Sports
Soccer Bears bound for CanWest playoffs 22
Feature
Opinion
Exploring the growing appeal of Burlesque 25
Occupiers don’t deserve bad press 11
gateway November 2nd, 2011
Issue No. 10
Volume 102
THE
TH E O F F IC IA L STUDE NT NE WS PA P E R AT TH E UN I V ER S I T Y OF A LBERTA
budget cuts
Studio Theatre tackles David Grieg’s coming-of-age tale
Arts faculty looks to cut $1.5 million from budget
Yellow Moon preview on page 17
April Hudson
staff reporter @april_hudson The University of Alberta’s Faculty of Arts is scrambling to find $1.5 million in savings by March 31, 2012, after the university mandated it cut 2.1 per cent cut from its base budget. The U of A is requiring a 2.1 per cent cut for all faculty budgets for the 2011-12 fiscal year, leaving the Faculty of Arts with no other choice than to make cuts into its budget. An Administrative Process Review Project (AdPReP) has been launched to rethink the faculty’s core activities, instead of simply shaving down budgets through actions such as layoffs. However, if it fails to find 2.1 per cent in cuts, the result could be the loss of up to 15 positions within the faculty.
“We can’t just keep cutting back and then hoping that people can pick up the slack.” lesley cormack dean of arts
More than three quarters per cent of the faculty’s budget is currently tied up in salaries, with the remaining 12 per cent comprising the operating budget. “We have to investigate how we are doing things,” said Lesley Cormack, the Dean of Arts. “We can’t just keep cutting back and then hoping that people can pick up the slack.” Cormack said the two questions the Faculty of Arts is facing are whether it is doing any unnecessary work, and whether it is doing things in the most economical fashion possible. “We designed the (AdPReP) process to go and ask how people did various tasks, such as finance, business, advising and administration, and whether there were better ways to do that,” Cormack said. “So that’s the plan: to find things we can stop doing, things that can be done through technology, and once we have that, to redesign all of our units.” This means virtually every department will have some changes in the way staff work. “I’m really waiting to see what the process review will show me,” Cormack said. “Decisionmaking is only one part of this. Then we have to plan implementation.” Cormack estimated that it could take another six months to get the project sorted out. “I am committed to maintaining and perhaps advancing student advising and student connection to departments in the faculty,” Cormack said. “So we are really seeing that as very much something we want to protect and enhance, even as all the other things go.”
PLEASE SEE budget PAGE 5
amirali sharifi
academic expansion
Pharmacy faculty to offer doctorate program Andrew Jeffrey
news staff @andrew_jeffrey Following years of planning and various proposals, the first Doctor of Pharmacy degree program in Alberta has been approved and will soon be introduced to the University of Alberta’s Faculty of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences — the only pharmacy school in Alberta. The new degree will accept 13 students into a 13-month program after they have completed their four years of pharmacy undergrad. This is only a temporary measure until a twoyear pre-pharmacy plus four-year pharmacy program is implemented.
The new system is already used in the United States and Quebec, while the rest of the Canadian pharmacy schools are hoping to implement it by 2020. Students in the U of A’s new program will be given more education and physical assessment, as well as additional experience working in a team with nurses and physicians. “A lot of what we’re doing is giving them a few courses to up their expertise level at a knowledge base, but then putting them into practice environments in intensive fashion for eight (or) 12 weeks at a time in two or three places that enable them to get their clinical skills up,” said James Kehrer, dean of the Faculty of Pharmacy and
Pharmaceutical Sciences. “An analogous thing might be, do you want your surgeon doing his first appendectomy in his life on you, or do you want them to be practicing? We want them to practice in a team based under supervision before they are out there dealing with what can be life-and-death situations.” The idea of implementing a PharmD program at the U of A was first brought up in 1993. At the time, there were not enough available pharmacists in Alberta with the expertise to oversee such a program, so the current system was created instead.
PLEASE SEE pharmd PAGE7
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Wednesday, November 2, 2011 Volume 102 Issue No. 10 Published since November 21, 1910 Circulation 8,000 ISSN 0845-356X Suite 3-04 Students’ Union Building University of Alberta Edmonton, Alberta T6G 2J7 Telephone 780.492.5168 Fax 780.492.6665 Ad Inquiries 780.492.6700 Email gateway@gateway.ualberta.ca
editorial staff editor-in-chief Alexandria Eldridge eic@gateway.ualberta.ca | 492.5168 managing editor Justin Bell managing@gateway.ualberta.ca | 492.6654 news editor Alex Migdal news@gateway.ualberta.ca | 492.7308 staff reporter April Hudson staffreporter@gateway.ualberta.ca | 492.6664 opinion editor Ryan Bromsgrove opinion@gateway.ualberta.ca | 492.6661 arts & culture editor Madeline Smith arts@gateway.ualberta.ca | 492.7052 sports editor Rebecca Medel sports@gateway.ualberta.ca | 492.6652 photo editor Dan McKechnie photo@gateway.ualberta.ca | 492.6648 design & production editor Ross Vincent production@gateway.ualberta.ca | 492.6663 online editor Jordan Ching online@gateway.ualberta.ca | 248.1509
walking dead A group students dressed up as ghoulish zombies invaded the Bears football game at Foote Field last Saturday.
correction The Oct. 26 story “Study pinpoints Western Canada as the new hub for post-secondary”
by Simon Fraser University’s newspaper The Peak and published on the Canadian University Press newswire incorrectly suggested that a study had been released on the topic. No such study exists.
business manager Ashleigh Brown biz@gateway.ualberta.ca | 492.6669
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COMPILED AND PHOTOGRAPHED BY April Hudson + Alana Willerton
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graphic designer Vikki Wiercinski design@gateway.ualberta.ca | 492.6647
“I don’t like it at all. I have midterms to worry about.”
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contributors Alana Willerton, Richard LaRose, Jacquelin Gregoire, Amanda Strachan, Andrew Jeffrey, Chris Gee, Julianna Damer, Paige Gorsak, Peggy Jankovic, Michelle Mark, Nick Ong, Ryan Stephens, Mim Fatmi, Ravanne Lawday, Joel Aspden, Josh Schmaltz, Adrian Lahola-Chomiak, Darcy Ropchan, Jesse Cunningham, Lance Mudryk, Evan Mudryk, Lauren Alston, Anthony Goertz, Kirsty Vogelesang, Seyed Hossein Mortazavi, Selena Phillips-Boyle, AmirAli Sharifi, Julianna Damer, Maxime Lestringant, Atta Almasi, Jesse Cunningham
In addition, it failed to clarify that the source quoted in the article spoke to the Ottawa Citizen about the issue, and not directly to The Peak. The Gateway regrets the error.
As you may be aware, Tuesday marks the start of Movember. WE ASKED...
What do you think of this hairy cause?
Sarah Duguay Science I
circulation Pal Evan Daum circulation Pal Jonn Kmech circulation@gateway.ualberta.ca
The Gateway is proud to be a founding member of the Canadian University Press.
Dan Mckechnie
Katherine Zwicker Grad studies “I think it’s a great student movement and a way for men to get involved in a cancer movement. It’s a good month for men.”
Tegan McGraw phys. ed II “I like the cause, but I don’t feel like doing it.”
Agatha Grochowski arts III “I’m excited. It’s a funny time.”
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Volume 102, Issue 10
PHOTo illustration: dan mckechnie
Students get chance to take back the term during weekend event April Hudson
Staff Reporter @April_hudson Saturday morning at the University of Alberta was anything but quiet as hundreds of students descended upon ETLC to participate in Take Back the Term, a first-of-its-kind conference hosted by the Office of the Dean of Students. The conference was designed to help struggling students turn their semesters around, and featured sessions on issues such as budgeting, understanding grades, and coping with university life. It also included sessions for graduate students and concluded with a keynote address from the Dean of Students Frank Robinson, who talked about some of the hardships he faced when he was a student and his journey to becoming a dean. “We felt that there was a need (for this event), for students who are starting school for the first time, or changing programs, or finding that things aren’t going so well,” said Kristen Flath, acting student affairs officer. “This is a chance to really give them some information when they actually need it, rather than at the beginning of the year when they’re facing information overload.” Flath said the event was designed for all students from all faculties. Nearly 300 students registered for the conference, including graduate students and students in every year of undergraduate degrees. “It’s information for anybody,” Flath said. “We’re hoping that a lot of students who are feeling flustered and overwhelmed will be the
ones who reach out and come to something like this.” Flath said the event was designed to connect students to support services that are already available to them. “A lot of times, you just feel like you’re entering a big institution, and you don’t realize that there are so many people whose job it is just to support you and help you make it through,” Flath said.
“This is a chance to really give (students) some information when they actually need it, rather than at the beginning of the year when they’re facing information overload.” Kristen flath
acting student affairs officer
“I hope that (this conference) will show students the different areas where we’re trying to reach out to them and where they can get in touch with us for some extra help and some more information on how they can make changes to their existing habits or try something new that might work better for them.” One session, held by Jason Murray and Agatha Beschell from the University Health and Wellness Centre, featured a presentation titled “The Best of the Worst Advice,” a tongue-in-cheek discussion on how to cope with common student problems, such as anxiety and
campus
crimebeat
COMPILED BY Alex Migdal suspicious smell
On Oct. 28, University of Alberta Protective Services officers on routine patrol detected the smell of marijuana in the T-zone lot south of Lister Hall. A group of males in the area were spoken to, but the officers couldn’t determine if the group were the ones causing the smell.
rowdiness at ratt
UAPS received a report of a disturbance in progress at SUB on Oct. 28. A group of males were fighting after leaving a private function in RATT, which was
shut down early due to crowd control issues. The police were contacted due to the large number of people involved. The incident is currently under review by both Edmonton Police Service and UAPS.
no place like home
UAPS received a report of a domestic incident at the Campus SaintJean residence on Oct. 28. EPS were contacted to attend. The incident is currently still being reviewed.
back off bro
Protective Services received a report of a male student being aggressive
relationship issues. “This event is already identifying students that are facing some challenges,” Murray said. “It seemed like a very wise use of our time and energy, versus doing random presentations to student groups who may or may not need our help.” Murray said identifying people who are facing challenges in their academic or personal life quickly, and getting to them sooner rather than later, is the best way to help students in need. “It’s better than waiting till the very end, when they need the help the most, when time has run out for their academic programs, or time has run out personally or financially,” Murray said. “We’re here to help students.” Jenna Lehr, a second-year science student, said the sessions were extremely helpful to her. “I figured that I could definitely learn something, and (the conference) sounded like a good idea,” Lehr said. “It was a really good day.” This is the first year that the event has been held, and Flath said that, judging by the response it received, Take Back the Term will probably be held again in future years. “From the administrative side, we’ve heard nothing but positive feedback,” Flath said. “Everyone is saying that it’s about time we had something like this going on.” Flath said that she will be following up with students to find out what they liked and didn’t like about the event, and this would help determine what the event would look like for future years. towards another male student on Oct. 28. The unidentified male approached the victim and made a derogatory remark about his racial background. Officers attended the CCIS building where the incident occurred, but were not able to locate the male who had made the slur.
message from uaps director
“Reported crime is down 39 per cent since the start of the year due to a number of factors. “These factors include community diligence in securing property and offices. One of the biggest factors has been the willingness of of the community to report suspicious activity. “In doing so, we often get an opportunity to deal with with a situation before a crime occurs,” said UAPS Director Al Belanger.
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Alberta water practices questioned news briefs Scientist claims Encana contaminated her well-water through fracking process
compiled by Alex Migdal
+ April Hudson
Richard LaRose News Writer
Environmental scientist Jessica Ernst spoke out against Encana Corporation and Alberta’s Energy and Resource Conservation Board (ERCB) in a talk held by the Council of Canadians (Edmonton Chapter) at the University of Alberta last week. Ernst is suing the company and the Alberta government for methane contamination of her water-well in Rosebud, Alberta, south of Drumheller. She said the methane in her water is a result of the controversial “fracking” process, which is widely used throughout Alberta and many parts of the world in underground drilling operations. Hydraulic fracturing, commonly referred to as “fracking,” involves the release of high pressure water and chemical solutions, which create fractures in rock formations and releases gases for extraction by energy companies. Ernst and others argue that this process has the potential of creating leaks in pipe seals and releasing gases like methane into water-wells. Quebec, South Africa and the European Union are all considering implementing moratoriums on the practice. “In 2003, my well-water was tested for methane and showed less than one parts per million of contamination,” Ernst said to an audience of mostly farmers and community members. “In 2006, after numerous Encana wells were drilled around my property, the level had risen to between 35 and 66 parts per million.” The water from Ernst’s well is so
NASA SETTLEMENT
well, well A tailings pond in Alberta contributes to poor water quality. contaminated that she now hauls water to her farm from outside sources. According to Ernst, Encana broke regulations set out by the ERCB by drilling into her aquifers and using the controversial fracking process in the shallow coalbed methane seams near her property. “Encana claims that (fracking) is going on at depths that are not harmful to water wells, but I have data showing they were fracking at extremely shallow depths, against regulations,” she said. Ernst also claims the ERCB used “mafia tactics” to frighten her into silence. Last year, the morning after the CTV did a piece on her, two plain-clothed RCMP officers came to her home in the countryside. Ernst believes they came at the behest of the ERCB. Bob Curran, a spokesperson for ERCB, refused to comment due to the on-going legal case, but noted the ERCB has stringent regulations in place to ensure that the environment and the people of Alberta are protected.
Ryan Bromsgrove
“Industries often complain that we are too public friendly,” he said. Curran said he doesn’t understand why Quebec, South Africa and the European Union are halting the fracking processes in their jurisdictions. “Fracking has been used in Alberta since the 1950s, with over 167,000 wells that have undergone the process. Unconventional drilling is a well-understood technology in Alberta,” Curran said. A study released by Duke University shows that water-wells in proximity to areas where fracking has taken place can have a much greater presence of methane, by a factor of 17 on average. Many industry experts point to the natural presence of methane in well water. Ernst doesn’t deny that methane naturally occurs in some wells, but not in the amounts that are seen in her water. “(Encana) says they are a good neighbour,” Ernst said. “I have Encana all around me. They are not a good neighbour.”
The University of Alberta’s NonAcademic Staff Association (NASA) has settled on the 20112012 wage and benefits re-opener package negotiated with university administration. NASA indicated that 58 per cent of members returned a ballot to vote, with an overwhelming majority of 93 per cent voting in favour of the new package. The agreement includes a salary increase of 1.75 per cent retroactive to April 1, a 2.49 per cent increase to benefits funding, and three additional support days off. The days off for the majority of NASA will include Nov. 10, Dec. 23, and Jan. 3. These days off will apply to regular, auxiliary and casual employees.
U OF A RESEARCHER ARRESTED
University of Alberta researcher Usama Al-Atar was assaulted and arrested by religious police on Sunday morning while on a pilgrimage to the Saudi Arabian city of Medina. After being thrown in a crowded jail cell for almost 36 hours, Al-Atar was released Monday with minor injuries and plans to continue his pilgrimage. Al-Atar was leading a group of pilgrims in prayer at the time of his arrest, before religious police allegedly accused him of stealing and restrained him. “We’re delighted that he’s free,” said Andy Knight, chair of the department of political science. “You never know what
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could happen in a Saudi prison, especially when things are very unclear as to why he was arrested.” Knight met Al-Atar through the late Dr. Ibrahim Abu-Rabi, who was the chair of Islamic studies at the U of A until his death in early July. “I can hardly see him doing the things he’s accused of doing,” Knight said. “I knew there was something wrong with that story. He’s a mild-mannered guy who’s simply here to help his community.” Knight described Al-Atar as a “very devout Muslim” and a “really nice person,” and believes the Saudi government should be embarrassed over the incident. Al-Atar is currently a postdoctoral fellow in chemistry, and serves as an imam in Edmonton.
OBSERVATORY ATTENDANCE INCREASES
The University of Alberta’s observatory has doubled its attendance tally since reopening on top of the new CCIS building this past summer. Ross Lockwood, a teaching assistant at the observatory, said that since January 2005, the observatory had averaged approximately 20 people a night. But, with the new facility, he said those numbers are easily averaging around 40, and estimates less than half the attendance numbers are student. Volunteer numbers have also increased exponentially. The observatory currently has 30 volunteers, as opposed to four last year. Lockwood said that part of the new facility’s success is due to its location and visibility. “It’s not hidden away on top of the arts building now,” he explained. “It’s right in the middle of the big science centre on campus.”
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Volume 102, Issue 10
U of A maps out IT initatives for the next five years Alana Willerton
news staff @alanawillerton The University of Alberta recently revealed its development of a fiveyear information technology plan, continuing its IT expansion in the face of a rapidly changing technology landscape. Some parts of the plan, such as wireless infrastructure, mobile apps development and mobile-friendly web pages, have already been established as vital components, while other aspects of the plan are currently being determined based on feedback from students, staff and faculty at the U of A. Public meetings will be arranged for students interested in sharing feedback on the plan, and an IT student advisory board is being set up to allow for further consultations. Spearheading the initiative is Jonathan Schaeffer, Vice-Provost and Associate Vice-President (Information Technology), who said that
input is a vital part of developing the plan. “I want everyone’s input — students staff, and faculty. The student voice is especially important to me because they are driving change on campus,” wrote Schaeffer in an email. While many aspects of the fiveyear plan have yet to be established, Schaeffer is already looking to the future as to what it can do for the university. His ultimate goal for the plan is to establish the U of A as the post-secondary leader of information technology in Canada. Schaeffer said he came up with a long-term plan because information technology is so fundamental to the U of A’s future. “In most areas, universities tend to change slowly,” Schaeffer said. “In IT, this is a serious issue because the technology is changing rapidly. The University of Alberta has to be nimble if we are to keep pace. In many ways, the students are
driving the change; they are at the forefront of adopting new technology. We must offer an environment that meets their needs.”
on recent initiatives, such as the transfer from Webmail to Gmail, and the conversion from Vista to Moodle as the new U of A Learning
“I want everyone’s input — students, staff, and faculty. The student voice is especially important to me because they are driving change on campus.” jonathan schaeffer
U of A vice-provost & associate vice-president (information technology)
Schaeffer is also looking to get students more involved in making apps through a process called Open Data, which will make university data sets available for students. In the past, students have been responsible for Bear Scat, which eventually became Bear Tracks, and the Facebook schedule app Bearbook. “We need to remove barriers caused by private data so that we can foster innovation,” Schaeffer said. Schaeffer also provided an update
Management System (LMS). With roughly 7,000 email accounts left to transition over to Gmail, Schaeffer estimated that the move will be completed by the end of the winter term. He added that, judging from the feedback he’s received, the move has represented a major improvement in many people’s work environments. Schaeffer’s expectations were exceeded when it came to the Moodle conversion. The target, he
explained, was to get 33 per cent of the courses into Moodle for the 2011-12 academic year. But thanks to the enthusiasm from instructors, a total of 52 per cent ended up being able to use the program. Schaeffer hopes to have the remaining courses ready to be moved to Moodle for September 2012. Some aspects of the five-year IT plan will be built off of initiatives like the Gmail and Moodle conversion, while other aspects will feature entirely new information technology, which will be determined through the consultations. Schaeffer said the U of A’s information technology initiatives have been progressing “amazingly well,” and are on track to continue doing so with the five-year IT plan. “The changes that are happening are enormous in scope, touching the entire university community,” said Schaeffer. “Other than a few minor glitches, everything is going according to plan.”
Departments unsure of how arts budget cuts will affect them budget cuts Continued from page 1
The Faculty of Arts is still hiring tenure-stream academics for certain programs, but Cormack said this is purely out of necessity. “These are replacement hires as opposed to new hires,” Cormack said. “We are probably cutting a position for every one we’re hiring.” Cormack cited the department of anthropology as one example, which has lost four professors in the past two years and is now hiring two more. “It was a decision that we had to maintain our programs,” she said.
“In every case, if we didn’t hire these people, the program itself would be in peril, and then it wouldn’t be allowed for a major, and suddenly it would be difficult for students to finish their degrees.” Gwen Bauer, Associate Dean (Administration) for the Faculty of Arts, explained that once the faculty decided to implement administrative review project, five areas were chosen that had the most opportunity to change. These five areas include human resources, budget, finance and procurement, undergraduate advising
and graduate administration. “When we realized that we had to come up with another budget cut, and potentially another one next year, we started to think about how we could address this, given that last year we did (everything) we could around getting rid of vacancies, looking at voluntary severance and that kind of thing, and we still had to lay off five people,” Bauer said. “This year, we can’t go back to the departments and do one-offs. So we talked about a process that would allow us to think fundamentally different about how we support
teaching and research and faculty, making sure as we did that that the students and the faculty members are the primary focus.” Kenneth Mouré, chair of the department of history and classics, said in an email that he couldn’t comment on the possible effects of the budget cuts on specific departments. “There’s no predictable ‘likely effect,’ ” Mouré said. “Budget cuts in previous years have made department operations very lean, and the administrative review project is looking faculty-wide for efficiencies that we can’t see at the
department level.” Cormack said the 2.1 per cent cut has already been enacted from the Faculty of Arts budget. “We’re now operating in a deficit situation,” Cormack said. “The faculties are a microcosm of the university, and if we are in deficit, that means there’s the potential that the university is in deficit, and that cannot happen.” Cormack said she doesn’t yet know where the cuts will come from, but noted the administrative review project will be making decisions starting at the end of December.
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Volume 102, Issue 10
Oxygen appeared 100 million years earlier than once known Jacquelin Gregoire News writer
New research at the University of Alberta has led to the groundbreaking discovery that oxygen-breathing organisms first appeared on land 100 million years earlier than previously thought. Microbiologist Kurt Konhauser and nine other scientists from across the globe used concentrations of chromium in ancient rock beds as an indicator of the “great oxidization event” — the biologically induced appearance of free oxygen in the atmosphere — which occurred 2.48 billion years ago. “We could see through this chromium spike, which could only take place in acidic conditions, that the oxidization of pyrite occurred and was made possible by bacteria that used oxygen. “It’s all interlinked,” Konhauser explained. The reaction between oxygen and pyrite released large amounts of sulphuric acid, which led to the deposition of chromium, traces of which show up today as rock layers. Stefan Lalonde, a member of the research group from the University of Brest in France, said the completion of the study took two years, much of which was spent collecting
and analyzing samples from key time intervals to verify the consistency of temporal trends. “Sample collection alone re-
“It’s not so much that (the great oxidization event) was 100 million years earlier than we thought, but it’s that we were able to pinpoint the exact time that oxygen made it into the atmosphere.” Kurt konhauser
u of a microbiologist
quired collaboration with a worldwide group of researchers having access to critical samples coming from remote locations in Western Australia, South Africa, and Brazil, for example,” he said. The study began as a response to previous research on the topic and Konhauser’s proposition in 2009 that the decrease in atmospheric methane levels triggered the rise of oxygen. “The overall story is that methane levels dropped around 2.7
billion years ago. Cyanobacteria that produce oxygen then took over the shallow ocean waters,” Konhauser explained. “By 2.5 billion years, enough oxygen was produced that it could then accumulate in the atmosphere.” A summary of the team’s work, published in the journal Nature said these oxygen-breathing and acid-tolerant bacteria still exist today, “living off pyrite and settling in the highly acidic waste waters of mining sites the world over.” Konhauser acknowledged that a 100-million-year time difference bears little significance on a grand scale of approximately 2.5 billion years, but defended the value of their discovery. “It’s not so much that (the great oxidization event) was 100 million years earlier than we thought, but it’s that we were able to pinpoint the exact time that oxygen made it into the atmosphere,” he said. Konhauser said the event carries great significance not only to scientists, but to the human species, as it allowed for the evolution from primordial microbes to complex creatures such as humans. Konhauser plans to continue his research on the subject and shed further light on a complex phenomenon.
Recent study suggests New PharmD new relations between program slated for fall diabetes and cancer Amanda Strachan News writer
Medical research recently conducted at the University of Alberta suggests that patients diagnosed with diabetes are likelier to receive a cancer diagnosis. The five-year study focused on patients diagnosed with type two diabetes in relation to various types of cancers. The latest findings confirmed a higher risk of breast cancer diagnosis, specifically in post-menopausal women. Among women aged 55 or older, those diagnosed with diabetes within the past three months were 30 per cent more likely to receive a breast cancer diagnosis. The researchers consulted a database of about 170,000 women from British Columbia, half of whom were recently diagnosed with type two diabetes, and the other half free of the disease. Over the following four to fiveyear period, they noted that about 2,400 women were diagnosed with breast cancer. In addition, they found that both men and women had an increased risk of being affected by certain cancers, including colorectal, liver, pancreatic, and inner bladder. Although the study confirmed the correlation between the two conditions, its exact cause was not pinpointed. “One of the many complicating things is we don’t know what causes it,” said Jeffrey Johnson, lead researcher and a professor in the department of public health sciences. “It is a very complicated relationship because both are complex conditions.” Researchers believe that the
relationship is due to a combination of factors, including overall health and lifestyle habits. One of the leading theories, Johnson said, was that patients with type two diabetes are generally insulin deficient. These patients are sometimes treated with insulin, which he referred to as a “growth factor.” Researchers believe that the increase in the hormone might be “stimulating cancer cells to grow.” Johnson said the link is made more complex from the way these diseases are handled in the health care system. Researchers began to look for a potential detection bias as well. “We wanted to see if the number of times people go to the doctor is related to diagnosing cancer,” Johnson said. The study found that an increased number of medical visits was indeed a factor in the higher rate of cancer diagnosis, partly from the extra testing and appointments required for diabetes patients. However, in an interview with Reuters Health, Johnson noted that “this is maybe only one part of it ... we’re really early on in understanding this relationship.” He told The Gateway that the connection is likely due to a combination of a number of other causes, including obesity, smoking and diet. “I think that the message for people is that the relationship between diabetes and breast cancer probably has a lot to do with lifestyle, therefore we should try to lead as healthy a life as possible,” he said. Researchers are continuing to study the link between various types of cancer and diabetes, and are currently examining the role of diabetes medications in treating the conditions.
2013 launch
Pharmd Continued from page 1
In 2007, another attempt at bringing in a PharmD program was planned and, after their proposal in 2009 was re-tooled, the new plan for the PharmD program was accepted. The revised program will assist new pharmacists in a job whose responsibilities have changed over time. “There’s been an increase in the scope of practice of pharmacists,” Kehrer said. “It’s gone from a profession focused on the drug product and dispensing it to the patient, to a profession focused on that plus providing patients information.” Students graduating from the faculty in 2013 will be the first to be able to apply to the PharmD program. Kehrer argued that many of the current students with an undergraduate degree are just as skilled as the students who will be accepted into the PharmD program, but noted the program will open new doors for students in the faculty and for those who have already graduated. “The degree doesn’t make you, it just opens more doors and gives you a better foundation on which to build,” Kehrer said. “But what you make of it is up to the individual person. I don’t see that as a disadvantage. On the other hand, having an academic degree opens more doors.” Kehrer added that part of the program will allow around 10 practicing pharmacists to come back and get their degrees in September 2014. The interim degree is slated to be implemented in the fall of 2013, while Kehrer hopes to introduce the two plus four PharmD program in the fall of 2015.
national news 8
the
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November 2, 2011
Canadian universities adapt to soaring STI rates Colin McPhail
CUP Atlantic bureau chief FREDERICTON (CUP) — As sexually-transmitted infection rates soar across the country, university campuses — perceived hotbeds of sexual activity — are becoming prime locations to contract an infection. The highest rates and increases of all STIs are among people between the ages of 15 and 24, and the demographic’s national average for chlamydia and syphilis has nearly doubled in the past 20 years. More than 80 per cent of reported chlamydia cases are found in adults less than 30 years old, according to the Public Health Agency of Canada (PHAC), with the peak demographic for both men and women being 20 to 24 years of age. A 2009 study conducted by the PHAC outlined that for every 100,000 women aged 20 to 24, about 1,900 have tested positive for chlamydia, while 900 men reported the infection. The national rate is 258.5 per 100,000. Much like the PHAC, universities are now forced to go back to the drawing board to devise new initiatives to engage and inform students, as the latest results reveal traditional methods are not working. “Certainly there are posters out there and the odd thing that happens, but the message doesn’t seem to be getting out there well enough,” said Dr. David Reid, a part-time physician at the University of Prince Edward Island Student Health Centre. Prince Edward Island in particular has seen a 14 per cent spike in chlamydia cases over the past five years. Reid, who runs a full-range family practice and a walk-in clinic in Charlottetown, said one of the major
SUPPLIed
contributing factors is that young adults, including students, are not properly educated on the subject. “People aren’t that aware of what the symptoms are and what to watch for,” he said. “There (are) many people who are sexually active and not being screened properly, and I think if you have sexually active people who aren’t being screened ... well, I’m sure you can do the math.” If an individual engaged in sexual activity with three partners who had been with three other partners each over the course of a year, the effect would be as if the initial person had amassed 27 sexual partners in that span. Even though condoms and information are readily available on campuses, the onus is often placed
on the students themselves to pick up protection, read information and get screened. Marissa Joffre, vice-president campus issues for the University of Western Ontario Students’ Council, said lectures and pamphlets are not grabbing student attention. “Students already go through a ton of lectures and when the student council plans something. They want it to be more interactive, more engaging,” she said. “If it is more engaging, I feel we’ll have a much better chance of connecting with students.” Creating an appealing information campaign is at the top of her mandate as their sexual awareness week held earlier this month was one of the first of its kind at
Western, she said. Joffre said picking the right time is important when organizing a sexual awareness campaign. The council opted to the host the events during the peak of “drinking season” at Western, which includes homecoming and Halloween. The UPEI student union also took advantage of an opportune time in piggybacking on an awareness movement: Movember. Although still fundraising for prostate cancer, last November the student union pushed male students, with the help of Reid, to get screened while growing their moustaches. The student union will hold the event again next month, and even though it’s aimed at men, Reid is urging everyone to get screened
because chlamydia can be contracted yet show no symptoms. He is also performing screenings during standard check-ups during his clinic hours at UPEI. “We’re picking up a lot of chlamydia on regular PAP screening and STI checks,” Reid said. “So, if someone comes in that is female for birth control, we automatically do a screening for chlamydia and that’s how we’re picking up a lot of them.” Undetected chlamydia can often lead to fallopian tube scarring, pelvic inflammatory diseases and problems with infertility in women. Reid, however, mentioned that over 90 per cent of students screened are female. “It’s not a problem with access,” he said. “It’s a problem of students actually realizing they could be at risk and getting the testing done and getting treated. That’s the message that still needs to get out there.” At the national level, Sylwia Gomes, spokeswoman for the PHAC, said the agency is “working closely with provincial and territorial partners to monitor trends in STIs and to develop and disseminate tools for the prevention, diagnosis and treatment of infections.” The PHAC has revised the Canadian Guidelines for Sexual Health Education and implemented various sexual health promotion programs. However, Gomes noted there are still limitations. “In Canada, there is insufficient knowledge with regards to STIs and their association to negative personal health consequences,” she said in an email. For information on STIs and safer sex, Gomes recommends Canadians visit the PHAC website.
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opinion 9
Volume 102, Issue 10
Opinion
Opinion Editor Ryan Bromsgrove Phone 780.492.6661 Email opinion@gateway.ualberta.ca Volunteer Opinion meetings Wednesdays at 5 p.m. in 3-04 SUB. C’mon by!
editorial comment
Voting change a lazy step backwards MATH IS HARD. THAT’S THE SENTIMENT THAT PERVADED AT LAST week’s Students’ Council meeting, where the defenders of students’ best interests spent 10 minutes discussing and then passing a motion in the first reading recommended by the Elections Review Committee that reverted the SU voting method from Single Transferable Vote to the democratically inferior Instant Runoff Vote. But as the later hour-long debate about another recommended motion to allow campaigning on election days showed, its not that council doesn’t like heated discussion: it just has to be easy. Under the preferential ballot system IRV, when a candidate has 50 per cent plus one vote, he or she wins a seat. In a multiseat race, all the votes for that first candidate then go toward those voters’ next preferences in the next round. If nobody holds enough votes at any point, then the candidate with the fewest votes is eliminated, and their votes then transfer to whichever candidate was next preferred. This process repeats until all seats are filled — or until NOTA wins a seat. The problem is those who vote for the early winning candidates see their votes transferred more often which can lead to disproportionate seat distributions, especially for the NOTA option. With STV, the quota for winning is based on the number of seats contested. When seats remain and nobody’s met the quota, votes from the current winners are transferred as with IRV, but they come with a transfer value, found by dividing the number of votes above the quota by the total number of votes the candidate received. This leads to a much more proportional distribution of seats. This may seem a little complicated, but understanding it isn’t outside of the capabilities of the average student. The STV method was set to take over for this year’s elections, but when the data from the last election, still in IRV, was ran through the STV system, it was found that nobody would have been elected in the science General Faculties election. This spurred the committee’s decision to eventually recommend IRV. The argument against the status quo is that this version of STV is broken. But under the IRV method, the science councillor race last year had NOTA coming last in the final rankings, despite scoring the second highest number of first preference votes. But though IRV is just as broken, the motion to maintain it passed with only three dissenting votes, none of whom bothered to speak against during debate. This can only be described as being motivated by a selfish desire to fill seats against the wishes of students or — intellectual laziness. There were other options presented to council by the ERC in September: two versions of the Re-Open Nominations method. These would work under STV and replace None of the Above with Re-Open Nominations on the ballot, while avoiding the issues with over-representing a successful NOTA. The problem with one of them is that it only allows for one vacant seat, but the other, RON-2, leads to a relatively fair distribution of vacant seats by transferring the votes from one winning vacant seat to a second vacant seat option as if it had been on the ballot — as it would with an actual winning candidate — and so on as needed. Had this been in place in last year’s science General Faculties Council election, the 22 per cent of the vote earned by NOTA would have likely led to two vacant seats, or 25 per cent, relatively accurately reflecting voters’ wishes. The ERC presented the RON-2 option as being too complicated, but it seems no more complicated than the basic STV system already in place. It’s almos the same thing. No arcane sorcery beyond the comprehension of students is at work here: only simple, accessible math. The concern that this system is too complex to explain is incorrect — and irrelevant. It doesn’t matter if the average voter or candidate doesn’t understand the intricacies of the voting method. What matters is that afterward, we can all look at the distribution of votes, compare them to the seats, and agree that the results are basically proportional. What matters is that regardless of who bothers to look into how the votes are counted, the votes are counted in a way that leads to a fair allocation of seats — or a fair number of vacant seats — depending upon what those votes were. The real shame is that council would rather spend its time pointlessly debating and finally, narrowly sending back to committee what should have been a clear-cut decision to allow campaigning on election days — because this motion doesn’t require any research to complain about. That councillors had so many last-minute problems here, and nothing besides “RON is complicated” regarding reverting to IRV betrays their laziness. Nobody bothered to give their feedback to the committee in the weeks following the presentation, and nobody bothered to give RON-2 a chance. It’s easy to go with a committee’s recommendation when you don’t want to do minimal work to understand an issue, as with the vote reversion. And it’s easy to instead tediously debate something to hell and back when no work is required to speak on it. The end result is that council has at best delayed a decision that would strongly increase voter turnout while making it clear they don’t have the time to properly represent the students they claim to. Reverting to IRV is the choice of a council more concerned with filling seats with unwanted candidates than reflecting students’ wishes. We should expect better.
microtorial comment
Ryan Bromsgrove Opinion Editor
Jesse Cunningham
letters to the editor APIRG is complicit in spreading hate (Re: “Council Watch — Students’ Union fees used to spread hate presentation” by Ryan Bromsgrove,” Oct. 19) Ryan Bromsgrove provides a very inaccurate view of my presentation to Students’ Council and claims it should not have been allowed. However, I had previously provided Students’ Council with a letter explaining the presentation. Council overwhelmingly supported hearing the presentation, and was willing to engage with the valid and important concerns of the presentation. Many councillors stated that they found it interesting and others also personally thanked me afterwards. Bromsgrove was not satisfied with my justification of the hateful nature of the events. I explained that calling Israel, the only free democracy in the Middle East, “apartheid” is wrong, makes a false analogy with South Africa, and ignores the real apartheid nations in the Middle East and the world. I quoted Harvard University President Larry Summers that calls to boycott Israel are “anti-Semitic in their effect if not in their intent” for unfairly singling out Israel. I referenced the recent findings of the Parliamentary Coalition to Combat Anti-Semitism describing the level of anti-Semitism and intimidation on Canadian university campuses, often created by events such as Israeli Apartheid Week.
Nevertheless, I explicitly said more than once that I do not want to ban Palestine Solidarity Network or Israeli Apartheid Week. I pointed out that PSN invite speakers that are radically anti-Israel and have said that Zionism is racism. PSN helped with an event last year with Norman Finkelstein, who frequently says during his talks that Israel is worse than the Nazis. There is something fundamentally and morally wrong when money from students is being used by groups whose events demonize Israel and compare it to Nazi Germany and apartheid South Africa. When APIRG turns a blind eye to these hate-fests and makes poor funding decisions, it is complicit in propagating hate that harms the student body. Anyone who is not concerned by these inflammatory events that are promoting bigotry, misinformation, and bias should check his moral compass. Students are not fully aware of the groups and controversial events that they fund through APIRG; when students’ money is being used for activities with such hateful messages, then there needs to be better communication to all students if they want to optout. For instance, Bromsgrove could have made a useful contribution by asking many first-year students how informed they are of where their money goes regarding APIRG, but instead he grievously mischaracterizes my position and failed to bring constructive reporting to the table.
Joseph Mandelbaum
Medicine i
from the web High native suicide rate factored into study (Re: “Higher healthcare usage reported among suicide cases” by Andrew Jeffrey, Oct. 26) Individuals were classified into four individual-level socioeconomic proxy groups based on health care premium subsidy level; the (mutually exclusive) classifications were First Nations, Social Assistance, Premium Subsidy, No Premium Subsidy. Those on social assistance used considerably more health services than the other groups. First Nations also used more services than those classified as premium subsidy or no premium subsidy. In the logistic regression analysis, First Nations were significantly more likely (O.R. = 1.7) to die by suicide than the reference group (no premium subsidy).
“Ken M” Via Internet
Letters to the editor should be sent to letters@gateway.ualberta.ca. The Gateway reserves the right to edit letters for length and clarity, and to refuse publication of any letter it deems racist, sexist, libellous, or otherwise hateful in nature. The Gateway also reserves the right to publish letters online. Letters to the editor should be no longer than 350 words, and should include the author’s name, program, year of study, and student ID number to be considered for publication.
opinion 10
the
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November 2, 2011
K97 billboard ad nothing worth complaining about Darcy Ropchan
Opinion Staff A recent ruling by Advertising Standards Canada found a new billboard promoting radio station K97’s Terry, Bill and Steve morning show to be “totally gratuitous and served only to objectify women.” Thank god ASC is here, otherwise I wouldn’t know what to be offended by. The relatively inoffensive ad features a close up of a woman’s chest in awhite t-shirt with the caption “Pray for more rain” written beside it. But while the ruling came in response to several complaints, it’s more inappropriate than the billboard. Though it should be noted that the ASC has no authority to take down ads, no radio station has ever defied them. After the ruling, K97 apologized for the billboard and had it removed. After taking it down, K97 tried to cash in on the controversy with a new billboard that says “Offensive billboards? You should listen to the show.” The station is being penalized for appealing to its demographic of listeners. Terry, Bill and Steve have been known for the raunchy humour featured on their morning show and that’s what the billboard conveyed. Compared to some other advertisements for different radio stations and products, the ad was not over the line. Past ads for the morning radio show featuring the three stars
Supplied
“tastefully” covered up by coconuts accompanied by the blunt caption “See? ... They’re nuts” were not ruled as offensive by the ASC, despite the fact that it featured much more nudity than their new ad.
If an image of a woman’s breasts has that much control over people’s listening habits, then the problem doesn’t lie with the ad. The LRT stations in Edmonton are plastered with advertisements for Oil City Roadhouse featuring ridiculously thin women showing much more skin than the woman in the K97 ad, yet those billboards are still hanging on the wall. Advertisements like that are basically saying the prospect of meeting and hooking up with women like that are the reason you should go to
their bar. If the “Pray for more rain” ad objectifies women, the Oil City ads do so to a higher degree. If you’re offended by the ad, ignore it — billboards are only effective if you look at them. K97 obviously felt that a giant picture of a woman’s chest in a white t-shirt would make people tune in to their station, so if you don’t like it, don’t tune in. But if an image of a woman’s breasts has that much control over people’s listening habits, the problem doesn’t lie with the ad, but the people who would give it that sort of power. Take the billboard for what it is: a somewhat subtle joke that tries to give a taste of what their morning show is about. Complaining about it to the point of having it taken down is not the right way to get your point across. If you want to let K97 know you don’t like the message they’re conveying in their ad, don’t listen to their show and hit them where it really hurts: their ratings.
Conservative “It Gets Better” video lacks sincerity LGBT kids deserve Ryan Stephens
Opinion Writer The recent suicide of Jamie Hubley, an Ottawa teen who was taunted for being gay, has brought the issue of teenage bullying back once more into the public eye. And accompanying it are more “It Gets Better” videos. This time though, with the death being much closer to home, one response has come from an unexpected source: Conservative members of Canada’s Parliament and Senate. But rather than adding to the strength of “It Gets Better” campaign, their video’s insincerity displays the campaign’s shortcomings. Sex columnist Dan Savage’s project has now reached an almost iconic status, having immense effect on young teens facing the horrors of bullying. This is evident in the widespread and diverse nature of the responses; everybody from fellow victims of bullying and celebrities are voicing their support. But with the addition of social conservatives to that list, there’s a possibility that the movement is in danger of turning into a mere symbol of support, while its literal meaning and promise lose strength. While there’s nothing wrong with anybody who feels moved by the recent swell of teen suicides voicing
“While there’s nothing wrong with anybody who feels moved by the recent swell of teen suicides voicing their support, simply making a video for its own sake, as these MPs seem to have done, is careless and opportunistic.” their support, simply making a video for its own sake, as these MPs seem to have done, is careless and opportunistic. It’s difficult to find any authenticity in the words of these MPs regarding the plight of young gay teens. The messages are hurried and highly repetitive, while the only unique words spoken in the five-minute video are those of the two speakers introducing the issue. Aside from that, the MPs stick to the script, delivering the same brief, uninspired lines of dialogue. “Hi, my name is (whoever), and I want to let you know, it does get better,” and “If you know someone that needs help, be an ally, be a friend, don’t stay quiet, help them” repeated ad nauseum do little to inspire and make it seem as if this video’s purpose is instructional. The politicians haven’t realized that memorizing the number to the Kid’s Help Line is not what these teens need. What they need is an ideological change — a society that is more accepting of difference. Rick Mercer summed up the current situation perfectly when he argued, “It’s no longer good enough for us to tell kids who are different
that it’s gonna get better. We have to make it better now.” Every time we say that it gets better, we’re making a promise to every bullied teen that once high school is finished, once they reach adulthood, or once they get out of their small town they’ll be greeted with acceptance. But while the degree of acceptance from average families and peers is slowly growing, this video reminds us that full acceptance of LGBT kids is far from mainstream. If this is the best our Conservative government can muster, these kids won’t find much solace in legislative support for them. As Canadians, we are lucky to live in a place where LGBT citizens have more or less the same rights as nonLGBT citizens. But the climate of bullying in high schools has to end. These politicians, as the representatives citizens in government, have the unique ability to look at this issue and actually make things better. By taking the plight of LGBT kids seriously in Parliament, we could stand to win wider acceptance for them throughout society, most importantly in high schools.
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opinion 11
Volume 102, Issue 10
Occupy Edmonton stereotypes unjustified
the marble
p edestal
COMPILED BY Ryan Bromsgrove
Ravanne Lawday
Opinion Writer The negative stereotypes about the Occupy Edmonton camp are predictably dismissive and incorrect, usually spouted by people who didn’t bother visiting. After visiting the camp for myself, it’s clear that the identification of the protesters as unemployed, violent, radical hippies that contribute very little to society is dead wrong. The best way of summing up what they’re about and who’s involved in this two-and-a-half week effort was given by a protestor who chose to quote Confucius to me — “hear and forget, see and remember, do and understand.”
The notion that the majority of this population of diverse occupants are jobless vagrants is plain wrong. The amount of negative feedback towards the protest enticed me to visit for myself and find out who makes up this amorphous group. Although there are some homeless Edmontonians residing in the tiny park on Jasper Ave., I met several occupants who held rather diverse jobs, from an accountant to registered nurses volunteering at the medical tent, to a legal assistant and even an ordained minister. Through conversation with these people, it became clear to me that
Diverse cast The Occupy Edmonton protest draws people of all ages and various walks of life. the notion that the majority of this population of diverse occupants are jobless vagrants is plain wrong. Many occupants contribute a great amount to society, and should be commended. The idea that the Occupy movement is one of violence is simply wrong. In my three visits to the Edmonton camp, I’ve seen only one violent act: and it wasn’t the protesters. A man walking down the street was apparently so inconvenienced by the group of citizens handing out leaflets that he felt it necessary to vocally and physically express his feelings. He threw his fists at any protester near him, screaming about how the
group was entirely jobless, and that they were what was wrong with society as a whole. He continued to talk about how he takes good care of his family, and how those looking back at him should aspire to follow suit. The peaceful way the protestors dissipated the situation is highly uncharacteristic of their rumoured violent and radical behaviour, and the incident itself certainly displays a deep irony on the side of some detractors. It’s true that some members of the movement have taken questionable actions, like the appearance by some at the downtown arena hearing at city council last week in which they
AmirAli Sharifi
marched in and chanted. But the actions of individuals in this diverse collection of protesters don’t speak for the beliefs of the majority. Members of the camp assert that it’s imperative that the group is judged by the actions of the movement as a whole, and not of individuals within it. When reacting to negative stereotypes in any situation — not merely with the Occupy Edmonton movement — it’s important to make your own observations. And when it does come to Occupy Edmonton, most of them welcome anybody to come down to see and understand for themselves.
Know what I found at SUBMart last Friday? Only a little something wrapped in shiny blue foil and made almost entirely out of sugar. Yeah, cotton candy in a bag. The future is fucking here, folks. The best part is you don’t get just one flavour like most fluffy sugar pushers. No, you get three — this is some neapolitan shit right here. A cloud of colour bursts out of the bag, ready to turn into a taste sensation the second it hits your saliva and undergoes that weird melty transformation. Yeah, I know that ingesting all that sugar isn’t good for my health, but I sure as hell don’t care when it’s this tasty. You might think that the longterm storage of this product might leave it with an unpleasant stale property. Well worry not, because it feels so fresh you’d swear the SU had fired up those Week of Welcome cotton candy machines again and slyly bagged the results every morning while no one was looking. I want to put a whole other marble pedestal on the marble pedestal, and then put this baby atop them both. Because this wonder-product has allowed me access to the childhood I never had. Perhaps next, it can even help me feel love again.
The Marble Pedestal is a semiregular feature where something amazing finds itself the object of our worship. One day we’ll have a real marble pedestal, but until then, print will have to do.
opinion 12
the
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www.thegatewayonline.ca
November 2, 2011
A maple leaf makeover Opinion Staff
group commentary
With the beaver under threat from the polar bear as Canada’s national animal, maybe it’s time we take a look at replacing another treasured symbol: the maple leaf. Here are our ideas for a better flag in this fantastic time of change.
Joel Aspden Let’s get the polar bear and beaver thing out of the way first. We’ll let them duke it out, and instead of keeping the impossibly-hard-todraw maple leaf, we’ll put the winning animal on the flag. Natural selection at its finest. While Senator Nicole Eaton seems to think that a polar bear would make a great national animal, some us have grown particularly fond of the old bucktoothed rodent that currently holds the honor. And there’s only one way to settle this. The arena needs to be fair, because let’s be honest, a beaver versus a polar bear doesn’t exactly seem like a fair fight. The fight will have to incorporate both water and landbased elements. The arena needs to be huge — at least grand enough to keep the fight interesting. Ice floes, trees, bushes, streams and slopes will all be incorporated in order to keep the war even. To appease the shrill cries of the animal rights activists, we won’t let either of the animals die. We’ll do it laser tag-style, with appropriately sized targets strapped to each wild competitor. In order to keep the brawl interesting, full-body contact will not be frowned upon and will score extra points. After a duration that seems epic enough for polar bear-beaver duel, we’ll put the winner on our national flag as a symbol of our nation’s legendary badass-ness. This won’t solve the impossibly-hard-to-draw dilemma, but let me ask you this: Would you rather stab yourself with frustration after trying to draw a fearsome, heroic and mighty national animal-warrior, or a leaf?
Adrian Lahola-Chomiak My fellow Canadians, I believe that there is only one symbol significant enough to take the place of the maple leaf on our flag. No it’s not a hockey stick or a bottle of maple syrup, it’s the one man who, more than any other, has come to represent us as Canadians: Rick Mercer. Unlike most TV personalities, Mercer is quintessentially Canadian down to his newfie accent. While he doesn’t always know exactly what he’s getting into, he’s more than willing to give it his best. You would be hard pressed to find another person, let alone television show host, with whom an entire country can feel so affectionate towards. Some people call him the Canadian Jon Stewart, but he is so much more then that. His show spends equal time highlighting events across the country and critiquing the government. He does it all with a sense of humour that never alienates — but still hits our funny bone hard. His social commentary is a stake in the vampire of Canadian politics, cutting through the posturing and getting down to the core of any
National Treasure The flag would look better with his smile.
Photo Illustration: Dan McKechnie
issue he tackles. The maple leaf has served us well over the past decades, but it’s time to send a message to the world. We should immortalize a man who has made all of us both laugh and question our government, often in the same breath. Plus, how awesome would it be to have his big grin stare down at us from our flag during hockey games?
our national winter sport, and the one thing that Canadians are constantly associated with no matter who they talk to. So many different interpretations for this blank slate of a flag would only create a connection with more Canadians to our new national symbol. We should embrace that with the highest of honors and show it to the world on our flag. As a warning.
Andrew Jeffrey
Ravanne Lawday
Around the world, flags are meant to symbolize something important for the country they represent. The Canadian flag does that admirably with the maple leaf standing strong as a Canadian symbol even before the current flag was created. It sums up what our winters are like with the image of an object that will wither away and crumble into dust come autumn, and then completely disappear from sight once snow starts falling in winter. Honestly, once you know this about Canada, you know what it’s going to be like once you visit. But why stop there when we can convey even further just how bitterly cold our winters are every year? The best way to symbolize what to expect from Canada would be to cut the red out of the flag. The bright, vibrant stripes on either side of the flag and the centered, red maple leaf should disappear just as those leaves do in the winter and replaced exactly the same way — with snow. The Canadian flag should be pure white to create a beautiful pristine image of snowbank to shining snowbank. Of course this white flag would never stand for surrender but would instead represent the bravery of each driver barelling down the freeway in the middle of winter, or the adversity each young child faces when they have to walk to school through towering snowbanks reaching sometimes two feet tall. To some it could even represent a blank sheet of ice where we play
I’ll tell you what should replace the maple leaf: the image of two people shaking hands with the biggest smiles on their faces. When I first met a friend — born, raised and living in the U.S. — it took a while for my “foreign” identity to come up. But when it did, he curiously asked me where I was from. Obviously, I told him I’m from Canada. He then said, “Oh, well then, we’ll be sure to get along!” Surprised, I asked him why and found out that apparently, Canadians are always kind and polite. We both had a good laugh about this, because I was expecting him to say something about igloos or marijuana use. I didn’t think the stereotypical politeness of Canadians would be the most widespread stereotype. But as I made many more international friends over the years, I discovered that this rumour that we’re the kindest people on the planet was pretty overbearing. So if we traded our maple leaf for a picture of people shaking hands, I don’t think the international community would complain too much. We’re probably the only country that could get away with showing so much pride about how nice we are that we put it on our flag. So instead of picking something lame like a marijuana leaf or hockey stick, pushing the idea that we’re all hockey-crazed, drug-smoking, cold-loving nut-jobs, let’s try and perpetuate something on the positive side.
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opinion 13
Volume 102, Issue 10
Photo Illustration: Dan McKechnie
Leave the cell phone bubble concede, many of us would bury ourselves in our phones and pretend he doesn’t exist.
Joel Aspden
Opinion Writer
A recent Danish study looked at data from 350,000 participants over 15 years and showed there is no correlation between your cell phone and and cancer. There is a problem with your virtual pocket friend, but it’s not medical — it’s social. Cell phones have fast become our personal bubbles. We’re falling deeper in love with these glossy gadgets, deeper in love with ourselves, and ironically, we’re losing touch with each other. Imagine you’re on the LRT on an average afternoon at peak time. The train is crowded. An elderly man, appearing to have the fitness of a greyhound and the health of a newborn jumps on board. Simply out of respect, despite the man’s exorbitant vitality, the polite thing to do would be to offer him your seat. But regardless of what our consciences might
More people are losing confidence in their social skills. More of us are becoming reclusive from hiding behind our new electronic best friends. Now, picture a meal out with either your best friend, lover, grandmother or whoever. The enjoyment of spending time with someone you care about should matter most at times like these. Instead, we’ve begun to take these moments for granted. Rather than enjoying the company of friends and loved ones, some of us turn to our phones and immerse ourselves in a far more artificial world. And when it comes to dating, we need to let our mouths do the talking, and not our fingers. There’s an unwritten code that younger generations of boys are going to fail to observe: when asking that prepossessing girl
#3LF
in your lecture out on a date, never do it through a text message. Take the reigns, respect your maturity, respect the young lady you aspire to desire and ask her face-to-face. Culpability falls more on some than others, and it’s easy to see these issues as trivial first-world problems, but cell phone usage should present a real concern. More people are losing confidence in their social skills. More of us are becoming reclusive from hiding behind our new electronic best friends. Now is the time to revise our habits and to start acting as role models of traditional respect and conduct for younger generations. Don’t take this message the wrong way. Cell phones have a crucial role in our society, but what matters is the way that we choose to use them. This isn’t a plea for the world to purge a brilliant technology from existence, but a plea for reinstating some degree of communal societal respect. Together let’s forget about worrying about imagined health risks, and address the true issues concerning cell phone use: our own habits.
three lines free
Got something that you need to get off your mind? Either email us at threelinesfree@gateway.ualberta.ca, tweet @threelinesfree, or message us at www.thegatewayonline.ca/threelinesfree. And until Nov. 4, submit to win prizes! Dear Engineer who sits in the back of ECON 204 A1, please raise your hand before asking a question or expressing your opinion. We do not care about your internet-assembled wisdom. You are a disgrace to yourself and your faculty. I need to save cash But the food here smells so good What am I to do?Tidy one bedroom Step to me bitch, the drama’s on. I burn more trees than corporations in the Amazon. Whyte. Spiderman, even with powers, can’t match up to Batman physically, tactically, or financially. Spiderman < Batman. Forever. Susan Sarandon’s 65 year old cleavage turns me on Multiple menstruation comics in one Gateway issue! Wait WHAT? Menstruation jokes? A whole new low for comics (and I thought they had already hit the bottom). I know, I know. -4 Strength, -2 Constitution, +2 Dexterity... But I just gotta go Kobold. Dear couples in my BIOL 108 class. Maybe move your cuddling to the back row? glados gives me a serious lady-boner does this make me gay? Your profs may not hear you whispering in the back row, but I can, so shut the fuck up. To myself in all my EE classes: you’re ballin ;)
To the deaf girl in my EE classes: You really are beautiful. If I could sign, I would love to say hi. This is my grandson. He’s been your rival since you were a baby. ... Erm, what is his name again? That’s right! I remember now! His name is DICKS! Criminal Minds reruns > my homework. Every time. The boy from the CMPUT 114 9:00 AM class desires to know who his secret admirer is. Kindly present yourself to me in the most obnoxious way or live a life of regret! Don’t just check me out If you’re interested Come talk to me too ;) COLLAPSE, CORRODE, CAVE IN, HOLD TIGHT! Pharmacology student, likes to ski, wearing argyle. Interesting conversation walking down Whyte on friday. Wish I’d gotten your name. New this semester: Must run assignments through a plagiarism checker. Why do I feel like we’re being punished for something someone else did? More notice needed about the Oct 26 orgy! If there are any aliens, time travellers, sliders or espers here, come join me. That is all. Why do I get the feeling that VP Yamagishi is never going to get anything done on a LGBTQ Center. Just more empty promises?
On February 7, 1989, Gateway Editorin-Chief Dragos Ruiu presided over the creation of the original Twitter: Three Lines Free. Unfortunately for Dragos, he was 17 years early, and it is that bum Jack Dorsey who is now worth $300 million. Where are all the post-metal girls on campus? I promise, I will propose to the first pretty lady I see in an ISIS shirt. The Midterm Exam, Crushing the dreams of first-years. You are Beautiful. Re: hotbox teepee I would totally be down Spaghetti pockets Justin baby, I’ll be your big spoon... if youre okay with my boner poking into your back. Enough tuna melts It’s high time for a real date Dr. Who marathon? health academy no discreet pooping in here pervert designers Dear girl who lives below me in Lister, do you really have to be THAT loud? I can hear EVERYTHING. FYI. Sincerely the girl above you So over Halloween Haikus get me laid. Not in the literal sense; Euphemisms, bro. If some other jerk comes dressed as a tampon, there’s gonna be a toxic shock beatdown. Just hook up already!
opinion 14
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November 2, 2011
Photo Illustration: Dan McKechnie
Ladies should try bromance Mim Fatmi
OPinion Writer
We all know them: those girls — the ones who congregate, shriek and hug each other every time they see one another. Flash forward two minutes, when they’re walking off in opposite directions, and they’re now muttering to their companions, “God, I can’t stand her — she is so fake!” Ladies, help me out here: why do we hate each other? Why are we so eager to trash the girl whose fashion sense doesn’t suit our tastes? Why do we feel envy boil up in us whenever we hear about another woman’s accomplishments? Why are we so quick to judge? Imagine a life free of backhanded compliments and instead filled with immature jokes and fist bumps. Fellow women, I implore you: give bromance a try. When you run into the friend you haven’t seen in a while, give her a big slap on the back and tell her how much you’ve missed her — and actually mean it. When she tells you what she’s been up to, commend her achievements and don’t let a jealous sentiment anywhere
near your bubble of sincerity. And when she tells you about the weight she lost since she started busting her butt on the treadmill this semester, take a step back, give her a long look, and tell her it worked.
Wouldn’t we be happier sitting around belching the alphabet and making fart jokes? We know high school is famous for the Regina Georges who make it their mission to terrorize any female they can, but we’re supposed to be past that now. Unfortunately, the cattiness of homecoming queens has clawed its way into university life, and terrifyingly enough, sounds like it continues to reside in women’s psyches for years afterward. If it’s not rivalry in the workplace, it’s the bitter jealousy of each other’s love lives; if it’s not buying the biggest house, it’s a contest to see who can lose the most weight. It’s always a contest with girls. From the evolutionary perspective, we’d expect it to be the guys, but no, they don’t do the sorts of things we do. The most prominent form of natural selection now is how many snide remarks and dirty looks you can take before withdrawing from society altogether.
Guys are straight with each other. But for us, the game is over as soon as you become too direct: the trick is to be as passive-aggressive as possible in your interaction with your prey. It’s only once her back is turned that you can feel free to be as malicious as your vocabulary allows. Meanwhile guys get it all out in the open and move on. We must stop the madness. When your insecurities start creeping up on you about how you might never be as in shape as your friend, man up and make like a dude: go find some other way to feed your ego, play Call of Duty for a few hours — or weeks — and get over it. It’s time we end this habit of constantly one-upping one another and remember that we can elevate our self-esteem without bringing another woman’s down. Wouldn’t we be happier sitting around belching the alphabet and making fart jokes? Well, probably not, but we can at least stop making unfair judgments about girls we don’t know, spreading the hate and perpetuating our own drama. Let’s leave the mean girl antics to Rachel McAdams and other women way too attractive to play teenagers in high school. And at the very least, if you won’t do it for sisterhood, do it so the producers stop exploiting the drama to make terrible sequels.
Phone patent wars getting stupid Josh Schmaltz Opinion Writer
In today’s advanced society, what do you do if you don’t like someone? Sue them, obviously. Today we live in the enlightened age of litigation. And the current best bullshit legal battle in a sea of whiny corporate lawsuits is the one now unfolding between Apple and Samsung. See, Apple has sued Samsung because the Galaxy S phone somewhat resembles an iPhone and the Galaxy Tab looks a bit like an iPad. In the Statement of Claim — or the “Fuck you, I’m suing!” document — filed in California this past April, Apple argues that Samsung is infringing on the company’s “trade dress,” which is a fancy term for Apple complaining that Samsung products and packaging can potentially be confused with Apple products. Apple even goes on to complain that the Galaxy S Phone App icon has a landline handset on top of a green
background like the one found on the iPhone. I’m pretty sure anyone who has ever owned a cell phone has had a button or an icon involving a phone handset and the colour green. This is a pretty basic concept that no one should be able to own. Regardless, Apple used this argument in conjunction with various patents held by the company in an attempt to stop Samsung from selling their offending phones and tablets in various countries around the world. This has worked in Australia, Germany and the Netherlands. It hasn’t been successful in the US, so far. In response, Samsung has sued Apple in South Korea, Japan, Australia and the Netherlands for infringing on some of its own intellectual property. In these countries, Samsung controls many of the patents surrounding the technology that allows cell phones to actually make phone calls. Samsung is now trying to stop Apple from selling iPhones in these countries until Apple removes the ability to make calls. Since making phone calls is an essential feature of a cellphone, there is a legal requirement that Samsung negotiate “fair, reasonable, and nondiscriminatory” terms with Apple
to use the technology, so the lawsuit probably won’t be successful. Samsung is probably trying to get Apple to come to a compromise. In Australia, Samsung offered to modify the software on the Galaxy Tab to satisfy Apple’s demands in exchange for an out-of court settlement. Apple refused, so now Samsung is demanding licensing fees for every cell phone transmitter used in an iPhone in Europe. This endless circle of lawsuits is beyond ridiculous. Imagine if a court heard a case where GM tried to sue Ford for making “similar selfpropelled four-wheel vehicles.” Or if Coke sued Pepsi for bottling a “similar tasting dark-coloured beverage.” The concept of a touchscreen-style phone or tablet shouldn’t belong to Apple, and the form factor doesn’t belong to anyone. Apple may have had the first major commercial success with a touchscreen phone, but Palm had been churning out touchscreen PDAs for years before Apple launched the first iPod. Apple started this frivolous battle, and it’d be best if this playground bully ends up on the losing side of the game, rather than continue pushing ridiculous lawsuits.
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arts & culture 15
Volume 102, Issue 10
Arts & Culture social intercourse COMPILED BY Alana Willerton Bro at heart
Cleopatra’s Sister Presented by Northern Light Theatre Written by Trevor Schmidt Directed by Trevor Schmidt Starring Nadien Chu and Sylvia Wong Runs Friday, Nov. 4–Saturday, Nov. 12 at 8 p.m. TransAlta Arts Barns (10330–84 Ave.) $22 at tixonthesquare.ca Sisters aren’t always easy to get along with. But imagine what it would’ve been like if one of the most famous women in history, Cleopatra, had to battle her own sister in order to get to the Egyptian throne. Northern Light Theatre’s latest play, Cleopatra’s Sister, explores the power struggle between Cleopatra and her sister Arsinoe while the two were growing up. The play envisions how history might have been changed as the sisters fight over not a man, but over a nation and its throne.
Buck Presented by Metro Cinema Directed by Cindy Meehl Starring Buck Brannaman and Robert Redford Runs Friday, Nov. 4–Thursday, Nov. 10 at various times Garneau Theatre (8712–109 St.) $8 admission The thought of cowboys immediately conjures images of the rugged, lasso-slinging men we all know from the classic Western films. While the documentary Buck includes these things, it also has something much greater: heart. The documentary follows Buck Brannaman, a cowboy and “horse-whisperer” of sorts who travels the country giving clinics on how to help horses with their people problems. During his travels, we are given a glimpse into Brannaman’s abusive childhood and how it molded his philosophy of communicating with horses through leadership, sensitivity and compassion, rather than punishment. Deemed an unsung hero by some, Buck is ultimately the story of an ordinary man who has an extraordinary gift with horses.
Science in the Cinema: The King’s Speech Presented by Metro Cinema Written by David Seidler Directed by Tom Hooper Starring Colin Firth, Geoffrey Rush and Helena Bonham Carter Thursday, Nov. 3 at 6:30 p.m. Garneau Theatre (8712–109 St.) Free Considering the nature of today’s film industry, it’s hard to tell how much of the science we see in films is fact or fiction. Science in the Cinema is here to dispel the myths behind science in popular cinema as they kick off their season with a screening of the 2010 Oscar winner The King’s Speech. The film features the life of King George VI (Colin Firth) of Britain, who is forced to take the throne after the abrupt abdication of his brother, despite a debilitating stutter. With his country on the brink of war and in desperate need of a leader, George enlists the help of his wife Elizabeth (Helena Bonham Carter) and speech therapist Lionel Logue (Geoffrey Rush) to help him overcome the stammer. Dr. Marilyn Langevin, Assistant Professor in Speech Pathology & Audiology at the U of A, will be on hand after the screening to speak about research on speech disorders and their treatments.
Arts & Culture Editor Madeline Smith Phone 780.492.7052 Email arts@gateway.ualberta.ca Volunteer A&C meetings Wednesdays at 4 p.m. in 3-04 SUB
Dan Mangan opens up to a life full of songwriting surprises MUSIC PREVIEW
Dan Mangan WITH Daredevil Christopher Wright and The Crackling WHEN Thursday, Nov. 3 at 7:30 p.m. WHERE McDougall United Church (10025–101 St.)
HOW MUCH $32 at Blackbyrd or primeboxoffice.com Chris Gee
Arts & Culture Staff @ChrisGGGGGG As he steps out of a Tim Hortons in Nova Scotia after a stint touring the U.S., Dan Mangan is just like any other Canadian — happy to be home. Touring constantly over the past few years has paid off for the Vancouver singer-songwriter, who’s enjoyed a whirlwind rise to national notoriety, with a Polaris Prize nomination in 2010. Now, he’s now garnering even more acclaim with his third album, Oh Fortune, but that doesn’t mean he doesn’t still appreciate the simple comforts of his home country.
“I played in an aquarium once in Brighton with a turtle floating around behind me, and I’ve played in a laundromat in San Francisco. It’s interesting — over the years you wander into these bizarre scenarios where you’re playing these unconventional places, and you kind of adapt to it.” Dan Mangan “It’s funny — when you’re in Canada, Tim Hortons is sort of like where you go when you can’t find something else that’s not a chain. But there are times when you’re down in the States and all there is is terrible gas station food, and all you desire is a Tim Hortons,” Mangan muses. “Coming back to Canada is great,” he says. “It’s so good — the familiar highways and concert halls and people.” Mangan speaks the same way he writes songs: with obvious sincerity and likeability. But his latest album also takes something of a darker tone, reflecting upon the purpose of life and death and the necessity of enjoying what little time a human life allows. It’s about coming to terms with the reality of death, Mangan says — an ambitious topic for a musician still just in his late 20s. But he maintains that he’s perfectly content with the new musical direction he’s exploring. As Mangan ventures into new lyrical territory, he’s also experimenting with instrumentation, with several of the songs on his new album featuring multi-layered guitars and an orchestral section with horns and strings. Unlike his sparse, acoustic work of the past, Oh Fortune is a dense musical experience, as Mangan experiments with different amps and pedals to create a noisier collection of songs. But that doesn’t mean
he’s lost his sense of intimacy, especially when it comes to his live shows. “For a long time I was really romanticized by the idea of the solo travelling folky guy, and these days I’m much more interested in expansive soundscapes,” he explains. “I wanted to challenge myself with something different. “But I haven’t changed at all ... I mean, you want the show to be large and expansive and interesting and intricate, but at the same time you want it to be personal and intimate and full of honesty and sincerity. So you’re always kind of bridging the gap between putting on a big professional show and also trying to make people feel like they’re a part of it.” Mangan has been making sure his audience feels included since his breakthrough single “Robots” from his second album, with the singalong anthemic chorus of “Robots need love too / They want to be loved by you,” often handing out instruments for audience members and inviting them onstage with him. And with his non-stop touring, Mangan has taken both his tongue-in-cheek and heartfelt songs all around the world — often strumming his trusty guitar in some “weird places.”
“I played in an aquarium once in Brighton with a turtle floating around behind me, and I’ve played in a laundromat in San Francisco,” he says. “It’s interesting — over the years you wander into these bizarre scenarios where you’re playing these unconventional places, and you kind of adapt to it.” Mangan’s list of strange concert situations also includes a performance at the head office of the social networking site Twitter. “Somebody from the office sent me a tweet,” Mangan laughs, explaining how he got the gig. “We were playing in a boardroom with a bunch of people who all have iPhones and Macbooks, and they were all very tuned in, internet-savvy folk. “It’s sort of the new era. I mean, it’s amazing to me that if I take two seconds to send out a couple of words on (Twitter), maybe one or five or 100 more people will come to the gig. That’s incredible.” Frequently described as a down-toearth person, Mangan keeps a soft spot in his heart for his hometown of Vancouver, remaining a musician for the people despite his skyrocketing success. Above all, Mangan is just enjoying his life as a working musician, entertaining as many people as he can. “If you want to be surrounded by good people who are interesting, thoughtful, creative, generous and compassionate, then you have to be all of those things,” he says. “You always get back exactly what you give out.”
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November 2, 2011
fashion streeters COMPILED AND PHOTOGRAPHED BY Julianna Damer
Julie Kim Engineering IV
Monstrous metal with Gwar MUSIC PREVIEW
Gwar WITH Every Time I Die and Ghoul WHEN Friday, Nov. 4 at 7 p.m. WHERE Edmonton Event Centre
(8882–170 St.)
HOW MUCH $38.50 at ticketmaster.ca Madeline Smith
Arts & Culture Editor @meksmith On the phone with the lead singer of Gwar, it’s hard to know whether it’s a human or an alien you’re communicating with. While Dave Brockie is the man behind the outrageous thrash metal mask, he’s far better known by his monster moniker Oderus Urungus — a ruthless intergalactic metal barbarian with a mouth to match his shocking exterior, and a role Brockie adopts with unabashed glee. “You got Dave here,” Brockie begins cheerfully. “And you got Oderus. Dave is boring. Actually, Dave is dead. I ate him — I needed food for this tour coming up.” Gwar is armed for their new tour with a deep catalogue of dark music and demented stage theatrics that reaches all the way back to 1984. But with almost three decades of experience and 13 albums under the band’s belt, the collective Gwar imagination still never runs out of
ideas for bizarre creatures to include in the mythos that surrounds the group. As they prepare for their upcoming stint on the road on the World Maggot tour, expect the usual program of eviscerating celebrities and enacting violent punishments on the so-called “Gwar slaves,” but don’t underestimate the band’s willingness to take their onstage antics to new levels. “Right now the Gwar slaves are building the great harness for the World Maggot. We don’t want it to just be roaming around onstage. We’re playing a fucking metal show here; you can’t just have a 40foot long maggot rolling around in every song,” Brockie says. “That’ll make solos difficult, I know that. But we do want to unleash it at some point, so the slaves are working on some chains and an elaborate structure of iron and steel and rock that will undoubtedly collapse at some point and kill a large portion of the audience. “The reason we like the maggots is we like to ride them through outer space,” he continues. “And they don’t like it at all, so it’s difficult. It’s a sport. I’ve usually found beating them into submission works … You establish a relationship, much like you would with a pony. The maggot is like a pony to me, and I’m like a little girl — a little girl with a giant dick who has sex with her pony.” While the band ups the gory ante in their live show, they’re also
dedicated to the evolution of their sound. Brockie describes the band’s latest album Bloody Pit of Horror as the group’s heaviest music yet. This is a deliberate direction for Gwar, making an effort to combine a hard melodic edge with the over-the-top humour of their live shows. “Thematically and musically we’ve gotten a lot darker,” Brockie acknowledges, stopping to speak seriously. “The problem is we get out there and play live, and we’re just funny guys. We can’t help it. And the more serious we are, the more funny we become.” “But what you call a show is just my typical feeding ritual,” he says, jumping back into the role of Oderus. “I go there, the crowd is gathered making noise, creatures are drawn like maggots to an open wound, many die, I feed, pass out for a couple hours, walk to the next city and it all begins again. It still retains its lustre after all these blood-drenched years.” With the alien invasion of Gwar nearing its 30th anniversary, the band doesn’t appear to be slowing down any time soon. And Brockie’s own outlandish alter ego is perfectly willing to stay exactly where he is. “The crack is the best part about earth,” Brockie says without a second of hesitation. “And metal — crack and metal. If you could only have two things in the world, why wouldn’t they be crack and metal?”
GATEWAY: Describe what you’re wearing. JULIE: I’m just wearing a Waldo shirt for Halloween.
I’m wearing a striped shirt from Forever 21, jeggings from Garage, Keds shoes and a red tuque. My glasses are the 3D ones from the movie theatre. GATEWAY: What’s your favourite thing you have on? JULIE: The striped shirt and the tuque because it’s red and matches with everything for the Waldo theme.
ALBUM REVIEW
Darlings of Chelsea Panic is Worse than the Emergency Independent darlingsofchelsea.net Andrew Jeffrey
Arts & Culture Staff @Andrew_Jeffrey Not every band tries to make meaningful statements with their work. Not every band tries to do something truly unheard of with a crazy new concept. Some bands, like Darlings of Chelsea, just want to play old-fashioned, simple rock ‘n’ roll music. Panic is Worse than the Emergency
doesn’t attempt to be anything more than a fun rock record. The lyrics offer the usual messages of overcoming adversity — not necessarily anything new or special that hasn’t been said better by someone else. But the album is still a solid, with music that only improves as it goes on. The first couple songs are the worst offend-
ers of generic hard rock, while later tracks like “Gimme Hell” and “Too Long” manage to be catchier despite their consistently uninspired lyrics. Darlings of Chelsea also have a certain edge that’s lost by most other bands of the same ilk who spend too much time in the studio, becoming too overproduced and clean. Panic is Worse than the Emergency is rock ‘n’ roll the way it should be played: rough, raucous, imperfect and just plain fun. If you’re not a fan of most modern rock, Darlings of Chelsea probably won’t do anything to change your mind, but take the band for what they are and you might just be pleasantly surprised.
Check out thegatewayonline.ca/fashionstreeters for more photos.
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Volume 102, Issue 10
Studio Theatre tackles a gritty portrait of youth in Yellow Moon
COMPILED BY Peggy Jankovic
Wrigley’s Extra Dessert Delights Gum
Theatre PREVIEW
Yellow Moon: The Ballad of Leila and Lee WHEN Runs Thursday, Nov. 3–Sunday, Nov. 12 at 7:30 p.m., matinée performance Thursday, Nov. 10 at 12:30 p.m. WHERE Timms Centre for the Arts (87th Avenue and 112th Street) WRITTEN BY David Greig DIRECTED BY Jan Selman STARRING Richard Lam, Sereana Malani,
Tristan Mi, Alyson Dicey and Paula Humby
HOW MUCH $10 at the Timms box office Paige Gorsak Arts & Culture Writer @paigegorsak
Yellow Moon is an ideal show for U of A’s Studio Theatre — challenging and edgy, but ultimately still relateable. “Yellow Moon is a perfect play for a young emerging group of actors because it’s about youth, by youth,” says director Jan Selman, the director who leads the young cast through British playwright David Greig’s gritty coming-of-age story. Set in Scotland, Yellow Moon follows Leila (Sereana Malani) and Lee (Richard Lam), two lonely and troubled teenagers from vastly different backgrounds who meet through an unlikely twist of fate. Thrust together, they begin a journey that leads them into trouble, and soon the improbable pair is on the run into the Scottish highlands, seeking refuge from adversity. Playwright David Greig uses their relationship as a means to uncover difficult subject matter like poverty and abuse. “Greig is a playwright and he’s also a poet,” Selman says. “He makes a very contemporary story rise to the height of a ballad or of a Greek tragedy … The play is about regular kids, but the way the story is told makes them and their lives and their journey elevated and very important. And I think we have to make people who would otherwise be invisible important in the theatre,” Selman says. In addition to Greig’s prestige as a poet, he’s also famous in his native Scotland for generating theatre productions in a wide range of genres, from plays about teens like Yellow Moon, to historical pieces and adaptations of other works. His shows are often notable for the special connection they forge with the audience, and Yellow Moon with its unique style is no exception.
cultura obscura
Amirali Sharifi
“It’s really a very theatrical piece — not realistically told,” Selman explains. “A lot of acting training is about believing in a particular world, the world of the scene. This one is about believing in the world of theatre and the live audience of theatre.” Yellow Moon breaks traditional acting boundaries, as the actors not only play their characters, but also narrate and comment on the action. “The performers tell the story and play the characters,” Selman says. “They’re in the scene and then they’re back out and they’re commenting on it. They keep switching all along, and it’s very contemporary and edgy.” Yellow Moon tackles dark subject matter, and Selman promises depth and emotion as the production examines themes of parent-child relationships, abandonment, young love and violence. “The characters are in some ways from a rougher part of the world. They’ve lived rougher lives than the mainstream, so it’s been important to engage in that and not try to make them nice — it’s important for the actors to take on their flaws
as well as the romance of the story,” she says. The show marks the debut show of the U of A’s BFA acting class of 2012, featuring five members of the class with the rest hitting the stage in the next Studio Theatre piece, Fuddy Meers. “They’re stunning,” Selman says of her young cast. “They’re very strong actors. The training they’ve been taking here really shows, and this is the last step before going out and making a living at it. They need the year, but they’re also really ready for this showcase stage.” Yellow Moon’s Leila and Lee are only a few years younger than the average undergraduate student, and as they embark on a journey that is both emotionally and physically taxing, Selman’s young cast follows suit. Those in attendance will watch both Leila and Lee — and their fellow classmates — reach for new heights. “The play is one that really looks at what young people have to offer us as they face themselves and try to make their mark in the world … it’s very much about finding your feet and becoming who you know you can be.”
Roald Dahl’s Charlie and the Chocolate Factory is undoubtedly a mainstay of childhood literature. Who could forget when Violet Beauregard’s gummy meal of tomato soup, roast beef and blueberry pie takes an unfortunate turn, and she actually morphs into an oversized blueberry? And now, Willy Wonka’s dream of containing entire meals in a stick of gum has been partially realized with Wrigley’s Extra Dessert Delights chewing gum. These marvels of science come in five flavours: Strawberry Shortcake, Mint Chocolate Chip, Key Lime Pie, Orange Creme Pop and Apple Pie. And don’t worry about being rolled away by Oompa-Loompas, as none of these flavoured gums will actually cause you to balloon up. The gum is sugar free and naturally lower in calories than the actual desserts themselves, leading to an online cult following among the diet community — even recommended by trainer Bob Harper of The Biggest Loser. Chewing gum has long been a suggested method of preventing mindless eating, and these dessert flavours have the added bonus of satisfying a particular craving. Probably most fantastic about Dessert Delights is how perfectly Wrigley recreates each flavour. Mint Chocolate Chip is not just repackaged mint gum — there really is an unmistakable hint of chocolate in it. In a similar way, Strawberry Shortcake and Orange Creme Pop have just enough vanilla to set themselves apart from other ordinary fruit flavours. Most incredible, however, is the Apple Pie flavour, somehow striking the perfect balance between apple, cinnamon and sweet caramel. Sadly for those of us north of the border, Dessert Delights are not yet available in Canada. While you can still get your fix online — Amazon sells each flavour for about $15 for a case of 10 packs. — you’ll have to settle for dessert with the accompanying caloric intake in the meantime.
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Vancouver’s No Gold stumble into a cohesive musical style MUSIC PREVIEW
No Gold WITH Chad VanGaalen WHEN Friday, Nov. 4 at 8 p.m. WHERE Myer Horowitz Theatre (SUB) HOW MUCH $28.75 at
primeboxoffice.com
Peggy Jankovic
Arts & Culture Writer @Pegghetti Since they came together three years ago, Vancouver’s electronic darlings No Gold have proven themselves as a force to be reckoned with. They’ve only recently released their first fulllength album, a self-titled collection of inventive and experimental sound, but they’ve already managed to gain serious momentum, touring across Canada twice and earning spots playing festivals like Sled Island and Pop Montreal. But even with their hectic schedule, the group’s music is still developing. “Live stuff is definitely in a different realm than the album,” says bassist Liam Butler. “The album is pretty much just a picture of where we were when we recorded it ... Things have a way of evolving just when you’re not looking.” While Butler claims the band has yet to grow into their sound, No Gold has come a long way from “always
shuffling from one practice space or studio to the next.” Their “rhythmic but textural” sound is heavily based on their immediate influences — the members of No Gold strive to soak in particular details of their environment in the hopes of creating something entirely new. When writing and recording their new album, Butler says the bandmates listened to ambient drone and early experimental dance music derived from disco, creating a complementary musical mixture. But ultimately, for Butler, writing songs requires turning off his critical brain and letting his creative impulses steer the way. “Especially in a group setting, when I’m playing with (my bandmates) Jack and Ian, I’m just sort of listening and playing the first thing that comes to mind,” he says. “So for me, there isn’t a ton of thought that goes into it. There’s just sort of a natural compulsion.” The band currently shares studio space in Vancouver with DJ duo Love Dancing and acid-techno act Cloudface, giving all the groups an opportunity to connect, despite musical differences. “It’s really picked up recently since those guys moved in,” says Butler. “We’ve been DJing at parties with Love Dancing and organizing things like that at the same studio with the front room as the venue. It’s a nice little commu-
nity bubbling away there that we’re excited about.” Outside the studio, No Gold has also been busy experimenting with the visual side of their music. The video footage for their song “Council Jam” was compiled via octocopter: a remote-controlled, carbon-fibre helicopter with cameras attached to it. The result of the unconventional camerawork is “surreal and dreamlike,” something Butler says perfectly matches the song’s warm, tropical rhythms. Filmed in the countrysides of New South Wales, Australia — Butler’s homeland — the unique perspective showcases a spectrum of deserts, rolling fields, lush forests and surfer-spotted beaches. Despite their experimentation and ongoing development of their sound, No Gold have maintained a consistent esthetic that is wholly their own. “I’m glad that people have been telling us that (No Gold) is a cohesive album,” says Butler. And while their debut record is an ambitious exploration, it remains grounded and self-contained. “(The album) didn’t feel cohesive when we were making it,” Butler admits. “But just by virtue of the fact that it was all done in a pretty compressed period of time, it became cohesive because it’s the sound of us three all pretty much playing in a room for a month — I guess that led to some sort of cohesiveness.”
ALBUM REVIEW
The Darcys The Darcys Arts & Crafts thedarcys.ca
Michelle Mark
Arts & Culture writer The Darcys’ latest album makes it impossible to tell the band has been through a year rife with abrupt decisions, dashed hopes and disastrous consequences — you know, typical band politics. After losing their lead singer and floundering for a while in the depths of imminent catastrophe, The Darcys make a full recovery for their self-titled second album, and it’s well worth the trouble as the group juxtaposes delicate melodies
with bursts of cacophony, carefully massaging each detail into place. “100 Mile House” opens the album with dark, guttural reverberations before rich textures fill every cavity of the song. Jason Couse’s melodic yet haunting vocals set off the darkly atmospheric music, which hovers on the edge of prog rock instrumentation with an edge of industrial grating. The single “Shaking Down the Old Bones” uses thin strains and
sparse effects — at first. With the anthemic chorus of “Stop thinking like a millionaire,” the track erupts with withheld emotions, cascading into layers of beautifully crafted arrangements. This is a band that knows when to use restraint and when to unleash a full-blown aural assault. The band also unveils simplistic brilliance in “Edmonton to Purgatory,” and dissonant perfection in “Des Animaux.” The album is saturated with noise, but the band balances it out with a note of peaceful reassurance amidst all the commotion. The Darcys is the first of three albums to be released on the band’s new label, Arts & Crafts. After all the turbulence, let’s hope the band can find enough the stability to keep exploring their capabilities and carve out a future for themselves amongst the bands that make it.
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Volume 102, Issue 10
Tribute to Thompson doesn’t live up to its source material FILM REVIEW
The Rum Diary WRITTEN BY Hunter S. Thompson, adapted by Bruce Robinson DIRECTED BY Bruce Robinson STARRING Johnny Depp, Giovanni
Ribisi and Aaron Eckhart
Nick Ong
Arts & Culture Staff “How much do you drink?” Since The Rum Diary is based on a novel by Hunter S. Thompson, it’s probably safe to assume that you already know the protagonist’s answer. And while the hungover character Paul Kemp answers that he’s “trying to cut down,” the story follows a chronicle of a series of alcoholic misadventures. The film revolves around Kemp (Johnny Depp), a journalist working for the San Juan Star in Puerto Rico. As the film opens, he has a killer hangover. Eyes bloodshot and lips bloodied, he cleans himself up just in time to meet his new boss Edward Lotterman (Richard Jenkins), press photographer Bob Sala (Michael Rispoli), and the office alcoholic Moberg (Giovanni Ribisi). Bonding quickly with Sala and Moberg, Kemp and his new friends go gallivanting across the Puerto Rican landscape, enjoying wild, rum-sodden adventures along the way. The Rum Diary stays close to the style of Hunter S. Thompson’s novel, making for a film adaption that isn’t entirely successful. High points emerge through director Bruce
Robinson’s care with the film’s source material, plucking the best moments and quotes from the book and combining them with his own style of dark comedy. But because the movie follows the book so closely, there isn’t any defining concept that makes The Rum Diary into a coherent film. Instead, the movie resorts to the expected mess of uneven pacing and alcoholic haziness of Thompson’s stories. Despite the unconventional narrative, it works to facilitate occasional moments of comedic brilliance — but the occasional breaks in Thompson’s quirky style are woefully ineffectual. With a pithy attempt to introduce some sort of moral fibre into Kemp’s character, the movie loses its momentum. Not only does the emotional cliché not lack the needed depth to carry the film, but it’s a jarring distraction to the smooth stream-of-consciousness feel the movie might have retained from its predecessor, Fear and
Loathing in Las Vegas. Depp’s acting is solid — fitting, given his personal connection with Thompson. But due to the complexity of his character, there’s very little room for development for the rest of the cast. Stellar actors like Amber Heard and Giovanni Ribisi are instead reduced to caricaturized versions of the “hot girl with problems” and “creepy alcoholic from the basement,” respectively. The Rum Diary is about a man at a vital crossroads in his life: he might stay and wallow in the mud with his cohorts, or rise to the challenge “the bastards with a voice made of paper and ink.” This is the true message of the movie: a portrait of a journalist who has finally found the story he wants to tell. This half of the movie, convoluted plot and all, would have been something to make Thompson proud. Unfortunately, the rest of the film’s distractions make it too confused to appreciate.
ALBUM BATTLE Paul Brandt Give It Away Universal paulbrandt.com
VS
Lil Wayne
Tha Carter IV
Universal lilwayne-online.com
Ryan Stephens
Arts & Culture WRiter The plan: pick two albums and pit them against each other in a gruesome deathmatch until a victor emerges. Both Paul Brandt and Lil Wayne indelibly established themselves as master crooners, tackling a plethora of mushy topics to make even the toughest of girls melt. With their latest releases, we’ll see who reigns supreme at lyrical cheesiness.
Most Threatening Lyric
Paul Brandt: Pretending to be a cop, Brandt sings, “I’m the guy who’s the boss on this highway / So watch out what you’re doin’ when you’re drivin’ my way.” If a police officer said this to me, I would laugh in his face. Lil Wayne: “What goes around comes around / Like a hula-hoop.” I never knew a weapon that only eight-year-old girls wield could be so menacing. Advantage: Wayne gets an E for effort: trying his hardest to think of something that actually goes around.
Best Dad
Brandt: The recent birth of his first child turned Brandt into the doting
lyrical father that everybody loves — that, or it’s thrown him into an existential crisis, fully displayed in the opening essay of his liner notes. Wayne: He confesses memories about being “only two years old when Daddy used to bring them hookers home.” It’s quite obvious that we’re dealing with someone who has some father issues. But an analysis of the cover image reveals a brighter side of the rapper, one that dreams of good education and graduation for all children, even the heavily tattoed bunch. Advantage: Lil Wayne takes it with his endless fight for better education.
Best Album Title
Brandt: Naming your album after one of the tracks is one thing, but Give it Away is named after Brandt’s opening song. So blasé. Wayne: Given Lil Wayne’s lack of creativity in naming his albums beyond Tha Carter saga, it’s nice to be back to something familiar. That being said, and with this being the fourth iteration of Tha Carter, he seems to be progressing into the same helpless incremental trap as the Saw movies. Advantage: Brandt wins this one for having the foresight to know exactly what I’m going to do with his CD after I’m done writing this piece.
Best Show of Thanks
Brandt: An essay-length tirade at the back of the booklet, including thanks to his family, friends, God, radio stations, trucking companies and presumably everybody he has ever met. Wayne: Wayne isn’t terribly thankful himself, but the gentleman definitely shows appreciation when he’s on the receiving end. This particular lyric from the track “So Special” is a bit graphic, so I’ll paraphrase it romantically: After spending a particularly lusty night in bed with an angel, our friend Weezy is thanked by said angel’s nether regions, to which he promptly replies, “You’re very welcome.” Advantage: It’s awfully hard to decide who’s the bigger bullshitter: the guy who thanks everybody or the guy who doesn’t thank anybody. For that reason, this one’s a tie.
Verdict
Wayne wins this battle — it’s obvious who the better storyteller is here. Though Brandt comes close with his law enforcement fantasizing, it’s ultimately Weezy who prevails with an abundance of over-thetop tales of talking vaginas, trips to Home Depot and presiding over the Oval Office.
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Sports Editor Rebecca Medel Phone 780.492.6652 Email sports@gateway.ualberta.ca Volunteer Sports meetings Thursdays at 4 p.m. in 3-04 SUB. C’mon by!
Puck Bears need to up the power play: Marple hockey preview Bears @ Lethbridge Saturday and Sunday, Nov. 5-6 University of Lethbridge Maxime Lestringant sports writer
The Golden Bears hockey team finally had a first period goal last Saturday after not being able to notch one in their last six games of the season, and it ended up driving them to 2-1 double overtime victory against the University of Saskatchewan Huskies. The Bears were hungry for a win last Saturday, and head coach Stan Marple credited the success to the energy of his players and their ability to score the first goal. “For once, they didn’t have to spend lots of energy coming from behind and they had plenty left at the end to close the deal,” Marple said. “We’ve got some great skaters on this team, and I think it was evident tonight. We out-shot Saskatchewan 45 to 25 here at home and we were unlucky not to score more. A big part of (the win) is because we’re young and we’re fit, and the boys are really skating well.” Bears captain Greg Gardner expected the win, providing that the team got off to a good start. “If we get that first goal and start rolling early, it’s gonna be a lot stronger,” Gardner said before the weekend’s games. The Bears lost 5-4 in overtime to Saskatchewan on Oct. 28, but the weekend’s results puts them in third place in Canada West, two points behind Saskatchewan, the conference leader. Marple said one area the Bears need to improve on is their power play — they went 0-for-5 on Friday and 0-for-6 on Saturday. “I think we got some good puck movement and control tonight. We had some very good chances — it just didn’t happen for us. It’s definitely an area where we need to improve.” Veteran goaltender Real Cyr has had an
Seyed hossein mortazavi
impressive season so far. He’s currently the best goaltender in the conference with a 1.37 GAA and a 0.937 save percentage. Marple said that he will start again next weekend, for the first of two games against Lethbridge, and said he was pleased with the dynamic between Cyr and the Bears other goaltender, Kurtis Mucha. “(Cyr) gave us a chance to win and played very well. Based on his performance tonight, he will definitely get a start Saturday against Lethbridge. He’s a great team player and him and Kurtis Mucha are, I think, the best tandem in the league and they are really pushing
each other.” After the Green and Gold’s strong performances on Friday and Saturday against the best team in the conference, expectations are high for the pair of games against Lethbridge this weekend. Marple said that preparation will be necessary because the Pronghorns will be a tough opponent, despite losing their last two games to Calgary. “Lethbridge is a good team. They’ve got some guys that can score and their goaltending is very solid. They play very good at home, so we’re going to have to have a very good week of preparation.”
Marple added the camaraderie between players on his team is excellent, but he sees room for improvement. “We’ve got a young team and we’ve got a lot to learn in regards to the way we need to play, but I’m happy with the process. We’re getting to where we need to be. I think that if you look at us and you look at a lot of the other teams in the league, we’ve got a lot more room for growth and I think we’re gonna get better and better as the season progresses.” Lethbridge hosts the Bears this Saturday and Sunday.
Pandas optimistic after strong pre-season showing Coach Eisler — in 20th season with team — is hoping to lead Pandas into another top 10 CIS season with a strong corps of players volleyball preview Pandas vs. TRU Friday and Saturday, Nov. 4-5, 6 and 7:30 p.m. Saville Community Sports Centre Atta Almasi sports writer
It’s ready, set, go for head coach Laurie Eisler and her team as they prepare to serve up another great and exciting season of U of A Pandas volleyball. Eisler, who is entering her 20th season at the helm for the Pandas, is optimistic after a strong pre-season showing and her team’s number two CIS ranking going into the season. “It’s really about what we have control over — 16 athletes and making that into the best possible team we can between now and midFebruary,” she said. “It’s putting all of our pieces in place and just having that eye on progressively improving, never being satisfied with where we are and also not being demoralized with where we are because there’s going to be setbacks (and) there’s going to be bumps on the road.” The Pandas, however, are not the only team
from western Canada ranked in the CIS top 10 going into this season. They are joined by five other Canada West teams — last year’s CIS bronze medalist Trinity Western at number 10, Calgary at ninth, Winnipeg at sixth, Manitoba at fourth and the defending Canada West and national champion UBC Thunderbirds topping off the group with the number one ranking. “It’s kind of same old, same old,” Eisler said on the strength of CanWest this year. “It’s been the history of the competitive nature of CIS women’s volleyball that the strength is in the west. “It’s just more of what we’re accustomed to and I think it’s one of the reasons why the best athletes come to Canada West. They want to play against the best teams. And one of the reasons why our teams do very well when they go for the nationals is because
they play against top competition every week.” The Pandas will be led this season by a strong corps of returning players like fourth years Jaki Ellis and Krista Zubick, who both represented Team Canada at the senior and developmental ‘B’ levels, respectively, this summer. While Eisler thinks the experience some members of her team hold does matter, she praises the overall strength of the Pandas roster. “I think that the beauty of our team is that we don’t really look at one or two players as being the answer or the key. I know we have a lot of depth on our team,” she said. “We have the ability to plug a hole with players, whether it’s coming from off the bench or re-jigging the starting lineup and finding the solution that’ll work,” she added. Joining the team this year are two Strathcona-Tweedsmuir products Jessie Niles and Annie Abbot, and Kazakhstan national team player Alena Omelchenko, whom Eisler described as “a great
“It’s putting all of our pieces in place and just having that eye on progressively improving, never being satisfied with where we are and also not being demoralized with where we are.” laurie eisler
head coach, pandas volleyball
athlete who has an advanced skill set and so far has definitely met all expectations.” As for the fans, Eisler promises the ride this season will be exciting and worth it. “I think sometimes people don’t understand what they’re missing. This is the top league of our sport in the country. There is no pro level. It’s phenomenal what these athletes can do and they’re very committed. “It’s a fantastic sport and it’s not what you see in intramurals. It’s not what you played in high school. This is a level that very, very, very few volleyball athletes reach and so I think it’s a good bang for your buck.” The Pandas season starts Friday night at the Saville Community Sports Centre on South Campus, where they host the Thompson Rivers Wolf Pack at 6 p.m.
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dan mckechnie
Bears dominate at swim meet swimming roundup Bears/Pandas @ Dinos Invitational Friday, Nov. 4, 4 p.m. University of Calgary Rebecca Medel sports editor
It was the battle of Alberta in the pool when the U of A hosted the University of Calgary Dinos at the first dual swim meet of the season last Friday. Both men and women competed and the Green and Gold were able to seal a number of wins. The Bears beat the Dinos, who were last year’s CIS champions, with 85 points to Calgary’s 64. First-year swimmer Joe Byram, who is younger than most of the other athletes at 17, won the 200-metre backstroke. “The whole team’s been training really hard the past couple of
weeks so I’m hurting pretty bad,” Byram said. “But you know, it’s just stepping up and racing. It wasn’t anything special to do. We’ve done the work and had to push through any pain that we have.” Byram said the team is very supportive of one another and swim for the team, not for themselves. Other wins for the Bears were Jeremy Kubik in the 50-metre freestyle, Ian Leitch in the 100-metre freestyle, Josh Au in the 50-metre and 200-metre fly, Scott Stewart in the 400-metre freestyle, Stephen Giovanetto in the 50-metre breaststroke, and Robert MacKinnon in 200-metre freestyle. The Bears also finished first in the 400-metre freestyle relay team. Final results for the women saw the Dinos finish with 100 points and the Pandas with 48. Bobbie Mielnichuk nailed secondplace finishes in the 50-metre and 100-metre freestyle for the Pandas. Bill Humby, head coach for both Pandas and Bears, said the meet was
a great start to the season. “We talk about the world of possibility and we just took a huge step forward in believing what we can do. To beat Calgary on the men’s side is a pretty big deal. I don’t have the stats, but I bet you’d have to go back 20, 30 years to see when we beat them before. It was good to see us race and win some close ones and even get some one-two finishes on the Dinos,” he said. “While the Pandas didn’t win, they were in the race in most events, just a turn or finish away from winning. We saw some technical things we can clean up this week and we’ll see what happens this weekend when we throw UBC into the mix,” he added. The U of C hosts the Bears and Pandas this weekend, along with UBC and the University of Manitoba, before athletes head to the Canada Cup in Toronto on Nov.24. The top eight schools from 2010 will be attending. That includes 15 Bears and six Panda swimmers.
Losses don’t slow field hockey Pandas Field hockey preview Pandas @ CIS Nationals Thursday to Saturday, Nov. 3-5 University of Calgary Andrew Jeffrey sports staff
Despite a four-game losing skid to end the season, the field hockey Pandas’ solid first half sustained them through the rest of the season and pushed them into this year’s nationals. The Pandas finished in third place in the Canada West conference and head to Calgary this week for nationals after missing last year’s playoffs with a dismal 1-11 record. They were able to bounce back this year and return to a level of play closer to when the team went to back-to-back CIS finals in 2008 and 2009, where they won silver twice. The Pandas kept games close this season, even in losses, and head coach Stefanie Sloboda doesn’t see her team as underdogs against the other Canada West conference teams who finished ahead of the Pandas in the regular season. Calgary is hosting nationals and UBC qualified as conference champs this year. “For the first time in awhile you don’t really know who’s going to
be on top. The three Canada West teams are very evenly matched, and I think it’ll be pretty much anyone’s game,” Sloboda said. “The teams out east, we’ve played them in the past at nationals the last two times we’ve been there. It’ll be interesting to see what they have.” Those Panda teams in 2008 and 2009 had problems in nationals that Sloboda hopes won’t happen again in Calgary this year. The Pandas got off to a slow start in the first two days both years and though they turned things around, they weren’t able to win gold either year. 2010 saw the Pandas only win once in the regular season. “It’s one of those things where sometimes we tend to create more of a challenge than we need. I don’t know if that’s consciously or subconsciously, but we always try to do things just a little bit harder than they need to be. We’ve changed, though, because we won early on this season and we won our first game. We beat the two powerhouses in the conference (UBC and UVic) the first time we matched up against them, so I think we’re starting to change that wave of making it harder than it needs to be.” The Pandas were able to get a win against the Thunderbirds and two ties against the University of Calgary Dinos earlier this year. However, they lost twice to both teams to finish the season. Sloboda is excited to get another chance to
play them, but sees UBC as a more structured team to challenge, while games with Calgary have been more unpredictable. “Calgary is always just a more physical game and there’s more pressure in it. It always seems to be a little more intense than all the other games,” Sloboda explained. “It’s just the rivalry and there’s a type of cattiness that’s created that sometimes gets under a few players’ skins. It’s harder for them to battle through that, it’s just another hill to climb basically in the game. But I think it’s always been like that for years.” As for the teams coming out of the east, both the defending champions from the University of Toronto and last year’s third place team the University of Guelph are teams the Pandas have played in past nationals. The Pandas haven’t experienced the championship success that Toronto had last year since 2005, despite coming close in 2008 and 2009, but the team is eager to make up for those past losses. “To be that close and win two silver medals — I was also a part of that coaching staff as an assistant coach those two years and never winning a national championship myself as a player in the program, I’m hungry. I want gold and some of those players that played in the final, they want gold as well and obviously the players that have never played and experienced it, they want it.”
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Soccer Bears head to playoffs
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Despite a split in last weekend’s games, the Golden Bears soccer team are more prepared than ever for the Canada West playoffs this weekend. Saturday’s game saw the team pull an impressive 4-3 win against the Fraser Valley Cascades, where three of the goals were scored in the second half. But the next day, the Bears lost to the University of Victoria Vikes by a score of 2-0. The Cascades were a force to be reckoned with early in the Saturday afternoon game, attempting a shot at goaltender Jay Vetsch — the first of 13 — just over one minute into play. Fraser Valley scored three goals before halftime, with the Golden Bears managing only one. The second half, however, belonged almost exclusively to the Green and Gold. On 17 attempts,
the team scored three goals, two of which were less than one minute apart, and went on to defeat the Cascades with only seconds left on the clock. Although the game resulted in a victory for the U of A, assistant coach Kyle Jhamandas still had some constructive criticism for the team. “We could have definitely put it (away) a lot earlier than that,” he said. “We had a lot of chances earlier in the game.” The Bears had high hopes for the next day’s game against the western division leaders, the University of Victoria Vikes. Unfortunately, those hopes were dashed with a loss for the Golden Bears in a low-scoring game. The Vikes displayed why they’re ranked first in their division, attempting a total of 19 shots on goaltender Matthew Preston. The Bears’ defensive players were given a chance to shine and only allowed the UVic team to make their first shot at goal over 11 minutes in. The Vikes scored their first goal 33 minutes into the game. The second half was also dominated by the visiting team. Although the Bears’ defense remained strong, they suffered a 2-0 loss. This might
sportsshorts compiled by Rebecca Medel
seem a daunting loss — especially right before playoff season — but Jhamandas and the team have a positive outlook about the upcoming CanWest playoff games. “We’ll be playing the same team in CanWest next weekend, so it’s kind of like a second opportunity for us to go there, get ourselves in order, and get back to that high level of play,” Jhamandas said. “We still have a chance to go and finish the season on a high note, and keep it rolling into nationals.” The 7-3-4 Bears will take their shot at redemption on Nov. 5, when they play the Vikes at Centennial Stadium in Victoria for the CanWest playoffs. Jhamandas and the team also have the national playoffs in their sights. Only one CanWest team, besides the UVic host, will attend CIS championships from Nov. 10-13. “We’re all pretty excited for that chance,” he said, “but we know that there’s a lot of work to be done this week and that won’t be easy. But, there’s a lot of character with this group, a lot of leadership, and a lot of talent. We think that there’s a good chance that we can hopefully move forward to nationals.”
forward Amanda Black with six. Keeper Kelti Biggs has made 51 saves out of 135 shots on net in her 14 games this season.
SOCCER PANDAS MOVE TO CANWEST FINAL
The Soccer Pandas are the number- three ranked team in Canada West — number-seven in the country — and head out this week to Vancouver to compete against Trinity Western, UBC and UVic in the CanWest playoffs. Only the top two teams will continue on to CIS nationals at McGill Nov. 10-13. After a win-tie weekend for the Pandas in their final conference games last weekend — with a 6-0 win against Manitoba on Saturday and a scoreless game agasint Regina the next day — head coach Liz Jepsen said that Sunday’s 0-0 game against Regina wasn’t a shock. Despite the Cougars’ 1-10-3 season and second-to-last CanWest ranking, Jepsen still considers them a strong team. “Regina has a solid team, so their defense is excellent and they work hard and they put up a great barrier for us to score.” The focus now for the Pandas is on the upcoming game against UBC. The playoff games are going to be intense in such a competitive league. “I think we’ve understood from the begining that finishing in the top four is a good thing. All the teams that are going to be in playoffs — doesn’t matter what team you play, it’s going to be a tough game,” Jepsen said. The 9-4-1 Pandas have managed to notch in 30 goals this season from 135 shots on net, the majority of those scored by striker Heather Lund with 11, followed by
justin bell
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sports 23
End of the road for football Bears after 0-8 season football roundup Rebecca Medel sports editor
It was an 0-8 season for the football Golden Bears after last Saturday’s game against the University of Saskatchewan resulted in a 67-3 win for the Huskies — the worst loss for the Green and Gold in program history. The only three points scored by the Bears were from kicker Steven McCaffrey’s third quarter 27-yard field goal. This was the second time this year the Bears lost by more than 50 points, as they lost 61-7 to Calgary earlier in the year. First-year slot back Dillon Prince, who returned six kick-offs for the Bears for 174 yards last weekend, spoke about the disappointment after losing. “Going into it we definitely wanted to get a win, so that’s what we were all fighting for, I guess. Not getting it kind of sucks — not living up to the expectations of what we needed to do.” The Bears accumulated a total of 137 points this season with 402 scored against them. Last season they made it to playoffs, beating the Huskies in round one, but losing the CanWest title to Calgary. The last winless season for the Bears was 1943 (0-1), and the last season in which they lost multiple games without a win was 1936 (05). The Bears know they need to improve for next season and a lot of that will come from first- and second-years maturing on the field. “Our whole team needs to get bigger and faster and come back next year and actually hit it off
with a bang and start out winning,” Prince said. A number of graduating players leave openings to recruit new talent and head coach Jeff Stead is already hitting the road this week to find players to fill those positions. But first he wants to show the athletes who have finished their time with the Bears how important they were to the team. “The big thing for us right now is honouring the kids that are done. There’s nine of them, so that’s a big number and we just want to make sure that they understood how appreciative we are, in the program, of everything they’ve put into it,” Stead said. The grads get to keep their helmets and jerseys but Stead said that it’s also important for them to speak to the team about their own experiences at a wrap-up this week. “It’ll be good for them to be able to talk and get their feelings out to the rest of the guys because they’re done playing CIS football and now I’ve got guys that have four or five years left. I want them to hopefully mentor them a certain amount.” Although the Bears are done for another year, last week’s competitors, the U of S, head to UBC this weekend, while Calgary will host Regina for the first round of playoffs. The games can be viewed on Shaw Televsion. Alberta and Manitoba are the only two teams not competing in playoffs this year. The Dinos suffered their first loss of the season last weekend against the Thunderbirds 36-23. They remain in the top CanWest spot, however, ahead of the 6-2 T-Birds, 5-3 Huskies and 3-5 Rams.
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Volume 102, Issue 10
Burgeoning
Burlesque Written by Justin Bell Photos by Selena Philips-Boyle
I
t’s almost midnight before the troupe finally goes on. Seven women climb on stage wearing what looks like purplesequined one-piece swimsuits and shiny silver helmets, acting confused and disoriented. But as the music comes to a crescendo, they all remove their helmets and form a line while the crowd starts hooting. The audience knows what’s coming as the girls move into their next number, the first can-can of the night. It won’t be the most provocative number of the evening, or the most complicated. But Capital City Burlesque is just warming up, and there’s plenty more to come on the Friday night before Halloween. But how did burlesque make a resurgence after laying dormant for so many years? According to Kim Rackel and Marissa Meekins, two of the Capital City Burlesque dancers, it boils down to one word: sparkles. More accurately, it’s the glitz and the glamour of the form that attracted the two troupe leaders. A few hours before the Halloween show, Rackel and Meekins sit in the group’s storage loft on the fourth floor of a building in the warehouse district on 104th Street. Sewing machines sit on a large table filling most of the room, and this is obviously the place they come up with many of their ideas and put together the crazy costumes seen on stage. Empty beer bottles are scattered throughout, and the pair drink warm beer as they talk about how they got involved in burlesque and what Capital City is all about. “I saw a show about it when I was really young at my Grandma’s house,” says Rackel between sips. “I just really liked the sparkles.” That documentary about the glamour years of burlesque coincided with the resurgence of the form, sometime in the early 1990s. Burlesque, originally from the Italian word for joke, gained popularity in North American in the 19th century and remained popular until the middle of the 20th century. But in the 1990s, burlesque started a resurgence. Now a massive annual festival in Las Vegas, the Miss Exotic World Pageant brings together dancers from around the world. Members of Capital City Burlesque make the trip every year. Rackel started Capital City Burlesque eight years ago after leaving a different troupe in town that eventually closed down. Now, with 12 dancers and alumni of about 30, it’s the largest and oldest burlesque group in the city. “Everyone has their own story,” says Meekins. “But everyone shares a love of rhinestones and feathers.” The sparkles, the glitz, the feathers and the glamour are both what gets Meekins and
Rackel onto the stage. And the dancing must have something to do with it as well. While the dancers are able to come up with their own routines, Rackel has the final say on what goes into the show. It’s a fine line between what’s sexy and what’s overly raunchy. But the line is often tempered by humour, which burlesque uses to keep it from delving into a mere striptease. And while strippers, at least in Canada, get naked, there’s no full nudity in Capital City Burlesque shows. The most audiences will see are breasts covered with pasties. Rackel takes a call at one point while sitting in the storage area before the Halloween show. It’s a troupe member calling to ask what size lollipops they need for a number. They will pull the treats from their underwear at one point and throw them into the audience.
“The first time I was about to go on stage I had butterflies. But it wasn’t because I was about to take my clothes off in front of strangers. I was more worried about the dance, remembering all the moves.” Jenn Kowton
Formerly of Capital City Burlesque
“If we weren’t dressed up as big oompa loompas, people might be offended,” Meekins says. More than a few of their numbers play in humour, and they always manage to get a reaction from the crowd. At one point during the Halloween show, Meekins is joined on stage by the troupe’s lone male dancer who goes by the stage name of Norm Manhandler. As Meekins describes it, “he thrusts around a lot on stage.” On Halloween, he’s dressed as Nosferatu, an early representation of vampires made famous by the German film of the same name. Wearing a full-length coat, a bald cap and the creepiest grin, he seduces Meekins and then “exposes” himself to both her and the audience. But because this is burlesque, there’s a joke to be had — attached to his underwear is a plastic bat that Norm manages to make jump with his dancing. Rackel loves the funny numbers and spends a good deal of time coming up with hilarious dances. But other are attracted to the throwback to pinup culture and the more feminine costumes. For Jenn Kowton, it was the elaborate costumes and makeup that drew her in. She spent four years photographing and working with the dancers of Capital City
Burlesque before she took the plunge herself, performing for a year before leaving to go back to school. “The first time I was about to go on stage I had butterflies. But it wasn’t because I was about to take my clothes off in front of strangers. I was more worried about the dance, remembering all the moves.” Kowton makes an appearance at the Halloween show, showing support for the dance troupe she was recently a part of. Even though she’s too busy to make the twiceweekly practices and the innumerable hours spent making costumes, she still wants to support the friends she made in the troupe. The popularity of burlesque has been growing in Edmonton for the past decade. Capital City Burlesque performs four major shows per year and countless other smaller shows. But there have been other groups popping up. Both the Hook Em Revue and Send in the Girls put on shows at this year’s Edmonton International Fringe Festival. Burlesque as fringe theatre is a trend that’s been going on a for a number of years in Edmonton. “In my tenure here, five years, every year there’s always someone that puts in a show that has a burlesque, whether it’s actual burlesque, or a cabaret burlesque,” says Thomas Scott, the program director for the Fringe. Scott says its popularity could have something to do with the uncensored nature of it, which is a perfect fit for the Fringe. “As long as you’re not breaking any laws, you’re allowed to put any type of show on. The public is allowed to decide what’s a hit,” says Scott. It’s a fitting description of both Fringe and burlesque. After eight years of performing, people are still turning up in huge numbers to see Capital City. Though they go on late on Halloween, the crowd is still excited and cheers loudly when the dancers get down to their pasties. Two dancers take the stage dressed in shorts, brightly coloured t-shirts, aviator sunglasses and massive afro wigs — the ensemble looks like disco rose from the grave and its reanimated corpse is on stage at the Starlite Room. As the number winds down, the girls down to their panties and pasties, they both reach into their underwear and pull out combs. The crowd roars as the two start parading around stage using the combs on their hair, a seemingly odd reaction for two women who are mostly exposed. But it’s hilarious while at the same time remaining sensual, the exact mix Capital City Burlesque goes for.
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comics pop & ice cream by Lance and Evan Mudryk
metaleeto by Ross Vincent
id & ego by Lauren Alston
disappointing superpowers by Anthony Goertz
life lessons by Kirsty Vogelesang
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Volume 102, Issue 10
crossword Puzzle provided by BestCrosswords.com Used with permission. Across 1. Pillar 5. Wimp 9. Actress Anouk 14. “The Time Machine” race 15. Actor Estrada 16. Stylish 17. Denomination 18. New Orleans is The Big ____ 19. Feudal estate 20. Capital of Estonia 22. Divert 23. Facial expression used by Elvis Presley 24. Surmise 28. Crimson 34. Deficient in pigmentation 38. Coal scuttle 39. Consumer 40. Post 41. Christian festival 43. Don of talk radio 44. Russian fighter 47. Thespians 48. Magical incantation 51. Olds model 52. Extent 57. Israeli desert 61. Lee side 63. ____ there yet? 64. Monogram ltr.
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66. Work like ____ 67. Type of sanctum 68. The sacred scriptures of Hinduism 69. Travel on 70. Get to know 71. Farm females 72. 24 hour periods Down 1. Nuisances 2. New York city 3. Plinth 4. Name 5. “Pure Guava” band 6. Pertaining to a rare element 7. Bro’s counterpart 8. What’s up 9. Capital of Eritrea 10. Muslim elder and prayer-leader 11. Hindu lawgiver 12. Archer of myth 13. French 101 verb 21. One of Chekhov’s “Three Sisters” 25. Slangy denial 26. To and ____ 27. Make beloved 29. Usual 30. Finely powdered earth 31. Analogy words 32. Not e’en once 33. Blows it 34. Capital city of Western Samoa 35. Leg or arm
36. Make indistinct 37. Ingrid’s “Casablanca” role 42. Without ____ in the world 45. Chemical ending 46. Needlefish 49. Bat abode
50. Fireball 53. Give merit 54. Gymnast Comaneci 55. Sleazy 56. Borders 57. Arrest
58. Fish-eating eagle 59. Actress Rowlands 60. Large jug or pitcher 62. Greek letters 64. “___ had it!” 65. Fresh
photo of the month
To place a classified ad, please go to www.campusclassifieds.ca FOR SALE Elizabeth’s Antique & Collectible Sale. Alberta Aviation Museum, 11410 Kingsway Ave., Edmonton. November 4 & 5, 2011. Friday 2-8 P.M. & Saturday 10-4 P.M. $5.00 Admission. Over 120 Tables.
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soapbox
Consider this: juice for dinner. Honestly, why not? Smoothies are loaded with all the fibre, vitamins and sugar your body needs for an evening’s activity, and often have dairy to build strong bones. And hey, people order soup for dinner and it’s basically the same thing, only hot and vegetable-based.
the power of old and new A modern windmill stands aside a rustic homestead along Highway 16 on Prince Edward Island.
beards throughout history by Ryan Bromsgrove and Justin Bell
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