The McGill Tribune Vol. 27 Issue 5

Published by the Students' Society o f McGill University

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Volume 27 Issue 5 • O ctober 2,2007

SSM U g ets fla k for lack o f G A ad s Dismissal of motion a possibility Byron Tau This fall's General Assembly on Oct. 9 will give students the opportunity to express their concerns over key issues af­ fecting the Students' Society. However, many concerns have been raised as to the legitimacy of the process and the consti­ tutionality o f the procedures leading up to the event.

According to former SSMU president and co-author of several motions Aaron Donny-Clark, SSMU has failed to properly advertise the opportunity to contribute motions to this semester's agenda.

"By failing to adequately and correctly advertise the process for the submission of motions, the SSMU has undermined the basic purpose o f the GA: to give the m em ­ bership a forum for its ideas as expressed in motions," Donny-Clark said. "The posters up around cam pus which advertise the

GA and the process o f submitted motions contain several flaws."

Donny-Clark maintained that these GA posters, as well as the media ads taken out by SSMU in the Tribune and Le Délit contain misleading and omitted informa­ tion, implying that Council can directly put items on the agenda, and neglected to fully explain the submission procedure.

SSMU President Jake Itzkowitz, how­ ever, maintains, "There's no requirement for any specific new spaper publicity for the call for submissions. We didn't actually violate the Constitution."

Items on the agenda include a pro­ posed Students' Society endorsem ent of the American Eagle boycott, a mandate that SSMU lobby to end the current Mi­ nerva opt-out system and a dem and that Shatner space be prioritized for studentS ee GROUPS on p ag e 6

B rid g es an d ro ad s cru m b le w ith ag e 135 structures under review Isabel Valenta

With m o re show s th an you could ever possibly atte n d , n o t to m en tion m ovie screen in gs, a rt exhibits, a craft fair an d e n o u g h p re -a n d -p o st-p a rtie s to m ake your h ead spin, this year's Pop M ontreal festival ce le b ra te s its sixth an niversary with a city-sp an nin g sm o rg asb o rd o f artistic ta le n t. T here is so m uch g o in g on th a t w e felt ob liged to offer ou r loyal read ers an ad m itted ly in co m p lete but no less in dispen sable gu id e to th e p lethora o f show s and ev en ts taking p lace over th e n ext few days. S ee p ag es 1 6 - 1 7 for all th e info.

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Last Wednesday, an underpass on the Côte-de-Liesse highway near the Pierre Elliott Trudeau International Airport was suddenly closed for em ergency repairs, causing a half-hour traffic delay and count­ less missed flights. Many central arteries, including St-Laurent, M aisonneuve and the Ville-Marie tunnel are also undergoing renovations, causing delays and frustration am ongst motorists as they face more con­ gestion than usual.

The Q uebec Ministry ofTransport and the City o f Montreal have received much criticism over the past year after several incidents o f crum bling concrete in city structures— most notably, the collapse of

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the de la Concorde overpass in Laval last September, w hich killed five and injured six.

Saeed Mirza, McGill professor of civil engineering, said that it is unfortunate that a tragedy like the de la Concorde incident had to be the wakeup call for the city to do something about the deterioration of its infrastructure.

"How many more deaths will it take?

What kind o f society are w e living in? The plus side was that this event led the John­ son Commission to start asking questions about w hat w ent wrong," he said. "I have been warning [the city] for 15 years and they don't w ant to listen. I think that if the

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With the Canadian loonie now at par with the American dol lar, cross-border prices should theoretically be equal. How­ ever, a study by the Bank of Montreal found that American prices are, in general, 24 per cent lower than in Canada. Here, we compare various items between the two countries.

Dollar parity increases costs for McGill's American students V in c c iT s u i News o f the Canadian dollar reaching parity w ith the American greenback has sent people on both sides o f the border into a frenzy, including students at McGill.

"I'm not really happy about it because m y parents lose a lot o f m oney w hen they transfer money," said New Jersey resident Tiffany Huynh, U2 biology. "We did a calculation and they said that if they sent me to school here five years ago, they w ould have gained $8,000 from the transfer."

D epartm ent o f Econom ics Chair William Watson said that w hile American students currently enrolled at McGill are unlikely to switch universities as a result o f the ex­ change rate, prospective students may be turned o ff by the increased costs.

"American students w h o are here now are likely to ju st sw allow the exchange loss, but there are people out there w ho are at the margin, and th ey m ight stay away," he said. "I don't know how big o f an overall effect that will be though."

Watson's departm ent colleague Professor Thom as Velk predicted that it is unlikely that there will be a signifi­ cant dip in Am erican enrollment.

"I think Am erican students w ho are considering co m ­ ing to McGill will see that it is a bargain financially and in­ tellectually," he said.

Huynh, w h o plans to stay in Canada after graduation, said that even though the Am erican dollar is faltering, tu­ ition at Canadian universities still costs m uch less than at their U.S. counterparts. In addition, she has other reasons for preferring the Great W hite North over the States.

“Canada is safer and it's a better living environm ent than m any parts o f the US," she said. "I'd rather stay here after, so it w ould actually be advantageous for m e w ith the dollar being on par."

Both Watson and Velk were hesitant in predicting

what will happen to the tw o currencies, as well as to the econom y, in the long run.

"Prediction is not a good idea," Velk said. "Prices tend to overshoot and go past the equilibrium , then they tend to go b a ckd o w n . It's ju st part o f the financial landscape." "[My advice would be] not to listen to economists," Watson said, referring to the often contradicting reports in the news. "Some have been waiting for 15 years for the dollar to reach parity. Most are still surprised it has gone so high."

McGill Treasurer John Lim eburner also refused to give any forecasts, saying that currency m ovem ents play a very m inute role in deciding how the university's endow m ent is invested. McGill uses an asset mix policy in its invest­ ments, w here the m oney is distributed am ongst a variety o f markets and handled m ainly by external managers. The assets may be shifted around as per a rebalancing policy, but exchange rates are not a dom inant factor in deciding how these assets are moved. "[The rebalancing policy is] a discipline w hich pro­ vides for taking m oney aw ay from m anagers or asset class­ es w h o have exceeded their respective limits as a result of strong performance, and transferring these withdraw als to those managers or asset classes that are w ithin their re­ spective ranges," Lim eburner said. "The appropriateness of the asset class is the more dom inant factor."

Velk agrees w ith McGill's current investm ent policy and said that the diversified portfolio will aid in absorbing the effects o f shifts in the exchange rates. He believes that overall, the current strength o f the Canadian dollar will only serve to benefit the McGill com m unity.

"We can invest the end o w m ent in more aggressive and powerful ways, and Canadian students will have more opportunities to go abroad on exchange or just for travel," he said. "Exchange rates will continue to vary; w e should enjoy the situation.''»

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INTERNATIONAL

A rctic m e ltd o w n : th e en d o f th e icy n o rth ?

Polar bears are starting to feel the heat as ice levels hit record lows Ken Sun

f l median ice edge

A rctic sea ice has w ithdraw n significantly from m ed ian levels.

When record-low levels o f Arctic sea ice were marked last week, environm entalists around the world struggled to find the cause and began imagining a sum m er w hen the Arctic may be ice-free. Studies performed in Dec. 2006 had predicted such drastic state for as early as 2040, but now, McGill Atm ospheric and Oceanic Sciences professor Bruno Tremblay believes that Arctic sea ice could disappear in as little as five to six years.

"In the last 30 years, we have seen a steady decline of eight per cent every decade," Tremblay said. “The all-time record was in 2005; w e have 25 per cent less ice than in 2005; so w e were talking about a trend and a natural variability [in ice melting], but it is now nowhere near [the trend]."

Professor Wayne Pollard, director o f the Centre for Cli­ mate and Global Change Research at McGill, pointed to various causes for the receding sea ice.

"The sea ice issue is very different [land ice] and quite com plex because not only is sea ice influenced directly by w arm er temperatures but also warm er winters," Pol­ lard said. "Warmer and earlier spring and sum m er seasons translate into greater melting [of Arctic ice] because there is more heat and also because melting starts sooner and continues longer."

The effects of the receding ice are far-reaching, and Tremblay believes that wildlife and w eather patterns may be am ong the most affected.

"The biggest im pact will be on the ecosystem; on the polar bears, for example, which need the ice to fish," he said. "When they com e out [of hibernation] in the spring, they need to hunt near holes in the ice w here the seals com e out to breathe. Now with the

sea ice disappearing, the traditional places where they find food are gone."

Tremblay noted that the water that cam e from Arctic ice would increase moisture concentration, w hich creates unpredictable w eather and inconsistent precipitation pat­ terns in m any areas around the globe.

"If you remove the ice from the Arctic Ocean, all of a sudden, you have this huge source o f moisture which could affect the storm track," he said. "We're trying to find out what sort o f changes this could have on w eath­ er patterns. We seem to find that droughts in the Prai­ ries [are] linked to low sea ice conditions in the Arctic. Is there a relationship betw een low sea ice and droughts in the Prairies?"

Tremblay's w ork in 2006 with Marika Holland of the US National Centre for Atmospheric Research and Cecilia Bitz of the University of Washington predicted that the Arctic sea will be com pletely thawed by the sum m er o f 2040. The study also asserted that melting sea ice will not induce any significant change in ocean levels as more than 90 per cent of Arctic sea ice is already underwater. Tremblay, however, warned o f the im m inent danger that may drastically in­ crease ocean levels. "if you warm up the Arctic, then the air temperature will be w arm er in Greenland, and that m ight increase m elt­ ing ice from Greenland, w hich is land ice, and will have a huge im pact on sea levels,"he said.

Despite the popularity of environm ental issues for discussion around the country and in Parliament, Tremblay urged the governm ent to take more action.

"People are very aware in Canada; environm ental im ­ pact is one o f the main concerns o f Canadians these days," Tremblay said. "The ball is in the government's court, but they don't move." ■

02.10.07 • The McGill Tribune • 3

CAMPUS

CAMPUS

B o o k sto re s e ttle m e n t s u rp lu s in v e ste d

H olistic a p p ro a ch to attain e q u a lity

Conservative portfolio to be managed by third-party financial | ilanning firm

Interim club fights racism

Christie Lee With a $i.8-million surplus in their financial portfolio, the Students' Society has decided to invest their money with the investm ent firm Lester Asset M anagement. The surplus is the am ount left to SSMU after the sale of its share of the McGill Bookstore last year and the purchase o f Haven Books.

In 2006, an exploratory com m ittee was set up by for­ mer SSMU Vice-President Finance and Operations Dave Sunstrum to study the different investment options for the money.

"We spent one w hole year doing research and nego­ tiating w ith potential investm ent partners such as Scotia Capital, Canadian Imperial Bank o f Com m erce and the Royal Bank of Canada," said current Vice-President Finance and Operations Imad Barake.

After much deliberation, Lester Asset M anagement was chosen in association w ith m anagem ent professor Kenneth Lester as the investm ent com pany on the merit that it charged the lowest fee. According to Barake, Lester will be the discretionary asset manager in charge of in­ vesting the money.

When asked about the risks involved in the invest­ ment project, Barake assured students that they have con­ structed a "very conservative investm ent portfolio."

"Instead ofaim ing for abnormal returns, SSMU expects a seven per cent annual growth, minus inflation— leaving us with a five per cent real rate of return. We are planning to put 70 per cent of the total am ount into bonds, leaving 30 per cent to be put into stocks,” he said.

However, a degree o f flexibility is present in the in­ vestm ent portfolio.

"If interest rates drop to a precarious level, I can just ring up Lester and transfer everything from stocks into bonds," Barake said. "Likewise, if interest rates go sky-high, more m oney will be put into stocks."

As a decrease in the interest rate results in the value of a bond increasing, the SSMU investm ent portfolio there­ fore allows the portfolio m anager to autonom ously trans-

fer funds in the case o f declining interest rates. However, if interest rates were to increase, SSMU's asset manager would need approval from the student union to pursue the riskier strategy o f investing in 40 per cent stocks, 60 per cent bonds. "[He] cannot invest more than 30 per cent o f stocks in one industry which means that w e will always have a m inim um o f three industries— we're fully diversified," Barake said.

The investment portfolio was due to be opened as of Monday afternoon. However, some believe the Canadian market to be at an all-time high and therefore not condu­ cive to purchasing any stock.

"If the market is actually at an all tim e high— w e shift everything into bonds," Barake said. "He doesn’t need to get my permission to do that because the policy state­ m ent governs his actions."

However, if this were to happen, student money would be lost as a result o f the initial purchase of stock at high prices.

All profits generated from the investm ent will only be used for em ergencies according to Barake. An Invest­ ment Advisory Com m ittee, w hich will observe investm ent policy on a quarterly basis, has recently been approved and is pending ratification by SSMU Council.

However, some students feel the SSMU funds could be put to better use.

"Rather than investment, I think they should use the $i. 8 -million right now to improve on things such as cam ­ pus facilities,"said Ryan Bottoms, U3 econom ics.

Others, like Audrey Lessard, U3 international business, are more concerned with the long-term profits that the money could generate.

"It's all a matter of vision: if you're concerned with short-term results, of course it would make sense to spend the m oney right away,"she said."But w hen you think about it, you'll get more than $1.8 million to spend in the longrun w hen you invest the money." ■ — Additional reporting by Alii M aclsaac

Stephanie Tombari The McGill Anti-Racist Coalition is an interim club w orking toward a more holistic approach to dealing with racism. While many clubs and services try to incorporate an elem ent o f anti-racism into their mandates, none deal directly with the issue. Many address racism in the context of their specific organization and MARC hopes to bridge that gap.

According to an official statem ent given by the club, the coalition started because people "felt the need for an organization giving visibility to anti-racism on cam pus as there were no options for recourse for overt and covert inci­ dences o f racism at McGill."

MARC defines racism as "a systemic problem em bedded in Canadian insti­ tutions," according to co-founder Sarah Hanodi, U3 international developm ent studies.

"It is not isolated to an individual pathology, w here certain people make inappropriate com m ents, gestures or discriminatory actions," Hanodi said."Rather, it is an entire system that works to marginalize people.There is no w ay to w ork outside [racism] w ithout an anti-racist stance."

MARC aims to provide this stance through its many activities, including workshops at Radical Frosh and also work in conjunction with other groups.

The workshops are open discussions on identifying and com bating racism, with MARC members acting as facilitators. Currently, MARC holds weekly m eetings in the Arts Lounge on Monday nights and in the com ing months the group plans to hold "MARC my word," an evening that will be dedicated to expressing anti-racism through language and performance art with its roots in the resistance of colonial slaves.

Seeking a holistic approach to com bating racism, MARC also aims to be a service. Students'Society Vice-President Clubs and Services, Marcelle Kosman explained that by starting out as a club, MARC will be able to show demand for a service.

"Doing the club process proves there is a niche for the future service,"she said.

The main long-term goal of MARC is to obtain a perm anent office, com ­ plete with a library and full-time staff. The area would provide students with a place where they could access anti-racism literature, seek information of legal action and attend anti-oppression conferences. Primarily, MARC attem pts to be a safe place w here students facing racism can turn to.

"Racism happens more frequently than you think,"co-founder Alyssa Clutterbuck, U3 sociology said. "It's painful to see people w ho are affected by it and not know where to turn. [MARC] will be that place.” ■

SHOW ME THE MONEY! CAMPUS N o w th at fall's o n lin e o pt-o u t period Has clo se d , clu b s an d ser­ v ice s are fin d in g o u t h o w m u ch th e y have lost.

MIDNIGHT KITCHEN: $ 1.25 STUDENTS - 12,690.00

1.352

SSM U ENVIRONMENT FEE: $ 1.25 1,165 S T U D E N T S - $ 1,456.25

B ig g er is b etter... b rain -w ise Key to managerial success found in the prefrontal cortex Kristin Maich

A large prefrontal cortex may be the new best asset on a CV. A new system of tests that can predict an individual’s advanced managerial and academic aptitude has been developed by McGill psychology professor Robert Pihl, in cooperation with profes­ SSM U 8 URSARY FUND: $ 8.50 1,290 STUDENTS - 10, 965.00 sors from the University of Toronto, Harvard Univer­ sity and the University o f Hawaii.

The tests, together known as the 'executive SSM U CA M PUS LIFE FUND: test,'will likely have tw o major social effects, accord­ $ 2 .0 0 Pihl.

1,284 STUDENTS - $ 2, 568.00 ing to"First of all, current em ployment selection tools often have what's called face validity— that is, they SSM U REFERRAL SERVICES: look good, but lack predictive validity," Pihl said. "A $ 1.75 broken clock is right tw ice a day. Many employers 1.352 S T U D E N T S - $ 2, 366.00 use [testing] techniques that have absolutely no va­ lidity, like, graphology for example."

MCGILLTRIBUNE FEE: $ 0.50 Pihl explained that the tests are able to mea­ sure aspects o f human function that have are 1,266 S T U D E N T S - $ 633.00 strongly predictive. "[The test] does predict success, not just in a SSM U LIBRARY FUND: $ 8.50 1,258 STUDENTS - $ 10,693.00 managerial role, but in an academic role also."

A proclivity for what neuroscientists call 'ex­ ecutive functions,'which include planning skills, im­ AVERAGE NUMBER OF pulse control and the ability to manipulate several STUDENTS OPTING OUT: ideas simultaneously exist in those brains in which 1,281 the prefrontal cortex— the front part of the brain— is larger and more active than in an average brain.

6 . 52 % O F ALL ELIGIBLE Dean o f management Peter Todd pointed out STUDENTS that businesses have long incorporated aptitude tests into their em ployment processes.

"There is a long history o f testing grounded in .... SSM U VP HNANLEAND QPFRA 7 K.JtV.S iMA O BA RA. Kt. psychological research being used diagnostically by individuals to determine how their aptitudes fit

with different careers and by companies to aid in understanding how individuals might fit with their organization," he said.

Pihl and University ofToronto professor of psy­ chology Jordan Peterson, w ho co-authored the re­ search paper that was published in the Aug. 2007 Journal o f Personality and Social Psychology, found that their tests could estimate the potential for in­ creased productivity and that the results could be used to predict jo b performance. The tests turned out to be so accurate in practice that the addition o f executive function tests to jo b interviews could result in a 33 per cent productivity gain per hired employee, according to their paper.

Mo Mansour, U2 finance, felt that tests related to the prefrontal cortex could be intimidating in an interview situation.

"If I had all the qualities that [a company] was looking for to be hired, and then the basis on which I was chosen over someone else was the size of my

NEWHORIZONS.ORG R esearch in dicates th a t testin g can help to lo cate o ccu p atio n al p red isp osition s.

[prefrontal] cortex, whatever research they came up with would have to be really solid for it to be used," he said.'How would they even measure that? If they asked for a CAT scan or something, that would be really weird."

Pihl suggested that examining the brain is no longer relegated solely to the medical realm as a means by which to locate disorder; "it's also a reflec­ tion o f order."

Citing past examples in which professionals have decided to change or adjust their employ­ ment situations upon receiving their executive test results, Pihl pointed out that the notion of "fixed brain functioning” is invalid.

"You can understand your own strengths and limitations— but the limitations aren't static. That is, w e adjust all the time,"he said.'O ne of the most inriportant aspects of changing anyone's behaviour is understanding what they need to change."

With regard to jo b . interview circumstances, both Pihl and Todd agree that the test is the be all and end all.

"I think you have to be a bit discriminating," Pihl said, pointing out that personality tests are also often used."Nothing has ubiquitous application." "[Psychological testing] is only part of the as­ sessment approach and I know of no com pany that relies exclusively on such tests,"Todd said. "But they are nonetheless an im portant input into the hiring process for some companies. In general, the more w e understand about what managers do and how they think, the better positioned we will be to edu­ cate and develop managers... it sounds as though this research contributes to helping develop that broad .understanding." ■

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The McGill Tribune

CAMPUS

C lu b s' offices shuffled in S h a tn e r Student associations puzzled by SSMU's distribution policy Kate Mattocks Campus clubs are clamouring for more office space this year as a result of space con­ straints within the Shatner building.

"We have approximately 35 offices and well over 180 clubs, so deciding w ho gets office space and who doesn't is extremely difficult,"said Stu­ dents'Society Vice-President Clubs and Services Marcelle Kosman."The unfortunate reality is that this is the only building on campus guaranteed for students— even academ ic buildings aren't guaranteed for students anymore."

Applying for club office space in Shatner involves filling out tw o forms: an Office Space Review Form for clubs w ho previously have had office space and an Office Space Application Form for both new and renewing clubs. After the forms are processed, rooms are assigned.

"Office space is a privilege, and some years

a club will get space, other years it won't," Kosman said.

This policy has many clubs and services puzzled.

Kosman described other perks that are being offered to help accom m odate for the chronic shortage, such as free room bookings through SSMU and the availability o f Gert's for club-related events and club subsidies.

SSMU clubs and services councillor Dave Schecter explained the lack of space as a prob­ lem relating to the actual building.

"We are constantly dealing with a limited am ount of space and w e have never been able to meet the demand for space with the supply w e have,"he said.

Omololu Oyewole-Eletu, treasurer of the National Society o f Black Engineers at McGill, said that the process o f applying for an office in Shatner was "quite annoying." After initially

being informed that there w asn’t enough room for NSBE to have an office this year, the du b eventually did acquire space after persistently contacting SSMU. "When my VP spoke to the VP [Clubs and Services], it appeared that there wasn't much concern for our need for an office," OyewoleEletu said. "They should have made better ef­ forts to get clubs a room, rather than saying 'tough luck!"

According to Schecter, the clubs without an office have been offered locker space. While locker space does not replace an office, he as­ serted that it is the best alternative in the face of this chronic shortage.

SSMU is currently looking for other options to increase student space.

"The space w hich University Bytes used to occupy is being transitioned for student space and w e are looking at any other available

option," Schecter said.

Currently, the basement and sub-base­ ment in Shatner are unusable because the area is not up to health standards due to ventilation problems.

Kosman attributed the issue tcra lack o f in­ terest from the university administration.

"Student space, particularly the Shatner building, is just not a priority for the University.

So w e do the best w e can with w hat w e've got and hope that the next tim e a [Memorandum of Agreement] is signed, the terms are better for us."

SSMU recently met with McGill Provost Anthony Masi and Deputy Provost Student Life and Learning Morton Mendelson, and later with Dean o f Student Services Jane Everett and Asso­ ciate Dean of Student Services Linda Jacob Star key to discuss the capacity problems, but have been unable to find a solution as of yet. ■

u p■ ■ t o

sp eed A wom an in Russia gave birth to a giant baby via C-section. The newborn, her twelfth child, emerged weighing 1 7.5 pounds. The giant's father was too shocked to speak, though the mother suggested that perhaps the baby's weight was a result o f the copious am ounts o f “potatoes, noodles and to­ matoes" she ate during the pregnancy. • A French auction is being held to sell off the spare parts of an old Concorde, including a toilet seat, oxygen masks, airspeed indicators, the 1.2-ton landing gear, a windshield and a Mach-monitor speedometer. Attendees included confused members o f the mile-high club. • A Pennsylvania pet store recently purchased a very rare two-headed turtle from a private collector. Big Al’s Aquarium Supercenter plans on using the turtle for display purposes. • An Austrian court has once again refused to grant chim panzee M atthew Hiasl Pan "human" status. In light o fth e closing o f his animal shelter, the Association against Animal Factories will continue their appeals to the Suprem e Court to get Pan new living quarters. Austrian courts are determined not to allow any monkey business. • Federal agents in San Francisco busted a factory last Thursday for producing marijuana-laced goodies like candy, barbecue sauce, cookies, ice cream, peanut butter, energy drinks and Rice Krispies treats. 'Tainted Inc.' began small with laced chocolate truffles, and has since grown to exporting medical marijuana dispensaries to as far away as Canada and Amsterdam. The snacks proved to be a slam-dunk for users, w ho were able to get high and get their m unchies in the same go. • A 24-year old Argentinian man who recently married an 82-year old senior citizen says that he's "always liked mature women." The bride and groom met w hen the elderly wom an took him in after his m other died, w hen he was age 15. Look out, Ashton and Demi. • Former Foreman rival Evander FHolyfield has released his 'Real Deal' grill to compete with Foreman's fam ous'Lean, Mean, Fat-reducing grilling machine.' "I've got the George Foreman grill, and it's a good grill," said FHolyfield. "But don't you think the latest grill is supposed to be the best grill?"

-^Sources: BBC, Reuters, CNN, Fox, AP

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02.10.07-N ew s-5

R ep airs d e e m e d n e c e ssa ry McGill professor criticizes Montreal civil engineers for apathy co n tin u ed from COVER overpass hadn't collapsed, things would have gone on the same old way."

Following the incident in Laval, the Com m is­ sion flagged 135 bridges and overpasses throughout the province, including nine in Montreal, deeming them unsafe and in need o f critical attention. When this report first surfaced, the public was kept in the dark about the locations o f these targeted roads, generating anxiety am ong com m uters. Eventu­ ally these locations were fully disclosed but the unease am ongst the public does not seem to be dissolving any tim e soon after the underpass on the Côte-de-Liesse expressway was closed for em er­ gency repairs.

André Lazure, spokesperson for the Infrastruc­ ture, Transport, and Environmental Services for the City of Montreal said that the city has invested more money in the modernization of the city's infrastruc­ ture within the last three years than ever before. He also explained that the main goals of the modern­ ization process focus on both the underground and the above-ground.

"Reconstruction of the subterranean infrastruc­ ture as well as the city roads are our main priorities," he said. "There are kilometres o f underground struc­ tures such as the sewer system that need to be m od­ ernized and [the City has] been doing analyses and tests for years in preparation for this project."

While the Ministry ofTransport claimed to have performed regular tests and maintenance on these MICHELLE GEESAMAN, SARA YOUSEFNEJAO structures, Mirza claimed that the philosophy upheld Crum bling c o n c re te gives co m m u te rs a reason to worry.

by Quebec's engineers and contractors seemed to "Even though bridges and overpasses look hor­ be "design, build and forget." He added that proper rible regarding the visual aspect, they are still safe," com m unication about m aintenance procedures between Sispos opined. designing engineers and contractors is crucial to the safe­ M eanwhile, com m uters will still have to weave ty o f structures, but is often not being done at all. through the city's traffic jam s as the underground infra­ "Some o f these people doing m aintenance tests structure is being renovated, but at least the city has taken don't even have formal training in maintenance and pick a positive approach towards the issue. it up as they go along," he said.

"However, it's an approach that should have been McGill civil engineering graduate student Cristian Sistaken long ago," he sa id .* pos believes that w e have nothing to w orry about.

University of Ottawa

SPEAKERS ON CAMPUS

N arrative seen as co g n itive ven tu re Prof ties literature to clinical neuroscience T h o m a s Q u a il The hotly debated division be­ tw een the arts and the sciences was at the crux o f a lecture given by es­ teem ed neurologist and novelist Liam Durcan last Monday in the Mac­ donald-Harrington building.

Durcan, critically acclaimed au­ thor o f A Short Journey by Car and the recently-released Garcia's Heart believes that both artistic and sci­ entific ventures have much in com ­ mon and have much to learn from one another.

The lecture was based predomi­ nantly on the use and developm ent of narrative in literature and how it com plem ents clinical neuroscience, particularly in diagnostics.

"Narrative is not solely a literary process, but [also] a cognitive endea­ vour," Durcan said.

He also claimed that a person's ability to express their problems through narrative is o f utmost im­ portance, asserting that a transparent and viable patient history increases the validity of a diagnosis.

According to Durcan, a patient's inability to create this narrative, or a doctor's inability to properly com pre­ hend it, increases the risk for unnec­ essary or incorrect treatment.

He asserted that as our culture shifts increasingly further aw ay from subtle narrative and literature, people are less-versed in self-expression, and less-able to relate with others.

Many medical schools are putting together, or are estab­ lishing, medical humanities courses to counter this reduced narrative com petence.

Defined broadly by the New York University school o f medicine as "an interdisciplinary field of hum ani­ ties, social science and arts com bin­ ing in their application to medical education and practice," the pur­ pose o f these courses is to "develop and nurture skills o f observation, analysis, em pathy and self-reflection; skills that are essential for humane medical care."

Another method that contem ­ porary clinical medicine has experi­ mented with to im prove diagnoses is the idea o f taking tw o histories simultaneously. In this case, a clini­ cal history would be recorded along with a personal history written by the patient. Both of these narratives can then be compared for a more com plete interpretation o f a patient's medical past. Bringing the lecture to a close, Durcan gave his final thoughts on the relationship between the arts and sciences.

"Both artistic and scientific pur­ suits are different expressions of the world around us," he said. "Arts and sciences should pursue these expla­ nations in unison."

The lecture was the third Entin lecture o f a series presented by the Sigma Xi McGill-Montreal Chapter.

The mandate o f the Sigma Xi soci­ ety is the growth and promotion of science. Sigma Xi secretary An Thien Ngo considered the lecture a success.

"I thought it was a great lec­ ture," Ngo said. "[Durcan's] expres­ siveness and refreshing style made the lecture feel more like a story; a narrative perhaps."*

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STEVE CAMPBELL D urcan favours a united fron t w hen it c o m e s to a rts versu s scien ces.

The McGill Tribune

6 • News • 02 .10.07

CAUGHT ON CAMPUS If you set yo urself on fire, w e can put you on the cover.

Or, you can w rite for News, still get your nam e on the cover, and not suffer third-degree burns.

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News m eetings at 5:30 p.m.

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G roup s co n cern ed over participation Quorum remains an issue co n tin u ed from COVER use and subcontracted only to ethi­ cally responsible companies. A mo­ tion concerning opposition to the McGill administration's intention to raise capital from alumni and cor­ porate donors and another urging SSMU to push the creation o f a "stu­ dent-parent" status for students will also be considered.

According to SSMU Council Speaker Yahel Carm on, the studentspace motion is technically outside the purview o f the GA as it deals di­ rectly with SSMU finances and will be called out o f order. "[My] ruling would not be a ju d g ­ ment upon the merits of the motion, but merely a reflection o f my view that the motion violates the Consti­ tution's restriction that GA motions may not establish, amend, or rescind issues directly relating to the financial matters of the society," Carmon said. "I do not take such a ruling lightly, and am trying to be as open as possible in this process. But ultimately, I must uphold the Constitution."

Three other motions under con­ sideration were also proposed by GRASPé: the Shatner space motion, the American Eagle boycott, and the student-parent status motion.

"We think that this school doesn't exist in isolation from soci­ ety and what students do really ulti­ mately does have an im pact on the outside world," GRASPé spokesperson Michael Freeman said. "We'd really like to see more involvem ent from

the Students' Society and students in general on social issues in the larger community.”

In the past, cam pus groups have expressed concern over the par­ ticipatory nature o f the GA and the relatively scant publicity. Last year, both Liberal and Conservative McGill mobilized opposition against several GA motions, and challenged the as­ sembly's legitimacy on the grounds that it was not properly advertised or scheduled.

"By having such a small quorum necessary to dictate SSMU policy, the process lends itself to small, hard-line groups with limited agendas pushing through motions," said Conservative McGill spokesperson John Menzies.

Quorum is currently 100 students from four different faculties, or ap­ proximately one-half per cent of the total undergraduate student body, "The General Assem bly process, in theory, could be an efficient vehicle to channel student opinion, but due to the low quorum requirements, the process is easily usurped by minority interest groups that use it to forward their agendas," said Pat Boily, U2 po­ litical science and Canadian studies.

However, Freeman maintained that, "as o f right now, [the GA] is a pretty accessible m eans— anybody that feels strongly about an issue can com e out and have their say, and it doesn't involve a huge tim e com m it­ m ent on anyone's part. They don't have to plunge into student politics in order to bring their voice and their view point to the table." ■

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IN S TITU TE FO R R ES E A R C H IN IM M U N O LO G Y A N D C A N C ER

d e M o n tr é a l

Regular General Assembly Agenda Students’ Society of M cG ill U niversity October 9th, 2007 (6:00 - 9:00 pm) in Adams Auditorium Article 29.3 of the Constitution requires the publication of the Agenda as soon as it’s known.

1.0 2.0 3.0 4.0

5.0

Call to Order Adoption of Agenda Question Period Reports of the Executive Committee 4.1 Sustainability 4.2 Accessible Education 4.3 Black History Month New Business 5.1 Motion re: UNITE HERE 5.2 Motion re: Space in Shatner 5.3 Motion re: Capital Campaign 5.4 Motion re: Opt-outs 5.5 Motion re: Student Family

R egu lar G eneral Assem bly M otions Fall 2007 Motion re: UNITE-HERE Be it resolved that the SSMU endorse the UNITE-HERE boycott of American Eagle Outfitters and engage in actions including but not limited to distributing material and information about the boycott, informing students about the progress of the boycott and promoting legal actions in regards to the campaign (such as pickets, rallies etc.)

Motion re: Space in Shatner Be it resolved that that student endeavours be prioritized over any other sort of endeavour in SSMU space; Be it further resolved that SSMU space, when it is to be used for revenue-generating activities, be given to such operations that are run by and for students; Be it further resolved that in the alternative, in such cases as revenue-generating activities are to be contracted out, that they be contracted out only to such companies that are socially and environmental responsible.

Motion re: Capital campaign Be it resolved that SSMU officially oppose McGill University's Capital Campaign; Be it further resolved that SSMU propose that the University use the resources already allocated to the Capital Campaign to actively promote public investment and sustainable financing of post-secondary education.

Motion re: Opt-outs Be it resolved that the SSMU take every reasonable action to reclaim and protect the sovereignty and independence of all campus student groups and activities; Be it further resolved that the SSMU take every reasonable action to put an end to the online opt-out system recently created by the University such that campus groups shall be in charge of their own opt-out processes.

Motion re: Student-family Be it resolved that the Students' Society of McGill University (SSMU) adopt the following policy: Student-Parent Status: The National Assembly should create a special "student-parent status" to: • Grant parental leave for students, without penalties, financed by the public system, for a maximal period of 2 years • Give priority to the "student-parents" for the places available in the CPEs connected to or near post-secondary institutions • Grant full time student status to part time student-parents The creating of "student-parent status" should be the part of an accessible and flexible daycare system put in place in post-secondary institutions in order to ensure a conciliation between the needs of study and family.

Be it further resolved that the SSMU take action towards the achievement of this policy as a goal.

NB: Quorum fo r a Regular or a Special General Assembly shall be one hundred (100) members o f the Society from at least four (4) different Faculties or Schools. A maximum of fifty (50) members from a particular Faculty or School are counted fo r purposes of quorum.

Any questions should be directed to the SSMU Speakers at sveaker@ssmu.mc2ill.ca

O pinion

JUMBO SHRIMP

A m erica's Next Top train w reck

YOU HAD AN OPTION, SIR

W om en in da H ouse

J. F. Kostuck JFKOSTUCK@GMAIL.COM

Timothy Mak Timothy.mak@mail.mcgill.ca D

uring the Liberal leadership race in 2006, Stéphane Dion announced that he had a plan for bringing gender par­ ity to the House o f Com m ons. The first step toward equality, he argued, was to ensure that one-third o f all Liberal candidates run­ ning in the next election would be w om en.

Dion's plan included 'green-light' com m ittees em pow ered to take extraordinary measures in order to make sure that the one-third quota is met. However, this policy o f reverse-discrim i1 nation is wrong for Canada.

When considering the m andatory ap­ pointm ent o f fem ale Liberal candidates, it is im portant to look at the opportunity cost. By appointing w om en candidates, the Liberal Party will be barring qualified male candidates from a chance for the candidacy on the basis o f gender. In essence, this policy spits in the face o f all the male candidates that w ant to run in the ridings in w hich wom en will be ap­ pointed to fill the quota. In a free and dem o­ cratic society, both w om en and men should be allowed the opportunity to put them selves forward as prospective candidates, and allow for the party's m em bers in the riding to elect them in a legitimate nomination process. But the Liberal Party doesn't see it that way. In the Liberal Party's view, ordinary citizens are not to be trusted w ith decisions like w ho should represent their party locally as a candidate.

This is ju st another exam ple o f an overarch­ ing Liberal party concept that permeates m any of their policy stances: individuals aren't to be trusted with w hat m ust be the overw helm ing burden o f personal choice. In the Liberal Party's ideal world, top-down and centralized decisions are the best ones, and God help you if you should disagree w ith the red-light com m ittee.

W omen should be insulted by the pa­ tronizing attitude that is illustrated by the quota policy. Surely w om en are not so fun­ dam entally inferior as to be unable to co n­

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test a nomination and w in it in a fashion that would allow for fair com petition. W omen do not need the Liberal Party to appoint them , and the Liberal Party mem bers in the ridings w here w om en will be appointed don't need the Liberal Party to tell them w ho to support locally. Better fem ale representation is not necessarily achieved by increasing the num ­ ber o f w om en in the House.

Instead, a better solution to the problem o f low fem ale representation is to train them and get them engaged in politics at an early age. The non-partisan McGill Political Science Students'Association's W omen in House pro­ gram is one channel through w hich this can be accom plished. In this program, wom en are sent on an all-inclusive trip to Ottawa to shadow a fem ale Senator or MP for a day, al­ lowing them an exciting opportunity to im ­ prove their understanding of the Canadian political system.

It is frustrating to hear such blind calls for substantive equality betw een men and w om en. Though formally equal before the law, men and w om en are different, and as such, will choose to m ake different decisions that lead to different outcom es. So long as w om en have the freedom to run for office, intervention is unnecessary, especially if the proposed intervention infringes on the rights o f others to be qualified for m em bership in the House o f Com m ons. I am not suggesting that w om en cannot make excellent politicians (indeed, Thatcher is one o f my favourites), but rather that if w om en go through a candidate nomination process and do not em erge victo ­ rious, it has more to do w ith a lack o f political training than some inherent weakness that com es w ith being a wom an.

That being said, this w hole argum ent may be a moot point com e election time.

With the w ay things are looking for Stéphane Dion, I don't see him bringing many n ew MPs to O ttaw a— male or fem ale. ■

here is a plague sweeping across our fine nation, preying on the young, vulnerable and feeble­ minded. Sym ptom s include reduced brain capacity, slowed motor functions and loss of the ability to form com plete and gram m atically correct sentences.

This virus has lain dorm ant for the better part of a decade, biding its time, waiting for the perfect m om ent to attack. The disease is a strain of pure, unadulterated stupidity and it strikes every W ednesday at 8/7 central on the CW. On Sept. 19, audiences tuned in to the ninth season o f America's Next Top M odel in record-breaking numbers. For­ mer supermodel Tyra Banks plays host to the modeling com petition, as well as my most graphic nightmares. For those lucky enough to have never been sucked into the gaping vortex that is ANTM, here's a brief synopsis of the series.

Each season begins withTyra's nau­ seating disclaim er that America's Next Top M odel isn't about physical beauty; it's about being a good role model. Cut to thirty stick-thin wom en with the com ­ bined intelligence o f a doormat getting off a plane in L.A. They are then rushed to a nearby location for a photo-shoot, of w hich they have had no notice. Every season the girls are shocked at the no­ tion o f being photographed after having sat on a plane for several hours. Have they not watched the previous eight seasons of the show? Did they not see this coming?

After the photo-shoot, the contes­ tants are brought to a banquet hall of some sort, w here the cameras can cap­ ture the models eating food, just like us normal people. Not shown: the line-up outside the ladies'washroom, where a ca­ cophony ofretching soundscan be heard.

It is usually around this tim e that Tyra Banks decides to make her first appear­

ance o f the season, often in ridiculous costum e. In the past she has oh-socleverly disguised herself as a showgirl, a kangaroo and, my personal favou­ rite, an ugly person. Imagine! Clearly Tyra's talents o f cam ouflage are being put to waste on ANTM, and she should look into FBI covert-ops. Members o f Al Qaeda would never suspect a kangaroo hippity-hopping across a live minefield, would they? I wholeheartedly encour­ age Tyra to test this theory.

Without fail, as soon as Tyra un­ masks herself to the girls, they begin to cry uncontrollably. This is the only part o f the show to w hich I can relate. I know that every tim e I see Tyra Banks w alk into a room I cannot help but weep, for this proves that my attem pts on her life are as o f yet unsuccessful.

Tyra then reiterates her mantra on how modeling is about inner beauty, and proceeds to send all of the uglies home. Now the com petition has truly begun and America is once again only tw elve short weeks away from meeting their next top model.

What sickens me most about this televised lobotomy is the w ay that le­ gitimate issues are exploited for the sake of ratings. Never does the audi­ ence see Sally Sunshine talking about her peachy upbringing o f ballet classes and well-balanced meals. Instead, girls w ho have endured rape, drug addiction and extrem e poverty are pushed to the spotlight. Ultimately, however, it is Sally Sunshine that takes the title, because no one in Whitebread, Missouri wants to see Candi Crackwhore on the cover of Seventeen magazine.

This blatant hypocrisy, m anipula­ tion and exploitation of wom en has led me to boycott ANTM in its entirety, and I encourage you to do the same. Seriously Tyra, I liked you better on Fresh PrinceM

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rf t ^ 5“l THE DEVIL'S ADVOCATE An ode to g ivin g up Ben Lemieux BENLEMIEUX@GMAIL.COM

W

e've all seen Titanic. Rose's excruciating last words to her undying love have become a fixture of contem­ porary pop culture: "I'll never let go, Jack! I'll never

let go!"

This unfortunate theme echoes through a plethora of Hol­ lywood pictures. Kiddie flicks and sports films are rife with no­ tions of being true to one's self and persistently seeing some­ thing through to the bitter end. Romantic comedies usually see a fledgling couple embroiled in tumult, yet emerging intact, all because they refuse to let love slip into the abyss.This process will usually involve whatever knob jockey they castas lead male running through some airport terminal.

Your parents have also probably spoon-fed you this tripe about determination, self-accentuation and never giving up on your dreams. And while there is plenty of nobility in refusing to abandon one's aspirations, I do perceive a certain morbid pa­ tina in telling a two hundred pound girl she can be a ballerina if she really, really wants to be.

In essence, Hollywood and our parents are guilty of what I call the eighth deadly sin: indulging false hopes. Dishearten­ ing as it may seem, sometimes we're better off just giving Up and letting things slide, drawing a line between tenacious and stupid.

We McGillers were treated to a prime example of obsti­ nacy in last week's McGill Daily. Refusing to let sleeping dogs lie, Queer McGill and Marc-André Rousseau printed side-byside, duelling op-ed pieces on the Shatner blood drive debate, which was admittedly confusing, given that the Judicial Board put all this hubbub to rest months ago. I thought that the ulti­ mate purpose of having a supreme, inviolable decision-making body was to end debate on controversial issues, not re-open it.

Three days later, we were treated to an accusatory letter in the Daily by ex-Students'Society Vice-President Clubs a Ser­ vices and pioneer of the Shatner ban, Floh Herra-Vega, lambast­ ing Rousseau for his word choice despite the fact that she is "really trying to stay away from the blood drives debate.”Clearly, her idea of stepping back is to write a fiery letter in the com­ mentary section of a major campus paper. Bloody remarkable self-control there, Floh. Just never try heroin.

A testament to moronic tenacity on a larger scale: the case of Cédrika Provencher. Reported missing on July 31, 2007, Sûreté du Québec has spearheaded an unyielding, province­ wide search that is still ongoing. Most of us see this girl's pic­ ture every time we go to the supermarket, dry cleaner's or neighbourhood pet store. Every two weeks the news reports on some seemingly major development in the casé, like

Cédrika (orjusta mirage bearing her semblance) being spotted in New Brunswick.

I am not a leading expert in police work, but I feel that a good way to save money, time, energy and resources would be to not scour the province for a dead girl.

Let's do some role-playing. We'll call this the best-case sce­ nario, as it presupposes that Cédrika isn't dead already. Let's say you're a kidnapper and you've had this girl slung in a burlap bag in your basement for two months and suddenly, you begin to see missing person posters of this nine-year-old you've abduct­ ed affixed in every public building in a 600 mile radius. Guess what you're going to do next. Fucking-A right. You're going to kill the girl and then have a sandwich. Case closed.

That people don't envision or accept this as logical cer­ tainty makes me angry, because at this point I'd be willing to wager that more money was spent trying to rescue a cadaver than endeavouring to evacuate Rwanda back in the day. And in the end, we have to ask ourselves: why is giving up such a bad thing? Why is it always perceived as weakness of charac­ ter as opposed to astute prioritization? Knowing when to stop while you're ahead is not a loss, it's a victory of realism. Perhaps we'd all be better off calling a spade a spade, not flogging dead horses, not lying to ourselves about how life plays out. ■

02.10.07 • The McGill Tribune • 9

EDITORIAL w w w.m cgilltribune.com

And w e ll have a GA ol' tim e...

E ditor- in-C hief

Tiffany Choy editor@mcgilltribune.com M anaging E ditors

Elizabeth Perle Kate Spirgen seniored@mcgilltribune.com P roduction M anager

Andrew Dathan Frankel production@mcgilltribune.com N ews E ditors

Alii Maclsaac Kristin Maich Ken Sun news@mcgilltribune.com O pinion E ditor

Byron Ta u opinion@mcgilltribune.com F eatures E ditors

Meghna Marjadi Carolyn Yates features@mcgilltribune.com A rts & E ntertainment E ditors

Ezra Glinter John Semley arts@mcgilltribune.com S ports E ditors

Matt Chesser Aaron Sigal sports@mcgilltribune.com P hoto E ditors

Niki Hyde Sara Yousefnejad photo@mcgilltribune.com C opy E ditor

ince the establish m en t o f th e regular G en ­ eral A ssem bly tw o years ago, debate has raged all over cam p u s as to thé m erits of not only the GA itself, but the executio n o f the process by the Students' Society. Q uestions o f legitim acy hang o ver the assem bly from last year, ranging from co m p laints ab out lack o f advertising to interpretations o f the co n ­ stitution to low quorum num bers. However, SSMU has m ade little im pro vem en t on this at­ tem p t at direct d e m o cracy and predictably, this sem ester's GA is o n ce again surrounded w ith controversy.

Under such intense scrutiny, one w ould think th at SSMU w o u ld take extraordinary care to reassert th e legitim acy o f this event and follow each requirem ent to th e letter. A ccording to the frequently referenced SSMU C onstitution, "regu­ lar general assem blies and the process leading up to th e adoption o f th eir agenda have to be publicized by the So ciety w ith all the necessary effort." It also states th at GAs m ust be "widely publicized by the Society w ith all th e necessary effort so that quorum is reached." Although a bi­ lingual ad vertisem ent w as placed in Le D élit and the Tribune at the last m inute, no m ention was m ade o f the procedure by w h ich students could subm it m otions, negating the purpose o f the ad.

The ad also seem ed to im ply th at Council could directly place m otions on the agenda w h ich led to fu rth er confusion.

The SSMU Web site does contain the n eces­ sary steps to subm it a m otion, as does the listserv em ail sent out; h o w ever both reference the in­ correct Constitutional article on the subm ission o f GA m otions. Interested students w ould not have been able to find this article an yw ay as the online version o f the Constitution in English has been unavailable since last winter.

S

More confusion has been fostered by co n ­ flicting interpretations o f this elusive do cum en t.

Last year it w as stated that a GA m otion cann o t co m m it SSMU to a particular course o f action in reference to a m otion calling for a stud ent vote on blood drives in the Shatner building. H ow ­ ever, this year it Was clearly stated that a GA may propose m otions on all m atters except changes to the SSMU C onstitution, m em bership fees or fi­ nancial m atters and the com position o f the staff.

The m otions them selves display the lack of aw areness on cam pu s as four o f the five m otions subm itted w ere drafted by GRASPé and form er

m em b er o f the stud ent body. The setup this year in the Adam s A uditorium is not even large enough to hold the kind o f turno ut that SSMU predicts.

Even if it is realistic to assum e the entire student body w ill not turn out to vote, this space perpet­ uates the idea that GAs are catered to a m inority o f students.

The GA, as it stands now, is not w h a t it was m eant to be. Rather than a dem o cratic forum for discussion and chang e, it has beco m e a forum for m inority rule. Q uorum is still o n e-h alf p e rce n t o f th e undergraduate body, allow ing a tin y frac­ tion o f the cam pus to speak for every attending

'W hile the student population did in fact vote in favour of ho ld ­ ing a GA each sem ester, w h at w e have now is not w hat w e voted for" SSMU president Aaron Donny-Clark. Both GRAS­ Pé and Donny-Clark, w h o w as in fact responsible for m uch o f last year's GA controversy by failing to advertise properly, have been d eno uncing this year's lack o f aw areness, along w ith m any oth­ ers. Further, the m otions set forw ard by GRASPé, such as tho se dem anding that SSMU su pport the Am erican Eagle protest or oppose the universi­ ty's Capital Cam paign add to stud ent ap athy sur­ rounding the process. If the GA is to beco m e a productive m eans o f chang e, m otions m ust be set w ithin the limits o f SSMU's purview .

W hile the stud ent p opulation did in fact vote in favour o f holding a GA each sem ester, w h at w e have now is not w h a t w e voted for. The driving idea behind a GA is the notion that students will have the o p p o rtu n ity to co m e to gether and make th eir voices heard to SSMU and to each other in order to foster an open debate available to each

undergraduate. T h e sheer logistics o f a gather­ ing o f a d ecent percentage o f students at McGill m akes it nearly im possible for a GA to be truly dem ocratic. W hile w e have the cap acity to put each proposed m otion to an electro nic vote, this has yet to be im plem ented . Videotaped or transcribed debate o f the issues could be posted online and a stud ent plebiscite o f all undergrad­ uates could d eterm ine w h ich m otions pass and w h ich do not, allow ing for public debate o f the issues as w ell as ensuring that th e m ajority of stu­ dents have th e o p p o rtu n ity to vote.

SSMU needs to take responsibility for the regular General A ssem bly and abide by th eir ow n laws. Executives like SSMU President Jake Itzkowitz have run on the platform o f GA reform and bringing SSMU to the people. If that's truly w hat w e've elected them to do, th ey have a long w ay to go to fulfill both o f those prom ises. ■

Crystal Chan copy@mcgilltribune.com O nline E ditor

Femi Kassim online@mcgilltribune.com D esign E ditors

Samantha Chang Conor Graham

PARRY &THRUST

Tased and con fused K en S un and B yron T au

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Traci Johnson

On Sept. 17, former Presidential candidate an d cur­ rent M assachusetts Senator Joh n Kerry was address­ ing a University o f Florida crow d when student A n­ drew Meyer was forcibly rem oved by cam pus police and tasered. His cry, "Don't tase m e bro, don't tase me!" has subsequently becom e an Internet phenom ­ enon. Tribune editors Byron Tau and Ken Sun debate the legitim acy o f this measure.

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Byron begins: It is a sad state o f affairs w h en uni­ versity officials feel the need to drag a student kicking and scream ing from a public forum for ask­ ing a speaker a difficult question. It is even more disturbing w hen this student is then stunned by thousands of volts' of electricity and charged w ith inciting a riot ju st for voicing an opinion. At no point did Senator Kerry ask for the student's removal. In fact, he had begun to answ er the student's questions. There was substantive dia­ logue taking place betw een the young man and the Senator before he w as dragged away. This Student was asking a legitim ate question and had the courage to question authority, w hich is a right given to all citizens under the United States constitution.

Ken retorts: Meyer was not tasered for asking questions; the only action taken against him on these term s was to cut his m icrophone shortly after he rudely suggested that form er president Clinton was im peached for receiving oral sex.

M eyer charged up to the m icrophone from the back o f the room, past the police line set up for Kerry's protection. To them , M eyer was a security threat. W hen police attem pted to escort him out o f the room, he resisted and after a long, drawnout ordeal and m any warnings, he was tasered.

M eyer knew fully well that he w ould be tasered if he continued to resist. The w h o le purpose be­ hind a taser is to subdue a non-com pliant of­ fender w ithout using lethal force. M eyer broke through security; that made him an offender. He did not let police escort him aw ay; that made him non-com pliant.

Byron shoots back: It is hard to argue that Sena­ tor Kerry w as at any point in real danger from such benign queries as, "Were you in Skull and Bones w ith Bush?" In a statem ent after the event, Kerry said,"I asked the police to allow me to answ er the question and was in the process o f responding w h en he was taken into custody,"and w e n t on to lament, "I regret enorm ously that a good healthy discussion was interrupted." Because cam pus se­ curity clearly did not im m ediately remove Meyer, you can see that they did not consider him a threat. They were sim ply annoyed because a stu­ dent continued rudely badgering a high-level governm ent official and ignored their repeated requests to shut up. This is another case o f overzealous cam pus security abusing their power coupled w ith gross prosecutorial m isconduct in

charging M eyer w ith a serious crim e. Free speech in the United States is in a precarious state, and the incident involving Meyer show cases the dan­ gers o f a society afraid o f dissent.

Ken closes in: It is harder to argue that the four officers w h o w ere present to subdue Meyer all decided that they would taser a student ju st b e­ cause they w ere annoyed by his inability to shut his m outh. Security tried m any tim es during his questions to escort him aw ay but he resisted and shoved the officer away. While it is strange that three heavy-set male officers and one fem ale of­ ficer could not cu ff a college senior even w hen they were practically sitting on top of him, co n­ sider the alternatives at their disposal: m ace or pepper spray in the eyes, beating him with a tactical baton or shooting him w ith a gun. O ut of all o f these, a taser is the only device that would not have sent this otherw ise healthy UF senior to the hospital.

This tasering incident has no place in an ar­ gum ent for free speech; Meyer was arrested for being a disturber o f the peace and tasered for resisting arrest. Last year, UCLA student Mostafa Tabatabainejad w as tasered for resisting a police escort out o f the library and w hile M eyer made a m uch bigger scene than Tabatabainejad, perhaps next year there will be an even bigger tasering in­ cident to sh ow insubordinate students, once and for all, the co nsequences o f their disobedience. ■

The McGill Tribune is an editorially autonomous newspaper published by the Students'Society of McGill University in collaboration with the Tribune Publication Society. Opinions expressed do not necessarily represent those of the Students'Society or McGill University. Letters to the editor may be sent to letters@mcgilltribune.com and must include the contributor's name, program and year and contact information. Letters should be kept under 300 words and submitted only to the Tribune. Submissions judged by theTribune Publication Society to be libellous, sexist, racist, homophobic or solely promotional in nature will not be published. The Tribune reserves the right to edit all contributions.

Editorials are decided upon and written by the editorial board. All other opinions are strictly those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the opinions of the McGill Tribune, its editors or its staff. Please recycle this newspaper.

10 • The McGill Tribune • 02.10.07

J amie G oodman

L e tte rs to th e e d ito r Cole Ryan is not the next Lester Bangs

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Cole Ryan, I'm terribly sorry to disturb your rant (25.09.07: "Reviews:The Darling DeMaes"), but it would be nice to hear some critical thinking about the music com e through in your writing. Bashing the song names and jew el case to look clever does not qualify as a credible review. Your article is full of half-assed puns and two-bit sucker punches. And that doesn't include the outright false statements about the lack of electric instruments. Given that the article lacks any relevant critique whatsoever, this leads me to believe that you never actually listened to the music. Perhaps you wrote your worthless quip after glancing at the song titles and shortly before you knocked the CD off your desk while reaching for the Journalism for Dum­ mies book. Therefore I forgive you in your ignorance, and ask only that you listen to our CD, and even come to one of our shows to see an up-and-coming band that plays in unique venues and enjoys the wonder­ ful support that the Montreal music scene has to offer.

It pains me that my wonderful band has been repre­

sented to the McGill com m unity with such a naive and petty review. I hope that you will be more considerate next time.

— Alec Ellsworth o fth e Darling Demaes U1 environment

Everybody hates Cole This letter is in regard to a CD review written by Cole Ryan (25.09.07 Review: "The Darling DeMaes"). Is it normal to bash a band like that? They had plenty of really good and bad critique over Montreal but nobody bashed the band like that, and with false information.

Is this kind of review normal and acceptable for the McGill Tribune? Hope you have a good answer for me because I really don't understand what's going on here.

I call it excess...

— Christian Bernard

SHOCKINGLY, THE TRIBUNE ACCEPTS LETTERS THAT ARE NOT ABOUT MUSIC. EMAIL LETTERS@MCGILLTRIBUNE.COM

InternshipProgram Faculty o f A rts

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On dollar parity

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E d O 'D wyer E dward_ O dwyer @hotmail.com t caused quite a stir when the Canadian dollar briefly achieved parity with its American counterpar. On The Daily Show and the Colbert Report, the parity of the American and Canadian dollars was humorously presented as a blow to America's national pride. In Canada, newscasts covered the rise of the loonie with a montage of clips from the 1970s, replete with bell-bottoms and handle bar moustaches.

The difficulty of reaching any simple conclusion about the long-term implica­ tions of the high dollar was even felt on campus. The McGill Tribune (25.09.07 "The Other Side of the Coin") coupled its sober analysis of the high dollar with the far­ fetched suggestion of kicking Alberta out of Canada.

These humorous responses are the result of the difficulty of coming to any sim­ ple conclusion about the consequences of dollar parity. Indeed, the consequences of the high loonie are mixed. Essentially, it's good for some Canadians but unfortunate for others.The lingering question remains: do the benefits outweigh the costs?

The rise of the loonie is undoubtedly bad for the manufacturing sector. Canada's primary export market is the U.S. and a high dollar destroys the competitive advan­ tage that Canadian goods had against their American counterparts. If the Canadian dollar stays high it may even lead to the near extinction of much of Canada's export industry. However, Canadian manufacturing has been in decline for the better part of a decade as it faces stiff competition from China and Mexico. The decline of Cana­ dian manufacturing has already begun, and though the high dollar will not help, it is certainly not responsible for the decline.

The high dollar will have mixed consequences for Canadian consumers. Right now prices have not adjusted for dollar parity and remain disproportionately high in Canada. Many Canadians are being forced to look to the U.S. for cheaper deals.

However, this price discrepancy will not last forever. The pull of supply and demand will force Canadian retailers to lower their prices in order to bring them in line with the American prices, or risk losing business. The brief price imbalance will be offset by the influx of cheap imports that will now be available to Canadians. With their dollar going a lot further, Canadians will then be able to save money on a whole host of imported goods.

Another beneficiary ofthe high dollar will be Canadian sports franchises. National teams collect their revenues in Canadian dollars while paying their salaries in Ameri­ can dollars. When the Canadian dollar was weak, it nearly destroyed the Canadian pro­ fessional sports market. In the 1990s, fans in Quebec City and Winnipeg lost their NHL teams, Vancouver lost its NBA team and the CFL came very near to folding. With the high Canadian dollar, NHL and even NFL expansion is a possibility, not to mention an increased stability ofthe existing franchises. The health of Canadian sports franchises is not merely a boon for their fans, but also to the thousands of Canadians they employ.

The loonie also now seems much more attractive to foreign investors. With U.S. in­ terest rates falling and Canadian rates remaining stable, foreign investors are look­ ing at Canada as the ideal place to invest their money. Furthermore, the high dol­ lar will allow Canadian companies to offer competitive salaries to top workers both foreign and domestic. This will allow Canada to continue to be at the forefront of innovation.

The rise of the Canadian dollar will have different consequences for differ­ ent economic sectors, but for the average Canadian consumer the high dollar will represent greater disposable income and better economic health. Dollar parity may cause short-term economic pain, but it represents a long-term economic good. This seems like a reason to celebrate our mighty loonie to me. ■

I

Ed O'Dwyer Is a Ui political science and history student, and this week's guest colum­ nist. Send guest column submissions to opinion@mcgiHtribune.com.

R e f r e s h m e n t s in Ar t s L o b b y .

Al l We 1c o m e .

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CENE H. KRUGER MEMORIAL SCHOLARSHIP PROGRAM The Gene H. Kruger Memorial Scholarship Program offers scholarships to undergraduate students currently attending McGill University and studying towards a Bachelor of Arts, Bachelor of Science, Bachelor of Engineering, Bachelor of Commerce or Bachelor of Social Work Degree. (Medicine, Dentistry and Law are not included.)

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CHATTERBOX

SILHOUETTE

Film a n d p h ilo s o p h y

S ta g in g o f The Birds ta k e s flig h t

A local cinema specialist weighs in If I could teach everyb od y in th e world one skill it w ould be... How to ask good questions.

A lison W ithers Currently researching truth and realism in non­ fiction film aesthetics and discourse, Prof. Trevor Ponech shows that there's more to movies, and to professors, than meets the eye.

At McGill I teach... Courses in cinem a studies and literary studies. I usually focus on the contribu­ tions of cinem a and literature to various avenues of philosophical inquiry.

The m ost interesting p art of my day is... On days w hen I am in the classroom, the most in­ teresting m om ents are w hen a class discussion becomes so lively, contagious, and wide-rang­ ing— even a little unruly— that it begins to feel like play. On days w hen I'm writing, the most in-

If I w asn't a McGill Professor I would be... A professor at some other university.

If I could play any p art in any m ovie it would be... I'm not a very good actor, so for me to play any of the roles that have enthralled me would be to destroy the very thing I love.

If I could go back in tim e I would g o to... Well, since we're flouting the laws of physics and lim­ its of conceptual coherence, then I w ant to go all the w ay back to the instant of cosmogenesis (ac­ tually, I'd like to get there a little bit early, so I can get a good view).

Prof. P on ech p on d ers escap in g th e laws of physics n ear M onte S eran o, Umbria.

If I could m eet any artist or film d irector it would be... I'm teaching a course on Lars von Trier right now, so he would be the obvious choice.

teresting, if not always inherently gratifying m o­ ments com e at day's end, w hen I reread w hat I've written and discover w hether or not it is crap.

As a kid I w an ted to be... An anthropologist.

My b iggest p et p eeve is... Frankly, I have a w hole petting zoo of peeves. If I had to single out just one, I would say Montréal motorists, w ho gener­ ally treat stop signs as obscure, nonliteral sugges­ tions regarding one imaginable course of action.

If I could have a sup erp ow er it would be Vir­ tually limitless m em ory and perfect recall pace Borges, "Funes the M emorious"(Do I still deserve a superpower if I have already achieved backward time-travel?).

The b est thing ab o u t M ontreal is... Vito's Butch­ er Shop on Fairmont. ■

Tuesday

Monday

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SYLVIAFREDERICKS

Wednesday

Elizabeth Perle Two men leave Athens. They m eet a king w ho has been turned into a bird. Together, they build a city in the clouds called Cloudcuckooland.

This may seem like a torturously pro­ saic plot to today's audiences, but in tim es of Greek antiquity, this was a conventional play, if not one o f the highest forms of art. The story is that o f The Birds by Aristophanes, likely a fa­ miliar title to many English literature majors, drama buffs and lovers o f ancient Greek and Roman texts— such as the members of Mc­ Gill's first Classics Club.

Launched this semester by Elaine Gusella, U3 French literature and ancient history, the Classics Club began as an effort to establish another flavour of plays within McGill's theatre com m unity. Aristophanes's work is the club's leading selection.

"Classics is theatre and it is literature,"Gusella says. "Being on stage, it is a more inter­ esting w ay to introduce [classical works]. It's another side of simply reading and looking into plays.”

Though admitting that staging The Birds will remain the club's main focus, Guselle in­ sists that there will be other activities available for those with a penchant for Greek plays but not for acting.

"Students can also help make the cos­ tumes, masks and other things like that be­ hind-the-scenes,” she says.

Guseila adds that the club expects to

Thursday

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hold roundtable discussions about the plays and screen related movies throughout the year.

"For me, I've always been interested in Classics. My mom used to buy me books about Greek and Roman mythology as a child. So I grew up reading those things," she recounts. Though perhaps not conventional childhood reading material, Guseila maintains that her passion for this period o f literature is more than likely shared by a larger num ber of students on cam pus than w e realize. Consid­ ering the fact that the club was introduced less then three weeks ago and already boasts over 35 members, she m ight very well be on to something.

Faced with a void o f classics-related re­ sources within the McGill English departm ent and extra-curricular com m unity, the Classics Club hopes to becom e a necessary outlet for Classics enthusiasts. It aso introduces students w ho m ight never have gotten the exposure to Classics otherwise.

"We don't have enough visibility. Clas­ sics is a very interesting area and not enough people know about it. Through this club, we w ant to make people know about it," asserts Guseila."It is a period w e should be able to re­ late to— even more than the Renaissance— if you look at the political [climate] o f the time.

This is something w e are hoping to show to students from all departments." ■ To get involved contact elaine.guselta@ mail.mcgill.ca.

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p h ilan th ro p y e v e n t for th e C hi Lifeline Children's W ish Fo u n datio n C o m e h elp us o u t fro m 1 0 a.m . to 1 0 a.m . at th e M cGill Crossroads!

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15 ; 14 [ Want to advertise in the Campus Calendar? For just a toonie you can advertise your event up to tw o weeks in advance.

Email calendar@ mcgiiltribune.com fo r more inform ation, or drop by the Tribune office in Shatner 110.

10

A Career Without Borders When you become a Foreign Service officer with the Canadian Trade Commissioner Service, you’ll have the chance to join a team that is dedicated to maximizing international commerce opportunities fo r Canada to succeed in the global economy.

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Les candidatures devront nous parvenir au plus tard le 16 octobre 2007. Rendez-vous à www.infoexport.gc.ca pour poser votre candidature.

S tudent L iving HEALTHY LIVING

S im p le so lu tio n s fo r c h ro n ic s lo u c h e rs Sit up, or elves will lay eggs in your underpants T r ip Y a n g Midterms have returned and w hile many students are once again trudging through cam pus with MacBooks, binders of notes and huge textbooks, the educationally enthusiastic may be miss­ ing a crucial detail: that daily load may lead to serious problems later in life.

Marie-Claude Dion, a certified athletic therapist at the Mc­ Gill Medicine Clinic, stresses that disproportionately heavy back­ packs are conducive to back pain, w hich is something a lot o f us probably know first hand. W hat w e rarely pay attention to, how ­ ever, is just how m uch a little back pain can affect us.

"When students carry excessively heavy books w ith them to class, the strain on their necks, shoulders and back can be tre­ mendous," Dion explains. "It's unhealthy. Heavy backpacks aren't the only cause o f back problems. Behavioural tendencies, such as slouching and not viewing the com puter screen at eye level for long periods o f time, can weaken the neck and back muscles, and render those areas more prone to accidents."

Sitting in front of the com puter on a balance ball rather than a chair may prove invaluable to your back. Balance balls re­ duce stress and tension on your spine an d keep you stretching w hile you're working so you don't get stuck in one position for too long.

McGill wrestling coach H a n a Asfcren em phasizes that back injuries are not an uncom m on occurrence in the athletic world.

"In wrestling and athletics, back problems can occur in a number of ways. If the shoulder is strained, the upper back area is affected as well. Lifting improperly, such as trying to lift beyond your ca­ pacity, is dangerous to the lower back. O f course, freak accidents occur too, such as w hen som eone lands awkwardly from a slam."

To prevent back problems, Askren recom m ends daily exer­ cise and plenty o f rest. She also stresses the im portance o f good form in the w eight room.

"Lifters need to be conscious of their form; they need to

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get the right technique dow n. It's also im portant to choose weights that you can handle. Weights that are too heavy are counterproduc­ tive— your technique suffers and you increase the chances o f injur­ ing yourself,"she says.

Beyond exercising correctly and resting sufficiently, using good judgm ent is also crucial to m anag­ ing physical health. Little things, such as keeping your chin up and using rolling backpacks w hen car­ rying too much, can go a long way in preserving back dexterity. Yoga and pilâtes can also be effective in alleviating back pain because they realign the body and improve posture. Try a little downward dog or som e seated twists to align your spine and stretch out your body.

For students w ho suffer backrelated or other physical problems, 5ARAY0USEFNEJA0 the McGill Medicine Clinic boasts a B oat p o se works you r ab s and saves yo u r back. variety o f staff m embers to alleviate and cure ailments. dents and athletes to be more aware o f their surroundings and "Here at our clinic w e have surgeons, psychotherapists, ath­ more attentive to their bodies' needs. letic therapists, sports psychologists, nutritionists and even doc­ "If students are experiencing considerable back problems, tors working with the Montreal Alouettes," Dion states. "When a they should consult the clinic immediately." Dion says. "Back patient is brought in, w e do a full evaluation to see if w e can problems usually aren't a serious issue with proper care and at­ treat it here or if w e need to im mobilize the patient and transport tention, but if they are, it's im portant to address them as soon as him /her to a nearby hospital. We determ ine the urgency o f the possible." So stand up straight, keep it up at the gym and don't try situation and act accordingly." to carry more than you can handle— that extra book may ju st be The most im portant goal in Dion's mind is to educate stu­ the straw that breaks the camel's back. ■

7

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02.10.07 «The McGill Tribune • 13

H O W TO ...

Keep your laptop happy Avoid future computer troubles A riq E mtenan If you have recently purchased a sleek Vaio or a glossy Macbook, there are good chances it's a replacement for an older laptop that recently bit the dust. Here are a few tips on keeping your new baby healthy.

Windex can't fix all your problems: The laptop screen is a magnet for dust and fingerprints. While spraying some glass cleaner onto your screen and rubbing it off with a paper towel may seem like an easy solution, it is an extremely bad idea. Common household cleaners contain ammonia, which de­ grades the delicate LCD panel and paper towels may scratch it. The best option is to buy a laptop cleaning kit containing an ammonia-free solution and a lint free microfibre cloth. To prevent the so­ lution from entering your casing and thereby en­ tering your laptop, don't spray the screen directly.

Instead, spray the cloth first and then gently rub your screen.

The laptop keyboard can also get dirty in no time. Research conducted by AOL shows that keyboards gather up to two grams of dirt every month, mostly food crumbs— a testament to all those meals consumed hunched over your lap­ top. The buildup could pose a potential health hazards since spilled food supports small eco­ systems of germs. To clean those hard to reach regions between keys, use a small brush; try a paintbrush. However, if you can get your hands on a can of compressed air, you can blast all that grime away from your keyboard. A can of Dust-Off is available at Staples for around $10.

Laptops aren't necessarily for laps: For laptops, temperature regulation is of utmost importance.

With winter creeping up you should try not to turn on your laptop immediately after reaching home, since it has just been exposed to subzero temperatures on the way there. Turning your laptQp on before it has reached room tempera­ ture can cause damaging condensation to form

inside its circuits. On the other hand, overheat­ ing can cause the heat sensing circuits in your laptop to shut it down. Since a lot of heat is dis­ sipated through the bottom of the laptop, any soft surface that may obstruct airflow may cause overheating. The vents under your laptop work better on flat surfaces.Try to put your laptop on a book or lapdesk rather than your lap or bed. The free program Speedfan offers a great way to monitor the temperature of your laptop. Speedfan is available from www.almico.com/speedfan. php. If you suspect that your laptop is overheat­ ing, investing in a laptop cooling pad might be a good idea.

Better safe than sorry: The biggest potential threat to your laptop, especially at a large univer­ sity like McGill, is theft. While simple preventive measures like never leaving your laptop unattend­ ed or asking someone to look after your belong­ ings are usually sufficient, it's wise to use a simple combination lock to secure your notebook com­

puter. A Targus eyelet security lock from Future Shop costs $20 and can secure your laptop and iPod simultaneously.

If someone doesn't steal your laptop they may try to steal what's inside it, which is why it is also important to protect yourfiles. If you are work­ ing on a top-secret research project, you may want to use a free encryption program, such as Paragon Encryption Disk SE, available from www.download. com. However, most thieves are probably just look­ ing to make a quick buck, and the "STOP" laptop theft prevention program run by the McGill Se­ curity Services acts as an effective deterrence for them. For only $20, your laptop gets a security plate with a barcode that ensures that your laptop has no resale value if stolen. For more information, visit www.mcgill.ca/security/community/stop.

While all these prevention techniques take little bites at your wallet they cost a lot less than a brand new machine and should keep your lap­ top running smoothly and happily for a while, or at least until there's a more exciting one to buy. ■

TE L U S STO RES & A U TH O R IZ E D D EALER S ___________ M O N T R É A L

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L indsay F rank You could trudge to Starbucks and fork over $3 for a beverage, or you could make it at home for a frac­ tion o f the cost, all w ithout sacrificing any flavour. You can use regular milk if you like but the flavour of the soy milk pairs deliciously with the spices.

Radio Services L C T Inc. 7537, boul. Henri-Bourassa Est Communications Métropolitaine 10223, boul. Pie-IX Verscell Communications 1485, rue Amherst Action Télécom Inc. 1531, rue Notre-Dam e Ouest Save O n Telecom 3235, av. de Granby, unit 2 5C Communications Métropolitaine 3525, boul. Saint-Laurent Communications Métropolitaine 10223, boul. Pie-IX

Saint-Laurent

Ingredients Z2 cup water 7 black tea bag (English breakfast, earl grey, or orange pekoe, for example) 7 3-inch piece stick cinnamon 2 cups soymiik 2 tablespoons sugar or honey .1 tablespoon cocoa powder 7 tsp vanilla A tsp ground ginger 7/8 tsp ground cardamom 1/8 tsp ground nutmeg

P C Page Communications Inc. 3832, boul. Côte-Vertu Save O n Telecom 5800, boul. Cavendish

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Place the tea bag, water, and cinnam on stick in a small saucepan. Bring to a boil; then remove from heat, cover, and let stand for five minutes.

Remove and discard tea bag and cinnam on stick. Stir soy milk, sugar, cocoa powder, va­ nilla, ginger, cardam om and nutm eg into the saucepan with the tea.

Heat m ixture thoroughly, but do not boil. Garnish with w hipped cream and ground cinnam on, if desired (makes tw o servings).

Recipe adapted from the New Bet­ ter Homes and Gardens Cookbook.

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Painting the town black and blue Local festival takes an Olympic-sized power trip E zra G linter If you could take Montreal's Olympic sta­ dium and transform it into anything you pleased, w hat would it be? It's a question that Jean-Pierre Pérusse asks himself every year. As artistic director of the annual Black and Blue festival, Pérusse has already changed the local landmark into a giant pinball machine and an international airport.This year, the world-famous gay culture event will take place in an enormous power plant, designed by Pérusse and his team to reflect the 'Power Trip' them e of the evening.

Featuring internationally renowned DJs such as French house music artist Antoine Clamaran, Grammy Award winning DJ Peter Rauhofer, San Francisco duo DJ Gabriel & Dresden and local Montreal favourites DJ Mark Anthony and DJ Misstress Barbara, the Olympic dance party is designed to be a multi-sense experience.

"It's not just shows, it's not just disco­ theque, we're trying to create an environment," Pérusse said.

"I always send the [DJs] the whole concept," he added, "and they know that I don't want their whole entourage in the DJ booth, because I'm

staging them. It's a show. They understand that I want them to be part o f a big play. That stimu­ lates them . It also stimulates their music, because there's a direction that evolves from the them e without me saying,'play this, play that.'They don't feel that I'm restraining them, but just giving them the direction. And they like that very much."

Since its inception in 1991, Black and Blue has grown to be the biggest event of its kind worldwide. The main event at Olympic stadium, which is slated to run on Oct. 7 from 9 p.m. until noon the following day, is the highlight o f a full week of parties, which together are expected to attract approximately 85,000 participants from Montreal and around the world. Organized by Bad Boy Club Montreal, a non-profit foundation that raises money for groups providing direct care and financial support to people living with HIV/AIDS, the festival is expected to raise around $300,000 for the foundation's endowm ent and for distribution to such groups as AIDS Com m u­ nity Care Montreal and AIDS Direct Help Founda­ tion of Montreal.

"There's a big need in Montreal for direct care for people living with HIV/AIDs,"said Robert Vézina, director and founding president of BBCM,

"so that's where w e focus."

One of the highlights of this year's festival is the inclusion of a second room at the main event for more alternative types of electronic music.

“Our event is known as being a big house music event and some of the bigger inter­ national DJs are not necessarily house," Vézina said. "So what w e decided to do was create a second room where the more alternative style will be played."

One of the side benefits of the spatial reorganization was the relo­ cation of the on-site infirmary to the area between the tw o dance rooms. Directed by Dr. Pierre-Paul Tellier, the direc­ tor o f student affairs at Mc­ Gill's Faculty o f Medicine, the Black and Blue medical team is an important part of the event and has made innovative strides in the ap­ proach to drug and health issues surrounding raves and other electronic-music events.

But did you n otice

"Our role is not to talk about non-use but to talk about using harm-reduction principles," Tellier said. "[We're] acknowledging that people are using [drugs], but hopefully we're providing them with information so they can use them more safely. And if they get into trouble then we're there to talk them d o w n . .. a number of people just need a place to rest and someone to talk to."

For Pérusse, however, the sen­ sory impact o f his work is enough without the addition of any artificial stimulants.

"I arrive at Black and Blue and that's w hen I know that I did a good job," he said, "because what I see is beyond anything that I would have imagined, because everyone puts in something more." ■

Black and Blue runs from Oct. 3 ~ 9 - Visit ww w.

BOB HENDRIKS bbcm.org for more inforPérusse's v est? motion.

TH EA TR E

CAM PUS

All that jazz

Schulich concerts culture campus C rystal C han In an effort to raise funds for the Schulich School of Music's jazz department, tw o special concerts will be performed in Tanna Schulich Hall this week. Ranee Lee, an award-winning Canadian jazz vocalist and a McGill voice pro­ fessor, will be singing with the McGill Jazz Or­ chestra on Thursday. The jazz orchestra from 1992, all o f whose members still work as highcalibre musicians, will be performing a 15-year reunion concert on Saturday. Although Lee has sung with numerous ensem bles at Mc­ Gill, this will be her first appearance with the McGill Jazz Orchestra. All five professors in the jazz departm ent are involved in the Lee con­ cert, with Professor Gordon Foote conduct­ ing. Profits from the events will go towards jazz programs and students; the Lee concert benefits the costly new Visiting Artists Series which runs with no direct school funding and the reunion concert raises funds for the jazz student scholarship bursaries.

"This year's jazz orchestra is exceptional," said Foote, who has been directing McGill big bands since 1987 and is currently head­ ing McGill Jazz Orchestra I. "Some students in the band are even players from '92 who have com e back to pursue post-graduate studies."

The programme will feature a range of songs, from piano-voice duets to big band numbers. Lee is excited about the collabora­ tion between the artists, explaining that "the calibre of musicianship is exceptional; all that culminating together in a big band is just awesome, quite magical."

The Visiting Artist Series started last spring semester with renowned tenor saxo­ phonist George Garzone as the first guest.

"It had so many positive effects on our program, for everyone from freshman to grad students," Foote said. "It was amaz­ ing to see the energy that cam e out of his presence here.”

According to Foote, the program aims to "get our students rubbing shoulders with one of the big names" by bringing a highprofile writer, performer or producer to spend around five days in residence, teach classes

and private lessons, rehearse with ensembles and do a concert with the big band once per semester.This November's guest is saxophon­ ist Ralph Bowen. The cost for the Visiting Art­ ist Series is between $10,000 to $15,000 per semester and is raised from concerts such as Lee's, private donors and a mandatory $50 donation from students. In order to meet the high financial demand, tickets for the Lee concert will cost $100.

Although most students will not be able to afford the steep price, the reunion concert is a much more affordable $5. The ensem ble toured several cities in Europe in 1992, play­ ing the Cork Jazz Festival in Ireland, and have remained highly active and important contributors to the jazz scene since. The last performance raised around $2,000, but Foote stresses that the main focus of the concert is the musically exciting possibilities of getting people together, both band and audience.

“It's astounding to hear these guys, [it's] stunning how great these guys play," he said.

"The concert is going to be really good just because of the level of the performers."

After the 1992 ensem ble came back to Montreal from the Cork Jazz Festival, they re­ corded a CD, Poppin' the Cork. Those w ho are interested in an aural preview of the concert can borrow the recording from the Marvin Duchow library.

There are always a series of other reason­ ably priced concerts going on at Jazz McGill.

The Jazz Orchestra will play Oct. 18 for hom e­ coming and their main public concert, featur­ ing their visiting artist, will be Nov 26. Fifteen Jazz com bos also play on rotation in the music building every Tuesday night, and the three other jazz orchestras all have a semester concert as well. Profits for these events also go towards jazz departm ent goals, such as hiring additional jazz faculty and creating an on-campus "night club" space. ■

Ranee Lee and Jazz Orchestra I will play Oct. 4 at 7 p.m. Call (514) 879-2350 for tickets.

The 1992 Jazz Ensemble will play Oct. 6 at 8 p.m.

Call (514) 398-4537 or visit Schulich's box office for tickets.

Life during wartime

Prairie sentim ent and Spanish flu crises, but it could achieve a greater reaction if used less frequently.

The cast is an enthusiastic band of young Can you remember the days when learning professionals discovered by the talented direc­ did not consist of falling asleep in Leacock 132 tor and founder of Persephone Productions, while surrounded by 599 of your peers? Do you Gabrielle Soskin. enjoy history, but shy away from the lengthy lec­ Kathleen Stavert portrays the play's naïve and tures and essay ridden survey courses? Would you joyful heroine Beatrice with grace and enthusiasm. like to experience a different tim e period without She embodies her character so well that as the having to read three novels and a course pack? play progresses the audience not only perceives Or do you simply need a break from midterm Bea's emotions, they begin to experience them studying? If so, set aside tw o hours and com e out as well. and enjoy the new Persephone Production play Sunna, a somber grave digger, played by Unity (1918).

Stephanie Chapman-Baker, does a wonderful job Writen by Kevin Kerr, the Governor General's o f contrasting the heroine's cheery demeanor. She award-winning play follows the lives of the young also adds a fair bit of intensity with her philosophi­ townspeople of Unity, Saskatchewan at the end of cal speeches on death and humanity. Rebecca Croll the Great War. It expresses the reverence and ex­ and Gilda Monreal, the delightful switchboard la­ citement of a group of young wom en towards the dies Rose and Doris, dole out a great deal of comic war and illustrates the harsh realities experienced relief. Hart, played by by a young soldier as well Aaron Turner, adds a bit as the fear induced by the of romance, Sissy (Jessica threat o f the Spanish flu Rose) a little heresy, Mary on a small town.

(Eleanor Young) much The Monument Na­ heart and Dusting Ruck tional's cozy Studio Hydro and Christopher Moore a Quebec is the perfect loca­ few tears. tion for this intimate play.

When asked for the Though small, it succeeds signs o f a successful pro­ in creating a warm and duction Soskin replied, personal theatre experi­ "The actor's job is to ence. The unpretentious HUGEGALDONES make people believe that set and simplistic props Unity (1 9 1 8 ): Flu th e Right Thing w ho they are, is in fact are effectual in bringing w ho they are. If you leave the theatre thinking that out the talents of the play's emphatic actors and you were part of that reality then they have done allow for the audience to appreciate the story their job.'The direction and calibre of the actors in without frivolous distractions.

Unity (1918) does just that. The expert interpreta­ Seamless scene transitions consisting of tion and fresh talent submerses its audience in the choice background music and key lighting tech­ niques provide an effective means of moving be­ joys, fears and excitements of the characters and tween settings without losing focus or intensity. # takes them on a journey into a community, not unlike our own, in crisis.

The two-tier nature o f the stage also decreases So if you find yourself with tw o hours to spare the potential for stagnancies; the more intricate do not hesitate to head down to the Monument stationary setting on the upper level eases the set National to catch the artful retelling of Unity (1918). changes on the lower, more dynamic set.

Carefully selected music compliments each You won't be disappointed.

L eona T eixeira

scene, heightening the joy and the loss expressed by the players. The lighting during scenes is often misplaced, however, casting large shadows on the actors'delicate faces. This may be done to empha­ size the feeling of melancholy during this time of

Unity (1918) runs until Oct. 7 at Monu­ ment-National, Studio Hydro-Québec (1182 StLaurent). For tickets call (514) 871-2224 or visit www.adm ission.com .

16 • Arts & Entertainment • 02.10.07

The McGill Tribune

Cream of the Pop 2007 Gary Lucas: Sounds of the Surreal J ohn S em ley

Final Fantasy: lovingly loopy C lare P idsley

Touted by Rolling Stone as "one of the best and most original guitarists in America," Gary Lucas is the type o f under-the-radar artist who, amidst all the Pop Montreal ballyhoo, stands as one o f the best kept secrets of this year's festival. Also praised by the culturati at The New Yorker as "the thinking man's guitar hero," he has amassed an extraordinary musical catalogue. Lucas's umpteen solo albums, soundtrack recordings for film and TV, collaborations with the likes of Jeff Buckley, John Cale and Talking Heads keyboardist Jerry Harrison and Grammy nomination are all impressive feats, especially for an artist w ho spent the bulk of his career whil­ ing away in willful obscurity.

Bound to be a huge Pop Montreal highlight, Final Fan­ tasy is the creation of musical mastermind, and rather strange individual, Owen Pallett. His solo project is named after the video game of the same title and car­ ries a similar air of epjc hero­ ism; the latest album, He Poos Though he has played guitar since age nine, Lucas's "big break," didn't come Clouds, sounds as if it it is aimed until his late-twenties, when he was enlisted by the tin god of experimental bluesat curing its listeners of suicidal thoughts. Whether or not it rock, Captain Beefheart. Lucas first saw Beefheart perform in 1971, when he and a succeeds in this lofty goal, the record was still the w inner of group of college buddies made a pilgrimage from Syracuse to a concert in New Haven."It was a life-transforming experience," Lucas said. the Polaris Music Prize, beating nine other Canadian albums "I knew that if I were to ever do anything professional, I wanted to play with this guy." by artists such as Wolf Parade and The New Pornographers. In It was in 1980, when he appeared on Beefheart's Doc at the Radar Station record, that Lucas's long-laboured ambition would be live performance Final Fantasy resembles artists such as Feist realized. His nimble axe-grinding on the track'Flavour Bud Living" impressed both critics and, perhaps the much harsher tribunal, Beef­ and Andrew Bird, w ho provide multi-instrumentals with the heart himself."That was the first recoding of me on a big-time record," Lucas said. "It kind of put me on the map." Beefheart subsequently aid of loops and a sampler controlled by foot pedals. Although embraced Lucas as a full member of his Magic Band on his last album, 1982's IceCream for Crow. Lucas is frank in stating that playing he uses various instruments, the violin is dom inant on most Beefheart's nefariously intricate compositions "takes an incredible amount o f work."

Final Fantasy tracks, where fast riffs and tremolos ensure a clas­ Unsurprisingly, the experience proved formative. "It laid the groundwork for my later career," Lucas explained. "I went to Beefheart sical, rather than a folk, sound. Pallett has been said to dislike University. I earned my stripes." And though Beefheart became a reclusive oil painter in the years following Crow's release, Lucas, whose his own voice, which trembles and shouts in counterpoint to undaunted original approach to his instrument and lofty musical proficiency showed he had chops to spare, countinued undaunted. the orchestral background, but this can possibly be dismissed From there, he went on to record with his own experimental, pscyhas the flippant words of a perfectionist. To complirock band, Gods and Monsters, as well as to work on albums with a throng ment his live shows, Final Fantasy has an eclectic of musicians whose sensibilities lay somewhat left of the dial, from Bryan I repertoire of cover songs including Bloc Party's "This Ferry and Iggy Pop to Lou Reed and DJ Spooky. He also co-wrote tw o of Jeff Modern Love" and Joanna Newsom's "Peach Plum Buckley's most famous songs,"Mojo Pin” and"Grace."

Pear." He has even been known to make bearable "Those songs went on to shake the world, right? I mean they're an­ ■ Mariah Carey's "Fantasy"— a com m endable act and EZRA GUNTER thems!" Lucas said of his work on Buckley’s much-celebrated Grace album."To one fans can hope he will surpass at his Pop M on­ HI me they exemplify, you know, the strength of treal show. my own writing."

While many 'music and art' festivals are long on the music But the focus of Lucas's Pop Montreal and short on the art, Pop Montreal puts itself out to offer a full Ohbijou and Basia Bulat open. Oct. 4 at 10:00 performance won't be his uncompromising menu of tasty visual treats. True to its musical roots, however, Art p.m.; Ukrainian Federation (5213 Hutchison).

Pop focuses on multi-disciplinary works that com bine the audio work with Gods and Monsters, nor his incen­ diary guitar playing. Instead, Lucas will be with the visual and that cut through the ever-looming high/low artistic binary. Billing itself as "an intersem ioticfuck dance," Art Pop providing a live score to a handful of early ex­ features artists such as singer/songwriter Joseph Arthur, w ho won perimental film s.The project is called "Sounds a Grammy in 1999 for his inspired album packaging and Wil Mur­ of the Surreal" and it may sound familiar to K athryn A mey those w ho caught Lucas at last year's Pop ray, w hose 'canvases illustrate the metamorphosis of a tirelessly With a nomination for"Most Promising Entertainer" functional machine." Other works include Songs of the Apolcalypse, Montreal festival, where he accompanied a screening of the 1921 German horror film The \ a group show inspired by esoteric poet William Blake's Songs of at the World Reggae Awards, a new video in circulation 'm Golem.

Innocence and of Experience and The Search for the Simorgh, an ex­ on MTV and Much Music and a gig performing with club remix favourite Elephant Man, Canada's newest female "I was definitely affected by the reception I got up there," Lucas said of ; hibition based on Farid Ud-Din Attar's medieval Persian Sufi epic reggae starlet, Empire Isis, is ready for the spotlight. his stint at Pop Montreal 2006. In "Sounds of the Surreal," Lucas lays down j The Conference of the Birds.

Her debut album, Start the Trumpets, a reference improvisational guitar solos over three classics o f silent cinema: Rene Clair's : A particu lar highlight of this year's Art Pop is Miss Donnithorne's to the Koran, is only the first of many indications of this Entr'acte, Fernand Leger's Bdllet Mécanique and LadislawStarewicz's TheCam- ; Maggot, a contemporary opera directed by orchestral conductor artist's cultural awareness. "I want my music to feel like eraman's Revenge.

Kelly Lovelady. Telling the story of an Australian bride jilted at the there's no borders," Isis said. “I want you to feel like you “It's kind like a psychedelic approach, but without drugs," said Lucas of alter and subsequently holing herself up indefinitely in a Gothic the project. "People coming get their minds blown by the fantastic visuals j Sydney mansion, the opera features costumed musicians in lacy, could go to a reggae party and jam with some Jamai­ cans. I want you to feel like you could go to that hip hop and the music, which is always composed in service of the work."

Victorian outfits and a full cast of contortionists to provide a mindparty and throw your hands up, even though you're into bending visual com plem ent to the classical score.

As he does with the music of his hero Beefheart, Lucas takes initiative to metal and rock. Whatever your identification is, go be­ "I really believe in the full package when it com es to perfor­ expose these little-known films to new audiences and he does so with pu­ yond that. That's what my music represents." ritanical vigor. "To me it's a whole mission: let's bring this stuff into the light," 1 mance,'Said Lovelady. "It's not just music and it’s not just visual art Raised in both Montreal and Morocco, her diverse he said. and it's not just performance art' The opera is the latest installment of Lovelady's Pazzia Con­ ethnic heritage became the backbone for her distinctive With unique, yet certainly profitably-perilous endeavours such as 1 mixing of reggae and dance. Her voice, situated some­ "Sounds of the Surreal," Lucas maintains his general indifference towards the temporary Performing Collective, a loose international collection where between Gwen Stefani and Rihanna (think less of musicians recruited locally by Lovelady in each city where she music industry's insistence on an artist's financial viability. Instead, the sobubblegum pop and more urban flavour), has the dis­ called "Guitarist of 1,000 Ideas" prefers to keep blazing his own trails, however launches a production. tinctiveness and the clout to catapult this indie act into divergent."! never had a direct path to anything,” he said,"And that's one of “All the elem ents com e together and I think that's w here con­ mainstream radio."Brand Nu Style,"Isis's favourite on the the reasons I'm still around." temporary performance is heading in a lot of ways,’ Lovelady said. album, is a track that Isis believes "Everyone can relate to.

"That's my style of work-—bright and colourful and overwhelming.

We've all been put in a box, judged, underestimated."

Sunday, Oct. 7 at m o o p.m.; Portuguese Association (4170 St- Urbain).

You come out of it and you've definitely had an experience.”

She says it best of this radio-friendly, Middle Eastern inspired track, "[it] sets the tone of the Empress in me, Miss Donnithorne's Maggot runs from Oct 5-7 at Cafe L'Utopik (552, Ste-Catherine E). Visit www.popm ontreal/art for the Gangstress in me." It is her first single however, "Get Up Omit", with strong dance influences that begs to join more information.

ClubTokyo's regular Thursday night play list.

E zra G linter Her new album, recorded between Kingston, Jamaica, New York City and "I am curious about my neighbour," intones Theodore Bikel. "I hope he is curi­ Montreal, with mixing done at Montreal's ous about me." Bikel, an actor famous for his starring roles in Fiddler on the Roof and own Red Rhino Recordings, boasts five Frank Zappa's 200 Motels (not to mention his role as Worf's father on Star Trek: The tracks produced by G-UNIT's Prayon. Isis Next Generation), is one of the many collaborators on Ghettoblaster, the latest multihas nothing but admiration for the well linguistic, multi-cultural offering from Montreal hip-hop artist Socalled. The frizzyknown rapper, whose notable mixing of haired home-town hero's Pop Montreal show will also be an act of cross-cultural hip-hop compliments her unique regcollaboration, with performances by Bronx rapper C-Rayz Walz and funk and jazz gae/dance blend. "We're on a spaceship, trombonist Fred Wesley. A long time performer with James Brown and later George creating our style," she said. "Everything Clinton, Wesley has also played with the Count Basie Orchestra and is a professor in he says, everything he does, there's a pur­ the Jazz Studies department of the School of Music at the University of North Caro­ pose behind it." lina at Greensboro. Always incorporating unusual musical influences, Socalled is effusive about his fusional style.

Scheduled to perform at the Rialto on Oct. 5 alongside Elephant Man, followed by "I live in a world where there's a South Indian percussionist at the coffee shop and a country singer pal of her showcase at POP Montreal only a day later, concert goers should expect not just mine and this guy from Senegal w ho plays the drums and all these people who have moved to Canada and are a standard dance show, but instead to embark on a journey with Isis. "If you're a world bringing their cultures together and its a mazing," he said. "So why should you go hide off with your own little style traveller, if you have a thirst to know beyond what it is that you've grown up with, then when there's so much shit going on?" definitely come check me out.That's what I'm about... I'm here to give you my energy.'

Sean Kosa, Think About Life, Fred Wesley and C-Rayz Walz provide support. Saturday, Oct. 6 at 11:30 p.m.; La Sala Supporting Mikey Dangerous with Redd Dredd, Kali & Dub inc. and Maysr. Saturday, Rossa (4848 St-Laurent).

Oct. 6 at m.oop.m; Centre Gaiiego (4602 St-Laurent).

ART POP

Isis: building an Empire

SoCalled: SoGood

02.10.07 «The McGill Tribune • 17

www.mcgilltribune.com

Hot Hot Heat: better by degrees

Bend Sinister: experimental bends

C rystal C han

D anielle T rabsky

Electro-punk rock band Hot Hot Heat rolls into Montreal this Sunday to pro­ mote their third mainstream album, Happiness Ltd. 2 0 0 2's M ake Up the Breakdown and 2005's Elevator were both popular and spawned a series of head-bopping singles such as “Middle of Nowhere."The latest album, although unmistakably bearing the stamp of Hot Hot Heat's trademark keyboard dance sound and Steve Bays' boyish staccato vocals, aims for a slightly amplified, newly-influenced gui­ tar-driven sound that is "more in yourface "as guitarist Luke Paquin explains, the only American in the band.The other members, including keyboardist and vocal­ ist Bays, drummer Paul Hawley and bassist Dustin Hawthorne, hail from Victoria.

Paquin's replacement of former guitarist Dante DeCaro, might have some­ thing to do with the band's shift in direction. Coming from a self-professed "old, big rock'n'roll-lovin'kind of background," the new album takes more inspiration from classic rock artists of the 60s and 70s such as the Who, the Rolling Stones and the Kinks.

Their influences stretch even further, as evidenced by such tracks as "Outta Heart," which makes use of an orches­ tra, the older electronic instru­ ment and spooky-ghost music staple theramin and falesetto singing. "We really went for it on this one," says Paquin. "We arranged some string parts and then hired an orchestra in London. They went over to Abbey Road studios, where the Beatles recorded...

We weren't bound by any ideas of how a rock band is supposed to sound, and it came out pretty crazy." Other unusual timbre choices include "Harmonicas & Tambourines," which uses four drum kits at the same time.

How the band is going to translate this to a live show they don't say and will be interesting to see, to say the least, but they do assert that they have made an effort to make their performances dynamic since they assume most people at the shows have already seen Hot Hot Heat and do not want to come back and watch the same thing. The band has rearranged several of their older sounds to keep them fresh and for the best live effect. "We've always been known as energetic live performers, but it’s even louder, more aggressive, confident and together than we've ever been live. It's going to get really good," exclaims Paquin excitedly.

Atthe beginning of September, Vancouver band Bend Sinister released their long awaited self-titled EP. They have been together since the high school and their main influence is 70s rock. From the likes of Elton John, Queen and Supertramp, lead guitarist Naben Ruthnum explained that it is these bands in particular that have been the main source of inspiration for Bend Sinister. The catchiest tune on the EP is the single "Time Breaks Down."

It is also the track that the band enjoys playing the most when performing.

This song is particularly interesting and quirky because it blends three dif­ ferent genres of music. It begins slow and mellow, then turns jazzy, morphs into fast rock and finally becomes slow again. In terms of the blending of I genres, this particular track follows in the footsteps of Muse's "Butterflies and Hurricanes" or Queen's "Bohemian Rhapsody."

It is always disappointing when a band sounds repetitive and each song is exactly like the last. Bend Sinister does the op­ posite, however. All the tracks on the EP are eclectic and each has its own unique sound and style.

Oct. 7 a t 9 3 0 p .m C lu b So d a (1225 St-Laurent).

Pere Ubu: Heartbreak Garage J ohn S emley

A lot of people will try to tell you that certain bands defy categorization.

Rarely is this really the case. But when you set to work picking apart a group's musical influences, however multifarious, and are left with untidy piles of post­ punk, new wave, music concrete and unstable quantities of kraut, garage and skiffle rock, it might be safe to say that the band in question possesses a sound which cannot be easily gleaned. Pere Ubu, who cheekily pigeonhole their sound as"avant-garage,"are one such band. Active since the mid-7QS, Pere Ubu's dictating ethos seems to be aban­ doned experimentalism. With noisy, raw blues-inspired guitars, throbbing rhythms, the anxious, warbling vocals of frontman David Thomas (who has been the band's only consistent member since 1975) and a pervadingly artistic musical sensibility, Pere Ubu is the kind of cultish rock act whose mention evokes equally flickers of recognition from enthusiastic fans or be­ mused reactions to the tune of "Pere Who-bu?" More of a musical project and musician's collective than a band (kind of like King Crimson, except without all the druggy bombast and Chapman sticks), the band's albums have always proved, if not always eminently listenable, at least consistently fascinating. Their live show, which embraces elements of ambience and theatricality over rockist cliché, is certain to satisfy the ever-modish Pop Montreal audience.

With Thundrah a n d Fucked Up. Wednesday, Oct. 3 a t 9:00p.m .; N ational The­ ater (1220 Ste-Catherine EJ.

The Most Serene Republic: taboo free!

With Barn Burnder, Spider a n d People for Audio. Sunday, Oct. 7 a t 9 3 0 p.m .; Casa Del Popoio (4873 St-Laurent).

Eariimart: tormented souls C lare P idsley

Earlimart's Ariana Murray, (for whom Pop Montreal is a hometown return) and Aaron Espinoza have been knocking around for almost a decade now. Their newest album M en to r Torm entor was released only last month, but fans have been quick to lap up the fresh material. On the band's recent mini-tour, response to new songs was hugely positive.

“We started off the set with four or five new ones", said frontman Espinoza, “and a whole bunch of people in the front knew the lyrics already".

M en to r Torm entor is the fifth full-length from Eariimart.

"To the world though, it's probably our third," Espinoza said. "We made two records early on that were on too indie of a label."

The band's rise follows their gradual movement from heavy, "who-cares" punk to a mellower indie style, where they experiment with a wider range of instruments. For the track"Nothing isTrue,"Earlimart employed a professional whistler, and in the chorus of "Cold Cold Heaven" they make use of a full choir. For Espinoza, branching out from Earlimart's punk roots has taken the spotlight off of him as main song-writer and vocalist.

"Ariana's mother was a piano teacher so she was actually classically trained,"Espinoza said."But in the early days we never took advantage of it because we were too busy screaming and stuff. It turned out when we wanted to change it up, it was like,'Oh wow, you're an amazing piano player.'"

"Happy Alone" is the first song written solely by Murray and features a soft keyboard backing.

For Pop Montreal Eariimart is likely to play a lot of material from M en to r Tormenter, which Espinoza describes as a record of juxtapositions.

"I'm kind of attracted to that sort of writing where the songs sonically sound really beautiful and uplifting and then the lyrics are a bit twisted," he said. Listeners of the new album, for whom EZRA GLINTER a live performance means no surprises, are likely to get the most out of going to see Eariimart this week. "It's a bit louder" said Es­ Making Pop Montreal nothing if not a wellpinoza of what fans can expert to hear at the show, "And, I don't rounded festival, this year's Rim Pop features over know, maybe a bit quieter too." forty films from Canada, USA, Japan, Norway, Mexico and Australia. Culled from over 300 submissions, the THE G O T TO G ET G O T a n d O ffice open. Saturday, Oct. 6.; selections include features, shorts and, in keeping M ain Hall (5390 St-Laurent) with the overarching theme, music videos. Accord­ ing to program director Ezra Soiferman, the films were chosen based on their connections to music, Montreal, or just plain originality. Highlights from E zra gunter this year's Film Pop include director Sara Lamm's Dr. Bronner's M a g ic Soapbox, a documentary about Dr. While the indie moniker has become somewhat of a misno­ Emanuel H. Bronner and the environmentally and mer of late, referring more to a style than to actual commercial socially conscious soap company he started. independence, a band that starts its own label legitimately quali­ "This guy is literally giving away money," said fies as the real thing. Code Pie, proprietors of their own Flagless Soiferman. "I told him about a homeless organiza­ Records, are just such a band. Having named themselves with un­ tion in Montreal that I knew of and he sat down abashed nerdiness after a computer programming reference (as right away and wrote a check" opposed to their original consideration, which was "Three Wops, Other films to look out for include Craig No­ Two Jews and a Ukrainian") the sextet has gone on to release ble’s Tableland, which documents the director's two albums, fearlessly mixing post-rock electronica with more culinary road-trip across North America in search of mainstream pop/rock fare. Featuring the compositions of front small and sustainable food sources and the world man, vocalist and guitarist Enzo Palermo, the group fleshes out premier of Montreal native Evan Belief's Bigfoot's their sound with guitarist Salvatore Ciolfi, Drummer Vince Varano, Reflection; which is about, well, Bigfoot.

Bassist Michel Semienchuk, cellist Rebecca Lessard and trumpet A ll screenings take place a t the Portuguese A s­ player Eva Boodman. so cia tio n (4170 St-Urbain) o r a t the Film Pop screening

FILM POP

Code Pie: indie for real, yo

room a t the Puces Pop arts & crafts fair (4171 Espla­ nade). Check www.popmontreal.com/film fo r show times a n d further in formation.

C:be, Away, Ri'o a n d Kyrie K ristm anson open. Thursday, Oct. 4; C ada d el Popoio (4873 St-Laurent).

T ash K assam

The Canadian music scene can sometimes be an inbred crowd, overflowing with handhold­ ing, promiscuous producers and guitarists that may as well switch bands between curtain calls.

Though this gives us a chance to hear from our favorite musicians over and over again, according to Ryan Lenssen from The Most Serene Repub­ lic, this "incestuous relationship may be working now, but will ultimately be the downfall of Cana­ dian music.. .it's disgusting really, people have to stand on their own and be individuals.'"

The first The Most Serene Republic album, Underw ater Cinematographer, was a critique of the music scene and all that it had become.Their third record, Population, reflects The Most Serene Republic's own emerging strength, breaking free of Broken Social Scene allusions with a unique blend of philosophy and politics.

Don't be fooled by the cheerful tones of

some tracks, however, or by the boyish excite­ ment of lead singer Adrian Jewett during their energetic live shows. Certainly The Most Serene Republic know how to work a crowd, which is an incentive to check them out at Pop Montreal, but it is the treacherous divide between their tunes and their lyrics which render the band so intriguing.They aim to insidiously penetrate the system, as Lenssen com­ plains:"We're all under the regime of the G8, under one smarter than all the previous regimes; they know that if you give people everything they will think that they're actually free. We have a strong and ultimately very sad and angry message and I think that's where the trueness is in Population...

We're sad we have to sing about our relationship with the population and with humanity and even

though people are seemingly happy and they love their internet and being able to comment on everything, they don't realise that by com­ menting on everything, they are commenting on nothing."

Music has always been the great escape, the key to the golden gates of freedom and imagination.

But according to Lenssen, "people aren't interest­ ed in happy endings. Every story, every novel we ever grew up reading, the story always ends at the destination. We don't know what happens after."

The Most Serene Republic aren't interested in the fantasy; their music, or art, as Lenssen would say, is about truth and reality. They want to know more.

He asks, "Are Snow White and the Prince Happy?

Do they have kids? Did they get a divorce? Did he kill her? What's going on? That's the real story."

Just as our parents blamed the'idiot box'and their parents blamed the wireless radio, Lenssen blames the internet for the corruption of society.

He refuses to allow his art to be affected by ex­ ternal forces, claiming 'there is already enough influence, we already have media bombarding us everywhere we go." He dreams of a time before excess, before over-stimulation, before now. Lens­ sen, with his anti-network, anti-Facebook, basi­ cally anti-modernity, muses, "What I appreciate is a time when you didn't need that stuff. Basically I feel robbed.Jf Kurt Cobain was around now he would have shot himself twice.. .This is the end."

With Sam Shalabi, A nthon y Seek a n d Friends, Young Galaxy a n d a "Super Special Guest.” M ain Hall (5390 St-Laurent)

18 • Arts & Entertainment • 02.10.07

Previews

The McGill Tribune

A RC H ITECTU RE E zra G linter

and

T homas Q uail

Music. Global Battle of the Bands. Oct. 3 at 8:oo p.m.; Petit Cam pus (57 Prince-Arthur W.) Forget whereveryou-are idol. The Montreal segm ent o f this down and dirty 38 country rock 'n' roll showdown kicks off with seven local bands (including McGill musicians Lyrical Assault) com peting for a chance to go to the international finals in London where the w inner will claim a grand prize of $100,000 and a world tour. Since audience votes counts for a good chunk o f the decision, make sure to sh ow up and support your favourite rockers.

THE GLOBAL

BATTUE OF THE BANDS

Music. McGill Sym phony Orchestra. Oct. 4-5 at 8:00 p.m.; Pollack Hall (555 Sherbrooke W.). Under the direction of Alexis Hauser, the McGill Sym phony Orchestra starts this year's season on a romantic note with an all-Germanic show featuring the Prelude from Richard Wagner's opera Die Meistersinger von Nürnberg and Anton Bruckner's Symphony No. 3 in D Minor, which was dedicated to Wagner and contains musical quotations from Wag­ ner's Die Walkure and Lohengrin. Expect a dense, layered, contrapuntal sound with thick, brassy orchestration for both pieces.Tickets are $10.

Theater. Les/The Dianalogues. Oct. 3 -13 at 8:00 p.m.; Théâtre de l'Esquisse (1650 Marie-Anne East). The inaugural produc­ tion of Théâtre bilingue de Montréal, Lauren Haines's The Dianalogues offers a com ic deconstruction o f the modern Diana myth featuring "a homicidal housewife, a worn-out Diana-impersonator and... an outraged Mother Teresa." For

E

Reviews

Stars. In our Bedroom After the War. There's something emasculating about having a band called Stars in heavy iTunes rotation, but their virulently catchy brand o f synthand-string laden pop is a hard pleasure to resist. A boy/girl team consisting of Am y Milan and Torquil Campbell (an occasional TV extra!) handle vocal duties, while three other members anchor the band's unique sound on their fourth album, In our Bedroom After the War. The band's first single'The Night Starts Here," is unfortunately one of the weakest tracks on the album, mired in an overload of orchestral and lyrical sentimentality. However, pop-rock gems like "Take me to the Riot"and "Midnight Coward"give the album bite and drive, while "My Favorite Book" has a jazzy, sophisticated feel. Cheesy boy-girl call-and-answer songs like "Personal" slow the album down, but the solo piano-and-voice "Barricade" suc­ ceeds where "Personal" failed. The album closes with tw o infectious song-song anthems: "Today, Will Be Better I Swear"and"ln our Bedroom After the War,"which both manage to keep the tenuous balance between romanticism, optimism and melancholy that pervades the whole album. In our Bedroom After the War is an aural delight, full of both energy and quiet reflection. Ultimately, Stars is best enjoyed furtively, like pouring whipped cream straight from the can into your mouth— delicious, but if your roommate sees you, you might blush.

Band of Horses. Cease to Begin. Band of Horses must be tired of the trite comparison, but let's face it, they sound terribly similar to another reverb-drenched, hint-of-Nashville indie rock band: the mostly excellent Kentucky quar­ tet My Morning Jacket. Though their 2006 debut album Everything All The Time was a real gem that surpassed anything in My Morning Jacket's back catalogue, Band of Horses's 2007 follow-up, Cease to Begin, is an uneven, plodding affair. The lead track "Is There a Ghost" sets a precedent for a strong album, but it's all downhill from there. While "Detlef SchrempP'is the follow-up to "Range Life"that Pavement never wrote,"The General Specific"and "Island on theCoast"are both infectiously catchy if sonically shallow."Marry Song"and"Cigarettes Wedding Bands"are both bizarrely interesting, but the album closes with the thoroughly boring "Window Blues."The bottom line: Probably worth ten dollars, but don't expect "Monsters," "Wicked Gil"or"St. Augustine."

m.

— Byron Tau Still Remains. The Serpent. In an age where defining an art: ist's musical genre has become an acrobatic exercise, Still Remains fails to surprise. Their second album, The Serpent, is a gaudy concoction of hard-rock singing and screaming dabbed onto 80s style background acoustics where the „ now-infamous piano synthetics and aerial guitar of two * decades past make a 21st century comeback. The result­ ing mélange of rising and descending cues is impressive, however, and forms a musical monomyth that can be enjoyed in the absence o f singing. While the vocals are a reasonable attempt to express the fading anger o f a once rebel­ lious generation, vocalist TJ Miller still has a long way to go before his so-called singing fortifies the music rather than detract from its thesis. The lyrics, likewise, seem to be a compote o f nonsensical ideas thrown together in some emotion­ ally induced trance. Though novel and som ewhat more refined than other one­ dimensional bands, they lack a needed classicism. Nonetheless certain pieces on the album are great and one cannot deny Still Remains' potential to grow beyond its current state of confused ontological affairs. If the vocalists focused on the more lyrical aspect of their singing and intermittent screaming, the album would be easier to follow and provide for a more pleasant listening ex­ perience. Otherwise, the synthetic background music, though several levels be­ neath Zeppelin or Floyd, is charming and provides for an enjoyable experience.

— Josh Touyz

Pictures of a city Photography too one-dimensiona G eo ffrey A nstey

The one word that comes to mind when thinking about Scales, Naoya Hatakeyama's recent exhibit at the Canadian Centre for Architecture, is clever— not striking, intriguing or impressive, but clever. This is because all the photographs of the exhibit are pictures that we are very accustomed to— famous buildings in New York and a large, multi-picture aerial view ofTokyo that could be seen using Google maps. There is, however, one catch: these pictures are in fact not o f cities, but of scaled down m od­ els of cites and they look exactly the same.

Hatakeyama pulls this trick off so well that, as embarrassing as it is, this reviewer at first had no idea that these were pictures of models. It seemed that all that was shown were a bunch of recognizable buildings, along with a man doctored to look as tall as a giant. The theme of the exhibit started to dawn on me, however, and I re­ alized that, ironically, the 'giant'was actually the only real person in the photograph and the rest of the people were merely figurines.

This shouldn't have been such a surprise consid­ ering the literal meaning of the exhibit's name, but the fact that it tricked me (and others) is entirely the point.

Hatakeyama has taken so much care in the angles and viewpoints of these photos that these pictures of models could pass for the real thing. Aside from the picture with

Do you like our Pop M ontreal spread?

the 'giant,' any of the pieces could be put in a magazine without batting an eyelash, and Hatakeyama succeeds in showing that the use of perspective behind a camera lens can render reality subjective.

Scales' best examples of photography's effect on the r-elationship between reality and subjectivity are the aerial shots of'Tokyo." Even with the knowledge that these are shots of a model the pictures still look real, since there is nothing in the photographs attesting to that fact. What is even more impressive, however, is the m ind-boggling detail of such a model. Only for a moment does Hatakeya­ ma's ingenuity cross the mind, but what stays is the desire to see such a magnificent model ofTokyo in person. While the only thing that these pictures show is how clever Hatakeyama is with a camera (which isn't enough to war­ rant that much attention) the model displays hours upon hours of dedicated work, talent and skill.

Though Hatakeyama's work is not of great general in­ terest, especially due to the exhibit's small size (if it wasn't for the large pictures of Tokyo it could have been held in a magazine rather than in a museum), Scales is defi­ nitely a worthwhile visit for those with a serious interest in photography.* Scales runs until Feb. 3 at The Canadian Centre for Architecture (1920 Baile). Call (514) 939-7026 for more information.

Be one of the first to pass by our office Room 110 Shatner Building with this ad for your chance to win passes to the Montreal advance screening of

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(2313 Ste. C a th e rin e W est) Movie is subject to classification In Theatres October 12

02.10.07» The McGill Tribune* 19

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TELEVISIO N

Rich, psychopathic flying doctors Hey fatass! TV is back!

mate son are just two of the five maladjusted Darling offspring. The characters are clichéd

SuSHMITA S h IVKUMAR

caricatures o f every stereotype in Hollywood but together th ey do w ork and are quite am us­ ing, even if the lurid fascination is sim ply the sam e as w e have with Paris Hilton's romps on tape.

The beginning o f the school year has sev­ eral im portant periods: registration, add-drop, and, possibly the most im portant, premiere w eek on TV. Here is a small guide to this last w eek o f premieres— w hat to look out for and w hat to stay aw ay from.

Heroes Dirty Money.

Sexy

Mondays at 9:00 pm. E.T. on NBC. "Save the Cheerleader, save the world." For those o f you not fam il­ iar, the show follows ten ordinary people w ho discover that th ey have som e not-so-ordinary abilities. They are able to m ove through tim e and space, heal them selves or fly, all explained by evolutionary genetics. W hile this m ight sound like a convoluted show about too m any su­ perheroes, the story skillfully explores the lives o f these people w ho gradually discover that there is a com m on goal that binds them to­ gether, hence all th e cheerleader saving. The

W ednesdays at 10:00 p.m. E.T. on ABC. This show is an irreverent peek into the lives of the rich and fam ous for us com m oners w ho just m ight be a little curious. Peter Krause plays Nick George, a conscientious lawyer w h o is called on by Tripp Darling (Donald Suther­ land), patriarch of one o f the m ost obscenely w ealthy families on TV since Dynasty, to be the Darling's lawyer and confidant, inherit­ ing the jo b from his now m ysteriously dead father. An aspiring senator w ith a trans-gendered mistress and a priest w ith an illegiti-

heroes are now back for a second season that promises to be as captivating as the first. The first episode was a synopsis o f all the heroes left standing after last season's intense clim ax and there are already a few surprises. So far, this season promises to shock and entertain as m uch as the last. Be w arned though, rent the first season or not m uch will make sense.

It's worth it.

*

Thursdays at 9:00 p.m. E.T.

on ABC. The last season ended w ith Christina Yang (San­ dra Oh) ripping off her w edding dress and sob­ bing, "I'm free! I'm free!!" after being dum ped at the altar. W hen you end a season like that, you'd better have a pretty good follow-up. The premiere o f this season turned out m uch w eaker than expected, how ­ ever. It seem s like the creators are grasping des­ perately for ideas and turning to soap operas for inspiration. George, for exam ple, has turned into the proverbial tow n bicycle and now Mer­ edith's long-lost half-sister has been throw n in

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for good measure (she begins her internship at Seattle Grace). McDreamy just looks tired and I personally do not care anymore whether he and poor, screwed up Meredith are on or off.

The show is still entertaining at times but it is definitely no longer a must-see.

Criminal Minds: W ednesdays at- 9:00 p.m. E.T. on CBS. Returning for its third season, this show about the Behavioral Analysis Unit o f the FBI delves into the minds o f psy­ chopaths and socio­ paths. Although som e­ tim es disturbing, the show manages to focus more on the clever deconstruction o f human behavior than on gore. Possibly the most dis­ concerting aspect o f the sh ow (and maybe, by extension, society) is that it never seem s to lack material. Although I do scare fairly easily, there was one episode last season shot in the style o f the m ovie Saw that w as truly horrifying.

The only tip for w atching this show : you m ight need a buddy. ■

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McGill squads find success against Laval

Men and women's sides take six points to the Rouge et Or's three M

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luck. It proved that we belong in the top ten teams in Canada."

hesser

McGill's struggling soccer programs got a big boost over the weekend, notching one win and three ties against higher-ranked Laval Rouge et Or teams.

The unranked Redmen upset the eighth-ranked Rouge et Or with a 4-2 victory on Friday night at Molson Stadium and then posted a 1-1 tie in Sunday's rematch at Laval. The Friday night win snapped McGill's six-game winless streak against their rival from Quebec City.

"These games feel like somewhat of a turning point for our team," said Redmen Head Coach Philippe Eullaffroy. "Especially [Sunday], because if we play just one good game, so what? The second game was a chance to confirm that the first win wasn't

Meanwhile, the ninth-ranked Martlets got two shutouts from goalkeeper Anne-Catherine Huot, but had to settle for a pair of 0-0 ties in a home-and-home series against the sixth-ranked Rouge et Or women's squad. The Red 'n' White have not allowed a goal in their last 495 minutes of play— a shutout streak that spans more than five full games.

"[Laval] came into this weekend scoring almost five goals a game and we kept them off the board," said Martlets Head Coach Marc Mounicot. "So it's encouraging how well our defence played."

G o a lie s d o m i n a t e w o m e n 's c la s h

The Martlets kicked off the weekend action on Friday night with a tightly-contested, score­ less draw that featured some excellent back-andforth play. Huot made five saves for McGill, while her Laval counterpart Melissa Morin turned aside three shots, as both keepers kept a dean sheet.

"We've been joking in practice that there's saran wrap over the net," said Martlets midfielder Vanessa Salasky. "We're creating chances for our­ selves, but we just need to find a w ay to put the ball in the back of the net."

The best scoring chance o f the match came off a Laval free kick in the 29th minute, when Rouge et Or midfielder Francine Brousseau rang ADAM SCOTTI her attempt off the crossbar from 35 yards out.

D espite fierce efforts, th e M artlets and th e R ouge e t Or played to tw o The ladies in red and white closed the week­ sco reless draw s. end in Laval with another scoreless game, the third consecutive match in which the rivals have failed goal late in the second half, also on a header, after a beautiful 50 to notch a single marker. Huot was called upon to make only two yard cross from midfielder Sami Obaid. Midfielder Shawn Amarasesaves, while Morin stymied the Martlets'attack with five stops. kera and defender Alejandro Julian, on a penalty kick, also scored "We always hope to win, but we're reasonably happy with a for McGill. tie," said McGill striker Magalie Kolker. "We've been playing a fairly Sunday's rematch was a more evenly contested affair and defensive formation, which makes scoring difficult, but w e have to didn't see a goal until late in the second half. It was in the 78th min­ get a goal at some point if we w ant a victory." ute that defender Graem eTingey headed home an Obaid indirect

Men find scoring touch

ADAM SCOTTI

Unlike th eir m ale co u n terp arts, McGill's girls cou ldn 't solve Laval's keeper.

The Redmen would be hard-pressed to sympathize with the Martlets' goal-scoring woes, as five different players tallied for the men's squad over the weekend. The offensive outburst included a 40 minute stretch in Friday night's game in which the Red'n'White scored four times, en route to a 4-2 victory.

Striker Gareth Pugh bagged the game's first marker in the 42nd minute, heading a beautiful corner kick past Laval goalkeep­ er Jérôm e Morneau; Jam es Scholefield had the game's prettiest

free kick to put the Redmen up by one.The Rouge et Or answered backjust nine minutes later, however, when striker Boris Salou tied the game with three minutes remaining in regulation time.

Next up for both the Redmen (2-2-2) and the Martlets (2-14) is another home-and-home series, this time against the UQTR Patriotes, that begins on Oct. 5 at Molson Stadium. Both Red 'n' White squads find themselves currently in the fourth and final playoff spot in their respective leagues and need to maintain their momentum if they hope to secure a spot in the chase for the national championship. ■

TH IRD MAN IN

A m erica: G o lfs p atron izin g saint v !

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s a general rule, I like America. I think it stands for toler­ ance, freedom, civil liberty, human dignity and success through classic hard work— all virtues that we often find abandoned outside of the hom e of the brave. Yet, as has been said by both expert pundits and lowbrow laymen for decades, there is nary a country that is more arrogant or oblivious to others as our dear neighbours to the south, a phenom enon that was fully on display at this past weekend's Presidents Cup tournament held at the spectacular Royal Montreal Golf Club.

As the NBC analysts and commentators covering the Cup fawned over the American team's wholly dominating performance over an outmatched International squad, Cana­ dian viewers, with only the U.S. feed to watch, were treated to some of the most patronizing and Manifest Destiny-soaked remarks of recent sporting memory. Sure, the American media— NBC in particular— was effusive in its praise of Mon­ treal's golf fans and the enthusiasm that pervaded the rather large and impressive galleries. On more than one occasion both the U.S. golfers and media types were taken aback by the intensity and volum e of the Canadian crowds in a sport that is known for its etiquette and silence, especially in Amer­ ica where stillness is held more sacred than in other interna­ tional venues. At one point in Sunday's final broadcast, one of NBC's announcers commented as hometown hero Mike

A

Weir played against, and defeated, the majestic Tiger Woods that the galleries were very much like hockey crowds in their noise and their "Bostonian" passion— Canadians, of course being unable to generate any type of "Montrealer,"“Toronto­ nian" or "Vancouverite" intensity.

Seemingly shocked by this display of golfaphilia in the North American hinterland of Montreal, and reveling in the American crushing of its international competition, NBC gave its U.S. viewership a big ol' pat on the back for finally bring­ ing the country club game to the uncivilized puckheads in the Far North. Discussing how fantastic it was to see such swaths of people file through the course at Royal Montreal, NBC applauded the success of the tournam ent in a region not known for its golfing pedigree and proposed that it could potentially jum pstart a golfing renaissance in Canada. What?!

Canada's tradition on the links is arguably as long as its fa­ mous love affair with hockey. The Canadian Open— the third leg of golf's Triple Crown alongside the venerable and an­ cient British Open as well as America's own U.S. Open— was once considered one of the PGA's core tourneys, has been in existence since 1904, only nine years after the American major's inception, and is one of the best attended events on the professional circuit. Royal Montreal Golf Club, the very course on which this Presidents Cup was played and what sparked NBC's gushing, was founded in 1873 and is the old­

A aron S igal

est golf club in North America. Canada, longer affiliated with Britain than the American colonies, has had English, Irish and Scottish immigrants bring golf from the Isles to Canadian soil for the last few centuries, strengthening this country's bond to the game. We even produced one Masters winner, Mike Weir— putting us in a tie for sixth all-time with Scotland, one o f the birthplaces o f the game. Canadian golf is certainly not som e new phenom enon or Presidents Cup-induced fad.

American pundits covering the Cup continued, unin­ tentionally, to pour on the patronization as they com m ented that the Presidents Cup has really showcased this country, Montreal and our people because, outside o f major hockey events— that's all w e really do up here— Canada doesn't usually host significant, international sporting events. Yet, by my own unexpert count, Canada has hosted tw o Olympic Games and is about to host its third in 2010 (I'm pretty sure those are fairly international in character) to Britian's upcom ­ ing fifth or France's four. We have hosted and w on tw o highlyAmerican World Series, just entertained much o f the world at the FIFA under-20 soccer tournam ent and was home to four British Com m onwealth Games. It seems that w e have exposed Canada to enough o f the world and have proved our international sporting credentials even prior to the PGA's gracious granting to us of the relatively unimportant Presidents Cup. ■

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05.18.07-Sports-21

Tradition dominates in drive to Fall Classic Chicago Cubs vs Arizona Diamondbacks

New York Yankees vs Cleveland Indians

The surprising Diamondbacks will have to win this series on the strength o f their starting pitching, led by last year's N LC y Young w inner Brandon Webb, w ho earlier this season threw a stunning 42 and one-third scoreless innings to propell Arizona to the top o f the standings.

Although vital to any playoff run, pitching will be even more im portant to the D-backs as their no-name lineup will have difficulty generating runs. Arizona notoriously became the first team since 1900 to win their division w hile conceding more runs against (732) than runs scored (712).

Chicago, also led by an ace starter in 18-game w inner Carlos Zambrano, will try to split the first tw o games in Phoenix and bring this series back to historic Wrigley Field where rabid Cubs fans should ensure the Cubbies thrive and their opponents wilt. The North siders ooze experience as players like LF Alfonso Soriano and m anager Lou Pinella know what it's like to hoist the World Series trophy while 'Zona is mostly untested in the postseason. The Cubs will look to score their runs with the long ball led by power hitters 3B Aramis Ramirez, 1B Derek Lee and Soriano, w ho just set a Cubs'record for homers in September.

If Zam brano can maintain his dom inant form and number-two starter Ted Lilly can outperform Arizona's second hurler, former World Series MVP Livan Flernandez, then look for the Cubs to emerge victorous as neither bullpen can hold a lead— a much better prospect for Chicago's electric lineup.

Prediction: C hicago in four

San Diego Padres/Colorado Rockies vs Philadelphia Phillies Because the tw o teams tied both in the standings and head-to-head, the Padres and Rockies faced each other in a one-gam e playoff on Monday night to determ ine w hich side would advance to the post-seasonl. [At the tim e of print, a w inner had yet to be determined.]

D espite a horrid start to the season, including posting the franchise's professional sports leading 10, ooo,h overall loss, the Phillies made a dramatic post-AII Star charge that, com bined with the New York M ets'epic collapse, gave Philly the NL East title on their last day of the year. Led by mashing 1B Ryan Howard, power hitting 2B Chase Utley, and the new est 20-20-20-20 man, SS jim m y Rollins, the Phillies boast the NL's top offensive unit. On the other hand, Philadelphia's pitching staff, "powered" by the ancient Jaim e Moyer, the enigm atic Kyle Lohse and sophomore lefty sensation Cole Hamels, is not an imposing corps.

The Padres have exactly the opposite concerns from the Phils. Anchored by their stud arm, Jake Peavy, as well as Chris Young and Greg Maddux and sure o f their bullpen with the agelessTrevor Hoff­ man manning the closing role, the San Diego mound is its strength. However, its putrid lineup featur­ ing the underachieving Giles brothers and now missing OF Milton Bradley, will struggle to post runs.

The Rockies, like the Diamondbacks, have taken the NL and baseball pundits by storm, coming out of nowhere to challenge for a playoff spot. Led by their new All-Star OF Matt Holliday, and an­ chored on defense by super shortstop Troy Tulowitski, Colorado can take advantage of Coors Field's rarified air especially in a shorter, five-game series.

A time-proven theory asserts that pitching wins in October so look for either Colorado or San Diego to take down the Phillies, who may end up underperforming after exerting all their energies trying to catch the Mets and feeling too satisfied with their miracle run.

Prediction: San D iego/C olorado in five

— Mike Vallo

The Yankees won all six games against Cleveland this season leaving Yankee fans feel­ ing rather smug about their squad's chances. But w hen you take into account that the Bronx Bombers sw ept the Indians first at the beginning of the season, in April, and then in the midst of Cleveland’s worst batting slum p o f the summer— as slugging 1B Travis Hafner nursed an injury— this series does not look so straight forward.

For the Indians to be successful, co-Cy Young candidates Fausto Carm ona and C.C. Sabathia m ust continue their stellar regular season play, as they m ay start in at least three of the five games. At the plate the perform ance o f five-tool CF Grady Sizemore, C Victor Martinez and Hafner will be key to the fortunes o f a team w ith very little playoff experience.

Joe Torre's Yankees, on the other hand, have a huge advantage w ith their hefty postsea­ son pedigree. Shortstop Derek Jeter, P Andy Pettite and P Mariano Rivera have all dealt with, and excelled under, playoff pressure before, bringing hom e 12 World Series rings between them . However, MVP favorite 3B Alex Rodriguez has to play m uch better than he has in previ­ ous Octobers, in w hich he's batted only a career 280 w ith 16 RBIs in 35 games, for the Yankees to be successful. The Pinstripers' lower-watt stars, such as 26 Robinson Cano and CF Melky Cabrera, will also have to put up solid num bers to round out New York's lineup.

Although this series will be closer than m any expect, the Yankees should have enough experience, power and bullpen depth to outlast the Indians'vastly superior starting pitching.

Prediction: Yankees in five Los Angeles Angels vs Anaheim at Boston Red Sox One could argue that this m atchup should be taking place in the ALCS as opposed to the division series as the Angels and Red Sox are possibly the tw o best teams in all o f baseball.

Boston boasts an imposing triple threat at the top of its rotation in Josh Beckett, Curt Schil­ ling and the im ported Daisuke Matsuzaka. But the cham pions o f the Left Coast have a trio that is nearly as impressive in John Lackey, Kelvim Escobar and Jered Weaver, with Joe Saunders as an im pressive fourth.

What will therefore separate these teams is offensive production. The Angels have a young lineup built around stud RF Vladimir Guerrero and speed and aggressive base running led pri­ marily by 36 Chone Figgins and 2B Howie Kendrick w ho create chaos on the paths. The Red Sox, m eanwhile, have huge, slugging offensive weapons in LF Manny Ramirez and DH David Ortiz although 36 Mike Lowell, w ho leads the team in RBIs, might be the club's real MVP. Where the Red Sox may struggle is in getting to star closer Jonathan Papelbon as Eric Gagne has been a disaster since arriving in Beantown and Hideki Okajima limped to the finish w ith a weak arm and an even weaker September. In contrast, relievers Scott Shields and Justin Speier give the Angels plenty o f confidence with a late-game lead, setting the stage for the dom inant Francisco Rodriguez.

In the end, however, Boston's greater firepower should be enough to see them through to the always m arquee m atchup against the Yanks in the ALCS. Prediction: Red Sox in four.

—Aaron Sigal

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22 • Sports • 05.18.07

IM A G ES— REDM EN LACRO SSE FROM TH E CH EA P SEATS

F l D o n ' t Glaus I " j over details M att S egal

How much is your health worth? What about your livelihood?

If your ability to pursue your passion and your career and earn a handsome salary were so perilously close to vanishing, w ould you act? Say these words to yourself: Health. Career. Livelihood. Are they more important than your scruples? If you could, would you take out an insurance policy?

According to a report a few weeks ago on Sl.com,Toronto Blue Jay 3BTroy Glaus's insurance policy arrived in a box on his doorstep in Corona, California. The return address on the package— if it had a return address— was Signature Pharm acy in Orlando, Fla., an in­ ternet retailer o f "natural hormone replacement therapy" that has been implicated in an anabolic steroid probe. The report's source claims that Glaus received these shipm ents from October 2003 until May 2004.

At first glance, that seems like an eight month period of bla­ tant cheating. In fact, it was. The items shipped to Glaus— testos­ terone and nandrolone— were on Major League Baseball's list of banned substances at the time, in spite of the league's lack of any serious rules or testing for those materials. So why were these per­ formance-enhancing drugs like an insurance policy?

After a 2003 season o f right shoulder problems that prevented Glaus from swinging and throwing, costing him over 70 games, rehab was necessary. While players can (and do) undergo rehab w ithout the assistance of steroids, Glaus's need to return to full health was magnified by his im pending free agency the following off-season. A healthy Troy Glaus could sign a guaranteed contact worth tens of millions more than an injured Troy Glaus.

This quasi-defense also holds for tainted Cardinals com eback kid Rick Ankiel, then in the final days of his pitching career. Ankiel's foray into steroid use may have been a search for a biophysical answer to his mystifying loss o f control over his pitches. Should he need to understand the loss in earning potential, he could ask team m ate and pitcher Chris Carpenter, w ho spent tw o years o f his athletic prime earning the league m inimum after being injured in his free agent year. Glaus, on the other hand, could find out about lost wages from Nomar Garciaparra, w ho has played the recent years o f his career on one and tw o year deals worth nowhere near the five-season, $75-million extension he was apparently close to signing with Boston w hen healthy.

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I'm not suggesting that what Glaus allegedly did was ethical, or that he is a victim. But I am empathetic. I understand.

Glaus's motivation for taking steroids is pure speculation on my part, yet the timing of these shipments is particularly telling, The hulking infielder's reason for beginning to juice up— his injury— is apparent. More interestingly, however, is that he stopped in May 2004. What causes a cheater to stop cheating, especially in the absence of testing?

In Glaus's case, the first reason is the most obvious— the sur­ gery was only necessary because the steroids were not working. He needed his rotator cuff and labrum repaired, and his best hope for being healthy was in a surgeon's hands. Similarly, the procedure resigned Glaus to a long stay on the disabled list in his free agent year, 2004, something the illegal performance enhancers could no longer stave off. Even once he was again building up strength in the shoulder, it would have been under the intense scrutiny of team doctors, w ho would not favour steroids the way a personal trainer or someone on an individual off-season strength program might.

It turns out that Glaus miscalculated. The surgery, not the steroids, was the elixir, and Glaus returned in peak form late in the 2004 season. The then-Angels third baseman belted seven dingers in the final month and the Arizona Diamondbacks signed him in December 2004 to a four-year, $4 5 -million contract with no protec tive medical clause.

Although Glaus has been mum on the subject since the story

2 broke in September, if the injury is his excuse then Major League f: 1 j1 .;)*•” :

Baseball should be lenient. If MLB does mete out serious discipline for Glaus, instead of questioning the player's morality, Commissioner Bud Selig should be examining his own. At the time, baseball turned a blind eye to steroid use, or worse, tacitly endorsed it as the commissioner's office celebrated Barry Bonds's 73 single-season home runs.

In the recent past, the league fêted Bonds's and Mark McG-

2 wire's accom plishments with a series of metaphorical winks and

[• smiles, and even amidst the accusations, the two always earned :

. top-tier salaries. Now there's Glaus, doing something unethical but condoned, motivated to do so only to ensure that he too may reT x - sume launching baseballs into the outfield bleachers; reputation be damned.

Reputation. How much is that worth? Is it worth more than your scruples? Is it worth $45-million? ■

05.18.07* Sports *23

www.mcgilltribune.com

NHL Preview: Break out the skates Western Conference C EN TR A L DIVISION

N O RTH W EST DIVISION

PA CIFIC DIVISION

"Detroit Red Wings: The Wings were significantly shaken up during

"Colorado Avalanche: The Avs return for the 2007-2008 season coming off their only non-playoff season since the team moved to Denver in 1995.

Colorado bolstered their roster by acquiring the gritty LW Ryan Smyth in addition to a solid two-way defenceman in Scott Hannan. The Avalanche are once again led by future NHL Hall of Famer C Joe Sakic and have two young stars in C Paul Stastny and LW Wojtek Wolski. If the Avalanche can get decent goaltending from Peter Budaj, look for Colorado to challenge for the Northwest crown.

"Anaheim Ducks: Even though the Ducks face the possibility of losing two future hall of fa mers, D Scott Niedermayerand RWTeemu Selanne, they are still a force to be reckoned with in the upcoming season. The offence will need big seasons from C Ryan Getzlaf, RW Corey Perry and new addition RW Todd Bertuzzi. Anaheim's defence should have the tools in Chris Pronger and offseason acquisition Mathieu Schneider to fill the huge gap left by the possible departure of Niedermayer.

the off-season as they lost forwards Todd Bertuzzi, Robert Lang and D Mathieu Schneider to free agency, replacing them with D Brian Rafalski and RW Dallas Drake. To fill the extra holes, Detroit will look to young forwards Igor Grigorenko and Valtteri Filppula to make larger contributions. Even with an aging core, the Wings are always a solid bet to repeat as division champs in the NHL's weakest division.

Nashville Predators: Although they were buyers at last season's trade

deadline, by the time the off-season rolled around the Predators were shedding players and salaries like dead skin. Forwards Peter Forsberg, Paul Kariya, G Tomas Vokoun and D KimmoTimonen were all lost and replaced mostly by "depth guys" like C Radek Bonk and RW Jed Ortmeyer. With so many significant losses and the franchise's □ ossible relocation hanging over its head, the Predators could struggle this year.

St. Louis Blues: An active off-season saw the Blues sign a rejuvenated Kariya, re-acquire LW Keith Tkachuk and land G FlannuToivonen in a trade. Former first-overall pick D Erik Johnson is expected to debut and contribute significantly to the still raw team. With a mixture of veterans and youngsters and the work ethic instilled by their new­ ish coach Andy Murray, the Blues should continue to improve this season and build on last year's strong finish.

Columbus Blue Jackets: Aside from signing the aging and often-

njured C Michael Peca away from the Maple Leafs, the Jackets made mostly minor alterations this summer. LW Rick Nash will need to reacquire his scoring touch and RW Nikolai Zherdev will need to display more consistency for Columbus to challenge anyone.

Although the team saw significant improvement after Ken Flitchcock took over coaching duties last season, they are still not a threat to compete for a playoff spot.

Chicago Blackhawks: In adding faceoff king C Yanic Perreault,

neadcase LW Sergei Samsonov, C Robert Lang and D Brent Sopel, the Blackhawks made major character-altering changes this summer. To oe remotely respectable, the Hawks will need stud RW Martin Havlat to stay healthy, while promising rookie forwards Jonathan Toews and Patrick Kane give the team a glimmer of hope for the future.

— Steve Beirness

"Calgary Flames: Disgusted with Calgary's poor defensive play last season, General Manager Darryl Sutter went out and hired hard-nosed coach Mike Keenan to help Calgary return as a contender in the West.The Flames possess a hard-working offence led by RW Jerome Iginla, LW Alex Tanguay and C Craig Conroy.The blueline is anchored by last year's rookie sensation Dion Phaneuf and the Flames have one of the sharpest goaltenders in the league in Mikka Kiprusoff. With a roster filled with plenty of depth, look for Calgary to be a force in 2008.

"Vancouver Canucks: Despite winning the division last year, the Canucks had an embarrassing offensive performance during the playoffs which led to their quick second round exit. Vancouver returns this year with the same inconsistent offence featuring the Sedin twins and LW Markus Naslund. Despite the offensive woes, the Canucks still have All-Star Rober­ to Luongo between the pipes. Luongo's play will dictate the performance of the Canucks, meaning that Vancouver could win the division or miss the playoffs altogether.

"Minnesota Wild: Last year the Wild came within one point of winning

the division, but lost in five straight games in the first round of the play­ offs. The Wild possess speedy centres Pavol Demitra and Mikko Koivu, in addition to superstar RW Marian Gaborik. Perhaps the most pleasant sur­ prise was the play of goaltender Niklas Backstrom who won 23 games in only 37 appearances. However, while the Wild do boast some serious tal­ ent, they will be hard-pressed to make the playoffs in the league's tough­ est division.

Edmonton Oilers: With the terrible trade of Ryan Smyth at the deadline last season, the Oilers have officially entered a rebuilding phase. While a youthful core of forwards will provide lots of excitement, the Oilers simply do not have the depth to compete in the tight Western Conference.

— Paul Schwartzman

"San Jose Sharks: The Sharks have the best chance of unseating Ana­ heim for top spot in the West in the 2007-2008 season. San Jose's of­ fence changed very little in the off-season which is a good thing for one of the most prolific attacks in the NHL. Goal scoring machine C Joe Thornton can light up defences along with C Patrick Marleau, RW Jonathan Cheechoo and RW Milan Michalek. The loss of D Scott Han­ nan was the only major change on a defence which finished seventh in the league last season.

"Dallas Stars: After a strong 2006-2007 season the Stars will hope to improve with the return of C Mike Modano and LW Brendan Morrow from injury. C Mike Ribeiro was the leader of an anemic offence which will improve with a healthy Modano and Morrow.The defence is solid in Big D, featuring stand out blueliners Sergei Zubov, Mattias Norstrom and Phillipe Boucher. Goaltender Marty Turco will look to continue where he left off last year after a monster performance in the playoffs.

Los Angeles Kings: A number of solid off-season additions may bring a change in fortunes to the City of Angels. The Kings made some key acquisitions on offence including signing C Michael Handzus, LW Kyle Calder and C Ladislav Nagy. The Kings also added defencemen Tom Preissing and Brad Stuart to shore up the defence which last year was led by Lubomir Visnovsky. Goalkeeping may be the King's Achilles heel this season as netminders Jason Labarbera and Jonathan Bernier fight for the number one spot.

Phoenix Coyotes: After finishing dead last in the Western Conference last season it looks like it may be another depressing season in the desert for Wayne Gretzky's Coyotes. The offensive is anemic, with RW Shane Doan being the only bright spot. The goalkeeping situation is also a big concern for the Coyotes with Alex Auld, David Aebischer and Mikael Tellqvist all competing for the starting spot. The defence is the only possible bright spot with promising young stars Keith Ballard and Zbynek Michalek.

— Mike Vallo

Eastern Conference SO U TH EA ST DIVISION

N O RTH EA ST DIVISION

A TLA N TIC DIVISION "New York Rangers: The Rangers made arguably the biggest splash in the free agent market, landing two elite centres in Scott Gomez and Chris Drury. The amount of offensive firepower assembled in the Big Apple is truly scary, as the prize free agents will augment a cast of gifted forwards that already included RW Jaromir Jagr, LW Brendan Shanahan and C Martin Straka. New York's defence is extremely suspect, but if Vezina nominee Henrik Lundqvist can continue to play the way he did after Christmas, the Rangers should cruise to a division title.

"Pittsburgh Penguins: The Sidney Crosby show enters its third

season and the Penguins have done a nice job of assembling pieces to support the Hart Trophy winner. Pittsburgh's electrifying offence boasts a number of youngsters who are only going to get better with experience, and should benefit from the acquisition of experienced left winger Gary Roberts and the signing of steady D Darryl Sydor.

The Pens will continue to be the most exciting team in the NHL and a dynasty-in-waiting.

"New Jersey Devils: Rumours of the Devils' impending demise are

exaggerated. New Jersey will continue to play a stifling trapping system under new Head Coach Brent Sutter, and that will ensure the team challenges for a playoff spot. At least the few fans left in Jersey will get to watch G Martin Brodeur continue his assault on the record book, while their team clogs the neutral zone with four players.

Philadelphia Flyers: General Manager Paul Holmgren has done a

masterful job retooling the Flyers, landing a slew of impact players including D Kimmo Timonen, C Daniel Briere and G Martin Biron.

Philly also boasts an impressive array of young talent as well as returning sniper LW Simon Gagne, who should have a big bounceback campaign. The Flyers are on the right track, but will narrowly miss the playoffs due to too many leftover pieces from the Bobby Clarke era.

"Ottawa Senators: Barring an Oilers-esque collapse, the Sens should be able to make another push for the Cup, icing essentially the same team as last year's finalists and lacking any of 2006's goaltending controversy. Star LW Dany Heatley is headed for open free agency, while other marquee players like C Jason Spezza will be restricted at season's end, undoubtedly spurring career play. It also means, though, that the window of opportunity is closing on the Senators.

"Atlanta Thrashers: Last yeartheThrashers managed to win a very weak Southeast division largely due to the helpof dynamic wingers Ilya Koval­ chuk and Marian Hossa. Unfortunately, before the playoffs Don Waddel decided to trade away most of Atlanta's future in a short-sighted move, which didn't even earn them a single playoff win. Last year's squad returns mostly intact, so expect the Thrashers to stay near the top of the Southeast division, mostly due to the feeble competition they face.

"Buffalo Sabres: The Sabres will not win the Presidents Trophy again.

After a disappointing postseason, the Sabres lost both C Daniel Briere and C Chris Drury to the open market. The co-captains also combined for 69 goals and 154 points and with two of their top scorers gone, the Sabres will rely heavily on 40-goal man LW Thomas Vanek to continue improving. Still, despite a disasterous off-season Buffalo should be able to keep their playoff berth.

Carolina Hurricanes: After winning the Stanley Cup in '05 hopes were high for the Canes in '06, but reality brought Carolina crash­ ing back down to Earth, as they finished 11th in the Eastern Confer­ ence. With C Eric Staal and RW Justin Williams leading the charge Carolina will improve on last year's finish, but Cam Ward hasn't proved he was more than a one-season wonder and will likely prevent the Hurricanes from hoisting Lord Stanley's Cup again.

"Toronto Maple Leafs: After missing the playoffs fora second consecutive season, Toronto is arguably the only team in the Northeast who improved their roster. The Leafs hope the acquisition of LW Jason Blake will bolster the top line as he plays with captain Mats Sundin. While Leafs fans stew over the Mark Bell disaster, it should be remembered that the Sharks deal also landed G Vesa Toskala, a competent starter to replace the atrocious Andrew Raycroft and possibly propel the Buds to that eighth seed.

Florida Panthers: With a young core and the addition of G Tomas Vokoun, expect this to be one of the more competitive Florida Pan­ thers teams in recent memory, although that isn't saying much. C Stephen Weiss, C Nathan Horton and D Jay Bouwmeester will all im­ prove as they get older and enter their physical prime, and if a free agent like RW Richard Zednik can provide an offensive boost, Florida could make the playoffs or even challenge for the division crown.

Montreal Canadiens: Last season, the Habs'playoff hopes disappeared when G Cristobal Huet tore his hamstring; if they hope to improve, they will have to ensure he can remain healthy. With the departure of D Sheldon Souray, the Canadiens will be hard pressed to find someone to replace his slap shot on the power-play as Montreal couldn't score at even strength. Offensively, RW Michael Ryder needs to continue his steady play, and LW Guillaume Latendresse and RW Andrei Kostitsyn must continue their strong development. If Montreal continues to struggle 5on-5 then they probably won't be playing hockey come springtime.

Tampa Bay Lightning: Despite all the offseason rumours Tampa Bay managed to keep its core of C Brad Richards, C Vincent Lecavalier and RW Martin St. Louis together. However, the massive salary of the trio made it difficult for the Lightning to improve other elements of their team, namely defence and goaltending. Goaltenders Johan Holmqvitz and Marc Denis will not be permanent fixes in net, but they should be a competent band-aid that will allow Tampa to compete for the playoffs.

New York Islanders: The exodus from the Island this summer was remarkable, as almost every player of note left for greener pastures. In panic mode, GM Garth Snow overpaid for almost everyone he signed, but at least he managed to land a couple half-decent players in RW Bill Guerin and C Mike Comrie. On the lighter side, G Rick DiPietro enters year two of his ludicrous 15-year contract, and despite the fact that he'll still be on the payroll when he turns 39, he has proved to be worth every penny thus far.

Boston Bruins: The Bruins had a surprisingly quiet off-season considering how disastrous their last campaign was. Besides hiring a new coach, Claude Julien, the Bruins only major move was the acquisition of G Manny Fernandez, a clear upgrade over the agingTimThomas.The Bruins must put up better offensive numbers, however, and will need C Patrice Bergeron to revert to the player he was in his rookie year. Meanwhile, the B's see great potential in the continuing development of LW Phil Kessel.

— Matt Chesser

— Samantha Chang

Washington Capitals: LW Alexander Ovechkin is the primary reason why things are never dull in the nation's capital. Washington got help for their young star in the off-season by signing C Michael Nylander, who should post career numbers this season. Another new free agent acquisition, D Tom Poti will quarterback the Washington powerplay, but despite these changes expect a similar outcome for the Caps: an MVP calibre, performance from Ovechkin and tee times for the team throughout May. ______________________________________________ — Sam Greenwood

*denotes playoff teams. All images from SportsLogos.net.

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