The Silhouette

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McMASTER UNIVERSITY'S STUDENT NEWSPAPER

www.thesil.ca

THURSDAY, MARCH 17, 2011

EST. 1930

FROM CAMPUS TO YOU AND BACK AGAIN

VOLUME 81, NO. 24

TEDx at Mac JEMMA WOLFE

ASSISTANT NEWS EDITOR

Students and professors alike gathered on Saturday, March 12 in the University Club on campus to participate in the sharing of ideas. Over the course of the day, 19 different segments, ranging from live speeches to animated videos to musical performances, all explored ideas pertaining to learning and knowing, leaving the audience enthralled and contemplative. This was TEDx McMaster U. TED is a nonprofit organization devoted to the concept of “Ideas Worth Spreading.” What began in 1984 as a conference uniting people from the worlds of technology, entertainment and design has blossomed into a global movement featuring TED conferences, the TEDTalks video site, and the independent TEDx programs, such as the recent one at McMaster. TEDx are independently organized TED events by communities, groups, or individual organizers who are enthusiastic about spreading interesting ideas. McMaster’s inaugural TEDx event was organized by a team lead by fifth-year Political Science and Communication Studies student Medina Abdelkader. Her initial interest in curating a TEDx event at McMaster came from her long-term respect for the TED organization. • PLEASE SEE TEDx, A4 JEFF TAM / SILHOUETTE STAFF

General Assembly peaks halfway to quorum Frat motion draws crowd, 1280 name change and MSU political endorsement struggle FARZEEN FODA

ASSISTANT NEWS EDITOR

Burridge Gym housed 251 students on March 14 for the annual McMaster Students Union (MSU) General Assembly. Union members came to vote on 16 motions put forward by their fellow students. But since the General Assembly did not reach quorum for the sixteenth straight year, none of the decisions will be binding on the MSU or Student Representative Assembly (SRA). If a vote is binding, the SRA must take action on whatever the General Assembly directs it to do. The meeting commenced with a welcome by MSU President Mary Koziol, after which each motion was sequentially brought to the stage by their respective movers. Quorum requires attendance of at least three per cent of the undergraduate student population, which was 589 people this year. This

number refers to the number of votes needed at General Assembly to validate the voting. Falling short of this quota, the vote of the General Assembly in favour or against the motions put forth was, “no different than if a group of ten students got together at TwelvEighty and voted on things that they cared about,” said Naheed Yaqubian, Speaker of the MSU and Chair of General Assembly. Yaqubian noted, however, that many SRA members have expressed a strong interest in some of the motions brought to General Assembly this year. “I have heard from some new SRA members, as well as some returners, that they are thinking of bringing a few of the motions that came to GA (General Assembly) to the SRA, and I think that is very indicative of the fact that representatives are listening to what students want to achieve.” If a motion is brought to the SRA, then

it is binding, meaning that the MSU and the SRA must take action on the issue. Thus, while many issues received the majority vote of the General Assembly, there is no guarantee that any of the motions that passed will gain any momentum, since the voter turnout was not sufficient to deem the vote valid. Yaqubian stressed that the turnout at this year’s General Assembly was quite impressive compared to previous years when attendance has been as few as 25 people, which was the turnout at the 2008 General Assembly. Throughout the meeting, attendees were welcome to speak in support or against the motion put forth before the assembly was given a chance to vote on the motion. Of the 16 motions presented, seven of them passed, while four failed, and three were withdrawn by the mover and for two motions, the mover was

Mac alumni defy donation trends FARZEEN FODA & ROY CAMPBELL

not available to present their motion to the General Assembly. The General Assembly is an opportunity for McMaster students to represent themselves, and bring to a vote, issues they feel are important to students. “It is a tool for students to use to directly effect what their students government does. It is a form of direct democracy, instead of representative democracy,” said Yaqubian. First up for debate for the General Assembly was the renaming of “TwelvEighty” back to “Quarters.” Support for this motion came from the finding that most students refer to the campus bar as “Quarters” anyway, coupled with the argument that most of the successful clubs and bars in Hamilton have names confined to two syllables. The three syllables of “TwelvEighty” makes it annoying to say, consequently hindering its success as a hub for student life, argued mover Zachary Strong. The motion found little support and failed. The second motion brought to a vote suggested that the MSU endorse a particular political party or candidate during municipal, provincial or federal elections. The engagement of the MSU in external political affairs would, according to the mover, target voter apathy by getting students talking about politics. Concerns were raised that if this motion were enacted, it could interfere with MSU efforts to lobby the provincial and federal government on matters of concern to McMaster students, while resulting in possible misrepresentation of the student body. After several attendees expressed their concerns and support on the motion, it was brought to a vote and was strongly opposed. The General Assembly voted overwhelmingly in favour of

Recent findings from universities across Canada and the United States suggest that donations from young alumni are decreasing, according to Maclean’s on Campus, in an article entitled “To give or not to give?” The root of the problem was traced to the finding that many recent graduates felt that they were treated like a number while in university. Many of the luxuries McMaster students now take for granted are largely the result of generous donations of alumni who give back to the institution that paved the way to the careers they now cherish, and left them with a university experience they would never forget. The McMaster University Student Centre, which serves as the hub for student life, did not exist until rather recently and was funded primarily through donations. This is a fact many students do not seem to realize, noted McMaster’s newly appointed Vice-President, University Advancement, Mary Williams. Among current students, there are mixed feelings on the matter. Third-year psychology student, Ankita Dubey expressed her feelings and said, “The way I see it, by the time I graduate, McMaster will have taken 50 grand from me and I don’t think the school needs any more, but maybe later on in my life as I reflect on my experience and realize how much I have taken away from these years at Mac, I might decide to donate.” Williams noted that while it may appear that young graduates are less likely to donate, it may be because they are reluctant to do so until they are able to stabilize their own financial situation, rather than because of overwhelming feelings

• PLEASE SEE DESPITE, A5

• PLEASE SEE YOUNG, A3

ASSISTANT NEWS EDITOR & SILOUETTE STAFF

JONATHAN FAIRCLOUGH / ASSISTANT PHOTO EDITOR

MSU President Mary Koziol addresses the 251 students that filled the seats of Burridge Gym.

[This Week in the Sil] What decline? Despite the advancement in technology, writers are still a necessity in society. Pg. A7

St. Patty’s Explore the origins of St. Patrick’s Day and its shift form a Christian feast to National Drinking Day. Pg. C1

The Vagina Monologues ANDY takes a look at McMaster’s upcoming performance of The Vagina Monologues. Pg. D6


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