Volume 46 Issue 10

Volume 46

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Issue 10

Chicago

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November 21, 2011

Photos by Andrew Tan Article by Cornel Grey

more on page

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The Omnibus Crime Bill

Comparing crimes that aren’t comparible

By Sara Ostrowska

Prime Minister Stephen Harper campaigned during the last election with a promise of an omnibus crime bill to carry out a tough-oncrime agenda. He has promised to carry Bill C-10, known as the Safe Streets and Communities Act, through Parliament within 100 days of forming a majority government.

The bill is nothing new, as it is made up of nine individual bills that did not pass through parliament previously because of the lack of support from opposition parties.

The bill includes a setting of mandatory minimum sentences and increasing severity on drug crime and young offenders. The Increasing Penalties for Organized Drug Crime Act would do three things: establish mandatory minimum sentences; increase the maximum penalty for selling marijuana; and impose higher maximum penalties for illegal activities involved with GHB and flunitrazepam (date rape drugs).

However, though the bill also has a section called “Better Protecting Children and Youth from Sexual Predators,” which claims to be ensure that the penalties imposed for sexual offences against children are more consistent and better reflect the heinous

nature of these acts. This bill will do two things: establish new mandatory minimum penalties for seven existing offences related to child sexual exploitation and abuse, and increase existing mandatory minimum penalties.

The bill has been widely criticized because mandatory minimums for many drug-related offenses is more severe than minimum penalties for sexual offenses. The mandatory minimum penalty for the production of 6 to 200 marijuana plants would be 6 months, and the penalty for the production of 201 to 500 plants brings a oneyear sentence, or 1.5 years if it’s in a rental or poses a safety risk. Furthermore, the maximum sentence would be increased from 7 to 14 years imprisonment.

By contrast, the omnibus legislation proposes one-year mandatory minimums for sexually assaulting a child, luring a child via the Internet or involving a child in bestiality. The mandatory minimum penalty that the bill proposes for making child pornography or distributing child pornography is 6 months.

This means that a person who convinces a child to watch pornography with them would receive the same sentence as some-

one convicted of growing six pot plants at home.

Opposition parties also question the motives of the conservative government for pushing this bill through parliament, which will require a lot of new spending (largely for the cost of building new prisons and accommodating the larger prison populations, with longer sentences, that will follow) at a time of a record federal deficit.

Since Stephen Harper’s Conservatives took power, federal spending on corrections in Canada has gone up from 1.6 billion in 2005-2006 to 2.98 billion in 2010-2011. According to Parliamentary Budget Officer Kevin Page, over the next five years this number is expected to double. The Conservatives argue that it will only cost 2 billion over the next five years.

The two largest provinces, Ontario and Quebec, with crime rates among the lowest in Canada have publicly refused to pay for the crime bill over the cost and the content of the legislation. The bill has been criticized by opposition parties for being a short term solution with high costs because it doesn’t focus on rehabilitation, and will therefore keep people recommitting crimes and ending up in jail again.

A few weeks ago, conservative Republicans in Texas, the toughest crime-fighting jurisdiction in the US, such as Jerry Madden, who heads the Texas House Committee on Corrections, and Judge John Creuzot of the Dallas County Court, spoke up about the Harper government’s crime strategy, saying that they tried what Canada is about to do, and that it didn’t work.

In 2004, Texas had the highest incarceration rate in the world, with one in 20 of its adult residents behind bars, on parole or on probation. While crime rates in the US fell for three decades, the rate in Texas fell at only half the national average.

The across-the-border-neighbour-Conservatives claim that building new prisons will be expensive, and filling them with people, which is what the mandatory minimum sentences will do, will continue to be expensive. Republican governors and state legislators in Texas, South Carolina, and Ohio are actually repealing mandatory minimum sentences, opting for other solutions, such as increased funding for drug treatment and increasing effective community supervision, that will improve public safety, keep offenders from recommitting, and reduce the costs.

in the paper this week

centre: Selling Trent Enweying 2011 p. 4 - UNESCO membership, Trent profs react • p. 5 - Trent’s recent Rugby win p. 8 - an amazing Othello adaption • p. 9 - J.Edgar Review + Win Snowblink tkts! p.10 Trent Radio wants YOU + CMA column • p . 11 - Science Says on the brain

Campus Volume 46 | Issue 10 | November 21, 2011

Masthead by Jackson Creek Press 751 George Street • Suite 104 Peterborough, ON • K9H 7P5 tel: 705-745-3535 editors@trentarthur.ca • www.trentarthur.ca

CUPE letter points out absence of part-time faculty, students on Academic Plan Committee

Co-Editors Business Manager Iris Hodgson Miranda Rigby

Production Assistant Heather Scully

Tyson Shennett

News Reporters Matt Jarvis Anthony Gulston Brett Throop

Copy Editor

Andy Cragg

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Distribution Photography Teigan Sparkes

Andrew Tan

Co-operatives Wesley Collett-Taylor Mya Rush nell ---

Board of Directors Chair • Kate Taylor Secretary • Not yet named Treasurer • Not yet named Members at Large • Matt Rappolt, Brett Throop, Hazel Wheeler, Joel Young

Contributors Alissa Paxton • Ivan Lam Caileigh Morrison • Brian Lukaszewicz Skye Ryan-Evans • Natalie Guttormsson

Submission guidelines Articles Articles should be submitted via email to editors@ trentarthur.ca, in the body of the message, or as an *.rtf, *.doc, or *.txt attachment. The body should be approximately 800 words. Listings, announcements, or briefs should not exceed 100 words. Feature pieces can be up to 1500, but must be arranged in advance with the editors.

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Letters

By Andy Cragg

President Franklin loves planning. Over the past two years, since the arrival of Trent’s current president, Stephen Franklin, the university community has been absorbed in the “integrated planning” process that he initiated. Last December, the university administration announced that a draft of the Integrated Plan had been completed, and circulated this Draft to the university community for comment.

A long and damning response to the draft penned by the Canadian Studies Department and widely endorsed by other department and members of the Trent community began circulating shortly thereafter. The letter concludes that the draft integrated plan “tends to reduce all before us to a question of finances and is, as such, a one-sided business plan. If this problem of one-sidedness is to be transcended, time must be taken, even if it is inconvenient and does not suit the fiscal demands of the moment.”

As a result, the administration in June initiated a new planning process to create an Academic Plan that would better reflect the mission and vision of Trent as an academic community. A committee was struck, comprised of ten members of different departments and chaired by the VP Academic and Provost, Gary Boire who frequently opines about the committee’s progress on his blog, provostacademicplanningblog.blogspot.com.

Though the committee has not yet produced its first draft, due December 2011, some criticisms have already emerged. Trent’s part-time instructors and their union CUPE 3908 are frustrated at having been left out of the academic planning process.

“The Academic Plan Committee comprises only full-time faculty members and administration. In fact, students, contract faculty, and alumni (recent and not-so-recent) have stakes in Trent’s academic vision and their presence on the Committee would, in our opinion, bring crucial balance to the work of the Committee.”

As a result, Bridget Campion, who used to teach in Trent’s School of Nursing, following in the tradition of the Canadian Studies letter, penned an open letter to Boire on behalf of CUPE 3908’s members. In it she outlines a different academic vision for Trent.The letter says that “Trent should be a university that has its foundations explicitly in social, gender, racial, and ecological justice.”

Limit letters to the editors to 250 words. Letters longer than 250 words may be published but Arthur reserves the right to edit for length and clarity (but not content).

Conributors are encouraged to attend the weekly story meeting on Tuesday at 1pm in our office in Sadlier House, or to contact the editors if considering submitting to an upcoming issue.

Editorial

Public Service not Public Property

By Miranda Rigby

Opinions expressed in this publication do not necessarily reflect those of Arthur staff, volunteers or its Board of Directors. Contributors are encouraged to attend the story meetings Tuesday at 7pm or contact the Editors to discuss story ideas. All article submissions are due Monday at noon. Letters, Listings, Classifieds, and Events are due Thursday at 9am and should be sent to listings@trentarthur. ca. Advertisers are encouraged to contact advertising@ trentarthur.ca for ad rates and contracts.

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“All programs, whether in the humanities, sciences or social sciences, would have an underlying hermeneutic that reflects this commitment to justice,” it continued. “This means that business ethics at Trent would be very different from business ethics at Queen’s; Nursing would attend to the social determinants of health; Trent would embrace Indigenous knowledge as part of its academic vision; there would be a multi-disciplinary program in applied ethics, distinct from analytical philosophy; course offerings would be alive to unjust presuppositions that have informed traditional approaches to teaching and research, and so on. We acknowledge that a justice oriented consciousness exists at Trent; we propose that it become much more explicit and serve as a unifying identifier across all programs and departments at Trent.”

TCSA President Sheldon Willerton is also bothered by the fact that students haven’t been included in the new academic planning process, though he says that Boire has made some efforts to solicit students’ views, dropping by the TCSA office, and holding an consultation meeting. A consultation meeting was also held for CUPE part-time instructors in October.

Responding to the CUPE letter, Willerton said “CUPE’s open letter to [Boire] has a lot of merit, in that I agree we should consider finances AFTER we have discussed what Trent is, what we do well, what we want to be, etc. It’s time these questions be at the forefront of our community discussions. And when the dust settles, I hope that we will have an Academic Plan that outlines action that leads to a clear destination, something we have been missing.”

Graduate Student Association president Karen Gillis agrees that students “do feel a bit left out.” “I know that [Boire] did hold [a student forum] recently (Nov 9, for all students) but this feels a bit late in the process.” “I think he has made an effort to meet with students and include their input, but it was not the first priority, especially in relation to graduate students and CUPE.” For Campion and CUPE members, this destination is a university modeled “on a vision of lived justice,” based on a consciousness “already present at Trent.” And, as for the inevitable question of finances, “we believe that students, government funding and grant money will follow, along with enthusiasm, inspired teaching and research, wonder, and admiration for this small university that aims to make a difference.”

There has been a lot of discussion on my various social network feeds this week about the Ottawa City Transit bus driver who walked off the job after being confronted by a frustrated patron.

According to the various sources I have read, this patron had asked the bus driver “why the No. 5 bus was consistently 40 minutes late.” The bus driver then walked off this bus and left 15 riders on the bus for over 40 minutes.

As a former public servant and a current retail slob, I know what it is like to be confronted by customers who are angry with something that is completely out of my control. More often, at the other job I currently hold, am I told by the customers that they hold priority to the people who serve them. That I, the invisible person on the other end of the phone, should risk my job in order for the customer to get a better seat on an airplane then someone else who requested it four months prior.

Those who have been in my shoes and worked in a public industry know that there is a reason our society leaves these jobs to the young and naive. No one truly wants to get barraged daily in order to make a living just above poverty line. Not if they can help it.

However, this bus driver does it any way. He gets up daily

to be confronted by a Transit system which is notably flawed, and customers who are noticeably upset. He can’t help that he is making these people late for work or social obligations. He is just doing what he can to get them there safe.

So, we ask, why did he abandon these 15 riders on a bridge without notice for 40 minutes? I would never suggest that this situation is ideal. However, I would suggest maybe we should question the system he works in and not the man himself.

In a stressful situation it is better to walk away than fight back. In a retail job, if I couldn’t handle a problem a customer gave me, I would hand them off to a supervisor, and (because that is their job) the supervisor would help the person while I “cool off.”

So, instead, maybe what we should ask is why does it take so long for the OC Transpo to send a supervisor to assist these passengers, instead of “why did he walk away.” Maybe we should note that this man likely gets this question a dozen times a week on a variety of equally as poorly funded, and planned, bus routes.

I say, this man should be free of harassment, because I am positive he is just as upset about the system than the person who asked the question. I say, it effects the bus driver more, because unfortunately he doesn’t have the answer.

Arthur’s (2nd) AGM 2011-2012

Monday, December 5 @ 7pm Location TBA in next weeks paper * Be there!

letters Letter to the Editor, RE: Issue 3 Cover The media has a significant historical and ongoing role in shaping popular (mis) perceptions of Indigenous peoples. In the recently published “Seeing Red: A History of Natives in Canadian Newspapers” (2011), Anderson and Robertson provide overwhelming evidence to demonstrate the pervasiveness of the colonial imaginary in depictions of Indigenous peoples in the media and its role in further entrenching the marginalization of Indigenous peoples on Turtle Island (North America). While the colonial imaginary is responsible for the construction and perpetration of numerous stereotypes (Indian Brave, Indian Princess, Noble Savage etc.), the silences and omissions that it creates also facilitates misrepresentation. By and large, Indigenous peoples are not provided with the space to tell our own stories in the mainstream media. Most coverage of Indigenous peoples and cultural events are conveyed through the lens of the European experience. While non-Indigenous writers often claim to treat Indigenous peoples with respect and/or to honour diverse representations in the media by providing coverage, the reality is that Indigenous peoples are being robbed of their/our voices while simultaneously being portrayed through a Eurocentric lens.

An example of these power dynamics and the consequences of failing to honour self-representation can be seen in the “Curve Lake Pow WOW” article that was published in Arthur on September 26, 2011. The title of the article alone suggests that First Nations cultural events are a spectacle providing entertainment for nonIndigenous peoples. The voyeuristic approach that is reflected throughout the article assumes that the reading audience is also non-Indigenous thereby positioning Indigenous students and community members outside of the readership. The tone of cultural tourism that is also present throughout the article, whereby the author provides a step-by-step discussion of vendors, foods, dance and music, lends itself to constructing the powwow experience as one of cultural consumption and culinarysong-and-dance multiculturalism. This is particularly problematic given the current social colonial context wherein First Nations cultures are becoming increasingly trendy and fashionable for White consumer populations who feel entitled to everything from Indigenous spirituality to feather earrings. This dynamic, combined with the declaration that “a celebration is the best way to experience culture” is also a disservice to White readers because there is an implication that White folks need to participate in other people’s cultural events in order to have a cultural experience, thereby obscuring the fact that people with European ancestry also have their own cultural heritages and traditions.

Whether or not the piece was done with consent or collaboration is unclear.

While permission for taking the photos that were featured on the front page of the newspaper was presumably granted by each of the dancers, this is not noted in the photo credit. It would be educational to readers to learn about the protocols around photography and powwow etiquette especially since many people mistakenly believe that it is appropriate to take photos at a powwow. Similarly, it is unclear whether or not the author wrote the piece in consultation with Curve Lake First Nation, or if any meaningful collaboration occurred. Since this is not noted in the article, nor is it co-authored, the reader is left with the powerful message that mutually consented upon collaboration is not required or best practice when documenting, interpreting, archiving and publishing material about Indigenous peoples and communities.

It is important to include coverage of Indigenous peoples and cultural events in the student and community newspaper. It is responsible and respectful to actively invite Indigenous peoples to tell their own stories and to provide coverage and reviews from their own perspectives. It is best practice for newspapers to employ Indigenous peoples to cover Indigenous content from Indigenous perspectives in Indigenous voice. It is also best practice to employ culturally and politically competent protocols and guidelines for coverage. In the spirit of inclusion, it is key to cover a range of important events and issues regarding Indigenous peoples that are outside of the current status quo of covering tragedies and celebrations. Expanding the coverage to include local Indigenous political, economic, social, cultural, spiritual and environmental struggle in balance with celebration from Indigenous perspectives will operate towards disrupting the dehumanizing and inadequate images perpetuated by well-meaning and not so well-meaning media. Indigenous peoples are real and have real day-to-day experiences in the world. Our community media must portray Indigenous peoples outside of the tropes and stereotypes of victimization and cultural celebration. While inclusion is necessary, how it happens, for what purpose and who benefits and the distribution of benefits resulting from it are key considerations. Inclusion, through the lens and on the terms of dominance, can serve to further entrench negative attitudes and power dynamics. Alternatively, inclusion through self-representation and meaningful collaboration can begin to disrupt, educate and transform the popular imaginary while challenging and addressing the marginalization and inadequate representation of Indigenous peoples in the media.

Not all Arthur readers are hippies Dear Robert Veale, While I think your concerns are valid and your expectations of journalistic responsibility are realistic, I do not think the manner in which you presented your critiques was called for. Your lack of couth and over-generalized view of Arthur’s contributors clouds the points you are trying to make and hurts your argument.

Please remember that the names printed on the page belong to real people with feelings and talent that you ruthlessly insult without any regard for the repercussions it may initiate.

I am not a writer for Arthur, or a dedicated reader, but even I am offended by your disregard for etiquette and respect. I commend Arthur for acknowledging your voice despite its crass tone and hope that you find it in your heart to alter the way you express yourself in the future.

When critiquing journalistic integrity – which is encouraged – it is important to represent the model that you wish to see printed within the paper.

A Concerned Reader Editor’s Note: This week, Arthur heard back from The Venue’s owner, Christian Tanna.

He told us that The Venue did not receive Arthur’s initial requests for an interview.

He said that the notion that Venue staff would have allowed someone wearing a racist costume inside the bar was “ridiculous,” and assured Arthur that anyone fitting that description would have been ejected from The Venue immediately.

Show Some Respect This is a response to the person who wrote the disgusting letter in the last issue criticizing the article on the cover of the Arthur two issues ago regarding the KKK costume spotted at The Venue. You claim that the person who reported the costume is bashing The Venue, while you are bashing the very newspaper that is so graciously presenting your opinion to the Trent community, despite what you have said about their “standards.” I’m surprised they even printed your letter.

And as for calling the witness (who I happen to know personally) and reporter a “hippy” and “fuck up,” it is a sad world indeed if a person would defend the integrity of a club over that of human beings, and promote racism. Perhaps it never occurred to you that a picture of the KKK costume was not placed in the article because it would offend people.

P.S. your foul language makes you sound even “cooler.”

Sincerely, Kayla V.

Community and Race Relations Committee

Volume 46 | Issue 10 | November 21, 2011

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national

Crime bill’s trafficking act won’t protect workers excluded from immigrating

By Andy Cragg

The omnibus crime bill would introduce changes the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act that were initially proposed as Bill C-56, the Preventing the Trafficking, Abuse, and Exploitation of Vulnerable Immigrants Act. As the title of Bill C-56 suggests, it is meant to combat the abuse of immigrants to Canada. Government statements about the bill specifically mention “exotic dancers” and lower-skilled workers.

The specific changes that the bill proposes are small but significant; they grant discretionary powers to the Minister of Citizenship and Immigration to instruct border officials to deny a work permit to a migrant who would otherwise be granted one.

The vagueness of the connection between this Ministerial veto and the protection of vulnerable migrants has not been lost on a number of advocacy groups and academics.

The Canadian Bar Association has written

a lengthy opinion on the entire omnibus crime bill, and about Bill C-56 the CBA specifically “has significant concerns about the manner in which the Bill gives the Minister wide-ranging authority to shape the substance of the protective legislation.”

It continues, “Providing assistance to trafficked and other vulnerable people is laudable but these proposals would introduce a scheme that is vague, confused and potentially harmful to the very people it seeks to protect.”

The Canadian Council for Refugees makes the point that it is not greater ministerial powers that are needed to address serious issues of exploitation of immigrants and migrant workers in Canada.

The council says that “[t]he amendments do not address the root problem with the existence in Canada of jobs that humiliate and degrade workers. Work permits are issued to individuals by visa officers after the employer’s job offer has been validated by Human Resources and Social Development Canada. The [government] refers to exotic

dancers and low-skilled labourers, and suggests that they might be vulnerable to humiliating and degrading treatment. Why are job offers approved by the government if the work may humiliate and degrade workers?”

Mike Ma, former director of the Community and Race Relations Committee of Peterborough and an academic whose work focuses on immigration and social justice, agrees with this mantra and sees it as part of the solution to the problem of the inherent exploitability of migrants.

“Risks can never be removed,” Ma said.

“One wonders if even they can be lessened?

Newcomers are traditionally understood to be more malleable and exploitable. That is why they drive taxis and clean offices.

Newcomers are expected to do the jobs ‘Canadians’ will not do.” He continued, “If you work here, then you are good enough to live here.”

Ma pointed out that it is hardly a surprise that employers take advantage of migrant workers. “After all, it is the job of the

employer to extract as much labour power from the worker as possible. Otherwise s/he is not doing their job as the exploiter, CEO, capitalist, employer, or handmaiden to the shareholders.”

Ironically, if Bill C-56 is meant to protect immigrants, more substantial changes to Canadian immigration policy would be needed.

The frequently-cited exotic dancers and lower-skilled workers often come to Canada through the Pilot Project for Occupations Requiring Lower Levels of Formal Training, a program which excludes participants from becoming permanent immigrants to Canada.

Numerous groups, including the parliamentary committee on citizenship and immigration during the previous minority conservative parliaments, have pointed out that the exploitation faced by these groups is fundamentally linked to their non-permanent status. The mantra for this perspective is “Good enough to work, Good enough to stay.”

Trent profs weigh in on Palestine’s UNESCO membership

By Carmen Meyette

Palestine was granted membership at the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) General Conference in a 107-14 vote at the end of October.

This is the first time that Palestine has been granted membership of any United Nations organization.

The United States, Canada and Israel are among fourteen countries that voted against the admission of Palestine, and each has come out with actions against UNESCO and Palestine to express their unhappiness with the decision.

This recognition will allow Palestine to request world heritage site designation for as-yet-unprotected cultural sites.

The United States, complying with a law created in 1990 which disallows US support of any agency which supports Palestine, will not be making its promised payment of $60 million this year. Their refusal to support pro-Palestine agencies will continue until an Israel-Palestine peace agreement is reached.

Israel will still receive US support.

Canada will stop making “voluntary payments” to UNESCO, says Foreign Affairs Minister John Baird. This will reduce

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Canadian spending on UNESCO by an estimated $1.3 million annually.

Israel has also frozen their funding but not pulled it entirely.

Many countries have spoken out against Israel for its plans to punish Palestine by building 2000 new settler homes and refusing to transfer the monthly $100 million it has collected in taxes from its own people for Palestinians. It is argued that by failing to provide the monthly installment Israel is limiting Palestine’s security and ability to protect itself and its people, as this money is normally used to pay government workers.

In an interview with Arthur Dr. Gavin Fridell, said that withdrawing funding “is a terrible decision for Canada and the US.” He added that the “US and Canada just unilaterally withdraw their money from UNESCO because they are so frustrated that the UN would vote against their wishes. What’s the point of having this if powerhouses just withdraw their money?”

When asked about how this decision affects the UN as a whole, Fridell said, “I think it really exposes the UN. It really shows that the UN is not in any way an authentic global organization.”

Fridell mentioned that UN head BanKi-Moon “suggested that Palestinian

membership of UN agencies is ‘not beneficial.’ He is trying to maneuver between sides saying that UN General Assembly supports the vote but every time they get on agencies the US and Canada withdraw their money.”

With the understanding that the UN is in a tough position between its powerhouses and its majority, Fridell said that for “the US and Canada, the UN is like a tool for them, a game to them. It really exposes how our Government and the US government see the UN.” He continued, “In some ways the Palestinians should get on every organization they can now to expose Canada and the US. Until the day comes that the UN has its own independent source of income, it will never be a truly meaningful global organization.

They will always have to toe the line to powerful countries.”

Amid the retaliations to the decision, UNESCO produced a press release which points out that in order for a group or state which is not a member of the UN to become a member of a UN organization (such as UNESCO), a recommendation from the organization’s Executive Board and a twothirds majority vote are required. In other words, support for this decision was strong and existed in the Executive Board as well as the General Assembly.

UNESCO also said in their statement that Palestine, like all members, must sign and ratify the UN Constitution before it becomes an active member. As the United Nations Constitution pivots on concepts of peace and the pursuit of peace, the application for membership and potential signing and ratifying of the constitution suggests a viable step in the right direction.

The question of whether or not this is a step in the right direction was a primary concern in Arthur’s interview with Dr. Feyzi Baban, a Trent Professor whose courses this year include “Global Governance and Social Justice” as well as “Government & Politics in Middle East.”

When asked if he felt that Palistine’s application to the United Nations indicated a desire for peace and assistance in attaining that peace, Dr. Baban told Arthur, “I think this is a certain change of strategy on the

part of Palestinians. I think part of the reason they’re striving for UN membership is to incorporate international community in negotiations.”

In regards to whether UNESCO membership would help Palestine’s application to other UN agencies or the United Nations as a whole, Baban pointed out that “UNESCO membership is not going to help with the security council because the US already indicated that they will veto recognition of Palestine as a state...However this will have impact on other agencies such as the International Labour Organization and World Health Organizations, many of those organizations do not require recognition as a state for membership.” Baban said that the “significance of UNESCO’s decision is that it puts pressure on the US - it further isolates the US and Israel with respect to their position on Palestine.”

Arthur asked Baban whether he anticipated positive or negative outcomes in terms of life in the Middle East with Palestine seeing this small success in diplomatic relations. He said, “This is only a small part of what’s going on but I think in my personal assessment that more involvement of the UN is not a bad thing. It’s a good thing. In the last 30 years the relations between the Israelis and the Palestinians haven’t been progressing. Obviously something has to change, perhaps involvement of the UN and international community is a good avenue.”

Finally it came down to if Dr. Baban felt that things were moving in the right direction. He said that “...it’s a very fragmented situation, not a conducive situation to peace. Perhaps there is need for a larger international community to take part within this process.”

No decision is without consequences.

This has been made clear by the United States, Canada and Israel’s reactions in the wake of UNESCO’s decision. The fact remains however, that powerful as those consequences were, perhaps what’s more powerful is the disconcerting realization that the United Nations is struggling to remain credible while catering to the all-powerful security council.

sports

Excalibur Men’s Rugby Team are (finally) OCAA Medal Winners

By Ivan Lam

It has been a bruising season for the Trent Excalibur Men’s Varsity Rugby Team in the 2011-2012 regular season. The team experienced the loss of some major players during the season, but that did not prevent them from winning the first OCAA medal for Trent University.

At the beginning of the season, the team was disturbed by the absence of several crucial players from last year’s roster. With new players coming in and the lack of veteran stability, everyone wrote this team off and not many had faith in its success.

Despite the negative opinions, the team had goals and ambitions, eager to get together and display the talent they had.

Fortunately, that was the case.

As head coach Dave McCully once said, rugby is not a scripted event. As training camp progressed over late August, along with exhibition games against other schools, it was obvious that the team had a lot to improve on and the chemistry between players was yet to develop. At that point, a number of players quit the team and the path to success seemed even harder.

Eventually, with a clear mindset and wise guidance, the work rate of the players who remained on the team only increased.

It is fair to suggest that the negativity the team received from the outside world only made the individuals became more of a unit. Night in and night out, all the committed players showed up at practice with humble attitude but high intensity, keen to improve as a team. By the end of the regular season, the result that had been achieved exceeded everyone’s expectations. The team was ranked third in the league with a record of three wins and two losses, getting the privilege to host the quarterfinal game at home.

The enemy that night was a team that Trent has already faced earlier in the season, serving them a cold defeat of 4019. The story was different that night when the two teams met again. Trent showed a lack of effort and had to play catch-up

after falling behind in the first half. As the end of the game was approaching, Trent showed realization of how important that game was to them and came out with a close victory, winning by two points.

The next opponent who stood between them and the qualification to compete for the gold medal was Humber College, the gold medalist of last year’s OCAA Division One championship. These two teams had already faced each other at the Head of Trent and Trent was defeated with the outcome of 38-13.

Although the final score might not have reflected the effort of the Trent Excalibur, it was one of the best defensive games Trent has played this season. It was then that the team knew with solid confirmation that they had the potential to achieve outstanding results in this league.

The team touched down in Toronto on a sunny Saturday afternoon to face this strong enemy again, and this time, expectation was much higher not just from the coaches but the players themselves. In those 80 minutes, the two teams showed competition at its peak, forcing each other to play catch-up constantly. Humber had possession most of the game but Trent showed no hesitation in defence, standing strong on their feet, taking everything down that came their way.

The result was a close loss. It was disappointing for the Trent Excalibur but players had every reason to keep their heads held high, for they had left everything on that rugby pitch. One of the drivers for players in that game was an instruction from the coach himself; “just go play rugby.” It was an emotional game for both players and coaches, because in that game, this club showed the world what they are made of and the level that they can compete at.

The team then went on to face Mohawk College to compete for the bronze medal at home. The competition turned out to be tough, as the Mohawk Mountaineers were hungry and furious from their last defeat, fueled by a lingering hope to achieve the bronze medal. As expected it was not an

Photos submitted by Ivan Lam

easy game for Trent, but the outcome was a victory and Trent University’s first ever OCAA medal was obtained by a team that was looked down upon at the beginning of the season. Two of the players on the team were also selected as the OCAA all stars, flanker Adam Anderson and captain Graham

brief

Abbott. Some might say it is only a bronze medal, but the meaning of it exceeds far more than what meets the eye. It is a token that represents a dedicated coach and a group of young talented players who came together, leaving everything they had in them on the rugby pitch every night.

cartoon

30 new Parliament seats anticipated

By Sara Ostrowska

Parliament is going to look a little different for the next election in 2015. There will 30 new seats added to the House of Commons, increasing the current number of 308 up to 338. The legislation, dubbed The Fair Representation Act, is an attempt to balance under-represented and over-represented provinces.

Ontario, British Columbia, and Alberta are currently under-represented with their fast-growing populations.

Ontario will get 15 new seats, B.C. and Alberta will each get 6, and Quebec will get 3. The new addition of seats will increase the cost of elections by 11.5 million and increase the budget for the House of Commons by 14.8 million annually.

The Liberals are concerned about adding 30 new seats during tight economic times, but sceptical of the solution to the under representation in general. Bob Rae asked, “Is it really sensible for us to be increasing the overall size of the House of Commons every time we have a new census? The National Assembly of France doesn’t do it. The British House of Commons doesn’t do it. The American House of Representatives doesn’t do it.”

The calculation that these new seats are based on is rather simple: each riding in Canada should represent about 111,000 people, according to the Conservative government.

The redrawing of Canada’s electoral map won’t happen until after the bill is passed, and will be done by independent commissions appointed by chief justices in the provinces. The commissions will hold public hearings and consult with sitting MPs. This is the third attempt by Stephen Harper’s government to add new seats into the Commons, and now with a majority, the bill is expected to pass as early as the end of this year.

Anne Emond - comiques.tumblr.com

Volume 46 | Issue 10 | November 21, 2011

5

CAMPUS

By Matt Jarvis, with files from Anthony P. Gulston

Billed as “Trent University's most exciting teachers! Talking for 15 minutes each!

About ideas they think are EXTRAORDINARY!”, Enweying 2011 was probably trying too hard right from the start. A cross between a conference and a desperate round of academic speed dating, the event felt more like a marketing campaign to bolster Trent enrolment than a free exchange of ideas.

In the midst of all the cheerleading for Trent's departments, there was, indeed, a sharing of thought provoking ideas presented by members of Trent's faculty. Here is a small sampling...

Suresh Narine: Director of the Trent University Centre for Biomaterials Research and Professor of Physics, Astronomy and Chemistry

I now work with companies like Monsanto. I work with companies like Pepsi and Archer Daniels Midland and all the large multi conglomerates.

The thing is, these power structures exist and while it helps to rail against the machine, it isn’t always successful and we need different strategies in which to take back our place at the table.

One of those strategies is harnessing the intellectual potential that those companies absolutely need, which exists at universities. ... [B]eing able to speak the language well enough and understand the power we bring to negotiate partnerships with them... allows us to help change the world the way we see it because they are absolutely amazing vehicles.

If you think of a new technology making its way into the practices of Monsanto you are immediately going to affect a very large volume of the world. [Multinationals] are also very effective vehicles and we have to start seeing them that way as well.

Rory Coughlan: Associate Professor of Psychology.

Katherine Norlock: Kenneth Mark Drain Endowed Chair in Ethics and Professor of Philosophy

The other big danger is of course, magical thinking. And this is where we can be such fools because we love stories. We love people giving us a narrative.

But sometimes those stories that we tell to each other can lead us in the wrong direction. We start to believe myths about different peoples. We start to believe myths about some afterlife, heaven that will be coming for us so that we just do what we’re told now and everything will be better.

We start to believe fairy stories about monetarist economics - that if we just go along with what all the bankers say and what the corporations say that somehow everything will be okay. […] We can be stampeded into believing things which are completely irrational because we love these stories. […] In these stories are both the best things about human nature and the dangers that will undermine our survival as a species.

Pessimists don’t have to look to positive consequences. Instead, pessimism encourages you to shift your attention away from the consequences. If you’re an optimist -- if you hope for positive outcomes and a better future -- it could really distress you when someone points out that your protest won’t result in a better future. It might make an optimist wonder why to bother protesting at all.

Ask a pessimist, we have answers.

Shift your attention away from the possible positive outcomes. There has to be a better reason to act. There has to be a better reason then the positive outcome of your struggle. And that better reason could just be that the vulnerable people of the world and the vulnerable non-humans of the world make moral demands on us, that there are things we ought to do whether or not we are going to realize positive outcomes to our action.

Rosemary Ganley Delivers 22nd Margaret Laurence Lecture Women & God-Talk Feminist Theologies Challenge Patriarchy

By Alissa Paxton

Original caption: Margaret Laurence, left, guest speaker at last night’s YWCA Woman of the Year ceremonies, congratulates this year’s recipient of the award Rosemary Ganley.

Image from the Peterborough Examiner.

6

The Margaret Laurence Lecture is hosted each year by the Gender & Women Studies Department to honour renowed Canadian author, former Trent chancellor, and activist Margaret Laurence by exploring issues of peace, ecology, and feminism. Previous lecturers include Naomi Klein, Roberta Jamison, and Ursula Franklin. This year's lecturer was Rosemary Ganley, retired Peterborough teacher, journalist, and co-founder of Jamaican SelfHelp. In 1985 Ganley was awarded the YWCA Woman of the Year award, presented by her friend Margaret Laurence.

Ganley is a Catholic feminist and former editor of the progressive, lay-edited Catholic New Times and her lecture addressed the perceived contradiction of women of faith who are working for women's equality while remaining within their faith traditions. Ganley pointed to first-wave feminist Elizabeth Cady Stanton who, in 1848, declared the root of women's oppression laid in the patriarchal religions and encouraged women to examine and re-interpret the Bible with an eye to women's emancipation.

Ganley went on to profile the work of 18 women from the three Abrahamic faiths (Judaism, Christianity, and Islam) working to challenge this patriarchal stranglehold over religious institutions and theologies, with negative impacts for women and girls. Among them were radical nuns, rabbis, professors, and theologians who argue that the main tenets of their faith support equality and social justice and that the greatest sins lie in exploitation and domination.

While women doing this work in secular democracies face harsh censure from the institutions they challenge, Ganley argued that it is especially important to support women around the world who are putting their lives at risk to challenge oppression. Linking these ideas back to the life and work of Laurence, Ganley argued that the arts: fiction, poetry, and music, are one of the best places to explore issues of faith and justice and to find inspiration.

Rosemary Ganley has taught courses on feminist theology at both the academic and popular level and those who want a copy of the lecture or a list for further reading are encouraged to get in touch with her at rosemaryganley@ hotmail.com.

ARTS

Some of Trent’s most talented actors shine in recent production of Chicago

By Cornel Grey

Chicago came to Peterborough for two weeks in early November this year, and some would have had it stay a far time longer.

Staged at the Showplace Performance Centre downtown, and presented by the St. James Players, Chicago the musical showed off the best that Peterborough has to offer in the area of performing arts. With Brian MacDonald as director, choreographed by Rachel Bemrose with musical directors Justin Hiscox and Pamela Birrell, Chicago brought together a diverse cast who brought every moment, every song and gesture to life, much to the pleasure of the audience.

The musical chronicles the stories of Roxie Hart (played by Marsala Lukianchuk) and Velma Kelly (Jennifer Moher); two women who are in jail after the murder of their partners. The play highlights the conflict between both women upon meeting each other behind prison walls as well as their pursuit of freedom through the help of renowned lawyer Billy Flynn (Geoff Bemrose).

The musical features several Trent students, both current and alumni. Arthur caught up with alumni Jennifer Moher who plays one of the leads and Ju Hyeong Park (a cast member who currently attends Trent) and this is what they had to say:

Arthur:Is acting something you see yourself pursuing as a long-term profession?

Jennifer Moher: I am a business owner and a mother of two, so acting is not exactly in my future. I would, however love to do keep doing local shows when I can find the time!

Ju Hyeong Park: I don't exactly see myself acting in the long run, but I definitely see the importance of gaining experience like this for me, especially when I enjoy every minute of it.

A: How did you get involved with acting/singing? How many plays/musicals have you been in? Could you name a few?

JM: I got involved three years ago while waiting for a friend to audition for a Trent musical. I decided (very last minute) to audition. I ended up getting a fantastic part and became addicted to it! The following year I was able to be part of The Pajama Game at Trent. Chicago is my third show, and what a great third show it was!

JHP: My first musical was The Pajama Game with the Anne Shirley Theatre Company (ASTC) in my first year at Trent. I was in that show with none other than the amazing Jen Moher. I was also in The Wedding Singer last year.

A: What play/musical do you want to be in most?

JM: Actors always have their dream roles, and Velma Kelly was mine. One thing I admire about Velma is her stamina and her determination to get what she wants. This is something of me that I was able to pour into the role.

JHP: I already was in the musical I wanted the most: Chicago!

A: What was it about Chicago that drew you in? Is there anything about the story that you connect to in particular?

JHP: Chicago is my favourite musical, because of its style. The dancing is incredible and I think the dark humour and parodies it makes on society make the show very relatable.

A: How long as the cast been working on the musical? How often and how long did it take to rehearse lines, songs and choreography?

JM: Dancers have been working on the show since the June. The cast officially all started working together in September. It was about 8 weeks of rehearsals. We had certain days dedicated to certain aspects of the show, Monday was character development, Wednesday was dance, Friday was scene work and Sunday was vocals. Speaking for myself, being a non-dancer, the choreography was very challenging, and very demanding. It certainly allowed us to get into great shape!

A: How is the camaraderie amongst the actors?

JM: The camaraderie is incredible. It's amazing how close you can get to a cast within 8 weeks.

We have all become a family, so supportive and enthusiastic toward one another. I feel so blessed to have working with this cast.

JHP: If I could comment on the camaraderie among the cast, I think Chicago really truly lucked out on a great cast. Everybody supported each other and used each other on stage for the pure purpose to put on a great show. It was such a selfless, supportive, and talent-packed environment.

A: What would you say is the biggest struggle that the team experienced in putting on the show during this whole process?

JM: There really wasn't all that much of a struggle, everything seemed to click and just work! I would say the most challenging aspect of it all was the choreography, but Rachel Bemrose is a genius and so patient, so energetic, so supportive, she was such a huge part of this show being the great show it became!

JHP: The biggest struggle for me was the intense rehearsal schedule that consisted of every other day, if not every day, close to opening night. But when you have such a fun cast like Chicago, you end up not minding spending entire days on stage.

A: How do you manage rehearsals with your academic obligations?

JHP: I tried my best not to let the show affect my academic obligations as much as possible.

I prepared myself for the show from September by getting everything done in school and doing a little extra to put myself ahead in my courses. I succeeded in some of my courses, but in others I could not manage putting myself ahead in time that when show dates finally rolled around I could not help but get behind. I think planning and sticking to the plan was how I managed to get through the show with my academics.

Photography by Andrew Tan

Volume 46 | Issue 10 | November 21, 2011

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arts

Interpersonal relationships at the forefront of Mysterious Entity’s Othello Adaptation

By Anthony P. Gulston

Rob Fortin, who plays Brabantino, Montano, and Lodovico dukes it out with Dan Kildey (Cassio).

Photos by Skye Ryan-Evans.

Once a year, Mysterious Entity puts on a Shakespeare production for youth that reflects the themes dealt with in the company’s original productions. This year’s production has been abridged by Rob Fortin for a cast of 8. Em Glasspool, the director of Othello, said that the shortened version makes the play more accessible and allows for the relationships between the characters to be emphasized.

Othello’s title character is a moorish General in the Venetian army. Othello is married to Desdemona, much to her father’s dissatisfaction. Iago, an ensign in Othello’s army, secretly resents Othello because he promoted Cassio, a younger man, above him. For revenge, Iago frames Desdemona for adultery, and then things take a turn for the worse...

Othello star Beau Dixon came to Peterborough in 1999 because his mother owned a house here. She took him to a performance at Millbrook’s 4th Line Theatre, where he first saw Em Glasspool. Since then they have always had a friendly working relationship.

Dixon played Claudius in Mysterious Entity’s Hamlet in a Hurry, a shortened version of Hamlet that they toured around schools when the Market Hall was under construction.

Dixon has also directed at 4th Line and is the proprietor of the local Sound Kitchen recording studio.

Brad Breckenridge, who plays Iago in this production, also played Claudius in a Mysterious Entity production of Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead. “You played Claudius too?” Dixon joked with Breckenridge, “You must have hated seeing me, just judging me.” Breckenridge is a puppeteer as well, and has done some directing in his time, but he always likes coming to Peterborough to work because it’s “nice to come home to a family, a community.” Over the summer, he created the puppets for and acted in Public Energy’s Terror & Erebus, which was a unique style of wandering theatre through Jackson Creek Park. He was in the very first Mysterious Entity production in 1999, Sam Sheppard’s True West.

Since Glasspool, Breckenridge, and Dixon are all actors and directors, Arthur was interested in what the major differences were. “It’s more painful to be a director and you leave with more scars than an actor,” Dixon said. Breckenridge pointed out that it is nicer to be an actor because you have a very well-defined role and you are only responsible for your own character. There is a tension with an actor who feels like a director because they always have an opinion, and this brings the director’s vision out of focus. Glasspool said that she always did best as an actor when she felt like the director had everything under control, had a very obvious, singular vision for the show.

Fight director Michael Dufey was brought in to perfect all of the fight scenes in the production. His knowledge of physicality and Glasspool’s knowledge of what she wanted to get out of the fight scenes added another level to an already layered play. Dixon said of the experience that: “He’s showing us another path that we hadn’t discovered.”

Despite their difficult reputation, Glasspool said that Shakespeare’s plays, once staged, are fun to watch and easy to understand. Breckenridge made the point that when Shakespeare is done well, it is great, but it is obvious when it is done poorly. Shakespeare is an actor’s delight, according to Beau Dixon. “Actors are forced to re-behave based on that these words are really saying.”

Othello also offers modern day relevance and plenty of action. “We see every day the effect that not only racism and sexism, but also religious discrimination, has on our world. From wars raging in the Middle East to senseless acts of bullying and cruelty in the halls of local high schools, these themes remain ever valid,” says Glasspool.

Othello opens November 22 at Market Hall for a pay-what-you-can special Groundlings preview at 8pm and Wednesday November 23 there is a pay-what-you-can matinee at 12:30pm. The show continues on until Friday at the Market Hall, 8pm showings for $15.

Rob Fortin, Matt Gilbert (Roderigo), Brad Brackenridge (Iago), Dan Kildey, and Beau Dixon (Othello).

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arts

DiCaprio Shines in Eastwood’s J. Edgar Biopic

By Brian Lukaszewicz

I have a feeling that this film, as with pretty much any biography of J. Edgar Hoover, is going to be debated for a long time to come.

The man was an enigmatic figure and any attempt to explore his highly guarded private life is going to be marred with speculation.

But historical accuracy is really only one piece of the puzzle – the J. Edgar Hoover depicted by Leonardo DiCaprio is a fascinating character, and in the end that should be more than enough reason to see the film.

Judged solely on its ability to hold my attention, J. Edgar scores high marks. I knew little of Hoover’s legacy before going into this film, so watching director Clint Eastwood reconstruct the era, with “context” as Hoover would put it, was an absorbing experience. So much so that I entered into a Wikipedia foray (the most reliable source on just about everything, no matter what your profs say) on the subject almost the second I got home. As ruthless as he was as a lawman, Hoover was light-years before his time when it came to using forensics to solve crimes.

Of course, the flip side of that Wikipedia exploration is the fact that J. Edgar can oftentimes be a very confusing film.

It frequently jumps from timeline to timeline, in and out of different investigations and different eras, while throwing in an unreliable narrator for good measure. Needless to say, there were times during the movie where I wasn’t sure what year we were

in or the significance of certain events, and subsequent research was needed.

However, throughout it all, DiCaprio shines. J. Edgar is one part historical drama and one part character study and DiCaprio does a fantastic job of the latter, skilfully capturing Hoover over the four decades he spent as the Director of the FBI (with a little help from the makeup department). It’s through DiCaprio that we get to delve into Hoover the man, a man of many contradictions, to learn exactly what made him do what he did. His rumoured homosexuality, his unusual relationship with his mother – without the strength of a quality actor like DiCaprio these aspects of the character would fall short.

DiCaprio certainly doesn’t do it all on his own though. Dame Judi Dench makes excellent use of her limited screen time as Hoover’s somewhat controlling mother, and Armie Hammer (both of the Winklevoss twins in The Social Network) undergoes a similar age transformation, giving a strong performance as Hoover’s alleged romantic partner and second-in-command, despite the apparent difficulty of turning a 25-year-old into a convincing old man.

Inevitably, J. Edgar is the kind of movie that needs to be seen before it can be judged. The film is undoubtedly divisive, and not because of the controversy that will likely surround the depiction of Hoover’s personal life, but simply because of the way the narrative is structured. It’s the kind of film that could just as easily win Academy Awards as it could disappear into obscurity, and it’s safe to assume the opinions of its audience will vary accordingly.

3.5/5

Snowblink’s Gesundheit chats about bugs, mountains, and Michael

By Matt Jarvis

Toronto folk duo Snowblink plays sparse and beautiful music.

In 2008, Daniela Gesundheit (what a great name) packed up her bags, blew a kiss to the California mountains and took the long trek to our Great White North. Her musical project, amongst other things, found a natural match in prolific and messy haired musician, Dan Goldman. Naturally, as these stories go, the two were married and have been happily singing since.

Gesundheit’s voice brings to mind the next generation of the soft, strong women of song whose ranks have included fellow Californian, Mirah, and Canada’s Julie Doiron.

Daniela was gracious enough to chat with Arthur about a few random points of interest.

Arthur: You spend a good portion of the video for “Ambergris” covered in ladybugs. Is there a story behind that?

Ms. Gesundheit: It was the filmmaker, Terri Loewenthal’s idea. We went to a garden centre and bought a few jars

of ladybugs and I lay in the Oakland, California hills and she dumped them on my face. The sensations that ensued are indescribable. Thousands of little lady-legs in constant motion. Oh my. But then a few months later Vice magazine did a whole spread of models covered in ladybugs. Blatant rip-off?

A: Chromewaves.com’s Frank Yang described your latest record as “cloud watching from a grassy hillside.” What is your relationship with the natural world?

DG: I grew up in California, with regular trips to the beach, desert, and mountain landscapes that it offers. I find that after too much time in a city I get a sort of backlog of anxiety that can only be undone by a hot beach day, or a long hike up a steep mountain.

A: Almost all the Snowblink reviews I have read have brought up your transition from California to Canada. How has the change of scenery affected your relationship with music?

DG: Well, it’s certainly expanded my music community and I have become more of a social musical creature (as opposed to a primarily solitary music-maker). I also have incorporated

more synthetic sounds and percussive elements which might have something to do with my more urban environment.

Though the midi patch we use most often is called “Calm Beach” so there nature is again.

A: In your 2010 Daytrotter.com live session, you chose to perform 4 selections from “the King of Pop.” Why Michael?

DG: His music just hit me all at once-- I mean, I had always listened to his music. I had the Thriller viewfinder slides and cassettes as a child. Dan and I were writing at a cottage on Lake Erie, and I would prepare these covers sort of as a break from writing, to clear my head, and also to get in touch with the work of a master. Then a few months later, he died, which made my sudden interest in his music all the more pertinent I suppose.

Snowblink is playing on Saturday November 26 at 9pm at the Gordon Best Theatre alongside soulful Toronto folk ensemble, Bruce Peninsula, and local well-groomed hero Mike Duguay. Tickets are $12 in advance (at The Only Café) or $15 at the door.

Win Snowblink tickets!

Arthur has a pair of tickets to give away for Bruce Peninsula, Snowblink, and Michael Duguay this Saturday, Nov. 26 at the Gordon Best.

To enter, follow our Twitter account. Send us a tweet with your recommendation of an artist you’d like to see interviewed next.

We will randomly select a winner on Thursday Nov. 24. See ya on the internet!

twitter.com/ trentarthur

Volume 46 | Issue 10 | November 21, 2011

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columns

[CMA] CEAA unlikely to pass“New” Prosperity project proposal

By Natalie Guttormsson

The Federal Government recently announced that the “New Prosperity” project proposal would go forward and be submitted to the Canadian Environmental Assessment Agency (CEAA) where a 12-month evaluation and review would begin.

The decision brought heavy criticism from many sides, including the Tsilhqot’in First Nation, whose territory will be directly affected by the mine, the BC NDP, and the Sierra Club amongst many others.

There are many reasons why this proposal has sparked such outrage but it is best summarized by Marilyn Baptiste, Chief of the Xeni Gwet’in First Nation (one of six nations within the Tsilhqot’in National Government) in an article featured in Northern Miner and accessible via the Raven Trust website. Her eight reasons why the New Prosperity project will fail are as follows: 1. The Federal CEAA report, rejecting the original Prosperity project, was not even close to the rubber-stamped report by the BC Government.

2. The company, Taseko Mines Ltd., knows its new option is as bad as, or worse than, the original that was previously rejected.

3. “New” Prosperity is not, in fact, “new.” It is simply “Mine Development Plan 2” from the original project proposal.

4. The additional $300 million to be spent on the project is not a pre-emptive decision to make the project more acceptable. It is actually an obligatory expense since the Government denied the company the permission to drain Fish Lake and use it as a tailings pond. The $300 million is the expense to build their own pond.

5. The Canadian Government is obligated by the Constitution and the UN Declaration

on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, to protect First Nations. The Xeni Gwet’in would be directly and adversely affected by the project proposed.

6. An approval now would render the environmental assessment process meaningless.

7. The Department of Fisheries and Oceans opposed the project when it was first announced in 1995. They rejected it last year, and will do so again next year because nothing in the proposal has changed. The CEAA found last year in its report that Option Two was worse than Option One. 8. There are many other, more worthwhile mining projects to focus on that will also require the government to work with Aboriginal communities. The Government is wasting its time with this already failed project.

Minister of the Environment, Peter Kent has been quoted as claiming, “Our government always balances environmental concerns with Canadians’ top priority – jobs and the economy.” However, the decision to review the Prosperity project a second time makes it look like the scales are tipped in favour of economy and jobs, not in balance. As Fin Donnelly, the NDP Fisheries critic said, this new assessment process is “a waste of time and taxpayers’ dollars.”

As the project begins its second review process, the Province of BC has given the company a license to build 23.5 km of roads and construct 59 test pits and 18 drillholes in preparation. Given the year-long review process, this license granted by the Province is a pre-mature action that snubs the official environmental assessment process.

It is now more important than ever to pressure the Federal Government to maintain its credibility and reject this project once again. Letters can be written to (but not limited to) Peter Kent, Minister of the Environment: kentp@parl.gc.ca, our local Member of Parliament; Dean Del Mastro: delmad@parl.gc.ca; and the CEAA: cear.rcee@ceaa-acee.gc.ca.

Watch for campaigns and letter writing sessions with Canadians for Mining Awareness throughout the coming year.

Trent Radio Needs YOU to be an Operator!

By Caileigh Morrison

Trent Radio only has three employees: the General Manager, the Programme Director and the Production Manager. These three employees obviously cannot be at the station for every hour the broadcast facilities are in use, which means that Trent Radio relies on volunteer operators.

This season is the busiest Trent Radio has ever encountered, which means that we need more operators to monitor the broadcast and make sure everything runs smoothly. Interested but not sure if it’s for you?

Read on to see what a typical four-hour operating shift looks like:

4:59pm - Arrive at Trent Radio.

5:00-5:05pm - Chat with out-going operator, programmers, and other loiterers in Trent Radio kitchen.

5:06pm - Ensure that there’s coffee in the coffeemaker by pouring a large mug for yourself. In the event that there is no coffee, brew more.

5:07-5:50pm - Monitor broadcast (a.k.a. listen to the radio) to ensure that no major screw-ups are occurring. Continually sip coffee.

5:51-5:59pm - Mentally prepare to broadcast.

6:00-6:04pm - Begin Smooth Operator broadcast with a station ID and intro.

6:05-6:29pm - Read community announcements and play local music and sponsorship spots.

6:30pm - Pass the studio off to the next programmer.

6:31-6:45pm - Monitor broadcast. Sip more coffee.

6:46pm - Greet newly arrived programmer.

6:47pm - Feel belly rumbling.

6:48-6:52pm - Chat with the pizza/ fish and chips/ Indian food representative on the phone.

Order something greasy and delicious.

6:53-7:22pm - Impatiently wait for pizza/ fish and chips /Indian food to arrive while gulping back another cup of coffee and monitoring the broadcast.

7:23pm - Greet early bird eight o’clock programmer gruffly. You can’t help it. You’re hungry.

7:24pm - Rejoice at the arrival of the delivery person with your nourishment.

7:25-7:55pm - Hungrily tear into your food while engaging in interesting conversation with the early bird. They’re much cooler when you’re not hungry.

7:56pm - Admonish the early bird for attempting to bring their coffee cup into the studio.

Don’t you know there are no liquids allowed in there?

7:57-8:39pm - Sit back and monitor the early bird’s broadcast, which is actually really good.

Liquids in the studio faux pas forgiven. Sip your third cup of coffee.

8:40-8:50pm - Wash the dishes. Wonder how one kitchen can hold so many coffee cups.

8:50-8:59pm - Write in the Operator’s Log about your evening. Draw a picture of a unicorn eating ice cream.

9:00-9:03pm - Shoo out the final programmer to play the last sponsorship spot and the signoff before switching over to Radio Free Peterborough.

9:04-9:06pm - Do a final check to make sure everything’s in order, set the alarm, and...

9:07pm- LEAVE feeling jittery. Promise yourself to never drink that much coffee again, but give in next week during YOUR NEXT OPERATING SHIFT! So, to recap: as an operator, you get to spend your evening hanging out at Trent Radio, chatting with all sorts of cool cats and drinking lots of coffee, and your only responsibilities are to tidy up, lock up, and make sure the building doesn’t burn down and that your programmers aren’t spewing hate speech all over the airwaves. Why wouldn’t you want to be an operator?

For more information on becoming an operator or Trent Radio in general, contact Programme Director James Kerr at jkerr@trentradio.ca. And remember, the more operators we have, the more programmes we can fit into the schedule!

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column

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Science Says…

Your fancy degrees will soon be obsolete.

By Matt Jarvis

It’s November. If you are a squirrel you are packing nuts into your cheeks and burying them all over my backyard. If you are my grandparents, you are packing your beltless khakis into tasteless luggage and winabagoing them all the way to the Florida Keys.

And…if you are a fellow student, your mouth begins to dry as your frame of vision drifts into the air about an inch in front and below your nose. Panic begins to hula hoop through your intestines as your mind tries to justify the previous months’ procrastination…have we learned anything? Have we learned enough to fool our professors into a general belief that we have learned something? Did we read our books? Did we write our papers?

November at Trent is a rat race to see who has enough will power to karate flu symptoms into a stalemate until midterms are past. But at the end of this mental gauntlet, the prize is in sight. Officially recognized knowledge. Patience and endurance are the only way to learn this crap, right?...Right?

Thomas Berger is a Professor of biomedical engineering at the University of Southern California. One of the issues his research engages with is “the extent to which the essential functions of a neural system can be incorporated within a hardware representation.”

Berger et al. are currently preparing a paper documenting the replacement of a nonfunctioning hippocampus with a neural prosthesis. The hippocampus is a section of the brain that, among other things, plays an important role in the transition of information from short to long term memory.

The basic results of this study are that the machine works. A rat learned to get water repeatedly by pushing a lever while having no natural means of remembering the information. The implications of this are stunning. There is currently a machine capable of transmitting information into (potentially human) long term memories. The extrapolated consequences of this are the irrelevancy of traditional educational models and “the expert”. The whole body of knowledge pertaining to any particular field could be transmitted directly into your brain.

But let’s not get ahead of ourselves! While this artificial hippocampus works in the consolidation of information, it is still our natural senses that are transmitting the messages. Science has yet to translate the simplest sentence into code “readable” by our brains.

Does this mean the expert integrity of our dear professors is safe? Absolutely not.

Jack Gallant is a Professor of Psychology focusing on systems and computational neuroscience at Berkeley. His lab to works “to understand the structure and function of the human visual system at a quantitative, computational level, and to build models that accurately predict how the brain will respond during natural vision.”

Basically, the scientists at Gallant Lab use fMRI to monitor the brains of human subjects as they are exposed to various visual stimuli. The most recent success of their research is the reconstruction of a video being watched based on brain readings alone.

Although the results are not crystal clear and are based on conglomeration of a set of images, the similarity between the original film and the reconstruction is unmistakeable (look up Jack Gallant on youtube).

As the body of information grows, decoding the brain’s response to sensual stimulus will become more coherent. The idea of reversing the process from reading to writing is the beginning of a language that spans the natural and technological worlds. Used with neural prosthesis, memory implantation is looking more and more possible.

And why not? “Ho hum,” I hear you Gen. Y, Orwell reading luddites mumbling in your musty basements. Yes, of course we should be wary of technology, and no I do not want the government implanting nationalistic propaganda into me as I sleep. But I can’t help but imagine the possibilities of such a technology. True empathy would finally be possible. With the right direction, this technology could break down all barriers separating human beings by allowing us to experience life from one another’s perspective. The intellectual development of our species could be catapulted forward with millions of individuals working from a collective personal knowledge base. And we also wouldn’t have to do homework anymore. Bonus.

Volume 46 | Issue 10 | October 21, 2011

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Listings Urinetown Auditions: Auditions for Tony Award winning musical, Urinetown! November 22 and 23 from 6:30-9:30pm and November 27 from 2-5pm at the Peterborough Theatre Guild. Please bring music, your acting chops and impressive talent! For more questions contact Sarah Tye at sarah.lynn.tye@gmail.com. Hope to see you there!

Mock Interview: Participate in a Mock Interview! Get interview experience, get valuable feedback, network and meet professionals in a range of fields have your resume reviewed and targeted. Your first step is to attend one of our interview workshops happening on November 23 at 3pm, February 14 at 10am, or March 8 at 10am. Go to www.trentu.ca/careers to register for the workshops. You may charge the Career Centre in CC204, Champlain College.

Food Handlers Course: Wednesday, November 16 and 23 at St Andrew’s United Church, 441 Rubidge St, lower hall (use Kirk St door) 6-9pm. If you spend any time in a kitchen, making anything for the church, you need to take the Food Handler’s Course, by the Peterborough City/County Health Unit. Right now it is free for the two nights and testing. Get it while the price is right! Register with church office 705-745-2722 The Centre for Gender and Social Justice: Is hosting a film screening, potluck dinner and candle lit vigil in honor of Trans Day of Remembrance on November 21 at the lower level of Kawartha Endodontics Clinic, 425 Water St (@ Hunter St.) 5:30-7:30pm. We will be showing Screaming Queens. 7:30pm is the candle lit walk to City Hall where we will hold a vigil. The Trent Queer Collective will also be creating a zine in honor of Trans Day of Remembrance. Those wishing to submit are asked to contact the TQC at trentqueercollective@gmail. com.

Abundance: Thursday November 24, 7-8:30pm Sadleir House, 751 George St. N. Join us for a fun and informal discussion. Abundance is hidden in the invisible, universal substance which contains all things. Share when you have been able to work with this divine creative power, or when you have not. Learn how to create what you want in harmony with all life. No charge. All welcome.

Find our group at meetup.com (The Peterborough Spiritual Adventures Group) or email Marc for more info: nikobilz@ gmail.com.

Film Screening: On Thursday, November 24 at 7:30pm come out and watch the movie Blue Valentine (2010). At Hausu, 240 Murray Street. Matt Harris, PhD student in Cultural Studies, will introduce us to the film. The cost is FREE! For more information visit us at www.facebook.com/Hausu “The intoxication of narcotic modernity: addiction, the body, and the city”: On Thursday, November 24 at 7:30pm come out to 105 Scott House at Traill College (Trent’s downtown graduate college). To listen to a talk by Christopher Smith (ex-Trent student) on drugs, harm reduction and city space. Followed by discussion. Sponsored by the Cultural

Studies Department and Cultural Studies PhD Program. Everybody welcome. No charge, free coffee.

Community & Race Relations Committee: Join us as we celebrate another year!

The Annual General Meeting of the Community and Race Relations Committee of Peterborough will be taking place on Thursday, November 24 from 5:00-8:00pm at the Peterborough Public Library (345 Aylmer St. N) downstairs in the Auditorium. Free, everyone welcome.

Gallery in the House presents its second annual Christmas show: “Electric City Lights” will feature the works of over 20 local artists and craftspeople. The opening is on Friday November 25 at 8pm, with a performance by video artist Lester Alfonso, the show will run every weekend until Christmas.11am-5pm.

Saturday & Sunday, Nov. 26 & 27, Dec. 3 & 4, 10 & 11, 17 & 18.

Jazz Duo, pianist Biff Hannon and Vocalist Dona Collison. At Curry Village, 306 George Street on Saturday, November 26 from 6-9pm. No cover. Hope to see you there!

Trent Athletics Hosts National Coaching Courses: All courses held at the Trent Community Sport & Recreation Centre. The courses, which are suitable for coaches in sports at all competitive levels and all ages, are open to all coaches and interested members of the community.

Introduction to competition B: This is on Friday, November 25 7pm-10pm AND Saturday, November 26 8:30am-5pm. The cost is $110/person+ HST (includes materials) Both courses will be taught by instructor Mary Stever. Registration is now open! Register online at www.trentu.ca/athletics. Previous coach training not required.

Reading Group: Friday, December 2 at 4pm, Wednesday, December 7 at 5pm and Friday, December 9 at 4pm. Deleuze and Guattari, Becoming-Woman event. What do Deleuze and Guattari mean by becoming, and further, how might we think about becoming-woman? How can a group of individuals create an event around this imperative in Deleuze and Guattari’s work? Hausu, 240 Murray Street. Info: troybordun@trentu.ca.

Sadleir House circus art jam: Every Tuesday until April 10 except on Nov.22, Dec.20, Dec.27, Jan.3 @Sadleir house upstairs in the dining room 7pm9pm. Bring some toys and come and play.

If you don’t have any toys just bring yourself. All for the low price of FREE (however donations to help pay for the space will be greatly appreciated.)

Need $ for your theatre activity? Theatre Trent’s funding proposal deadline this month! Apply @ www.theatretrent. ca. We are welcoming new executive members to write cheques for theatre-makers and gain non-profit Board experience: you are needed.You are welcome to borrow props and costumes from the storage space at Sadleir House - email theatretrent@trentu.ca.

Fall Monday night Yoga Class! Prana Flow Yoga 12 week series. Yoga has proven to reduce stress, increase euphoria, and maximize health in body and mind. This

is an all levels class. All are welcome!

Instructor: Tiina Kivinen 50 hr certified. Dates: Mondays Sept 12 - Dec. 5. (not including Thanksgiving) Time: 7:30 - 9pm Cost: 12 weeks for $108 (commit to your practice!) or Drop- in for $12-$15 sliding scale. At Sadleir House Dining Hall, 751 George St. N Peterborough.

Students - St John Ambulance is Canada’s leader in first aid training. We offer courses every weekend and many weekdays and weeknights. Renew your CPR in 1 evening - most courses include a student discount.If you need to renew your first aid certificate or take a course for the first time contact St John Ambulance 705 745-0331sjapeterborough@bellnet.ca sja. ca.

Introduction to Buddhism: “Travelling from Confusion to Original Sanity” A 10week Study Group based on talks given by The Dzogchen Ponlop Rinpoche and carefully compiled under his direction. Starts September 15 at Sadleir House. Whether you are new to Buddhism or already have experience studying the Dharma, this is a great opportunity to engage in lively discussion of Buddhadharma. For more information, call 705-755-0063.

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If you are pregnant and need a nurturing loving home for your child, then we would love to talk to you about our family. We look forward to hearing from you!

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Correction In our Issue 9 article, “Cornerstone blog calls for PCVS closure,” we inaccurately characterized a blog post by Brent Wood as “accusing” KPR Board Member Diane Lloyd. Arthur should have described that post by saying that it “draws attention to the fact that Lloyd is a real estate agent for properties on Armour Road.” The post mentioned in our article was written by Wood subsequently to his interview with Arthur, during which Wood did not discuss real estate.