THE CORD THE TIE THAT BINDS WILFRID LAURIER UNIVERSITY SINCE 1926
VOLUME 59 ISSUE 12 • NOVEMBER 14, 2018
HONEY BEES BRING GOLD TO CAMPUS News, page 3
REVEALING NEW TURRET
BIG QUEER COMEDY SHOW
HOLIDAY MARKETS
THANK YOU, NEXT
BRINGING HOME THE BRONZE
Renovations and upgrades come to end
Patent Social hosts LGBTQ+ comedians
Seasonal shopping at local events
The uplifting message behind Grande’s tune
Men’s rugby earns program’s first medal
News, page 5
News, page 7
Arts & Life, page 9
Opinion, page 13
Sports, page 16 PHOTO BY EVA OU/PHOTO EDITOR
2 •
WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 14, 2018
VOCAL CORD What is the question of the week?
@cordnews
The Cord
@thecord.ca
CordNews
PHOTO OF THE WEEK
“Don’t Call by Anders.” –Ivan Lee, third-year psychology
“Somebody that I Used To Know.” –Sydney Sheldrake firstyear communication studies GARRISON OOSTERHOF/WEB DIRECTOR
Laurier’s men’s rugby team won their final game of the season against UW, winning bronze which is the first medal to be earned in the program’s history.
“Ariana’s new song, thank you, next.” –Courtney Groot, second-year communication studies
“Easily by Bruno Mars.” –Kyle Reidy, first-year communication studies Compiled by Margaret Russell Photos by Jackie Vang NEXT ISSUE NOVEMBER 21, 2018
ARTS & LIFE EDITOR Emily Waitson arts@thecord.ca
CORD STAFF
OPINION EDITOR Alyssa Di Sabatino opinion@thecord.ca
EDITOR-IN-CHIEF Safina Husein editor@thecord.ca
SPORTS EDITOR Pranav Desai sports@thecord.ca
CREATIVE DIRECTOR Sadman Sakib Rahman creative@thecord.ca
GRAPHICS EDITOR Kashyap Patel graphics@thecord.ca
WEB DIRECTOR Garrison Oosterhof online@thecord.ca
PHOTO EDITOR Eva Ou photos@thecord.ca
NEWS EDITOR Hayley McGoldrick news@thecord.ca
ONLINE EDITOR Katherine Weber online@thecord.ca
NEWS EDITOR Aaron Hagey news@thecord.ca
VIDEO EDITOR Sarah Tyler video@thecord.ca
FEATURES EDITOR Madeline McInnis features@thecord.ca
LEAD REPORTER Margaret Russell news@thecord.ca
LEAD SPORTS REPORTER Abdulhamid Ibrahim sports@thecord.ca LEAD PHOTOGRAPHER Jackie Vang photos@thecord.ca SENIOR COPY EDITOR Sara Burgess copyeditor@thecord.ca SOCIAL MEDIA COORDINATOR Vacant editor@thecord.ca CORDCAST PRODUCER Brielle Huang cordcast@thecord.ca
CONTRIBUTORS
EDITOR’S CHOICE
Alicia Lavigne Josh Goeree Esme Rigden-Briscall Nicole Grossman Yitian Cai
Remembering the sacrifices made by our soldiers by Aaron Hagey
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COLOPHON The Cord is the official student newspaper of the Wilfrid Laurier University community. Started in 1926 as the College Cord, The Cord is an editorially independent newspaper published by Wilfrid Laurier University Student Publications, Waterloo, a corporation without share capital. WLUSP is governed by its board of directors. Opinions expressed within The Cord are those of the author and do not necessarily refl ect those of the editorial board, The Cord, WLUSP, WLU or CanWeb Printing Inc. All content appearing in The Cord bears the copyright expressly of their creator(s) and may not be used without written consent. The Cord is created using Macintosh computers running OS X 10.10 using Adobe Creative Cloud. Canon cameras are used
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PREAMBLE The Cord will keep faith with its readers by presenting news and expressions of opinions comprehensively, accurately and fairly. The Cord believes in a balanced and impartial presentation of all relevant facts in a news report, and of all substantial opinions in a matter of controversy. The staff of The Cord shall uphold all commonly held ethical conventions of journalism. When an error of omission or of commission has occurred, that error shall be acknowledged promptly. When statements are made that are critical of an individual, or an organization, we shall give those affected the opportunity to
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Quote of the week: “Hey boss, it looks good from far away.” - Creative Director Sadman Sakib Rahman talking about this week’s feature.
WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 14, 2018
News
• 3 NEWS EDITOR HAYLEY MCGOLDRICK news@thecord.ca
NEWS EDITOR AARON HAGEY news@thecord.ca
SUSTAINABILITY
Enactus Laurier’s “Hawk Honey” is the bee’s knees ESMÉ RIGDEN-BRISCALL STAFF WRITER
This past Friday, Nov. 10, students from the Laurier campus club, Enactus, set up a booth to sell locally made honey and “PolliNation kits.” These PolliNation kits were made by the students of Enactus in the Science Maker Lab and the honey came from on-campus hives, at Laurier’s Northdale location in Waterloo. The purpose of these kits are to aid in preventing the local bees from extinction. According to enterprise manager of PolliNation at Enactus, David Townshend, the kits are geared towards mason bees. Mason bees are a solitary bee species — they are non-stinging, native to Ontario and pollinate a lot more than honey bees do. The issue Townshend brings up is that they do not live in colonies or build hives — leaving them far more at risk due to urbanization. “They rely on nature as their homes. Obviously with urbanization we’re tearing down a lot of trees, building cities and taking away homes for them — and
with packets of native wildflower seeds and information pamphlets. To use these kits, Townshend lays out the simple instructions. “You plant the seeds in your garden … put the kit nearby and
they attract mason bees and other pollinator species,” Townshend said. The price of Enactus’ pollination kits are thirty-five dollars and the jars of honey are ten, or sold together for forty dollars. The money earned from these sales will go to the upkeep of the apiary at Northdale. Hawk Honey is sourced from the campus apiary started by Tyler Plante, the outreach and program coordinator for Laurier’s Sustainability Office, and James Emary, manager of grounds services. The Sustainability Office reached out to Enactus to help market the honey and spread the word about their endeavours. “The sustainability office saw our enterprise and how it is lined up with their work preserving the bee population. So they partnered with us, supplied us with a bunch of this honey and that is why we’re here today,” Townshend said. To get further involved, Townshend and Madeleine Wilson, another Enactus member, direct students to look at their Facebook and Instagram pages, as well as their website.
didn’t consult with the Canadian public very well. So the question here is are they doing it right, are they doing it for the effective longterm conservation of biodiversity, and this is really what Canadians want?” Lemieux said. Though there has been much irreversible damage done to this country and the earth by human activity, future generations will be the ones responsible for protecting what is left of the earth, and ensuring they are implementing proper procedures and people is key. “Your best option is always to participate in politics and vote, and
the best thing you can do is vote for the right people who are concerned, and the parties who have a concern about the environment.” “It’s kind of sad to say these issues are popping up now because the Trudeau government had a pretty strong conservation mandate, and the previous government weren’t very supportive of environmental conservation,” he said. “Vote for parties that have a conservation ethic, or a more of a sustainable long term, and they take the long term into account and aren’t just focussed on the short-term gains.”
EVA OU/PHOTO EDITOR
they’re at risk of going extinct,” Townshend said. These PolliNation kits are birdhouse-like structures, with many small wooden tubes throughout. “That’s where we come in as a
enterprise; we have these kits that give them a little replication of their ideal living space, because they like living in tube and circular areas,” Townshend said. The PolliNation kits also come
CONSERVATION
Canada’s marine protection has some “fishy” math to deal with HAYLEY MCGOLDRICK NEWS EDITOR
Laurier assistant professor in geography and environmental studies Christopher Lemieux has taken his research skills beyond the classroom as he has been investigating Canada’s commitment to keep their oceans clean and protected. Canada agreed to protect 17 per cent of all land and 10 per cent of all marine areas by the year 2020, as part of agreeing with the United Nations Convention on Biodiversity to increase the rates of protection. Canada has been primarily focusing on Aichi Target, the Goal A group which consists of five targets, although there are 20 different focussed targets within the convention to protect the earth, though Canada only signed onto 18. “With the recent government - the Liberals and their platform for being voted in years ago - they included environmental protection in their platforms,” Lemieux said. “Given that Canada used to be a leader in conservation and we have some of the largest intact ecosystems remaining in Canada like the Boreal Forest, and on the marine side we don’t have a lot of protected areas, but we have the knowledge on how we should plan
and establish them.” The problem with this protection is that Canada has seemingly increased their protected areas in no time at all, and Lemieux has found the reason for the math being so fishy. “What we found is through this commitment, was that under the Trudeau government we went from less than one per cent to seven and a half overnight. Right now, we have 10 per cent of our land protected, and that took 120 years,” Lemieux said. “What most of these marine protected areas are actually is fisheries closures, so the government is converting already established fisheries closures, so areas that in some parts have already been exhausted of some biodiversity, species like lobster and scallops, which is not beneficial as you want to protect whole ecosystems that species depend on.” The problem with the Canadian government’s approach to protect their land and marine life is that they focus on quantity over quality; instead of ensuring that Canadian oceans are protected for years to come, they instead have closed down establishments that in some cases have already been overfished and are not protecting any biodiversity. “Some of them are called con-
servation areas, but for the most part they are labelled as closures, and there’s often very distinct species, like protecting species. The Department of Fisheries and Oceans Canada closed them essentially because they were overfished and exhausted of a resource, so whether or not they should count towards these biodiversity targets is another question,” Lemieux said. The targets are not just zoning in on marine and land protection, but there are also other environmental priorities like better understanding how to adapt to climate change and acknowledging the materials of those in Aboriginal communities and the maintenance of such. “When you think about a protected area, you think hands off, very minimal activity, and this is pretty misleading to the public, and in Canada we often adopt a single species management approach in our oceans and it hasn’t really worked,” Lemieux said. Lemieux’s research however is questioning the integrity to longterm conservation of these areas and protecting the earth for future generations, as Canada seems to be moving towards meeting their goal by 2020 as easily as possible instead of doing it sustainably. “They didn’t adhere to any science-based guidelines. They
KASHYAP PATEL/GRAPHICS EDITOR
4 • NEWS
WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 14, 2018
EDUCATION
Holocaust survivor Berthe Cygelfarb speaks at UW EMILY WAITSON ARTS & LIFE EDITOR
Holocaust Education Week, which was hosted by Hillel Waterloo and Hillel Laurier and ended last week, featured a Holocaust survivor testimony at the University of Waterloo campus on Nov. 8. Holocaust survivor Berthe Cygelfarb used the opportunity to discuss and share her personal experiences during the Shoah. “My grandmother … talked about her times during the war — she was a hidden child in France — she also spoke about what was going on around her and in France [at this time],” said Kyle Cygelfarb. Kyle is a second-year BBA student at Wilfrid Laurier University along with his brother Will Cygelfarb, fourth-year health science student at Laurier who were both present at the event in support of their grandmother. Shedding light onto the untold horrors of the Holocaust and the genocide that occurred 70 years ago has become a yearly necessity through this education week in order to reach younger audiences and continue educating people on the atrocities that people faced during this tragic period of history. “There are so many Holocaust
deniers out there and there’s been a lot of hate going around, like anti-semitism, a lot of anti-cultural, anti-sexual preferences [issues] — and it’s been going on for so long now. Recently, [with] the events that happened at Pittsburg, it kind of just relates back to what happened in World War Two,” Cygelfarb said. “It’s very important to learn about these things to ensure that it will never happen again and also to kind of become a witness. I’d like to think of it as: [if ] you’re hearing a holocaust survivor speak, you become a witness to what happened.” “I think it’s extremely important to share your knowledge and share what you know, so something like this will never happen again.” Eva Plach, associate history professor at Laurier, whose research interests include the history of Polish Jews, recognizes and stresses the importance of events such as this. “I think if we talk about survivors, specifically … many survivors are dying or we have very few survivors left,” Plach said. “It’s important to get their voices and understand what their specific experiences were like — and I think that’s the kind of thing that
really resonates with students, right? To be able to hear personal stories and to move away from those big, general statements [you tend to hear].” Plach, like Cygelfarb, believes that in a broader context, Holocaust Education Week is important to keep the memory of the Holocaust alive and to ensure that people — not just those of us who are younger — understand what really happened. “There’s a contemporary moment right now where people are talking a lot about how politics can turn in particular directions and people are looking for historical precedents — not at all suggesting we’re moving toward a Holocaust,” Plach said. “But I think people are interested in far-right politics, people are interested in the rise of fascism, people are interested in trying to understand how states and bureaucracies and governments can transform over time and transport people in different directions.” From her perspective, Plach is heartened both as an academic and a person, to see there is still so much interest in Holocaust history, especially so many years after the fact. It remains a reminder of the
NICOLE GROSSMAN/CORD PHOTOGRAPHY
potential that humanity has to make terrible choices — and how we might work to recognize that in the future. “I bristle, sometimes, at the idea that ‘oh, we need to know history so that we never repeat it,’ but I think there’s ultimately a little bit
of truth in that. There is something that is everlastingly compelling about that statement: that if we understand context and if we take education seriously, then people are better equipped to analyze their own modern-day realities,” Plach said.
such a big part of Canada. We need more education, just having one event and saying ‘Ok, we’ve done our part’, and I know the university isn’t thinking that way, but we need more and more events like this and aimed at different sectors of the population,” Warrick said. “I think once Canadians are educated about that history, they’re going to treat one another differently and they’re going to treat the land differently from that Indigenous perspective and see how things should have gone in Canada and how they did not go that way.” One of the main organizers of the event, Jean Becker, is the senior advisor for the Office of Indigenous Initiatives, and advocates not only for the education of Canadians on Indigenous history, but the history of Indigenous peoples who had previously lived right here in Waterloo region. “Phil Monture from Six Nations, who worked for the land and resource office at Six Nations for many years, he spoke about the Haldimand tract, the period from 1784 when the British awarded that land to the Haudenosaunee people, and he talked about the way the land disappeared from the control of the Six Nations,” Becker said. “One of the things that he really emphasized is that Six Nations is in a lawsuit with the Canadian government and has been for 23 years, and the facts of the case are not in dispute, they have proven that the land was sold and the compensation was never made to the Six Nations, they have traced where the money ended up.” The Haldimand tract runs 10 kilometres wide on either side of the
Grand River, and stretches all the way through to Orangeville, and is territory that was not properly paid for as the Six Nations received no income from it. One of the key reasons that The Land We Are was created is to educate students and members of the community about the injustices that have and continue to exist in Indigenous communities and is one of the main reasons Becker believes students need to come out and hear these speakers. “Indigenous peoples couldn’t vote until 1961. Up until 1951 First Nations people weren’t allowed to hire a lawyer, it was illegal, they would go to jail. This is in Canada, and in 2018 the Indian Act controls the lives of First Nations people, it’s still in existence and it’s a law that applies only to First Nations people. Canadians don’t know anything about this,” Becker said. “A few months ago, the schools on Phil’s reserve got clean water for the first time, and lots of houses don’t have it. People think this is going on somewhere else, somewhere up north — it’s not. It’s happening right with your neighbours; and they are your neighbours, they have just as much right as any other Canadian to healthcare and education and they don’t have it, and Canadians don’t know this.” The Land We Are was not only an eye-opener for those who may know little about Indigenous peoples in Canada, but those who reside in our own backyard that are underprivileged and overlooked due to false stereotypes. “There’s so many things that you learn when you go these events that you might not have ever known if you didn’t bother to go,” Becker said.
ADVOCACY
EVA OU/PHOTO EDITOR
The event took place in the Library on Laurier’s Waterloo campus and featured a variety of Indigenous speakers.
“The Land We Are” event speaks about crucial Indigenous issues HAYLEY MCGOLDRICK NEWS EDITOR
On Thursday, Nov. 7 from 1 p.m. to 4:30 p.m., Wilfrid Laurier University’s Office of Indigenous Initiatives teamed up with the library and the history departments from both Laurier and the University of Waterloo to create the event The Land We Are. The event took place in the library and consisted of different speakers from different departments and throughout the region like Susan Neylan, an associate professor in history at Laurier, speaking on land acknowledgments and Phil Monture of the Six Nations of the Grand River. Another speaker at the event was Gary Warrick, an associate
professor in Indigenous studies and Indigenous archaeology at Laurier. He began his speech by recounting a time in the 1970’s when he was a young archaeology student and excavated Indigenous burials. “The site dated to about 1300 give or take, and it was a pit filled with buried people who were disarticulate, which means they weren’t in the anatomical position, but I was a student, and I was tasked with taking those bodies out carefully and recording everything,” Warrick said. “I was saying things have really changed since then, that was 1976, and Indigenous peoples are wanting more control over their ancestors and their ancestral belonging, or artifacts as we call
them. I felt bad, and I still feel bad about that.” The bones Warrick found are, to this day, found at McMaster University, but they are trying to take them back to Six Nations and have Six Nations re-bury them, and Warrick is going to be present as he has one of the most personal experience when it comes to these particular bones. Warrick is also a professor of a first-year Indigenous studies course at Laurier, and realizes the difference that educating students on what Indigenous peoples have gone through in Canadian history that often gets bypassed can have a tremendous impact. “The school system does a terrible job of educating people on that Indigenous past, and that is
NEWS • 5
WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 14, 2018 RENOVATIONS
JACKIE VANG/LEAD PHOTOGRAPHER
The Turret’s fresh new face is finally finished AARON HAGEY NEWS EDITOR
For almost three weeks now, The Turret at Wilfrid Laurier University has been inching towards the final, closing stages of its construction and will be officially opening for public use by January of next year. It has, however, opened its doors for a “soft open,” for smaller-scale events and for use by clubs and associations, to get a better understanding of how the new space will operate, as well as what storage solutions will and will not work in the future. It gives the opportunity for members of the Students’ Union, like Phil Champagne, executive
director and chief operating officer (COO) to ask questions about how The Turret will be accommodating these new kinds of events. “When we do something in the full room, what do we do with all the furniture? Is there room in storage for all the furniture? Do we have to hide it somewhere? What does that look like?” Champagne said. “The plan is, as the new furniture is gonna be delivered, because not all of it has been delivered yet, hence why we haven’t really done much with it, that we’ll kind of open that and make it more accessible for students as we ramp up towards finals.” But as far as a grand opening
for The Turret for public use may still be a number of months away. Unofficially, the final opening is set for January, which will allow the Students’ Union to have a couple of months of utilizing and organizing the space. One of the first challenges will be in terms of being able to use the room in a variety of different functions and fully understanding this newly-renovated space, before its full launch for the students and the community at large. The construction on the space has been a long journey. According to a letter from Kanwar Brar, the former president and CEO of the Students’ Union, the construction began on May 1, 2018, but
surpassed both the expected and revised dates for the construction’s scheduled conclusion. For the last few weeks, the Students’ Union has been focusing on fixing “deficiencies,” such as some lighting and cosmetic issues — things that may have been missed or done poorly, that need to be re-done. However, in that time, they have still had a number of club and association events in the space. “The A-Team had their event, they had Euchre night yesterday — the Lazaridis Students’ Society event happened last week. This weekend is the Orientation Week volunteer appreciation event,” Champagne said.
“I believe the Pakistani Students’ Association has an event next week … [so this is] just us taking our time to make sure we do it right, because it’s really easy for things to go left if you don’t pay attention to them and do that in a very thoughtful and mindful way.” As far as the general feelings towards the nearing conclusion of this project, Champagne expresses that it is generally one of excitement. “It is pretty dramatic … [and] the idea is to have as much student space accessible as possible,” Champagne said. “I think it’ll be really popular, especially certain parts of it, once we do open those doors officially.”
paign seeks to represent the diversity of queer people in the STEM fields and dislodge the stereotypes that may surround them. The project accepts contributions and also provides validation for STEM students by doing so. “It would be nice to do it on a regular basis, I think. I haven’t put much thought into it as a continu-
ing series, but this one came to fruition because Megan actually approached the Rainbow Centre and wanted to get involved and have conversations about LGBT folks in science,” Hewson said. “We felt that this was a really great way to start connecting some of those resources — so we’ll see where it goes from here.”
LGBTQ+
Science department takes “pride” in their students ALICIA LAVIGNE STAFF WRITER
The first ever Pride in Science event took place at Wilfrid Laurier University this past Monday Nov. 12, 2018. The event was held by the Rainbow Centre and Sarah Scanlon, sexual violence response coordinator at Laurier, who teamed up with Megan Larsen, a post-doctorate in biology, to organize the the event, with the aim of having a group-directed discussion on being LGBTQ+ while studying science. The event took place last Monday in the Science Building, which was a convenient change for students who wanted to attend. Usually, pride events are held at the Rainbow Centre or near-by, which can make it difficult for busy science undergraduates to get involved. Larsen had initially approached the Rainbow Centre in order to create the event and bring LGBTQ+ students together to have a conversation about their experiences in science, which also became a step in the right direction to connecting
folks with resources they may need and not always see. “A lot of the time folks in science tend to end up very isolated in their specific buildings and in their specific areas of campus so they aren’t likely to come across a lot of Rainbow Centre events or a lot of supports for LGBT folks,” said Milas Hewson, administrator for the Rainbow Centre. Hewson continued, noting how the event could be used to encourage LGBTQ+ students to participate in STEM and share their experiences. “STEM is sometimes known for being a very difficult place for women, LGBTQ folks and people of colour to navigate,” Hewson said. Indeed, many of the students who participated in the group discussion gave voice to a similar narrative. The reality is, science can be quite a competitive department, where students are under a lot of stress. Unfortunately, some students feel the need to one-up their competition through discrimination against those they know to identify
as gay or queer, instead of supporting one another. Despite these negative experiences, the group spoke positively about being in science as well and the event was greatly appreciated as an opportunity to meet other queer folk who are interested in science. The event provided many resources and supports and introduced the students to academic scholars they could rely on, such as Scott Davidson, from the department of geography and environmental management at the University of Waterloo and the facilitator herself, Larsen. Larsen began the discussion by stating that it is much easier for people to succeed in the sciences when they feel comfortable in their own skin. There should be no need to turn off a certain key aspect of yourself in order to succeed. Stereotypes of how scientists should look and act come into play, as often the image of straight white men come to mind. Scott Davidson introduced a project during discussion called “500 Queer Scientists.” This cam-
JACKIE VANG/LEAD PHOTOGRAPHER
6 • NEWS
WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 14, 2018
TRANSPORTATION
Light Rail Transit sees delays until Spring MARGARET RUSSELL LEAD REPORTER
After a highly anticipated arrival, Kitchener-Waterloo’s new ION Light Rail Transit System has been again delayed until the spring of 2019. This 19-kilometre transit route, consisting of 19 stations between Conestoga Mall and Fairway Station, has been a project in the works since 2012. In 2013, Waterloo region entered into a contract with Metrolinx and Bombardier that outlined the purchase of 14 LRT vehicles with the prospect of purchasing up to 14 more in the future. This contract also stated that all vehicles were to be issued with a “final acceptance certificate” as on January 2017, making them fit for service. As well, the fourteenth transit vehicle was expected for delivery by the end of December 2016. It is clear that the expectations of this contract have not been met and disappointment is prevalent throughout the region by both members of the municipal council and the community. As a result of these past delays, the region announced in the spring of 2018 that the start of service for the LRT would be postponed to this December. However, the region and its partners in the project have concluded that they need more time. “We’re going to have to take some more time to get the vehicles ready, get them tested and get them certified,” said Tom Galloway, chair of Waterloo Region’s Planning and Works Committee. The most recent start-of-service schedule indicated in September that the LRT would be ready for commuter use by the end of December 2018. This manifests that the delay was generally unanticipated by the
JACKIE VANG/LEAD PHOTOGRAPHER
region and it’s Planning and Works Committee. “[Regional] staff really only came to know sometime quite recently that Bombardier was not going to make this date,” said Galloway. An ION vehicle and testing update was released by the Waterloo municipality on Nov. 6, indicating the project’s progress. This report stated that, in summary, 11 LRT vehicles have been delivered to Waterloo, four of which have specialized on-board equipment installed. The other three vehicles are in Kingston awaiting delivery and specialized on-board equipment has been installed on one. Further stated in this update, “no vehicles are yet fully ready for service, in that they have not yet achieved Preliminary Acceptance
Certificate (PAC).”
We’re going to have to take some more time to get the vehicles ready, get them tested and get them certified.
-Tom Galloway, chair of Planning and Works Comittee
To achieve such certification, the vehicles must be fully assembled, continual modifications to the vehicles are completed and each
vehicle passes routine inspections. “It has to do with safety for sure … but the certification also signals payment for the vehicle. We’ve not yet paid for any of the vehicles,” said Galloway. The approved capital budget for Waterloo region’s LRT installation totals $868 million dollars. Stated in their report, the region “will seek to recover from Bombardier any additional costs incurred as a result of the delays in vehicle delivery.” Both Bombardier and GrandLinq have a significant amount of testing ahead of them for the 14 LRT vehicles headed for Kitchener-Waterloo’s streets. Bombardier is in the process of qualification testing on pilot vehicles in Kingston, and GrandLinq is completing system integration testing for the
vehicles currently in Waterloo. This recent report concludes that based on several safety and testing variables, it is generally difficult to predict the start of service for the ION LRT, however, the region is aiming for sometime in the spring. “Regional staff will continue to closely monitor Bombardier’s and GrandLinq’s progress and schedule will work diligently with them to get the system into service as soon as it is feasible and safe to do so,” reads the region’s statement. As of now, the start of service for the ION has not been given a date due to a level of uncertainty at this point in time. “We want to wait until we have a good number of vehicles certified and have a high level of confidence,” said Galloway. Weather conditions for the start of service in the winter have also posed some concerns among the regional council. “We may have been able to start in February or March, but we made the decision that we would rather start in the spring as opposed to the middle of winter,” added Galloway. While commuters wait for the LRT’s start of service in Waterloo region, there have been initiatives to keep the public informed of its progress and make sure that riders will be prepared for its usage. As a part of the region’s public outreach program, ION vehicles will be available for public observation on several occasion. At the upcoming Christkindl Market on Dec. 7 at Kitchener City Hall, an ION vehicle will be parked at the designated station to provide the region’s residents with the opportunity to view, board and discuss. This will promote the community’s inquiry on service and safety features for the LRT and the region hopes to provide residents with this valuable information.
• 7
WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 14, 2018
Arts & Life
ARTS & LIFE EDITOR EMILY WAITSON arts@thecord.ca
LIVE PERFORMANCE
Queer comedy show is funny and inclusive ALICIA LAVIGNE STAFF WRITER
On the night of Nov. 8, the warm atmosphere of Patent Social was a welcome treat after being out in the cold. The bar is a hidden gem in uptown Waterloo on Erb St. The classy, upscale venue had a small bar and was complemented with fun elements that bring out the child-at-heart, such as popcorn bowls which could be ordered from the menu and video game booths. And it was the perfect venue for Alice’s Big Queer Comedy Show. The show has had multiple iterations at Patent Social before the most recent one, bringing together different comedic personalities for a unique experience each time. I managed to get a front-row seat and saw that Alice had attracted a crowd of varying ages. The audience reflected the comedians who had us in stitches
by the time the night was over. Alice kicked off the show by talking about her life as a trans woman living in Toronto and her thoughts on sexual and gender identity. Alice then introduced a line-up of hilarious local comedians such as Velvet Duke, named for his smooth voice, host of the Sad and the City podcast Marisa Bettino, Greg Brown from the AsapScience YouTube channel, as well as other amazing personalities. Many of the comedians touched on their experiences as queer-identifying people in the city and jokes on current trends and concerns like cutting down on straws to save the sea turtles and the fact that gay people simply cannot drive under any circumstances. One of the ongoing jokes of the night was explaining the difference between being pansexual and bisexual to those who don’t identify with the LGBTQ+ community. It seems as though many people
EVA OU/PHOTO EDITOR
either think they’re the same thing or don’t really understand the concept of pansexuality which often leads to judgement. Luckily, Marisa deemed the audience ‘cool enough’ to appreciate her material on the subject. These little tidbits made the show all the more enjoyable, and as a member of the LGBTQ+ community myself, the relatable or downright funny content had me cracking up. I’m sure I wasn’t the only one who felt this way as well.
For a night, Patent Social was turned into a welcoming and safe space for queer people, an environment where they can feel understood and connect with each other in a way that can be greatly appreciated when one is often surrounded by straight, cisgendered people. The Velvet Duke actually touched on this subject during his time in the spotlight. He told the story of how he accidentally came out to his female coworkers during a game of Fuck, Marry, Kill (with
an emphasis on the good-looking Idris Elba). You may have friends who you can identify with but you can’t be around them 24/7. For example, more often than not, at work, or in general it might be hard to find people who pine over Idris Elba, or celebrities of the same gender, as much as you do. Alice and her friends gave us local queers a place to shake off the cold and our worries for a while, albeit not for long enough and I can’t wait to see what her next show has to offer.
HEALTH
Learning about wellness in health EMILY WAITSON ARTS AND LIFE EDITOR
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The wellness approach to a more balanced lifestyle is a trend that has taken over social media and health discussions in recent years. Countless health-related outlets promote “wellness” as being the most effective and positively advocated method to look after ourselves both mentally and physically — from Instagram pages to magazine articles, the way we feel is being prioritized more than ever before. The Golden Mean Wellness Shoppe & Healthcare Clinic located on King St. West, was opened two years ago with a vision focussed on evidence-based health services and wellness-related products that target a variety of different needs. The space is relaxed and aesthetically decorated, making you feel calm and at ease when you step into the welcoming storefront. They have a selection of lifestyle and health-based products for sale such as balms, essential oils, supplements and small gifts, as well as smoothies that are made and sold behind the counter during the summer months, transitioning into teas, coffee and kombucha for the winter. There is a team of professional healthcare workers available for different purposes, which is an aspect that is continuing to grow. Currently, Golden Mean offers naturopathy, Reiki, chiropractic and massage therapy services, with
plans of bringing in a social worker as well. Holly Bradich is the manager and nutritionist of the store, with a Bachelor of Applied Science in Nutrition from the University of Guelph and a Bachelor of Arts in Psychology from the University of Waterloo. She has an allopathic approach to nutrition and strongly believes in balance and moderation when it comes to diet, regarding wellness as a more comprehensive mentality that should be applied to all aspects of everyday life. “I believe in optimum wellness. Really feeling your best physically, mentally, energetically. I think the Western model just defines it as the absence of disease, but I don’t really agree with that. I think most people now are trying to reach a more optimal, functioning level and just feeling their best everyday,” Bradich said. For students especially, wellness can seem like an overwhelming method to apply to their busy lives in order to be more healthy with their habits — but it doesn’t have to be. The key is realizing that it’s not “quick fix” but a way of tackling your day-to-day routine in order to help you feel better overall. “Taking on enough time for your mental health and managing stress and getting your sleep. Kind of like a whole lifestyle [approach] and not just like a ‘I’m gonna go on a fad cleanse,’” Bradich said. In terms of how popular the wellness approach has become,
Bradich sees this as a positive transition. “I think people are taking a more preventative approach to healthcare because there’s going to be such a strain with all of the boomers aging,” Bradich said. “A lot of people have these chronic diseases now and we have to be ready as the next generation to step up and take care of these people or teach them how to manage these diseases or prevent them from getting them if they don’t already have them.” Educating yourself properly is imperative in knowing how to approach wellness and personal healthcare most effectively. “Unfortunately there is a lot of stuff on the internet that’s not science-based and we are very science-based, especially our naturopath. I think she gets frustrated because there are some naturopaths out there — that even though they’re trained rigorously in scientific methods — some of them divert into different streams that aren’t science-based and it makes the other naturopaths look bad,” she said. “I think it’s important for people to not just Google something and think they found the right answer.” “I would hope that university students have the research skills to know when they’re reading something that’s scientifically sound, but with the general public, if they don’t have continued education, then they may not be able to differentiate psuedo-science from real science,” Bradich said.
WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 14, 2018
8 • ARTS & LIFE CEREMONY
EVA OU/PHOTO EDITOR
Remembering the sacrifices made by our soldiers AARON HAGEY NEWS EDITOR
For those who had laid a sacrifice of freedom more than a century ago, this past weekend offered a commemoration of the horrors our forefathers experienced so that we might have the opportunity to exist in an era of peace. This passing Remembrance Day, also known as “Armistice Day,” held on the eleventh hour, of the eleventh day, of the eleventh month, marks the centenary — 100 years — since the official end to the brutalities and losses of the First World War. Though sources vary in the tolls Canadians faced — upwards of 45,000 and as high as 74,000, with between 120,000 and 150,000 left alive to deal with their various wounds, both physical and psychological — the observance of this solemn day allows for us as a nation to grieve such a loss, whilst remembering what it is we fought for all those years ago — and continue to fight for today. As such, a number of ceremonies across the Waterloo region paid homage to the soldiers of a war who have since passed. On Friday Nov. 9, the WLU
History Students’ Association (HSA) hosted a ceremony between 10:40 and 11:00 am, which hosted a number of speakers including HSA president Cameron Baer, Dr. Kandace Bogaert and David McMurray, vice-president of student affairs, as well as readings of “In Flanders Fields” in both English and French and the iconic commemorative bugle call during the period of silence, “Last Post.” There were a number of ceremonies and a parade held throughout the city, as well as a fly-over of the Waterloo Cenotaph by the “Waterloo Warbirds” and a “Bells of Peace” ceremony at 5 p.m., which included the ringing of 100 bells to mark its anniversary. With the last remaining Canadian veteran having died in 2010, over eight years ago and the last remaining veteran, the United Kingdom’s Florence Green in 2012, history distances itself even more from the events of a time that used to exist in living memory. “After the battle of Amiens, the Second Battle of the Somme, Canal du Nord and Mons — to name just a few of the key battles of Canada’s 100 days — Canada’s veterans would return home to a country that was very different than
when they had left,” said Kandace Bogaert, assistant professor and Cleghorn Fellow in War and Society at Laurier, in her speech at the ceremony. “The events of 1918 would shape Canada in many ways in the years following … we are here to remember and commemorate the immense sacrifice of our countrymen and women.” Because of events like those held by the HSA, members of the newest generation are able to exist outside of those who have had to participate in or live through a war, are especially important — as are the messages they feel are important to keep in one’s mind during this time. “Four years, three months and two weeks — over 1500 days — of death and destruction had come to an end. At long last, it seemed that the world, undeniably exhausted, might finally catch its breath. Tragically, the world was breathless. Nations lay in ruins, tens of millions of people from around the globe, civilian and soldier alike, lay dead. A whole generation lost to the battlefields of the first world war,” said HSA president Cameron Baer in his speech at the ceremony.
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“And though the guns were silent, people the world over knew that struggle for peace was only just beginning. The world had to be rebuilt — more than that, it had to build something new out of the ashes of the old and build this new world with the confidence that such a catastrophe would not be repeated … and if not for themselves, then surely for those generations to come, that they might make good on the mistakes of the past.” Baer went on, discussing how those same mistakes would, unfortunately, be repeated in the years to come, manifesting itself in the built-up anger, fear, blame and resentment that would lead to the equally catastrophic Second World War. He continued, discussing the passing of torches delivered to the next generations — the renewed hopes of a scarred world. “The world is not always what we might wish it to be. It has seen great evil and great tragedy in the century since Nov. 11, 1918. But this should not discredit what good, however small, has been done in spite of the challenges we have faced — and should most certainly not discount what potential we have, each and every
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single one of us, to learn from what has come before, good or bad and to go forward, to work towards something better,” Baer continued.“It is truly tragic that such a loss of life should serve as the foundation on which we must build, which makes it all the more important that we make the most of the chances we are given, to do what they could not,” he concluded. For Bogaert, the significance of the day echoes many of the words and sentiments of the HSA’s president, as well as her own speech. “For me, personally and as a researcher, it’s important to remember, for one, simply because of the staggering contribution of Canada’s soldiers and nursing sisters during the First World War,” Bogaert said. “If you think about it, 60,000 Canadian soldiers died in Europe and around 54 nursing sisters out of 2500 who had served and I think it’s important to recognize those contributions.” “Remembrance Day, to me, is taking those two minutes of silence to remember the sacrifice of Canada’s veterans in the conflicts of the twentieth and twenty-first century,” she concluded.
Finding festive flair at holiday markets Features Editor, Madeline McInnis, looks into upcoming events in the region to help you find your perfect holiday gift No matter what holidays you are celebrating this season, the months leading up to the new year are filled with festivities, cheer and a lot of shopping! Though the big-box stores are great for picking up those gift cards for that person you got for secret Santa, the holiday season is a perfect time to grab a more personal gift for your loved ones from a local, independent seller — but you may not always know where to find them. This list of upcoming holiday markets and shopping events is certainly not exhausted, but provides astarting point for those looking for a fun, exciting way to make your list and check it twice!
Waterloo Night Market Date: November 25 Some of our very own students are organizing and running this night market in a few weeks! The C3 Innovation Labs Entrepreneurship students aim to foster a community between Laurier and the permanent residents of Waterloo. It will take place from 5 p.m. to 12 p.m. in Waterloo Park in the parking lot near the Lion’s Lagoon splash pad. Vendor applications are no longer being accepted, but some posts in the Facebook event suggest that there is still room for the right ideas to secure a table.
Holiday Market Date: December 1
Christmas Market at Kitchener Market
This holiday market and zine fair features work from local LGBTQ+ artists and is hosted by Rainbow Reels Queer and Trans Film Festival. The film festival happens every fall and aims to tell the stories of those in the KW community from their own perspectives. All are invited to at-tend this market and purchase from the vendors, regardless of gender or sexual orientation, though all vendors will be from the local LGBTQ+ community. It takes place from 9:00 to 1:00 on Dec. 1 in Fresh Grounds Cafe in Kitchener. Admission is free, but donations are accepted, and participants are encouraged to purchase food and drink from the host cafe. If you are a LGBTQ+ person looking to sell your work at the market, applications are accepted until Nov. 17.
Date: November 25 Exactly a month before Christmas Eve, the Kitchener Market is getting an extra festive flair. This market advertises as a one stop shop for everything you need to celebrate Christmas, from a centrepiece to fresh ingredients. If you miss this one for whatever reason, the market will be back on Dec. 21 and 22. Applications for vendors are no longer being accepted as the market is at capacity.
St. Jacobs Sparkles Date: November 15-18 This annual event is the official kickoff to the holiday season for the St. Jacob’s Farmers’ Market. Shops will be open late on Thursday and Friday, and the website promises in-store sales. There will also be food sampling and a light show! Last year’s event had a whopping 14,000 people marked as “interested” on their Facebook page, so clearly this is the place to be for holiday cheer. It seems as though this event is restricted to established businesses in St. Jacobs, but it is always worth reaching out if you are a vendor looking to sell!
5th Annual Holiday Art Show
Date: November 17
Paint by Munzy, a local initiative by Jonathan Munz, is having its annual holiday viewing at the Button Factory in uptown this Saturday. The event will feature live music, catered snacks, a cash bar, and a silent auction. Munz’s work includes adult colouring books, oil paintings and prints. Whether you’re looking for the perfect creative gift or you just enjoy looking at art, this event caters to both of your needs.Admission is free and copies of the Paint by Munzy 2019 calendar will be complementary for those in attendance. This event is exclusively for the Paint by Munzy business, but the Button Factory offers a unique venue for local artists hoping for a similar event in the future.
Phidon Pens Holiday Market Date: December 8
Braving the trek to Cambridge will be worth it if you’re looking for the perfect gift for the stationer in your life. This market will feature a variety of vendors from homemade watercolour paints to the notebooks of The Cord’s own alum Alistair Maclellan. Phidon’s markets also usually feature live demonstrations of the products for sale. This market will happen on Dec. 8 at Phidon Pens in downtown Galt, not far from Ainslie Bus Terminal. It all also take place during Phidon’s regular store hours, making it a one-stop-shop for all of your crafty holiday shopping.
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10 • GAMES
WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 14, 2018
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Dear Life Dear Life is your opportunity to write a letter to your life, allowing you to vent your anger with life’s little frustrations in a completely public forum. All submissions to Dear Life are anonymous, should be no longer than 100 words and must be addressed to your life. Submissions can be sent to dearlife@thecord. ca no later than Monday at noon each week. Dear Everyone,
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We’re winning office trivia by a mile, it’s not even going to be close. Sincerely, Dirty Garey and the Boys Dear A, Since you’re turning 23 on Friday, I just wanted to say how proud I am of how far you’ve come since I first met you. You’ve gone through so much in your life, but you’ve always been the most happy-golucky, caring, hilarious person that I know. Never stop being you, quirks and all. Happy early birthday, my love.
Sincerely, E Dear AS, This is just the beginning and you have my head spinning. Sincerely, GBear Dear CH, I have Dear Life Competition. Sincerely, Writing these to you is my favourite part of production.
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WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 14, 2018 WORD SEARCH
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12 •
WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 14, 2018
Editorial
OPINION EDITOR ALYSSA DI SABATINO opinion@thecord.ca
Editors Note: Shopping local es are finally getting relief from the closures and are slowly seeing customers coming back to Uptown. As a result, it’s important now more than ever to support our local businesses — especially those who have been affected by the ongoing construction. However, a lot of the time, the idea of shopping at stores in Uptown can be far removed from the minds of students who are looking for the best prices. When choosing between shopping online and finding a more affordable price or sale, in contrast to going out to a local store and paying full price for the same product, the choice seems clear to most students who are on a budget. Most students don’t have the luxury of buying things without worrying about how much money they have left in their bank accounts. However, the reality is that — in some cases — the prices we pay for things online are almost equivalent to shopping at a physical store. And sometimes, even though prices at places such as Amazon might be lower, the shipping and handling fees we pay often make shopping online more expensive in the end. But what’s important is that, by shopping at a local business, you’re supporting a local resident of Waterloo. And as an extension, you’re buying an item that has been carefully thought through by the owner of the store before it was sold to you.
SAFINA HUSEIN EDITOR-IN-CHIEF
For the past 11 years, I have watched my mom run a successful small business in uptown Waterloo. Since I was young, I’ve spent much of my time at her shop, and now, I even work there part-time. Having this personal connection to uptown Waterloo often encourages me to support local as much as I can and to make the effort to shop at stores in Uptown. I see the other small businesses in Uptown as I see my mom and her store — individuals who are passionate about their stores and their businesses and who genuinely care about their clientele. Each one of the business owners in Uptown put forth time and care when choosing what they bring in and sell on their store-front. These local business owners are what makes Uptown so unique. Their shops are filled with specialty items and their passion for their business make shopping at their stores distinctive. Businesses in Uptown have endured over four years of consistent construction. As a result of construction, many local businesses have either had to relocate or shut down. As LRT construction has finally come to an end and the Streetscape project is complete, business-
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KASHYAP PATEL/GRAPHICS EDITION
Moral imperatives are relative KASHYAP PATEL GRAPHICS EDITOR
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We don’t often think too deeply about moral dilemmas, and I imagine you couldn’t care less about what I have to say on any given moral issue. That’s alright. What I’m interested in is the fact that we undoubtedly have different views — the fact that, presented with the same set of moral dilemmas, you and the person closest to you will almost certainly differ on at least one. Morality is relative. That’s fascinating, but also problematic. If you haven’t already had a debate with someone close to you because of a difference in moral views, you will in the future. Those debates, I’ve found, can easily turn into arguments, not about the merits of one course of action over another, but about who is right. That is what interests me: the idea that some moral views are better than others. The idea that my moral stance on a given issue is right, and yours is wrong. I’ve always thought morality was just a product of our society, and
that evil for one might be a moral imperative for another. And that always made sense. I liked that idea, because it meant that I didn’t need to figure out what was right overall , just what was right for me. But I realised that a simiple difference of opinion can cause a lot of conflict, and when that opinion is an integral part of one’s identity, as morality often is, that conflict can turn violent. That was the realization that prompted me to think about moral diversity in the first place. Nobody questions the fact that two and two make four, so why can’t we have an absolute, unquestionably right set of morals? After all, the rest of the universe has a definite system. The laws of physics are absolute. In physics, there are right and wrong answers. I once tried to come up with a system like that, to see if morality could be simplified. I thought that pain would make a reliable metric, since it’s so universal, but it fell short. Everyone ranks the pain of a situation differently. I tried it using other metrics, too. They all had the same flaw: they were absolute at their core, but were measured differently by different people. You and I may have the same moral end goal, but the path we choose to get there will almost
certainly differ. So why did I think this was worth writing about? Consider healthcare. If you are injured and in extreme pain, will your doctor give you strong medication and risk addiction, or let you suffer to ensure your long term well-being? Consider AI. If a group of pedestrians suddenly walked onto the road, ignoring right-of-way, would a self-driving car swerve and risk hitting a pedestrian rightfully walking on a crosswalk? A study conducted by MIT, called Moral Machine, asked partcipants to choose a course of action in situations like the one described. Those answers will be used to program the “morality” of self-driving cars. Our moral system directly impacts which people they will choose to kill or save. One more scenario. Given our own moral diversity, imagine how different the morality of alien civilisations could be. What would happen if we met them? Can we accept a wildly different moral system for the sake of peace? Or will we decide that we are right and they are wrong? To quote the Doctor, “sometimes the only choices you have are bad ones, but you still have to choose.” What do you do when you and the people around you choose differently? Food for thought!
• 13
WEDNESDAY,NOVEMBER 14, 2018
Opinion
OPINION EDITOR ALYSSA DI SABATINO opinion@thecord.ca
“Thank u, next” is an important lesson on self-love EMILY WAITSON ARTS & LIFE EDITOR
Ariana Grande is an artist whose image and music has grown along with her since she began her career in 2009. Her resilience is what has stood out to me over this past year and it truly demonstrates how strong she is, both as an artist and as a human being. She certainly comes from a place of immeasurable privilege that people like to use to write off her challenges and experiences, but that shouldn’t override the fact that she’s a person who goes through hardships just like anyone else. Grande’s romantic relationships have been the focus and object of scrutiny in the public eye and media, particularly with rapper Mac Miller and SNL comedian Pete Davidson. After breaking up with Mac Miller after roughly two years together, her whirlwind romance with Pete Davidson became one of the most buzzworthy topics of discussion and speculation until they called
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off their engagement in October. The tragic death of Mac Miller in September caused an onslaught of online abuse and accusations directed towards Grande that depicted her as the villain who indirectly caused his passing. This misdirected mob-mentality and witch burning tirade that swept over the internet during the
period of grief that overwhelmed fans of Miller’s music and more pointedly, Grande, who knew him intimately — showcased her ability to rise above the unreasonable treatment celebrities are often dished out, simply because they’re famous. Regardless of whether she moved on “too fast” from Miller
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Readjusting after exchange MADELINE MCINNIS FEATURES EDITOR
In a lot of ways, I don’t think I’ve ever felt quite as out-of place as I do now.
A few short months ago, I was spending my weekends gallivanting around Britain to various stage plays and museums, mostly for free through my work with University of Birmingham’s student newspaper, Redbrick. Now I spend my weekends in Waterloo, desperately attempting to catch up on some much-needed sleep and finding a moment to visit my parents.
I often find myself daydreaming of the simplest things that I experienced when I was abroad. The treks to and from the Guild of Students — their version of the Students’ Union — to meetings several times a week seemed a hassle at the time, but has now become the centre of my everyday wants. Even the struggles I had with my mental health when I was abroad
into her relationship with Davidson is literally no one’s business and it was never her job as a woman to “fix” Miller, like the internet seemed to expect her to. After releasing the massively popular single “thank u, next,” my appreciation and admiration for Grande were cemented even further. The song, which highlights the importance of self-love, forgiveness and loving without fear of heartbreak, has broken Spotify’s single-day record for a female artist twice. Accumulating nearly 29 million streams on the platform since its surprise release, her smash hit has taken the online world by storm. I’ve listened to the song myself dozens of times on repeat and I keep falling in love with it the more I listen to it. It’s unabashedly direct with its mention of her ex-boyfriends by name but it flips the script of nearly every popular song recorded about past relationships by making them positive. Her self-reflectiveness and gratitude towards the men who have come and gone in her life — each serving their own unique and specific purpose — touches on her ability to call out the good in the relationships that didn’t work out,
whatever those reasons may have been. More importantly though, “thank u next” celebrates her relationship with herself — because that’s the one that matters the most. My favourite part of the song and one that’s been quoted by countless Twitter users in praiseworthy agreement is; “I know they say I move on too fast, But this one gon’ last, ‘Cause her name is AriAnd I’m so good with that.” Female empowerment has become rooted in her music and with tracks like this and my previously most played on-repeat-ballad, “God is a woman,” I’m really loving the direction she’s taken with her music. Handling and addressing the criticisms she’s given no matter what her relationship status is with nothing but grace and dignity and holding her head high with this song as her commentary on it, is commendable, to say the least. Pushing a narrative where we can be grateful for our exes because they inevitably teach us lessons about ourselves and hyping up the importance of loving yourself outside of relationships is something that I can get behind just as much, if not more, than a classic angry breakup anthem.
seem to be sugarcoated now that I’m back to my regular life in Waterloo. Though I would certainly recommend exchange to anyone who is considering studying abroad, it’s bittersweet coming home. My heart, my brain, my life is torn between the two countries and I no longer feel like I belong fully in either of them. I fell in love with Birmingham, the United Kingdom and the culture there at large. I fell in love with the freedom and the more relaxed schooling system, despite the high quality learning from a world-class institution. Everything seems so mundane now, and seeing the photos from my exchange friends — some still in Birmingham, others graduated and off across new countries of their own, like Germany and Italy — only makes my life seem even more boring in comparison. I feel like I’m at the part of my story where Frodo returns to the shire or when Harry Potter is standing at the platform 19 years later. It’s the return home that’s supposed to resolve all of the conflict from the journey, but instead, it’s impossible to imagine them simply making coffee or going to work. Because they’ve experienced so much, it’s impossible to imagine them how they were before. In short, I’m afraid that I’ve peaked. I’m afraid that my semester abroad was the most exciting thing that I will ever do in my life, and I will continue to look back on those six months as the most
important and adventurous I will ever have. That scares me a lot. I always want to believe that the best parts of my life are still ahead of me, but that’s hard to believe when it seems everything that I want is in the past. On top of that, peaking because of a semester abroad seems to come only second to peaking in high school in terms of the “basic” scale. Straddling the end of our years here at Laurier, for a lot of us the future is completely uncertain. Like our sports editor, Pranav, wrote in his editorial last week, our university years are the best of our lives that we know of so far. It’s also hard to see the future from where we stand right now, and with so much uncertainty, I think it’s easy for all of us to latch onto something familiar that we love. Whether that’s a club, a publication, or an exchange experience. I hope for each of us that we all never reach our peak and we all keep climbing. I hope that those things we cling to will stay fondly with us as we seek out new adventures we couldn’t even dream of right now. I don’t have any of the answers right now, but I’m sure they’ll come as I look back on this chapter on my life. If you too feel like you’re in the epilogue of your life, I implore you to keep reading. University — your club, your publication, your study abroad experience — is an amazing chapter, but we all have so much ahead of us, even if we don’t know what that is.
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OPINION
WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 14, 2018
Brazil’s new president is not the “rescuer” they need ALYSSA DI SABATINO OPINION EDITOR
Starting in the new year, Brazil’s new president-elect Jair Bolsonaro will take office. Elected in late October, Bolsonaro is a member of the Social Liberal Party, a rightwing conservative party in Brazil. This is the first time since 1985 that Brazil has elected a far-right candidate. Bolsonaro is a former military officer, and has served on Brazil’s chamber of deputies. He has made controversial comments towards women, the LGBTQ+ community, has endorsed Brazil’s former dictatorship, is avidly against political correctness and has stated that environmental law enforcements will be retracted. Many are calling him “Brazil’s Donald Trump” for these reasons. Unsurprisingly, Trump has expressed joy over Bolsonaro’s election, and has even stated that he plans on working closely with the far-right leader. Even with Bolsonaro’s extremist sentiments, voters saw him as a representative for the change they wanted to see. He was elected with 55 per cent of the popular vote, and has drawn just as much praise as he has drawn criticism. During one of his campaign rallies in September, he was stabbed
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in the abdomen by a former member of the Socialism and Liberty party who claimed to be on a “mission from God.” Later that month, protesters across Brazil took to the streets and chanted “Not him!” in response to Bolsonaro’s political campaign. Bolsonaro portrays himself as a political outsider and an active support of family values. This has worked in his benefit, as he has distanced himself from the established political system that many voters are not in favour of. He has relied on social media to get much of his message across, often promising to “rescue” Brazil, and to make Brazil “great,” which is reflective of Trump’s message about “making America great
again.” Many of these sentiments come from the fact that Brazil has become victim to many political corruption scandals, rising crime rates, and tax increases due to economic austerity. But Bolsonaro has a history of verbalizing his extremely offensive views, and has even faced charges for his discriminatory comments. He has defamed Indigenous Brazilian communities, has said that he’d rather his sons die than be gay, has made sexist and misogynistic comments to female journalists and has made racist comments towards the Afro-Brazilian population. He has also shown support for Brazil’s former dictatorship, and has also stated that military-rule in
Brazil could be justifiable. Despite his campaign statement about making Brazil safer and “better for all its people,” his past comments openly resist this sentiment. Brazil’s current president is Michel Temer who is extremely unpopular. The previous two presidents were left-affiliated, but both were connected to corruption scandals. Keeping all this in mind, it almost makes sense why Brazilian voters have swung so far to the other side of the political spectrum. It’s almost the same thing that happened in America during the 2016 presidential elections, minus the corruption allegations. After a democratic presidency for eight
years, Barack Obama had served his full term. Citizens who were extremely unhappy with Obama’s presidency turned to Trump to channel their fear and anger, which swung the voting results far to the other side. Voters chose Trump because they had a deep desire for “change.” Voters also chose Bolsonaro for the same reason; he promised things that the previous presidents didn’t or couldn’t go through with. This occurs more from an act of desperation than from a positive political choice. Brazil’s citizens are done letting corruption slide, and the only way they felt they could unsure this was by voting extremely against the grain. But the benefits don’t outweigh the damage. In the cases of both America and Brazil, the countries are stuck with presidents who have made malicious comments towards their own citizens. Bolsonaro has been able to ride a wave of voter distrust in Brazil’s institutions. But now these same voters have to face a proposed erosion of democracy, further attacks on minorities and marginalized communities and hate crimes — which have reportedly been increasing since his election campaign. If voters were against political corruption, they should’ve voted for a revolutionary leadership — not someone who is in favour of dictatorship. Progression does not happen by reverting back to the past, it happens through actual change in the system.
The time is now to impeach Trump
JOSH GOEREE STAFF WRITER
CONTRIBUTED IMAGE
Last Tuesday the midterm elections took place in the U.S. When the dust settled, there was a massive recount needed in some races in Florida, the Republicans took more seats in the US Senate and the Democrats took control of the US House of Representatives. That last one is a major shot at Donald Trump and possibly at his presidency. Now, the democrats have the opportunity to start impeachment proceedings and look into his tax returns. And if there is a time to really go after this unhinged president it is now. Just in the last week after the election, Trump lashed out at CNN’s Jim Acosta and had a video of him doctored to make it look like he was hitting an intern, he lashed out at another reporter when asked about Matthew Whitaker and the Mueller investigation and chirped the Forestry service for the fires in California. In my personal opinion, the democrats’ best hope is to expose Trump for the monster he really is and go after him in a way that will attack him personally. One
way to get to a narcissist is to make him/her vulnerable. In the case of Trump, they have to go after his tax returns. Since he ran for president, he has kept them secret and refuses to disclose them. If the Ways and Means committee controlled by the US House can vote to request his tax returns, he will become very vulnerable.
The window to go after Trump is very small, but it is a shot that the democrats need to take if they want to take down this president.
The trickiest part for the democrats is the impeachment proceedings. Jonathan Turley, a law professor at George Washington University, says that in order for impeachment to happen, it has to be proven that the president has committed high crimes and misdemeanours in the Senate. For the house, it only takes an allegation of these two things to get a vote on it. That’s why Bill Clinton wasn’t impeached in the Senate while he was in the House. The first part should not be the problem as it takes 51 per cent of the House to
impeach. However, in the Senate the allegations need to be proven and the vote must be more than 67 per cent in favour of impeachment. This has never happened before in history. One silver lining for the democrats to get the proof that Trump has done something very wrong is the Mueller investigation. If Robert Mueller, the Republican-leaning former director of the FBI, can show that Trump was directly involved in high crimes the case for having him impeached will be much stronger. High crimes can include perjury, obstruction of justice, treason, misusing/abusing the office of the president and many others. If the Mueller probe shows that Trump has committed high crimes and the unraveling of his psyche is shown time and again in the public eye, it has to be overwhelming so they can flip enough Republican senators to get to the 67 per cent mark. The window to go after Trump is very small, but it is a shot that the democrats need to take if they want to take down this president. Because the consequences of not trying could be disastrous. If you don’t believe me, go watch the Bill Maher new rule called The Slow-Moving Coup. Unless he is taken out of office, it’s really starting to look like Trump isn’t going to give up his power any time soon.
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WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 14, 2018
Sports
SPORTS EDITOR PRANAV DESAI sports@thecord.ca
BASKETBALL
SADMAN SAKIB RAHMAN/CREATIVE DIRECTOR
Laurier celebrates diversity ABDULHAMID IBRAHIM LEAD SPORTS REPORTER
Saturday night was “Embrace Your Culture” night, celebrating the many different ethnicities and diversity of all the Golden Hawks players as both the women’s and men’s teams faced off against the Ryerson Rams. “I think there are many cultures that should be acknowledged and recognized. Living in kind of a white, mainstream society, it’s nice
to highlight other ethnic diversities and cultures. I definitely think that was a good idea and I think that a lot of people could feel extra prideful just for being acknowledged,” said Skye Johns of the Laurier women’s basketball team. After a hard-fought 67-65 win against the Toronto Varsity Blues, where the Golden Hawks managed to pull away in the fourth quarter, their biggest challenge followed in the number two Ryerson Rams. With Sofia Paska out, there was
some work cut out but that Rams team isn’t just any team. The Rams came out firing, opening the game up on a 9-2 run in the first three minutes. From there, the Golden Hawks slowly came to find their footing, especially in the second quarter where they managed to pull themselves within six points, down 34-28 going into halftime. The third quarter is where this game got flipped on its head and became a showing out party for the
Rams. They opened up with a 14-0 run and never looked back from there for the rest of the game. The Hawks never found any rhythm or their footing again and fell to the Rams by a final score of 79-54. “I think right out of the gate, maybe we weren’t great that first quarter defensively, but then we got into a bit of a rhythm, got more stops and were able to keep them under control on our glass,” coach Falco said. “And then we got our offence going a little bit, some transition stuff. So definitely a decent first half for us and unfortunately didn’t come out of the gates well in that third quarter.” The second half of the double-header came with the men’s team playing against the number two Ryerson Rams. After thrashing the Toronto Varsity Blues by a score of 83-50 the night before and having given other top teams problems, this was expected to be a great game. The Ryerson Rams had other plans though. Missing their big man Tanor Ngom, they came out to prove how dominant they really are anyways, coming out with one of the most impressive performances seen this season. The Rams came out with a high level of intensity to go along with ridiculously strong defensive play. Their length and activity on the defensive end stifled the Golden Hawks from the tip. It also didn’t help when 6’8” guard Jean-Victor Mukama came out cooking to the tune of 13 first quarter points and finished with 27
points. The Rams were especially keyed in on stopping star Golden Hawks guard Ali Sow and with them getting so many stops on everyone else, they never allowed it be close. Not only that, they kept pushing their lead to the tune of a 97-52 win.
Living in kind of a white, mainstream society, it’s nice to highlight other ethnic diversities and cultures. -Skye Johns, Laurier women’s varsity basketball player
“Their length is pretty impressive. Defensively, they’re just not giving you a lot of things to play with in terms of their ability to switch almost every single position,” coach Serresse said. “We didn’t make shots at key moments. The one that stood out is down 13, Chuder’s got an open corner 3, we miss, they go back down and they make an open 3 in transition, then down 16.” “I felt like that happened a lot today where we miss a layup or something and they come down and just make a shot. So we weren’t able to make key shots at key moments to stop the bleeding.” Next up for the Golden Hawks will be the Queen’s Gaels and York Lions in back-to-back road games.
FOOTBALL
Remarkable Rookies: Tyler Eckert JOSEPH DEFILIPPIS STAFF WRITER
In what was otherwise a gloomy 2018 season for the Laurier football team, freshman Tyler Eckert was one of the few bright spots. The defensive lineman’s strong play during the year was recognized last week, as he was named a member of the OUA All-Rookie team. “It was an honour to be recognized by the whole OUA,” Eckert said. “I’m really proud to represent Laurier.” In seven regular season games, Eckert recorded an impressive 13.5 tackles for the Golden Hawks, along with half a sack and two tackles for losses. The game where Eckert started to become wellknown to Laurier football fans, was week three against Waterloo mk where he recorded a season high three tackles. “I was really happy with [that] Waterloo game,” Eckert mentioned. “I made my first big solo tackle on special teams and that really got me going that game.” Eckert was the only rookie on
the team that was a consistent member of the defensive line, with the rest of the core being made up of third and fourth year players. “Guys like Trevaughan James and Robbie Smith taught me so much. [Not] just on-field skills, [but also] how to carry yourself off the field, around the locker room and how to be more of a professional around the sport.”
Guys like Trevaughan James and Robbie Smith taught me so much. [Not] just on-field skills, [but also] how to carry yourself off the field. -Tyler Eckert, Laurier varsity football defensive lineman
“The D-Line group is one of the best groups on the team for
everyone being an equal,” Eckert stated. “It doesn’t matter if you are a fourth year starter or you haven’t played a snap in a game yet. Everyone is equal and everyone talks with each other.” Despite the Golden Hawks finishing with a disappointing 4-4 record on the season, missing out on the playoffs for the first time since 2013, the team still had one of the strongest defences in the province. Eckert played a big role in helping the team finish with the second fewest rushing yards allowed per game in the OUA. However, regardless of the personal success early in his university football career, Eckert isn’t content with just maintaining the status quo. “I’d like to contribute a lot more next year. I’m really hoping to put some size on me and really improve my strength game.” With an impressive first chapter in his time as a Golden Hawk coming to a close, it will be exciting to see what is still to be written in Eckert’s Laurier career going forward.
JACKIE VANG/FILE PHOTO
16 • SPORTS
WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 14, 2018
MEN’S RUGBY
GARRISON OOSTERHOF/WEB DIRECTOR
Golden Hawks earn first medal in team history Laurier defeats the Waterloo Warriors by a score of 17-6 to win the prestigious OUA bronze medal PRANAV DESAI SPORTS EDITOR
The Wilfrid Laurier men’s rugby team captured their first medal in team history on Saturday, Nov. 10, with a thrilling 17-6 win over the Waterloo Warriors. After their loss in the bronze medal game last year, the Hawks had a lot to prove on Saturday. Add in the fact that this game was the biggest ‘Battle of Waterloo’ so far this year, there was more incentive than ever for Laurier to put up a good performance. The game got off to a shaky start for the purple and gold, as the Warriors jumped out to a 6-0 lead in the first half. The Warriors were led by 2018 OUA MVP Mitch Voralek, who scored all six of the points for Waterloo through two penalties. This was unfamiliar territory for Laurier as they had not been in many situation where they have had to come from behind. For the most part, the Hawks had dominated their opposition throughout the season, from start to finish. But the Hawks shut down Waterloo’s offence in the second half, not allowing a single point. The Hawks tied the game at six with a huge try from Aidan Nesbitt. Laurier then took the lead with 10 minutes left to play through 2017 OUA MVP, Andrew Quattrin. The fifth year veteran then
capped off what was his last game for the Hawks with another try to give the victory to Laurier. Quattrin’s presence will be missed and he showed just how valuable he is to the Hawks in his final game. Another big part of the Hawks’ second half comeback was their home field advantage. The crowd were right behind the team throughout the game, and they raised the noise to another level when the Hawks finally got on the board. The fans matched the players’ intensity throughout the game.
The process of building a winning program is ongoing and must continually be worked on month after month, year after year. -Ian McLeod, Laurier varsity men’s rugby team head coach
Although the Hawks’ playoff run came to an end last week, they showed no signs of a lack of passion. “Our staff is extremely proud to
have been a part of this historic run for Laurier rugby. This was not something that happened over night, but has been building for the last five years. At the end of the day, it’s about the program and players, and whether or not those players buy in,” coach Ian McLeod said. “Fortunately, we have a tremendous leadership group that has continually pushed this program and its members forward with medal winning performances in mind. This year we were able to achieve part of the goal.” The Hawks have now made history in consecutive years: last year they won their first playoff game ever, and this year they received their first medal ever. The Hawks showed a tremendous amount of resilience to come back and win this game. This victory is even more impressive than it looks because the Hawks had not been trailing on many occasions during the season, but they managed to survive the adversity when they needed to. “The process of building a winning program is ongoing and must continually be worked on month after month, year after year. We are losing some huge contributors to our program this year both on and off the field,” coach McLeod added. Along with Quattrin, Ryan Gamm, Jeff Wood, Darnell Marks, Kevin Le, Derek Boyd and Chris
Williamson will also be leaving the men’s rugby program. Losing seven players isn’t easy for any sports program and these players were crucial to the Hawks’ immense success over the past two years. Although these are massive losses for the team, McLeod pointed out the fact that this will now create a great opportunity for others on the roster. “These are huge shoes to fill and create a fantastic opportunity for those wanting to fill those positions. If we’ve done our job from a recruiting standpoint, hopefully we can come close to what those young men brought to the program.” The men’s rugby program has now created a winning mentality and expectations will continue to grow for the Hawks. It will be fascinating to see how the new recruits adapt to a program that is on the rise and one that is seemingly getting better every year. The Hawks are losing seven leaders and it will now be up to the youngsters to fill that leadership void that will be gone with the departure of the veterans. But the expectations for the Hawks aren’t going to change. “The expectation for next year is the same we have every year: to be playing on the last weekend, competing in a gold medal game.
We have yet to get there so our job as coaches and players is far from done, but we feel we’re on the right track.”
The expectation for next year is the same we have every year: to be playing on the last weekend, competing in a gold medal game. -Ian McLeod, Laurier varsity men’s rugby team head coach
The team is on the right track thanks to a great blend of leadership and talent from top to bottom. Under coach McLeod and his staff, the Hawks have experienced constant growth and eventual success. The Hawks made history in 2017 by winning their first playoff game in modern team history, and this year they raised their game to another level by winning their first medal ever. With the amount of improvement within this program year after year, the sky is the limit for the Wilfrid Laurier Golden Hawks men’s rugby team.
