Issue 15, Vol. 146, The Brunswickan

Volume 146 · January 8, 2013 · Issue 15

brunswickan . . .

INSIDE: RELAY FOR LIFE TO RUN THROUGH UNB resolutions YOU’ll actually KEeP unb beats team russia in the p. kelly cup

www.thebruns.ca

Jan. 8, 2013 • Issue 15 • Volume 146 • 2

THE BRUNS

NEWS news@thebruns.ca

Heather Uhl News Reporter Classrooms at UNB Fredericton will be getting revamped this year.

Vice-president Anthony Secco will be adding $1 million to the traditional capital budget for 2013-2014.

The funding came from Secco’s discretionary fund – money for Secco’s use that isn’t tied to a particular project or budget line. The traditional capital fund is dedicated to the long-term improvement and maintenance of the campus, such as renovating classrooms.

“It means that Dr. Secco has dedicated some of the funds he has control over, to a

Heather Uhl News Reporter Relay for Life will be running through campus for the first time on Jan. 26.

The fundraiser for cancer research and supporting cancer patients and their families, is being held in the main gym of the Lady Beaverbrook

classroom renovations project,” said associate vice-president, Shirley Cleave.

“We’re planning to renovate the classrooms over a period of time, according to a plan that was developed so that we bring them up to current standards and enhance the capacity, seating arrangements, audiovisual, all those things.”

With the additional funds, Cleave said, the university will be able to proceed more quickly through the renovation plans. The renovations are scheduled for the next two years.

Last winter, the Teaching and Learning Spaces Working Group worked with consultants to develop the framework.

To gain student input, poster boards were

UNB classrooms getting face-lift

placed around campus and a World Café was hosted.

The information from the consultants’ report and the users’ input was then used to identify which classrooms to renovate.

“We will develop a master plan for classroom renovations and then when we get to the actual design stage, which is sort of what the room will actually look like, we will be working with the folks who actually use that space,” Cleave said.

Most of the renovations will result in smaller seating capacities. Some of this has to do with the variations in sizes of people, Cleave said, and the addition of comfortable and flexible seating.

“As soon as you put flexible seating in a classroom you lose capacity. You don’t have as many rows,” Cleave said. “So, we’re looking at a variety of seating arrangements.”

The renovations will range from new furniture to knocking down walls, depending on what is needed in the space.

Areas for wheelchairs in classrooms will be included.

Informal learning spaces, where students can work or study together outside of class time, will also be created.

“It is true that there is a lot of deferred

New study spaces will be created in upcoming renovations.

Bronté James / The Brunswickan maintenance. The fact that [Dr. Secco] is He said he would like to see more stuputting funds into it is a good sign,” said dent and staff consultation, but this time, Andrew Martel, president of UNBSU. “It with a specific focus, so students don’t shows that he, and his team, recognize the merely come and say a room needs to be need for it.” upgraded, and not explain why.

He said from being on committees and “It is a great idea, but I’d like to see seeing the budget process, he knows there more dedication and further funding for is a lot of deferred maintenance and it’s it,” Martel said. “So we don’t have to be something the university needs to priori- questioning what is going to happen in tize, and Martel agrees this is a step in the future years.” right direction.

Information on classroom renovations Martel said he participated in the World will be available on the Centre for EnCafé last winter, but it was several hours hanced Teaching and Learning website at long and only a few students participated.

Unb.ca/fredericton

Relay for Life to run through UNB

Gymnasium from 7 p.m. to 7 a.m.

This will be the first UNB Fredericton Relay for Life.

“We’re trying to [make it] so that people walk throughout the night and it’s kind of like, you need to push on, you need to push on,” said Taylor Coady, media co-chair for the event.

“And eventually, it comes to the point

where, at two or three in the morning, you want to give up but you’re so close that you keep going, you keep going, you overcome.“ “It’s supposed to stimulate cancer patients’ therapy.“ One of the goals for the event is to have one person walking from every team at all times. More than one person can be walking and switch-offs are allowed.

Coady was hoping for 25 teams to participate in raising $20,000. Currently, 12 teams are fully registered and other teams have not handed in all of their registration fees. While there is no limit to number of team members, a total of ten members are recommended.

According to the Canadian Cancer Society, in 2012, 16,500 teams raised $49 million across Canada through the Relay.

The City of Fredericton already has a Relay for Life event; however, the event takes place during the summer.

“We’re not in university during the summer,“ Coady said. “And if we want to get people involved, we couldn’t do it in the fall because we wouldn’t have enough time to connect with people, get teams involved and raise money.”

Starting up the UNB Fredericton Relay for Life hasn’t been completely smooth.

There has been some difficulty in finding volunteers and survivors for the event.

This will be UNBF’s first relay for life. Submitted The survivor lap is for the survivors, however, as university students, there are not too many people who have had cancer.

Originally, the plan was to book the Currie Center, but the location was already booked. Coady said if the event goes well, they will rush over to the Currie Center and book for next year.

“What we really need is to get a foundation of people involved, a foundation of houses involved, and a foundation of societies, and just in general, kind of like community spirit about the event,” Coady said.

He said while money is the goal of the event, what they really need is a fun first

event for people to be involved for this year and the year after that.

One of the reasons why Coady got involved with the Relay came from a friend who asked for his help. Having seen what his friend and her family were going through, Coady knew that if he was in the same position with his family, he’d want someone to help as well.

“It has touched everyone. Everyone has a cancer story. Everyone knows someone who has a cancer story. It’s not just for cancer research but for support of families and cancer patients.”

BRUNSWICKANNEWS

Fish-sex level: 9000

Periodical Elements Shane Rockland Fowler There’s a line in Jurassic Park, where a character, after being told that all the dinosaurs on the island are female, asks “How do you know?

Do you go out into the park and lift up all the dinosaurs’ skirts?”

In a movie that is essentially about genetic engineering, the question is a valid one. How do you make a population all female and sterile? It’s one that i s routinely answered on the second f loor of the University of New Brunswick’s Bailey Hall.

They’re not controlling dinosaurs, but something much older: Fish.

“It doesn’t take much,” says Dr. Tillmann Benfey, a professor of biology at UNB. “You don’t have to insert or delete genes.”

When farming fish for aquaculture, it’s better to have bigger fish; you get more bang for your buck the same as you would with a beef cow on a farm. Females grow bigger, and female sturgeons make caviar; expensive fish eggs for those with expensive tastes.

But having a genetically modified fish escape is unacceptable. So every fish is hatched sterile.

“A lot of people worry what if one of these fish get away and into the wild,” says Benfey. “This prevents any mixing with wild fish.”

“But it’s not what most people think when they hear genetic engineering.”

When most people hear the term, they typically conjure up ideas of putting one species genes into an-

other. For example, putting another fish’s gene, like genes from an arctic char, into a salmon to make it more resistant to the cold.

Others think of engineering an organism to change into a more favourable type; for example, watermelons have been worked on, to be grown without seeds.

Making fish sterile while they are still forming is much easier. They just put the fish eggs under pressure.

“It’s elegant,” says Benfey.

The way it works is simple. When a sperm and egg come together, they contain half of the chromosomes of the mother, and half of that of the father, making them diploids. This is the same process in humans as it is in cod or salmon.

But putting those eggs under pressure keeps chromosomes from splitting. This makes a cell triploid, the normal balance of ‘half-and-half’ is offset and ends up making the fish sterile before it even hatches.

It’s all done in a simple steel cylinder with a piston that comes up from the bottom that is pushed up via an air compressor to create enough pressure to create the triploid fish.

It’s a design Benfey helped create, and the machines are now manufactured out of Dieppe near Moncton.

Triploid fish are not as capable as handling stresses as well as their diploid counterparts, but it’s an aspect that Benfey is researching.

Making sure fish are female is the second aspect of Benfey’s research.

Not all fish have chromosomes like humans do, it differs among species.

In some fish, the male determines what the sex of the offspring will be, while in others, it’s the female.

The approaches differ depending on the situation. But so far, the research has paid off.

“It doesn’t take much

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Drs. Lenehan/Legere Dr. David Hickey

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“Getting the method in halibut, it’s been our biggest success,” said Benfey. “We were the first.”

In some instances, temperature determines what the fish’s sex will be. Simply lowering or raising the surrounding heat source can impact the final sex, an example also detailed in Jurassic Park. But in this case, as with all aspects of real genetic engineering, the results do not create rampaging Hollywood creatures that eat people.

It’s something to keep in mind the next time you hear the term ‘genetic engineering.’

Jan. 8, 2013 • Issue 15 • Volume 146 • 3

Dr.Tillmann Benfey is working on a way to guarantee only female fish are produced from a batch of eggs.

Shane Rockland Fowler / The Brunswickan

BRUNSWICKANNEWS

4 • Jan. 8, 2013 • Issue 15 • Volume 146

Lets get physical Emma McPhee The Brunswickan The holidays are over, and as students begin to work on school assignments, many may be planning to work off the extra pounds gained over the holidays.

This is one of the reasons why the UNB wellness committee has partnered with URec, Sodexo and the Student Health Centre to plan a physical wellness month this January.

“January is a great time to highlight [physical wellness] because we tend to see a lot of people doing their new year’s resolutions,” said Lauren Rogers, coordinator of fitness and wellness for recreation services.

There will be free activities organized to promote physical wellness during the month, including two by URec. On Tuesday, Jan. 8 at 5 p.m. to 6:30 p.m. there will be an event called ‘The Biggest Yoga Class Ever.” This will be held in the Alberta Alumni Recreational Gym and yoga mats will be provided.

Based on the success of last year’s event, URec expects this year’s to have similar results.

“We ran this last year and we had over 125 people, so we’re hoping for 150 this year,” Rogers said.

URec has also organized a program on Wednesdays throughout the month to invite everyone to make use of the Currie Centre’s indoor track. The

event, called Walking Wednesdays, will take place from 11:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. starting Jan. 9.

The program aims to get students active despite the month’s weather.

“I think [the weather] can be an obstacle for some students,” said Rogers. “January is a really difficult time to be outside for some people so why not come in on our clean, indoor track and get your walk in?”

During the Walking Wednesdays, Ellen MacIntosh, the dietician from the Student Health Centre, will be passing out pamphlets on healthy eating. Sodexo will also be providing free healthy snacks and there will be a draw for wellness baskets.

Rogers said students should know they don’t have to be a fitness buff to participate.

“There are some students out there who may not be active, but they’re ready to get active,” she said. “For us, this is an opportunity to encourage students to come to the facility and try out some of the different things we have to offer.”

Physical wellness month is only one of the wellness initiatives drawn from the eight dimensions of wellness that will take place at UNB this year. There will be a different dimension covered each month to promote overall wellness in students.

“What we’ve done is picked a different dimension of wellness every month

to highlight,” said Rogers. “We want [students] to be healthy; we want to help them make good choices when it comes to physical activity and healthy eating.”

The UNB wellness committee, URec, Sodexo and the Student Health Centre are planning other wellnessthemed activities for the term. Each one aims at showing a different area of wellness.

“What’s really important is that this is a campus-wide initiative and it doesn’t just take place this month. There are other great wellness initiatives happening all year long while classes are going on,” Rogers said. “ I would encourage all students to check them out and learn more about their wellness.”

Jan. 8, 2013 • Issue 15 • Volume 146 • 5

THE BRUNS OPINION

We Should All Be ‘Idle No More’

editor@thebruns.ca

A Critical Eye Cody Jack

Why is it that we frown upon those who fight for what they think is right? Do people continue to see the “other” or the “different”, in those who take action? In a time when our society is preoccupied by the lack of political engagement, particularly in youth and marginalized members of society, why do people condemn those who protest?

During the Québec student strikes, some commentators referred to Québec students as “spoiled” – les enfants gates – since they already had the lowest tuition rates in Canada. It was brought back to the usual rhetoric that Québec wants everything for itself.

Students were condemned as anarchists when a select few clashed with police and committed acts of vandalism.

Politicians and political commentators lament that lack of youth engagement in politics, yet as soon as they engage in ways outside of voting, they are met with equal criticism and scorn.

We are faced with a similar phe-

nomenon now. Aboriginal peoples are standing up for what they believe in, opposing changes in legislation that affect them directly but also all Canadians; and they too are condemned.

We see a reversion to stereotypes of them in order to undermine their cause. We pick at old wounds instead of looking at the issues at hand. Instead of people fighting for something they believe in, they become “Indians”, “spoiled”, “lazy”, “disrespectful”, “complainers”, just to name a few. History is forgotten, and we seem incapable of seeing how their struggle against oppression and recent changes in legislation, is also our struggle.

A large number of comments fail to mention that one of the demands of the Idle No More movement is to reinstate environmental protections for Canadian waterways (lakes, rivers, streams, etc.). It is a change that affects us all.

Aboriginals are also demanding that their treaties be respected and they be allowed the right of self-determination, to construct and abide their own standards, not those imposed upon them through the Indian Act. They want an accountable and democratic system of governance.

Taking a look at history, if we examine the Iroquois Confederacy,

the brunswickan

Editorial Board

Editor-in-Chief • Sandy Chase Managing • Liam Guitard News • Cherise Letson Arts • Lee Thomas Sports • Josh Fleck Photo • Bronté James Copy • Hansika Gunaratne Production • Alex Walsh Online • Sarah Campbell Staff Advertising Sales Rep • Bill Traer Delivery • Dan Gallagher Arts Reporter • Elizabeth Creelman News Reporter • Heather Uhl Staff Reporter • Gordon Mihan Sports Reporter • Julie McLaughlin Opinions Columnist • Cody Jack

Contributors

Sarah Badibanga, Chad Betteridge, Mike Bourgeois, Nikki Chapman, Benjamin Crouse, Shawna Cyr-Calder, Shane Rockland Fowler, Tamara Gravelle, Brandon Hicks, Robert Johnson, Monique Lamontagne, Kevin Lemieux, Alyson MacIssac, Justin Marshall, Emma McPhee, David Micalef, Nick Murray, Karšten Saunders, Jacie Targett, Jeremy Trevors, Sarah Vannier The Brunswickan relies primarily on a volunteer base to produce its issues every week. Volunteers can drop by room 35 of the SUB at any time to find out how they can get involved.

About Us

The Brunswickan, in its 146th year of publication, is Canada’s Oldest Official

Those involved with Idle No More should be applauded for demanding a better life and the protection of our environment, fighting for accountability, and having the courage to stand up for themselves. jonathonreed / FlickrCC their system of governance was built “no confidence at all” in mainly federal on those demands. They should be on the will of the people and con- institutions. This survey was done applauded for demanding the protecsensus. Political leaders were directly prior to the Harper government, and tion of our environment, fighting for responsible to the people. The people its series of power abuses and disregard accountability, and having the courage held economic power and had direct for various political traditions within to stand up for themselves.

Canada.

Although this movement has specifaccess to resources.

All of us should be demanding a ic demands and objectives, the possiUnder the Indian Act, the band councils answer to the federal govern- better system of governance; one that bility of other grassroots movements ment, and not band members. Elec- isn’t based on voting every four years like this are endless. If other members tions are held for band councils and and one that holds governments ac- of society join in the fight against opchiefs, but elections do not guarantee countable; a system that places power pression, as faced by aboriginals, the accountability and democratic deci- back into the hands of citizens, instead positive outcomes would not stop at sion-making. This form of governance of concentrating it in the hands of a bringing justice to aboriginals, but to everyone. We should all be “Idle was imposed upon Aboriginal peoples. select few.

Those involved in the Idle No More No More.”

In 2003, a study by Statistics Canada showed that of those surveyed, movement should be applauded for 32.1 per cent had “not very much” or demanding a better life and for acting 21 Pacey Drive, SUB Suite 35, Fredericton, NB, E3B 5A3 main office • (506) 447-3388 advertising • (506) 452-6099 email • editor@thebruns.ca Twitter • @Brunswickan www.thebruns.ca

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We are an autonomous student newspaper owned and operated by Brunswickan Publishing Inc., a nonprofit, independent body.

We are a founding member of the Canadian University Press, and love it so. We are also members of U-Wire, a media exchange of university media throughout North America.

We publish weekly during the academic year with a circulation of 6,000.

Letters to the editor

Letters must be submitted by e-mail including your name, as letters with pseudonymns will not be printed.

Letters must be 500 words at maximum.

Deadline for letters is Friday at 5 p.m. before each issue.

Editorial Policy

While we endeavour to provide an open forum for a variety of viewpoints and ideas, we may refuse any submission considered by the editorial board to be racist, sexist, libellous, or in any way discriminatory.

The opinions and views expressed in this newspaper are those of the individual writers, and do not necessarily reflect the views of The Brunswickan, its Editorial Board, or its Board of Directors.

All editorial content appearing in The Brunswickan is the property of Brunswickan Publishing Inc. Stories, photographs, and artwork contained herein cannot be reproduced without the express, written permission of the Editorin-Chief.

W E I V OINT P

on What’s YOUR s week? i h t d n i m

Do you use the Currie Center?

Why or why not?

Chantele Thibodeau

Courtney Williams

Jillian Berscheid

Kurtis Gallant

Makala Priest

“Cardio and strength centre.”

“The elliptical.”

“Cardio room.”

“I don’t work out, I am naturally fit.”

“Staying active - the running track.”

Mike Martel

Rob Trites

Sam Colborne

Sean Healy

Josh Fleck

“I just enjoy working out.”

“So I can get a hot shower. Our water heater is down at home.”

“Strength centre and running.”

“Yes, but for intramurals.”

“I use it for work. I get paid to ref intramurals. Give me your money UNB students.’”

Jan. 8, 2013 • Issue 15 • Volume 146 • 7

THE BRUNS

Threads that bind

ARTS arts@thebruns.ca

Elizabeth Creelman Arts Reporter

thread that binds these vastly different pieces of art into a single, unified exhibition. All of the artwork displayed will incorporate yarn once owned by Charlotte Glencross, a much loved and admired textile artist and promoter for the arts, who passed away in 2007. This exhibition is the first of several which are to showcase New Brunswick’s textile artists in 2013, the largest of which will be a display of Glencross’ own work at the Beaverbrook Art Gallery in late February.

“Charlotte was amazing,” said LeBlanc.

“She was also a very strong advocate for what was in those days the Fredericton Designer Weavers [now the Fibre Arts Network] until, I’d say, about two weeks before she actually passed. She was very, very sick with cancer, and she was still coming to our meetings and being supportive.

“What she did was she left a lot of her yarns and some of her looms and things like that to a couple of our Fibre Arts Network members. What they’ve done is

Did you know that yarn can be made of dog hair?

Yes, my friends, yarn can apparently be incorporated into all kinds of things, a fact which an upcoming exhibition at the UNB Art Centre is primed to prove. The exhibition, titled The Thread That Binds, is to be put on by the Fibre Arts Network of New Brunswick and will include, handmade books, baskets, and pottery, in addition to various textile arts such as tapestries, felts, and spun pieces.

“It’s going to be so diverse,” said Karen LeBlanc, long-time president of the Fibre Arts Network.

“I can’t wait... We put the call out through the Arts News and all of the sudden we had these people – fibre artists – from the city of Fredericton and the province, who started coming out of the woodwork because they wanted to be part of the project.”

In keeping with the theme, there is a

Seasonal changes The New Position Sarah Vannier Welcome to winter term! And it is definitely winter; temperatures have been dipping well below zero for the past few weeks, and everyone is looking for a way to stay warm. And while I am sure some of you are throwing on a toque or grabbing a mug of hot chocolate, I know a lot of you are turning up the heat in a different kind of way.

It turns out that the start of winter is one of the times when we are all getting frisky.

Every year in December and January, condom sales increase, and more people

lose their virginity. Plus, because people are having sex more often, nine months from now you can expect a mini baby boom. After all, why wrap your hands around a hot cup of coffee when you could wrap them around a hot body instead?

And, because we do everything online these days, of course we are also turning to the internet to help us satisfy some of our cold weather cravings.

Patrick and Charlotte Markey, two researchers at Villanova University in Pennsylvania, have taken a novel approach at looking at seasonal trends in sexual behaviour. Using Google Trends, which is a cool feature that Google has, which lets you see how popular different search terms are at any given point, they tracked patterns in sex related

Karen LeBlanc’s Green Lawn Chair is one of the pieces in the UNB Art Centre exhibit The Thread That Binds. Submitted they’ve brought the boxes in to the New in the show as a tribute to their personal who can make it happen.

“We have a lot of pieces,” said LeBlanc.

Brunswick College of Craft and Design relationships with Glencross.

“Like my pieces, [some] can hang from “There’s one woman... [who] actually and they have them there. So, if anyone was interested in participating in the show, took some of the dog hair that’s from the ceiling in the middle of the room. they could go in, select some of Charlotte’s Charlotte’s dog that had been spun by a Some have to be against a wall. Some pieces are structural and will have to be yarns that were hers, and then either use spinner,” said LeBlanc.

“She actually crocheted it into a piece on a plinth... it is a smaller room, but I that yarn for a project or incorporate it into think we should be fine.” one of their existing projects. That’s what for the exhibition.”

However the artwork is displayed, the “We even have a potter who is making I’m doing: I’m incorporating some of the yarn into three of my Jacquard pieces.” a yarn-holder out of pottery. She knew exhibition promises to represent a tightArtists featured in the exhibition have Charlotte really, really well. [The yarn- knit community full of life.

The opening for The Thread That one, two, or even three pieces in the show. holder] will hold a ball of Charlotte’s Binds will take place 5-7 p.m. on Friday, Some of the artists did not know Glen- yarn.” cross personally, but are using the show With all of the outpouring of interest, Jan. 11, at the UNB Art Centre galleras an opportunity to use her beautiful it may be a challenge to fit all of the pieces ies in Mem. Hall. Refreshments will be yarns, display their work, and draw closer into the relatively small gallery space. Le- served and most of the artists will be in to the province’s textile community. Blanc says that Lori Quick, the UNB Art attendance. The exhibition will remain Other artists, however, are participating Centre coordinator, is a miracle worker in the galleries until Feb. 8.

search terms between January 2006 and March 2012.

Side note: I checked out Google Trends while doing research for this column. Turns out that people in India are more likely to Google “cute cat pictures” that any other country.

Canada was in third place. It’s a sad day for LOLCat loving Canucks.

Anyway, because the researchers were interested in looking at seasonal changes in sexual behaviour, they tracked the frequency of three types of sex-related searches: Pornography (e.g., nude, xxx), prostitution (e.g., call girl, escort), and mate-seeking (e.g., eHarmony, OkCupid). They speculated that these search terms reflected people’s interest in sex.

What did they find?

There were spikes in the use of all three types of sex-related search terms in December-January and June-July.

The researchers concluded that there is something special about these two times of year that gives our sex drives a boost.

So what exactly is so special about early winter and early summer? Unfortunately, there isn’t actually a straightforward answer to that question.

Wendy Macdowall, a researcher at the London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine, and her colleagues recently reviewed the research looking at seasonal changes in sexual behaviour and came up with a few possible explanations.

For some people, the holidays might represent a special time of year when

they want to connect with a romantic partner. Similarly, some researchers have proposed a “Summer Vacation Theory”, that says people have more sex once their school term is over. Of course, this would only apply to young people who are attending school. It is also possible that both the holidays, and summer, are associated with more celebrations and alcohol consumption, which might lead to having more sex.

Another possible explanation is that there are seasonal changes in hormonal levels. For example, one study found that men have higher levels of testosterone in early winter. Unfortunately, this was a very small study that only followed a small group of men.

Enjoy your winter term and stay toasty Fredericton!

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61 406 ,

reported cases of marijuana possession in Canada in 2011

16 548 ,

reported cases of marijuana production and trafficking in Canada in 2011

77,954 total

Hilary Paige Smith News Editor With the Liberal Party adding legalization to their platform last year, along with the recent legalization for recreational use in Washington and Colorado, it looks like a lot of people do.

Decades ago, many thought marijuana was the devils drug, which would cause whoever uses it to turn into a sinful, psychotic, promiscuous junky as seen in the 1936 American propaganda film Reefer Madness. However, these recent events show the culture around cannabis has changed.

“I think it’s shifting to the opposite end of Reefer Madness,” said Donald MacPherson, executive director of the Canadian Drug Policy Coalition. “I think people are waking up to say that continuing to prohibit this substance is clearly not in the interest of people, it’s not in the interest of law enforcement.”

MacPherson said the Canadian Drug Coalition believes there is a need for regulation of marijuana through a public health approach, and that doing so would allow a more honest discussion on the benefits and the harms of it. He said though

too much of anything can be problematic, new research is shedding new light on cannabis, especially in the medical field.

“The growing body of research shows that there are clear benefits to cannabis,” said MacPherson. “The research coming out of the medical cannabis area is growing at a great rate.

[It’s] Showing cannabis is useful for a number of conditions where existing pharmaceutical products may not be working for an individual.”

MacPherson also said marijuana prohibition also makes unnecessary criminals, especially out of young people. He said criminalization of cannabis smokers doesn’t solve the issue of organized crime.

Julie Dingwell, Executive Director of Aids Saint John, said the criminalization also prevents people who are having trouble with a substance to seek help, for they feel stigmatized and marginalized by society.

“I think if we look at what’s been happening in different countries around the world, Portugal for instance, that when we take the criminal aspect away, people that have serious addictions and for who abuse is the problem, they seek treat-

ment,” said Dingwell.

She also said marijuana criminalization is actually fueling the market of large crime.

“I think it’s time we realize that all we really do is fuel an underground economy, a black market, a very lucrative market for big crime, and we don’t have to do that,” she said. “We can decide to do things differently, because we have evidence that strongly suggests we should do things differently.”

Dingwell said criminalization is also doesn’t solve the one of the issue of drugs in general.

“We lock people up, instead of trying to decide what the bigger issues are. If we’re going to look at the bigger issues of drugs, then perhaps instead of criminalization we could be looking at things like treatments,” she said.

Attitudes have definitely have changed since the Reefer Madness. Dingwell said, today marijuana is a norm for many people and the intense fear around it has disappeared. She said the traditional scare-tactics are not working anymore, especially on youth.

“Fear mongering just doesn’t work,” said Dingwell. “It just isn’t the way to talk to people about being safe.”

Marijuana has been illegal in Canada since 1923, and with a few failed attempts for decriminalization, its clear marijuana legalization won’t happen overnight. David Coon, the leader of the Green Party of New Brunswick, said legalization in Canada would require a change in Federal government. He said legalization under the current Conservative government won’t happen.

“They’re [the current federal government] are very rigid in their thinking,” said Coon. “The other part of the whole drug story of course… is addiction needs to be treated health issue, not as a criminal issue.”

“He’s [Stephen Harper] so rigid around any of these issues.

There’s been, to my understanding, quite a struggle on support federally for needle exchanges and safe injection sites and so on.

He seems to be eager to criminalize everything,” said Coon.

“So I think of Marijuana, you’re not going to see him budge.”

The Green Party’s platform includes marijuana legalization, which involves putting regulations in place regarding its produc-

tion. Coon said the party would also develop a taxation rate that’s similar to what exists for tobacco, and would require it to be sold through licensed establishments, similar to liquor stores.

He said he thinks if the federal government legalized cannabis, it would probably be done in two steps. He said the government would likely decriminalize it first, which would allow them to consult the public and work out the already existing issues with medical marijuana. Then the government would put plans in place pursue legalization.

According to statistics Canada, in 2011 there were 61,406 reported cases of marijuana possession in Canada. There were 16,548 reported cases of production, and trafficking. This make a total of 77, 954 marijuana related cases.

A poll released last year by Toronto-based Forum Research Inc., 66 per cent of Canadians are in favour were of the legalization or the decriminalization of marijuana, with only 20 per cent of people thinking laws should be left as they are.

“It’s becoming a bit of a joke that we can’t get beyond this point”said MacPherson. “The public is so far ahead of the politicians.”

BRUNSWICKANARTS

10 • Jan. 8, 2013 • Issue 15 • Volume 146

New Year’s resolutions you’ll want to keep Lee Thomas Arts Editor 1) I will create more Nothing is more fulfilling than the act of creation, and the great thing about it is that you can enjoy the act of creating even if you don’t necessarily like the finished product. And if you do, well, that’s a bonus. Sign up for a membership at UNB ArtZone in Mem. Hall (they’re only $15!) for a quiet getaway space right here on campus. Get away with your friends to the Clay Café on Queen Street to paint a figurine or a nice mug that you can sip tea out of later. Pick up some art supplies at Endeavors and sit on the walking bridge or Poet’s Corner with some water colours or a camera.

Or, since it’s winter, bring a sketchpad up to the Beaverbrook room. Sign up for a course at the UNB Art Centre and learn how to book-bind or sculpt.

Fredericton and UNB are full of opportunities, and make 2013 the year when you take advantage of them!

2) I will read more “No matter how busy you may think you are, you must find time for reading, or surrender yourself to self-chosen ignorance,” so spoke Atwood H. Townsend. As students, we are especially privileged to have access to an insane number of books courtesy of our campus libraries. There

are academic resources, obviously, but there’s also a significant number of books and novels and poetry and papers and magazines for leisure reading, as well as an unlimited reach of the book-ordering system, which is generally free for students. Subscribe to a magazine that inspires you, be it Macleans’ or Rolling Stone or Mental Floss. Browse the #poetry tag on Tumblr. Read fan fiction. Or, my personal favourite, go to the Owl’s Nest downtown, for an afternoon and lose yourself in the maze of bookshelves and magical words.

3) I will support local musicians I’ve talked about the vibrant local music scene in the Maritimes before, but it deserves more mention than I could possibly give it. There are shows at the Cedar Tree Café, and in many other cafés around town. The Capital has local artists who are consistently excellent (plus, y’know… beer). UNB Music on the Hill highlights musical talent in the UNB community with free shows. The next show is Jan. 20 at 3 p.m. in Mem. Hall, featuring the Atlantic Sinfonia; a full schedule is available on the UNB website. Or, if you’re more interested in supporting your friends and charity, check out one of the many coffee houses hosted around campus throughout the semester

This year the Brunswickan looks at some simpler resolutions that are easier to keep.

Karšten Saunders / The Brunswickan 4) I will see more theatre I’ve never been to a performance, ever, that I’ve regretted attending.

There’s something extra engaging about seeing a live performance rather than a movie, which makes it a great outing

for friends or a date. Plus, it’s much easier to walk to Memorial Hall or the Playhouse than up to the theatre in the mall. TNB (Theatre New Brunswick) always has $10 tickets for students, and many TUNB (Theatre UNB) plays are

around $6. For more information about upcoming plays, check out the TNB website at Tnb.nb.ca, or the Mem. Hall or Playhouse websites, or just read your friendly neighbourhood Brunswickan Arts section!

The telephone game played with art

Gordon Mihan Staff Reporter

We’ve all played it as kids: The game where someone whispers something to another person and it is passed on down a line until what is said is completely different from what was started.

While a simple enough concept for a grade school game, the concept becomes a whole lot more intriguing when used as a basis for an art show.

The UNB Art Centre is putting on the group exhibit Stimulare: The Whispering Game, based on the childhood game, with a story passed from person to person. New Brunswick artist George Fry explained how the art show came together.

“We’d all worked together before on a show called Beyond Words, and we enjoyed working together, so we decided we’d do it again,” said Fry. “Deborah Payne, one of the artists, came up with the idea of the whispering. There were 19 of us, it started off with Freeman Patterson, who gave a photograph to two artists, they then interpreted what he’d given them,

and then passed their work onto the next two.”

Fry said that such an art show was exciting but also very intimidating.

“It was quite terrif ying; you couldn’t talk about it with the other artists because it would have ruined the whole idea of the collaboration if you discussed it. The only thing you knew was the work of the person in front of you.”

The artist that came before Fry was Peter Powning, which worried Fry because he thought it would be hard to follow Powning.

“I was worried stiff because Peter is such a formidable artist, and I thought he was going to build something abstract and I wouldn’t understand [it] at all,” said Fry. “He stuck stamps on his work, and that’s what gave me the clue that it was about communication and friendship, and so I did a stamp album, and I made stamps for each one of the people that came before me.”

Darren Byers, the artist that followed Fry in the line of artists liked the idea of basing the exhibit on a childhood game.

“I wanted to have fun with this project, bringing myself back to when I was a child, with the wonder we have of discovering things and playing games such as the whisper game,” said Byers.

“The game has no winners, it is a game played, just for the fun of it. In this age of instant messaging, where everything happens so fast, I was delighted at the thought that it would take us eighteen months to tell the story that started with a photo unknown, but to the first three participants.”

This unique show features works by: Jim Boyd, Darren Byers, Brigitte Clavette, George Fry, Toby Graser, Fred Harrison, Suzanne Hill, Kathy Hooper, Sue Hooper, Greg Klassen, Elma McKay, Alison Murphy, Pip Murphy, Freeman Patterson, Deborah Payne, Beth Powning, Peter Powning, Karen Shackleton and Peter Thomas.

The opening reception will be held at the UNB Art Centre, Memorial Hall on Friday, Jan. 11, starting at 5 p.m. The exhibition will run until Feb. 8.

BRUNSWICKANARTS

Not the end of the rope

An interview with Alexandra McCurdy

The Fabric of Clay is a retrospective on the life of artist Alexandra McCurdy, and is currently on display at the Beaverbrook Art Gallery. Submitted Elizabeth Creelman Arts Reporter The Fabric of Clay has been at the Beaverbrook Art Gallery since October, yet I was the first person to contact Alexandra McCurdy for an interview about this travelling retrospective on her life’s work.

The exhibition, curated by Gloria Hickey, encompasses the past 40 years of the artist’s work, exploring themes of feminism and autobiography. It will be here until Feb. 10.

In an interview over the phone, McCurdy discussed advice for young artists, her longtime work with Hickey, and her relationship with the press.

EC: Your exhibition is called The Fabric of Clay. What, in your view, is the relationship between textiles and clay?

AM: I’ve used textiles over the centuries as inspiration for my work, only because... tracing women in ceramics is a dead end because women haven’t been in ceramics for that long... So, I used textiles for my research [for my master’s degree].

EC: Why did you want to focus on women?

AM: [When we moved to Nova Scotia], I was struck by all of the wonderful crafts done by women and most of it was unsigned... You’d see quilts and hooked rugs, works of art, really, being used for functions but not signed... hundreds and hundreds of hours had been spent laboriously pouring over this quilt or that rug, and they weren’t signed, so I thought, really, what needs to be done is I need to do things that replicate these beautiful hooked rugs and these quilts and put them up on a pedestal, try and celebrate them.

EC: How has your work changed over the past 45 years?

AM: It’s become very autobiographical.

In other words, in the 80s, I was celebrat-

ing women in craft and their crafts. Now it’s much more autobiographical, I’m now talking about myself, my life, and my family. But I’m still using textiles as a way of doing that. In other words, the latest boxes, I guess you could call them the stars of the show, what I was doing was using liquid coloured clay to do the decoration, squeezing them out of little bottles, the lines, onto the surface of the pot that I had made. Now, I’m squeezing the lines onto the lines. In other words, the decorations have become the form of the pieces themselves.

EC: What advice do you have for young or up-and-coming artists?

AM: Do something every day for your work; that would be my advice. So you’re always in it; your head is always there. I was told once that women could never be master potters because their lives are

Jan. 8, 2013 • Issue 15 • Volume 146 • 11 too fragmented... and I thought, ‘That’s not right.’ You can still work with your mind even if you’re not doing it with your hands... The other thing I’ve discovered is that things come in circles. Every time you go around the circle, you pick up stuff from the previous circle and apply it to the one in the future, so that your work keeps on expanding and growing, but you’re still comfortable in your own mind... You’re never sitting in front of blank canvas, you can always start with something that you’ve done before and that kind of opens the door up for what’s going to happen in the future.

EC: Is there anything else that you’d like to mention to our readers?

AM: People keep saying, ‘Is this the end?’ and of course, it’s not the end. This is just a mark, really... Frankly, working with Gloria has been fantastic because what she did was she spent five uninterrupted days with me talking about my work, and very few people have that privilege. What we did was we went through a lot of the reviews and articles over the years that were negative, and we tried to figure out why the person had said that. What that did for me, all of those scars, those battle wounds that we have at the end of our lives no matter what, were sort of dug out because of the fact that I then understood why that person had said that thing, that negative horrible thing that crushed me. Because it’s really important to us to get written about; that’s the feedback we get.

So there it is, my beautiful exhibition at the Beaverbrook, and I’ve had no feedback whatsoever... It’s sitting there and I’m thinking, my life is sitting there at the Beaverbrook and I’m not hearing what’s happening and how people are reacting to it! The privilege of having a retrospective is huge, and for that, I say thank you to the Beaverbrook and to the Burlington Art Centre and to Saint Mary’s University for having the exhibition, for putting it up, for all of the labour involved in that show...

My only regret is never hearing how things are going.

Alexandra McCurdy shows off a piece from The Fabric of Clay. Submitted

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Attention!

12 • Jan. 8, 2013 • Issue 15 • Volume 146

Work -Study Winter 2013 PART-TIME STUDENT Employment Opportunities Work-Study is a subsidized work program designed to assist financially needy students with the high costs associated with post-secondary study. The program will also provide students with an opportunity to gain valuable skills/experience in an on-campus, part-time employment situation. Work-Study positions are 10 hours per week, $12.00 per hour.

Due to the limited number of available positions, program eligibility will not guarantee employment.

Eligibility is restricted to full-time UNB undergraduate and graduate students with demonstrated financial need. Students must also be in good academic standing (GPA of 2.0 and over from the most recent assessment year) to be eligible for program consideration.

VIEW available Work-Study positions on-line from December 14, 2012 - January 18, 2013, at Student Employment Service: https://es.unb.ca/apps/student-services/work-study-listings/ MANDATORY Step-by-Step Application Process: ***PLEASE NOTE: Fall 2012 approved work-study applicants skip to Step 3*** Step 1: CONTACT the Financial Aid Office at 453-4796 between Monday, January 7 Thursday, January 17, 2013, to set up an appointment for a “Financial Assessment” to determine program eligibility. Needs Assessment Application at: http://www.unb.ca/fredericton/studentservices/_resources/pdfs/finaid/workstudyapplicationwinter.pdf Step 2: Complete a Resume and Cover Letter Writing Workshop by January 18, 2013 . Visit http://www.unb.ca/fredericton/studentservices/employment/event-calendar.html for the workshop schedule and to pre-register.

Step 3: SUBMIT up to a maximum of eight resumes and cover letters NO LATER THAN January 18, 2013 (4 pm) to Student Employment Service (Neville Homestead).

Step 4: HIRING DEPARTMENT will contact those selected for an interview.

DEADLINES:

#1 Financial Assessment-THURSDAY, JANUARY 17, 2013 Financial Aid Office, 1st Floor, Jones House (26 Bailey Drive) Telephone 453-4796 #2 Resumes and Cover Letters- FRIDAY, JANUARY 18, 2013 Student Employment Service, Neville Homestead Telephone 453-4620

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Jan. 8, 2013 • Issue 15 • Volume 146 • 13

THE BRUNS

SPORTS

From Russia with love

sports@thebruns.ca

The Varsity Reds faced off against the Russian Red Stars in the eighth annual Peterbilt Atlantic Kelly Cup. Bronté James / The Brunswickan Nick Murray The Brunswickan The Varsity Reds men’s hockey team was back to work far earlier than the start of the semester, playing four games over the break since exams ended.

On Dec. 30, the V-Reds welcomed the Russian Red Stars to the province, and battled through a heavy snowstorm to make it to Saint John’s Harbour Station, then back to Fredericton the following day, for game two of the two-game series.

The V-Reds had no trouble against a young Russian squad, as it appeared to be men against boys, with UNB taking both games to win the eighth annual Peterbilt Atlantic Kelly Cup Challenge.

Getting the starting goal for UNB was Travis Fullerton, who was back in his old stomping grounds, as he played for the Saint John Sea Dogs for two seasons before coming to UNB. It seemed UNB didn’t have any trouble burning off the Christmas turkey, as they quickly went up 5-1 after the first period, with goals from

PANEL

They know what’s up

Ben Shutron, Adrian Robertson, Taylor MacDougall, Nick MacNeil, and Cam Braes.

After a scoreless second period, Russia put two back on the board, cutting UNB’s lead to two, but the V-Reds answered, with Dion Campbell and Cam Critchlow sealing the 7-3 win.

Russia had been on a bus for ten hours the day before, having toured around the United States, and playing games against NCAA opponents, including Yale, North Michigan, and North Dakota.

On New Year’s Eve, both teams were

back at it again, before a sold out crowd of 3,450 at the Aitken Centre.

Again, the Russians got off to a slow start, but UNB didn’t have their legs either, giving up early penalties and a subsequent 5-on-3 for Russia. But Bryce Swan and Tim Priamo stepped up on defence, stopping shots from getting on net to Dan LaCosta.

Critchlow opened the scoring late in the first period. Campbell fed him in the corner and Critchlow quickly wristed a low shot through traffic and past a screened Sergey Mashkovtcev.

Like UNB in the first, Russia fell

into penalty trouble in the second, and the V-Reds capitalized as MacNeil redirected a Braes point shot for his second goal of the tournament.

Stefan Salituro also jumped on the score sheet, taking the puck through the slot and snapping a shot blocker side putting UNB up 3-0.

After a physical, and at times chippy, second period, Swan made it a fourgoal game a minute into the third period, then midway through the period, Tyler Carroll whacked in his own rebound after a one-timer in the slot, putting UNB ahead 5-0.

Russia got on the board thirty-two seconds later as Miks Lipsbergs picked up a Kirill Tambiev pass, crossed the blue lines and wristed a shot along the ice, beating LaCosta five-hole.

Later in the third, again on a 5-on3, Russia went to their blue line and Daniil Bogdanov ripped a one-timer through traffic, beating LaCosta low. That’s all the Russians could put together offensively, as they dropped the second game of the series 5-2.

Campbell, who made his return to the V-Reds lineup after opting to sit out the first half of the year to focus on school, was named the tournament’s most valuable player, and said though the competition was tough, his own teammates went hard and it helped him get back to his game.

“After the Christmas break we had two really good practices, and I knew the guys were ready to go right from

SEE HOCKEY PAGE 15

What led to the Canadian Junior hockey team not medalling this year? cellarpub.ca

Josh Fleck

Nick Murray

I think it was the coaching of Steve Spott, and I’m not just saying that because of the way he stares into the camera, and your soul, when he does interviews. In one of the games I was watching, there was a seven-minute span where Nugent-Hopkins didn’t touch the ice. Murphy also saw way too much ice-time 5-on-5 for that team to succeed.

A culmination of things. Like in any sport, a team that may be better will stoop to the level of the team they’re playing. I think that’s what happened to this team. The expectation for this team to be successful, given that it was a lockout year, may have got the better of them, and ultimately may have led to their demise.

Sports Editor

Sports Writer

Alex Walsh Sports Guru

Canada did not win a medal this year and it can be only be blamed on the fact that the players were not expecting to play since the world should have ended on Dec. 21. For this, I blame the Mayans and only the Mayans. If they hadn’t had their stupid calendar end at this time of year, everything would have been fine.

Bronté James Sports Writer

Our national sport may be lacrosse, but hockey is something we Canadians proudly claim to be our own. The high expectation for our players, however, comes with a price. It’s the pressure to be the best and not accepting any less; that was one of the main detriments of the juniors for our Canadians boys.

14 • Jan. 8, 2013 • Issue 15 • Volume 146

Holiday break is good to women’s volleyball

Julie McLaughlin Sports Reporter The Varsity Reds women’s volleyball team traveled to Toronto over the break to participate in a tournament hosted by the University of Toronto. Faced with tough competition, all signs point to the Varsity Reds having turned the corner in their season. The tournament was filled with a nail-biting win, dominating victories, and unfortunately a loss. Paige Paulsen, co-captain of the Reds, was named a tournament all-star for her outstanding performances.

On Dec. 28, the girls opened their tournament play with a game against Université de Sherbrooke. Ranked eighth in the CIS, this game was a very impressive victory for the Reds. This match would prove to be the closest of all the games the team would play.

The first set was exciting, as the teams were forced into extra points. The Reds came out on top of the set 28-26. Sherbrooke turned their game around in the second match, defeating the Reds 25-23. UNB rallied back in the next set to defeat the Québec team 25-22.

The final set was the strongest victory for the Reds as they won the fourth and final set 25-21.

After securing their first win of the tournament, the squad moved on to play the Queen’s University Golden Gaels the next day. This game was a dominant performance by the lone

AUS team in the tournament, defeating Queen’s in three straight sets. The first set was the closest of the three with UNB squeaking past the OUA school 25-22. The Reds took control of the second set allowing their opponent to score just 14 points. The final set was another strong offensive performance for the Reds as they took the victory 25-18.

“I remember moments in the game, thinking, ‘Holy, we are playing well’.

We really just took care of our side of the court, and I think playing teams we were not familiar with really benefited us,” reflected one of the team captains, Monica Jones, on the strong play of the tournament.

In the third game of the weekend, the Reds were faced against the host school, the University of Toronto Varsity Blues. This game was the first loss of the weekend for the Reds.

Toronto held off UNB’s previously strong offensive performances, and defeated them in three straight sets, 19-25, 16-25 and 15-25.

“We solely relied on our skills and our own ability as players and teammates to adjust to the game and stay together as a unit, and we did that really well. Our communication was great along with our execution and we never panicked and really stayed together. It definitely added to our confidence showing us our potential and expectations to have for second

semester,” said Jones, talking about the team’s play throughout the tournament.

Head coach, Jilliane Goulet, believes this tournament was what her team needed to push them in the right direction for the second half of the season.

“I was very pleased to find success in our first two matches; to see the team gelling right away and playing much like we did in our last match before the break. The efforts took their toll though, as the team was out of steam by our third match on the third day.

Once we regain some of the fitness lost over the long break for exams and holidays, we’re looking at a very promising semester ahead,” said Goulet.

Following the tournament at the University of Toronto, the team traveled to Humber College where they played the home team as well as Trent University on Wednesday, Jan. 2. In the first match-up of the day, UNB played Trent where they defeated the team in three straight sets. The second game of the day against Humber was forced to five sets. UNB won the last set 15-11 to win their second game of the day. On Thursday, the girls took on Ryerson University. Unfortunately, the team ended their trip with a 1-3 loss.

UNB travels to Moncton on Jan. 11, where they will take on UdeM in their first AUS game of 2013.

BRUNSWICKANSPORTS

Shoot for the cure

Bronté James Photo Editor

On Feb. 1, the Varsity Reds women’s basketball team will be shooting for more than points; they will be shooting for the cure.

UNB will be hosting the seventh annual Shoot for the Cure fundraiser to raise money in support of breast cancer research.

With 44 universities competing against each other in Canadian University Sports basketball, they will come together for one cause – to fight for the cure for breast cancer.

“UNB participates in this event because it is fundraising for an important cause that means a lot to many people,” said forward, Melissa Foster.

“It is special to be able to raise awareness about the event throughout the community, through our athletes and athletic department.” “[And] to help raise money to beat this deadly disease, to raise awareness of this disease to help people get tested or an avenue for treatment, and to teach our current student athletes about the importance of helping out and raising money for such a worthwhile cause,” added head coach, Jeff Speedy.

Players will be wearing pink jerseys in support of the event. As well they will be selling 50/50 tickets, the chance to win a gift basket and hats and mittens with the breast cancer logo, with all proceeds going to breast cancer research.

Some players on the team are taking the extra step to help those affected by breast cancer.

“We had two girls, Kristen Johnson

Are sports getting too soft?

Bronté James Photo Editor

Bauer is just one company making an attempt to reduce head trauma with innovative technology. Submitted

Do I think professional sports are violent?

Well, of course they are – contact sports anyway. That is part of the attraction for people, and it’s pure entertainment.

But do I think they are getting too soft?

Absolutely not.

I cannot talk about every sport, as there are too many out there, so I am going to focus on hockey. Why? Because it’s one of the most watched sports, and let’s be honest, a lot of us watch it to see hits like Brooks Orpik sending Daniel Paille flying across the ice. Owners and general managers of the NHL, AHL and CHL teams know we have a morbid curiosity and use this to their advantage; but they do it in a safe, contained way, through sports.

Players are bigger, stronger, angrier, but they are also smarter. They cannot just go out onto the ice and start punching a

player; they cannot have their sticks strewn about in the air without being called for high-sticking; and they cannot intentionally injure a player without serious consequences that could end their career. Yes, they are bigger and stronger, but rules have been put in place to ensure the safety of players and it allows them to continue aggressively playing the game we Canadians so passionately follow. In 1874, the first testicular guard – aka the cup – was used, and in the early 1970s, the first helmet was used; it is a natural progression in professional sports to ensure the safety of its players, and as time goes on more equipment and rules are put in place to continue their safety. These rules are put in to prevent scenarios such as Erie Otter’s forward, Michael Liambas’ hit on Kitchener Rangers’ defenseman, Ben Fanelli in 2009, which resulted in multiple fractures including one to the skull. Liambas was penalized for the duration of the season, including playoffs, and although they declared the hit to be clean, he was still

and Tilly Ettinger cut their hair last year to donate,” said Foster.

“This year, [Jeff] Speedy’s daughter, Kylee Speedy, and Claire Colborne will be cutting their hair in support.”

Pink balls will be used throughout the year, in support of the program.

Shoot for the Cure is on its sixth year after being started by Rod Gilpin, former coach of the Bishop’s women’s program and the current head coach of the Gaiter’s men’s team.

To date, the program has raised $512,394.58 through regular season games, non-conference matches, tournaments and special events held throughout the year.

The program is going on its second consecutive year of having all 44 teams participate.

“We’re very excited to have all programs on board once again this season. It has always been one of our main objectives, and after we achieved that goal for the first time a year ago, it’s now important to keep our level of support at 100 per cent every year,” said Speedy in an earlier interview with Michel Bélanger of CIS. Foster said she thinks the event is important because everyone has been affected by cancer in some way.

“I had a very special Aunt, Rene, pass away from cancer four years ago. Also, my close teammate Laura Fowler deal with the loss of her father, Ian, to cancer last fall,” said Foster.

“It was a difficult time, and I know this event will have a special place in Laura’s and all of our hearts.”

forced to take responsibility for his actions.

How about concussions? Sidney Crosby was out for ten months last season due to concussion like symptoms, and multiple other players have received so many they cannot play anymore. Does this stop players from checking and continuing to play with a high level of aggression? No. Instead, Bauer Hockey, one of the leading manufacturers of hockey equipment, came out with its RE-AKT helmet lined with a light material specifically designed to withstand multiple, and forceful blows to the head, hoping to prevent future concussions; or at least lessen the severity of said concussion.

Rather than take the ferocity, strength and force that makes hockey one of the most entertaining sports to watch, managers, owners, and players are keeping everything in the sport but doing it in a way that protects the players. So, do I think professional sports are becoming too soft? No. Rather, I think they are becoming smarter.

BRUNSWICKANSPORTS Nick Murray The Brunswickan

View from the top

The V-Reds men’s hockey team was hard at work starting the new year, and rung in 2013 with a four-point weekend on home ice, knocking off the first place, No. 2 ranked Acadia Axemen and putting up 51 shots in a 3-0 win over Dalhousie.

Friday night, Nick MacNeil opened the scoring for UNB in the first period on the power play, wristing his sixth goal of the year short side on goaltender Evan Mosher.

Acadia fought back and capitalized on a lengthy 5-on-3, with Mike Cozzola burying the rebound on a Chris Owens point shot.

Later in the first, Acadia went back

to the power play, and Liam Heelis cleaned up the garbage in front of the net on a Cozzola shot, beating a stretched out Travis Fullerton, to put Acadia ahead 2-1 after 20 minutes.

Midway through the second, UNB tied it up with Cam Critchlow deflecting a point shot from Ben Shutron for his fourth goal of the season.

UNB fell into more penalty trouble in the third period, but while Adrian Robertson was clearing the zone, he sprung Tyler Carroll on a shorthanded breakaway. He took three strides across the Tigers’ blue line, and snapped a shot short-side on Mosher, giving UNB the late lead, and the V-Reds never looked back, with MacNeil sealing it with an empty netter for his second of the game.

Saturday night, UNB was back at it

with their fourth game in seven days, after the tilt with Acadia and a twogame set with the Russians.

The V-Reds didn’t waste any time jumping ahead 3-0 within the first ten minutes, with Carroll striking on the power play three minutes in, and four minutes later, burying his team-leading 13th goal off a Marc-Antoine Desnoyers point shot.

A minute and a half later, MacNeil sniped his eighth goal of the year off a backdoor pass from Tom Nesbitt.

With the win over Acadia, UNB now sits atop the AUS standings, one point ahead of Saint Mary’s. This weekend, the V-Reds will be in Halifax, for a first-place showdown with SMU, before taking on St. Francis Xavier on Friday night.

Pridham and Swan: Not their first rodeo

Colby Pridham and Bryce Swan are in their fifth and final seasons, but first with the Varsity Reds. Bronté James / The Brunswickan it, and the next game against them, I was Nick Murray coming off an injury, so I didn’t play as The Brunswickan much as I would have liked, but we got the For a hockey player, being traded or re- wins, so that’s the important part.” leased, and finding another team to play Swan, who comes from a long line of with is not uncommon. But for new V-Reds StFX alumni as his mother and his three Colby Pridham and Bryce Swan, it’s a first. sisters all went to the Antigonish-based Both players transferred from their AUS school, said his family supported his decischools, to enroll in UNB’s masters in sion. But from a hockey standpoint, he said business administration program. Pridham there’re no hard feelings on his side towards switched over from Saint Mary’s, where he the X-Men, though his former coach Brad spent the last four seasons and was their Peddle hasn’t spoke to him since Swan told captain, while Swan parted ways with St. him he was leaving for UNB. Like Swan, Pridham has comfortably Francis Xavier where he also spent the last four years and was an assistant captain. established himself in his new lineup, but is Swan has arguably had the roughest on pace for his best season in his CIS career. experience of the two. In his homecoming Following last weekend, Pridham is sixth game against StFX back in October, he in the AUS in points, and second in plus/ felt as though his former team “put a little minus at +18.

Also like Swan, Pridham’s first game more attention [his] way”, but admitted, playing his first game against the X-Men against his former team was in Saint Mary’s barn, and while Swan had a tougher time was a weird feeling.

“It was weird, especially since that first against his former team, the Huskies still game was on the road at StFX, and because took the body to their former captain, it was so early in the season,” said Swan. which he expected.

“It was tough and it wasn’t easy,” said “But that’s part of the game and I enjoyed

Pridham. “Some guys took runs that I expected to take runs and be physical. But there’s something about leaving a team and coming to a new one that you don’t want to lose any games against your old team.”

That being said, Pridham did everything he could not to lose to Saint Mary’s in the first half of the year. UNB beat SMU both times they played. Pridham has scored three of his seven goals this year against the Huskies, more than he’s scored against any other team in the AUS. After a 4-3 loss to UNB back on Nov. 3, Huskies head coach, Trevor Stienburg, said he’d do anything to trade for Pridham and have him back, but shares the utmost respect toward his former captain for reaching out academically.

“I mean, he’s my old captain, man,” said Steinburg. “After he scored two goals against us in his first game, I told him I couldn’t be happier for him. I’d rather see one of my old guys scoring goals and having success against us than any other UNB player. The bottom line is he’s bettering himself and my hat goes off to him.”

While Pridham led the Huskies to a national championship, he came onto a team this year where all five of UNB’s new recruits earned some level of captaincy during their Major Junior or CIS careers.

Though he won’t wear a ‘C’ in his final season, head coach Gardiner MacDougall has given him an ‘A’ in his first year with the team, and Pridham said there’s still lots of leadership he can bring.

“I think just being fifth year and an older guy, and having that experience of winning a national championship with another team brings a different perspective,” he said.

“There’re different things that we went through that maybe they didn’t go through that I can share.”

Both players will get another crack at their former teams this weekend as UNB are on the road in Antigonish and Halifax, against the X-Men and Huskies.

Jan. 8, 2013 • Issue 15 • Volume 146 • 15

FROM HOCKEY PAGE 13 the warm-up,” Campbell said. “The first shift set the pace, and that first period in Saint John was an unbelievable period. It was fun to go with guys going hard like that, because it makes it easier on a guy coming back.”

During the tournament, UNB wore commemorative Canada jerseys, designed by local photographer Brian Smith, which had the original names and numbers from members of the 1972 Canadian Summit Series team. V-Reds captain Chris Culligan, who normally wears no. 57, wore Phil Esposito’s no.

7, and said he was excited to represent a Canadian icon.

“I only spoke with him briefly when he dropped the puck in Saint John,” said Culligan. “But obviously he’s done a lot for the game and our country, so it was pretty special to wear his jersey.

All the guys were pretty excited about representing different guys from the 1972 team.”

While the Russians may have struggled against the defending Atlantic University Sport champions, the young squad may have suffered the jitters on playing on Canadian soil, many of them for the first time. Roman Berdnikov was the only player on the team to have played in the Canadian Hockey League, winning an OHL championship with the Owen Sound Attack in 2011, and said fatigue and jitters may have played a part in their slow first periods.

“For some guys, [this tournament] was their first time playing in Canada,” said Berdnikov. “We were still a little bit nervous in the first period, but this team played well I thought. We’ve had a long trip too, we drove ten hours on the bus before yesterday’s game, and we had a slow start tonight.”

The tournament all star team honours went to UNB’s Nick MacNeil, Dion Campbell, Ben Shutron, and Dan LaCosta, and Russian forward, Danil Fayzullin, and defenseman, Daniil Bogdanov.

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