Tuesday, October 30, 2012

w w w .w e sterngazette.c a • @uw ogazette

Butter fingers Western smacks down Windsor Lancers 56–35 >> pg. 7

thegazette Reporting on ourselves since 1906

Tuesday, October 30, 2012

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Volume 106, Issue 31

Fearnall proposes major USC overhaul New structure may see presidential running mates Alex Carmona News Editor The structure of the University Students’ Council can be confusing to even the most politicallysavvy student, but there are many students who have put in the work necessary to understand the complex web of commissioners, coordinators, councillors and vice-presidents that make up our student government here at Western. And if this is the case for you, hopefully you’re not studied out, because it all might be changing.

At last week’s council meeting, USC President Adam Fearnall brought forward an informal proposal that would radically revamp the structure of the USC’s executive branch.

For the uninitiated, the USC executive is made up of five non-voting vice-presidents, each charged with overseeing one of five governmental portfolios—finance, communications, university affairs, campus issues and student events. Under the current system, these five members are elected by the voting members of council.

This gives council complete control over who can be elected to these positions that are open to all students.

Fearnall hopes to change this.

Under the proposal, which has yet to be finalized, the president will instead directly hire four of the five traditional vice-presidents.

The fifth, university affairs, will be transformed into a new position, currently titled ‘executive vice-president,’ and will run for election alongside a candidate for the USC presidency. This will, in essence, require each presidential candidate to find a running mate—a system familiar to anyone who follows U.S. politics.

If the proposal goes through in its current form, the USC president will be afforded a significant amount of power by gaining the power to pick the executive board.

“This will provide a really strong support system for the president, and the vice-president, which would definitely strengthen their ability to accomplish their goals,” Fearnall said.

However, he stressed the change would also serve to empower the voting members of council. By bringing the whole executive board under the control of the president, this will present council with a unified executive agenda that they can choose to accept or challenge.

“We want to see councillors running with their own agendas, and to see the negotiation between the presidential ticket’s agenda, and the council’s agenda happen on the council floor. What we’re trying to do is disperse the amount of decision-making power throughout the organization into a number of areas so it’s more clearly defined what council has

Courtesy of Jeremy Santucci

purview over,” Fearnall explained.

“At the end of the day, the president isn’t able to move unless given direction by council. I think there’s been a sense, in the past, that the presidential vision automatically goes, and what I’m trying to say is that it doesn’t necessarily just go. It’s not necessarily one that council has to agree with.

We want to see that debate, negotiation and discussion, and to get to a point where everyone knows what the agenda is so that the or-

ganization can choose whether or not to go off and push that agenda.”

Jordan Coop, president of the Faculty of Information and Media Studies Students’ Council, said he hopes the change will encourage students from outside the traditional USC circle to seek the hired vice-presidential positions.

“The current structure, whereby the council elects vicepresidents, has a tendency to be slightly aristocratic—that is to say,

there’s a propensity to favour candidates who have long-standing clout with the USC,” Coop said.

“Hiring executives—although […] less democratic—might, in fact, provide more opportunities through which outsiders can penetrate the notorious ‘USC Bubble.’

But, ultimately, in order for this initiative to work, I think a necessary cultural shift must ensue— council members will have to run with student advocacy in mind, instead of their résumés.”

Frankenstorm haunts London residents Cam Smith News Editor

Andrei Calinescu GAZETTE

It’s going to be a wet and windy couple of days for London residents. The remnants of Hurricane Sandy—dubbed ‘Frankenstorm’— are due to pass through Southern Ontario early this week. The adverse weather promises to bring heavy rain, and winds that could gust up to 90km/h, presenting potential flooding dangers and power outages. “[The flooding danger] depends on how the rainfall takes place. If it’s 50 millimetres and the duration is over 24 to 48 hours, it shouldn’t be too much for us to manage,” Tom Copeland, manager

of wastewater and drainage engineering for the City of London, explained. “On the other hand, if it’s 50 millimetres over the course of a couple of hours, that will cause us problems, and it may cause sewer backups and basement flooding.”

While heavy rain may put pressure on the water systems, the more pressing problem is the potential for dangerously powerful gusts.

“The issue we’re most concerned about is high winds,” Copeland said. “With that we could get fallen limbs and fallen trees, which could result in power outages.”

For this eventuality, emergency response teams are getting ready to provide aid if needed, including

charitable organizations like the Salvation Army.

“We’ve been making preparations for some form of emergency response,” Perron Goodyear, divisional director of emergency and disaster services for the Salvation Army, explained. “We’re hoping for the best and preparing for the worst. We are certainly preparing in case things get very bad.”

Like Copeland, Goodyear anticipates high winds as being the most problematic aspect of the storm.

“If the trees bring down power lines, it could put people without power, and we might have to do some emergency feeding.” >> see storm pg.3

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thegazette • Tuesday, October 30, 2012

Caught on Camera

Crossword By Eugene Sheffer

Andrei Calinescu GAZETTE

I VANT TO TAKE YOUR BLOOD. A student donates blood as part of Western’s blood donor clinic in the University Community Centre student lounge yesterday. The clinic runs until Wednesday from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m.

News Briefs

Western nears halfway point of campaign After five years, Western is almost halfway to its goal of fundraising $750 million. As of September 30, the university was less than $1.5 million away from $375 million, which is the middle point of their fundraising campaign.

Helen Connell, associate vice-

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president of communications and public affairs, explained the campaign has been driven by the generosity of donors.

“The success of the campaign to date is a reflection of the commitment our donors, many of whom are alumni, have made to Western’s future. They recognize the university’s potential to be one of the world’s best universities,” she said.

A large portion of the funds raised will benefit students, ensuring Western continues to attract high performing individuals.

“The initiatives that are perhaps the most well-known are the new Ivey building, as well as Western Student Athletic Centre, which was made possible through the generosity of Western students. But there are many other important initiatives, such as Western Heads East and funds for scholarships, that have already benefited from the campaign,” Connell said.

She also indicated funds will be allocated to exchange programs, attracting faculty, creating research opportunities for students and enriching areas of study, such as entrepreneurship and cultural studies.

Though the first half of the campaign was slower than ideal, administration is enthusiastic about the second half.

“The second half of the campaign is an opportunity to really focus on four main themes—developing leadership, inspiring learning, igniting discovery and building the legacy,” Connell concluded.

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The Flash comes to Tim Hortons Interac Flash will now be available at most Tim Hortons locations.

The card functions like a debit card, though doesn’t use the swipe method or a computer chip, and instead uses a wireless reader.

Despite the adoption of Interac Flash at most Tim Hortons franchises, it’s unclear whether or not the change will apply to Western’s 17 Tim Hortons scattered around campus.

Fortunately for Interac Flashusing students, the university is looking into integrating the system.

“We would love to get into Interac Flash,” Kevin McCabe, associate director and financial controller of Hospitality Services, said.

“We actually have been looking into it since last November.” “[Debit] just slows down the line incredibly for people going through just buying a coffee.

That’s the issue, and we just need to get people through and improve service wherever we can,” he explained.

McCabe said the system involving Interac Flash would be similar to the speed of using a Western ONECard to purchase a meal.

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McCabe also cited 27 per cent of sales are done using Interac debit cards at Subway as an example of how much Interac is used on campus, and how speed of service could potentially be increased.

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•3

thegazette • Tuesday, October 30, 2012

Gazette makes the Gazette Campus paper to undergo strategic review Aaron Zaltzman News Editor For once, the Gazette will not be the one reviewing the University Students’ Council. Last Wednesday, council voted to undertake a strategic review of the paper. According to USC standards, the Gazette is long overdue for an assessment.

“We like to review all our operations to ensure that they meet certain standards for our organization,” Jeremy Santucci, vice-president communications for the USC, explained. “The Gazette hasn’t been looked at in five years or so, so we want to look at the operational structure and ensure that it’s operating as a tight ship.”

The review will look at the organization and operation of the Gazette, which is Canada’s only daily student newspaper and is paid for by a student fee of $15.39 per student, and through advertising revenue.

“It will be focusing on the overall organizational structure of the Gazette to ensure it’s […] operating like a modern newspaper should be,” Santucci said. “It will be more in-depth because it will be more on the operational side, but the inherent implications will be financial.”

According to Santucci, the review will be conducted by a committee chosen by himself, and the Gazette’s editor-in-chief Gloria Dickie. If the two cannot agree on members, the decision will go to council.

“The idea is that the committee would be composed of experts who are not affiliated with the USC,” Santucci said. “For example, someone from the [faculty of media and information and studies] with an expertise in this field,

Storm hammers Ontario >> continued from pg.1

While emergency teams will be operational for the duration of the adverse weather, Goodyear recommends London residents take individual precautions.

“We always recommend that folks prepare a 72-hour kit, which contains everything that they would need to sustain themselves for 72 hours,” he explained.

“Sometimes that’s how long it takes emergency response teams to get to them.”

According to Goodyear, they are not expecting the storm to cause a serious emergency, but reaffirmed they are prepared for any circumstance.

“We hope that our services are not needed, but we’re certainly prepared if they are,” he explained.

“We will do everything we can to assist the people of London.”

For those at Western, Elgin Austen, director of Campus Community Police Service, assured the police would do their best to ensure safety on campus.

According to Austen, police will be on patrol, looking for flooding and downed branches, clearing them where they can and reporting on them.

Austen advised students to stay away from bodies of water, like the Thames, and to minimize time spent outdoors.

Ritchie Sham Gazette

or somebody who is a Gazette alumni can provide expertise and advice in structure and operation of a daily student newspaper.”

Dickie said she was open to the idea of a review, and agreed the time had come to take a look at the paper’s operations “Overall, I think doing a strategic review is probably a good thing for the paper, since we’re losing money, as is most print media,” Dickie said. “If there are areas where we can, in fact, cut money, […] obviously we’re open to that.”

“I think the concerns of the USC will mirror those facing print media overall,” she continued.

The motion received overwhelming support from council, passing unanimously. Nicole Cheese, president of the Arts and Humanities Student Council, echoed the sentiment the Gazette was overdue for a review.

“Any operation under the USC has to go under review yearly or every two years just because stu-

dents do have a stake in them,” Cheese said. “Students pay for the Gazette, so we’re just making sure that everything is operating efficiently.”

However, Pat Whelan, student senator-at-large, said the motion for the review did not offer enough details.

“I think any review needs to have some sort of process and deadline included in it,” Whelan said. “The motion talked about the composition of the committee, but not necessarily when they would be presenting back.” He did, however, agree to the need for a review of the paper.

Santucci said he hopes to have a committee together in time for a presentation to council for next semester.

“I just think it’s a great opportunity for us to look at this, and be a part of the betterment of one of our operations.”

Brain training making gains Katie Roseman Gazette Staff They say old dogs can’t learn new tricks, but scientists at Western are proving just the opposite. Based on a study conducted by a London research team, and led by Tomas Ros, a type of brain training called “neurofeedback” has been tentatively proven to change neural behaviours with enduring effects.

Neurofeedback is a process in which the subject is hooked up to an electroencephalography monitor through sensors attached to their scalp. This monitor has the ability of both displaying and processing the subject’s brain patterns at the same time. Using these displays, the participants can then try to recreate particular cognitive states while operating a training game on the computer that rewards desired patterns. In layman’s terms, it works like strength training—the more you use a muscle, the stronger it becomes. The same approach applies to the brain.

Ruth Lanius, a professor in psychiatry at Western and senior author of the study, says brain training isn’t as complicated as it sounds.

“What it basically is, is a form of bio feedback. We get a signal from our bodies, like heart rate or blood pressure, and we learn how to manipulate that […]. It’s trying

to change brain activity, getting a brain wave signal and trying to manipulate that,” Lanius said.

What’s changed is, because of the new technology, we can actually see what effect [neurofeedback] has on brain activity and certain brain networks, and this has never been done before.

— Ruth Lanius

A psychiatry professor at Western and senior author of the study

Neurofeedback could represent a type of non-invasive therapy for a variety of cognitive disorders which result as a disturbance of this particular neural network, including schizophrenia, post-traumatic stress disorder and ADHD. This type of process could be used instead of, or in addition to, medication and existing forms of therapy, allowing alternate methods of treatment.

Although neurofeedback is not a new concept, this study is particularly innovative because of its positive results.

“It’s actually been around for a few decades,” Lanius said. “What’s changed is, because of the new technology, we can actually see what effect it has on brain activity, and certain brain networks, and this has never been done before.”

She went on to say further testing needs to be done to monitor the duration the retraining sticks with subjects.

Ros, the lead author of the study, said he thinks, in time, neurofeedback could become a mainstream form of treatment.

“You go to a clinic where they diagnose you and prescribe a neurofeedback training protocol. They lend you a portable EEG unit with which you train at home via a computer game. At the moment, this is not standardized, but it would certainly be possible to automatize the process with good regulations.”

Ros went on to say a lack of competition in the field is what makes the process too expensive for most patients to afford right now.

Prior to this study, scientists were uncertain as to whether neurofeedback could produce any kind of long-term change in cognitive processes. Ros’ team found changes to neural networks persisted in test subjects for half an hour after the neurofeedback session which gives researchers hope to think we can indeed retrain the brain with some permanency.

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thegazette • Tuesday, October 30, 2012

Arts&Life

tuesdaytweet @lenadunham: “My biggest sexual fantasy is that someone busts in when I’m singing in the shower and yells “girl, where you been hiding that voice?””

—Lena Dunham, creator and star of HBO’s Girls

Young Rival doesn’t revel in new success The Hamilton trio holds on to modest roots while riding the viral wave Emily Fister Gazette Staff Young Rival is an anti-aging treatment for your ears. With the recent release of their second album, Stay Young, Hamilton’s power pop trio blend distinct rock influences with a refreshingly new perspective on the music industry.

Growing from their 2010 gritty self-titled debut, Young Rival has gone back to the early foundations of pop music—but still hasn’t lost its rock ‘n’ roll bite. From the lovesickladen riffs of crackling opener “Black Popcorn” to the jangle-rock of “Bet-

We’re pretty blown away with the attention that [the video’s] gotten. It’s certainly opening up some doors, so we’re excited to see how it all pans out.

—Noah Fralick

Drummer of Young Rival

ter Things To Do,” Stay Young is the guidebook to navigating bittersweet naivety. And it’s live show-ready.

“On this album, everything is just fun and upbeat,” says drummer Noah Fralick. “I think it just makes for a total party and that’s our mindset right now.”

Engineered and recorded by Jon Drew—who has also produced for Arkells, Tokyo Police Club and Fucked Up—the album is a self-produced effort that focuses on individual and organic sounds. Along with vocalist-guitar Aron D’Alesio and bassist John Smith, Fralick notes their focus has been on becoming a more interactive band. “With this album we tried to really build songs from the ground up,” he says.

The attentive recording process has paid off. Young Rival’s tight harmonies and songwriting nod to the British Invasion, with a strong influence from The Kinks—however, they are still accessible to the Instagram age.

As for fitting into the “hipper than thou” crowd, Fralick says the band focuses on its own creative output rather than outside reception.

“We’re really happy with where we are right now,” he says. “And we’re really satisfied creatively, and we haven’t produced music that will just cater to either hit music blog, or baristas living in Brooklyn or something.”

It’s this humble, down-to-earth approach that makes the band succeed in the independent scene.

Courtesy of Alex Cairncross

While Fralick mentions blogs are great way to gain exposure, the band prefers to remain on the periphery of industry buzzwords and Twitter blurbs.

Expecting the unexpected, Young Rival’s latest music video for single “Two Reasons” is going viral.

The band joined forces with body paint artist James Kuhn, who transformed his face into twenty-four unique forms. From popcorn to Chewbacca, the video has caught the eye of international press, like the Huffington Post.

Even though the video currently

has over 600,000 hits since its release on October 18, Fralick stresses they don’t want to be the kind of band that rides on the success of a viral video.

“We’re pretty blown away with the attention that it’s gotten,” he says. “As of right now, it’s certainly opening up some doors, so we’re excited to see how it all pans out.”

After opening for Born Ruffians and The Sadies, Young Rival’s gained a steady fan base. And it’s about time they reached headliner status.

Fralick looks forward to their in-

Great moments overcast by cloudy plot

timate show at London Music Hall November 9. Young Rival is playing with The Elwins, an indie pop act also smitten with ‘60s nostalgia.

As for the future, Young Rival is content with living in the present and embracing the youthful sound and aesthetic. Fralick is undoubtedly proud of their hard work, and speaks without a hint of pretention.

“We’re just trying to make the music we love and get it out to as many people as possible.”

Young Rival will play London Music Hall Friday, November 9. Doors open at 9 p.m. and tickets are $7.

On the web

Ross Hamilton Gazette Staff GGGHF Cloud Atlas Directors: Tom Tykwer, Andy Wachowski, Lana Wachowski Starring: Tom Hanks, Halle Berry, Jim Broadbent, Hugo Weaving, Jim Sturgess, Hugh Grant Cloud Atlas is a difficult movie because it’s essentially six films in one.

An adaptation of David Mitchell’s celebrated novel of the same name, the film ties six disparate narratives together, in the process weaving an overarching tale that examines the universality of human nature through numerous, subtly related characters, across a variety of historic and futuristic settings.

Needless to say, it’s not a story that translates particularly fluidly from its native medium, but the directorial team of Tom Tykwer, Andy Wachowski and Lana Wachowski has succeeded in crafting a film that, despite its share of issues, manages to make sense of the multiple, tangled plot strands. In the process, the content of Cloud Atlas has remained relatively unchanged, but its composition has undergone some necessary transformations.

Mitchell’s novel used a palindromic narrative structure in which each story was ‘nested’ within the next, an ambitious undertaking in print, and one the directors thank-

file photo

fully recognized would prove problematic on screen. Instead, scenes are frequently intercut, with storylines progressing more or less in tandem with one another—an approach that goes some way toward clarifying what is at times a disorienting experience.

Even so, transitions can still be jarring, and the film’s constituent parts don’t quite gel under the constraints of a theatrical run time. Jim Broadbent’s comic turn as an elderly publisher in contemporary Britain is entertaining, but sits uneasily besides Halle Berry’s 1970s crime sleuth, and Tom Hanks’ post-apocalyptic tribesman.

Things are further confused as the members of the film’s admittedly stellar cast take on multiple roles across its six narratives, with varying degrees of success. Jim Sturgess capably shifts from playing a colonial American notary to a freedom fighter in a dystopian Korea, but Hanks is mostly just himself with some bizarre alterations in accent and facial hair. It’s an inventive method of conveying the central theme of connectedness, but it also ends up distancing the audience from the stories being told by drawing attention to the actors, rather than their characters.

It’s this distance more than anything that is the issue—there is so

much going on in Cloud Atlas that it is difficult to get involved with any one of its components. It is, in many ways, a more accessible, but less rewarding cousin to Terrence Malick’s The Tree of Life, sacrificing immersion for brevity and profundity for bombast, and with a couple of notable exceptions, it inspires respect rather than enchantment.

That it works at all is a credit to Tykwer and the Wachowskis, but despite being a sprawling, ambitious and commendably watchable movie, it loses something vital in translation. Cloud Atlas is a film with several strong moments, but it is ultimately not that great.

Last Thursday, Lena Dunham, creator and star of HBO series Girls caught public attention with her new pro-Obama ad campaign titled Lena Dunham: Your First Time.

As of yesterday, it had over 2 million views. The ad advocates women’s rights in a comedic way. The actress describes her “first time” voting for Barack Obama and urges others to do the same. In the video she says, “It should be with someone who really cares about and understands women.” Just days after BarackObama.com released the video, parodies of the ad started popping up on YouTube. The original video received mixed reviews on the web. Some said comparison of voting and sex is inappropriate and may hurt Obama’s campaign, while many others thought it was clever and funny. Either way, this video has people talking—you can watch it and decide for yourself.

—Nicole Gibillini

•5

thegazette • Tuesday, October 30, 2012

DIY: Easy, lastminute costumes

On Disc

“Atlas Hands” — Benjamin Francis Leftwich

Kevin Hurren Arts & Life Editor

In the midst of midterms and essays, dressing up for Halloween may not have been at the top of everyone’s to-do list. However, as we approach the final seconds before All Hallow’s Eve, you don’t want to be the one dressed as a ‘university student.’ To help get you in the spirit of Halloween, and to avoid getting an egg in the face, here are some last-minute costume ideas that are not only easy to make, but also put the pun in ‘punny.’

A Ceiling Fan

An Iron Chef

With some adhesive lettering and a few homemade pompoms, you can easily become a ceiling fan. What’s not to love about the ceiling? It shelters us from the harsh elements, allows us to hang our Halloween decorations and often carries out the dual role of ceiling and floor. Additional accessories for this costume include foam fingers, flags, megaphones and dedicated candy collectors are encouraged to don a pleated skirt. This year, give ceilings the credit they deserve while simultaneously impressing your friends with this clever ensemble.

Are you a culinary master with an arsenal of grandma’s best recipes at your disposal?

No? Who cares! The only things you need to rock an iron chef costume is a chef’s hat, apron and, of course, an iron. The best part about this costume is if any drinks spill on you, you don’t need to worry. Just have a seat, plug your iron in and dry yourself off. If you don’t trust yourself with hot appliances, however, the iron can be substituted with a ‘Fe’ on the chest. The joke stands regardless of what you go with, but just admit it—no one messes with someone carrying an iron.

Pumpkin Pi

Fork In The Road

This is the epitome of lastminute Halloween costumes.

Just grab whatever orange shirt you have, cut out a pi symbol, tape it onto your shirt and ta da! You’re now pumpkin pi.

You might have to explain this one to any kids you encounter trick-or-treating, but the outfit is sure to be a hit if you stop by any engineering or math parties. If anyone calls your costume out for being lazy and ‘halloweak,’ then simply reply that you look “infinitely” better than them and walk away knowing you just served more than a piece of pie.

Can’t decide which one of these amazing costume ideas you’ll go with? Just run with that theme of indecision and go as a fork in the road. The materials only include a black shirt, some white paper and a fork. So, unless you’ve elected to take humanity back a few evolutionary stages and always eat with your hands, then this costume shouldn’t be hard to make. If you lose the fork halfway through the night, then just tell people you’re a road. It’s weak, but a few seconds ago you planned on taping cutlery to your chest so now is not the time to develop standards. file photo

GGGFF Mise en Scene Desire’s Despair Pipe & Hat Desire’s Despair is the first fulllength album by indie pop-rock duo Mise en Scene hailing out of Winnipeg, Manitoba. Stefanie Blondal Johnson and Jodi Dunlop make up the duo—and you shouldn’t underestimate them.

Crafting songs with indie pop hooks and classic rock riffs, the album borders on feeling pedestrian, but is redeemed by Johnson’s dreamy vocals and melodic charm, notably on the track “Desire.”

Stylistically, the album is varied.

“Paris, Texas” is a country-flavored pop tune while “Sweet William” is an adrenaline-infused rock ‘n’ roll stomper. The band cites The Clash as one of their influences and the opening of “Hey Velvet” brings the album London Calling to mind.

Lyrically, the album addresses themes of love and loss. Johnson doesn’t attempt to sing any grand statements about life, but rather focuses on the everyday longing and conflict in relationships.

Their debut album shows promise, and also a need for refinement of their sound and identity into something that stands out from the crowd.

—Alex Venesoen

English musician Benjamin Francis Leftwich’s single “Atlas Hands” evokes a feeling of nostalgia for places once loved, and people once loved. Simultaneously, the song speaks of new beginnings and new voyages.

At age 23, Leftwich comes across as an old soul with his minimal acoustic style and soft ballads. His soulful lyrics are reminiscent of musicians such as Ben Howard and James Vincent McMorrow, artists who have found success among indie music lovers.

The young musician, who recently performed at the iTunes Festival in London, England with American singersongwriter Lana Del Rey, is now looking to create an international name for himself. This November, Leftwich will be touring in the U.S. and Canada.

This tour coincides with the release of his newest EP In the Open.

While each of Leftwich’s songs are like balm for the ears, “Atlas Hands” provides a good glimpse into what Leftwich offers.

—Sumedha Arya

6•

thegazette • Tuesday, October 30, 2012

Opinions

They spoil every romance by trying to make it last forever.

—Oscar Wilde, Irish poet

USC change could erode democracy Recently, University Students’ Council President Adam Fearnall broached the idea of reformatting the election of vice-president positions to council.

In Fearnall’s ideal system, the presidential candidate would run with an executive vice-president, and, once elected, the two positions would then hire the remaining four “associate vice-presidents.” Currently, council elects the five vice-president positions at the Annual General Meeting.

Off the bat, it’s apparent the greatest issue at hand is a loss of democracy. Allowing two people to be in control of the hiring of the entire executive board opens the door to bribery and favourtism, as well as the corruption that comes along with too much power. While Fearnall hopes to give council the final say when it comes to who the president has chosen to hire, we can’t really count on council to do anything but nod in approval—especially if pressured by the number of hours the president has put into hiring his executives.

While ideally we would be able to put our trust in the president for making the decisions that will benefit students the most, all it takes is for one bad apple to topple the system and act as a huge detriment to the USC during their term as president. Simply put, the risks are too great for such a structural change.

While the argument can be put forth this change will allow for a more cohesive team, as well as an executive where things move both quicker and smoother, dissent is good for democracy. Having a bunch of yes-men willing to do their superior’s bidding isn’t an effective form of government.

The only positive that could come out of this is allowing for non-USC members to be hired as associate vice-presidents, since council typically votes in favour of their own.

If Fearnall is looking to leave his legacy on the USC, the best, and most reasonable, change would be to allow for the president to have a running mate, while still electing the remaining vice-presidents through council. It could be good to have partner in crime, so to speak, but filling out the entire board with people hand-picked by the president is only asking for trouble.

Though it may be cliché, it’s important to remember that absolute power corrupts absolutely— especially in government.

—The Gazette Editorial Board

Tweets Of The Week

@Discokinesis @uwogazette Quit being pervs and get back to work publishing the profanities I send to you on a weekly basis.

In the Nic of Time

Dickie in a Box

Nicole Gibillini Deputy Editor

Gloria Dickie Editor-in-Chief

For those of you who don’t know, The Bachelor is a reality TV series where one man searches for his one true love in hopes of getting engaged by the last episode.

Most recently, on The Bachelorette, Emily Maynard became engaged to Jef Holm, a 27-year-old entrepreneur from Utah.

They seemed perfect for each other.

They could finally stop their search and settle down into a life they both wanted.

Seems too good to be true? It turns out it was.

A couple weeks ago, the two announced their split. While many devastated fans mourned the break-up, it seemed inevitable.

Now, I’m not usually pessimistic when it comes to love. However, most couples that have met on The Bachelor in its 10-year span don’t stay together.

But why?

It could be the media’s suffocation on couples’ post-Bachelor lives—or maybe it’s because developing a real relationship in front of cameras while dating multiple people at a time is unrealistic. It’s tough to say.

But what is clear is its viewers become invested in these relationships.

They want to believe fairytale romance is a reality, and often become obsessed with making it happen in their own lives.

While every girl wants to be ‘swept off her feet’ and fall in love, shows like The Bachelor put too much pressure on non-TV relationships.

Not everyone can afford to pay for extravagant dinners and trips to Paris.

And just because the person you’re with can’t, it doesn’t mean he or she doesn’t love you, or you’re being treated poorly.

While I agree we should take reality TV for what it is—a form of entertainment—we can’t deny what we watch on TV alters our perceptions of our own lives on some level.

How can we be sure what qualifies as a healthy, “normal” relationship if our minds are being clogged with misinformation and pseudo-realistic scenarios?

In the end, we’d probably be better off focusing on our own relationships, instead of those of people we don’t even know.

Anyone who takes The Bachelor franchise at face value is going to have a bad time, period. Sure, there’s the 1-in-24 chance the couple you see on your television screen will actually end up together forever, but statistical evidence clearly demonstrates Bachelor relationships are only good for the four months they appear on television.

Does this mean The Bachelor is a waste of our time? Not necessarily. We can argue back on forth on the merits of reality television—or television, in general—all day, but the fact Bachelor couplings don’t ever end up getting married doesn’t mean the show is worthless.

The Bachelor is basically a modern spin on the tale as old as time Disney prince relationship. While it’s unhealthy to take any serious relationship cues from either genre, it doesn’t mean the “fantasies” presented on the show are inherently dangerous and threatening to the modern relationship.

Instead, I would argue The Bachelor franchise can serve as a device to inspire everyday lackluster couplings into finding romance in their relationship again—that is, if they can pull themselves away from the television set for long enough.

If I watch the show, I’m not cheering for the main lovebirds to make it in the long run, and pop out three kids together. Heck, I pretty much forget about the couple the second Mike Fleiss’ name appears on the screen at the end. But the destinations featured, and classic gestures of (insincere) romance are a nice reminder of the happier things in life.

The day-to-day grind of a nine-tofive work week isn’t often worth celebrating in life. In fact, life can pretty much suck at times. The Bachelor offers viewers an escape from the mundane, and hopefully serves to return the spark to some romances that have otherwise grown dim—whether it’s signing up for skydiving together or jet-setting to romantic French Polynesia. If anything, The Bachelor goes to show there should never truly be a final rose in any relationship.

@Discokinesis @uwogazette And I swear if that tweet gets taken out of context and made a “Tweet of the Week” again then I shall go hard on you! @Alan_Kilpat Excited to see the UWO Gazette discussing copyright. Maybe a bit more about the Access Copyright issue? @uwogazette @harryshnider @mcgreg_m @uwogazette Yes let’s remove the cap on building heights. Why couldn’t those crazy city planners see this?! #headdesk @AveryFreeFMNews @uwogazette If students ventured beyond the ‘Western Bubble,’ they would see what #Ldnont has to offer... good careers for trained workers. @TothSusan @ronnyzoo @uwogazette wasteland-esque is a bit extreme, but as a grad who high tailed it, I get it. No jobs, & lot of hate towards students. @SCQReview @uwogazette Honestly, an interview for a semireasonable job & I’d happily come back.

London has great potential.

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Volume 106, Issue 31 www.westerngazette.ca

Gloria Dickie Editor-In-Chief Nicole Gibillini Deputy Editor Cam Parkes Managing Editor

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thegazette • Tuesday, October 30, 2012

Sports

factattack The San Francisco Giants became the second team ever to win a total of six elimination games on the way to winning the World Series. The 1985 Kansas City Royals were the only other team to pull off that feat.

Rundown >> The Mustangs women’s field hockey team advanced to the Canadian Interuniversity Sport finals on the strength of a 2–0 victory in the bronze medal game of the Ontario University Athletics championship > With their victory over the Waterloo Warriors, the Mustangs advance to their first CIS championship in program history > The CIS championships will take place next week at the University of Toronto.

Close victory keeps ‘Stangs on notice for semis Lancers push Mustangs to the brink in comeback attempt Jason Sinukoff Sports Editor A light drizzle and howling winds were not enough to spook the Mustangs football team on the weekend before Halloween.

In a game that saw the winner advance to the Ontario University Athletics semifinal, the Mustangs came out strong and bested their familiar opponents, the Windsor Lancers, 56–35.

The game began with Windsor kicking off to the Mustangs, with Western going against the wind.

Despite a failure to convert on the opening drive, it did not take long for the Mustangs to open the scoring. Less than two minutes into the game, Mustangs linebacker Pawel Kruba picked off Austin Kennedy of the Lancers and ran the ball in for a touchdown.

The rest of the quarter saw the Lancers inch their way back, with the final score at the end of the first sitting at 13–12.

However, that was until Mustangs slot back Matt Uren decided to take the game into his own hands.

Uren began his push with a 51yard touchdown just under four minutes into the second quarter.

It would not take much longer for Uren to find the end zone again, when Mustangs quarterback Will Finch connected with Uren for another touchdown with 8:14 minutes left in the second.

Uren would go on to score two more touchdowns in the game, setting a new OUA record for receiving touchdowns in the playoffs, with four.

“It’s always nice to get those ac-

complishments, but the win is what counts the most here today,” Uren said.

This breakout game came as a surprise to most, but Mustangs head coach Greg Marshall knew Uren has always been capable of a game like this.

“The only people surprised are the people who don’t practice with Matt everyday,” Marshall said.

“Matt Uren is special. We have said this since training camp, and he really is a special player. The game he had today is the game he’s had in him all season.”

Thanks to outstanding performances by Finch and Uren, the Mustangs ended the first half leading the Lancers 44–12.

“The only thing we did in the second quarter was try to figure out what Windsor was doing. They did a good job on trying to key in on the run, but we were able to do a few different things throwing the football that they left open,” Marshall said. “That’s kind of the thing with our team. If you stop the run, then we’ll throw the ball on you.”

The second half, however, was a whole different story. The Lancers came out firing on all fronts and dismantling the Mustangs’ defence. Lancers quarterback Austin Kennedy and running back Jordan Brescacin both scored on the Mustangs—leaving the score after the third quarter at 46–27.

“We buckled it down—went to three or four plays that were really working,” Joe D’Amore, Lancers head coach, said.

Thankfully for the Mustangs, Uren had the answer in the fourth, when he and Finch connected

Jonathan Dunn GAZETTE

WINDSOR, WE HAVE A PROBLEM. The Mustangs put together a strong performance against the Windsor Lancers Saturday to achieve victory in the first round of the OUA playoffs. The ‘Stangs will now advance to the OUA semifinal.

once more on the day for a 24-yard touchdown.

“That drive that we had in the fourth quarter was crucial for us because we were back on our heels a little bit, and we ran the ball out of there and Matt made a great catch in the end zone,” Marshall said.

Jonathan Dunn Gazette

The Mustangs will continue their quest to the Yates Cup when they travel to Hamilton this weekend to challenge the very team that ended their championship run last year—the McMaster Marauders.

“They are a good team. I really believe that we match up pretty

well. I hope we came out of this game healthy [because] we had a lot of guys going down there at the end,” Marshall said. “We’ll need full strength. Mac is a great team, a wellcoached team, so we’ll need everyone healthy. Let’s hope for good weather.”

Naira Ahmed Gazette

8•

thegazette • Tuesday, October 30, 2012

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