Issue 24 - March 22 2012

Spaced out on sensation at the Rocky Horror Show. Page 4 ˚Recipe for stuffed peppers and the bloat of racism in America Page 5˚ The Hunger Games leaves our critic craving more. Page 7

the newspaper The University of Toronto’s Independent Weekly

Since 1978

VOL XXXIV Issue 24 • March 22, 2012

When is it right to step in?

Former diplomat Fowler and Ignatieff discuss humanitarian intervention and explore the morally ambiguous world of international diplomacy

SAMANTHA CHIUSOLO

A thirty-eight-year career in diplomacy has taught Robert Fowler an important lesson: to distrust lofty foreign policy goals and ambitious humanitarian missions. Keynote speaker at the 19th Walter Gordon Symposium held at the Isabel Bader Theatre on Tuesday, he sparred with fellow panelist Professor Michael Ignatieff over what role Canada should be playing in the world.

Fowler, a self-described “unreformed iconoclastic curmudgeon,” argued that Canada’s response to international crises should be more carefully circumscribed. He recommended that any decision to intervene

U of T to continue live monkey research

in a foreign conflict should be based on a sober “cost-benefit analysis,” weighing the price of the mission against its potential for saving lives. “Does this mean setting an arbitrary value on human life?” he said. “Of course it does. But no one wants to acknowledge such a reality – or, indeed, that the values vary.”

Sadly, in some circumstances, humanitarian intervention simply isn’t worth it. “Would I suggest that Canada or anybody else go into Somalia to try and fix it now? No. What I would say to the Somalians is ‘I’m sorry, but not today.’”

“I regret to say there are hugely wrenching, difficult situations that we can’t fix,” he added.

Other crises are preventable,

however. After bearing witness to the Rwandan genocide in May 1994, Fowler, then Canada’s deputy minister of national defence, wrote a memo urging the government to intervene. His recommendations were rejected with the terse note: “Canada has no interests in Central Africa.”

If more troops had been sent to Rwanda with a mandate to stop the genocide, the slaughter of 800,000 Tutsis and Hutu sympathizers could have been avoided, Fowler said.

Michael Ignatieff criticized Fowler’s rather cynical outlook on humanitarian intervention on two points. Ignatieff pointed out that the cost of doing nothing can be much greater than

^

Geoffrey Vendeville

see page 2

Inside this issue

Elena Churilova After the University of Toronto euthanized its last two macaque test subjects in February, it seemed that non-human primate research at the university would come to an end. Professor Peter Lewis, associate vice-president of research at U of T, then told the Toronto Star that the ma-

caques “were our very last ‘nonhuman’ primates and we have no intention of using any more.

Technology now lets us get the same information from smaller animals.”

However, in an email sent to the international journal Nature two weeks ago, Lewis said that U of T would continue to accept research proposals involving ex-

periments on monkeys.

When asked to explain the apparent shift in U of T policy, Lewis suggested that his earlier statement had been misinterpreted. “There has been no change in the university’s position on the use of any species of animal, including non-human

see page 3

NICK RAGETLI

“There has been no change in the University’s position,” says university’s VP of research

‘Animal research at U of T is both ethically and scientifically wrong,’ says president of the university’s animal rights club.

page 3

2

THE NEWS

from ‘step in’ the price of intervention, as in Rwanda. He also suggested that the “cost-benefit” approach to peacekeeping missions precluded an active foreign policy. “Your emphasis is constantly on reacting to specific situations. Does that foreclose the possibility of something more proactive?” he said.

A central bone of contention in the discussion was the concept of the “responsibility to

March 22, 2012 protect,” which established a set of criteria and explained the justification for humanitarian intervention. Although it is often described as one of the greatest achievements of Canadian foreign policy in the last decade, to Fowler, the responsibility to protect is a pipe dream. “R2P, the responsibility to protect, is a very pretty idea whose time will not come soon,” he said. “I wish I lived in a world that would operationalize and espouse such a concept. But I don’t, and nor do

you.”

Speaking to the newspaper after the lecture, Fowler elaborated on his view of Canada’s role in the world. “Canada could be doing a hell of a lot more,” he concluded.

The Walter Gordon Symposium is sponsored by Massey College and the School of Public Policy & Governance. For more information, visit the Events section of masseycollege. ca.

North Borden Building, 2nd Floor 563 Spadina, north of College Opening reception: March 30, 7-10 Gallery Hours: March 31, April 1, 11-5

the newspaper the newspaper is the University of Toronto’s independent weekly paper, published since 1978.

VOL XXXIV No. 24 Editor-in-Chief Cara Sabatini

Design Editor Samantha Chiusolo

News Editor Geoff Vendeville

Illustrations Editor Nick Ragetli

Associate News Editor Yukon Damov

Contributors Suzanna Balabuch, Bodi Bold, Samantha Chiusolo, Dan Christensen, Elena Churilova, Vanessa Purdy, Nick Ragetli, Tanya Robinson, Eli Terlson, Geoff Vendeville, Andrew Walt, Paul York.

Features Editor Talia Gordon Arts Editor Vanessa Purdy Photo Editor Bodi Bold Web Editor Andrew Walt

the newspaper 1 Spadina Crescent Suite 245 Toronto, ON M5S 1A1

Board of Directors: Chairman Suzanna Balabuch Treasurer Helene Goderis

Editorial: 416-593-1552 thenewspaper@gmail.com www.thenewspaper.ca

the newspaper is published by Planet Publications Inc., a nonprofit corporation.

All U of T community members, including students, staff and faculty, are encouraged to contribute to the newspaper.

GEOFFREY VENDEVILLE

www.peepshow2012.net

“What I would say to the Somalians is ‘I’m sorry, but not today.’” - Former diplomat Robert Fowler (right), adjacent Michael Ignatieff

www.thenewspaper.ca

3

THE NEWS

^

Animal research at U of T is both ethically and scientifically wrong

The op-ed Paul York

There are strong ethical and scientific reasons why biomedical and basic research on animals at U of T should end. U of T should focus its efforts on developing non-animal research methods, as Johns Hopkins medical school is doing. Many of these methods are more scientifically accurate than animal “models.” U of T should also replace animals now used in education with humane alternatives.

There is no reason why this can’t be done.

Dr. Ray Greek, a former researcher at the WisconsinMadison University School of Medicine, suggests that while animals can be successfully used for basic and comparative research, they cannot be used to predict drug and disease response in humans. He is not alone: many former researchers have come forward saying the same thing: animal testing is not predictive for humans. A 2004 article in the British Medical Journal asked “where is the evidence that animal research benefits humans?” It concluded that such research should end pending a methodological review.

U of T promotes the myth that the discovery of insulin required the use of dogs, but historical evidence proves otherwise. This is true of many breakthroughs where animals were used but need not have been. Animal University of Ottawa

President of U of T Animal Rights Club responds to University’s stance on animal testing

trials can be dangerous to humans: thalidomide was safe on animals but caused deformities in babies. Some pharmaceutical companies are now moving to microdosing, which is more accurate and less costly. Stem cell research is another alternative.

Some will argue that less intelligence makes animals expendable, but ethicist Tom Regan, professor emeritus of philosophy at the University of North Carolina State, argues that we do not experiment on mentally challenged humans, and nor would we wish mentally superior beings to experiment on us. Relative intelligence is not a good basis for establishing rights. Furthermore, discrimination based on species (speciesism) is morally no different than racism or sexism. Resistance to this idea is the result of deeply ingrained social conditioning; the antidote is the use of reason and compassion.

The ethical arguments against animal exploitation are supportable scientifically. From Marc Bekoff, behavioural ethologist and former professor of ecology and evolutionary biology at the University of Colorado, we learn that mice, rats and other animals have rich cognitive and emotional lives, much as we

do. The moral implications are clear: nonhumans are worthy of greater respect and concern.

Sadly, U of T’s Research Ethics office has chosen to ignore these important ethical arguments. They focus only on pain, but even in this they fail: in 2010 they permitted hundreds of painful experiments on tens of thousands of animals, including injection with toxins and diseases, major surgery, and inducement of chronic pain.

Defenders of animal testing often refer to the federal regulations in place to protect animal welfare. What they don’t mention is that the federal Canadian Council on Animal Care is an industry-led group, run by researchers, caught in a hopeless conflict of interest. Its guidelines are voluntary, not binding.

They do not protect animals. U of T’s animal care committee is similarly useless.

The animals trapped in the labs have the right not to be harmed. To subject them to invasive procedures is morally wrong and does not advance human health.

For links to more information on animal testing at U of T, visit thenewspaper.ca. The U of T Animal Rights Club can be reached at cruelandunnecessary@gmail.com

Faculty of Science

Graduate Research Fellowships in Extreme and Quantum Photonics The University of Ottawa has made a major commitment to expanding its already world-class program in photonics.

As part of this commitment, as many as twenty graduate fellowships are now available. Fellowships include complete relief from tuition payments and a monthly stipend.

Two of these fellowships will be at the highly competitive level of $30,000 CAD per year. Topics of interest include attoscience, ultra-high-intensity laser physics, quantum nonlinear optics, and photonic devices based on group velocity control. Interested students should contact Hugo Bégin (hbegin@uottawa.ca), who is administering this program on the behalf of Professors Robert Boyd and Paul Corkum.

www.extremephotonics.uOttawa.ca

www.quantumphotonics.uOttawa.ca

Figure (above) displays the types of animals U of T uses for research initiatives [Graph from 2010 university records issued under the Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act. from ‘monkey research’ primates, provided that it is ethically and scientifically justified and appropriately reviewed and approved at the University,” he told the newspaper.

Conducting animal research, he said, “is the best hope of advancing knowledge and developing cures for animal and human diseases.” He explained that the University supports animal research because “some scientific questions can only be answered through the use of non-human primates.”

Lewis responded to the U of T Animal Rights Club’s claim that euthanization was “routine” at the university. “Animals are not killed as a matter of routine, but rather as an experimental necessity,” Lewis explained. “In most cases animals are euthanized for the collection of tissues and blood as a requirement of the experimentation. Without this analysis of tissues/blood, there would be no way of validating the outcome of the experimental procedures.”

Paul York, a graduate student and president of the U of T Animal Rights Club, argued that the University’s earlier announcement about discontinuing nonhuman primate research was not sincere in the first place. He said that they are highly disap-

pointed with the Office of Research Ethics and the Faculty of Medicine for “defending animal experimentation but not fully disclosing criteria of what is ethical and humane.”

Lewis defended the school’s protocol for animal testing. “All projects involving the use of animals for research, teaching and testing undergoes [sic] rigorous review by an animal care committee according to current standards,” said Lewis. “Researchers are required to justify the number of animals proposed, and they must describe the efforts they have taken to minimize the numbers of animals used to the extent possible. They must also demonstrate that there are no suitable alternatives.”

York was skeptical of the University’s effort to pursue suitable alternatives. “The pharmaceutical industry is looking at bypassing animal clinical trials in favor of microdosing, for scientific and economic reasons,” he said.

Johns Hopkins University is one institution that has adopted the microdosing technique, a procedure which uses an electron microscope to assess the impact of very small doses of a drug on a human subject. He argued that these tests are considered more accurate and resolve ethical issues. But, for York, U of T is “not thinking outside the box.”

4

THE INSIDE

March 22, 2012

UC Follies embrace cult classic, The Rocky Horror Show University College theatre company did the Time Warp, and they did it well Eli Terlson Full disclosure: I’d never seen The Rocky Horror Show. I was aware of it, I knew The Drew Carey Show did an episode about it, but I’d never actually experienced it for myself.

The UC Follies’ production of Richard O’Brien’s The Rocky Horror Show aimed to create that engaging experience, and for the most part succeeded.

The show begins with Brad Majors and his fiancé Janet Weiss (played by Peter Grant Mackechnie and Meredith Free) traveling to Denton to visit their former teacher, Dr. Everett Scott. When their car breaks down in the rain, they seek shelter in a nearby Gothic castle.

There they are sucked in to the weird world of Dr. Frank N. Furter (Shak Haq), a “sweet transvestite from Transsexual, Transylvania.” Frank N. Furter is set to reveal his latest creation, a slab of man known as Rocky Horror.

Unfortunately, the

mics cut in and out throughout the performance, so occasionally the musicians overpowered the actors’ singing.

The performance was held at the Victoria College Chapel, which may have been the reason behind the sound issues.

However, all the actors proved to have powerful singing voices, with Lauren Goodman as the Narrator/Dr. Everett Scott standing out. Colin Asuncion as Riff Raff, Frank N. Furter’s right-hand man, commanded the show with a strong stage presence. The rest of the actors were as committed to their parts, keeping any and all physical abnormalities they gave to their character throughout the performance.

If a character had a limp when walking, she would keep that limp when dancing.

Director Shak Haq produced a tight show: the performances were strong and the musical numbers engaging. The actors filled the space of the chapel and excited the audience.

When walking, talking, and singing, Haq’s performance was riveting.

However, perhaps because of pulling

double-duty as a director and performer, Haq seemed occasionally disengaged when playing Dr. Frank N. Furter.

When he was not the focus of the scene, Haq’s body language betrayed the character, losing the femininity he had effortlessly exuded moments before.

Ordinarily I wouldn’t want to review the audience of a show, but with The Rocky Horror Show who you’re sitting with can be as important as who you’re seeing. There was a pack of Rocky Horror fans at the show shouting out lines in response to actors and (mercifully) throwing a single roll of Scott toilet paper, as is the custom.

Once the actors loosened up and began to play more with the audience, the atmosphere of the show became very campy and

fun. Rocky Horror is almost the definition of camp, so the performance worked best when the actors gave themselves over to the idea.

Overall, the show was a success. The UC Follies’ production served justice to Rocky’s fishnet wearing, toastthrowing cult movie buffs everywhere.

And isn’t that what every theatre company wants?

Photos by Brian De La Franier. Design by Samantha Chiusolo. To see original photos please visit: http://www.flickr.com/photos/67654103@N05/

www.thenewspaper.ca

5

THE INSIDE

Trayvon Martin and Stuffed Peppers: The bloat of racism in America Talia Gordon

By now the entire virtual world has – or should have – heard of Trayvon Martin. On February 26, Martin, a seventeen-year old black kid from Sanford, Florida was shot to death for no good reason, no passable reason -- really, it seems, no reason at all. Other than the questionable conduct and unquestionable racism of the self-appointed neighbourhood watchman, who ambushed the teen because he looked “suspicious” by simple virtue of the fact that he was a black kid walking home from the 7-11 through his gated community after dark.

The story has, by now, become a lesson in many things, reductionism being an underlying current to its telling and re-telling through tweets and Facebook posts and the burgeoning outrage sweeping the news media. The facts of the story are (forgive me) starkly bullet-pointed: young, black, unarmed and i n nocent; chased down by car (SUV, do I stutter?) and

on foot, tackled, overpowered (by force and intolerance) and shot. Defense of the shooter?

Self-defense. And against what threat or antagonism, exactly?

Did I mention, yet, that Martin was out on a snack run during half-time of the NBA all-star game? That he was unarmed, save for Skittles and an iced tea (cue the heartstrings)?

That it was raining, which prompted Martin to pop up his hoodie to protect himself from the elements, but little else? That the shooter, 28year old George Zimmerman (white and Hispanic), was told by police not to follow young Martin and responded instead, “They always get away”?

If there was any doubt in the immediate aftermath and publicized 911 police tapes that Zimmerman was acting unprovoked by anything but the circumstances of his own prejudice, his reference to Martin (and we can only assume, by extension, black kids at large) as “Fucking coons” should send that uncertainty to an early grave. ‘Should,’’ however, holds tenuous purchase in the Sanford, Florida police department which, in the 3

weeks since Martin’s death, has refused to make an arrest in his killing. It remains unclear what has fueled their resistance.

What is not unclear, though certainly troubling in its own insidious way, is why the story of Trayvon Martin’s death has only just now emerged and been reproduced en masse in the mainstream purview. So busy were we all (guilty as charged) getting up in arms and collective outrage over the viral KONY2012 video, which snowballed into a blizzard of critical white noise last weekend when creator Jason Russell dissolved into a state of “reactive psychosis,” that we failed to notice or acknowledge the tragedy – forgive the platitude – of murder and injustice in America.

That is, until a few days ago, when the Twitterverse, the Facebook world and finally, the real world took pause long enough to capture the Martin story in its hashtag cross-hairs.

In sudden solidarity (or is it post-Kony boredom?), hundreds of people got on their Instagram accounts and posted photographs of themselves

wearing hoodies on Facebook and Twitter (accompanied by #millionhoodies). The same army of slacktivists who only two weeks ago, vowed to “make Kony famous in 2012” are now urging their followers to sign the petition for justice in Martin’s murder. At least, if our generation seems to have only enough energetic attention at our disposal to direct at one villain at a time, let that villain be George Zimmerman, the Sanford police department, or the United States Justice Department (welcome to the conversation).

Unfortunately, while the Martin case is exceptionally tragic (real life is reliably more horrific than fiction), it is by no means an exception in kind. Certainly, anyone who has watched The Wire feels entitled to wax poetic about the plight of black kids living America (someone recently told me Detroit was the “same thing” as Baltimore) and about the systemic racism perpetuated by an indelible history of unequal colour-relations.

However, no matter how many gradations closer to ‘real’ it makes us feel in our reactions

to Trayvon Martin’s death – need I betray my positionality as a privileged white woman – there is a disconnect between our self-indulgent critiques of institutions of power and the manifestations of racism we see every day.

In a brilliant exposition and deconstruction of the KONY2012 campaign, and of the meta-reactive critiques it inspired, author Teju Cole describes the sanitization of “direct speech” in the US. When it comes to talking about things like race, misogyny or homophobia, Cole argues, there is an “expectation that we can talk about sins but no one must be identified as a sinner.” Cole continues this critique in no uncertain terms: “newspapers love to describe words or deeds as ‘racially charged’ even in those cases when it would be more honest to say ‘racist.’” Let me then be clear and unmeasured in saying (if my words thus far do not adequately precede me) that the cause, the coverage and the judicial neglect of Trayvon Martin’s death are nothing if not profoundly racist.

Spicy Mango Black Bean Spinach Quinoa Stuffed Peppers And, here’s what to do:

Here’s what you need: - 4-5 large sweet red peppers (fine, any colour. Hold the racism jokes, please) - 2 mangoes (I used “Fat Cat” mangoes, which is a brand, not a species, so just do your best) - 1 red onion - 1 bunch spinach - 1 can black beans - 3-4 jalapeño peppers (be careful when handling these, you can burn your eyelids just looking at them for too long) - Two handfuls of almonds (if you’re a smaller person, or a starfish, compensate) - 1.5 cups quinoa - Goat cheese (optional, if you’re feeling extra sensitive or have visited the PETA website recently) - Salt and pepper - Olive oil - Tin foil

1. Chop up your red onion. Cube it, even. Take that shit to the third power.

2. On medium, heat up about a teaspoon of olive oil on the skillet (when I say ‘a teaspoon’ I mean just pour on some slick, I never measure out stuff like oil) 3. Throw on your onions and make sure they’re coated. Turn heat to low while you do all the other stuff required for this recipe. Read on.

4. Chop up your jalapeños, with caution. If you’re a nose-picker, an eye-rubber, have a significant other or plans to masturbate later on this evening, wash your hands immediately. With soap. And steel wool. Bandage your fingers and throw your chopped jalapeños onto the skillet to get busy with your onions.

Poor onions. They have no choice.

5.

Quickly peel, and then chop up your mango. You can cube this situation as well. Remember, all that you are dividing must fit into peppers. Dice wisely.

6.

Add your mango chunks to the skillet and stir in. Leave the heat in between low and medium to let all the flavours merge together.

7.

Crush your almonds. I put mine in a ziplock bag and let a friend of a friend take out his aggression by banging on them with a ladle until crushed.

If you forgot to wash your hands postjalapeños and rubbed your eyes, you can release some of the pain-anger in quite the same way. Add almonds to skillet.

8. Get ready to make your quinoa.

Okay? Follow the instructions on your handy quinoa package. Keep an eye on this quinoa because it tends to burn easily and stick to the bottom of the pot.

Make sure to fluff. Your quinoa’s gonna need preparation before it goes in the ring with your mango mix.

9.

Wash your peppers (who I am even kidding right now?). Cut the tops off (see photo) and save them. Remove the ribs and seeds (which sounds like a terrible torture/castration order). Put your empty peppers in a baking dish, or roasting pan, or makeshift rectangular structure constructed out of tinfoil (see photo).

10. Pre-heat your oven to 375F. 11. Your quinoa should be done (I hope you were checking!). Remove from heat, fluff and set aside.

12. Add your black beans, which you

should remove from can and rinse first, into your mango-onion-jalapeño situation. Mix in the beans so they can get a rude introduction to what real legumes look like.

13. After you feel that the beans have been incorporated, incorporate this whole mess in with your pot of quinoa.

Here is a good time to add your salt and pepper.

14. Immediately after mixing in, add your spinach. If you don’t know by now, I’m not going to tell you to wash it, rip it and watch it wilt.

15. Now your stuffing is done. Spoon said stuffing into the gaping peppers.

Stuff well.

16. Optional: spread goat cheese on top of stuffing. Replace peppers with their pepper hats. Cover with tinfoil to hold in heat and expedite the cooking process. Stuff in the oven. Experience meta-stuffing.

17. After about 30 minutes, check on your peppers. If you can stick a fork through the skin (another torture method), they’re probably done.

18. Eat stuffed peppers. NOW experience meta-stuffing.

6

THE ARTS

March 22, 2012

You can go home again

British soul singer Michael Kiwanuka brings the house down in his debut album Vanessa Purdy When taken separately, sweet vocals, a strong guitar, and the occasional old school back-up chorus are all familiar musical concepts. But when they are done just right, they form a wonderful structure that serves as a strong foundation for an entire album. British singer Michael Kiwanuka’s debut album, Home Again, is just such an album. At the centre is a mellow, smooth voice that is at times able to take on the gravelly, deep timbres

of Bill Withers, and at other times make the listener think of the light-as-air, technically intricate vocal stylings of Sam Cooke. Luckily, Kiwanuka has a voice that cannot be directly compared to any one singer, and his guitar-playing talent gives him a leg-up over singlethreat crooners.

Much like the relaxed tone of his album, Kiwanuka has seemingly crept onto the musical scene while simultaneously impressing everyone he meets. A child of Ugandan parents who escaped the Amin

regime, Kiwanuka supported Adele in her massive 2011 tour, when he attracted the attention of Communion Records (the brainchild of Mumford and Sons). Kiwanuka recorded an EP with the Black Keys’ Dan Auerbach, which was unfortunately too late to put on the record, just released in the UK to resounding critical success.

Kiwanuka writes and arranges his own music, and is a quiet, yet commanding presence on stage, often clutching his guitar, in perfect harmony with his back-up musicians.

Home Again lives up to its name because every song feels like being surrounded in comforting familiarity. For example, the slowly unravelling, beautiful Rest is infused with the loveliness of resting in the arms of someone you love. The album’s first track, Tell Me A Tale, opens with the groovy chirping of flutes, and a vocal tone reminiscent of Bill Withers, an excellent throwback to a more soulful time in music.

A standout track (although it is difficult to choose just one) is the cleverly worded Bones:

“Without You I’m Just Bones,” croons in an understated baritone that is enough to make any girl melt. To add to the charm of the song and its singer, is the use of a sparse, yet happy piano line and the always-welcome old school back-up chorus that one would hear on a Ray Charles record.

Like the artists named in this article, Kiwanuka’s success seems inevitable because of his sheer talent. Named BBC’s Sound of the Year in January, Kiwanuka was recently confirmed for this summer’s Osheaga line-up. Seeing this quiet force of soul music looking at home onstage is as good a reason as any to head to Montreal this August.

Michael Kiwanuka’s album will be release on July 31st in North America. For more information, visit www.michaelkiwanuka. com

www.thenewspaper.ca

7

THE ARTS

The Hunger Games leaves you starved for more

Surrounded by these killer kids, your stomach isn’t the only thing that’s growling in this sci-fi drama The districts supposedly experience a sort of Stockholm syndrome with regard to the “punishment,” as the Games have turned into a national pastime, with televised coverage and public excitement comparable to our Olympics. However, this glee is really only reflected in the upper districts, which can afford to train a winning tribute nearly every year, while the poorest districts are little more than paralyzed with terror.

As with most book-to-film adaptations, we get the strong sense that the content of the original novel has been heavily abridged just to fit the twoand-a-half hour running time.

Still, it’s a testament to the filmmakers’ agility and the strength of the story that we’re hungry for more than what’s

Dan Christensen Twelve teenage boys and twelve teenage girls – one of each from all of the socioeconomically stratified districts in this dystopian future – are selected as “tributes” to compete in the annual Hunger Games: a last-person-standing fight to the death in the forest between all twenty-four tributes.

With such a gripping and unique concept comes the challenge of explaining how these conditions might have come about. And at such swift pace, such explanations are something the film scrambles for at every free moment.

The Hunger Games were established by the state as a punishment against the districts for an attempted revolution some seventy-five years ago.

Jennifer Lawrence as Katniss kicks future ass. provided.

This snipping of detail truly is a shame, as the film so frequently suggests questions beyond the main narrative of Katniss (Jennifer Lawrence), female tribute from lowly District 12, and her struggle to win the games. Uneven distribution of wealth, television as a national opiate, and the creation of public political apathy are all touched upon, but none with any more than passing curiosity.

Considering the targeted demographic, I suppose this is to be expected. It’s doubtful that the teenage fans of the book flocking to the theatres have great deals of patience for in-

depth investigations of sociopolitical concerns.

Oh well. Maybe we’ll delve a little further into these things in the sequels. But regardless of how fascinating the premise might be, it’s a rather morbid one for a teenage craze, no?

Does this say something about today’s youth and their sensitivity to death and violence?

Possibly. Though every teenager feels as if growing up is a fight for survival, and who wouldn’t want to feel as if victory in their fight made them a national hero? Besides, the teen-on-teen killings in the film aren’t exceedingly violent, and most tastefully (if such a word can be applied here) oc-

cur off screen.

The art direction is probably the greatest casualty of excessive editing. For example, we end up seeing so little of the creative, idiosyncratic costume and make-up design for the bourgeoisie classes, that they end up feeling out of place, as if they didn’t get full commitment from the filmmakers.

It seems as if I want more of everything, and yet I doubt I would have sat through a three-and-a-half hour Hunger Games movie. Fingers crossed there will be a director’s cut blu-ray and we can reassess after that.

The Crossword Across 1. Hunter-gatherer group 6. Wound reminder

36. Road partition 37. Also

23. Ocular organ

14. Rustic

39. More refined

26. Repairs, as a garment

16. Length times width

40. Link up, electrically

29. Trapped

17. By oneself

41. “Better ___ than me”

31. Steals from

18. Indoor space 4

42. Freezes

33. Make a move

19. Care for; ___ to 3

38. Industrious insects

25. Consumed

15. Encourage

2

20. It’s often mightier than a sword 21. Staff

10. Dines

1

35. Drove, as though in Formula 1

5

6

14

7

8

43. Orange traffic pyramids 9

10

15

17 21

22

23

31

35 39

41

42

45. Pen fluids

22. Ferrari colour

46. Musical arrangements

24. Affirmative response

47. Cake portion

25. Eras

49. Shack

27. Seeing romantically

50. World wide web, colloquially

28. Sport results

51. Hold on to

30. In fact

53. Young bear

53. Something to be deciphered

31. Speed contests

56. Not closed

54. Applied

32. Washington banknotes

59. Notion

55. Cots

34. Little piggies

61. Slack, as knot

56. Not on

35. Sun beams

63. It’s where smoke is

57. Cake alternative

36. Enjoy a lollipop

58. Epoch

39. The decade of Nirvana and The Spice Girls

60. Coloured stain

64. Ogles

24 27

32

66. Phobia

28

33

36

38

13. Glum

65. Came to a conclusion

26

30

13

19

25 29

12

16

18

20

11

44. “Beyond the ___” (Bobby Darin song)

67. Used the postal service 34

68. Plant progenies Down

37

1. Sinister device

40

2. Be in charge 3. Age after Bronze

43

4. Prohibit 45

44 47

48

46

5. Chose a statesman

49

6. Certain 7. Clever bird

50 56

57

58

51 59

60

52

53 61

62

54

55

8. Ontario gallery 9. Call to mind 10. Has finished a meal

63

64

65

11. “Who do you think you ___?”

66

67

68

12. Sawbuck

29. Alternatives to kayaks

40. Accustomed, inclined 43. Pairs of people 45. Frozen water 46. Feminine pronoun 48. Not outer 51. Eager 52. Right of north, relatively

62. The loneliest number

Andrew Walt

The Sudoku 4

9 8 5 2 4 5 3 6 8 4 9 5 2 9 9 6 7

8

7

3

9 4 6 1 9 2 7 1 5 6 4 7 5

“

“

8

GLORIA Criminology, 2nd year “Yes! I think U of T is diverse and definitely deserves a top ranking.

I’m constantly impressed by the unique extra-curriculars the school has to offer and I am very happy in my program of study.”

March 22, 2012

U of T has the 16th best reputation in the world, according to this year’s Times Higher Education ranking.

the newspaper asked: “Does U of T deserve this ranking?”

TANYA ROBINSON

the campus comment

THE END

SARAH, Sociology, 3rd year PhD “I feel the label is somewhat deserved, especially in terms of research. I am not convinced it is completely the case in terms of teaching.”

ELVIS (far right) Philosophy, 2nd year “I believe it deserves to be ranked 16th because it provides programs of wide range and are taught by quality professors.”

Dear Suzie

Buddy boundaries: What to do in an “awkward” friendship situation

MLADEN Engineering, 4th year “From my understanding of the research at U of T, I can see 16th, but I hope this rating is not misinterpreted as a level of student satisfaction with the university administration.”

ELENI Ethics, Society & Law, 3rd year “I haven’t had the opportunity to experience academic life at any other school but the fact that I am surrounded by so many resources and my school is kept well together makes me feel like U of T does deserve the title.

They’ve created a good brand.

ANDREAS Computer Science, 3rd year “Yeh.”

WearAbouts Bodi Bold brings you U of T’s stylish These students have the early summer look nailed down with effortless outfits dominated by dark colors, without looking too gloomy for the sunshine. Who says you shouldn’t wear black in summer? In this sunshine, thin and sheer materials take you out of the shade.

Dear Suzie, I am acquaintances with somebody who is painfully awkward in social situations and has difficulty with boundaries, especially when asking about personal matters. They consider me one of their best friends (even though I’ve only known them for a few months), but the whole situation is making me feel uncomfortable. I’ve tried bringing it up in conversation, but I don’t want to hurt their feelings. I’d like to be their friend, but right now I feel obligated to be with them because I feel sorry for them. What should I do?

Dear Instant, Just like in romantic relationships, we all have different ways of getting to know one another in friendships. Your “awkward” friend simply goes at a different speed than you and has way less qualms about personal comfort zones and over-sharing.

It’s more than alright to be somewhat uncomfortable about this.

What’s not alright is to dwell on it so much. You are wasting precious time and energy going on and on about how “awkward” this person is, instead of investing it in actually getting to know them. In fact, I’m inclined to believe that it’s you, not your friend, who is making the “awkwardness” levels go through the roof.

Clearly, this person saw something in you that made them think you could be a great friend. Is Lisa or John a tad overzealous?

Yes. But you are more than making up for it with your over-analysing. Stop feeling sorry them, and maybe try to get to know them for who they really are, and not as some manifestation of a word that everybody uses too much anyway.

Sincerely, Suzie Want to ask Suzie a question? Email Suzie at suzienewsie@gmail.com, or submit (anonymously, of course!) at www.thenewspaper.ca, in the blue box on the lower left.

who >> Claudia what >> American Apparel sheer maxi dress where >> UC backyard

BODI BOLD

-Instant BFF

who >> Bronwyn, 2nd year Equity Studies Major what >> Value Village shirt, classic Ralph Lauren wayfarers and a yellow scarf as a headband where >> Hart House patio