The Bull & Bear December 2012 Issue

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THE BULL & BEAR

December 2012 Issue 004 Vol. 10

Your Guide to

SURVIVING EXAMS +

‘Mo Stache ‘Mo Money AUS to Claim Frozen Assets The Fiscal Cliff Adultery in Politics

Editor’s Note Dan Novick

EXECUTIVE EDITOR

T NEWS 4 ‘Mo Stache ‘Mo Money 5 AUS to Claim $100,000 in Frozen Assets 6 ICCSN Presents: Lecture by Professor 4 Brawley 8 The World in the Palm of Their Hands

MARKETS 9 The Fiscal Cliff 10 Obama’s Reelection and the Canadian Economy 11 Why Prices Move 12 Starbucks Acquires Teavana

LIFESTYLE 13 Your Guide to Surviving Exams 15 All I Want for Christmas is...

18 Baby, You Can Drive My Car (Because I Won’t)

his is my first issue as Executive Editor and I look forward to sharing many more with you all in the coming months. First of all, I’d like to thank my predecessor David Lin for his indispensable contribution and commitment to The Bull & Bear over the past year, a time during which we have dramatically increased readership and expanded across campus to cover the issues, entertainment, and events that you care about. I’d also like to thank former Chief Layout Editor Mike Horowitz for his two years with us, a powerful but quiet force at the core of The Bull & Bear’s success.

Long gone are the days when The Bull & Bear would just report on news within the Faculty of Management. The events that shook our campus last school year etched in us the importance of producing innovative content of consistently high quality for the entire campus.

I know, because I was there, covering everything from the MUNACA strike, to the occupations and the protests as a writer.

As the first Executive Editor outside of the Faculty of Management (I’m in Political Science), I will ensure that we will continue to improve our cross-campus appeal. I, along with my fellow editors, will do everything in our power to further our quest to become not only McGill’s most read and fascinating publication, but to uphold our reputation as the most objective.

Over the coming few weeks, hold true that there is an imminent light at the end of the tunnel. Remember, this light and a well-deserved break are just around the corner!

On behalf of myself, the Editorial Board, and our entire 75-person staff, we sincerely hope that you enjoy this issue that we all worked so hard on. Good luck on your exams and happy holidays to you all.

Cheers,

OPINION 29 Adultery in Politics 20 Why Does the World Hate Good Television?

21 The Demise of a Leader and the Casting Aside of Fundamental Rights 22 The 21st Century, British Columbia’s for the Taking 23 Hot or Not

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Dan Novick, Executive Editor dan@bullandbearmcgill.com

BRIEFS

Briefs

Your guide to events around campus Jeux du commerce

Desautels Business Conference on Sustainability

January 4th-6th HEC Montreal An inter-university competition amongst universities from Eastern Canada in academics, athletics and social events.

January 24-26th McGill University A forum themed “sustaining success” with keynote addresses from humanitarians and environmentalists from many professional fields.

McGill Snow Jam

McMUN

January 11th-13th Mont Tremblant Ski bunnies, boarding bros and brews all in chalets on beautiful Mont Tremblant.

January 24th-27th Sheraton Montreal Canada’s #1 Model United Nations Conference on the circuit, where McGill and Ivy league students mingle.

Management Carnival

Science Games

January 13th-19th Montreal You may not remember last year, but Carnival is here at last!

January 31st-February 2nd Montreal Throw on your lab coats and get ready for the re-vamped Science Games!

McGill Cancer Auction January (during Carnival) Bronfman A live charity auction to support The Canadian Cancer Society, last year raising $20,000.

Igloofest January 17th-February 9th Old Port An international selection of DJs spinning in sub-zero temperatures.

Dan Novick Executive Editor

Vidal Wu Lifestyle Editor

Jessica Simmonds Managing Editor

Zain Alimohamed Lead Opinion Editor

Jean Moirez Media Editor

Marisa Samek Opinion Editor

Natasha Racco Lead News Editor

Alessandra Hechanova Chief Layout Editor

Aimee Pellegrino Jules Eustache News Editors

Matthew Hunter Brian Lau Michael Tong Layout Editors

Sameer Rizvi Lead Markets Editor Max Feinsot Markets Editor April Wu Lead Lifestyle Editor

The Bull & Bear - December 2012

Kapil Mehra Advertising Director Sami Jaber Henry Fuz-Keeve Diana Cheptene Web Editors

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NEWS

'Mo Stache 'Mo Money Movember aims to “change the face of men’s health” Devin Kesner NEWS WRITER

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o all the boys who can finally sprout some facial hair: November was your month to shine. Movember, also known as “Moustache + November,” or “No Shave November”, is an Australianborn campaign aiming to promote awareness and stimulate conversation about prostate cancer and men’s health.

Men create fundraising pages where they are able to post updates regarding the progress of their moustaches while renouncing their shaving cream and razors for the month. Creatively fashioned moustaches serve as a walking advertisement “prompting private and public conversation around the often ignored issue of men’s health,” according to the official Movember website.

The justification for the importance of Movember stems from the fact that, on average, men live four or five years less than women. Movember identifies prostate cancer as a major obstacle to men’s health and aims at promoting dialogue in order to help men protect themselves as best as possible.

The organization highlights the extent of the movement. For example, close to 940,000 Movember-related conversations occurred on Twitter alone in 2011.

Participants of Movember were far more likely to visit a doctor during the month of November, as well as to discuss their overall health with others.

While Movember raises funds to be donated to organizations such as the Prostate Cancer Foundation and LIVESTRONG Foundation, an overarching theme of the campaign is to change men’s attitudes about their personal health and to ultimately raise awareness.

The program’s main goals are as follows: survivorship, awareness and education, prostate cancer research, and influencing change in men’s health. “The objective for Movember holistically is to create a healthier, happier, and more productive community,” explains Movember CEO and

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Co-Founder Adam Garone.

In addition to funding various external collaborations, the organization has launched its own initiatives to help combat prostate cancer and promote men’s health. The Global Action Plan designates a portion of the funds to be devoted to an annual priority research project, bringing together experts from across the globe. Another fragment of the funds are allocated to an awareness and education program, which aims to change “the actions and attitudes of men, related to their health, around the world.”

Movember originated in 2003 when two men lamented the demise of the moustache over some beers in Melbourne, Australia. That year, thirty men and women, or rather ‘Mo Bros’ and ‘Mo Sistas,’ participated in the comeback of the moustache, and the basic rules and guidelines of Movember were designed.

In its first year as an official fundraiser, 450 participants in Australia raised AUD $54,000.

Fast forward to 2012, and Movember has transformed into a full-fledged social movement. In 2011, 854,288 participants raised $125.7 million across 14 participating countries, and $301 million has been raised in total. So far this year, 1.1 million participants have raised $93 million in over 21 countries.

Movember was brought to Canada in 2007, and since then the country has grown to become the top fundraiser for the cause.

Canada has added men’s mental health as an additional cause to support, citing that one in five men experience mental health issues and that men are four times more likely to commit suicide than women.

The biggest portion of Canada’s raised funds come from a network of teams named “Big Moustache on Campus” (BMOC), which is made up of all the different campus teams across the country.

So far in 2012, BMOC has raised over $2 million towards the cause.

McGill University has close to 90 different teams participating in Movember this year, ranging from McGill Law’s Mo’tion to Dismiss to a team made up of the McGill University Safety personnel.

Together, these teams have contributed over $65,000 and counting this year for the cause.

Movember is an official SSMU club and has evolved in recent years to have an enormous presence on campus. Men can be seen everywhere across campus proudly sporting their Movember ‘staches, while Mo Sistas contribute by helping with the fundraising or by flaunting their own cutout facial masterpieces. “We surely do not have a prostate, but we care about our men and this is what gives us an important role in the campaign,” says Mo Sista and U3 Accounting and Entrepreneurship student Marie-Frédérik Rioux, who has raised over $3,500 for Movember over the last two years.

A variety of events have devoted portions of their proceeds to Movember throughout the month. Some of the highlights include Movember-themed Bar des Arts and 4à7, AUS Stache Dash Apartment Crawl, competitive bullriding between McGill and Concordia at Chez Serge, and ‘Stache Fest’. The month culminated in a ‘Movember Gala Parté’, with variations held all across the world, in which awards were given to the best moustache cultivators in town.

The implementation of the Movember campaign at McGill and across the globe has proven the power and impact of communities working together to support a cause. Something as simple as growing a moustache has become a catalyst to “bring about change and give men the opportunity and confidence to talk about their health more openly.” Individually, we can sprout facial hair. Together, we can team up and affect real, global change and successfully complete the founder’s goal to “change the face of men’s health.”

NEWS

AUS to Claim $100,000 in Frozen Assets Taxes had not been filed since 2008 Pallavi Kamalsurya NEWS WRITER

The Bull & Bear - December 2012

PHOTO VIA J.RAI / FLICKR.COM

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he Quebec government will be releasing about $100,000 of frozen assets of the Arts Undergraduate Society (AUS) over the winter break. This Christmas miracle is a refreshing change after the numerous problems with AUS finances in the past.

This raises the obvious question: why were the assets frozen in the first place?

In an interview with The Bull & Bear, AUS VP Finance Saad Qazi and President Devon LaBuik said that they are “still in the process of putting the pieces together.”

Qazi noted that the AUS had not submitted their mandatory audits to McGill (as per the MOA signed between AUS and McGill) or filed their taxes since 2008. As a result, in 2010-11, McGill withheld $80,000 in student fees. Moreover, the Quebec government froze the $16,000 in the AUS’ chequing account. Feeling the severe shortage of available monetary resources, the AUS dipped into their savings account.

Their savings account had $135,000 in 2003 as a result of a one-time payment from McGill to AUS in exchange for the current Subway restaurant area in the Arts Building. Over the next few years, the AUS used this fund for operational expenses and reduced it to $90,000 by the 201011 school year. Since AUS failed to submit their audits, McGill only gave them half of the usual AUS student fees collected by the University. Thus, in 2011-12, when the AUS Executives needed more funds, they cashed the entire amount. However, in “an unexpected move,” the Quebec government immediately seized $84,000 because of the AUS’ delinquency.

Taking charge of this sensitive situation, Qazi spent this summer with accountants from LMKCA back-filing taxes for AUS that were due since 2008.

Qazi confirms that he has successfully filed all the taxes from the previous years up to this quarter. Once the Quebec government has processed these filings and the backlog of taxes has been cleared, the government will release $100,000 of frozen assets.

How confident is the AUS that the

funds will be reinstated after winter break?

LaBuik feels that they have “…covered all [their] bases. However, there could always be something else that [the government] could say.” That being said, LaBuik and Qazi both stressed that they have done everything to the best of their abilities based on the information available to them at the time.

Indeed, this gives rise to another controversial question: Who should be held responsible for this entire mess? The taxes and audits for a specific year are usually the responsibility of the VP Finance from the previous year. How is it that no one since 2008 has bothered to take a look at the AUS books? Qazi finds, “putting the blame on any one person… is nearly impossible and won’t achieve any purpose, since the problems are continuous and the executives are elected for discrete terms.”

According to LaBuik, the political atmosphere on campus last year prevented the AUS from focusing on resolving these issues. Qazi, an Honours Economics and Finance student, “finds managing finances absolutely interesting.” But how do we, the rest of the student body at McGill, especially students who pay student fees to the AUS, be rest assured that future VP Finances will be as accountable?

LaBuik and Qazi both mentioned that they are working on restructuring the AUS finances and constitution. They agree that the VP Finance should have accounting knowledge. Thus, they are planning to

formulate a qualification guideline for future VP Finances as, “a step towards making sure this doesn’t happen again.”

Moreover, in an effort to streamline all the finances, Qazi has now extended the accounting system used by the AUS to their largest departments.

Around the same time as this “financial crisis,” the AUS student fee was raised from $5 to $12 a semester. When asked if this was done in an attempt to combat the shortage of funds, LaBuik responded that the fee was raised to increase the minimum allocation for each department. After assuming office, Qazi has now successfully fulfilled all financial reporting obligations to McGill and has managed to reclaim over $80,000 of student fees that were withheld since fall 2012.

These new funds were used to pay off operational expenses from previous years. The $100,000 to be released by the Quebec government will go back to the savings account and Qazi aims to bring the savings back to its original level.

Moreover, since the entire accounting system is now based on their accountant’s servers, LMKCA can now track AUS’ financial transactions in “real time.”

Despite the numerous safety mechanisms, what if the new VP Finance does not know the AUS finances as well as Qazi does now? He says, “I’ve already started my exit report so that the next VP Finance is definitely going to be a 100% informed.”

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NEWS

ICCSN Presents: Lecture by

Professor Brawley

U.S. attitudes towards multilateral institutions examined Arjun Mehta

NEWS WRITER

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n the 26th of November, the International Criminal Court Student Network (ICCSN), in association with Amnesty International McGill, hosted their first event since their inception this semester. The lecture on U.S. attitudes towards multilateral institutions such as the International Criminal Court discussed by Professor Brawley.

The 35 minute lecture saw Professor Brawley, renowned political science professor at McGill University, address the attitude of the United States towards two multilateral issue areas it helped build: humanitarian law and international human rights, as well as the International Criminal Court. Following this, there was a short question-answer session where related topics such as inter and intra-state conflict were brought up, in addition to the role of NGOs and domestic politics in changing U.S. attitudes towards multilateral institutions and norms.

Professor Brawley began his lecture by addressing ‘the paradox’ inherent in U.S. behavior;

NEWS the paradox being that the U.S. first began building these organizations and their legal processes post-World War II, but down the line began restraining their development, especially that of the ICC. To lay out this paradox further, Professor Brawley then discussed the three separate but related organizations mentioned above, arguing that the question of who sponsored the development of these institutions, and their laws and legal processes, made the United States behave in a restrained manner towards the institutions it essentially created.

Brawley first spoke about humanitarian law and the law of war. An ascendant to the Geneva Conventions, humanitarian law addresses how war should be conducted, where the purpose was to find a balance between the notions of war and how civilians get treated during conflict.

This body of law, which can only be applied during war, saw in 1977 the addition of Protocols I and II to the Geneva Conventions, which addressed the issues of international conflict, civil wars, and the treatment of the prisoners of these conflicts, among others. To these additions, Professor Brawley added, “the U.S. only ‘signed’ these Protocols, they did not ‘ratify’ them,” alluding to the fact that ratification needed approval from the U.S. Congress, as opposed to signing, which only needed a signature from the President. This nonratification demonstrated the restrained attitude of the U.S. Brawley then added that Protocols I and II directly question the operation of the United States detention camp, Guantanamo Bay; this a plausible explanation too for U.S. attitudes towards humanitarian law.

Following this, Brawley addressed U.S. attitudes towards international human rights. Again, the U.S. is reluctant to ‘take at heart’ the laws of this organization it helped create, which weren’t again ‘ratified’ with Congressional approval but only signed. The reason for U.S. resistance to abidance lay in how the law looked and how it was applied. As Brawley stated, “the U.S. did not want to define individual rights from outside the country by international actors.”

Finally, Brawley discussed U.S. attitudes towards the International Criminal Court. “Since its formulation, the U.S. has shown resistance to the The Bull & Bear - December 2012

development of the ICC, starting with the Clinton and Bush Administrations and continuing with the Obama Administration,” said Professor Brawley, pointing to the fact that the U.S. simply doesn’t trust some of the laws built into the ICC. But the biggest concern to the U.S. is the clash between the two competing bodies of law, the ICC and the United Nations Security Council (UNSC).

Having addressed ‘the paradox,’ Brawley made three observations from the prevalent U.S. attitude towards the institutions it helped create. One, international law matters to the U.S. regardless of their attitude. Two, the intricacies of law come into play in the decision making process of the U.S. And three, the mandate of preexisting

the separation of powers, Brawley added, was another reason for U.S. attitudes towards multilateral organizations.

Following his lecture, Brawley was asked questions regarding intra- state conflict and the role of other countries in persuading the U.S. to increase support of these organizations. In relation to intrastate conflict, he answered that the Geneva Convention rules on war now also apply to intra-state conflict, internal conflicts, and military interventions, increasing its mandate to include more complex warrelated situations.

Regarding the role of other countries in persuading the U.S. to change its attitude towards the ICC specifically, Brawley stated that NGOs and European countries played an important role. While

The U.S. has shown resistance to the development of the ICC ever since its formulation, starting with the Clinton and Bush Administration and continuing with the Obama Administration. international laws do not cover the increasingly complex situations that arise in the world today. For example, the Geneva Convention does not apply as treaty law to U.S. military presence in Afghanistan or conflict between three or more states, but are reflective of customary international law.

In conclusion, Brawley directed his attention to the question: why does this paradox exist? Although the U.S. played a pivotal role in the formulation of international law, the U.S. restrained the development of these multilateral organizations due to concerns of politicization in the applications of law.

That is, the U.S. restrained development as they were likely to be involved in many more disputes and have its officers more frequently scrutinized by this international law, thus making them more cautious in how the rules are to be applied.

Furthermore, the U.S. attitude can be attributed to the U.S. Congress. As Brawley stated, “The U.S. Congress is defending its turf,” alluding to the non-ratification of the Protocols by the U.S. Domestic politics and the respect for

NGOs play a major role in the way the ICC as a body functions and executes its activities, European countries question the U.S: “What are you afraid of? If we can do it, why can’t you?” Most European countries abide by the ICC standards and expect the U.S. to do so too.

As the lecture ended, The Bull & Bear was able to talk to the President and founder of the ICCSN, Galen Östermann, a U2 Honours History student with a minor in International Relations. The ICCSN was founded this semester and is based on the principles of ‘education and deliberation.’ The ICCSN is the first such chapter in Canada and one of the six chapters that exist in the world today.

Other chapters of the ICCSN include ones at Oxford, Cambridge and Duke, among others.

While this was ICCSN’s first event, in the spring, the ICCSN will be visiting The Hague, Netherlands, to witness ICC court hearings. Following this, in the fall, the ICCSN will be celebrating the 100th Anniversary of the Peace Palace in The Hague, the headquarters of the International Court of Justice.

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NEWS

The World in the Palm of Their Hands

AIESEC McGill reaches out to our global community Pallavi Kamalsurya NEWS WRITER

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s a chapter of the world’s largest student-run organization, AIESEC McGill takes an innovative approach to engage and develop today’s youth. Through challenging leadership experiences, international internships, and interaction with an extensive global network, the organization provides McGill students with a unique opportunity for professional and personal growth.

The Association Internationale des Étudiants en Sciences Économiques et Commerciales (AIESEC) was initially set up to increase student alliances and international cooperation after WWII. However today, it has grown to be much more than just an alliance, and is active in more 110 countries with over 60,000 members. Established in 1958, AIESEC McGill was the first “local committee” in Canada, and has continued to set a leading example among Canadian universities.

In a process known as “incoming exchange,” AIESEC McGill works to establish partnerships with Montreal companies in order to create internship opportunities for students from all over the world. Simultaneously, its “outgoing exchange” team coordinates with other AIESEC chapters across the world to send McGill students on international internships in a variety of fields. As the incoming president of AIESEC McGill, Danial Mazhar Shafi, puts it, “AIESEC is about living diversity,” referring not only to its members, but also to the multitude of experiences it provides. Indeed, Shafi speaks passionately about AIESEC, citing how it has grown to be “like a family,” not only providing opportunities outside the classroom, but also a “base to get you where you want to go” in your life.

Indeed, Shafi’s words are reflected in AIESEC McGill’s recent achievements. The committee not only won the award for the

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“Local Committee of the Year” in Canada, but also broke the record for the most exchanges in AIESEC Canada history.

With almost 100 members from the McGill student body, AIESEC McGill grants students opportunities to get outside the classroom and engage hands on with the local community. As Julia Pirvulescu, VP of Incoming Exchange, describes, members develop their communication and interpersonal skills as they “strive to get as many meetings as possible with Montreal companies.” During monthly events known as “marketing blitzes,” AIESEC members compete with students from AIESEC chapters across Canada to book the most marketing calls, a process that Pirvulescu feels provides significant “sales exposure” to students looking to get outside their comfort zones and push their boundaries.

Furthermore, Shafi elaborated on the many leadership conferences that AIESEC Canada organizes to get together AIESEC members from all over Canada to exchange their ideas, visions, and experiences. These kinds of conferences, Shafi feels, “…are amazing networking opportunities and provide students monumental exposure to the real world” and adds to “the benefits of being an AIESEC member.”

For those McGill students wishing to embark on an international internship, AIESEC McGill offers an extensive Global Internship Program. After an interview process and a $475 fee, students receive access to the AIESEC database – a list of more than 10,000 internships all over the world, ranging from volunteer work in NGOs to paid management positions in multinational companies.

Yet what truly distinguishes AIESEC from other organizations that offer internships, according to Mathilde Rousseau, the future VP Outgoing

Exchange, is the emphasis on social and cultural immersion. Upon arriving at their internship destination, students are greeted and supported by the local AIESEC chapter, who not only help students adjust to the local culture, but also provide both professional and social support throughout the entirety of the internship. Since the members of these local chapters are students too, exchange participants get to interact and connect with people their own age. Rousseau herself used AIESEC’s internship program to teach English in Peru, and got the chance to live with a host family, experiencing life in a small village. “That [experience],” she said, was definitely “life changing,” and “made me feel thankful for the smallest things in life.”

While Rousseau had an excellent experience, many students applying for these projects abroad are often worried about the quality of the internship. Indeed, there have been instances where students had to discontinue their internships because of unsatisfactory conditions.

However, Pirvulescu says, AIESEC McGill maintains a quality control list of such internship locations and makes a concerted effort to avoid them in the future. Moreover, throughout the duration of the internship, students stay in touch with their Exchange Participant Managers at AIESEC McGill, who strive to make their experience as valuable as possible and help overcome any difficulties.

AIESEC McGill information sessions will be held in the beginning of the winter semester on January 10th, 15th and 17th.

According to Shafi, “AIESEC McGill looks for students – both undergrads and graduates- who can benefit from being in the organization and giving back too. We are a close knit group who want to gain valuable leadership experience so that we can give back to the world.”

MARKETS THE MACROECONOMIST

The Fiscal Cliff

What it means for Wall Street and Main Street Michaela Hirsh

MARKETS WRITER

PHOTO VIA ETHICSBYDESIGN.COM

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ver the last six months, the term “fiscal cliff ” has exploded in popularity. According to Google Trends, the phrase, coined by Goldman Sachs economist Alec Phillips and popularized by none other than the Fed’s Ben Bernanke, has increased in Google search volume at least tenfold since the end of October 2012 alone.

It is on the radio, in the headlines, around the dinner table and at the water cooler. So, you may ask: what is the fuss all about?

In simple terms, the fiscal cliff refers to the expiration of the Bush-era tax cuts and the implementation of various spending cuts come January 1st, 2013. Without substantial legislative changes, these tax increases and spending cuts will create the economic version of the “perfect storm”: American citizens and corporations will be forced to pay more in taxes, and receive less in government benefits. Essentially, America will “fall over the cliff,” and the numbers aren’t pretty. According to the Congressional Budget Office, jobs will be shed to the tune of 3.4 million, GDP will contract by four percentage points, and Americans will see the largest tax increase in 60 years.

Americans will almost unquestionably

The Bull & Bear - December 2012

be paying more taxes come next year, but how much more? This question, and the uncertainty it engenders, is one of the main causes of growing company cash piles and hiring freezes. The possibly disastrous situation is further complicated by the fact that bi-partisanship is not exactly America’s strong suit. Let us hearken back to summer 2011—the White House and congressional leaders faced a pivotal

matter, seem to have little faith left in their politicians. On the back of the most fiercely negative presidential campaign to date, a happy medium doesn’t seem all too likely. Democrats hope to raise taxes on the wealthy, while Republicans favour more towards spending and entitlement cuts.

Investors are looking for a true bipartisan solution. The Bush-era tax cuts

The fiscal cliff refers to the expiration of the Bush-era tax cuts and the implementation of spending cuts deadline to either raise the debt ceiling, or default on the country’s debt obligations.

The debates dragged on for weeks with no sign of compromise. Americans lost faith in their leaders to put their differences aside for the good of the economy. A deal was struck at the very last minute, but the pitiful display of political dysfunction came at a price; it cost the United States one of its prized triple-A debt ratings from Standard and Poor’s.

Wall Street, and Main Street for that

and stimulus measures have been propping up the post-2008 economy on the back of a protracted recovery. Many believe that if a solid deal is announced, the stock market will recover to recent highs. However, until financial markets and businesspeople can be sure that politicians will not simply “kick the can down the road” as they tend to do, growth will be somewhat stagnated, the stock market volatile, and the cash piles growing. Let us just hope that the political powers can learn to work together.

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MARKETS THE MACROECONOMIST

Obama’s Reelection and the Canadian Economy Keystone XL and fiscal cliff have Canadians asking “Four more years of what, exactly?”

Jonathan Craske MARKETS WRITER

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ccording to a report recently released by Deloitte & Touche, Canadians can expect the focus of the country’s economic growth to shift west to the oil sands of northern Alberta.

The report states that over the next 25 to 30 years, “growth of the oil sands [will be] key to continued growth in Canadian prosperity.” However, in its current state, operational efficiency is a growing concern for Canadian oil interests. Current restrictions to pipeline infrastructure necessitate sales at an average discount of $19 per barrel ($27 million per day).

Moreover, initiatives to improve this infrastructure are largely dependent on collaboration with our neighbours to the south, and subsequently how the Obama administration will choose to approach questions of energy security.

Although political analysts are no longer in dispute over Obama’s victory (with the possible exception of Donald Trump), the same cannot be said for Canadian economists and officials in terms of what the democratic victory means for our economy. Topping the list of concerns is the Keystone XL pipeline project.

TransCanada Corporation’s Keystone XL project is a pipeline designed to bring crude directly from the Albertan oil sands to refineries along the Gulf Coast in Texas.

The construction of the pipeline would streamline distribution of Canadian oil, eliminate the need for discounted sales, and promote the development of energy security.

The original proposal was denied earlier this year by the Obama administration largely on grounds of environmental concerns. The President, however, was quick to point out that pressure from Congressional Republicans led to a “rushed and arbitrary deadline” that ultimately “prevented a full assessment

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of the pipeline’s impact.”

Mitt Romney had pledged to approve the project on “day one” of his presidency, explicitly promising the pursuit of energy security through agreements with both Canada and Mexico. Obama, on the other hand, remained non-committal throughout the campaign. Canadians were left with several unanswered questions in the wake of an inspiring but largely ambiguous victory speech from the President.

Canadian Natural Resources Minister, Joe Oliver, however, is optimistic. The conservative cabinet minister claims that “the pipeline is in [the United States’] best interest,” and that a more thorough review will reveal that to the Administration. Derek Burleton, VP and Deputy Chief Economist at TD Bank, noted that “the approval is more uncertain under President Obama than it would have been under a Romney administration, but it seems likely that if Nebraska approves the new routing the pipeline will ultimately be approved.” The state in question has been very vocal about its opposition to the project. However, TransCanada claims that in addition to collaborating with state officials on revising the proposal, they have submitted an environmental report to the Governor’s office that has been “very well received.”

It is, however, not all good news for Canada’s oil interests. Obama announced that the approval of the project would be delayed at least until next year. Moody’s Investors Service vice president, Stuart Miller, commented that, as a result, TransCanada “risks missing the very oil price boom that inspired Keystone XL in the first place.” Moreover, the United States Interior Department slashed the number of acres the government will make available for oil sands development in Colorado, Utah, and Wyoming shortly after the election.

There is also the factor of domestic oil production in the U.S. that is too often omitted from discussion. The International Energy Agency (IEA) has recently released a report, highlighting that the United States will surpass Saudi Arabia as world leader in oil production in just five years, and become a net oil exporter by 2030.

Previous reports saw the Saudis hold onto their crown through to at least 2035.

Moreover, there are other concerns for Canadians founded in the future of the United States and its current administration, chief among which is the fiscal cliff. In its simplest form, this is the expiration of several tax and spending policies on January 1st of 2013 that represent over $500 Billion in tax increases and spending cuts. The fate of the American economy is dependent on the ability of the administration to reach an agreement before the end of this year. Minister of Finance, Jim Flaherty, expressed concern that, if the fiscal cliff were to come to reality, it would “put the US economy into recession quickly, and the Canadian economy would follow shortly thereafter.”

In addition, there remains a high level of uncertainty regarding the American dollar.

If the Loonie were to see significant gains against a weakening USD, the impact on Canadian manufacturers and exporters could be devastating.

Although political support for the President in Canada was overwhelming (72% of Canadians), economists remain unsure as to what Obama’s reelection will mean for the Canadian economy. Obama’s history with the pipeline has made Calgary executives nervous, while Ottawa seems more concerned with his ability to reach fiscal agreements before the New Year. It should come as no surprise that despite the end of the campaigns, the spotlight aimed south of border has hardly dimmed.

MARKETS THE TRADER

Why Prices Move How buying and selling moves market prices Maxime Riahi PHOTO VIA KERR HENDERSON STAFF WRITER

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ook at any price chart. What makes it tick? How does price go up and down?

Price is made up of three elements: the bid, the ask, and the last. The ask price is the lowest price we are able to buy at.

The bid price is the highest price we are able to sell at. The bid is always lower than the ask. The last price is the market’s current price.

Whatever the latest transaction in the market was, selling (bid) or buying (ask), determines what the last price is.

Let’s say that the ask price is the last price because people have been buying all day long. All of a sudden, Jerry wants to sell his position so he places a sell order at the best bid. The last price changes from ask to bid as the latest transaction is now a sell order.

Think about this shift as a traffic light. When a car goes north (Bulls) past the light, the light turns green. The light stays green until a car goes south (Bears), at which point the light turns red. If cars keep going back and forth, the light will constantly flicker from red to green. But if there is a sustained flow of traffic in one The Bull & Bear - December 2012

direction, the light will remain the same color.

Every trade falls either under buy or sell. When people keep buying, price moves up. Selling makes price fall. The problem with this logic is that every trade is technically made up of both a buy and a sell order. If I want to buy Google stock, someone has to sell it to me. The key is understanding how the order placed effects the latest market price.

When we decide to buy a stock, we place an order at the ask price. This changes the market’s current price to the best ask price. Our order is the latest traded price and therefore the market is now in ask mode. The last price remains ask until someone decides to sell, shifting the current market price to bid. Because bid is always lower than ask, the market price has to fall. So because the last order placed was a sell order at the best bid, this is considered bid volume, EVEN though buying and selling technically took place within that one order. The bid and ask volume is what determines the direction of price.

Looking back at the traffic light

example, it’s not the fact that the cars are moving north or south that matters, its the flow of traffic that matters. We have to assume that there will always be cars coming from either direction. The trick is to figure our which direction has a heavier flow of traffic, because that lane will dominate the market. If there are more Bulls driving north than Bears driving south, price will rise. In terms of market crashes, it’s because everyone is selling at the same time, so the traffic is overwhelmingly in one direction. The crash ends when there is no one left to pass through the traffic light; everyone who wanted to sell has already sold. With everyone now chilling south of the light, some of the braver drivers will venture back north, and so the buying resumes.

So next time some wannabe market guru tries to explain to you why the price went down in the market that day.

Listing various macro and microeconomic reasons, look at him straight in the eyes with a smug look on your face and say, “my friend, there were simply more sellers than buyers today.”

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MARKETS INVESTMENT BANKER

Starbucks Acquires Teavana Bears implications for David’s Tea Andrew Marcovitch MARKETS WRITER

PHOTO VIA FOODBEAST.COM

Have you noticed the new, teal tea shop around town? I would bet most of you reading this article have. But just in case, it’s called David’s Tea and it’s everywhere.

Founded in 2008, David’s Tea opened their first store in Toronto, and today the company has locations stretching all the way to San Francisco. Every location is owned in-house by the company. There are no franchises. The company is funded by the founders of Quebec public retailer, Le Chateaux, but as you might expect, the company is indeed headed by ‘David.’

While the company’s financials are not publicly available, the brand has attained tremendous consumer acceptance and the owners say the locations are “very profitable.”

This past week, the market delivered a major challenge to David and his team.

Starbucks announced it had acquired Teavana, a company that truly invented the premium tea business model. But David’s Tea hit them hard as a not-so-fast follower.

Despite entering the game over a decade after Teavana, David’s Tea has literally smashed Teavana on every level, except possibly prices. Where Teavana established themselves as an ultra-premium tea gift shop, David’s Tea has been able to attract true tea connoisseurs.

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The Result? Teavana is forced to use a demand push strategy, where its staff stand by the door with free samples and take customers on a routine sales pitch as they walk in. David’s Tea, however, attracts returning customers who visit the stores much more frequently.

No matter how strategic the purchase was for Starbucks, there is no denying they overpaid. Starbucks purchased Teavana for $620 million, or roughly $15.50 per share, still below Teavana’s IPO price. At the time of of the sale, Teavana shares were trading just under the 10$ mark, or 54% lower than the price Starbucks paid. For David’s Tea, I’m sure they are not too thrilled that a giant like Starbucks is already entering their market. For Starbucks, the market reaction displayed overall disapproval of the deal.

The stock price closed down 3% on the announcement. Investor’s saw the message right through the Teavana purchase; Starbucks is running out of internal growth options. Starbucks made the decision to enter the North American tea market via acquisition rather than pursuing their own existing brand, Tazo Tea. If Starbucks’ business is indeed maturing, the stock price will eventually level off, which is not a good thing for an investor betting the

stock will rise. In retrospect, this analysis is possible. Starbucks operates 5500 locations in over 50 countries. Eventually, the growth opportunities are bound to hit a wall, at which point they will literally just be waiting for the Third World to develop.

If Starbucks is having general growing on its own, the stock price is sure to be affected. It means that Starbucks will have to fund its own growth through acquisitions and other investments like the Teavana deal. In the long-term, Starbucks may have to invest more assets to maintain it’s income level. Nonetheless, It will be very interesting to see what Starbucks does with Teavana, and how the underdog, David’s Tea, fares with it’s newest competitor.

David’s Tea has sprouted a tea movement and conducts a lot of business selling cups of tea on-the-go. There is still room for Starbucks to adopt its coffeeshop model in the retail tea industry. No one in the tea business has been able to capitalize from offering large, ‘lounge’ style locations to customers looking for a place to hang out or get their work done. Starbucks may fit in perfectly in that regard.

Disclosure: I have no positions in any of the aforementioned underlyings and no plans to initiate any positions for the next 72 hours.

LIFESTYLE

YOUR GUIDE TO SURVIVING EXAMS Get ‘er done with your sanity intact Emily Barber

LIFESTYLE WRITER

I

hate to say it, but it’s that time of year again, folks. Hook up your caffeine IVs and let the sleep deprivation begin; it’s time to undergo death by examination. These are the tricks to making it out alive.

Find the right library for you.

McGill is home to a diverse selection of libraries, each with their own feel and vibe.

If you’d rather be studying finance on the beach, your dream can come to life by putting on your bikini, selecting a tropical 8tracks playlist and heading to Schulich to study in Amazonian comfort. Say you’re craving the glaciers of Antarctica; hit up Bronfman’s second floor study area with your favourite faux-fur collar. If you compare studying for finals to being imprisoned in Guantanamo, perhaps you’re best suited to study in the brutalist postindustrial complex known as McLennan.

Still disappointed that you didn’t get ac-

The Bull & Bear - December 2012

cepted to Hogwarts? Try the Birks Reading Room for that magical touch. Get homicidal urges when the person next to you drops their pen in the library? Un-

it all the time, maybe every seven seconds? More. Our grandparents did it, Oprah does it, your mom is probably doing it right now and if you don’t get

If you compare studying for finals to being imprisoned in Guantanamo, perhaps you’re best suited to study in the brutalist post-industrial complex known as McLennan. paralleled silence can be found at the law library. Finding the space that’s right for you is essential to your own productivity and sanity.

Catch some Zzzzs. You think about

enough, fear not—you’re not alone. But when you walk down the halls of Bronfman, you know everyone around you is getting some. All nighters aren’t good for anyone, so throw some Zzzzzs on that!

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Researchers at the University of California found that the more time a student skimped on sleep in order to study, the worse he or she did on the assignment or test. And this held true even after taking into account the total amount of time spent studying during the daytime. Protip: Try Azumio’s Sleep Time app (available in the App Store) to get the most out of your precious few ZZZs. Bring on the caffeine. Like I said, finals season is a marathon and it’s vital to stay alert if you want to finish the race in one piece. However, for this marathon, you’re going to want to forget about water and ensure all liquids you consume are heavily caffeinated. On the bright side, there are so many scrumptious holiday drinks to enjoy. Replace your boring old herbal tea with Second Cup’s Noël Nog to spice up your life; just saying “Noël Nog” will brighten your day tenfold. U.S. Army Research Institute psychologist Harris Lieberman noted “caffeine improves alertness and reaction time in people, whether they’re habitual consumers of caffeine or not.”

Find your go-to study snack.

Equally as important as staying hydrated is staying well fed. You may not have as much time as usual to be preparing gourmet meals, but no one can study on an empty stomach, not to mention that smuggling food into the library becomes a game that makes studying a little bit more exhilarating. Nothing gets the adrenaline pumping like hiding your Tim Horton’s bagel inside your textbook as the security guy walks by.

Take study breaks. Let’s be serious, no one can study for ten hours each day for two weeks straight. Elite athletes train with the philosophy that rest is equally as important as training. The same principle applies to studying: maximizing productivity requires that the brain be rested periodically, so set time aside each day to take your mind off studying and just relax. Whether you blow some steam off at the gym or grab dinner at Lola Rosa with a friend, give yourself some time away from the books.

Forget Prep 101/SOS tutoring and attend a MUS tutorial. The cost of privatized prep sessions is outrageous. By attending a MUS tutorial, you can save some cashola, and it’ll be paid off when you run into your tutor at power hour.

Be selective about who you study

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PHOTO BY MAJD STEITIEH

LIFESTYLE

ILLUSTRATION BY NOEMIE DIGNAT

with. Everyone deals with exams differently and you must choose your study buddies very selectively. Surround yourself with people who are calm and focused and avoid those who are on the verge of a nervous breakdown like the plague. Confidence is the key to your

number or errors made, groups of three to five people performed better than individuals.

Keep your eyes on the prize. It may be hard to see the light at the end of the tunnel, but it’s absolutely crucial to never to forget the feeling of satisfac-

The same principle applies to studying: maximizing productivity requires that the brain be rested periodically, so set time aside each day to take your mind off studying and just relax. success and nothing kills confidence quicker than that annoying person who won’t shut up about how impossible the exam was for their friend last year. For classes based heavily on problem solving, consider studying in a group of three to five. Researchers studied a sample of 760 students at the University of Illinois and found that, in terms of the number of trials need to solve a given problem and the

tion after a job well done. Finals are the only thing standing between you and your family, a comfy bed, presents, and home-cooked food. So whenever you become overwhelmed with a desire to drop out of school, pack your bags, and head to Mexico, remember that the holidays are just that, a respite from the hell that you just endured. And that’ll make it all that much sweeter.

LIFESTYLE

All I Want for Christmas is...

Holiday shopping made simple Majd Steitieh

LIFESTYLE WRITER

I

t’s the most wonderful time of year again – finals! It’s also that other kind of wonderful time that we’ve all been waiting for: the holidays! Yep it’s time to stand in long queues, listen to kids kicking and screaming at their parents, and body slam that other girl trying to reach for your new handbag! But this year, things

are going to be a little different. We at The Bull & Bear understand that you’re incredibly busy and so we have pretty much done all the research for you in advance.

We’ve chosen the best holiday gifts and categorized them by price range and recipient. Don’t you love us? Whether you’re shopping for your friends, your parents,

DVD Collection

A Cool Gizmo

We recommend Breaking Bad Season 4 at $44.99 from HMV

We recommend The Magic Wand Remote Control for $89.95 at SkyMall

Why he’ll love it Not only is it one of the best TV shows right now, but it’s something the two of you can watch together

that special someone, or even just yourself (ain’t no shame in that!), we’ve got you covered. So get that cup of hot chocolate and close that textbook for a few minutes and allow us to reduce your shopping time by 38.67% (if you’re wondering how we got that number, we made it up).

Why he’ll love it He’ll feel like he’s in Harry Potter when he can turn the TV on, change the channel, and adjust the volume, just by waving the wand. You don’t even have to know any spells!

Concert Tickets We recommend Bon Jovi on February 13th and 14th (starting at $28.75), Maroon 5 on February 20th (starting at $41.50), or SWEDISH HOUSE MAFIA on February 27th (starting at $53), all at the Bell Centre.

Why he’ll love it It’s a great way to spend the night with friends and just have an easy laid-back time.

The Bull & Bear - December 2012

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LIFESTYLE Jewelry We recommend Maleku Silver Sterling Earrings for $45 at malekujewelry.com Why she’ll love it Diamonds are nice and so are pearls, but there’s nothing like a pretty girl.

Your special someone will have earrings accented with freshwater pearls without breaking the bank!

Purse We recommend Kate Spade New York ‘coin a phrase - shoe fund’ coin purse for $78 at The Bay Why she’ll love it Every time she gets something from Sinfully Asian she’ll pay in style

Leather Briefcase We recommend The Satchel – Tribe for $168 at Roots Why he’ll love it Although quite a hefty investment, he’ll look truly dashing walking around Bronfman before his presentation.

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LIFESTYLE Massaging Foot Warmer We recommend Luxe Massaging Foot Warmer for $49.99 at Brookstone Why she’ll love it Nothing says relaxation like a nice soothing foot massage after a day in heels.

Back Massager We recommend i-need Neck and Shoulder Pro Massager with Heat at $99.99 from Brookstone Why she’ll love it Finals and next semester’s midterms are right around the corner. Enough said…

Hip Camera We recommend Lomography Mint Diana + Dreamer Camera from $65 at Urban Outfitters Why she’ll love it It takes dreamy, radiant, and lo-fi images that Instagram can’t even compete with.

The Bull & Bear - December 2012

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LIFESTYLE

Baby, You Can Drive My Car (Because I Won’t) The case for one less car and one more pedestrian Alessandra Hechanova

M

y limited experience with operating a motor vehicle has for the most part been vicarious. I have been triumphant only at achieving a high score in Burnout—a videogame that urges you to intentionally crash as many pixelated Ferraris as possible. For me, the ripe age of sixteen would give me the green light to learn how to become a licenced lifeguard, rather than enjoy carefree rides in convertibles à la Teenage Dream. Canada’s near-perpetual winter, as it always does, limits the scope for such revelry anyway.

I have several tribulations about driving. One does not simply cruise along roads glazed with ice and mired in slush for one-third of the year. Were I a road roamer, my indecisiveness and atrocious sense of direction would inevitably guarantee me a spot on Canada’s Worst Driver. Yes, my shortcomings as a motorist would make entertaining television for the show’s 3 million weekly viewers.

In reality, the Canadian government’s most recent data indicates that in 2009, a total of 172,883 injuries and 2209 deaths were caused by motor-vehiclerelated collisions and accidents. Transport Canada even acknowledges that this bears a significant social cost of tens of billions of dollars in terms of lost productivity, emergency treatment, and rehabilitative medical care. For me, and for an increasing proportion of our generation, clambering to be among the first to learn how to parallel park no longer carries the prestige and glamour that it used to. The University of Michigan Transportation Research Institute discovers that Americans are expressing the same sentiment.

It found that in 2008, the percentage of

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17-year old Americans with driver’s licenses plummeted to 50%-- one fifth less than what it was in 1983. Similar to the US, countries fortified with strong transportation infrastructure within their cities such as Canada, Sweden, Norway, Japan, Germany, Britain, and South Korea are finding more and more people among younger demographic cohorts without licenses as well.

Maintaining 2800 lbs. of steel and cast iron is expensive in the context of skyrocketing fuel prices and back-breaking insurance premiums. Becoming a fully licensed driver can take several years, and a four-day course for new drivers can

culture is flourishing. The city boasts a popular and accessible bike-sharing program alongside several neat community bike collectives like McGill’s aptly-titled “The Flat”. Within Montreal there is even a company called Déménagement Myette that is available to provide affordable and solely bicycle-operated furniture-moving services for both short and long distances It is, however, important to acknowledge that pedestrian culture has its restrictions. Not knowing how to drive can be inconvenient and opportunitylimiting, especially when jobs such as those provided by Canada’s Federal Student Work Experience Program require

I find it hard to justify the time and cost of learning how to drive in the immediate future. easily cost upwards of $1500. More than one billion of the world’s passenger cars drive thousands of kilometres per year and emit tons (and tonnes!) of greenhouse gases in the process. This portends serious, deleterious effects upon the environment through particulate pollution, acid deposition, and climate change.

As a university student residing in the core of a city that endorses an extensive public transportation network, which has in the past earned the status as “Outstanding Public Transportation System in North America”, I find it hard to justify the time and cost of learning how to drive in the immediate future. Montreal’s bike

a valid licence. A recent study led by the Brookings Institution proposes that more “walkable” and pedestrian-friendly communities are also often the most expensive to rent, which can disable less affluent members of society from accessing some of the benefits of urban facilities and services. These problems in part reflect society’s bias towards car-focused, unimodular transportation and are issues that policy makers are urged to address.

Globally, manufacturers will produce 60 billion cars this year. The world and the environment can benefit from one less car and one more pedestrian on the road.

PHOTO BY MAJD STEITIEH

LIFESTYLE CONTRIBUTOR

OPINION

ADULTERY IN

POLITICS

A politician’s sex life is none of your business Ameya Pendse

OPINION WRITER

A

ttitudes have changed since the Presidency of John F. Kennedy.

Nowadays, if an elected official finds him or herself in the middle of a sex scandal they are automatically expected to resign. If they don’t, they can see themselves going through an impeachment trial. A majority of people don’t question a politician’s decision to resign after their extramarital affairs are revealed or if incriminating (sexual to otherwise) pictures of the official are found on the internet. Rather than questioning the decision, it is accepted, and moreover, it is expected.

I’ve begun to wonder why it is a norm for a politician to resign or face impeachment if they’re fooling around with someone other than their spouse.

Maybe it’s because we hold them to a higher standard in our society, feeling that our representatives ought to be morally perfect. Maybe it’s because we’re embarrassed that our representative’s actions reflect negatively on us, their constituents. Maybe certain people need to be outraged because an indifferent reaction would raise questions about their own sexual conduct.

Don’t get me wrong, I’m against adultery just like anyone else. However, I don’t feel that it is a good enough reason for someone to resign. Demanding their resignation makes us hypocrites. We expect the government to stay out of our bedroom, while we kick down the bedroom doors of our officials whenever we get the chance. We need to realize that their actions were conducted as an individual rather than in the capacity of the office they hold.

Please don’t assume that I feel this The Bull & Bear - December 2012

way about every single sex scandal. Let’s look at former South Carolina Governor Mark Stanford as an example. Stanford disappeared for 5 days with no one knowing where he was, including his family and the Lt. Governor. It was later revealed that Stanford went on a secret getaway to Argentina with his mistress.

In this case, Stanford neglected his role as Governor. No one knew of his whereabouts nor was he available to contact. A terrorist attack or natural disaster in South Carolina would have been tragic, especially if their Governor was missing at the time.

Stanford, should have resigned because his affair caused him to be negligent to his office. Other exceptions to my view include rape, sexual abuse, pedophilia, or the misuse of public funds. In those cases I would demand the official’s resignation and furthermore, their prosecution.

What I’m referring to is the relationship between an official with another consenting adult where there was no misuse of the office or public funds, but just two individuals - the most famous example being with former President of the United States, Bill Clinton. While Clinton is revered as a popular figure now, he was under an unprecedented amount of scrutiny when it came to his sexual relationship with White House intern, Monica Lewinski. During trial and depositions, President Clinton was repeatedly asked if he engaged in activities such as phone sex; he was even asked if he touched certain body parts of Ms. Lewinsky.

While President Clinton survived his impeachment proceeding, it showed the world that committing adultery would be grounds for impeachment. During his address to the nation, President Clinton

opened up by saying that he was “asked questions about his private life, questions no American citizen would ever want to answer.”

President Clinton, in my view, raised an important point. We need to stop politicizing an official’s private life. Hillary should have been the only person asking Bill about his relationship with Monica Lewinsky. It bothers me when politicians ask for our forgiveness when they cheat on their spouse. Do we really care from the bottom of our hearts if our representative cheated on his or her spouse? Does it make us cry, or keep us up at night? We don’t and it doesn’t. The electorate gossips, judges and labels the official, but we move on, we don’t really care, because it isn’t us that the official actually betrayed.

We need to remember that our officials are picked to initiate and execute policy, and should therefore be held accountable professionally. Let’s keep focusing on Gérald Tremblay and his ties to construction and corruption or Rob Ford and his conflict-of-interest situation. These were public decisions made by these politicians in the capacity of being Mayor and therefore decisions and actions the public can rightfully hold them accountable for. Otherwise what officials do in their private lives or with their sex life is, quite frankly, none of our business.

It’s a shame that many good, hard-working politicians have had to resign or face impeachment for the sexual decisions they made in their private lives. Their actions should make them accountable to their family and to their God (if they believe in one). Adultery is grounds for divorce, not resignation.

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OPINION

Why Does the World Hate Good Television?

An analysis of modern mediocrity Wyatt Hnatiw

OPINION WRITER

D

on’t worry, this is not an piece about why Honey Boo-Boo is the last sign of the coming apocalypse (although seriously, they got a second season and that Mayan thing is coming up) but instead I want to pose the question: why do we seem to reject quality and embrace mediocrity when it comes to TV these days?

I don’t see the same issue when it comes to movies, print media or music; there may be rampant remakes, tabloids and Nicki Minaj, but there is also a great deal of quality to be found. Obviously, every creative industry could be doing something better, the only pop culture segment we see this trend toward saturation by mediocrity is TV. I’ll give you an example: you’d have a hard time finding someone who says that Breaking Bad is a bad show, it is almost universally acclaimed for its complex themes, willingness to explore difficult subject matter and employment of some of the most realistic characters in TV history.

Now, do me a favor and guess what you think the highest rating Breaking Bad has ever gotten is. Don’t shout it out, just think about it.

Two and a Half Men is the other side of the coin. It is a by-the-numbers sitcom with the basic premise that “Charlie Sheen is a misogynistic drunk, Jon Cryer is a neurotic loser, the kid is a lazy idiot” and it makes liberal use of a laugh track to the point where you would have a hard time finding the jokes without it, and the most innovative thing they’ve ever done is kill off Sheen when he went on a coke-fueled rampage. Now what do you think its ratings were like? If you guessed 5 times higher (14.6/2.9) than Breaking Bad you’d be correct!

So why is this? In any serious

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conversation about television you’d be laughed out of the room for suggesting that Two and a Half Men is a better program.

So why does Breaking Bad get such dismal ratings? Maybe it’s because the show is on cable and Men is on CBS, a broadcast network with a higher consumer base and more viewers? Makes sense right?

However, that doesn’t hold up.

Community, a hilarious, interesting, genre-breaking series (highest rating: 7.8; current: 2.4) Parks and Recreation, one of the funniest shows on television (highest, 6.7; current: 3.4) and 30 Rock, the elder statesman of quality programming on the broadcast networks (highest: 8.2; current: 3.4) all air on NBC. So they should see similar viewership, but instead are slaughtered in the ratings by Two and Half Men and Chuck Lorre’s other disaster, The Big Bang Theory, which subsists on the simple idea: “Oh my god, the people on TV are playing Halo! I play Halo too! I love this show!” which infuriatingly yields ratings.

So it seems we as viewers are not drawn to quality, at least when it comes to TV. Why is it that we’ll watch The Artist because of its artistic merit, read Ulysses because we desire to understand it (or we’re just masochists) but when it comes to television we embrace mediocrity?

Because its easy. It requires no effort, not even complete attention to get the full experience. It’s for this reason that the Breaking Bads of the world are slaughtered in the ratings, because a show about the rise of a meth kingpin is so much more complex and challenging than the show about two brothers who just can’t seem to get their lives together.

I hate to sound like the old man (I’m only 20!) bemoaning the fall of civilization based on the trappings of modern life but

this is a pretty distressing trend. MTV learned pretty early that it’s easier to just air Jersey Shore and Teen Mom than to actually work at good programming, and for the love of god Here Comes Honey Boo Boo airs on The Learning Channel! What are we learning? The dangers of Type II diabetes?

I realize it’s hard to combat this trend.

It’s pretty easy to not care about what’s on the TV behind your laptop screen, but if I’m doing anything here it’s asking you readers to please watch some good TV. Maybe you can stop watching the 25th season of Survivor and check out Archer, instead of the 15 or so crime procedurals watch Boardwalk Empire or grab The Wire on DVD, and to those of you in Management: Suits is a better option than The Big Bang Theory. Let’s do our best to stop the rush towards the worst programming before everything on TV is just dumb people doing dumb things for a dumber audience.

OPINION

The Demise of a Leader and the Casting Aside of Fundamental Rights Even in death, Thackeray still instills fear over Mumbai Kokulan Mahendiran STAFF WRITER

O

n the 17th of November, Balasaheb Keshav Thackeray, the founder of a right-wing Marathi ethnocentric party mainly active in the Indian state of Maharashtra, Shiv Sena, passed away. Thackeray was given a state funeral, reportedly attended by over two million people.

During the almost five decades of his political career, he neither held any official political office nor stood in a single election. However, he founded and led what became an extraordinarily powerful party, with which he virtually controlled the economic hub of India, Mumbai.

One of the most controversial and divisive personalities in Indian Politics, Thackery led an infamous existence. Born to one of the key leaders of the movement that created the linguistic state of Maharasthra, he quit his job as a cartoonist in a daily to lead a movement fighting for native Marathis, who were losing jobs and influence to the growing clout of South Indians, Marwaris and Gujaratis flowing into the state capital.

Thackery’s Shiv Sena has wielded power in Maharashtra behind the scenes throughout its existence, especially when the Bharatiya Janata Party was in power. It was also severely discriminatory against those who flocked to the wealthy state from other parts of the country; his party is known to have extorted ‘protection money’ from Marwari, Gujurati and South Indian Businessman. Moreover, violence against migrants (especially migrant businessmen) and political rivals became trademark characteristics of the party.

Thackery’s exploits, however, went far beyond extortion. He has been quoted as saying that he has “several things in common” with Adolf Hitler, and that he is “a great admirer of Hitler, and … not ashamed to say so!” He has also been noted as a severe xenophobe for calling on

The Bull & Bear - December 2012

Indians to form “Hindu suicide bomber squads” in response to Islamist suicide bombers. For this, and a variety of other reasons, Thackeray was in fact banned from voting and contesting in any elections for six years, as recommended by the Indian Election Commission.

The reaction in Mumbai to Thackeray’s death was unfortunate and regrettable at best, disgraceful at worst. Life in the bustling city came to a screeching halt. Shops were closed and both taxis and trishaws were nowhere to be seen.

Even stores that sold essential goods – pharmacies for instance – were shut. The entire state of Maharashtra was in fact put on alert, with some 20,000 additional police officers deployed.

Notwithstanding the events in Mumbai, which resembled a “bandh” (the total shutdown of workplaces, offices, shops, etc. as dictated by a political party), something deemed illegal by the Supreme Court of India in 1998, the Prime Minister of India, Mahmohan Singh, offered praise to Thackeray noting his “strong leadership.” The Chief Minister of Gujarat, Narendra Modi, a very powerful figure in Indian politics and a potential candidate for the leadership of the national Bharatiya Janata Party wrote: “Thackeray was an epitome of courage and valor.”

Although Modi shared some policies with Thackeray, such as Hindutva (Hindu Nationalism), the Prime Minister has persistently been vehemently opposed to the late leader’s policies and politics and that really begs the questions of how much fear Thackeray continues to wield, even in his current state, and how high up his influence reached whilst he was still breathing.

While the financial center of India, and the home of Bollywood, managed to efficiently shut itself down in the wake of Thackeray’s demise, effectively avoid-

PHOTO VIA AFP/STR/FILES

Indian politician Shiv Sena chief Bal Thackeray at the 2012 Deenanath Mangeshkar Puraskar Awards in Mumbai

ing too much trouble, people across the country were aghast at the need to do so in what is often called the world’s largest democracy. A medical student from a Mumbai suburb was among those bothered by this outcome. Shaheen Dhada knew exactly what was happening and more importantly why it was happening.

Thackeray’s party which had ruled Mumbai over several decades using aggression and coercion – even going as far as organizing citywide bans against movies it was displeased with – wanted steadfast deference paid to its leader and the populace was not unwise enough to even question that tacit command.

Dhada took to Facebook to vent ever so lightly and her friend, Renu Srinivasan, liked her comment. Both Dhada and Srinivasan were soon arrested. Dhada’s comment was neither unkind nor spiteful, merely something which was worthy of contemplation: “People like Thackeray are born and die daily and one should not

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OPINION observe a ‘bandh’ for that.”

Upon encountering this post, a local Shiv Sena chief had filed a complaint with the police who, shockingly for Indian police, instantaneously responded. The Shiv Sena actually stated in the complaint that Dhada, a Muslim, had not only disrespected Thackeray but the Hindu religion itself as well. Within an hour after said complaint was filed, an orthopedic hospital owned by Dhada’s uncle was ransacked by mob of hundreds of Thackeray

supporters.

The issue here is not only of the worrying power of the rather radical Shiv Sena but also the worrying state of both the law enforcement and legal system of India. It was only in October that a 46year old businessman from Pondicherry named Ravi Srinivasan was arrested for a tweet that mildly criticized the son of India’s Finance Minister, P. Chidambaram.

Thankfully, in both cases, the accused were quickly let off on bail.

Corruption remains a very relevant issue for Indians across the board and corrupt politicians are now beginning to threaten such fundamental rights as the freedom of expression to veil their transgressions from the public eye. With Indians up in arms about this injustice, mostly using social media formats ranging from Facebook to Twitter, the government and the judiciary will hopefully work to fix this situation and prevent it from recurring in the future.

The 21st Century, British Columbia’s for the Taking In Canadian politics, British Columbia stands centre stage Scott Wilson Myres OPINION WRITER

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In the thunderdome of Canadian politics, provinces naturally compete amongst each other for airtime and prestige on the national stage. Often encouraged by the pan-national attention, they are subsequently imbued with a greater sense of influence, power, or legitimacy within the federation. And as is found today, British Columbia stands centre stage.

Yet for much of the latter-half of the 20th century, one province in particular commanded more influence and attention than any other—if only, at times, by means of holding the country’s unity for ransom. Quebec long christened itself at the forefront of socio-economic issues in Canada. Beginning with the election of Jean Lesage and his Liberals in 1960, and shaped by the province’s ensuing Quiet Revolution, Quebec came to view itself as a pioneer in the fields of secularization and construction of the welfare state.

If true back then, however, such is not the case in 2012. Quebec’s current state is near diametrically opposed to the vanguard label it once so happily donned. Exhausted and dispirited, the province finds itself at the mercy of its past, unable to answer the societal questions it posed in the 1960s, 70s, and 80s. What is more, its current state of affairs evokes the image of a figurative merry-go-round, one in which les Québécois are subject to perpetual na-

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tionalist nausea and 20th century vertigo.

Those issues which have played on the province’s stage over recent decades—from independence referenda, to unaffordable social programs, to the most recent student strikes—represent the same camp and tired issues. Even the internationally acknowledged student movement, one so comically imbibing neo-Marxist rhetoric it bordered on good historical satire, echoes that of a poorly researched and low-budget reenactment of the student strikes of 1968.

And because of this, Quebec has found itself defenestrated from the office of the vanguard. Yet the province replacing it is neither oil-rich Alberta nor powerhouse Ontario, but rather pot-smoking, fruit-picking, and unapologetically eccentric British Columbia.

The Pacific province, known for its sizeable black markets, obsession with ski hills, and passion for bubble tea, finds itself increasingly at the forefront of domestic policy debates. Issues of First Nations’ rights and living standards (the overlapping land claims of which, combined, cover more than 100% of the province’s landmass), legislation of North America’s first carbon tax, and natural resource exports to Asia epitomize BC’s business of the day. In this way, the province is dealing with the most pressing and topical of Canada’s domestic issues: modernization

of the welfare state, the environment, and resource extraction.

Furthermore, avoiding the mistake of Quebec, the province’s political system offers a stark contrast for voters in terms of the economy. British Columbians are presented with a choice between the socialist BC NDP and free-enterprise BC Liberals, a clear dichotomy absent the obscuring nature of federalist, separatist, and nationalist qualifications (or even the threeparty ambiguity of most other provinces due to a lack of BC Conservative viability).

In dealing with these issues—ones highly relevant to the rest of the country— the province is able to exert a previously unmatched weight within the federation.

How the province handles the Northern Gateway project, along with subsequent pipeline plans, will determine the resource and trade policies of Ottawa and many western provincial capitals. Moreover, BC’s carbon tax remains an archetype for other provincial and federal (and foreign) governments pursuing pollution abatement strategies.

The province which for so long was sequestered to the children’s table of Canadian federation has finally found its voice - and a powerful one at that. For, if the 20th century was to be “Canada’s century” as Wilfrid Laurier so ambitiously observed, the 21st is undoubtedly British Columbia’s for the taking.

OPINION

t o H #stacksonstacks: The new polymer $20 bills are out and baring some nip (look hard). You can’t rip ‘em (we tried), but you can definitely burn them.

Reinis Krams: This Nordic MUS VP Finance’s disarming charm and startling good looks makes 4á7 all that much better.

Kim Kardashian: Kardashian’s milkshake brought all the boys to the yard promoting a milkshake franchise in Bahrain. And by boys, we mean protesters, which police promptly tear gassed.

The Redpath Underpass: Wait, isn’t construction suspended during exams? Take down the fences and save me the walk up McTavish, McGill.

Justin Bieber’s Overalls: In a move of outright trollery, the Stratford native greeted our PM in denim overalls. Was the message, “Look, I’m one of your constituents?” #NotClearOn

The Bull & Bear - December 2012

#royalbaby: Blue Ivy, eat your heart out. Kate’s preggerz and her baby’s royalty. While it remains unclear whether pop or monarch royalty is more #relevant, rest assured that we’ll love you both, more or less equally.

McGill Compliments: First started by students at Queen’s University, McGill Compliments is spreadin’ some good ‘ole fashioned holiday cheer.

STM x AZUR: 468 new cars are on track to be deployed by 2014. In MST (Mob/Montreal Standard Time), make that 2016.

Locking the Outside Doors at Sinfully: Sorry Management bros, you’ll have to take the long way around Bronfman’s Great Wall of Winter to get your Thai basil.

Keep your Canada Goose close.

Rob Ford: Thank goodness the judge found that the Toronto mayor was in a conflict of interest with logic, life. Good riddance, football superstar.

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