Impr Int The universiTy of WaTerloo’s official

Impr int The university of Waterloo’s official student newspaper

Friday, October 24, 2008

vol 31, no 15

imprint . uwaterloo . ca

Warrior Men’s Basketball team — 2008 Naismith Classic CHAMPIONS, page 24

UW’s got PRIDE UW master’s student faces extradition to the States for alleged association with the

Andrew Falcao (left), Feds VP internal, and Rahim Thawer (right), GLOW service co-coordinator, in front of the Pride flag in the SLC during Pride Week October 18 to 24. Events included a drag show fundraiser, movie night, Sexual and Gender Diversity Fair, dance, Ally training, and a bonfire.

Tamil Tigers

Ashley Csanady staff reporter

A

current UW master’s student was ordered extradited to the United States last month for alleged involvement with the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE, or Tamil Tigers), the Canadian Press reported Monday, October 20.

Ramanan Mylvaganam was an undergraduate computer engineering student at the time of his arrest for allegedly supporting the LTTE terrorist organization in August 2006. Since being released on bail, Mylvaganam, now 31, was back at UW working towards a master’s degree until his extradition hearing on September 22, 2008.

After losing the hearing, he was given 30 days to appeal or officially surrender to U.S. officials.

According to Mylvaganam’s lawyer, Richard Litkowski, an appeal was filed October 15, 2008, and he was released on bail October 17.

“He has been on bail since October 2006 without incident,” said Litkowski in an e-mail to Imprint, adding: “Ramanan is successfully continuing his master’s studies as he has been throughout this ordeal.”

He later added, “Ramanam was disappointed with the ruling but he respects, and always has respected, the judicial process. Therefore, he will be taking the necessary legal steps to continue his challenge of the U.S. request for his extradition.”

“There are no allegations that he broke any Canadian laws, nor has he been charged with any offenses in Canada. The reasons for the judge’s decision are a matter of public record and

involve an application of the law of extradition to the facts of this case,” said Litkowski, when asked about the reasons behind the order. [Note: Imprint was unable to attain the court records by the time of press for further clarification]. “Ob viously, we respectfully disagree with the judge’s analysis and believe that he erred in reaching his decision. Therefore [we] are pursuing an appeal to the Court of Appeal.”

The LTTE was designated a terrorist organization by the Canadian government in April 2006 (it has been designated as such since 1997 in the U.S.), just months before Mylvaganam and his alleged 11 co-conspirators were arrested and charged with supporting a terrorist organization. Under the law, obtaining funds, weapons, or materials for the LTTE in Canada or the U.S. is illegal.

Three other UW graduates were charged along with Mylvaganam: computer science graduate, Thirukumaran Sivasubramaniam and electrical engineering graduates Thirukumaran Sinnathamby and alleged ring-leader of the organization Suresh Sriskandarajah (nicknamed “Waterloo Suresh” by the mainstream media). The men, according to a story in Imprint in September 2006, face charges of “conspiring to provide material support and resources to a foreign terrorist organization and related offences.”

The initial arrests came of a joint task force of the RCMP and the FBI, but according to Natalie Pennefather, spokesperson for the Canadian Department of Justice, the investigation was initiated in the U.S. and involved U.S. based e-mail accounts — which is why the prosecution process is set to occur on that side of the border.

When asked about the potential controversy of extraditing a Canadian citizen to a country reputed to abuse the Geneva Conventions when housing and prosecuting terrorism suspects, Pennefather replied that “once a committal order [meaning an order of extradition] has been issued he [the defendant] has 30 days in which to make submissions to the minister.”

Submissions are like an appeal, and it’s in this arena that the defendant could raise the aforementioned issues to contest the order.

Preceding the arrests, Sriskandarajah founded a volunteer organization called Vanni Innovation Group (VIG) to purportedly help funnel support to the LTTE in Sri Lanka.

Sriskandarajah described VIG in a 2004 Iron Warrior editorial as “a student-run organization designed to support existing development agencies by providing student volunteers.”

Domestic volunteers in Canada support and assist volunteers who travel abroad to help in the North-Eastern region of Sri Lanka (Vanni region). He even travelled to the Vanni region of Sri Lanka for an unpaid self-employed UW co-op term to work for the organization.

Following Sriskandarajah’s arrest, Co-op Education and Career Services (CECS) increased the monitoring process of self-employed international co-op placements, with all students receiving either a follow-up phone call, e-mail, or in person visit during their term.

Originally, as reported by The Record on February 16, 2006, it was proposed that all students receive an in person visit, but according to an e-mail to Imprint from CECS this was deemed infeasible due to monetary constraints.

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The co-op program was not the only on-campus affliate to come under scrutiny following the arrests. Sriskandarajah and Sivasubramaniam served as president, and Mylvaganam as vice-president, of the Waterloo Tamil Students Association (WATSA) during their time as undergraduate students at UW. Following allegations that funds from the organization funded the LTTE , the Federation of Students teamed up with UW HR and Student Services to instigate a forensic audit of the club. At the time, the club was already suspended for reasons Imprint could not verify at the time of press but was considered in violation of Feds’ Club policies.

An audit in 2007 cleared WATSA of any wrong-doing, and the club has been running normally since. Imprint was unable to reach WATSA at the time of press, but clubs director Dave McDougall said that he is currently helping them look for a venue for a big event in November and the group runs a vigil for Remembrance Day every year.

“As far as we’re concerned they’re a club like any other club,” said McDougall.

“We’ve experienced no problem with them this year at all,” said vice-president internal of the Federation of Students Andrew Falcoa.

The Canadian Press also reported that Sriskandarajah is scheduled for an extradition hearing in Toronto in early 2009. There was no word regarding Thirukumaran Sivasubramaniam or Thirukumaran Sinnathamby.

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News

Imprint, Friday, October 24, 2008 news@imprint.uwaterloo.ca

UW student assaulted

Cautionary measures

UW advances hiring and spending Unknown assailant at Revolutions nightclub leaves freezes during economic review Passarelli with few options after attack, theft extremely seriously by students. It’s Danielle Whittemore

Cait Davidson staff reporter

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onathan Passarelli and his friends thought they were merely going out for a birthday party and a DJ’s debut, but the evening soon turned violent, according to Passarelli. At 23, Passarelli is a third-year UW honours electrical engineering student, currently on his work term at Research in Motion. Their first time out this year, Passarelli and friends went to Revolution Nightclub, a place where he had formerly been employed from March 2006 to May 2006.

According to Passarelli, he was on his way over to his friend, “PN” [Editor’s note: name withheld from print], who had been approached by security, when a black-sleeved arm wrapped around his neck from behind, putting him into what is known as a “rear naked hold.” Being dragged to the ground, Passarelli told Imprint that he remembered a series of punches to his face, blacked out, and woke up while being dragged through what formerly was the covered smokers pit.

Imprint contacted Revolutions to ask for a statement on the events of October 10, but staff refused comment.

Passarelli was groggy while the police were called, due to other conflicts in the same area. At this point in time, Passarelli realized his cell phone, keys and company Blackberry were missing. After ensuring that Passarelli didn’t need immediate medical attention, though, the police were pulled away by fights in the parking lot of Revolution.

Passarelli at this point realized that his clothing was covered in blood, and he was bleeding profusely from his nose and mouth. One of the women outside the Flying Dog was helpful to Passarelli and his friends, but told them that there

Danielle Whittemore imprint intern

York TA strike CUPE 3903, a union of teaching assistants, graduate assistants and contract faculty, may be going on strike in the near future. They have provided York administration with a list of demands – including a pay increase to match inflation, free tuition and increased job security

was not much that they could do. According to Passarelli and friend “MN,” the group then got into his friend’s car and left the premises without his belongings.

The next day, October 11, Passarelli’s parents went to Revolutions and recovered his keys, Blackberry and cell phone. The money he was missing was courtesy Jonathan Passarelli counted as a loss. On the same day Passarelli was Jonathan Passarelli sustained multiple cuts admitted to Grand River and bruises from the assault, according to Hospital for an exami- friends, family, and the pursuant medical nation of his injuries. examination.

Four x-rays were taken of his head, and he was determined to that neither he, nor his friends, fought have suffered head trauma. In addition back that night, and that the force used to the head trauma, Passarelli suffered was quite excessive for the situation. He a black eye, scrapes and road rash from said there was no escalation, and asked the ground, a bloody nose, cut lip, a the police to look at the security tapes swollen ear and several joints have been from the bar that night.

In interview with Imprint, Officer paining him since. As of October 13, he was still suffering headaches from the Heinzel advised students on how to stay head trauma, sensitivity to bright light safe while at bars and clubs in town. He commented that it is incredibly imporand exhaustion due to his recovery.

Having gone back to the police in tant that you feel safe and comfortable order to file charges against those who where you are, and that you stay with allegedly assaulted him at Revolution, people you trust and can count on. As Passarelli was told to come back later, soon as you sense danger or even feel and that the officers involved were busy. uncomfortable, leave the area as soon As of press time, Officer Olaf Heinzel in as possible and go somewhere safe. For public affairs for the Waterloo Regional Heinzel, prevention is key: don’t go out Police confirmed that there was no active alone, move from place to place within a group and guarantee reliable and safe investigation into the incident.

Formerly having worked as a transportation at the end of the night. bouncer at Revolution, Passarelli tells He recommended that one have a cell Imprint that bouncers have a right to use phone with them, and to call 911 if the minimum force needed to subdue an necessary. unruly patron, as well as asking a patron to leave the premises for their own safety cdavidson@imprint.uwaterloo.ca or the safety of others. Passarelli claims

– but negotiations have not progressed in the last few months.

Administration feels CUPE’s demands are too high; CUPE believes they are not being offered enough.

If some kind of agreement is not reached by November 6, CUPE will go on strike. This could have serious effects for students, especially those in Canada on student visas, as a strike could delay the winter term. Other unions will also be affected; CUPE 1396 in particular will not be able to

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work if 3903 goes on strike.

“A lot of movement on both sides will have to occur in order to find a resolution,” Robert Drummond, Dean of the Faculty of Arts, told Excalibur, York’s student newspaper.

Olar sues Laurentian; wins Alvin Olar’s case against Laurentian University has finally been concluded.

According to a recent press release, Olar enrolled in a Laurentian’s two-year

intern

I

n a nod toward the uncertainty of the Canadian economy, David Johnston, President of the University of Waterloo, sent a press release on October 20 to all UW faculty and staff members, stating that all hiring — both for new and vacant positions — is being postponed until April 30, 2009.

Johnston further explained that “UW is in excellent overall financial health,” but believes that more precautions must be taken for the university to maintain that position.

That’s where the hiring hiatus came in. UW has worked quickly and efficiently to put all hiring to a halt. On October 20, anyone could go on the Human Resources website and browse a list of employment opportunities; on October 21, less than 24 hours after Johnston sent his letter, the list was replaced with a giant caption reading “The University of Waterloo is postponing hiring into any new or vacant positions until April 30, 2009. However please keep checking this website regularly in case positions become available sooner than anticipated.”

Allen Babor, the student arts senator, said this development will not have a huge impact on campus life: housing, food services and any other sustainable businesses will not be affected. The only major difference students will notice will be the staff-student ratio, but even then, “that ratio, compared to other universities, is still relatively low,” Babor said.

Overall, it could be worse. According to Babor, the job delays are “just a precaution. It shouldn’t be taken

partial program in civil engineering in 1994, later suing the school for misrepresentation in their brochures. Olar said he was led to believe that after his two years at Laurentian, he would be able to transfer seamlessly to another school to complete his degree.

Olar’s case started as a class action lawsuit, designed to help all students taking part in the partial program.

The judge turned it down, so Olar proceeded with his own individual case. Olar was first awarded judgment

the economy in general we should be worrying about, and how that could affect tuition, [and other university costs].”

Furthermore, Johnston’s announcement still allows some vacancies to be filled at the discretion of the UW administration, in conjunction with dean recommendations, so students should still see protection from extenuating circumstances in the school term.

During his election campaign, Stephen Harper told Canadians that nothing would go wrong with the economy. Both the Liberal and NDP parties had very doom-and-gloom outlooks on the future, though according to Harper, “Canada is not in the same situation as the United States... the Canadian economy’s fundamentals are solid.”

Harper has since implemented a sixstep program designed to pull Canada back from the brink of an economic meltdown. This new program includes meetings all over the world and a limit on government spending. “I want to assure Canadians that together we will weather the storm and we will position our economy to emerge stronger than ever,” Harper said in Calgary last week.

It may not be that easy to overcome, however. Experts are predicting a global recession that could last as long as three years. In light of that grim forecast, Johnston stated that these new university measures — which mean pay increase freezes as well — will “give us a chance to assess the impact of these new financial times,” and that “we can discontinue these measures at any time.” dwhittemore@imprint.uwaterloo.ca

on June 6, 2007, and he has recently been awarded $350,000 to cover costs of the trial and to reimburse him for the year of schooling he lost due to Laurentian’s misleading brochures.

But it wasn’t just about the money for Olar: “I am very thankful that, after all these years, the courts have finally held Laurentian to account for what it did,” he told Raymond Colautti, his lawyer on the case. dwhittemore@imprint.uwaterloo.ca

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Imprint, Friday, October 24, 2008

Election aftermath

5

Part 5 of 5: A chat with NDP campaign manager Larry Aberle Brendan Osberg staff reporter

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raditionally, spring is a time for change and new beginnings, so one might say that this year’s fall election was at least seasonally fitting. Dion was unable to grasp the Prime Minister’s Office, Harper was unable to obtain his coveted majority, and for all the similarities between the 39th and 40th Parliament, one might wonder if we could have just as easily gathered up $200 million in tens and twenties and had a lavish bonfire.

“Well the NDP clearly improved their position this year,” said Larry Aberle, campaign manager for NDP’s nominee in this riding, Cindy Jacobsen. “We went from 29 seats to 37, that’s significant. But most importantly, we gained seats all across the board, everywhere from Newfoundland to B.C.” If any party can be said to have accomplished their goal last Tuesday, it would have to be the NDP, having increased their seat count to obtain a solid balance of power.

Stephen Harper’s Conservatives may have gained seats — from 124 to 143 — but the impact of increasing one’s seat count matters little unless it creates a new combination to add up to the “magic” number of 154 — half of Parliament.

The NDP and Conservative combination was precarious in the previous government — almost exactly 154 — meaning that if the NDP and Conservatives were to make an arrangement, one MP who was sick or withdrew from the party could make the difference between

a law being passed or defeated.

That union is much more solid now; the NDP is on an equal footing with the Bloc and Liberals for deal-making with Harper, though it is unclear whether the NDP and Conservatives would have much to agree on.

Clinching this negotiating leverage seems secondary in importance to Aberle though. One gets the feeling that he looks at legislative successes through a more organic lens; one that sees any increase in seat count as a general increase in clout and presence in the national dialogue.

“I was a Waterloo student myself,” Aberle chuckled. He recounted vot-

acknowledges, but “people have a responsibility to uphold society by going out to vote. You ignore that at your peril.”

Indeed, the local riding came down to a difference of 48 votes — less than 0.2 per cent of Waterloo’s student population.

The Canadian electoral system — widely ridiculed as undemocratic and outdated — doesn’t permit proportional representation, or preferential balloting, but I posed the hypothetical to Aberle: If there were a run-off vote between the top two candidates — Liberal Andrew Telegdi and Conservative Peter Braid — who would you encourage your supporters to

“I don’t trust the Liberals to do what they say. I believe that the Conservatives will do what they say, but it’s certainly not what I would like.”

— Larry Aberle, NDP Kitchener-Waterloo campaign manager ing for Andrew Telegdi’s campaign for Feds and discussed the past few elections with a cheerfulness that became more somber when discussing the low turnout of Canadian youth voters.

“If a campaign is going to be successful, it needs youth,” he said, elaborating on the dynamism that younger people bring in to a campaign. “Tommy Douglas inspired large numbers of young people even when he was elderly, but that’s pretty rare.” Young people may not feel inspired to get involved, he

CORRECTION In the October 10 issue of Imprint, in the article “Social change.” Hamoon Ekhitari’s name was incorrectly listed as Ehkitan and his correct position is the operations lead for the 2008 Laurel Centre Social Conference.

In the October 17 issue of Imprint in the article “Student rep check-up: UW senate.” Alan Babor’s position was incorrectly listed as arts councillor. He is a UW senator. Imprint apologizes for these errors.

vote for?

“Neither,” said Aberle. “I don’t trust the Liberals to do what they say.

I believe that the Conservatives will do what they say, but it’s certainly not what I would like,” he added.

When asked about the Conservative campaign’s ten-percenter flyers that the Kitchener-Waterloo area was inundated with, he conceded that Liberal leader Stéphane Dion was unfairly attacked.

“Negative campaigning works,” he saidys somberly. “Regarding [the ten-percenter] flyers, I’d say the Con-

“Negative campaigning works.” servatives know the rules really well, and these flyers probably crossed the line, but proving it’s another thing.

In any case, I’d say it borders on unethical.”

In talking to Aberle, his tone conveyed clear passion for the ideals of the NDP’s platform, and his commitment to it, but his comments also captured the fractured nature of left-wing Canadian politics. While the former Progressive Conservative and Reform parties have taken the pragmatic — and successful — step of uniting their forces on the right, the left remains even more fragmented than ever in an electoral system that severely punishes such division. For all the issues that the Liberals, NDPs, and Greens have in common, the era of co-operation that people like Tommy Douglas and Pierre Trudeau achieved seems like a foggy memory.

Jack Layton’s rise in seat-count since 2006 has been almost exclusively at the expense of the Liberals. Walrus columnist James Laxer attributed Laytons’ gain in seats in 2006 to an attack campaign that targeted Liberal leader Paul Martin exclusively. Laxer cited television advertisements the NDP ran depicting “Canadians giving the corrupt Liberals the boot,” and quoted a number of political media personel.

In one interview, for example, he said “a newspaper reporter ... had been on the NDP campaign plane for three weeks and despite repeated efforts, he had been unable to induce Layton to say anything about

Harper.” Laxer pointed out that while Layton was making marginal advances on the left, his “ideological opposite” was making huge gains in power on the right.

Laxer went into much more detail about voting trends in recent elections, and his analysis of the last few decades of elections painted a scathing view of the NDP’s tangible contributions to progressive policies. Others are even less charitable: For mer Waterloo MP Andrew Telegdi called Layton “The Ralph Nader of Canadian Politics,” and prominent blogger desmogblog has gone so far as to call Layton “Captain of the Team to Re-elect Stephen Harper.”

Fair or not, these comments illustrate deep frustrations within the progressive wing of Canadian politics that are likely to persist. The longevity of these problems is the product of a philosophy unique to leftists: resistance to both structural conformity and compromise. Aberle argues that the NDP is not purely idealistic, and has made significant contributions to Canadian politics.

Tommy Douglas, for example, is widely hailed as the father of Medicare, an accomplishment the NDP deserves the lion’s share of credit for — 40 years ago.

“Practical politics does require you to make compromises,” he said, “but you have to make sure that your core values aren’t being compromised. Not everything is a matter of principle, but some things are.” bosberg@imprint.uwaterloo.ca

6 News Corrupt thai prime minister, Saudi terror

Imprint, Friday, October 24, 2008

trials, and Iraq demands amendment Bobbie Swartman reporter

Thai PM guilty of corruption BANGKOK, Thailand Thailand’s fugitive ex-PM Thaksin Shinawatra has been found guilty of corruption and sentenced to two years in absentia prison by the Thai Supreme Court in a five to four ruling by its nine judges.

In a landmark decision, he was found to have violated conflict of interest rules in helping his wife buy land from a state agency at a knock-down price, violating a law that bans Ministers or their wives from conducting business with government agencies.

Thaksin, who now lives in the United Kingdom, is unlikely to serve any jail time. He fled from Thailand in August just as he was to appear in court.

The case is one of several corruption cases against Thaksin and his family that are making their way through the legal system.

Thaksin is the former owner and now honourary chairman of the Manchester City Football Club, launched in the wake of the 2006 military coup.

The coup’s leader claimed there had been massive corruption and abuse of

power under Thaksin’s rule, and set up a special unit to investigate the business dealings of the former leader and his close associates.

His wife, Pojaman, was convicted of tax evasion in July and sentenced to three years in jail but was acquitted by the Supreme Court in the current case.

Thaksin has consistently denied that he or his family was involved in any wrongdoing.

He also denied British media reports he was seeking asylum in Britain. A Thai prosecutor said he would urge Britain to extradite Thaksin now that the court had sentenced him to prison.

— With files from BBC, CNN, and Reuters Saudi terrorist suspects to be tried RIYADH, Saudi Arabia Saudi Arabia has announced that nearly 1,000 suspects accused of having ties to al-Qaeda will soon be tried for carrying out dozens of “acts of war” in the Arab Kingdom, and more than 30 attacks in the kingdom against government buildings, oil refineries, and Saudi citizens.

According to Saudi media reports on

Tuesday, Prince Nayef bin Abdul Aziz said authorities had started to “bring the suspects before the judiciary.”

He gave no details of trial dates, specific charges, or the identities of suspects. He said 164 people had died in militant attacks since 2003.

Analysts say that the city of Riyadh has been reluctant to try suspected militants, fearing a backlash by domestic sympathisers. “In the past few years, the Kingdom has been the target of an organised terrorist campaign linked to networks of strife and sedition overseas,” Prince Nayef said in a statement reported by the Saudi Press Agency. He added that the campaign was directly linked to the organisation called al-Qaeda.

The 991 suspects were rounded up in anti-terror raids across the country in recent years.

Human Rights Watch said it has asked the Saudi government for permission to send observers to the trials of 70 defendants who were in court for the first time on Monday to face charges of carrying out acts of “domestic rebellion.”

The group said Saudi Arabia held about 3,000 suspected militants in its intelligence detention facilities for years without charge or access to legal counsel. In November 2007, it freed

1,500 suspects after a re-education program but has arrested many more since, it said.

“For justice to be done, it has to be fair and to be seen as fair,” HRW executive director Kenneth Roth told the American Free Press. “Neutral observers should monitor trials of such national and international importance.”

— With files from BBC and CNN Iraq seeks changes in U.S. security pact BAGHDAD, Iraq Iraq demanded changes to a draft security pact with the United States that would allow U.S. forces to stay until 2011 on Tuesday after it failed to win the support of its political leaders despite months of painstaking negotiations with Washington.

The announcement effectively reopens negotiations from last week. The objections appear to be about details rather than the broad thrust of the pact.

“The cabinet have agreed that necessary amendments to the pact could make it nationally accepted,” government spokesman Ali Dabbagh told Reuters, without specifying the changes.

The draft was presented last week

after months of painstaking U.S.-Iraq talks. U.S. officials have not said if they are willing to renegotiate the Status of Forces Agreement (SOFA).

“The cabinet will continue its meetings (in coming days),” said Dabbagh, “In which ministers will give their opinions and consult and provide the amendments suggested. Then this will be given to the American negotiating team.”

The announcement was an apparent reversal for Baghdad, which had previously described last week’s draft as a final text and said as recently as Saturday that it was unlikely to be renegotiated. Political leaders from most parties withheld their support for the text at a meeting Sunday.

The new draft would require U.S. troops to leave Iraq after 2011 unless Baghdad asks them to stay. It would also allow Iraqi courts to try U.S. service members accused of serious crimes while off-duty.

It would mean that the foreign troops, which now operate under a U.N. Security Council mandate, would function for the first time under the authority of the elected government in Baghdad. Both sides call it a milestone for Iraqi sovereignty.

— With files from BBC and Reuters

Interested in international affairs?

Wanna become a reporter?

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Opinion Friday, October 24, 2008 Vol. 31, No. 15 Student Life Centre, Room 1116 University of Waterloo Waterloo, Ontario N2L 3G1 P: 519.888.4048 F: 519.884.7800 http://imprint.uwaterloo.ca Editor-in-chief, Maggie Clark editor@imprint.uwaterloo.ca Advertising & Production Manager, Laurie Tigert-Dumas ads@imprint.uwaterloo.ca General Manager, Catherine Bolger cbolger@imprint.uwaterloo.ca Ad Assistant, vacant Sales Assisstant, Lawrence Wang Systems Admin. vacant Distribution, Rob Blom, Ash Mukadda Interns, Matthew Lee, Brandon Rampelt, Holly Sage, Danielle Whittemore Board of Directors board@imprint.uwaterloo.ca President, vacant president@imprint.uwaterloo.ca Vice-president, Sherif Soliman ssoliman@imprint.uwaterloo.ca Treasurer, Lu Jiang treasurer@imprint.uwaterloo.ca Secretary, Vanessa Pinelli secretary@imprint.uwaterloo.ca Staff liaison, Peter Trinh liaison@imprint.uwaterloo.ca Editorial Staff Assistant Editor, Dinh Nguyen Head Reporter, Vacant Lead Proofreader, Paul Collier Cover Editor, Kevin Shahbazi News Editor, Yang Liu News Assistant, Nokyoung Xayasane Opinion Editor, Travis Myers Opinion Assistant, Keith McManamen Features Editor, Duncan Ramsay Features Assistant, Caitlin McIntyre Arts & Entertainment Editor, Mark Kimmich Arts & Entertainment Assistant, Marco Baldasaro Science & Tech Editor, Anya Lomako Science & Tech Assistant, Eric Gassner Sports & Living Editor, Adrienne Raw Assistant Sports & Living, Tina Ironstone Photo Editor, Mackenzie Keast Photo Editor Assistant, Ethan Oblak Graphics Editor, Tifa Han Graphics Assistant, Jacqueline To Web Administrator, Sonia Lee Systems Administrator, vacant Production Staff Ange Gaetano, Tom Lavesque, Devin Howard, Susie Roma, Kate Kennedy, Rajul Saleh, Ryan Lee, Danielle Whittemore, Tim Clark, Zach Arnold, Sarah Schlorff, Alicia Boers, Tejas Koshy, Vicky Chung, Jeff Kelly

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Imprint, Friday, October 24, 2008 opinion@imprint.uwaterloo.ca

Speaking out against protests

he same year I attended my last Conservative conference — thrown off by the tablemates who wanted to know “Who in their right mind would let a gay couple adopt?” — I also attended my first (and last) anti-war rally. The year was 2003, and the Toronto rally was one of many around the world protesting the impending invasion of Iraq. Participatory estimates ranged from six to thirty million, with the protest spanning 800 cities in over 60 countries. Collectively, these rallies entered history books as proof positive that a great many global citizens were opposed to their governments’ actions, and willing to come together to express this disapproval.

Nonetheless, in March of that same year, American, British, Australian, and Polish soldiers invaded Iraq. Five years later, that war is still waging, while Canadian soldiers and diplomats, security forces and relief teams struggle to stabilize the Afghanistan that America left behind.

I was reminded of the place of rallies in our society this past weekend, when a lackluster anti-war protest was staged in Toronto, among other cities across the country. Why lackluster? For one, the turnout was poor in all cities; in Winnipeg local media noted that the police presence almost matched that of the participants, while even in Toronto attendees numbered in the hundreds, not thousands.

For another, the timing was abysmal: what pressure grassroots measures can impose on government is lost in the aftermath of a national vote, when the winning party of an election-weary country is made least insecure by the presence of community dissent. Want to end the war now, and not in three years?

Great. But there has to be a better way to get your point across.

For those who’ve never attended a protest rally, they’re essentially grassroots campaign fundraisers — with chants instead of speeches, giant donation buckets instead of $500 plate dinners, and marching to raise awareness instead of simply rubbing elbows with people in power. In the best case scenario, the money raised is applied to lobbies, and the peoplepower turned to petitions; in the worst case, people feel they’ve made a difference simply because of the time they spent singing in the streets, and go home believing they’ve “done their part.”

Meanwhile, we’re in a recession — so much so that UW itself has issued a spending and hiring freeze while the administration takes six months to assess how Canada’s economic climate will impact our institution’s continued development. On October 21, the Globe and Mail reported a widening rich-poor gap in Canada. With Harper re-elected, Bill C-61, on copyright reform, will likely be re-tabled in the near future. And the situation in Darfur still has 3.2 million displaced citizens struggling in refugee camps, with just under half a million Sudanese citizens dead to date.

As I look at the breadth and depth of issues facing Canadians — both as local and global citizens — I find protest rallies ultimately unable to further the kind of discussion our country needs.

There is, after all, little room for nuance in the framework of any protest: an anti-war rally isn’t going to hit any notes other than that of being “against war.” Moreover, protests lack one crucial feature of any functioning democracy — one feature that campaign dinners and party conferences (maybe regrettably) have more room to develop:

the opportunity for meaningful response. In the absence of this feature, rallies become immensely polarizing: you just don’t protest for the kind of compromises and concessions that necessarily emerge from the balancing of different factors in any situation. And in the process of taking an extreme stance on any one issue — as many Canadians have recently in response to the 2010 Olympics Spirit Train — you just as necessarily build a straw man of your opposition, as an equally intractable rhetoric engine that requires more and more exaggerated displays of dissent for you to counter.

There is a place for rallies in our society: namely, in relation to issues that don’t already have a seat at the table of national debate, or in response to the very real, life or livelihood-threatening suppression of alternate perspectives. But I’ll go so far as to argue that abusing this approach to political reform does a disservice both to Canadians and the issues that matter to them — and no more so than in an age where internet freedoms and the prevalence of engaged citizen journalism make it harder than ever to argue that public discourse was impossible as a primary response. When discourse becomes impossible, yes, it’s time to take to the streets. In the meantime, the power of the written word, video commentary, and radio broadcasts go a long way to providing a meaningful forum for important post-election issues. So with last week’s anti-war rally sporting such a low turnout, and so many serious matters verging on our collective horizon, here’s hoping we haven’t seen the end of those community discussions we so desperately need — just a change of venue. editor@imprint.uwaterloo.ca

Fight for your right to protest

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had one of the most empowering days of When Anti-War Laurier activist Winnie people so they would not be in such a desperate my life two weekends ago. On Sunday Oc- Small locked down the track using a self-release situation.

The protest rallies that occurred at almost tober 12th, the peace group I am involved mechanism in protest of the corporate circus in (Anti-War Laurier), along with activists from that is the Olympics, it was beautiful. She put all of the Spirit Train’s stops have tried to illuSix Nations, Toronto, Guelph, London, and her personal freedom on the line (under the minate this program of social cleansing, which Hamilton performed a non-violent direct action draconian laws that are being harmonized in part is only benefiting the real estate developers in by blocking the CP Olympic Spirit Train, the due to the SPP, such acts can range from criminal the Vancouver Olympic organizing committee corporate propaganda tool which I introduced mischief to terrorism, both of which have lengthy and their business associates. The rail blockade last week. incarceration maximums) for people she has action was an escalation in the non-violent re The action was taken in solidarity with the never met. If she simply ignored the situation, sistance to the machine of endless development Olympic Resistance Network, the Native Youth only the eventual collapse of the biosphere due that the Olympics have become. The Olympics are no longer about sport or culture; rather they Movement of British Columbia, and the anti-pov- to that ignorance would ever affect her. erty coalition of Vancouver to protest the 2010 If you’ve ever been to the east side of are about corporate profit.

In the reader-authored comments from the Winter Olympics, which are being held on stolen Vancouver’s downtown, you would have recogCBC’s story about this, people have been Native land. Additionally, a wide-scale saying very incredible things. Many beecological disaster is being compounded “The Olympics are no longer lieve that the train should have just kept and shielded by the Olympics. going and run over anyone on the tracks It is true that the band councils about sport or culture; rather (which would be impossible due to the of the Four Host First Nations are full partners in the Olympics, but those in they are about corporate profit.” level of safety recognition planned into the action). People were advocating for the West who have called for solidarity, the death of an individual who selflessly do not recognize the legitimacy of the band councils. They are an imposed govern- nized it as one of the most marginalized and at put her freedom at risk to illuminate the plight ment, that the Indian Act implemented — an risk communities in Canada. Homelessness is on of those with less inherent privilege. Aside effort to transplant Canadian “democracy” on the rise as the gentrification process is underway from the offensive hate speech, some who a people who at times work on a consensus in an area that is seeing a loss of social housing commented seemed truly inspired by the act basis. Settlers can’t even get a consensus that in return for the construction of million dollar of peaceful civil disobedience.

If we do not exercise our freedom, rights, burning fossil fuels is unsustainable (there is condos. A promise was made that the Olympics only so much of it…and it is killing us). would not negatively impact the poor, but already and responsibilities, they will be taken away The treatment of the First Nations by the more than 850 social housing beds have been lost from us and our options for resistance will be Canadian government is atrocious (dishonoured in the area, and the police are enforcing newly increasingly limited. Almost half the populatreaties, police brutality, disrespect for another implemented “no sit, no lie” laws. First they tion did not even exercise their basic democratic worldview and spiritual understanding, destroy- are evicted from their homes, and then they are right of voting in Tuesday’s election. If we do not resist the drive towards complacency, ing culturally important ecological systems), criminalized for being without a residence. and having evolved my recognition of that, Instead of spending an estimated $1 bil- we will all become as marginalized as the my eyes were opened to a whole other world, a lion on securing the Olympics from the people people blocking the Spirit Train were acting different way of thinking. When the action to that the games have most severely negatively in solidarity with. block the Spirit Train was underway, I started affected, the money could have been spent on dkellar@imprint.uwaterloo.ca to understand solidarity. programs that would have worked to help the

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Opinion

his summer, I was introduced to a series called Twilight. It’s basically Harry Potter except with vampires and sex. I won’t lie, I got massively addicted and read all four within a few weeks. However, while finishing Breaking Dawn, it occurred to me that something had never been solved: Edward, the vampire, never wanted to make Bella one of his own in fear that her soul would be damned. Yet [spoiler alert] suddenly he has no issues doing so on her deathbed. It brought to mind an interesting idea, actually mentioned by Jacob (the werewolf who also loves her) earlier in the book. He tells about the story of the two women fighting over a baby and King Solomon, who in solving the problem, threatens to cut the babe in half. The real mother gives up because she’d rather see her baby alive with someone else than dead in her own hands.

I know, very stupid for me to get caught up on the details of a young adults’ novel, but seriously, there is something very wrong with this. If

Imprint, Friday, October 24, 2008

Wuthering Heights ...

With vampires Edward really loves her, he’s risking her soul to spend eternity with her?

My eyebrows raised at this part, and after awhile of pondering it occurred to me why I was starting to view Edward as a schmuck. I would make a religious reference, but instead my moral grounds for this comes from the classic film Casablanca, where (more spoilers!) Rick tells his true love to go on a plane with her husband because he knows that’s what needs to be done. Religion is full of self-sacrifice. Buddha had to leave his privileged life to start his mission. Jesus died on the cross as a sacrifice. Our empathy and feelings for others is what causes us to do such sacrificial things. What always struck me in the Bible is that the shortest verse is “Jesus wept.” It was this compassion that caused people to follow Him. Being human is what made others believe in Him. Hinduism is full of these personal gods who, despite being somewhat flawed, reach out with compassion to others, even falling in love with mortals. It is this idea that there is a

self to sacrifice, a relationship to be saved, no matter what the costs.

So going back to arguably the most messed up love triangle ever, what struck me, after reviewing all this in my head, was that my own ethics had made me dislike Edward.

Jacob was being selfless by giving up Bella, by letting her be happy despite his own suffering, almost a Christ figure in the way of giving what is most precious to the one he loved the most. Edward, the schmuck, is selfish by not letting Bella go and in turn causes her potential damnation to make himself happy. Let’s face it: if anyone is screwed in religion, it’d probably the vampires. Almost every religion has a tradition of using their own sacred artefacts to deal with the creatures. Some even have their own theories of the origin of vampires — of their fall from a state of grace. My personal favourite is Dracula 2000’s Gerald Butler portrayed Dracula as Judas. So, looking at this, Edward’s not stupid, he knows all this. And he says, several times throughout the series, that he

thinks his kind is damned, Edward risks Bella’s immortal soul.

I found it funny, upon thinking about this, that although many fantasy epics have Christian or at least religious origins, this character with thousands of Facebook groups devoted to him makes one of the greatest sins…and no one notices.

Edward acts completely for himself and risks his one true love. This overlooking of Edward’s decision is intriguing, but perhaps makes some sense. Edward has been written in the style of Mr. Darcy, the dark and handsome (somewhat moody) man who will do anything for his one love. I like to think of the first Twilight book as Wuthering Heights with vampires (which amuses me greatly since this is one of Bella’s favourite books). But Mr. Darcy saved Elizabeth from a life of poverty and was played in the movie

by Colin Firth who, in my opinion, can do no wrong. Does Edward live up to this ideal? He does a lot for Bella throughout the series, but I can’t help think that if he really loved her, he would have never gotten involved with her in the first place. Then again, us mild addicts will enjoy dragging our unfortunate significant others to the train wreck that the film adaptation will be. nhutton@imprint.uwaterloo.ca Jasmine Choi

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Opinion

Imprint, Friday, October 24, 2008

letters@imprint.uwaterloo.ca

Re: “Student Rep Check-Up” The comments made by science councillor Sam Andrey in the article “Student Rep Check-Up: UW Senate” (Imprint, Volume 31, Issue 14) are blatantly false. His claim that students were not involved in approving things that students “hate”, specifically PDEng, could not be further from the truth. When PDEng was developed, there was significant student involvement. The Vice Presidents Education for both Engineering Societies were active in the process of creating this new program.

Furthermore, there is student representation on the Faculty of Engineering Undergraduate Council, which approved the program prior to Senate Undergraduate Committee (which, by the way, also has student representatives; however, many do not attend) which both approved the program before reaching Senate.

So before the program reached the level of Senate, there were already three distinct levels where students were involved. As vice president education for the Engineering Society, I can attest that within the Faculty of Engineering, students are actively involved in any changes to programs or the introduction of new programs.

Our students take an active role in this process in order to ensure that our education remains one of the best in Canada - and the world. At the Senate Undergraduate Council, each faculty is intended to have a student representative, however, the representatives rarely attend. Last winter, there were three of us in regular attendance (myself, the AHS rep, and FedS VP-Ed).

This term, we welcome reps from science and environment. If more students attend these meetings (as they rightfully have a place on the committee) then decisions can be made at the “committees” Mr. Andrey refers to with the valuable student input, before they reach

senate. If anything, student apathy should be blamed for the things that we “hate” and not the system itself.

Jeffrey Lipnicky Vice President, Education Engineering Society Mechanical Engineering 4A

The editor responds: The original text is as follows: “The consequences of non-engagement, according to science councillor Sam Andrey, are readily apparent: ‘Most of the things on campus that students hate, like PDEng, were passed in senate. And, for the most part, things like that had the opportunity to get voted back in committees long before they made it to senate.’” The fact that students who disagree with some issues passed at senate could have expressed their dissent prior to that point in no way suggests that no students were part of the original process — and certainly already highlights student apathy as one cause of present student disagreements with senate decisions. As Lipnicky himself acknowledges that student representatives are not always in attendance at Senate Undergraduate Committee meetings, I for one fail to see where Lipnicky and Andrey differ on this issue.

Maggie Clark Editor-in-Chief

RE: Re: “Anti-Abortion Agenda” To the editor, I agree that when a woman becomes pregnant it is an extremely difficult decision and by no means is the UWSFL club

trying to disregard the difficult circumstances surrounding an unexpected pregnancy. A woman facing an unexpected pregnancy needs love and support for both her and her child, which is why we are having our annual Life Fair on November 25 in the Great Hall. This event provides information for students on life-affirming choices available in the KW area, where woman can receive the love and support they deserve. Many women feel as if they do not have a choice because these services are rarely advertised on campus. Our club wants to make sure that women know that there is support in our community. This event is an excellent way for people to learn about the alternatives to abortion and it can help them make an educated decision when faced with an unplanned pregnancy.

Hailey Brown UWSFL President

RE: Re: “Anti-Abortion Agenda” Even though I am “pro-choice”, I would like to say that I did not have a problem with the anti-abortion chalk messages that were drawn in the Arts Quad. This is because I believe that these messages do not “impose” beliefs on anyone. If you are anti-abortion you are going to agree with the message, and if you are not you will inevitably disagree. And hopefully if you are undecided on the issue it will cause you to do some research, making your own informed decision, which is what being “pro-choice” is all about.

Kirsten Marincic Fine Arts 2B

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Opinion

Imprint, Friday, October 24, 2008

political FORUM

Border crossings

I

The truth behind Canadians campaigning on American soil

take part in a number of projects around the UW campus, and recently found myself in an interesting conversation with one group. We were trying to arrange a meeting in the early days of November when one of our members piped up, with some hesitation: “I’m not sure that I can make that meeting.

I might be down in the States, campaigning for Barack Obama.”

Part of me wants to wholeheartedly endorse these actions. I want to say sure, Canada, head on down to the United States. Let people know what you care about. After all, we have recently seen that Canadians have a hard enough time voting in our own elections. We might as well support civic engagement wherever we can get it.

Maybe you’ll support Democrats, and get Americans all “fired up and ready to go” vote for Obama. After all, as one Washington Times

it with a straight face. Remember, Republicans are the ones who endorse the “shoot first, ask questions later” laws, and you don’t want to piss them off.

Still, I can’t really endorse any such activity.

After all, consider the flip side of the coin.

You’re sitting down with your family this past Thanksgiving weekend, deciding which hue in the Canadian electoral rainbow to support. Red? Blue? Orange? Green? Suddenly there’s a knock

Suddenly there’s a knock at the door: it’s an American, who has decided to come and persuade you to vote one way or the other. I know how well that conversation would be received.

That’s right, Canada. For more Canadians than one might think, it’s your dirty little secret. I have known many Canadians to spend time campaigning on American soil, for American candidates, in American elections. Some are friends at Harvard who get caught up in the politics of their state, while others get in much deeper, taking part in multi-state road trips that support one party or the other.

My friend who wants to go campaign this November isn’t an American. He simply realizes, as many Canadians do, the impact that the American election will have on Canada.

What’s more, he wants to take a carload of non-Americans with him, and they would all go shill for Obama together.

editorial put it, “Obama’s America is Canada.”

The editorial implied that wouldn’t be a very good thing for America, but I bet many Canadians have different opinions. Obama wants more government programs, health care for all, and a more temperate nation in the eyes of the world. Sound familiar? Let them know what you really think of life here in the Great White North.

Or maybe you’ll stump for the “Country First” Republicans. You can tell Americans that you hunt moose too, that you love it, and you know they will believe you. (We have all seen Mercer’s “Talking to Americans,” after all). Tell them the problems you’ve had with the Canadian health care system, and how much better you hear the American system is. Just try to do

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at the door: it’s an American, who has decided to come and persuade you to vote one way or the other. I know how well that conversation would be received.

Don’t get me wrong, I’m voting for Obama, and I’m going to party like crazy when he wins. But before you Canadians try any funny business, think again. Americans really don’t appreciate Canadians showing up on their soil and trying to influence their vote. Stay aware of the U.S. election and how that effects you, but unless you’re an American citizen, it’s best to worry about getting that other 42 per cent of Canadian voters to come out to the polls on election day. adilts@imprint.uwaterloo.ca

armel chesnais

Opinion

Imprint, Friday, October 24, 2008

It’s not pretty, but it works:

Imprint Online A place to test your rambling before you’ve settled on 300 to 400 words for the Letters section.

Join the online conversation, then write to letters@imprint.uwaterloo.ca

www.imprint.uwaterloo.ca Re: Thinking forward why leftism is a backward philosophy Imprint Volume 31, Issue 13 posted by William Ashley on Wednesday, October 15, 2008 I find the system unconstitutional and undemocratic, but you must realize Canada is not a democracy.

It is a Westminster Parliamentary System, which espouses majority representation on a regional basis, and is at law a constitutional monarchy, regardless of how often the legislature ignores the constitution.

Very surprising to see that the Green-NDP-Liberal split likely has alienated the centre left left of centre in Canada, including what seems in KW by the defeat of Mr. Telegdi by under 100 votes.

It is all a little like burn off or pouring water into milk.

But I digress. If companies didn’t give credit at high interest then people would actually only live within their means. Also the government hasn’t bailed anyone out. The companies defaulted because they provided unrealistic credit levels and then the government bailed out the failed companies which won’t do anything for the highly inflated — and false economy/stock market — floating on virtualized values.

The stock value only lightly relates to the real value of the company, both in social and economic value.

Canada has also spent $60 billion on buying up credit from the banks — roughly equal in population to the U.S. bailout, but it got very little press.

has it ever not been that way on parliament hill.

Yeah leftism totally holds back the self-interested people. Canadians will go so much further without worrying about other people. Heck, governments are all about keeping people oppressed and not helping them.

I’m non-partisan, while economic conservatism can be good, the right wing social agenda is discriminatory and divisive. The right wing world is a harsher and more contrasted policy identity. While it is hard to see when the right wing agenda can’t be pushed fully, your title seems misleading.

Left/right methodology seems more and more blurred. I think it is important to look a what people actually intend to do and the results. I find it a loss that public interest isn’t seen as the bottom line. So much for the country.

It just reads as weak leadership and the loss of common identity.

Re: Pushing buttons Imprint Volume 31, Issue 14 posted by Sean on Monday, October 20, 2008 As a former Food Services part-time worker, I can tell you that they work hard and they have to deal with a lot of arrogant students on a daily basis. They have been under negotiations for a long time, and in such a competitive market with Laurier and Conestoga just down the street, it’s amazing we still have workers here.

A lot of them work both at Laurier and Waterloo because they can’t get

A lot of [food service workers] work both at Laurier and Waterloo because they can’t get enough full-time hours at UW. I think clarity is the issue with Harper, also what seems like his intention to cut from government departments and program funding, while providing tax relief. While tax relief will always be welcomed, the absence of government programs means that the “SOCIAL” element of government evaporates. It ends up being selling out to corporate interest rather than “the public” service the government is suppose to be.

Loss of a public is really loss of the “country” itself. When talking about Canadian sovereignty is it really only law that binds society? Or should the government also provide services?

I’m not answering that question but I do recognize that a government totally run by third parties will not represent the public, and the dollar is not the bottom line, otherwise it will just end up a corporate police state, while that serves some interests, a death penalty for all crimes will help the process along and insure fairness and budgetary constraints.

All I can say is that the conservatives are anything but conservatives, they seem to only want to destroy public interest for private interests… but

enough full-time hours at UW. The fact that Plant Ops is included in this also makes for a sticky situation, as they do everything from cleaning the buildings to repairing buildings. The last thing we need is a strike during final exam season and plant-ops isn’t there to shovel the snow. I can’t comment on the employment standards at Plant Ops, but I can comment on them at Food Services. Something needs to be done on an administration level at Food Services. As for parttime employees, Food Services lacks general employment principles and common courtesy with their rate of pay — yet they wonder why turnover is so high. As for the increase in proposed hours for part-timers, if there’s no full-time people to take the hours, someone has to take the shifts. So the next time you’re standing in that huge line at the SLC Tim’s, remember that the people behind the counter have to deal with us all day, and, at least for the part-time employees, at an hourly rate much lower than it should be. Also remember that those employees are teamed up with Plant Ops, both of which are a necessity in the day-to-day operation of this university.

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Features

Imprint, Friday, October 24, 2008 features@imprint.uwaterloo.ca

Kings and queens: the gender benders

Caitlin McIntyre assistant features editor

W

hen you think of the phrase “drag queen,” what’s the first thing that pops into your mind? For me, it’s the Saturday evening entertainment for a local gay club, or the MySpace celebrity, Jeffree Star. I’d always thought of drag as something that happened in Vegas, on the internet, or at punk rock shows in Japan.The knowledge I’d assumed over the years turned out to be lacking, however, and it wasn’t until I met some of UW’s own kings and queens that I actually bothered to sit down and take a closer look at drag culture.

The first thing I looked at was where did drag begin? Where did it come from, and how did it start? When looking at a tradition as complex and controversial as drag, it’s very difficult to discern an exact origin. When you think about it, there has been evidence of cross-dressing for entertainment throughout many different cultures and eras of the world. Before the time of female performers, all individuals on stage were male. From ancient Greek tragedy to the Elizabethan age of Shakespearean drama, men have been putting on dresses to entertain the crowd. There is however, a clear difference between male-only traditional theatre and modern day drag.

Drag today has become an identifiable subculture in various nations across the world. It has, since the era of Elizabethan theatre, emerged as an art form completely separate from the standard acting variety. Unlike the cross-dressing actors of old, the role a queen or king assumes on stage is not a written one, but a separate part of the actor. Both queens and kings develop a persona for the stage, a reflection of their inner identity that is free of the confines of gender.

There is, however, only so much you can learn about a culture through books and internet forums. To know about a culture, you have to take an inside look. When I first started exploring the idea of drag, I assumed that I would have to take a look to the Toronto queer culture, or maybe check out some local Pride safe zones outside of the school. As I’m sure many of you have noticed, this past week the University of Waterloo has been hosting Pride Week through our student-run organization, GLOW. I’d signed up as a volunteer for the club and, figuring that it wouldn’t hurt, started to ask around about the idea of drag queens. I was almost immediately referred to one of GLOW’s top dogs, Kevin Nixon, a grad student currently studying anthropology at the university. As it turned out, it was actually during his field work as a student in anthropology that Nixon first became involved in drag. He had been researching drag culture for his field of study, when he decided to give “queening” a try. “As part of the participant observation I was doing for school, I wanted to live a day in their heels.” Nixon, or —as she’s known in the drag world— Roxy Cox, focused his studies on the complicated world of drag queens, and started into the culture himself about six months ago.

He then turned to the third member of our booth sitting group, Sean Statyn, a physics grad at UW, and introduced him as yet another queen.

Statyn, who had just recently changed her drag name from Seaneequa to Gloria Whole, coincidentally also attributed his involvement in the drag queen world to anthropology. “For

Kevin’s studies we ended up going to drag shows every week. After a while, we thought it would be fun to put on an amateur show for GLOW and just stuck with it.” Statyn and Nixon both referred themselves as “amateur” drag queens, aiming their attention close to home, at venues including our very own Bomber, which hosts various drag based shows and events. Rather than working shows professionally, they explained that their form of drag was more so for the fun, and the learning that arose from the experience.

“It really serves to challenge peoples’ views on gender, and the role that gender plays in society… Some of my friends who saw me in drag were immediately uncomfortable, despite the fact that they were at a drag show. It’s almost as if they were saying that yes, they could be entertained by this, but didn’t want it to be too close.” Said Statyn, when asked about the implications behind becoming a queen. “People just don’t want to be faced with the reality that yes, there really is a man underneath all that” Nixon added.

There is, however, another component to drag culture. One that I myself was not even aware of until I began to work on this article: the drag king.

Drag kings are the female equivalent of a drag queen; they are women who establish within themselves male personas, and then dress themselves as such to perform on stage. For the drag king interview I was sent to GLOW’s Ally Network director, Sue Weare. “I think that kinging has not been quite as fast to catch on, in recent years. Drag queening has always been around, whereas kinging is a newer practice,” Weare explained.

“The drag I perform as is very similar to myself. Drag kinging is a way for me to express the more masculine aspect of my gender identity, in ways that I can’t in everyday life.” Some of the difficulties in drag kinging surround the notion of masculinity that is considered the norm by our modern day society. Drag king performances are often considered to be more subtle, because self expression has very much been tagged as “too feminine” for dragging. This is

very much a reflection on our ideas of masculinity, and what it entails. “Our ideas of masculinity have been, and still are, changing,” said Weare. “It’s becoming a more broad definition, and maybe that’s why drag kinging has been picking up.”

Drag culture serves not only challenge the conventions of society, but also to push gender definitions that have become the norms of our culture. What is male, and what is female, are both subjects that have been quite strictly defined in our society. Men who are not the optimal image of masculinity are considered weak and weird, where woman who aren’t feminine enough are ostracized for acting against the norm.

However, drag questions these values, and brings all sorts of otherwise unnoticed biases to the surface. So if the next time you see a man in a dress and your reaction is that of discomfort, just take a moment, and ask yourself why.

cmcintyre@imprint.uwaterloo.ca

photos by: holly sage

susan qu

Features 13 Dating: The go-to scene for the under-nineteens

Imprint, Friday, October 24, 2008

Emily Corner reporter

Y

ou’re under 19, and the bouncer at the club took away your fake I.D. Where are you going to find someone to hook up with now? Never fear! Dating alternatives are here.

But seriously... where do you go to find a dating scene when you’re underage? It’s already tough when you can’t get into the “hot spots� like bars and clubs, and those all ages nights don’t exactly come around that often. Even for those of us who can take advantage of the bar and club scene, it’s still really

difficult to make a connection and have the courage to just say “Hi.�

Luckily for us, the University of Waterloo offers many different activities and clubs that are not age exclusive.

From dance lessons to fencing, UW has it all, so no matter what your interests are, there are plenty of ways to get involved. Getting involved is all well and good... but how does this connect to meeting that special someone or finding a date for the movies?

Joining a club benefits you in more than one way: you get to participate in something you like or have an interest in, learn something new, and meet new

people. It’s easy to strike up a conversation in a setting of extracurricular clubs since everyone is there because they’re interested in what it has to offer. That alone offers many easy conversation topics. “So, what attracted you to the UW Ballroom dance club? Is this your first time dancing?� and go from there. It may be scary initially to start something new and throw yourself into a foreign position, but if you have single friends, why not ask them to tag along? You’ll have the comfort of your friends, but also the ability to introduce yourself to the attractive guy or girl across the room.

Bike theft: the campus solution Michael McHugh Reporter

B

icycle theft is a major problem for many university campuses throughout Canada, and the University of Waterloo is no exception.

At any given time, hundreds of unattended bikes sit waiting to be picked up by willing opportunists. While the majority of bikes stolen on campus are locked, this has not been sufficient in deterring thefts. According to Statistics Canada, 44,013 bikes were reported stolen in Canada in 2007. However, police and bicycling advocates agree that a more accurate number of thefts is closer to 100,000, as many bikes are not reported stolen. Campuses in particular are hot spots for bike theft, which many students find to be from the lack of interest by authorities.

However, campus police maintains that there are officers designated to controlling theft and who patrol the campus for suspicious activity.

For many potential students, having a secure place to store a bicycle is a major consideration when deciding how to commute to school. Many cities and campuses across Canada have

recognized this problem, and are solving the issue with an incredibly simple solution: providing secure bike lockers.

A bike locker is an enclosed shed-like unit that facilitates secure bicycle parking by providing protection from theft, vandalism, and the elements. The city of Toronto has implemented a bike locker project and is now entering its third winter. After achieving great success with their pilot program in 2006, the program now encompasses 150 lockers in 15 locations across the city. According to program assistant Jesse Demb, the daily occupancy rate of the lockers is generally over 90 per cent in season, falling to about 80 per cent in winter. McMaster University has created a similar bike locker initiative, charging a small fee to rent a bike locker on a term or yearly basis. This program was also deemed successful, as there is now a waiting list to rent a locker.

Each year, the University of Waterloo spends exorbitant amounts of money building and maintaining parking facilities for motor vehicles, while little funding is allocated to promote cycling. Because of this, cyclists are expected to submit to using ineffective bike racks across campus. When

deciding how to commute to school, students and staff should not be forced to have bike security become part of the decision process. Bicycle theft is easily the most common propertyrelated criminal activity taking place on campus, yet the school has failed to recognize the problem and take a proactive approach to solving it.

It is clear that the provision of secure areas to store bicycles should be easily accessible throughout the campus. The university needs to recognize that having a secure area to store a bike should be a right, not a privilege. Bicycle lockers are an inexpensive investment that will not only aid in solving the problem of bike theft, but encourage people to get out of the car and onto a bike. The city of Toronto and McMaster University have demonstrated that secure bike lockers are an effective solution that will be utilized by cyclists if given the opportunity. It is time for the University of Waterloo to take on the responsibility of encouraging commuter cycling as an alternative mode of transportation so that a safer, greener, and healthier university environment can be attained.

If you’re too busy for clubs and are looking for a way to meet that someone special and show your school spirit, check out Warrior Weekends. With a lot of great activities going on, this is great way to show your school pride and meet some new charismatic people just like yourself! If you’ve looked into the club suggestion, why not take a new acquaintance out for a Warrior Weekend? This is a perfect date idea since the only thing you need to get in is your Watcard.

We’ve all made it to this fantastic school, and though the education is great, we can use our classes for something more than learning. Get there early and scope out that cute guy or girl with an empty seat beside them.

Plunk yourself down and see what they think about the course. Lectures offer the opportunity to introduce yourself in a non-threatening environment while

keeping it casual. After the introductions you can slip in an invite to Williams for a coffee, where you could propose studying or furthering your conversation on the course and the prof.

Giving these suggestions makes dating seem pretty easy even when you’re underage. Besides what I’ve mentioned, there are still endless opportunities at such a large university to interact and meet new people, but it’s not all sunshine and roses. It’s still incredibly difficult to put yourself out there and to have the courage to strike up a conversation with a cute stranger.

The more comfortable you become in new settings the less scary dating becomes, even if it means striking out the first few times. But if you don’t give it a try, how will you know? Join a club, get involved, or just plunk yourself down beside somebody new. It worked for me, so why not you?

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14

Photo Feature

Imprint, Friday, October 24, 2008

Photo Feature

Imprint, Friday, October 24, 2008

15

STEPHEN HARPER IN KITCHENER Travis Myers staff reporter

W

hen we pulled up to the federal election campaign rally October 10th we expected to be rushing for our allotted time with the Prime Minister, although we ended up rushing to even catch a glimpse of Mr Harper.

Photographer Mackenzie Keast ran ahead with his camera when we saw that the rally had turned ugly. I struggled to push my way through the throngs of people, who we had assumed to be supporters upon first glance. The RCMP and Waterloo regional police stood to make a barrier between Harper and the angry protestors, leaving a sizeable comfort zone for those wearing Conservative buttons on their lapels while pushing some of the protestors out into the traffic on King Street.

While Keast and I were denied entry into the rally beyond the row of Mounties, despite having prearranged press passes, I spoke to the CAW presidents leading the protest of Harper’s economic policies. Plant closures of the past two year were still fresh on their minds, Mike Devine of CAW Local 1451 told me. “They’ve done nothing to protect Canadian workers.”

The screaming jeers of the protesters had started to draw response from the Conservative party members on the other side of the divide, a few lobbing back insults and jabs from their position behind the police officers.

More party members still came together to create

a human tunnel for Harper, using placard signs with the names of candidates to protect him from any projectiles that may have come and provide him safe passage onto his campaign bus, although my suspicion was that he also wanted to remove his face from any media coverage of the protest.

Peter Braid of Kitchener-Waterloo riding was nice enough to speak to me after Harper’s bus screeched out of the parking lot, defending the freedom of speech of the protesters and saying they were “well within their right.” Kitchener Conservative candidate Stephen Woodsworth seemed to have left the scene, avoiding sticky questions regarding the marred rally.

With only a scarce few questions answered from our soon-to-be-elected officials and no face time with Harper, we left the scene, finding third Imprint reporter Caitlin McIntyre stalled behind a police officer on the outskirts of the parking lot.

As we walked back to our vehicle we saw two union guys stopped having the same argument with two Conservatives. Harper didn’t protect jobs.

Harper is a strong leader. The divide in Canada had been encapsulated in the failed rally, and more so in the argument between these men leaning out of the parked cars. Although I didn’t get many of my questions answered by the political figures I had come to speak with, I doubt I would have been able to find an answer to the biggest question on my mind as we drove away: is this the new Canada? tmyers@imprint.uwaterloo.ca

Mackenzie Keast

Mackenzie Keast

Top Left: Stephen Harper boards one of his campaign buses after visiting Stephen Woodworth’s campaign office October 10. Canadian Auto Workers Union protesters greeted the prime minister, prompting police to seperate the Conservative Party supporters from the union. His departure was hidden from the crowd by campaign signs held by party faithful.

Top Right: The daughter of a pro-conservative family raises a vertical ‘Harper’ sign as the prime minister’s campaign buses departed their Kitchener stop. Both Kitchener-Waterloo’s candidate Peter Braid and Kitchener-Conestoga’s candidate Harold Albrecht joined dozens of supporters for the prime minister’s short stop in the region.

Bottom Left: The Region of Waterloo police department was joined by RCMP officers to restrain protesters from crossing over to the Conservative supporters side of Stephen Woodworth’s campaign office parking lot. Media was denied access to the crowd surrounding Harper’s exit.

Bottom Right: Canadian Auto Workers Union members join a crowd of other demonstrators protesting Stephen Harper’s October 10 visit to Kitchener. At various times, obscenities and verbal fights erupted between Harper supporters and the union employees, prompting police to further seperate the two groups.

Mackenzie Keast

Mackenzie Keast

16

Features

Imprint, Friday, October 24, 2008

My welly won’t rise for the duke

“I

do say, to be subjected to such perverse clamour is quite dreadful. Let us pooh-pooh the notion of reforming our functional parliament, and instead erect these iron shutters to preserve this most noble and illustrious edifice.” This is what I imagine the Duke of Wellington might have said the day he received

the “Iron Duke” nickname. The dude — sorry, Duke — had rioters demanding parliamentary reform and throwing rocks through his prime ministerial residence in England. I will get into the history of this guy in more detail later, but it’s important to remember how cool he was — so cool he had numerous things named after him, including a brewery. “Wellington Special Pale Ale” is one of Wellington Brewery’s

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products – the word “special” meaning that drinking it lets you talk like a 19th century aristocrat.

“Dearest, please fetch me a decanter of Wellington’s finest ale! And make me some custard while you’re at it.

Oh, and call for my mistress…”

The man that inspired the beer was probably not a misogynist. He was, however, one of England’s greatest soldiers. He fought in the wars against India, becoming governor of several Indian cities to spread the influence of the British East India Company. He then fought France during the early Napoleonic Wars, and as Field Marshall defeated Napoleon in the famous Battle of Waterloo. Wellington then became Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, and stirred the shit when he opposed parliamentary reform — hence the rock throwing and the iron shuttering.

As Prime Minister, he actually challenged one of his E a r l ’s t o a duel — nikoo shahabi

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yeah, a duel. Wellington missed — but he claims this was on purpose. Kickass? Yes. New Zealand thought he was so kickass they named their capital Wellington after him. Wellington Brewery thought he was kickass because he enacted the Beer House Act, allowing anyone who owns a building to turn it into a beer-laden brew palace in an effort to reduce the consumption of spirits.

Wellington Brewery is actually based in Guelph — so close you can smell the Duke’s hops. They brew in the craft, small batch style, and produce seven different beers.

The plaid-laden hipster beardies in Guelph are all over this one, I’m sure. The Special Pale Ale bottle has a hip-looking shot of the Duke himself on the label; his collar popped and ready to duel with any beer dissenters. The smell of the beer hides its true flavour, with more floral hops in the smell than what you will find in the taste. The taste hits you with a heavy but not overpowering malt flavour, with hints of spice and caramel. It reminds me of English Indian pale ales or more traditional English ales, which have mild hops and are full of flavour.

The brewers have done a nice job of balancing the beer, giving the aftertaste a bitter and crisp finish.

Some pale ale drinkers might say it’s

a bit too light, too highly carbonated and not creamy enough. I say pooh-pooh, take it for what it is.

It fits right in between the heavier English brews and your mom’s American pales. Oh, and tell your mom she’s a wuss for me.

Mr. Wellington, the Duke, was a badass who didn’t take shit. Wellington Special Pale Ale isn’t quite as hard. This beer walks into a locker room, it might boot a few behinds and take a few names, but then the tougher beers will show up and crack it’s neck or peel it’s label.

It doesn’t live up to the name, but then again neither does the City of Wellington — it gets destroyed every time a little ol’ earthquake rolls around. It is, however, a fine beer if you want something light yet flavourful. “My my, this fine pint is most ambrosial. Escort another to me, my mistress!” Wellington’s words, not mine…

Price for 6: $10.75 Taste: Value: Using the word pooh-pooh: Overall: mkeast@imprint.uwaterloo.ca

Features

Imprint, Friday, October 24, 2008

17

SLC laser tag: not for the lame at heart Alicia Raimundo reporter

S Ready...

Aim...

Fire

o what happens when you combine a mechanical engineer, two computer science majors, and a computational mathematics major with way too much time on their hands? You get students running around the SLC at night, hiding behind garbage cans, shooting small beams of light at each other, and a lot of frightened and confused students.

That’s right folks, you get laser tag.

For those of you who are not familiar with the concept, laser tag is a game where the objective is to shoot light beams at another person until they have no lifelines left – think of your average first person shooter video game – all the while running away from the same person shooting you.

The guns are relatively light, and are equipped with sensors that register when you have been hit. Once a hit is received, it is displayed on the screen on the back of the gun. The player can get hit up to eight times before a warning is received that they are almost dead (i.e. run the hell away or hide), and after the ninth hit they are out of the game. A player is also responsible for reloading his or her own gun (i.e. pressing a rather large “A” button on the side).

Laser tag may seem like a strange concept to most, many thinking, “why on earth would you play laser tag in a school building?” This is the same question that was posed to one of the founding members Scott (who is currently in his 2B term in compu-

Oct. 27: 11 am - 2 pm SLC & 5 pm - 7 pm Ron Eydt Village Cafeteria Oct. 28: 11 am - 2 pm SLC & 5 pm - 7 pm SLC Oct. 29: 11 am - 2 pm SLC & 5 pm - 7 pm Village One Cafeteria Oct. 30: 11 am - 2 pm SLC & 5 pm - 7 pm SLC

tational mathematics) and he simply responded “because it’s awesome.”

And I am sure that many students would whole-heartedly agree. “It started with a joke,” said Paul (another founding member in his 2B term in Mechanical Engineering). The story goes like this: Scott was surfing on a site called thinkgeek.ca and stumbled upon a laser tag gun. Scott jokingly suggested to his friends, (founding members Paul, Brian and Anthony) that they buy the guns, and to his obvious surprise, they agreed. They ordered the guns, (10 in total) and laser tag started soon after that.

Now, many people do not realize that choosing a place to run around and shoot at your friends is actually difficult. “We tried out a lot of locations,” said Paul, “but the SLC just felt right.” Other locations included the third floor of the Math and Computer building, which didn’t work because “we would split into teams, on the opposite end of the floor, but five seconds later we would already find one another,”said Scott. “It just wasn’t all that fun.” Another location they tried (just to change it up one day) was the Centre of Enviromental and Informational Technology building (a.k.a. the dinosaur building), but felt their welcome was worn out when a janitor gave them a stern talk, claiming that the guns were water guns, and that they would ruin the exhibits.

Even after explaining that in fact, the guns shot nothing but light, they still never quite felt welcome.

Since the time they finally settled on the SLC, they have been work-

ing on different improvements to the game. Currently, you can play in four different types of games; free for all (everyone shoots everyone else), team based, capture the intelligence (think of capture the flag with backpacks or briefcases), and continuous. Continuous is the most complicated to explain, it goes like this: There are a certain number of lines drawn on a piece of paper at the beginning of the game; 10 players go out and play first, and once they die they come back, pass on the gun to someone sitting out, and cross out a line on the piece of paper. Once all the lines are gone, there are no more lives; anyone who dies after that must sit out until only one person is left (the winner). Each game has a similar set of rules, which include: don’t hurt yourself or anyone else, don’t hide outside (running outside is okay if you run back in), and do not cover the sensor of your gun with your hand (just to make it fair).

The laser tag group has big plans for the future as well. They hope to make the group an official club, and are currently working on amending the club constitution in order for it to be accepted. They also recently purchased new guns, which they plan to modify to make them more like the original guns they bought. They also hope to introduce new game types, and continue to make the games fun and interesting. So, the next time you’re bored on a Monday night, just bring your game face. As Scott said, “ I’ll see you on the front lines.”

courtesy Alicia Raimundo

*One $1,500 scholarship awarded during the 2008 fall semester and one $1,500 scholarship awarded during the 2009 winter semester. Entry forms must be accurately completed.

Eligibility limited to post-secondary students currently enrolled at participating campuses.

Arts & Entertainment

Imprint, Friday, October 24, 2008 arts@imprint.uwaterloo.ca

photo courtesy kidstreet, graphics by Peter Trinh

Trio to bring fusion sound to Starlight Marco Baldasaro assistant arts editor

A

few months ahead of the release of their second album, Waterloo’s Kidstreet brings their unique fusion of electronic music and live drums, keyboards, and vocals to the hometown crowd this coming Saturday at the Starlight.

“Our main concept is to make dance music that has the energy of a band, but the sound of a DJ,” said Karl Snyder, drummer and composer of the three-piece group rounded out by his brother Cliff and sister Edna. “The way that we wanted to separate ourselves from dance music was to have live drums mixed over electronic drums. It’s steady enough to be dance music, but you can bring the dynamic up or down without losing the beat. Fifty per cent of our live show is preproduction. The other half is live instrumentation for the dynamic’s sake.”

Kidstreet’s music continues to evolve from the sound of 2007’s seven-track debut, which received positive acclaim from music critics in Exclaim and Imprint. “The self-titled disk was my first attempt to make organic, dancy music,” said Snyder. “Essentially, it was almost symphonic.

The [upcoming] second album is more dance oriented; it’s a little less of a concept album and [consequently] more commercially appealing.”

While Snyder recognized in advance that the obscure and experimental nature of the self-titled EP was unlikely to produce any radio hits for the band, Kidstreet has nevertheless managed to garner some commercial success.

“One of the most identifiable songs from the first album [“Etude”] has been licensed to the makers of the upcoming show House Party, which will air on the Comedy Network,” said Snyder. More recently, one of the tracks from the upcoming album was short-listed for an Olympic commercial for GMC. Snyder realizes full well that the commercial licensing of music is a point of contention that divides many artists, and musicians in particular. Still, as Snyder sees it, “there’s a change in the air as to whether [commercial licensing] is selling out or not. Nobody’s buying music anymore, and nobody should. But as a result, one of the only ways to make money in music is to license it.”

It’s a hard point to argue against. While the combination of the internet and digital recording software has certainly made the

production, distribution, and acquisition of music exponentially easier, it’s arguable that as a direct result, the viability of making a living as a musician simply selling albums and playing shows continues to diminish. This reality, stark as it may be for some, is ushering many bands in the same direction as Kidstreet. Commercials, television, and movies are all avenues that make the ultimate goal of a financially stable career in the music industry a much more realistic dream. “I’ve always looked to license and publish music,” said Snyder, “particularly with the last album, which had no vocals. Somehow it’s just a lot easier for me [ethically] to license instrumental music.”

While 2009’s album will feature significantly more vocals than the debut, Snyder is quick to point out that they certainly won’t be a dominant feature in the traditional sense: “With the exception of a few instances, the vocals are only intended to be another instrument.” Vocals or not, Snyder is resting easy. Referring to the track that had been considered by GMC the composer muses, “I was having trouble with [the ethics of licensing the song], but it was something like 10 grand. That’s half a year’s income.”

The advantages of a deal with the likes of

GMC are more numerous than simply the immediate payout a commercial licensing of that size offers. “With a commercial deal like that, all of a sudden, people all across the country hear your music on a regular basis.” What’s more, Snyder argues, is that it affords you the ability to distinguish yourself as unique among the fray: “Like it or not, people will immediately take you more seriously and recognize your potential for commercial success.”

In the grand scheme of things, the ties between commercialism and the music industry are not new. As Snyder observes, “The reality is (and has always been) if you’re a band playing a show at the Starlight or any other venue, you’re there to sell beer. It doesn’t matter how good your music is; if you don’t bring people out and sell beer, you aren’t going to get shows.”

Kidstreet plays an all ages show this Saturday at Starlight after the Zine fair. Doors open at 8:00 p.m., with Kidstreet set to take the stage around 9:30 p.m. Support your local artists: show up and buy beer.

mbaldasaro@imprint.uwaterloo.ca

Sexsmith croons for waterloo crowd Paul Parkman staff reporter

T

his past Tuesday Ron Sexsmith and his band played to a packed Starlight crowd, showcasing why he is one of Canada’s most lauded singer-songwriters with a night filled by his brand of melancholy folk-pop. In July, Sexsmith released his latest album, Exit Strategy for the Soul (Yep Roc Records), and the evening was peppered with new songs throughout his set that settled well against his back-catalogue (which includes over 10 studio releases, Juno nominations, and awards to boot).

Sexsmith has a reputation for playing mellow, laid-back shows, and Tuesday night was no exception. The arrangement of chairs and tables

throughout the Starlight transformed the club into a mini-hall, filled with fans of all ages. The crowd was often humming and singing along with Sexsmith, who seemed in good spirits. He talked between songs, cracked jokes, and told stories by way of introducing songs, putting them in context for everyone in attendance (including one story about his daughter, and a fear of clowns).

Sexsmith’s voice sounded better than ever as he showed off his finely honed craft, backed by a band that seemed to effortlessly build solid foundations and atmospheres over Sexsmith’s gentle strumming and crooning.

Obvious fan-favourite “Gold in Them Hills” (a song most people know for Sexsmith’s duet with Coldplay’s Chris Martin, which also won Sexsmith

a larger following after its release on Collbestone Runway in 2002), was greeted with applause and united the crowd with bobbing heads and a hushed sing-along. This proved to be a highlight of the evening, creating a very intimate feel by making the divide between the stage and the crowd less apparent.

Some of the more memorable moments of the night occured when Sexsmith dropped the band, and settled in for a few solo numbers with his acoustic guitar or keyboard. This was where Sexsmith’s veteran songwriting and rich lyrics were really able to shine, alongside his talent for producing strong narratives and vivid imagery.

With these solo efforts and fragile takes of new and old songs, he silenced the crowd and easily

gave everyone in attendance much more than what they paid for.

Sexsmith was careful not to get too weepy though, and with a full band in tow, managed to pull the crowd out of sad songs of lost loves and loneliness by livening things up with some of his best pop-rock songs to date (off of Exit Strategy for the Soul). The band consistently pulled off dense and rich layers of sound that held true to Sexsmith’s recent studio work, while also recalling the pop flavour of some of Elvis Costello’s touchstone recordings.

With these shifts in tempo and mood, Sexsmith and company were able to keep the evening light and fun, with just a slightly melancholic aftertaste. arts@imprint.uwaterloo.ca

Arts & Entertainment

Imprint, Friday, October 24, 2008

Mark: So I was there, you were there, and I think that we can both agree: Oktoberfest sure is something.

Marco: Yeah, it’s something special is what it is, Kimmich. Believe it or not though, not everyone’s on board.

Mark: Not on bored? I’m sure not on bored, I’m on good times. Wait, what do you mean?

Marco: Well, my buddy comes over the other day and starts yappin’ about how he’s off of the Oktoberfest band-wagon.

What’s worse, he’s knocking it in principle. What he goes on to say (and I’ve heard this argument many times before) is that it’s a poor excuse for a cultural festival; obviously a gross caricature of true German culture. Anyways, he hates the fact that Oktoberfest is what this area is known for.

A-OKtoberfest Mark: Ha! I’d like to see anyone make the case that German culture isn’t basically just a collection of different beers and calf-skin suspenders. But seriously, I’m not going to defend Oktoberfest on the grounds that it is high culture, but I don’t remember going to Queensmount to read Thomas Mann or watch any German silent films. The point of Oktoberfest is that we have assimilated it and it is now a hybrid. It is a Canadian/German festival, which inevitably means the beer becomes even MORE important, if you can believe it.

Marco: Absolutely. It’s a Bavarian beer festival! What do these clowns expect?

I’m no cultural expert, but I have a feeling that if you were to take a look around the globe at harvest festivals in general (which, I would argue, Oktoberfest owes it’s heritage to), you’ll find yourself coming up short in the high culture department.

Mark: I don’t think anyone is really arguing that the addition of Walter Ostanek to the festival somehow gives it cultural significance. The first event I went to, the band that was playing changed “Doe a Deer” to “Doe a BEER,” a song that very well may be more German, but is likely less culturally enriching.

Marco: Sure, Oktoberfest isn’t perfect.

It’s a bit disheartening that Molson has the monopoly on the event and as a consequence, true Bavarian beer is out of the question. And after gracing the hallowed halls of the Concordia Club a few years back, you won’t catch this guy at it’s shoddy imposters: the likes of Queensmount and the Aud. The fact is, Kitchener-Waterloo is heavily indebted to a large population of German immigrants. This early wave of immigration showed up, kicked ass, and took names.

One of the relics of this is our beloved Oktoberfest.

There’s no terror in the bang

A

s Halloween approaches, theatres are bombarded with slasher flicks and monster movies, all in an attempt to terrify movie-goers and prepare them for All Hallows’ Eve. Lately though, the movies that have been coming out have either been torture porn or bad remakes of past Halloween favourites. Although these films (sometimes) have the ability to scare, they usually don’t offer any psychologically frightening effects and really aren’t the best kind of terror. In the past though, one director has been able to create films that can scare an audience through good storytelling and interesting camera shots.

That director was Alfred Hitchcock, whom I’m sure everyone is aware of.

He began directing in the silent film era but was able to adapt his directorial style to “talkies,” and eventually to colour films. His films usually focused on one character stuck in some type of bizarre situation–whether that situation was being asked to murder a stranger’s father, visiting a creepy motel after stealing thousands, or witnessing a murder in a neighbouring apartment. The majority of his films use disorienting camera angles, close ups of panicked characters faces, and quick paced music, all creating a sense of discomfort and dread. He set all his films in very small rooms and sets.

There is a safety created in this but also an uneasy feeling as the outside world becomes unknown, leaving characters vulnerable. These films garnered Hitchcock the title of “Master of Suspense,” stating that “there is no terror in the bang

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only the anticipation of it,” it’s obvious that he approved of this label.

There are many great Hitchcock films, but those that create the most suspense are Psycho, Rear Window, Shadow of a Doubt, and The Birds. Psycho is probably the most famous of Hitchcock’s films as it has the infamous shower scene. This scene appears relatively early in the film and, when the film was realized, terrified cinema goers. Now it can still create fear although it’s not this scene that does so.

Throughout the film, Hitchcock created a mood of suspense by never revealing the truth of the situation until the end, and by leaving everything open to any possibility. Norman Bates doesn’t make anything any less unsettling either.

In Rear Window, Jimmy Stewart as L.B. Jefferies is a photographer who is house-bound due to a broken leg.

Jefferies spends his days spying on his neighbours from his apartment, and one night witnesses a murder. The rest of the film is spent trying to discover whether or not the murder actually took place, with many dangerous tasks taken by the two women in Jefferies’ life. Even though the murder is not seen on screen, Hitchcock is able to create a terrifying murderer whom viewers fear throughout the film.

The scene where Grace Kelly, playing Jefferies’ girlfriend, is looking through

the suspected murder’s apartment holds viewers on the edge of their seats and is really quite nerve-racking.

Shadow of a Doubt is claimed to be Hitchcock’s favourite film. The film is set in a small community where a young girl’s, Charlie (Teresa Wright), uncle comes to visit. This uncle is being followed by detectives and is a suspected serial killer.

Throughout the film, Charlie struggles with the possibility that her uncle is a murderer. What is truly scary while watching this film, is watching the story from Charlie’s viewpoint, we get frustrated when no one listens to her, and develop a bond with the character that makes the climatic scene all the more suspenseful.

Really, Hitchcock’s films are some of the few that can make viewers nervous while watching. What separates Hitchcock’s films from the standard Halloween fare is their ability to cause viewers to jump at a noise after seeing them, or to wake up in the middle of the night slightly nervous that the birds are plotting to attack humanity. Over this Halloween, why not forget bloodbath or haunted house films and rent a classic Hitchcock that will actually make you think, and create a sense of fear from those thoughts. etarswell@imprint.uwaterloo.ca

The Best Horror Collection In Town!

Mark: … and the Bauer and Kaufmann factories (which are now being refurbished as lofts), and the German philanthropists who were instrumental in founding the K-W Symphony and establishing the Centre in the Square, and on, and on, and on.

Marco: Oktoberfest is a celebration of

19

the German heritage that continually surrounds us in the region.

Mark: So, it is with the Germans in mind that I say a hearty “Gemutlichkeit.”

Marco: And I say “E-I-E-I-E-I-O!” arts@imprint.uwaterloo.ca

DIY NOT? ZINE FAIR 12-6: Vendors & Workshops 8: Kidstreet & Cursed Arrows OCTOBER 25

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20

Arts & Entertainment

Imprint, Friday, October 24, 2008

This Week in Concerts

Classic rock and corporate america

T

he culminating events of turning 13 were making out with four girls at Arielle De Pinto’s birthday party and discovering my dad’s vinyl record collection. While I’ve lost contact with the four ladies at that birthday party, I still play my father’s vinyl records. Amidst his collection were a dozen or so albums which have become the definitive records of classic rock. Namely, Zeppelins I-IV, Floyd’s Dark Side, the Beatles’ Sgt. Pepper’s, the Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust, Highway 61 Revisited, and AC/DC’s Back in Black. As I grew older I digressed from classic rock and shifted to a variety of genres to widen my musical palette.

Several years of working at a record store that was more elitist than the Jack Black/John Cusack Courtesy Roger Skelly tandem in High Fidelity, led me towards a bitter ha“Let’s start with the Far East,” said Harry Manx as he began his show at the tred toward classic rock as well as classic rock fans.

Memories of subpar hygiene, T-shirts of Rush, Princess on Tuesday. “Yup, something from New Brunswick.” and fuck-face comments such as “Dude! Rush is the best band ever!” will forever be embedded in my ‘placid’ mind. But just when I thought I had detoxed from despising classic rock, the artists, as well as the industry, have once again fucked me over for ever again being able to truly enjoy anything labeled ‘classic rock.’

The once credible AC/DC have become the latest classic rock shit-puppets to pact with a retail giant , regrettably becoming another shameful act in Wal-Mart’s shit-show of tasteless commerce.

Unsurprisingly, Angus Young and co. are following the pathetic trend of washed up ‘artists’ trying to make another dollar via corporate America.

Country dickhead Garth Brooks, the paralyzingly lame Eagles, and the greatest power ballad band of the ‘80s, Journey, have all gone exclusive with the power retailer.

Let’s face the facts: fewer outlets means lower Paul Parkman costs, ergo, more profit for the record label as well 40Crk_10.3125x7.5_Imprint_fin:Imprint 10.3125 7.5 b&w Tour” 9/2/08at 4:01 PM Page 1 Jason Collett performs with the “Wood,-Wires andx Whiskey Starlight as the supplier. Additionally, by possessing exclusive distribution rights, Wal-Mart could essentially on October 16.

charge whatever they deem fair to the consumer.

Sadly, the truth of the matter is that this trend will continue until media reinvents itself to coincide with the digital age. What is the most upsetting about exclusive distribution and the music industry is that bands such as AC/DC, who have habitually prided themselves on being about “the music” have disrupted those claims by partnering with Wal-Mart, a company whose yearly profits are in the billions, yet refuses to provide medical insurance or allow the formation of unions.

In an age where artistic merit is more often than not compromised for sales, endorsements, publicity, and fame, we as consumers are standing at a crossroads at which our purchasing patterns, decisions, and behaviours could very well dictate the shape and direction of the music industry to come.

Record companies are losing profits, and are shitting digital bricks due to peer-to-peer file sharing, pirating, and lack of consumer interest. Consequently, we are now seeing the death of the record store in which both independent and franchised music retailers are closing down due to big box and internet retailers such as BestBuy, Future Shop, iTunes, Amazon, and the aforementioned Wal-Mart.

These once relevant senior citizens articulate how depressing the music industry has become.

Why not go against the grain? Why not offer your CD as a pay-what-you-can? Why not cut out corporate America? AC/DC had the chance to do something monumental, much like Radiohead did last year. Instead, they copped out and have become another piss stain in the carpet which we call the music industry. In this music snob’s opinion, AD/DC can take their recycled power chords, tired-distraught vocals, and big wrinkled balls back to the land down under. hcolosimo@imprint.uwaterloo.ca

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Campus Bulletin CHURCH SERVICE St. Bede’s Chapel at Renison College offers worship on Sundays at 10:30 a.m. Come and walk the labyrinth the second Thursday of each month, 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. For more info contact Megan at 519-884-4404, ext 28604 or www.renison.uwaterloo.ca/ministry-centre.

STUDENT AWARDS FINANCIAL AID

October 24: Deadline for OSAP Reviews (appeals).

October 30: Last day to submit Full-Time Bursary/ Award Application for fall only term.

October 31: Deadline to submit Confirmation of Enrolment for Canada Millennium Bursary.

Refer to our website for current loan/grant release procedures and for a full listing of scholarships and awards at http://safa.uwaterloo.ca.

UPCOMING Friday, October 24, 2008 Faust, Part1: presented in German and English by the Shadow Puppet Theatre of Kitchener-Waterloo and the Waterloo Centre for German Studies, www.wcgs.ca in conjunction with live scenes in German by the Laurier German Drama Group at 8 p.m. and Saturday, October 25 at 2 p.m., Humanities Studio Theatre, HH180, UW. Rummage sale, houseplants and Christmas treasures at First United Church, King and William Streets, Waterloo from 3 to 7 p.m. Saturday, October 25 from 9 to 11 a.m.

Tuesday, October 28, 2008 Arts Endowment Fund annual general meeting at 2 p.m., Hagey Hall room 336. Food will be served.

For more info please visit AEF.uwaterloo.ca.

Thursday, October 30, 2008 FREE wheelchair clinic from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. at Shamrock Cooperative Home, 446 Kingscourt Drive, Waterloo, (in Helen Hall). For info 519885-6640.

Career Night – UW Speech Communications invites you to Career Night where you will have the opportunity to hear from, meet and network with leaders from a variety of organizations. The Festival Room, South Campus Hall, 2nd floor at 7 p.m.

Thursday, November 6, 2008 FemFest 2008 fundraiser – a celebration of women – from 6:30 to 10:30 p.m. at the Schwaben Club, Kitchener. Come for an evening of free pampering and do some shopping in our silent auction. Check out www.sascwr.org for ticket and event details.

Friday, November 7, 2008 Lessingfest: 11:30 a.m. to 8 p.m. Contact Prof John for more info at djohn@uwaterloo.ca.

Saturday, November 8, 2008 Free Psoriasis Education and Assessment session from 10 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. will be presented by Dr. Kim Papp. Call 1-866-639-1119 to register/info or www.psoriasisconnections.ca.

CAREER SERVICES WORKSHOPS

Monday, October 27, 2008 Career Interest Assessment – 2:30 to 4 p.m., TC 1112.

Tuesday, October 28, 2008 Interview Skills: Preparing for Questions – 2:30 to 4 p.m., TC 1208 Wednesday, October 29, 2008 Are You Thinking about an International Experience? – 12 to 1:30 p.m., TC 1208.

Interview Skills: Selling Your Skills – 2:30 to 4:30 p.m., TC 1208.

Thursday, October 30, 2008 Work Search Strategies – 2:30 to 4 p.m., TC 1208.

Monday, November 3, 2008 Writing CVs and Cover Letters – 12 to 1:30 p.m., TC 2218. Registration go to the CTE website: www.cte.uwaterloo.ca/events_registration/CUT_ events.html) Work Search Strategies for International Students – 4:30 to 6 p.m., TC 1208.

Tuesday, November 4, 2008 Exploring Your Personality Type, Part I – 10:30 a.m. to 12 p.m., TC 1112. $10 material charge payable to Career Services prior to the first session.

Second session November 11, 10:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m., TC 1112. Once you have registered you will be given information on how to complete the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI) online.

Are You Thinking About Dental School? – 4:30 to 6 p.m., TC 1208.

Thursday, November 6, 2008 Business Etiquette and Professionalism – 3:30 to 4:30 p.m., TC 1208.

Monday November 10, 2008 Working Effectively in Another Culture – 3 to 4:30 p.m., TC 1208.

Tuesday, November 11, 2008 Exploring Your Personality Type, Part II – 10:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m., TC 1112. Once you have registered you will be given information on how to complete the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI) online. $10 material charge payable to Career Services prior to the first session.

Interview Skills: Preparing for Questions – 3:30 to 5 p.m., TC 1208.

Wednesday, November 12, 2008 Successfully Negotiating Job Offers – 4:30 to 5:30 p.m., TC 1208.

Imprint, Friday, October 24, 2008 ads@imprint.uwaterloo.ca

ONGOING

LOST & FOUND

THURSDAYS “in conjunction with FINE 290’?” – ECH 1220 at 6:30 p.m. Free - all are welcome!

October 30 – “Fire” – 104 minutes. Provoking riots at its screenings in Bombay and New Delhi, Fire portrays a dysfunctional Indian family and two women who develop an affinity for each other in the midst of familial chaos.

November 6 – “I am My Own Woman” – 90 minutes. A true story of a transvestite who struggles through Nazi Germany and post-war Germany.

November 13 – “Iron Ladies” – 104 minutes. Hilarious comedy based on the true story of Thailand’s popular top-ranked volleyball team.

November 20 – “Shinjuku Boys” – 53 minutes.

A docmentary, this film provides a glimpse into a transvestite bar in Tokyo.

Whomever found lost credit card and turned it in September 19 please email proudy1717@yahoo. ca to receive “thanks.” $100 REWARD – for lost gold ring, has three cubic zirconia stones, black, yellow and orange. If found please contact s_grieco@hotmail.com or 519-227-0795. Cash reward up front, no questions asked.

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Young athletes 15–30 years – hockey, soccer, speedskating, rowing for National Cycling Development Program. Men and women welcome. Introductory camp in October. Contact Dina at info@ForestCityVelodrome.ca or www.ForestCityVelodrome.ca.

PERSONALS

SERVICES Just opened! Looking for something different?

Come and visit a unique store at 76 Regina Street, N. “Whispering Willows” has something for everyone – inspirational books and gifts, jewellery, tarot and angel cards, relaxation CDs and DVDs, candles, aromatherapy oils, crystals, wands and much more! Take time to refresh your spirit – Reiki and Reflexology by appointment. Open Tuesday to Saturday at 10 a.m. 519-747-4777.

Professional Go-For Service – don’t have time?

Need a second pair of hands? Dog walking, picking up dry-cleaning, groceries, Senior Services, are just a few of the many helpful services that is offered.

Call Sheila at 519-590-4103 or progo-forservice@ hotmail.com.

HOUSING Attention Cambridge School of Architecture students! Live conveniently and comfortably right across the street from school in this beautifully renovated apartment. 4, 8 and 12-month leases available with excellent signing bonuses and rental incentives! Call Darlene or Joanne at 519-7461411 for more details.

HELP WANTED Weekend counsellors and relief staff to work in homes for individuals with developmental challenges. Minimum eight-month commitment.

Paid positions. Send resume to Don Mader, K-W Habilitation Services, 108 Sydney Street, Kitchener, ON, N2G 3V2.

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Science & Technology

Imprint, Friday, October 24, 2008 science@imprint.uwaterloo.ca

The sagging story of breast implants

E

ver heard of cosmetic surgery financing plans? Me neither, but apparently they’re all the rage in plastic surgery. Over the years, cosmetic surgery has followed a radical path — what once was available only to the elite has become a cultural commodity. Particularly widespread are breast implants, a cosmetic surgery using prostheses to modify or reconstruct the appearance and feel of the breasts. The recent migration toward breast augmentation for the sake of beauty versus physical necessity, such as after the removal of a breast or both breasts due to cancer, has been greatly fuelled by the lowered cost of breast implants. However, it is still surprising to see such widespread use of something that was originally used as part of breast reconstruction options for cancer patients.

Breast implants. At the sight of these words, it is no longer Pamela Anderson’s ample bosom that pops into one’s mind; today, breast implants are a commonplace reality.

In 2006, the American Society of Plastic Surgeons (ASPS) reported that 329,000 women underwent breast augmentation that year alone, making it more popular than rhinoplasty (nose reconstruction), liposuction, and abdominoplasty (tummy tuck).

This number, of course, should not be misinterpreted as an indication of cultural vanity, as breast augmentation can be a part of physiological postbreast cancer reconstruction. The goal of the procedure, for this purpose, is to reconstruct a woman’s self-esteem

Wael Elsweisi staff reporter

Aspirin use found ineffective for certain diabetics

Doctors know it all too well: if you’re diabetic, take one pill of aspirin every day to minimize your chance of developing heart disease and strokes. After all, 80 per cent of diabetics die as a result of various cardiovascular problems.

However, a recent University of Dundee, Scotland study tracking 1,300 adults concluded otherwise. It found that diabetics with no symptoms of heart problems receive no benefit from aspirin. In fact, they end up hospitalized for stomach bleeds, which is a common side effect of prolonged aspirin use.

The study does point out, though, that aspirin use does benefit those diabetics with a history of heart diseases; it can lower the risk of future “events” by around 25 per cent.

“This study adds weight to the evidence that aspirin should not be prescribed to prevent disease of the heart and circulation to people with diabetes, and other high risk groups, who do not already have symptoms of the disease,” Judy O’Sullivan of the British Heart Foundation told the British Medical Journal, where the study is published.

Possible success in our hunt for new antibiotics

It has long been known that our improper use of antibiotics has led to the emergence of many antibiotic-resistant strains of bacteria. After a long hunt, a group of researchers have recently

by reconstructing her body to what is a satisfactory image to her.

In Canada, breast surgery costs anywhere between $5,000–$9,000, according to canadaba.ca, a site dedicated to connecting individuals with Canadian surgeons and the required information to make an informed choice about breast augmentation.

Much like car or furniture sites, the website also offers financing plans

placement will be partially under the pectoralis major muscle or on top of it and under the breast glands. Each location has its own advantages and possible complications applicable to different body builds — hence the amount of discretion available in the procedure, creating a customized fit for the patient. Lastly, one of the primary choices must be the type of implant that is to be inserted. In

natural feeling that women seek when considering breast augmentation. On the downside, this type of implant needs a bigger incision — between 4.5–5 centimetres, usually placed under the fold of the breast.

Although the stipulations of breast augmentation are promising, the potential complications are a bit hard to swallow. INAMED Aesthetics’ “Looking Your Best” website

The question of the morality of breast implants is always controversial: it engages female liberty just as much as it does contemporary beauty standards. for plastic surgery patients through MediCard, which provides “patient financing for elective medical procedures,” according to the official website. Their advertisement proudly reads: “Nose - $87 per month*, lips - $50 per month*, breast augmentation - $115 per month*, tummy tuck - $120 per month*, liposuction - $80 per month*,” conveying the message that cosmetic procedures are an affordable option for the public.

The general procedure for breast surgery is not hard to understand.

There are usually three incision sites available to the patient — auxiliary (under the arm), periareolar (around the nipple), and inframammary (within the breast fold). After the incision type is chosen at the discretion of the surgeon and the patient, it is time for the parties to discuss whether the

announced their discovery of three compounds that would make up a new class of antibiotics: myxopyronin, corallopyronin, and ripostatin.

“The three antibiotics are attractive candidates for development as broadspectrum antibacterial agents,” said Richard Ebright of Rutgers University in New Brunswick, New Jersey.

The three agents work by blocking an enzyme that is essential for their ability to grow, basically killing them. All three agents are naturally produced by some bacteria as a way of outcompeting their rivals for nutrients and daily survival.

Childhood intelligence linked with alcohol consumption

Some may think otherwise, but a recent study has linked higher intelligence scores in childhood with higher alcohol consumption and related problems in adulthood.

The University of Glasgow study has compared mental ability scores of 8,170 boys and girls at the age of 10 with their alcohol consumption and related problems at the age of 30.

The study concluded that for every 15-point increase in mental score, the likelihood of drinking problems increased 1.38 times for women, but only 1.17 times for men. More research is needed to explain this “unexpected” finding. The study is published in the American Journal of Public Health. welsweisi@imprint.uwaterloo.ca

— With files from BBC News, MSNBC News, and the Globe and Mail

Canada the choice is usually between saline-filled breast implants and silicone-filled breast implants, which were taken off the market in 1992 by Health Canada; later research showed there were no atypical health treats from the use of silicone implants for breast augmentation, and they have since become readily available to the public once again. In October 2006, Health Canada issued licences to two companies — Allegran and Mentor Medical Systems — and these remain the only legal Canadian silicone breast implant marketers in Canada.

Generally, saline-filled breast implant have a silicone elastomer shell, which is inserted into the breast cavity and then filled with the saline fluid.

The advantage of this type of implant is that in the case of rupture the liquid is easily and safely absorbed by the body. Silicone-filled breast implants have the same shell, only they are filled with a silicone gel, which is more cohesive than ever before and have the

aims to connect customers to its selection of plastic surgeons as well as provide medical infromation about their services. The website lists 13 potential complications, but for the purposes of this article, I will discuss only two of them: deflation/rupture and breast-feeding concerns.

Breast implant rupture and deflation occur when the shell of the salinefilled implant ruptures, releasing the liquid into the body. An FDA study showed that over half of silicone breast implant recipients that had the surgery done 6 to 10 years ago, and 80 per cent of those who have had the implants for 10 to 15 years, will experience at least one broken implant, and 21 per cent will have their implants migrate to another part of their body.

A broken implant requires surgery for removal and elective replacement of the ruptured implant.

Concerning breast-feeding, Dr. Marianne Neifert and colleagues at the Colorado School of Medicine

Taylor Helferty

to hide both the cloak and the object inside. Metamaterials are materials made out of artificial atoms, or meta-atoms, which are smaller than the wavelengths of light.

In an experiment, the researchers from Purdue University, Indiana, used tiny needles sticking out of a central spoke to bend light around an object inside. It does this by decreasing the refraction of the light to nearly zero.

Not only did they find out how to bend the light, but they can also concentrate light in one area. With this sort of technology, not only could they make things invisible, they could make optical telescopes that could render DNA visible to the naked eye.

Don’t expect invisibility cloaks to be a consumer product any time soon, but maybe, far enough in the future, Harry Potter conventions will be a little too realistic.

staff writer

Lights that transmit data

We all know that LED lights are nice, efficient, and can do a lot of things that compact fluorescent can’t. Now it seems there’s something else they can do quite well: transmit data. Picture being on campus and having the light in the ceiling above you transmit the wireless signal for your internet to your laptop.

Wherever there is light, there is highspeed internet. This would replace the need for routers and consume even less energy. This ability to transfer information comes from how the lights cycle on and off millions of times per second.

Even with its advantages, however, it also has disadvantages, such as not being able to go through walls or any shadows. If a piece of paper blocked your laptop from the light, the signal would cut. As well, lights would always need to be on. Is this something to be improved and developed for future use? Definitely.

Real invisibility cloak

Most people who read Harry Potter probably wished they had an invisibility cloak, and within five years that may become an actual possibility. Using nanotechnology, metamaterials, and Einstein’s theory of general relativity, the cloak will bend light around itself

New MacBooks boast green credentials

Apple has seems more devoted to advertising their computers green score lately, and the new MacBook — already gaining a lot of hype — is said to be at the top of its game in this department.

The slick new look everyone seems to be talking about is made from a single piece of recyclable aluminum.

The new enclosure uses 41 per cent less packaging, the LED screen uses

conducted a study — the results of which showed that having any kind of breast surgery, including breast augmentation, makes it three times more likely that a woman will be unable to provide an adequate amount of milk when breast-feeding. The rate of women experiencing lactation deficiency after breast surgery is 64 per cent in comparison to women without implants, according to a study by Nancy Hurst, R.N. at Texas Children’s Hospital. From multiple research projects, it is also evident that those subject to surgeries that access the breast with a periareolar incision (the area around the nipple), have a higher probability of difficulty breast-feeding.

Another concern about breastfeeding involves silicone contamination in the milk. Although this concern is certainly a serious one, contemporary research lacks proof of notable silicone contamination in breast milk nearly as much as it lacks studies showing the milk is safe for infant consumption. Considering the vast amounts of women seeking breast augmentation surgery each year, this topic is certainly in need of nationwide research.

The question of the morality of breast implants is always controversial: it engages female liberty just as much as it does contemporary beauty standards. Of course, some would argue that along with cup size the female ego inflates. My question is, why do esteem workshops cease to suffice?

Feel free to send lengthy rhetoric on this topic to my e-mail. alomako@imprint.uwatelroo.ca

30 per cent less energy, and the parts hold no mercury, arsenic, brominated flame retardents, or PVCs. After its life is over, Apple will take it back and recycle it. With Apple making itself such a huge influence in the computer and technology world, influencing green technology is a great step for advocating the harmony of technology and the environment.

Hottest ever planet found

At 2250°C, Wasp-12b is the hottest known planet. It’s half the temperature of the Sun and it orbits around its own sun at 1/40th the distance that Earth is from the Sun. It is also one and a half times the size of Jupiter.

Wasp-12b just beat out another recently discovered warm planet called HD 149026b, which is 2040°C. Another amazing feat this planet boasts is that it can orbit around its sun in just over a day, while normally planets at that distance take at least three.

This is a fairly important find when understanding relations between planets and stars, and the temperature is astounding. I can already hear all the science nerds using it for a new cheesy pick-up line at Bomber: “Is your name Wasp-12b? Because you’re the hottest thing in my universe.” thelferty@imprint.uwaterloo.ca

Science & Technology

Imprint, Friday, October 24, 2008

23

Enough excuses W

e’ve all heard about the ongoing debate between bottled water and tap water, to the point where it’s become so redundant it goes through one ear and out the other. However, it’s redundant for a

water is about $1.20, while the same in bottled water is about $2,000. Not only are we paying for the water, but also for the production, disposal, recycling, and landfill burial (60 to 80 per cent of water bottles are not recycled).

Suzuki said about this, “I don’t believe for a minute that French water is better than Canadian water. I think that we’ve got to drink the water that comes out of our taps, and if we don’t trust it, we ought to be raising hell about that.”

...46 per cent of households in the Waterloo Region chose bottled water over tap water, making us the biggest consumers of bottled water per capita in Canada. reason. It’s regularly brought up because it is an issue that too few people are following.

In July 2007, a Statistics Canada survey found that 46 per cent of households in the Waterloo Region chose bottled water over tap water, making us the biggest consumers of bottled water per capita in Canada. Living in Ron Eydt Village last year, I saw cases of bottled water in many of the rooms, when right down the hall was a big sink with clean and tasty water. Bottled water has become socially accepted, like a cup of coffee in the morning, when it shouldn’t be. The following is why — and even if you’ve heard it a million times before, listen once more and maybe learn something you zoned out on before.

The Canadian Bottled Water Association defines bottled water as “water sold to customers in sealed containers.”

Straightforward, but then they go on to say that it must be “sealed in a sanitary container and must meet all applicable federal and provincial regulations for drinking water.” This second part of the definition has not been completely fulfilled. Studies have shown huge holes in the regulation of bottled water quality and prove that it is sometimes no better than tap water (if not worse), or is, in fact, tap water put into a bottle. Many of the regulations around bottled water are lax, and there is very little testing done. This, coupled with the fact that we pay 300 to 3,000 times more for bottled water than we do the same amount of tap water, makes bottled water one of the biggest ripoffs in history. 1,000 litres of tap

Health problems also come along with the bottles, like PET. PET — or polyethylene terephthalate — leaches the toxin antimony into water. This level gets higher the longer water stays in the bottle. Antimony has the same toxic effects on the body as arsenic does, and can be fatal if the amount is too high.

It is also important to note that because bottled water is not fluoridated, it does not protect against dental problems.

Similar health problems were found in Nalgenes, but they are being addressed and you can always get stainless steel.

Bottled water doesn’t just affect our health, but also the environment. Yes plastic is recyclable, but that are tons of bottles thrown into garbage containers.

Let me put this in terms of oil usage, since that’ll give all you drivers a good idea of what’s being wasted: one bottle of water takes about one quarter of that bottle in oil to be produced. This is from the plastic production, transporting the bottles, dealing with the waste, and even filling the bottles. Additionally, the industry pumps about 2.3 million tons of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere each year. According to the Canadian Bottled Water Association, water can’t be drawn from local water supplies, so this means not only are we drawing water from the ground for cleaning and toilets, but from other sources of valuable ground water for purchasing separately. Basically, buying bottled water means you’re drawing from two different wells, and the second well probably isn’t even in your country.

People buy bottled water that’s shipped from France. It’s ridiculous. As David

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ally very safe, and cases like the one in Walkerton where E-coli was found are incredibly rare. Many people thought the massive amounts of extra security in airports after 9/11 was an overreaction; what about not trusting our own tap water after a single unfortunate incident? The tap water in the Waterloo region undergoes 120 different quality tests, and over 10,000 of those tests are performed every year. I don’t think much is getting into our water without us noticing.

So here’s a way for everyone to save

money, oil, the environment, and even health: buy a stainless steel water bottle or one of the newer BPA free Nalgene bottles, and every morning fill it from the tap. I’ve heard the excuse from people buying bottled water that they reuse that bottle by filling it at the tap.

That’s nice, but here’s a better idea: fill an actual reusable water bottle at the tap from the start, instead of buying one every time. It’s cheaper and safer for both you and the environment. thelferty@imprint.uwaterloo.ca

Waterloo

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Department of Psychology, University of Waterloo

VOLUNTEERS NEEDED FOR RESEARCH STUDY ON MONEY

We are looking for volunteers to complete a study examining how people view and evaluate money.

HPR Canada is a Clinical Research Organization with a new, state-of-the-art facility in downtown Kitchener.

HPR Canada is looking for healthy male and female volunteers between the ages of 18-55 to participate in upcoming clinical trials. All studies adhere to strict guidelines regulated under the Therapeutics Products Directorate (TPD) in Canada.

The study will take approximately 2 hours to complete and will take place on campus. Normal or correctedto-normal vision and fluency in English is required.

Participants will be compensated for their time.

In appreciation of your time, you will receive $75.00.

All information is confidential and you will be only contacted for screening purposes. All participants must undergo an Informed Consent procedure, during which they are informed of their rights and obligations, potential side effects and other study details.

If you are a non-smoker and are interested in learning more, please email your contact information including name, gender, age, height, weight, email address and phone number to participants@hprcanada.com.

Please visit "HPR Canada" on Facebook.

If you are interested, please call the recruiting agency, Viewfinders Research, at 1-888-592-0059 to see if you are eligible.

This is Phase 2 of the research study; if you participated in April 2008 you are not eligible for this current study.

Thank you!

260 King Street West, Suite 100, Kitchener, ON Canada N2G 1B6

This study has been reviewed by, and has received ethics clearance through the Office of Research Ethics, University of Waterloo.

Sports & Living

Imprint, Friday, October 24, 2008 sports@imprint.uwaterloo.ca

Tina Ironstone sports and living assistant editor

T

his past weekend UW hosted the 41st Naismith Classic Basketball Tournament. The tournament was held in the PAC where men’s and women’s basketball teams from York University, the University of Quebec at Montreal (UQAM), the University of Waterloo, and the University of Alberta came to play against one another. As we all know, in tournaments there are those who lose and those who become victorious — and the Warriors men’s team was definitely the victors. The last two times the Warriors won the tournament they went on to Nationals.

At this year’s Naismith Classic, the Warriors won each game they played despite slow starts in their first two games. Last year when the Warriors played Alberta they lost by 30 points, but this year when they met again the Warriors wiped the floor with the Alberta team.

The Warriors men dominated on the court, securing a win for Waterloo by 20 points over the Alberta team.

The Warriors played like a single unit and proved that they really do have a fighting spirit. The team presented a united front and benefited from every player on the court. For every game during the tournament, there were three or four different players that were very strong on the court whether it was in defence or on offence.

The beginnings of the first few games however were not a proper representative of how the rest of the game went. Imprint spoke with men’s basketball Warrior Matt Hayes, who said that “the first two games did not start well but during the second half we really reclaimed ourselves on the court.”

The Warriors were down by 14 points during the Alberta match — the team’s second match of the tournament — in the first half but were able to come back in the second half and kick butt. They ended up winning that game along with their other two games of the tournament.

The first game of the tournament (against UQAM) ended with the Warriors at 84 points and UQAM at 79. The third and final game (against York) ended with the Warriors at 70 points and York at 68 — leaving the Warriors the undisputed champions of the tournament.

This win is the Warriors’ 11th Naismith title.

Going into the tournament Hayes mentioned that the team was 1 – 3 in exhibition games, but after winning they now feel more confident as a team as well as with the offence, coaching and each other. The team has had a rough couple of years and this seems to be their turning point. They’re making a solid effort, fully using their resources on the court, have a healthy respect for one another, and have some great coaching.

The Warriors’ efforts include rigorous practice. The Warriors practice ritual involves practising everyday. They practise lighter after a game and then increase their efforts up until the day before the game. They play scrimmage matches and try out different play strategies to

HOOP

dreams reached at Naismith Classic as men bring home

see what works well and what doesn’t.

Amongst the hard work and dedication which definitely contributed to the Warriors win, the team also holds some belief in superstitions. One of the superstitions involves some members on the team growing beards and not shaving them until they lose. Another superstition is not wearing shoes from the last game if that game was lost.

This team has definitely found the recipe for success and has a great level of respect for each other, this year especially. At the Naismith one player is typically selected to be on the All Star team — which means they are awarded swag like mugs and shirts, and get the bragging rights of being a prestigious Naismith All Star — and the men’s Warriors had two players selected to be All Stars. One of these players was the MVP of the tournament. The UW skilled players were Cam McIntyre, Dan White, and the tournament MVP was Luke Kieswetter.

The Warrior women’s all star player was Laura Becottte. She really played hard on the court. She was the best “all-around effort.” according to coach Tyler Slipp, meaning she was great offensively and on defence.

Despite their best team efforts, the Warrior’s team did not fare as well at Naismith. The women had a great deal of injuries and a lack

Friday Night @

Warrior Hockey Residence Shooting Challenge Shoot for Tuition

GOLD

of consistency holding them back at the tournament. The injured or semi-injured list outweighed the amount of healthy players, which was definitely a factor in their performance.

Despite losing all their games, the team had moments of greatness, which unfortunately fell into the inconsistency. Just as the team would have some amazing on court moments, they would also have poor stretches in which they failed to do what they needed to do as a team.

Slipp summed what he thought of the tournament and its results: “It wasn’t the results we were looking for on the weekend, but what was more important was that it let us know what [the women] needed to work for in the upcoming league games next week.” He also added at the end, “I think there were flashes of great basketball played.” Overall the teams put forth a great effort and were presented with some learning opportunities that should help them as they grow as a team. cironstone@imprint.uwaterloo.ca

October 17 & 18

October 23

vs Lakehead

vs Western

7:30 PM CIF Arena

7:30 PM CIF Arena

Warrior Football

Warrior [W] Hockey

October 18

October 18

1:00 PM, Warrior Field

2:00 PM, CIF Arena

vs Queen,s Gaels Warrior Soccer October 18

vs McMaster Marauders

vs Windsor Lancers

Tiffany Terrier Golf 3rd year, Engineering Toronto, ON

vs Western Mustangs 2:00 PM, CIF Arena

Luke Balch

October 19

[M] 1:00 & [W] 3:15 PM CIF Field #2

Athletes of the Week

October 19

[M] 1:00 & [W] 3:15 PM CIF Field #2

vs Brock Badgers

IMPRINT | OCTOBER 17

courtesy uw athletics

Above: Warriors men’s basketball team netted an undisputed victory at the Naismith Classic basketball tournament.

Right: Kimberly Lee (top) and Katie Beaucock (bottom) go down fighting, losing all three of their games, but putting in a valiant effort.

Football Registered trademarks of Boston Pizza Royalties Limited Partnership, used under license. © Boston Pizza International Inc. 2005

3rd year, Recreation London, ON

Sports & Living

Imprint, Friday, October 24, 2008

Warrior Wrap-up

25

Game Recaps Women’s Basketball Friday, October 17 UQAM 61 Waterloo 55

Saturday, October 18 Laurier 61 Waterloo 56

Men’s Basketball Friday, October 17 Waterloo 84 UQAM 79 Saturday, October 18 Waterloo 82 Alberta 66 Sunday, October 19 Waterloo 70 York 68

Men’s Rugby

Saturday, October 18 McMaster 34 Waterloo 7

Women’s Soccer

Women’s Hockey

Saturday, October 18 McMaster 5 Waterloo 0

Saturday, October 18 Waterloo 3 Windsor 1

Sunday, October 19 Brock 2 Waterloo 0

Sunday, October 19 Waterloo 3 Western 2

Men’s Soccer

Men’s Hockey

Saturday, October 18 Waterloo 1 McMaster 0 Sunday, October 19 Waterloo 0 Brock 0

Field Hockey

Friday, October 17 Waterloo 7 Lakehead 5 Saturday, October 18 Lakehead 2 Waterloo 1

Football

Saturday, October 18 Waterloo 1 McGill 0 Waterloo 2 Queen’s 0

Saturday, October 18 Queen’s 38 Waterloo 22

Sunday, October 19 Carleton 1 Waterloo 0 York 3 Waterloo 0

Sunday, October 19 Western 7 Waterloo 6

Badminton

Upcoming Games Men’s Hockey

Women’s Basketball

Friday, October 24 At Windsor, 7:05 p.m.

Saturday, October 25 vs. Laurentian, 6:00 p.m.

Women’s Hockey

Wednesday, October 29 vs. Laurier, 6:00 p.m.

Saturday, October 25 At UOIT, 7:30 p.m.

Sunday, October 26 At Queens, 2:30 p.m.

Men’s Basketball Friday, October 24 to Sunday, October 26 At Laval Tournament

Women’s Volleyball Sunday, October 26 At Lakehead, 2:00 p.m.

Men’s Volleyball Saturday, October 25 At York, 2:00 p.m.

Badminton Saturday, October 25 vs. Toronto, 10:00 a.m.

Men’s Hockey OUA Standings

Far East Division GP W L T OTL PTS 10 0 UQTR 6 5 1 0 8 Carleton 0 5 4 1 0 4 0 Ottawa 5 2 3 0 3 Concordia 4 1 2 0 1 0 McGill 0 3 0 3 0 Far West Division GP W L T OTL PTS 7 Laurier 4 3 0 0 1 6 Western 5 3 2 0 0 5 Windsor 4 2 1 0 1 4 Lakehead 4 2 2 0 0 3 Waterloo 4 1 2 0 1 Mid East Division GP W L T OTL PTS 6 4 3 1 0 0 Toronto 5 Queen’s 5 2 2 0 1 2 4 1 3 0 0 RMC 0 Ryerson 3 0 3 0 0

York Brock Guelph UOIT

Mid West Division GP W L T OTL PTS 6 4 3 1 0 0 6 4 3 1 0 0 4 5 2 3 0 0 3 3 1 1 0 1

Women’s Hockey OUA Standings Toronto Laurier Queen’s Guelph Waterloo York Windsor Brock Western UOIT

GP 6 4 4 3 4 5 6 4 5 5

W 5 4 3 2 2 2 2 1 1 1

L 1 0 1 0 1 3 4 2 4 4

T OTL PTS 10 0 0 8 0 0 6 0 0 5 0 1 5 0 1 4 0 0 4 0 0 3 0 1 2 0 0 2 0 0

Football OUA Standings Queen’s Western Laurier Ottawa Guelph McMaster Windsor Toronto Waterloo York

GP 8 8 8 8 8 8 8 8 8 8

W 8 7 6 4 4 4 3 2 2 0

L 0 1 2 4 4 4 5 6 6 8

T OTL PTS 16 0 0 14 0 0 12 0 0 8 0 0 8 0 0 8 0 0 6 0 0 4 0 0 4 0 0 0 0 0

26

Sports & Living

Imprint, Friday, October 24, 2008

U.S Election

Warriors wage war over the weekend Warrior women have a successful two games after having lost one match and tied another Matt Hayes reporter

T

his past weekend was an enormous step in the right direction for the Waterloo women’s hockey team after two consecutive wins against Windsor and Western.

After beginning the year at 0-1-1 the women’s Warriors hockey team found themselves in a bit of a hole going into two games on October 18 and 19 against Western and Windsor.

The Windsor Lancers played a strong first two periods in the afternoon of October 18, outshooting the Warriors 25 – 13, but strong goaltending from Erica Bridgewater kept the visitors off the scoreboard.

The Warriors made the most of their shots however, and posted two goals from Sarah Bryson and Kelly Maclean to give the Black and Gold a 2 – 0 lead heading into the final period.

The third period was the demise of the Lancers as the Warriors exploded for 18 shots and a second goal by Bryson to secure the game out of reach for the Lancers.

363 King St. N. Waterloo (King & Columbia next to Tito’s Pizza)

519-746-0834

Windsor managed to end shutout hopes late in the game on a power play but Waterloo still walked away with two hard earned points and the victory.

Then on Sunday afternoon, the Warriors welcomed Western to the Columbia Ice Fields in what promised to be yet another exciting tilt on the Warriors’ home ice. The Warriors opened the scoring in the first with a marker from Randi Lynn Wilson at 2:10.

The second period began with Western tying the score, but this sparked an enthusiastic retaliation from Sarah Bryson who fired home two goals for the Black and Gold to give the home team a 3 – 1 lead.

Western managed a goal in the third period, but still fell short in the comeback as the Warriors got their second win of the weekend.

The Warriors’ Sarah Bryson had four goals and one assist on the weekend and Erica Bridgewater managed to turn away 63 of the 66 shots fired upon her.

The Warriors’ next action comes this weekend as the team hits the road to battle UOIT and Queens on Saturday and Sunday.

280 Victoria St. N. Kitchener 519-741-5505

beats Baseball

I

t’s time for the fall classic again and this time it’s the Philadelphia Phillies against the Tampa Bay Rays. You heard that right — the Tampa Bay Rays. I applaud the Rays for getting this far, for winning the AL East, for having their first winning season in team history, and for knocking out Evil Empire number two (the Boston Red Sox).

However, I just can’t muster up the enthusiasm for this World Series, and I’m one of the biggest baseball fans you’ll find.

Maybe it’s just 15 years of frustration boiling over as a Jays fan, but the thought of a Philly-Tampa series just draws a roll of the shoulder from me.

At least when one of the evil empire teams (Yankees and Red Sox) are in the World Series, I’m driven to watch by a pathological desire to see those two teams fail. However, I feel nothing but indifference towards the Phillies and Rays.

They’re not particularly lovable nor especially hateable, thus the result is a mild case of apathy. Instead, I find myself drawn more and more to the sporting spectacle that is the American presidential election.

Elections in the U.S. in many ways resemble a sports grudge match between two bitter rivals. Democrats vs. Republicans is in many ways like the Yankees/Red Sox or Bears/Packers.

The world of partisan politics is one of winners and losers. Politicians even find ways to attack each other over their support of sports teams. John McCain recently criticized Barack Obama over “flip-flopping” support from the Phillies to the Rays. “I

Imprint Office Hours: Monday and Friday 8:30a.m. - 4:30 p.m.

heard that Senator Obama was showing some love to the Rays down in Tampa Bay yesterday. Now, I’m not dumb enough to get mixed up in a World Series between swing states, but I think I may have detected a little pattern with Senator Obama.

It’s pretty simple really. When he’s campaigning in Philadelphia, he roots for the Phillies, and when he’s campaigning in Tampa Bay, he shows love to the Rays,” said McCain while addressing a crowd in Bensalem, Pennslyvania.

Watching the two senators counter-punch each other throughout the campaign is more exhilarating than watching B.J. Upton hammer a Brad Lidge fastball over the wall.

Obama and the Democrats are up 6-4 in the bottom of the eighth, and John McCain is trying to brush Obama back in the batters box with a steady diet of “sweet-chin music” in the form of Ayers, ACORN, and antiAmerican charges.

Obama manages to continuously foul off these pitches and manages to stay alive in the count. A frustrated McCain proceeds to dig into his bag of tricks and starts tossing the curveballs (Obama is a socialist!). Will Obama chase the outside pitch or not?

Don’t get me wrong, I’ll still catch a game or two of the series — haven’t missed a series since 1993 (“touch’em all Joe”).

Don’t intend to miss one now. However, I’ll save my fanboy cheers for the night of November 4, when the World Series of politics happens. yliu@imprint.uwaterloo.ca

email:

sports@imprint.uwaterloo.ca

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Comics & Distractions

Imprint, Friday, October 24, 2008

Crossword

Back by popular demand, here are two crosswords for you: one mostly difficult; the other mostly easy. Pick the skill level you prefer.

Maggie Clark

27

By Matthew Lee

What does the future hold for the left?

Easy Puzzle

Across 1. Element, atom, or group with a valence of eight

“A buffet of options.”

Andrew

6. Multiple mammalian eggs

3B Environment

9. Plead 12. Nazareth native

“Things look grim.”

Cecily 2 Science

14. Poke fun at 15. Big flightless bird 16. He had them forty thieves (two words) 17. Smutty selections

“The left wing should unite.”

Janet 4 Science

19. What the cow says 20. Pottery oven 22. One who fashions objects on a lathe 23. Curve

“It can only improve from here.”

Matt

25. Hero of The Matrix

4A Biomed

26. Not vintage 27. Period in history 29. Peculiar 30. Loopy

59. Communicate silently

66. ___ particle

33. Pieces of advice

62. Banned insecticide

67. Prizes

35. 15 Across, plural

64. One of the seven dwarves

68. No longer working: Abbr.

39. This punctuation really punctuates matters (2) 42. Canadian Executive Council on Addictions

69. River to the North Sea Difficult Puzzle

70. Arab sailing vessels with lateen rigging

Across

Down

43. Choir part

1. Synagogue scroll

1. More correct

44. Premature

6. Take steps

45. Little piggy

9. Adversary

2. Giants legend with 511 career home runs

47. “Come in!”

49. ABCs

12. Hypocrite affecting religious piety (after Moliere)

52. Where most first years are interred

14. Honorarium

5. As if by magic (two words)

53. A multitude of our eleventh letter

15. Haul

6. Astern

57. Louisa May, for one

16. Having a rapid onset

7. A tint of blue

58. Stitches

17. Drawing created by superimposing one sheet over the original image

8. Movie preview

19. Any car, affectionately

10. 28.35 grams

20. Absorbs, with “up”

11. Lasciocampidae moth

22. Length of time allowed for payment of foreign bill of exchange

12. Undertaking

60. Free of all average 61. A saintly dog 63. Pillaging 65. Mimic 66. Silent assent 67. Glut

23. Where the sidewalk ends, if you’re British

3. Regrets 4. Not sinking

13. Have a hankering 18. Cougar

68. “___ Loves You” 69. Approx.

26. Correspondence sent by snail mail

24. Auden’s museum, after Breughel’s The Fall of Icarus

70. The cha-cha, for one

27. C4H8O2, e.g.

28. Paul McCartney, for one

Down

29. Part of B.C.E.

30. Balaam’s mount

1. Owner of one pretty famous belt

30. Very, in music

31. Idled

2. Taxi

33. It’s a long story

32. Hog haven

3. Furniture wood

35. O. Henry’s “The Gift of the ___”

34. Intensifier like blasted

4. White rat, e.g.

39. The point at which the maximum quantity of a substance has been absorbed

36. Look through a scope

6. Load from a lode 7. Musical genius

42. Fill in the blanks: Acheron, Cocytus, Phlegethon, Lethe, and ____.

43. Duck’s home

21. Teatime tools

37. Bearded antelope 38. One of English’s most misspelled words 40. Brief, pithy insight

8. Be plentiful

44. Material in soil lending it its dark brown colour

9. Existence

45. Volcanic fallout

46. Treeless plain

10. Run the show

47. Astronomer Hubble

48. Sound of air

11. Someone who keeps watch

49. City in Portugal noted for port wine

49. Grouchy Muppet

12. Metrical foot

52. Arena shout

50. Chessman

13. Gin flavoring

53. Bulletin board fastener

51. Commencement

18. A protected product name or symbol

57. To densify by heat without melting

54. Right hands

21. Baseball games with no hits (hyphenated)

58. Urban haze

55. Pull an all-nighter

60. Embitterment

56. Custodian’s collection

61. Chamber in which sewage is collected

59. BASIC command (two words)

28. Burmese currency

63. Midday

62. Sequel to “Angela’s Ashes”

30. Twelfth month, abbr.

65. Crackerjack

64. Fresh

24. What the American economy is undergoing

41. Fourth-to-last Greek letter

31. Logger’s tool 32. Food Chemicals Codex 34. Settled in new territory 36. Deface 37. WWW address 38. Shade of blue 40. Distinguished musicians 41. Born of a different name, female abbr.

46. Liquid hydrocarbon found in petroleum 48. National language of Botswana 49. Rum cakes 50. First Hebrew letter 51. Broken rocks at the bottom of a cliffs 54. All excited 55. Yin’s opposite 56. Herb in stuffing

October 17 solutions editor@imprint.uwaterloo.ca

2A Arts

“They should draw young people back into the political arena.”

Ben

3B Nanotech

“It will be a while before there’s enough support.”

Sarah 1A Psychology “The left is being thrashed. I blame Dion.”

Morgan 1A Arts

Photos by Matthew Lee

9. Sparks when struck against steel

25. “If the ___ is concealed, it succeeds”: Ovid

5. Pertaining to the exchange of arguments and counterarguments

“They need a strong leader.”

Omar

Josh, you could cut the tension in our office with a knife. I was thinking some night we close the door -- menage a trois? Just kidding... unless you’re down with that.

- L and R To my Sexy Serbian, I saw you at the Vault two thursdays ago. I heard you talking and your accent makes me hot. Hey Softy, we should hook up sometime. I can be your Eva Longoria. <3 AC of YMCA Niagara Falls. We met over frosh week where we had oh so much fun! All the *JUICY* stories and Bret impressions. Anyways, you know who I am. Talk to me the next time you see me, if that’s what you’re

into.You know you love me, xoxo. Gossip Girl.

Dear stupid driver: When you stopped to let me cross Ring Road, it took longer for you to stop and me to figure out what you were doing than it would have taken for you to get past me without slowing down. So your pathetic attempt to be nice slowed both of us down.

Please don’t do it again.

- Annoyed pedestrian.

Missed a connection? Get on it! Email distractions@imprint.uwaterloo.ca

28

Comics & Distractions

POSTSCRIPT

Imprint, Friday, October 24, 2008

BY GRAHAM MOOGK-SOULIS

IMPRESSION, BY JIM & LAN

LOOSE SCREWS

BY KURTIS ELTON

BY GEOFFREY LEE & SONIA LEE

IN THE WEEDS

BY MATT FIG, BRANDON FORLER, AND KEEGAN TREMBLAY

RUNAWAY RINGTOSS

BY PETER N. TRINH