personal and/or ideological agendas of the people chosen to decide what works are acceptable...

Furthermore, the nebulous nature of the criteria on which qualitative decisions are made about works under question leave the procedure open to very serious mistakes.” ■ As of printing, the Standing Senate Committee on Banking, Trade and Commerce is still reviewing Bill C-10.

ALLMOVIEPHOTO.COM Point and shoot? Highly prolific Canadian director David Cronenberg often makes graphic and violent films, just the type some some C-10 critics say the bill threatens.

is v io le n tly opposed to saying it is'censorship.'Yet it does not prevent any m o vie from p ro d u ctio n . (.FAC was called b a rbari[c] at the awards fo r asking th a t cease being used for such u n -cu ltu ral projects. CFAC has received dozens o f hateful and disp a ra gin g emails. Because w e dare call fo r H p H H H | H M H I^ H H H H i^ H H H T h e Sen­ ate had passed the Bill th ro u g h [thej first and second readings b u t n o w th a t th e y are n o w cavin g to the 'arts' in d u s try and th rea ten in g to stop o r severely a lter C-10."

ROTTENTOMATOES.COM Should non-mainstream films like Naked Lunch have to pass a test for public funding?

S t u d e n t L iv in g TECH

w uun i

Hypoallergenic party fare Keep all your guests happy Steps

L in d s a y F r a n k

Food allergies are so common these days you're lucky if you can throw a party and have everyone eat what you've prepared. In order to avoid unpleasant reactions in any of your guests, try putting these "all inclusive" cookies on the menu; with no eggs, dairy or nuts, everyone should be able to try them. If you make sure to use unrefined sugar, these are vegan as well. You could also use a different flour to stay gluten free and allow even more people to partake.

In g re d ie n ts

1/2 cup coarse or white sugar 1 cup flour 1/2 tsp baking soda Pinch of salt 1 tbsp plus 1/2 tsp ground ginger 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon 1/8 tsp nutmeg 1 tbsp canola oil (or vegetable oil) 3 tbsp applesauce 1/2 tsp vanilla 2 tbsp molasses 1 tbsp soy milk 1/2 cup packed brown sugar

1.

Using a medium sized bowl, sift together flour, baking soda, salt, ginger, cinnamon and nutmeg; set aside.

2. In a separate bowl, combine the 'wet' in­ gredients: oil, applesauce, vanilla, molasses, soy milk and brown sugar.

3. Make awell inthe dry ingredients and pour the wet ingredients into it. Stir until well combined, but do not over-mix.

4. Dough will be very sticky, so refrigerate it for half an hour and then continue, or wet your hands and handle the dough as littleas possible. Drop tablespoon sized-amounts of dough ina small bowl filled with a hand­ ful (up to 1/2 cup, though you probably won't need that much) coarse sugar. Roll dough to make a sugar-covered ball.

5. Gently flatten ball and place on a parch­ ment paper-lined baking sheet. Allow sev­ eral centimetres of space between cookies.

6. Bake for 10 minutes at 350° until bottoms of cookies are light brown. Remove from baking sheet and cool completely. Cookies taste best after being refrigerated for a few hours (resist the urge to eat themall hot out of the oven). Makes about 15 cookies. ■

Water wizardry Pure water in your pocket K athryn D

in g l e

Long go n e are th e days o f iodine tablets and com plicated w a te r filtratio n systems. The latest m ust-have for any traveller planning on backpacking th ro u g h a developing c o u n try or spending weeks in th e w o ods is a m agic wand, specifically a m agic w ater purifying wand, w h ich is a handheld device th a t uses UV rays to treat drinking w a te r on th e spot.

The wands were first developed under the name SteriPen by the American com­ pany Hydro-Photon in the mid-1990s. The SteriPen was recognized as a Time Maga­ zine Invention of the Year in 2001, but only recently has it reached mainstream mar­ kets. Another company, Meridian Design, has also released a version of the wand known as the mLIV, but it is only under limited production.

A lth o u g h th e y m ay sound like w itc h ­ craft, th e science behind these wands is wellknow n; th e y utilize th e same ultraviolet tech­ n o lo g y used by m ost m unicipal w ater treat­ m e n t plants in North America. A t th e end o f th e w a n d is a UV lamp, w h ich em its a pow er­ ful lig h t th a t kills DNA and prevents microbes from reproducing. Just like Lysol, it's proven to kill 99-9 per ce n t o f viruses, bacteria and protozoa, in cluding th e pesky Giardia and Cryptosporidium parasites.

Using th e w and is as sim ple as sticking it

into aglass of water, pressing a button to ac­ tivate the UVlight and stirring. It takes about 90 secondsto purifyalitreof water.The latest SteriPens even have LCDscreens which light up with a smiley-face to let you knowwhen thewater ispurified.Thewands don't useany chemicals, so the water is safe to drink right away and there is no aftertaste like there is with iodine tablets.

The biggest dow nside to th e wands is th a t th e y can't fully purify any m urky o r co­ lour-tinged water. If it's an em ergency situ­ ation, H ydro-Photon recom m ends using th e w and tre a tm e n t m ultiple tim es on th e w ater because it w ill still have a significant effect.

Also, it is suggested th a t w ith any kind o f w a te r you clarify it beforehand w ith a mesh screening device to g e t rid o f solids.

Reviewers inthe outdoor travel industry have raved about the device, especially its portability. The wands are pocket sized and weigh less than five ounces, meaning that they'll take up as much room as a ballpoint pen. They also runon two rechargeable bat­ teries that last for up to 50 litres of purifica­ tion, so you don't have to worry about the wand failing on you in the middle of a trip, unless you really plan on heading into the wild. ■ Sources: NYTimes, Outside Magazine,Hydro-Phobon Inc.

CONFERENCE OUTLINE ►7:30 Registration, continental breakfast ►8:00 Parti: • KEYNOTE: Gault@50 - Dr. Martin J. Lechowicz • Environmental policy implementation at McGill: presentations from the SCE and student groups ► 10:00 Part II: The Quebec sustainable development strategy; followed by breakout sessions.

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le a c o c k 232 ©07:30-1 A presentation of the Sub-Committee on Environment, working group of the Senate Committee on Physical Development

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f u ll- a n d p a r t - t im e jo b o p p o r t u n it ie s in

s t im u la t in g e n v ir o n m e n t s . W h e t h e r c lo s e to h o m e o r a b r o a d , th e F o r c e s o ffe r y o u : • A w id e r a n g e of c a r e e r s in p r o f e s s io n a l f ie ld s a n d t e c h n ic a l t r a d e s • T ra in in g p r o g r a m s th ro u g h o u t y o u r c a r e e r • F i n a n c i a l a id fo r y o u r s t u d ie s To fin d o u t m o r e , v is it o u r W e b s it e o r y o u r lo c a l C a n a d ia n F o r c e s r e c r u it in g c e n t r e .

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music

T h e R a v e o n e tte s : r e fr e s h in g ly u n o r ig in a l

A Danish i n d i e b a n d w i t h o u t claims t o i n n o v a t i o n of inspiration from our knowledge and love of music; it's not like we're trying to hide it from Hailing from Copenhagen, The Raveo­ the world," Foo said. But despite such heavy in­ nettes may be joining Legoland as another of fluences from past decades, The Raveonettes Denmark's great contributions to the entertain­ don't see themselves as purely retro.

"We get a lot of influences from the basic ment industry. Sune Rose Wagner and Sharin Foo met through mutual friends, and having song writing of someone like Buddy Holly with originally worked independently on the capi­ three chords and good melodies, but we add tal city's music scene, they decided to team up things like distortion and dissonance which are for an international ride of the retro indie rock definitely not a part of that era," Foo explained.

Certainly, on Lust Lust Lust the band makes wave. Vocalist and guitarist Foo unabashedly acknowledges that despite the mountains of the most of more modern sounds and tech­ indie bands knocking about, standing out from niques such as loops and hip hop beats in tracks the crowd and sounding completely different is like the sinister opener, "Aly Walk With Me."The group's austere style of song-writing originates not a priority.

"We're not trying to reinvent music or be in the simplicity of their initial albums. Their first super innovative," she said of The Raveonettes' full length release, Chain Gang o f Love, was writ­ style and the sort of songs they choose to com­ ten entirely in B-flat major, only a semitone's di­ mit to record. "We have a lot of material, and vergence from their 2 0 0 2 EP Whip it On which what we select from that is intuitive and emo­ was written entirely in B-flat minor. Lust Lust Lust tional. Rather than trying to intellectualize it or can be seen as a return to the band's melanchol­ figure it out, it's about what we respond to and ic yet unassuming roots. Released in February, The Raveonettes' newest creation is described whether that's the sound we want."

The band is highly influenced in sound and by Foo as, "our darkest album to date."

"It's more atmospheric, more intimate, style by the glamour Of the 50 s and 60 s. On their second full-length album, Pretty in Black, vocalist more personal, yet very minimal and cut to the and guitarist Wagner wrote and sung "Heavens" bone," she added, comparing Lust Lust Lust with in the style of Elvis, and covered "My Boyfriend's previous releases.

The result is a bizarre musical hybrid of a Back," a track written by their co-producer Rich­ ard Gottehrer and originally sung by The An­ contemporarized The Jesus and Mary Chain gels in 19 63 . On their newest album, Lust Lust and The Ronettes from the 6 0 s. The Ronettes are the successful pop threesome from whom Lust, the band continues to be forthright about The Raveonettes derived their name, and the where they get their ideas.

"We embrace the fact that we get a lot band has already collaborated with one third of the trio on the album Pretty in Black, where Ronnie Spector sings on "Ode to LA." Despite the dominance of melancholy in most of the Raveonettes' material, tracks like "Dead Sound" and "I Want Candy" from Lust Lust Lust are up­ beat and made sweet by electro effects and the pair's boy-girl harmonies.

As the only two permanent members of the band, the benefit of variation necessitates Wagner and Foo be joined on tour by a chang­ ing number of other musicians. On their current North American tour the pair are joined by only one other musician, a drummer, and a series of electronic recordings. The minimal stage clus­ ter will compliment the raw sound of the new album and make for a more intimate and per­ AMAZON.COM . sonal performance. Such a set up displays the nuances of a band who on the surface may It's all about the first deadly sin.

Clare Pidsley

seem indistinctive, but benefit from second lis­ tening and an appreciation of the stylistic sub­ tleties shaped by their countless influences. ■

The Ravonettes play Les Saintes (30 Ste-Catherine W.) on March 22. Tickets are $16.50 from ad-

mission.com.

POP RHETORIC

M id lif e c r is e s w it h t h e R e a lly T e r r i b l e O r c h e s t r a T homas Q uail In the wake of former New-York State Governor Eliot Spitzer's resignation, pundits—from Bill O'Reilly to Jim McGreevey's ex-wife— have speculated as to what drove Spitzer to such a significant fallacy of logic. Is this sort of malevolent action specific to him? Or are we ail capable of it?

It seems that as age catches up with all of us, a certain amount of re-evaluation is inevitable. Extreme bouts of reevaluation may also result in a "mid-life crisis”. For the politi­ cal, business and intellectual elite in Great Britain, it's a dif­ ferent story from the typical bright-red sports car. The Really Terrible Orchestra, based in Edinburgh, has become a vessel for the manifestation of said ubiquitous mid-life crises.

The RTO, a British Amateur Orchestra, prides itself on the fact that they are indeed, Really Terrible. Conceived in 1995 by Scottish businessman Peter Stevenson and author Alexander McCall-Smith, the orchestra—according to their Web site— seeks to, "encourage those who have been pre­ vented from playing music, either through lack of talent or some other factor, to play music in the company of similarly

afflicted players."The orchestra's manifesto continues on to say, "the RTO looks forward to a further lowering of stan­ dards, in order to underline its commitment to accessibility and relevance."

The most fascinating aspect of the RTO however, is that its members are successful in other walks of life. Doctors, lawyers and bankers speckle the string, brass and wood­ wind sections. McCall-Smith, a law-professor and member of Britain's literary elite, plays the bassoon. He struggles with C-sharps on the instrument and refuses to play them. Brief­ ly, the orchestra flirted with a policy wherein competency would result in immediate expulsion from the ensemble.

This unprecedented appreciation of atrociousness is what landed the RTO's first gig at the Edinburgh Fringe Fes­ tival. Now a cult classic, tickets to the annual show are sold out weeks in advance.

Performances are defined by a certain level of confusion and disorder. Under the baton of Richard Neville-Towle, the musicians fight to keep up and play when they can. More

than receptive, audiences are taken in by the muddling per­ formances and respond with thunderous applause.

This blatant disrespect for the past greats (Bach, Beethoven, Brahms, etc.) can only be likened to the same respect that Spitzer holds for his timid wife. This gimmicky novelty—the orchestra—which I'm sure provides some sem­ blance of release, or enjoyment, for the performers and audi­ ence, defines everything that is wrong with classical music.

The harmonies from these timeless works are intend­ ed to ring true, not struggle to emerge from behind a wall of scratchy-sound, faulty French horn licks and obnox­ ious trombone shots. By trivializing Bach and his works, by not playing all the notes in an orchestral suite, by hacking through a section solo of a Brahms symphony, the orchestra unwittingly undermines the work of professional musicians.

By promoting themselves as an orchestra brimming with in­ telligence, but "we play terribly," there is an unwarranted air of condescension towards the work that people devote their lives to. ■

18.03.08 • The McGill Tribune • 15

www.mcgilltribune.com

FOKUS FILM FESTIVAL 2008

S k i s lo p e s , c ig a r e t t e s a n d f a k e b lo o d

A rundown o f s o m e o f , t h e entries f o r s e c o n d a n n u a l Fokus f i l m f e s t M a k in g M u s ic w ith N F B : C P C G a n g b a n g s (S h o rt)

Dir. Matt Goerzen Backed by the National Film Board and Pop Montreal, Goerzen's entry possesses polished production values that far exceed the shoestring budgets of most student films. The short sees the members of one of Montreal's most volatile rock acts, CPC Gangbangs, as they expound upon themes of chaos theory, aggression, harmony and love against a background of broken mirrors, dangling manne­ quin limbs and waist-high ashtrays. It's all very post-punk and all very arthouse as the band parades around Droog-like, all dolled up in white slacks and bondage gear, drinking highballs of fake blood etc. Fans and dilettantes of the band will equally enjoy the keystone of Goerzen's film: a take of the group performing "Teenage Crimewave"with all the unchecked energy expected of them, despite the gaggle of hipster dandies hopping around, trying to sing along, fist pumping cans of Grolsch and generally trying to look cool for the camera.

—John Semley T hree S h o r t s (S ho rt)

Dir. Emmett Fraser Fraser's entry consists of three shorter individualized clips all compiled under the general theme of spontaneity. Though a hand-held camera is used for most of the film, Fraser does incorporate some other techniques like animated words that add a certain flare to the stories displayed. From the mock-emo kid scene with an acoustic guitar soundtrack, to the image of an audience enthusiastically clapping to a metronome, the impulsive quality of the action is decidedly appealing. What actually makes this film original is the lack of artsy-fartsy content, which tends to overwhelm student films. Word and image play is cleverly and humorously superimposed within each story in a surprisingly logical manner. As opposed to the standard “crack your skull to figure out the deep meaning"flicks, bluntness is in fact what makes this short so comical.

— Renée Sutton

(Short) Dir. Daniel Abrams

C o n n e c t in g in T hree P a rts

M c G ill Freestyle

Drawing from freestyle winter sports and, presumably, freestyle rap, Abrams presents what would be well described as a freestyle film. Without a particular narrative or overt message, this late coming 2001 short offers the simple pleasures of athletics and rap. Edit­ ing and montage create a strong sense of rhythm which maintains interest throughout.

This entry works essentially through the cinema's basic rules of attraction.

Who doesn't want to see freestyle snowboarding and skiing tricks, never mind the inevitable wipeouts? This film shows the viewer how it's done on the slopes while holding a cam­ era. And even moments of poorly executed aerial acrobatics and ballbusting tumbles show how it should not be done.

—William Robinson

(Short) Dir. Michael Rubin

O f Ice N o H its

With backwards walking, subtitles and a camera that flips willy-nilly on its own axis, Rubin's short is a student film through and through. Present­ ed in grainy lo-fi, something like the video equivalent of an early Guided By Voices album, the film documents two girls waiting at a bus top. As pass­ erby stop or simply pass by, bodies are fragmented by panes of glass, resulting in a bordering uncanny effect which calls attention to the splintered sensation of trans­ parent seeing afforded by the cinematic apparatus. Brief, dark and captivating in its stylistic oddities, Rubin's film foregrounds the strange spells that movies, by their very illu­ sory character, cast upon us.

—John Semley

(Anima­

tion) Dir. Benjamin Feldman

(Short) Dirs. Devan Welsh, Austin Milne, Michelle Mackinnon

D o n 't B e S a d

With its grainy texture and lack of a linear nar­ rative, Don't Be Sad presents an impressionistic take on the life and habits of urban youth. Though the characters alternate between home, street and café, they fill each location with their own inimi­ table social presence, casting the city in a warmish, personalized glow. Lacking almost any dialogue, the film relies heavily on an indie soundtrack of thick though indeterminate sentimentality, which goes well with the ever-present fixtures of ciga­ rettes, leather jackets, thick, black-rimmed glasses and creative facial hair, in short, Don't Be Sad cel­ ebrates the melancholy hipster joys of urban life, smoking and moustaches.

— Ezra Glinter Legends at H om e

Dir. Zachary Akselrad Running less than five minutes with little dialogue and shot in black and white, Akselrade's entry will give artsy minimalists a great run for their money. The film stars a mysterious figure characterized only by a ciga­ rette in his mouth and an appetite for infamously hard crossword puz­ zles as he Looks over an old issue of the New York Times magazine featuring a young Bob Dylan on the cover. The entry is a quintes­ sential porno piece—a standard for independent college films.

—Charlie Cheng

Moulding, sculpting, patience and poking have resulted in this cutesy plasticine experimental ani­ mation. Variations on the theme of the paradox between connectiv­ ity and alienation, Feldman's entry brings colourful blobs briefly to life for a fast paced exploration of their own limitations. Simple but charac­ teristically crafted beings attempt to interact on the three different sub­ jects of "music,""puzzle" and "conver­ sation,"until sentience quickly back­ fires on each of them in turn. A stark i canvas background, the absence of [ soundtrack and only minimal sound effects ensure movement is the sole focus of this fiddly film, which in­ jects child's play with the poignancies of mortality and failure.

— Clare Pidsley (Short) Dir. Tim Reyes C a n in B ox

Using Justin Timberlake and Adam Samberg's "Dick in a Box" SNL sketch as a jump off point, this film is less of a paro­ dy (of a parody) than a feel-good lesson about the joys of recycling. With charac­ ters waltzing around McGill and Montreal in impressively constructed beer can cos­ tumes singing about what you can do to save the earth, "Can in a Box" takes the humorous rather than fire and brimstone approach to environmental improvement.

The self-deprecation of the actors (whose singing abilities leave something to be de­ sired) is refreshing both for environmental messages and student films, and their in­ structions about where to drop your used cans come shining through.

— Ezra Glinter

(Experimental) Dir. Nicolas Epstein

DJPT V

Known under the self-applied mixmaster moniker of DJ Phonix, Nicolas Epstein presents an abridged version of a year of his life, docu­ mented, as he puts it, "with hopes of enter­ taining." Beginning in a summer home in Italy, where we see Phonix and his well-gelled entou­ rage playing soccer, dancing to house music, acting rowdy and smoking a lot of weed, and jet-setting to L.A., Toronto and McGill's campus, Epstein's biographical travelogue aims to cap­ ture the seminally"formational" period of young adulthood. While at times the action seems all too mediated by the presence of the camera, Epstein nonetheless presents a fairly honest portrait of the times in all our lives where hang­ ing with buds, laughing and, well, smoking a lot of weed, took top priority.

—John Semley

TV McGill presents the second annual Fokus Film Festival a t Cinema du Parc (3575 Parc) on March 19 a t 6:00 p.m. Tickets are $5, available a t the TV McGill office (Shatner B-tz) an d at the theatre. Ticket price includes access to the after party at Pistol (3723 St-Laurent). For more film previews, check out yesterday's edition o f The McGill Daily.

16 • Arts & Entertainment *18.03.08

The McGill Tribune

FASHION

Previews

S u s ta in in g s ty le

Dance. Breaking it Down for the Love of Art and Hip-Hop. March 21 at 9:00 p.m.; Sala Rosa (4848 St-Laurent). A breakdance battle and arts jam presented by the Concordia Break Dance Club, Breaking it Down for the Love of Art and Hip Hop features a mixed gender dance battle and artwork by Concordia students.

ECOuture's local looks

Music. Penny Lang. March 20 and 21 at 8:00 p.m.; The Yellow Door (3625 Aylmer). Canada's oldest and coziest coffee house hosts the "first lady” of Canadian folk music^pecial guests includeTerry-Joe Banjo and Kaya Fraser. For tickets and reservations call (514 ) 398 -4 8 8 6 .

Carolyn Grégoire Operating under the slogan "stylish and sustainable are both attainable," Amanda Frehr-Smith and a dedicated group of over 6 o student designers, models and behind-the scenes coordinators have put together the non-profit ECOuture fashion show as the finale of McGill's GreenWeek 2 0 0 8 .

Featuring over 50 eco-ensembles, the goal of the green-friendly event is to promote environmental awareness by educating McGill students and the larger Montreal community on ways to incorporate environmental ethics into their wardrobe. As the Facebook event boasts, "just because you're trying to stop global warming doesn't mean you can't be HOT!" ECOuture is the most ambitious project yet attempted by the GreenWeek committee. Administrations director Amanda Frehr-Smith has been working with Juliene Hwang, environment commissioner of the Science Undergradu­ ate Society, and several other dedicated individuals since October to plan the event.

Appropriate to GreenWeek's 2 0 0 8 theme, "root yourself" many of the fea­ tured fashions are rooted in Montreal with local designers and retailers who source their materials and labour locally. BLANK, BodyBag by Jude, Lustre, Moly Kulte, and Preloved are among the local Montreal labels that will be presented in the production.

"Moly Kulte is artistic and abstract, while BLANK is more similar to Ameri­ can Apparel and does beautiful cotton pieces,"said Frehr-Smith.

Located on the corner of St. Laurent and Rachel, BLANK manufactures all of its clothing in Quebec and specializes in shirts made from Interlock, a soft and comfortable mixture of cotton and polyester.

According to Frehr-Smith, the sets are also rooted in the Montreal locality.

"We've taken it to the level that all of our scenes are a different part of Mon­ treal— old port, red and white, campus, St. Laurent, and tam-tams. The cloth­ ing fits the scenes."

The fashion show will be hosted by Miss Earth 20 0 7 , Jessica NiskoTrisko.

Vancouver native Trisko has been participating in charitable fashion shows since the age of fifteen, and is currently pursuing her Ph.D in Political Science at McGill.

"She's awesome," said Frehr-Smith. "She pushed us to take [the show] to external media.. .we trust her wholeheartedly."

Intending not only to entertain but to enlighten its audience about ethi­ cal fashion options, the event will feature an educational marketplace for spon­ sors to discuss and share their . whwrshv environmental initiatives.

- ’• -* "We want it to be an edu.................... eating experience—that sour whole goal,"said Frehr-Smith.

Citing Value Village as her favorite haunt for accessories and shopping at vintage stores across Montreal to find || unique clothing, Frehr-Smith believes that the transition ! | l :- to environmentally-friendly J attire is easier than many stu­ dents may think.

"We're helping people to see that this stuff is out there.

It's easy to go from buying something at the Gap to buy­ ing something more ethical," she said. ■ ECOuture will take place on March 79 from 7:00 to 9:00 p.m. at Le Medley (1170 StDenis). Tickets are $11.25 in ad­ COURTESYAMANDAFREHR-SMITH vance and $13.50 at the door.

Greening your style: ECOuture

Reviews Jason Collett. Here's to Being Here. "I left my heart in Montreal ... I'm runnin' on empty but still runnin'on." The atmosphere on Jason Collett's third solo album is that of a long highway jour­ ney— airy and simple, with no bumps in the road. This venture is a long departure from his Broken Social Scene days— everything is stripped right down to the basics. The result is a series of old-school guitar jams accompanied by Collett's raspy vocals. But he doesn't veer too far from his roots, playing largely with his former touring band, Pasa Mino, The Stills' Liam O'Neal, Broken Social Scene's Kevin Drew, and producer Howie Beck. With all this in hand, Collett weaves in a toast to the present moment. "Sorry Lou"and "No Redemption"truly echo the very laid-back, rock n'roll sensibility present throughout the entire album, while "Nothing to Lose," slows it down, turning to a folk-oriented vibe. "Waiting for the World" is a soft, uninhibited, and personal ending to his toast. What makes the album work is his voice, unrestrained lyrics and the ease with which he expresses both.

— Sara McCulloch

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EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEW— REAL PAIEMENT

M o n tr e a l ju n io r s th e

R eal d e a l

M c G ill g ra d u a te c o a c h e s Q M J H L fra n c h is e set to m o v e to M o n tre a l people who have never really followed university hockey and think it's inferior, but as someone who has played and coached in both leagues, trust me, the top-to-bottom roster strength is bet­ ter on university teams. People don't remember this, but there used to be an All-Star game at the Montreal Forum between the CIS All-Star and major junior All-Star teams, and in the last couple of years the university team was winning by a large margin.That's probably why they stopped playing each other— it's easier for both teams to exist in their own bubble.

After mixed success in past incarnations, junior hockey is com­ ing back to Montreal. In September, the St. John's Fog Devils will find a new home at the Verdun Auditorium as the Montreal Juniors— or, in French, Le Junior de Montreal. The current coach and general manager o f the Fog Devils, Real Paiement, is a former McGill student who played defence for the hockey Redmen from 1983-85 and also served as an assistant coach for the team during his time on cam­ pus. Paiement recently sat down with The Tribune to discuss his time at McGill, his career in the QMJFIL and the return o f junior hockey to Montreal.

After spending some time in the QMJHL you played de­ fence for the Redmen in the early 19 8 0 s. What did you think of your time at McGill as a student-athlete?

It was a great experience. I was coming in as a Francophone student who didn't know anyone when he walked in, which could have been really difficult if it wasn't for my teammates on the Redmen.They took me under their wing, showed me around and helped me find my way at McGill. I know that it's a cliché, but a bunch of those guys became friends for life— I'm still in touch with a lot of them twenty years after graduation. I was told before I went that the four years in university are supposed to be the best of your life, and now that I'm 48 I can say that is definitely true.

You were an assistant coach with the Redmen in the 8 0 s, was that your first experience with coaching and, if so, how did you get into that job?

It was my first experience as a coach. I got into it because the head coach at that time, Ken Tyler, asked me to help out on the bench when I was still a student— I had eligibility problems for half a year so I couldn't play. I was back on the Redmen as a player the next season, but that little time as a coach really got me thinking about the future. I was a s'8 "i 90 pound defenceman, so I figured that if I wanted to pursue a career in hockey, playing might not be my best option. I wasn't exactly an imposing, Larry Robinson figure, let's just say that much.

You're the first coach in QMJHL history to work over 1,0 0 0 games, an odyssey that you started back in 19 8 6 . What has been the most enjoyable part of coaching for over 2 0 years?

It's really rewarding to see kids grow, both as people and as players. In the QMJHL and the CIS you're getting players while

COURTESYMCGILLATHLETICS Paiement makes adjustments during one of the thousands of QMJHL games he has coached in. they're really young, and it's incredible to be a part of their matu­ ration process. You see a kid come into your program at 18 or 19 and then leave your team as a different, more confident person, and it's a great feeling to be a part of that. I refer to it as a duel process of growth: You're helping your players grow individually, but you're also trying to bring your team together so at the end of the year they operate as a single entity.

You've had a chance to work in both CIS and major junior hockey; do you think there is a big discrepancy in the quality of play between the two leagues?

In university hockey the players are bigger, stronger and have more experience than major junior kids— remember that to get into the CIS you often have to be a top-flight, blue-chip player in the CHL. When I talk about the CIS I usually get opposition from

What do you think it is about Montreal that has caused junior hockey teams to struggle here in the past?

I've played for the old Junior de Montreal team in front of 13,000 people in Montreal, so I'm not going to say that junior hockey can't succeed there. The market for hockey-fans is so rich in Montreal; I just think that recent versions of the team haven't done a good job taking advantage of that. A poorly run organiza­ tion isn't going to succeed anywhere, especially not in a place where you can go watch the Canadiens instead. The team needs to win, as well. The best marketing plan is a winning record be­ cause it attracts attention from fans and the media.

No hockey team is ever going to come in and take the place of the Canadiens in the hearts of the Montreal people, but at one time the Montreal Junior Canadiens were drawing mbre fans than the Habs. Now, obviously, the juniors aren't going to draw 22,000 people to the Bell Centre these days, but they have a chance to carve a niche in the city. Hockey is such a big part of the fabric of Montreal life that you would think someone could figure out how to make that work to his or her advantage. ■ — Compiled by Matt Chesser

DID YOU KNOW... ... Paiement has been the head coach of five different QMJHL. teams, including: the Granby Bisons, Moncton Wildcats, Acadie-Bathurst Titans, Chicoutimi Sagueneens, and St. John's Fog Devils ... Paiement coached the 19 98 edition of the Capadian World Junior Hockey Team, which placed eighth in the tournament after having captured gold the previous five years.

THIRD MAN IN

A B r o n x a b o m in a t io n hile this space has been used to occasionally criticize the NHL—very deservingly we must point out— credit must be given to the usually-horrendous Bettman administration when they manage- to secure an increasingly rare, league-improving venture. As so diligently chronicled by every professional or recreational sports expert in Canada, the NHL in the last decade, aided by its ludicrous expansion, has become a dismal failure, if not a complete farce, in the United States and fostered a nation-wide sense of disinterest among Americans towards hockey. The NHL execs, however,..seem to have finally stumbled upon their golden ticket back into the American sporting limelight—the outdoor game.

Although the league had already taken the game into the blistering cold of Edmonton's Commonwealth Stadium in 20 0 3 , the all-Canadian Fleritage Classic between Montreal and the Oilers didn't generate any response below the 49 th paral­ lel; rather, it was only this year's clash between Buffalo and Pittsburgh in the flurries of New Year's Day that had American pundits clamouring for more hockey and more outdoor gim­ micks. The NHL, realizing that its product can nostalgically be transported back to the old-timey days of frozen ponds and rivers where little scallywags numbed their toes but warmed their hearts, set out to find another venue for their kitschy but extraordinarily popular event.

Enter Yankee Stadium.

Naturally the NHL, trying to find a fresh but populous location for their next outdoor affair, centered its search o.n Original Six cold-weather locales like Boston, Chicago and New York, and sure enough, they seemed to have found a fit just down the road from their Manhattan headquarters, in

W

the Bronx. Scheduled to finally close its doors at the end of the 20 0 8 baseball season, the iconic Yankee Stadium, which never before wanted to host the NHL for fear of the ice sur­ face ruining the baseball grass, is now rumoured to be host­ ing an outdoor match on New Year's Day 2 0 0 9 that would pit the New York Rangers against another high profile squad.

Although this proposal is still being negotiated, the Yankees have endorsed the idea and if it comes to fruition, the NHL would be honoured with playing the final sporting match in the hallowed park.

This is a stunning coup for the lowly NHL—to turn the lights out at Yankee freaking Stadium while holding their title event in the Big Apple would surely be any league's (especial­ ly one so publicity-starved) wet dream. No matter your feel­ ings on the quality or the frequency of the outdoor games, kudos is clearly in order for the NHL administration for this unexpected triumph.

Despite the immense benefit that this scheme would provide for our beloved NHL, this unholy aberration of an idea should never be allowed to occur. Yankee Stadium, built origi­ nally in 1923 as a venue to hold the venerable New York Yan­ kees and especially their crown jewel, George Herman "Babe" Ruth, is a modern-day shrine. While it has been raised to a place of general Americana that transcends the diamond, it is forever a baseball field first and foremost and must close as such with a Yankee game. The reverential stadium is the place where Ruth dug his heel into his batter’s box, where Lou Geh­ rig patrolled first base but later became America's “luckiest man," where Joe DiMaggio, the Yankee Clipper, hit safely for so many of his 56 straight games, where Mickey Mantle mythi­ cally blasted home runs with one hand, where Roger Maris

A aron S igal

knocked out his 6T1round-tripper and where, more recently, the likes of Jeter, Rodriguez, Rivera and Clemens have all plied their Hall of Fame trades. Most importantly of course, "The House that Ruth Built" has been the site of 26 World Series title wins, the most championships of any professional sport­ ing club. Yankee Stadium is not the home of the Blueshirts, its mythology wasn't burned into the sporting psyche with ice but with the summer heat and fans' last gaze upon it should never be on any team but the Bronx Bombers.

Twelve years ago, the Canadiens, after 72 seasons, pad­ locked the doors to their hallowed Montreal Forum, the arena that housed 24 of their own titles, with a stirring ceremony that left a lasting impression on any sports fan, pro-Habs or not, watching or in attendance. On the ice that night were hockey legends who passed around the fabled torch spoken of on Les Glorieux's notorious dressing room, culminating in Maurice Richard's unprecedented eight minute standing ova­ tion and an outpouring of emotion for the building that had provided Montreal with so much. Can you imagine if several months later the then-indoor Montreal Impact played one of their soccer matches in the Forum, which, only after, was closed for the last time? It is an inconceivable scenario, yet now some hockey fans will applaud the Yankees giving over the stadium's shutdown keys to the NHL. Sure, the“new"Yankee Stadium is only moving across the street in the Bronx, but, for those who have been there, you know that the old, creaky building has an aura and unique personality that only the New York Yankees can draw out of it. The ghosts of Pinstripe past should be able to walk to their new haunt across the same grass, dirt and chalk that they once graced; they should never have to slide there. ■

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18 • Sports • 18.03.08

The McGill Tribune

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UPON FURTHER REVIEW

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W h i c h f e a t is m o r e i m p r e s s i v e : T i g e r ' s f i v e o r t h e R o c k e t s ' 2 2 ?

Clearly the Houston Rockets streak of 22 straight victories is impressive especially given that they are only the second team in NBA history to rattle off such a lengthy streak and they have done so in the ex­ ceedingly difficult Western Conference while missing their All-Star centre Yao Ming for the last 10 games.

But let's keep this all in perspective: Houston's schedule has been remarkably easy over the duration of this run with the team facing playoff bubble or lottery squads in 16 of the 22 affairs and the vast majority (14 ) of its matches having been played in the friendly confines of the Toyota Centre. This reality and the Rockets' inability to advance past the first round of the playoffs with practically the same cast of characters gives this achievement a flukish quality.

On the other hand, Tiger Woods appears to have taken his game, amazingly, to a new level. Already by far the best player on tour and soon to be the top golfer in history, Tiger has put the PGA on notice this sea­ son, winning his first four events this year and since the end of his last campaign, he has finished at the top of the field in his last five appearances. This last win at the Arnold Palmer Invitational was clinched in typical style when Woods drained a 25 foot putt on the 18 th hole after not having successfully connected with his flat stickfrom more than 20 feet out all weekend.Tiger's streak is even more impressive, however, when you consider that he has won in his last seven outings, as the PGA does not count his wins at the Dubai Desert Classic (European Tour) or at the Target World Challenge which he hosts himself; additionally, dating back to last season, Tiger has won nine of his last 10 tournaments—including the PGA Championship—with his only loss coming at the Deutsche Bank Championship where he tied for a pitiful second place.

Anyone who has ever played golf knows that it is the most frustrating and inconsistent game on the planet and for Tiger to be so overwhelmingly dominant and steady against the world's top competition is simply ludicrous. While Byron Nelson’s PGA record of 11 consecutive victories is essentially impossible to match or break in today's golfing environment, taking the field over Woods in any tournament is no longer the logical or safe bet. And that is the most impressive part.

In an age of parity, the Houston Rockets are defying all the odds. Under a salary cap system that attempts to level the playing field for all teams, the Rockets have rattled off 22 straight wins and are 31-3 in the past 34 games. They have shot to the top of the stand­ ings in the ridiculously strong Western Conference, and on Sunday scored a huge win over, arguably, the best team in the NBA, the Los Angeles Lakers.The streak is the second longest in NBA history—the record was set 36 years ago by the Lakers, long before the salary cap attempted to snuff out this type of domination.

If Tiger Woods was winning tournaments with a broken pinkie, then we would have a real debate over which streak is more impressive. Ten of the Rockets'wins have come without All-Star centre Yao Ming, who suffered a season-ending foot injury in February.

Houston is winning with the reanimated corpse of Dikembe Mutombo playing big min­ utes and luminaries like Rafer Alston at point guard. They effortlessly switched styles in the middle of the streak when Ming suffered an injury, akin to if Woods had retooled his swing in the midst of his run.

Sure, some of the wins have come over weak teams, but they've also beaten the Lakers, Mavericks, Cavaliers (surviving another virtuoso performance from LeBron James) and Hornets. 14 of their last 18 wins have come by double-digits, which is evidence that the Rockets haven't just been winning, they've been blowing teams out of the water—all this under a cap that attempts to prevent this type of utter annihilation. If we could put a cap on Tiger's talent (or which clubs he could use) and put caddy Steve Williams out of commission with a stress fracture in his foot, then maybe we would have grounds for a real argument. But until then, Houston's streak is clearly the real deal.

—Aaron Sigal

— Matt Chesser

18.03.08 • Sports • 19

www.mcgilltribune.com

ON D ECK Men's Hockey— CIS National Tour­ nament; Thursday-Sunday, Stu­ dent Sports Network and Rogers Sportsnet The Redmen play on Friday at 7 p.m. (streaming video at www.ssncanada. ca) and Saturday at 8 p.m. on Rog­ ers Sportsnet. If they qualify, the gold medal game will be broadcast on Sportsnet at 8 p.m. on Sunday. Mc­ Gill, the OUA champions, are seeded third in the six-team tournament, in a pool with the Canada West champion Alberta Golden Bears and the host Moncton Aigles Blues. After winning the Queen's Cup with a thrilling 4-1 victory over the Brock Badgers, the Redmen have a flawless 7 -0 record in the playoffs this year and have hit their stride at exactly the right time.

The boys in Red 'n'White have a de­ cent shot at capturing their first ever National Championship, so be sure to tune in over the weekend.

NBA— San Antonio Spurs at Dallas Mavericks; Sunday, 1 p.m. at Ameri­ can Airlines Centre, ABC The Jason Kidd era gets perhaps its biggest test thus far, as the Spurs roll into Dallas for a Sunday afternoon showdown. San Antonio is still the team to beat in the hypercompetitive Western conference and if the Mavs can't knock off Tim Duncan & Co. at home then owner Mark Cuban might want to start worrying that his mas­ sive luxury tax payments will be in vain. The Mavericks also need to start winning to avoid a first round series against the Los Angeles Lakers, who have a strong lineup, a returning An­ drew Bynum and Kobe Bryant playing like a man-possessed. Plus, you might get to see a gratuitous shot of Spurs' PGTony Parker's girlfriend Eva Longo­ ria, and that's not bad either.

THE MCGILL TRIBUNE WILL BE ACCEPTING APPLICATIONS FOR NEXT YEAR'S SPORTS EDITOR POSITION UNTIL MARCH 28 AT THE TRIBUNE OFFICE (SHATNER 110). A COVER LETTER, C.V. AND THREE WRITING SAMPLES ARE REQUIRED.

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