The McGill Tribune Vol. 17 Issue 17

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P u b lis h e d b y th e S tu d e n ts ’ S o c ie ty o f M c G i l l U n iv e r s it y

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T R IB U N E

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I 7 Issue I7

Shake the vision

By C hris S elley T h e h isto ry o f M c G ill’ s African Studies Program is one of a fairly epic struggle against bud­ get cuts and the sometimes half­ hearted support o f the administra­ tion.

The A fric a n a Stu d ies Committee (ASC) was formed in 1 9 9 4 a fte r stud ents narrow ly avoided the elim ination o f the A frican studies m ajor and has since widely promoted and suc­ cessfully lobbied in support o f the program. The ASC was also behind F rid a y ’ s “ Sh ak e the V isio n ” at Isart, an extrem ely diverse and well-received collec­ tion o f performances in aid o f the program.

Is a rt’ s cozy confines were packed to its in tim ate rafters early on in the evening. Folks may have sim ply been taking advantage o f the tequila special, but the b o istero u s crow d was qu ickly im pressed by a strong acapella set from McGill student Enisone. Though she claimed to be nervous, it certainly didn’ t show in her set, w hich varied from Tracy Chapman to consider­ ably more incendiary m aterial.

“B efo re I am b lack ,” she sang, “b e fo re I am A fric a n , I am human.”

Also featured was the Grupo S em en te do Jo g o de A n g o la, which demonstrated Capoiera, a hybrid o f dance and martial art which originated in Angola and was used as an e x p ressio n o f p ro test by A fric a n sla v es in Brazil. The Capoiera is trance­ like; dancers move in a kind o f slow motion, standing briefly on their heads and moving seeming­ ly at random. Soon however, sub­ tle patterns begin to emerge, as dancers join hands and arms and seem to struggle with each other, then release and kick their legs over each other’s ducked heads.

The dancing is accompanied by chanting and ceaseless banging on o n e-strin g e d in stru m en ts.

Though a long demonstration, the

Continued on page 21

W oodchipsfly at the 38th Annual Intercollegiate Lum berjack Competition in Ste-Anne-de-Bellevue. Please see story on p a g e 5.

Rachel Ong

SSMU business procedures challenged in petition

By Nilima G ulraiani A petition fded with the SSMU Judicial Review Board argues that the most expensive contract ever signed by the Students’ Society is illegal since it was never approved by the elected council.

SSM U law councillor Mario Nigro asserts that the $6 million agreement between SSMU and the Quebec Student Health Alliance vio­ lates four articles of the society’s constitution, including mandatory contract reviews by the Financial Ethics Research Committee and SSMU council ratification.

“Arguably, this contract is null and void. The constitution stipulates that this contract must go to council for approval and that it must be reviewed and reported on by FERC,” Nigro stated. “Furthermore, this agreement overrules the ability to cancel the Health Plan by student referendum.”

The three year exclusive con­ tract was approved by former SSMU VP Finance Jon Chomski in April 1997. The SSMU Health Plan bro­ kered by the QSHA provides med­ ical and dental coverage to all McGill undergraduate students for

roughly $140 per year. Though last year’s council discussed the possibil­ ity o f entering a legal agreement with QSHA, no motion was ever presented to council on the issue.

Nigro claim s that current VP Finance Duncan Reid was obliged to raise the issue with this year’s coun­ cil.

“The affairs of the society don’t stop on April 30 with a new execu­ tive. It is [the new execu tiv e’ s] responsibility to make sure that the affairs of the society are in order when they arrive in o ffice,” said Nigro.

Reid explained that his prede­ cessor had intended to present a motion on the QSHA contract but was unable to do so because quorum was not met for the last council meeting of the year. Reid further argues that the constitution stipulates that he should not be held account­ able for the actions of last year’s executive.

“It is not our business — we w eren’t th ere...I can’ t bear the responsibility of reporting the deci­ sions of the previous year’s execu­ tive,” he said.

FERC’s role Nigro contends that the contract between SSMU and QSHA should have been reviewed and reported on

by FERC — as outlined in the SSMU Constitution. FERC member Samantha McGavin explained that a review of the contract did occur last spring, although the committee did not deliver an official report.

“Since FERC didn’t find any evidence for rejecting QSHA, we did not submit a report rejecting the pro­ posal. Therefore, we were assumed to have accepted it,” she said.

Reid also contends that the constitution does not stipulate that FER C must o fficia lly submit a report regarding all contracts. He believes that renewals of existing contracts like the QSHA agreement are not always necessary.

“FERC never got involved in existing business dealings with SSMU [last year],..FERC only got involved with contracts concerning newer companies,” he stated.

McGavin disagrees, however.

She asserts that FERC should be analyzing renewals as well as new contracts.

“We do not want to have con­ tracts automatically renewed without

a review. This gives us the ability to examine contracts that were signed before IT R C was established,” she

Continued on page 4

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News

3 February 1998

Model UN in town prompts simulated global decision-making B y M egan C raves M c G ill’ s United Nations Students’ Association hosted their largest M odel United Nations A ssem bly over the weekend in downtown Montreal.

C elebrating the 50th A nniversary o f the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, stu­ dents arrived from universities and institutions throughout Canada and the United States to participate in the mock assembly of the United Nations. Montreal Mayor Pierre Bourque welcomed the students and the Canadian F orces C h ief o f Defence Staff, General Maurice Baril, delivered the keynote address during opening cerem onies on January 29.

Organized by the UN SAM , M cG ill’ s Model United Nations Assembly is aimed at bringing stu­ dents together to discuss interna­ tional issues such as human rights, world trade, world health and peacekeeping. Andrew K otila,

director o f public relations for UNSAM, explained that a lot of preparation has gone into the event which attracted 850 students to Montreal.

“W e’ ve been planning for about a year with our Secretary General Danistan Saverimuthu and five associate secretary generals,” he said. “This is actually the largest model UN in North America and we’ve probably become one of the top four on the continent.”

The organization’ s primary activities involve simulated confer­ ences; students take on and argue the positions of the member coun­ tries that make up United Nations com m ittees.

The G eneral Assembly, in which nearly all coun­ tries of the world are active partici­ pants and voters, the Secu rity C ou n cil, the S e creta ria t, the International Court of Justice, the Economic and Social Council and the Trusteeship Council are the main components to the UN struc­ ture.

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McGill’s assembly was a lav­ ish affair and cost approximately $40,000 to run. Flora Wan, comp­ troller of McMUN 1998, is antici­ pating a modest surplus in the bud­ get. Profits will be used to subsidize

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STUDENTS’ SOCIETY

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travelling costs for McGill students who will attend an upcoming model UN in California.

“W e’re taking eight delegates to Berkeley, which is going to be expensive considering that the US dollar keeps going up,” Wan explained.

In his keynote speech, General B a ril addressed issues such as reform to the Security Council so that it would be more representative o f UN membership. Presently, it has five permanent members and ten rotating members that join the Great Powers in staggered two-year terms.

Baril also noted the increased need to attack international prob­ lems on many fronts. For example, humanitarian organizations now work very closely with UN peace­ keepers in efforts to am eliorate crises like those that have occurred in the form er Y u goslavia and Somalia. Also, he encouraged the development of stronger regional efforts to promote peace with inter­

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Paul Gedye, a student delegate from the U niversity o f B ritish Columbia, welcomed the chance to hear about present UN business and viewed the event as “a good chance for students to get together and hash out what’s going on on the global stage.” Others, like Carlos Polanco from the College of William and Mary in Virginia, have used the conference as a way to get a feel for the city.

“Montreal is exactly what the name implies. It is a real city, full of beauty and culture, while being peaceful enough to make you feel you’ re on top o f a m ountain,” Polanco said.

Delegates spent a considerable amount of time engaged in commit­ tee group discussion over the week­ end. Although this was the focus of the co n feren ce, G eneral B a ril encouraged delegates to take action and to put their best efforts forward to better the world’s condition.

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News

3 February 1998

Page 3

Undergrad student associations to foot cafeteria cleaning bills

By John Salloum W ith e v e r-ris in g tu itio n , taxes and food prices, undergrad­ uate students’ societies may face even higher fees next semester if the university administration is successful in transferring the cost o f clea n in g cam pus c a fe te ria s onto the students.

Last fall, undergraduate soci­ eties operating cafeterias for prof­ it were billed for the cleaning o f th e ir re sp e c tiv e c a fe te r ia s .

Ranging from $5,509 to $10,000, the cleaning bills often include services rendered over two years.

Because the societies contract out management o f the cafeterias, the issue now at stake is in determin­ ing who is responsible for clean­ ing up the mess — the adminis­ tration or the students.

Student so cieties currently contract out the operation o f the c a fe te r ia s to co m p a n ies lik e M iraval in the case o f arts and management, and Versabec in the case o f engineering. The contract­ ed companies give the societies a commission based on profit gen­ erated by the cafeterias. Although the con tractors currently clean areas such as the w ork sp ace behind the counter, they do not clean public seating areas.

M any ca feteria s, how ever, also double as student common space when the food counters are c lo s e d . A c co rd in g to T ary n T o m lin so n , p resid en t o f the E n g in e e rin g U n d ergrad u ate Society, the EU S cafeteria is “a high traffic, 24 hour a day study and snacking spot for campus stu­ dents all across the board.” At the heart o f the matter lies the fact that the M cConnell Engineering food counter is not open 24 hours a day. T o m lin so n argu es that EU S should not have to pay for clea n in g co sts incurred in the ca fe te r ia areas when the food counters aren’t open.

“W e...agree that we should take responsibility for our clean­ ing during operating hours, but the university should take care of it o u tsid e o p eratin g hours — w hen i t ’ s stu d ent com m on space,” she stated.

In addition to the cafeteria seating area being open at hours when the food services are not, the area is also used by university sta ff, M a ste rs’ and P h.D . stu ­ d en ts. A cco rd in g to C am eron R ose, M an agem en t U n d ergrad u ate S o c ie ty V P finance, the M BA students’ asso­

ciation, whose students make use o f both the Bronfm an building and cafeteria, receives 20 per cent o f the commission that Miraval pays the undergraduate society.

MUS has been billed for $20,000 for two years o f cleaning costs but the M B A a s s o c ia tio n has somehow been left o ff the hook.

At the re q u e st o f V ic e P rin cip a l A d m in istra tio n and Finance Phyllis Heaphy, SSM U VP Finance Duncan Reid, in con­ junction with the faculty associa­ tio n s, subm itted a proposal to Fleaphy in an attempt to resolve the situation c o lle c tiv e ly . The proposal, dated November 1997 was sympathetic to the adminis­ tration’s position and stated that “we do accept that we have some cleaning responsibilities in these areas because they also serve as our cafeterias, and as such they are a source o f revenue for stu­ dent associations.” In the propos­ al, however, Reid also argued that “[t]he university has an obliga­ tion to provide a basic amount of usable space for students.”

In h er D e ce m b e r re p ly , H eaphy stated th at she was “rem inded that the u n iv ersity [would] be entering into discus­ sions with the individual associa­ tio n s w ith regard to th e ir Memorandum o f Agreement and L e a se .” She explained that the matter would “form a part of the individual agreem ents,” stating that rather than working co llec­ tiv ely as she had p re v io u sly asked, the VP Administration and Finance Office would work indi­ vidually with the societies.

Tw o days a fte r H eap h y ’ s response and right before the hol­ iday break, EUS received notice from the V P ’ s o ffic e that their $10,000 bill had to be paid in ten days. F u rth erm o re, the n o tice stated that i f the b ill w a sn ’ t promptly paid, “the university [would be] authorized to deduct the charges from your student fees co llected on b eh a lf o f the association.”

Tom linson was angered by the cu rv e -b a ll throw n by the administration.

“That to me is not negotia­ tion — that is not m eeting us halfw ay. The whole E U S does not fe e l that the fin a n c ia l office...should be gold mining in the student societies. It is not the place to do it,” she stated.

Reid echoed her sentiments regarding the way the university demonstrated bad faith towards

the students’ associations.

“This is the first shot at stu­ dents that the administration has taken in a long time,” he stated.

In addition to the con cern over bill payments, student lead­ ers question the number o f hours and quality o f work for which the societies have been billed. EU S found that they were charged for 2 .5 hours o f work d aily by M cG ill’s Building Services — it took M cG ill workers two and a half times as long as their food services contractor to clean the same area. A fter speaking with A ssociate M anager o f Building S e r v ic e s Ken D u stin , it was determ ined that the 2 .5 hours daily were not real hours billed by cleaning staff but “based upon practice” — an estimate made by

the supervisor o f how long it usu­ a lly ta k es to cle a n an area.

Additionally, EUS was billed for 260 days o f cleaning even though the M cC on nell ca feteria food services were open for less than 200 days in the 1996-97 school year.

In term s o f the q u ality o f cleaning services, Rose comment­ ed that “so often the [Bronfman] cafeteria isn’t even cleaned.” He argued that while he was working at Bronfm an over the summer, cutbacks on the ja n ito ria l sta ff reduced the number of times that the c a fe te r ia w as clea n e d to approximately once a week.

Tomlinson, who asserted that the E U S has “been treated very unfairly in this,” suggested that the society may plan petitions and

la rg e r s c a le d em o n stra tio n s against the cleaning costs.

F acu lty a sso cia tio n p re si­ dents and V P fin an ces w ill be m eeting with R eid in the near fu tu re to d ecid e on a fu rth er course o f action.

In the last issue, the Tribune omitted the credits for the photo essay appearing on page 9.

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by Rachel O ng and C éline Heinbecker.

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News

3 February 1998

Prioritizing McGill: alternative budget proposes solutions B y B erkeley H ynes A working group o f students and p ro fesso rs released its A ltern ativ e M cG ill B ud get to counter priorities in M cGill’s offi­ cial budget and to draw attention to different policy options.

Released January 23, the alter­ native budget outlines five modifi­ ca tio n s to the current budget; increasing endowment fund contri­ butions that go towards revenue, freezing wages of professors earn­ ing more than $100,000 per year, stopping professors from collect­ ing both salary and pension bene­ fits, selling investment properties and a focusing on increased spend­ ing instead o f decreasing the uni­ versity’s debt are all part o f the g ro u p ’ s proposed changes.

According to Anna Kruzynski, a work group member and P G SS university affairs co-ordinator, it is important that the McGill commu­ nity has the opportunity to exam­ ine budget alternatives.

“The M cG ill com m unity thinks that it has to live with cut­ backs and fee increases — people are frustrated,” she said. “They believe the rhetoric that there is no alternative. But there is — it is a question of priorities. Maybe the Board o f Governors isn’t looking after our best interests. Are they really concerned about McGill stu­ dents and staff?”

Kruzynski does not dispute the fact that the McGill Alternative Budget only proposes short-term

solutions since it “is not an alterna­ tive to government funding” but is instead “a short-term response to cuts in government funding.”

But the long-term viability of some of the proposals brought up in the altern ativ e budget are already being qu estion ed . For instance, the group responsible for the alternative budget claim that increasing the endowment fund’s contribution to the operating bud­ get by either $5.9 million, or even by $13.7 million, would maintain a conservative investment stance.

Principal Bernard Shapiro, howev­ er, is concerned that increases in endowment fund contributions to McGill’s operating budget will not be sustainable.

“W e’ re in business for the very long te rm ,” the prin cip al explained. “W e’re maintaining the purchasing power o f the fund. In any one year, it can be terribly aggravating if it can earn 19 per cent, but you can only pay out five percent. It aggravates me as well.”

A lthough S S M U was not directly involved in the alternative budget and SSM U has not yet offi­ cially endorsed the plan, SSM U V P F in an ce Duncan R eid sees merit in the Alternative Budget even though he has concerns about the feasibility of some of the pro­ posals.

“By dipping into the endow­ ment fund, you are mortgaging your future,” Reid said. “But, the university definitely has a strategy to increase the endowment fund to

increase future options.”

The wage freeze proposal for professors earning over $100,000 would increase morale, according to the alternative budget, since the highest paid administrators would be making sacrifices alongside stu­ dents; the wage freeze would also free up revenue for other sources.

The M cG ill Alternative Budget, however, allows that the Board of Governors should have the power to make exceptions to the salary cap provided that the need is justi­ fied.

In response to the wage freeze proposal, Principal Shapiro con­ tends that it would make little impact on the university’s opera­ tions. “If you want the best people, you have to pay market wages. All that would change is the process of determining salaries.”

An end to “double-dipping” — a policy that allows professors over 6 9 to c o lle c t both th eir salaries and pension benefits at the same time — would allow the uni­ versity to raise $972,400 accord­ ing to the A lternative Budget’ s “co n serv a tiv e e s tim a te .”

Nonetheless, important questions remain in the evaluation o f staff over 65; although Dr. Shapiro sees some m erit in the proposal, he pointed out that pension money is the property of the professors.

“I would favou r lim itin g salary to the difference between the pension and their old salary, but the pension plans are funded by the professors,” he stated. “You

c a n ’ t take away som eb o d y ’ s money on ce th e y ’ ve earned it.

However, I am in favour of com­ pulsory retirement.”

Further money, according to the alternative budget, could be earned by sellin g o ff som e o f M cG ill’ s investment properties.

But sin ce full in form ation on M c G ill’ s investm ent properties was not available to the budget group, there are no fixed numbers in the proposal.

Indeed, the A ltern ativ e Budget questions the Board o f Governor’s policy against budget­ ing for operating deficits.

“All other Quebec universities are now running deficits,” states the M cG ill A ltern ative Budget written report. “It may be a strong political move to run a deficit bud­ get. We could join forces with the other universities that the cuts have got to stop.”

Reid agrees with proponents of the alternative budget that run­ ning a deficit would send a strong message to the provincial govern­ ment.

“It would be an act of defiance on behalf of the administration to give its students the education they deserve and eventually dump the fiscal obligation on the Quebec government,” Reid said. “But also, it would be very risky.”

Even with the advantage of low in terest rates, P rin cip al Shapiro remains cautious since the current financial environment is unlikely to remain at present lev­

els.

“Morally, I’m not against hav­ ing debt: I’m just trying to keep it to the minimum amount possible, as we’re in a low interest rate envi­ ronment that won’t last forever.

Next year, however, I can’t envi­ sion reducing the debt,” Shapiro said.

One of the overriding aims of the alternative budget is to ensure that “McGill...reveal itself as a true community united in its dedication to maintaining McGill as a place of excellence and to making a signifi­ cant contribution to society.”

R eg a rd less o f M c G ill’ s attem pts to balance the books, Reid pointed out that the govern­ ment must realize that continued cuts to education are strangling institutions and jeopardizing stu­ dents in this province.

“Ultim ately, we have a real problem. It will only be a matter of a year or two before people start seein g us in real c r is is ,” Reid asserted. “I hope that this leads to some united drive to convince the government that education is first and foremost an investment in the future.

“A lot o f these suggestions [contained in the alternative bud­ get] are short-term and they are not going to work over the long run.

Investment needs to come from the government. We can keep playing at the margin, but really we’re just playing with pennies.”

Contracts receive after-the-fact approval from FERC Continued from page 1 stated.

FERC approval of the contract was only obtained last week because Reid contends that the constitution does not discuss how the committee is to conduct itself. Reid claims that he tried to organize a FERC meeting before the contract was signed.

“I did make significant efforts to call FERC substantially earlier. It was absolutely crucial that we had all of the members of FERC present because otherwise, we would not have had any authority to conduct a

meeting in the first place,” said Reid.

Although the contracts have received a recent rubber-stamp from FERC, Nigro points out that a con­ tract review after-the-fact is worth­ less since the SSM U was already legally bound to the agreement.

Breach of protocol Nigro believes an official report should have been submitted to the executive committee prior to enter­ ing into the QSHA contract. He believes that FERC should be man­ dated to analyze the agresment’s competitiveness and business ethics,

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especially since the 1991-92 SSMU VP Finance Lev Bukhman is the cur­ rent E xecutive D irector o f the QSHA. While Bukhman understands the concerns of some councillors, he is confident that his dealings with SSMU are legitimate.

“It is quite natural and normal that when someone first learns that a former VP is in a professional rela­ tionship with SSMU they have ques­ tions about it. However, every coun­ cil has been aware of the fact and every council has concluded that it was not a problem ,” Bukhman asserted. “When people take that legitimate question and don’t care to find out about the facts and inten­ tionally twist it and use innuendo for politics, I think that’s unfair.”

Despite Reid and Bukhman’s assertions that the SSM U-QSHA contract is above-board, Nigro is challenging the agreement and has filed a petition with the Judicial Review Board. Arguing that the con­ tract between the Students’ Society and the Health Alliance is illegal, Nigro wants FERC mandated to ana­ lyze the contract and submit a report to council so that a contractual deci­ sion can be made.

“My long term goal is to stop the executive committee from mak­ ing major decisions without first having council’s approval...It is very deceitful to sign a contract and then bring it to council to approve,” Nigro stated. “Council’s power is empty and useless because it is forced to accept what is already legally bind­ ing.”

Nevertheless, the VP Finance

maintains that the existing contract read the constitution — and' this is the reason for the Judicial Board can not be overridden even if the Judicial Review Board finds it to be hearing, according to the law rep.

“If the current executive an illegal agreement.

“Even if the Board decides that believes that they can be the final the decision of last year’s executive interpreters of the constitution, they are wrong,” stated Nigro. “Only the committee is unconstitutional, the J-Board haS the power to do that. contract will still stand. Obviously Law Councillor Mr. Nigro doesn’t This is just another attempt by the executive to understand contract law,” stated Reid. define the cons ti t ut i o n Nigro is also according to intending to file their own another petition needs. with the Jud icial “I find it Board regarding the constitutionali­ p r o b le m a t ic that the execu­ ty o f a contract tive can engage between KPMG Consulting and in any agree­ ment for any SSM U .

This appointment was amount of negotiated during money and then the summer and bring it to though a document FERC in has yet to be September and signed, it is still say...’Oh, it’s a considered legally done d eal,’ ” binding.

Nigro con tin ­ “Engaging in ued. a $ 2 5 ,0 0 0 oral If Nigro’s agreement with VP Fin an ce Reid defends File Photo Judicial Board challenge is KPMG without executive action first having it s u c c e s s fu l, approved by council is a systematic Reid fears that it will undermine the abuse of power,” stated Nigro. efficien cy o f the executive and FERC; Reid further contends that Pointing to SSM U executive responsibilities spelt out in the con­ Nigro is using FERC for “political stitution, Reid believes the execu­ leverage” even though the VP tive’s decision to hire KPMG with­ Finance himself seems to be using out formal approval from council is the committee to legitimize deci­ permissible. Nigro, however, asserts sions already made without FERC or that the SSMU executive has mis­ even SSMU council approval.

News

3 February 1998

S led m en ’s co n cre te dream s iced by storm B y T hibaut L efort Economic damages from last m onth’ s ice storm continue to add up with the latest squeeze being felt by Civil Engineering’ s M cGill Sledmen who were forced to w ithdrawal from this y ear’ s G rea t N orthern C o n c re te Toboggan Race. Negotiations as to whether or not donated money should be returned to sponsors still continue.

T he annual toboggan race brings together students from uni­ versities across North A m erica and Europe to compete in a race that is far from ordinary. During the ev e n t, ea ch fiv e m em ber toboggan team is hurled down a 200 metre run with points award­ ed for speed, originality and team spirit. Each team must design and build their own toboggan subject to certain rules — the toboggan is limited to 300 pounds in weight and any part o f it which touches the snow must be made o f con­ crete.

F u n d -ra isin g started la st Septem ber and included events such as daily doughnut sales as w ell as a p o la r f le e c e sa le .

S p o n so rs w hich h elp ed fund tra n sp o rta tio n c o sts in clu d e M c G ill’ s C iv il E n g in e e rin g D ep a rtm en t, the C anad ian Society for Civil Engineering, the E n g in e e rin g U n d ergrad u ate S o c ie ty as w ell as co m p an ies such as L a fa rg e , who donated raw materials to build the tobog­

gan. Team Captain and U2 civil en g in e e rin g stu d en t L au ren t M assam ex p la in e d th at many hours o f hard work were put into raising money for the com peti­ tion.

“All 25 team members put in a huge amount o f work in fund­ raising to make this possible,” he stated.

Due to the Ice Storm of ‘98, however, the team was crippled as D esign Co-ordinator and U3 civil engineering student Bruce Weihs worked 20 hours a day as a crisis relief volunteer outside of Montreal. Because the power was down, it was virtually impossible for the team to remain in contact and d iscuss how the toboggan construction process would pro­ ceed.

“The other members o f the team co u ld not re a ch me to reco ver the plans to the sled ,” W eih s e x p la in e d . “And sin ce th ere was no e le c tr ic ity , [the plans] could not be recov ered from the computers at M cG ill”.

As a result, the team went ahead and tried to build the metal backbone structure as accurately as they could remember. But by the tim e M c G ill’ s pow er was restored, the team had only six days before their sled had to be shipped out to Calgary in time for the contest. As a result, the team lo st 2 0 days o f v alu ab le work time; Massam explained that the concrete used in the construction o f the toboggan requires at least

28 days to completely settle.

“W e w ere fa ce d w ith a dilemma,” recounted Massam. “If we were to go ahead and pour the concrete, it would be too weak.

On the other hand, we have an obligation towards the sponsors to participate in the race.”

T h e team was u ltim a te ly forced to drop out o f the competi­ tion and now is left wondering if and how they should return over $ 3 ,0 0 0 o f donated funds to the sponsors. Massam is still negoti­ ating with the sponsors to see if any transportation money can be refunded.

“We chose to drop out o f the race because we were very con­ cerned about g iving M cG ill a good image. W e w ill, however, continue to build the sled and it will serve as a test-run for next y e a r ,” M assam sta ted . “W e missed the deadline for refunds on the plane tickets due to the Ice Storm but w e’re still fighting to at le a s t g et a p o rtio n o f the money back.”

F o r m ore information on the G reat N o rth ern C o n c r e te Toboggan R ace and the M cGill S led m en , c h e c k out th e ir w eb site: http://www.me gill, ca/civil/ceus/ tobo.htm.

McGill chops its way to first place

By Jason Sigurdson Smoky air and an ice-covered C en ten n ial F ield provided the backdrop for the 38th Annual In te r c o lle g ia te L umbe rj ack Competition held at MacDonald campus in Ste-A n n e-d eBellevue.

The event took place last Saturday, drawing 25 teams from 11 schools in Eastern Canada and the A m erican Northeast. M cG ill sent four teams o f six m em bers that particip ated in events including Competing fo r cross cut saw ing, water boiling and axe throwing.

Field Judge Owen MacCallum was pleased with the overall outcome of the day’ s com petition. Now an organizer, he remembers how he got his start in woodsmen competi­ tions.

“I got bullied into it actually, but it’s a lot of fun,” he reminisced.

“It’s a sport, like hockey. You play as a team, but there’s some stuff you so as yourself.”

W oodsm en alum ni lik e MacCallum make the annual lum­ berjack competition possible. Their association puts out a newsletter

As a pole climber, Dombroski must use a rope and leg spurs to reach the bell at the top of the nine m eter pole. C om p etitors are restricted by a one-minute time limit.

“On the team , we seem to gravitate towards certain events — once I saw the pole I knew there was no going back.”

Catherine Drouin, a third-year dietetics stu­ dent at McGill, knows the intense pace o f preparing for a lumberjack competi­ tion. Although she was attending this event as a spare for the D team, she held a spot on the A team prior to starting her sta­ giaire in dietetics.

100 points in swede saw event.

Rachel Ong “It was really hard to see my team compete without me,” woodsman at one point or anoth­ Drouin said. “We would practice er,” he explained. four days a week from 6am to 8am.

A lgonquin C o lleg e in When we get ready for a competi­ P em brooke, O ntario sent one men’s team and one woman’s team tion, we would start practizing in to compete. M ike Dombroski, a the evenings and Saturday morn­ ings as well.” forestry student and the pole Both the men’s and women’s climber for the men’s team, was excited about the high level o f team s at M cG ill captured first place at Saturday’s competition, competition at McGill.

“W e’re a small college and with Sir Sandford Fleming College we’re competing against some of in Lindsay, Ontario taking second. the hard-core schools,” Dombroski said. “We started training back in August as soon as the school year started.” three times a year to keep in touch with members. About 25 alumni came out on Saturday to help judge the events.

“B a sic a lly everyone was a

Page 5

Day of Action delayed

By Lauren C appell The ice storm delayed organi­ zational efforts for the national Day of Action and forced the Quebec chapter of the Canadian Federation o f Students to postpone their demonstrations until February 11.

Although Quebec postponed last week’s national Day of Action, members o f the Canadian Federation of Students expect that student support will remain strong until the rescheduled date. The Day of Action organizes students into united front for the fight to preserve and increase access to Canada’ s publicly-funded post-secondary education system.

“Students and popular groups in M ontreal w ill be heard on February 11 — loud and clear,” stated Anna Kruzynski, chair of the Quebec CFS. In a display of solidarity with the pan-Canadian protest, Kruzynski led a press conference at Concordia on the planned Day of Action, January 28. At the confer­ ence, she emphasized that Quebec’s absence would not affect the impact of the movement.

“There was a clear majority in favour of changing the date,” said Kruzynski, “and the press confer­ ence indicates that we aren’t doing our own thing for selfish reasons.

W e’ ve been working with the national o ffic e all along.

Mobilization won’t be a problem because there is such a broad coali­ tion in Quebec. We always manage to get great support, huge numbers.”

Kruzynski explained that in Quebec, the focus of the battle is against corporate influence on edu­ cation.

Claude R ioux, a student spokesperson for the Quebec Day of A ction, reinforced the p olitical character of this resistance and con­ demned the neo-liberal attitude of the Quebec government.

“This neo-liberal ideology,” Rioux stated, “leads post-secondary education institutions to prioritize the criterion o f ‘m arketability’ above all other objective standards.”

While demonstrations in Nova Scotia occurred a day earlier on January 27, the o fficia l Day o f Action on January 28 was strong and unified. Events included an

eighteen hour occupation o f the CIBC building in Toronto as well as the occupation o f the prem ier’s office in Manitoba.

“Students are not clients,” said Rioux. “First and foremost, we are human beings, citizens.”

CFS demands include a nation­ al system of grants based on need rather than academic merit and a nation-wide tuition freeze. In a press release, CFS representatives stated their argument against Finance Minister Paul Martin.

“Students are taking to the streets because the down-loading of the deficit onto individual students has compromised access to post­ secondary education...[Martin] can continue to put the interests of the investment community before the needs o f the students, or he can reinvest in education.”

A key component in the CFS platform opposes Income C ontingent Loan Repayment schemes which would see students repaying loans based on their incomes after graduation. CFS fears that women, minority groups and students in “less marketable” pro­ grams will be penalized; because they will require more time to pay off their loans, ostensibly they will be paying more for their education through interest rates. In the press release, CFS asserted that ICLRs “will create a two-tiered system of education — one system for the rich, and another for the poor.”

The increasing view o f stu­ dents as education consumers that falls into the agenda for privatiza­ tion and corp oratization, w ill according to the CFS, result in an even worse situation for people wanting to continue school at the post-secondary level.

“There will be a shift from building institutions which exist to serve the public good...to institu­ tions which exist to serve private interests.”

Quebec’s rescheduled Day of Action on February 11 will begin with a demonstration at 12:30 pm on the corner of de Maisonneuve and Mackay. The Day of Action will also include a march through the downtown core and the occupa­ tion of an undisclosed private sector building.

NOTICE A petition has been made to the S S M U Judicial Board, challenging the validity of the Student Health Care contract with respect to the S S M U Constitution.

Any third parties interested in intervening on either side are invited to do so.

Written submissions, conforming to S S M U Judicial Board procedures, must be placed in the Judicial Board box at the S S M U office by the end of Monday, Fedbruary 9, 1998.

For more information, contact the Chair of the SSMU Judicial Board by e-mail at

jacobs-l@ lsa.lan.m cgill.ca

Page 6

News

3 February 1998

Busting more than language barriers A language exchange program between students and Russian immigrants in Montreal is a means to share culture and expand the educational experience B y D avid H orlock Students now have the oppor­ tunity to earn credit through lan­ guage exchanges with immigrants in M cG ill’s intermediate Russian language program.

Sam Jo h n sto n , the M cG ill student who headed the initiative to develop the community learn­ ing program, petitioned the uni­ versity to acknowledge the educa­ tional value of exchange programs w ith co rresp o n d in g acad em ic credit.

“I want the university to see that these things are valuable,” stated Johnston. “ I ’ ve thought long and hard about where com­ munity learning would work and I thought, languages.”

R u ssian p ro fesso r E ric Lozowy came on board with the pilot project because o f the great p o ten tial fo r the program to expand beyond the paramétrés of the classroom and to even spill over into other departments.

“I think it’s excellent — the students can benefit from it. They can discover the reality o f Russian immigrants in Montreal as well as im prove th eir R u ssia n ,” said Lozowy.

Demand for broader language program s is grow ing. D avid Boruchoff, head o f the Hispanic Studies department, asserted that the idea could work well for stu­ dents studying Spanish; nonethe­ less, Boruchoff acknowledged that a ccre d ita tio n for the program could be a contentious issue with­ in language departments.

“W e’ve tried to organize lan­ guage exchanges before, but not

for credit — it depends on the stu- E n g lish ,” said L arissa Taran, a d en t’ s in itia tiv e ,” B o ru c h o ff Russian immigrant participating in explained. “Also, putting a grade the program. “At first we thought on human interaction is a prob­ that we’d just be exchanging lan­ guage, but we are exch an gin g lematic thing. I don’t know how the Russian department is doing more. Som etim es we talk about that, but I ’d like to wait to see how things like the Russian people, cu ltu re, R u ssian successful it is before we consider R u ssian life...N ex t time I think I ’ll talk anything.”

But Johnston, a student now about the R u ssian b a lle t or Russian writers.” p articip a tin g in the R u ssian A lthough the F ren ch as a exchange program, pointed out that it only counts for a small por­ S eco n d L angu age d epartm ent w asn’t able to com m ent on the tion of the students’ final marks.

“Right now there are only ten possibility of developing a similar program , R obin o f us p artic­ Y ates, the head o f ip ating and “I ’ve learned all these the E a s t A sian we aren’t get­ words and expressions department, ting a huge that are so random, that bStudies e lie v e s it is an amount o f our grade,” stated you would never learn in excellent idea.

“I have strongly J o h n s t o n . class. You can’t learn a argued for some fac­ “What w e’ve language from a tape.” ulty or even univer­ done is —Joanna Morrow, sity-wide communi­ agreed to exchange the exchange participant ty program s that would be credited,” la b o r a to r y said Y a te s .

“I part o f our b elie v e that M cG ill should be mark for the language exchange.” much more plugged into the com­ So far, students like Joanna Morrow are enjoying the opportu­ munity as a whole,” she contin­ nity to learn a language in an envi­ ued. “It breaks down the notion that the university is an ‘ivory ronment outside the classroom.

“I ’ve learned all these words tow er.’ Instead it would be per­ and expressions that are so ran­ ceived to be helping the communi­ dom, that you would never learn ty — there are a lot o f advantages, educational and otherwise.” in c la s s ,” said M orrow . “You While a comprehensive cred­ c a n ’ t learn a lan guage from a ited community language program tape.” at McGill is still in its conceptual Not only do students benefit, but R u ssian im m igran ts to phase, the initiatives taken by the Montreal are able to practice their Russian department could map the English and share Russian culture course for a more interactive rela­ tionship between the university with interested students. and the larger Montreal communi­ “M y peop le are happy b ecau se they can learn good ty-

S C A R LE T K E Y A W A R D McGill has a vibrant and active student body. Each year, the Scarlet Key Society seeks to recognize the achievements of outstanding leaders on this campus. Students who build and create change. Students who leave their mark on McGill long after they have left.

The Scarlet Key Society has been around McGill for almost 75 years. In 1971, the Scarlet Key Award was introduced with a view to recognizing the achievements of McGill’s outstanding student leaders. Since that time, the con­ tributions of over 1,500 student leaders have been recognized.

Scarlet Key Awards are only given to graduating students. The Scarlet Key Society is not affiliated with the Students’ Society of McGill University.

The application procedure is simple. Pick up an application package at the S S M U front desk. G et two letters of reference from your peers or anyone that you feel is appropriate; list main contribution to McGill and tell us how you demonstrated leadership in the McGill community.

Better yet, pick up a package and nominate a friend or a peer who you perceive as a leader at McGill.

Past winners include a wide range of student leaders at McGill artists, ath­ letes, politicians, journalists and many many others who defy categorization. If you have questions, please don’t hesitate to e-m ail or call A lex John ston , th e selction c o m m ittee c o o rd in ato r at: 982-9268 jo hnst_a@ lsa.lan.m cgill.ca

D E A D L IN E T O A P P L Y IS F E B R U A R Y 2 0 ,

1998

Bob Dylan in running for Dal degree Sixties’ icon singer Bob Dylan has been nominated for an honorary degree from Dalhousie University.

A petition, signed by almost four hundred Dalhousie students has been submitted in an effort to have Dylan awarded the degree.

Jason McGroarty, a Dal stu­ dent involved in the cam paign, argues that Dylan is a perfect candi­ date since the writer and performer has helped link today’s generation with previous generations of Dylan fans.

Dalhousie annually awards up to eight honorary degrees chosen from a list o f over forty candidates.

According to the university, a well written nomination form is often a key factor in awarding a degree since the committee which selects the winners often has nothing to go on but the information provided.

Should Dylan re ceiv e the degree, it will not be the first time that Dalhousie has honoured a poetperformer in this manner. Singersongw riter Leonard Cohen was awarded an honorary degree in 1971.

—with files from the Manitoban

Eagleson scholarship under fire at U of T Hockey czar Alan Eagleson’s fall from grace is having a profound impact on students at the University of Toronto.

Eagleson’ s disbarment from the Law Society o f Upper Canada on January 23 has left university officials wondering what to do with the R. Alan Eagleson Scholarship.

The scholarship was established in 1977 for faculty o f law students pursuing a career in justice.

Eagleson’s disbarment came as a result of his admission of guilt in US and Canadian courts of defraud­ ing the Canada Cup Hockey Tournam ent and the N ational Hockey League P la y ers’ Association of millions of dollars.

Faculty members and students at the University o f Toronto are raising questions about the ethics of having a law scholarship named after someone who has been dis­ barred. Ja k e G ilb ert, the most recent recipient of the scholarship, received $ 1 ,2 0 0 while Eagleson was still under in vestigation .

G ilb ert accepted the money

because he worried that rejecting it would have presumed Eagleson’s guilt before it was proven. He now says that he recognizes the impor­ tance of scholarships but does not like having one bearing Alan Eagleson’s name.

A consultation process initiat­ ed by university officials with fac­ ulty, financial aid officers, donors and recipients are trying to find a way to handle the situation.

York University is facing a similar problem with its own Alan Eagleson Sports Injury Clinic. It was named for the hockey great in 1988 when E agleson donated $90,000 from his own bank account to bail out his client, legend Bobby Orr, who had not kept his financial commitments to the university.

—with files from the Varsity

Memorial’s student union pres resigns The President o f the Council o f Student Unions at M emorial U niversity in Newfoundland resigned from his post rather than face the em barrassm ent o f an impeachment vote.

Glenn Beck left the presidency in early December after the vicepresidents of the council threatened to resign en masse if he did not step down. The council had been dissat­ isfied with B e c k ’ s performance since last summer. After the first few months on the job, councillors allege that Beck was rarely at his o ffice before noon and was fre­ quently late or m issed council meetings entirely. As well, on sev­ eral occasions, he failed to show up for meetings with university admin­ istrators and at least one meeting with R oger G rim es, Newfoundland’s minister of educa­ tion.

Council members confronted Beck about his absence and threat­ ened impeachment. No action was taken until December when Beck arrived at a council meeting and gave his resignation, citing medical and personal reasons.

The difficulty o f the situation is compounded by other recent res­ ignations by several council mem­ bers because of co-op work terms or other schedule changes. Keith Clarke, former executive vice-pres­ ident of the council, will be acting president for the rest of the year.

— with files from the Muse

Correction: L a s t w e e k ’s s to ry on M U N A C A c o n tra c t n e g o tia tio n s (news, page 6) h ad th e w ro n g p ic tu re .

A lla n Y o u s te r a c tu a lly a p p e a re d in o u r E n te rta in m e n t s e c tio n on p a g e 21.

T h e Tribune re g re ts th e e rro r.

3 February 1998

N eW S

Briefs No health plan required for counselling centre M c G ill’ s Ed ucational and C ou n sellin g P sychology D epartm ent recen tly opened a counselling clinic for the public to train its masters and doctorate stu­ dents.

Marilyn Fitzpatrick, acting executive director for the PsychoEd ucational and C ou nselling Centre, created the clinic to answer the need for a supervised and quality service for students and the community at large.

“The clinic was created to o ffer quality training to students and quality service to the com m u nity,” said Fitzpatrick. “We wanted to offer students an opportunity for on-site training.”

D octorate student Lazarus Fitopoulos, currently working in the clinic, recog­ nized that this fa cility answered an urgent need for the McGill department. “ On a departm ental lev el, this is an ex cellen t opportunity,” said Fitopoulos. “A lot o f counselling departments have a clinic affiliated with their programs. It’s something needed that helps the program.”

The clinic is aimed at those who aren’t covered by M cG ill’s health plan and who can’t afford private professional help. Clients using the service are charged not according to service but through flat rate administrative fees each semester.

“This clinic provides a place where people can see clients who are in need,” said Fitopoulos.

Icebox fund grows Student unions at Acadia and W aterloo have stepped forward with donations to help McGill stu­ dents affected by the recent ice storm.

SSMU President Tara Newell is pleased with the show of gen­ erosity and is encouraging students who need help to come forward and make an application.

“I’ll be doing some [Canadian A llia n ce of Stu d en ts’ Associations] business next week and my colleagues will be giving me the cheques in person,” Newell stated. “We have a lot of money available and now we just want to make sure it gets to the right peo­ ple.”

The Icebox fund was set up by the P resid ential A ffairs C om m ittee two w eeks ago.

Application forms are available at the SSM U front desk in Shatner and aid will be given to students on a first-come, first-serve basis.

LBGTM launches Pride Week The L esb ian s, B ise x u a ls, Gays and Transgender Students of M cG ill launched Queer Pride

week last Friday.

Now in its third year, the annual event encompasses a wide array of social, cultural, political, and health oriented events geared towards the celebration of queer campus life. The w eek’s events were designed to be a contrast to the larger, wider based and “at some times alienating” Montreal events. LBGTM ’s pride week will attempt to narrow its focus to the promotion and awareness of queer issues on the McGill campus.

This year’ s pride week has

demystification and understand­ ing.”

—reporting by Simon Finlayson

faced for over 20 years.

“These are situations that just shouldn’t be happening — we've put a lot of time and money into these productions and it seems as though SSMU turns a blind eye.”

Rescheduling of Four Floors rocks Players

Ice Storm ‘98 did more than ju s t wreak havoc on M c G ill’ s landscaping — it also resulted in the resch ed u lin g o f one o f M cG ill’s most popular campus parties, Four Floors.

Four Floors is an SSMU party put on in the Shatner University Centre, occupying all four floors o f the building. Sounds like fun, unless of course, you hap­ pen to be putting on a play the same night, in the same build­ ing. Such was the scenario that befell McGill Player’s Theatre, when it discovered that the opening night o f its newest production, ,com/p@ny\ was scheduled for the same night as Four Floors.

The Player’s Theatre per­ forms in their own theatre on the third floor o f the Shatner building. Directors were con­ cerned and upset about the fact Catherine Farquharson that such a major event was scheduled to take place on their opening night. SSM U VP grown substantially from previous Internal Sarvesh Srivastava says one’s, both in terms of vision and scope. The growth in the number that although Four Floors was sup­ of events organized and the diver­ posed to be held the week before, sity of the activities planned indi­ “the night o f January 22 was the most ideal time” for the resched­ cate an increasingly active, open uled party. and visible queer population on The conflict was brought to cam pus. R anging from photo­ the attention of SSMU by Player’s graphic ex h ib itio n s and film screenings to political forums and, Theatre producer Kathy Gazzola who said that executives “were health w orkshops, this years events are a multifaceted look at supportive and sympathetic to an the vitality of the queer communi­ issue that really shouldn’t be hap­ ty in the face of continued homo­ pening.” The two parties reached an arrangement so that the third phobia and heterosexism.

The eight day series of events floor was sectioned o ff until the production was over — an has been organized and funded by the LBGTM in conjunction with arrangem ent, which Srivastava says “had never been done before, peer health, the Quebec Public and was a very progressive move Interest Research Group and the Sexual Assault Centre of McGill’s for the SSM U.” According to stage manager Students’ Society.

Laura Quinn, although audience Several w orkshops will be conducted during the week, one of members did not seem to notice noise coming from the other areas w hich is entitled “Sam e Sex of the building, there was a direct R elatio n sh ip V io le n c e ” on impact on actors and stage-hands.

February 4. A cting as a bridge “Morale was down among the between SACOMSS and LBGTM, cast. We were all pretty annoyed at the workshop w ill explore the issue o f same-sex domestic vio­ the situation,” she said.

Gazzola, however, pointed out lence with its primary goal, as that the disturbance caused by SACOMSS External Coordinator Four Floors is just another instance and event co-organizer Christina Gravely emphasized, “discussion, o f problems Player’s Theatre has

—reporting by Stephanie Levitz

McGill hosts debating championships Over 90 teams from across the continent spent the weekend in Montreal for the North American Debating Championships.

"Overall, people were saying it was the best tournament they've attended," said M cGill Debating Union Co-chair Jamie Cowan.

Breaking with tradition, co­ chairs Cowan and Jamie Springer

Page 7

decided to donate $ 1 ,0 0 0 to the C anadian Red C ross D isaster R elief Fund instead o f awarding trophies to the winning teams. The donation will be used to assist vic­ tims o f the recent ice storm.

“The preparation for the tour­ nament came right after the ice storm. We would feel silly spend­ ing a $1,000 on hardware in the wake o f a disaster,” stated Saeed Teebi, publicity director for the McGill Debating Union.

University of Western Ontario took first place at this year’s com­ petition and the top speaker was law student Casey Halladay from the University o f Ottawa.

The event was created by M cG ill in 1 991. It alternates between an American school and a Canadian school each year. Last year it was held at Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore.

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McGILL TRIBUNE “Equality may perhaps be a right, but no power on earth can ever turn it into a fact ” — H o n o ré de Balzac S ara J ean G reen Editor-in-chief F ranklin R ubinstein Assistant Editor-in-chief

E lizabeth W asserman Assistant Editor-in-chief

E d i t o r i a l

Racist rationalization B y H fa t h e r

So k o l o f f

___________________________________________

Last week, two men were found guilty of raping a woman. They were sentenced to 16 months of community serv ice for their crime.

The judge explained that the light sentence was appropriate for this case because the rapists’ Haitian background was responsible for their socialization — both men were given lighter sentences because they have been conditioned to have different attitudes towards sex and women than their North American counterparts.

This action — which was intended to be a recognition of cultural diversity along the lines of political correctness — was so grounded in sexism and racism that it mocks the policies of the state that legitimized its inception.

While Canadians love to praise our policies of multiculturalism by asserting that “we are not a melting pot,” this judgement demonstrates the ethical haziness of these kind of politics. The politics of equal recognition are intended to assure everyone equal opportunity under the law. This does not, however, entail accommodation to every cultural practice. It is possi­ ble to value and respect another culture white being critical of it. As one Haitian leader put it, “an abuse is an abuse is an abuse.” The fact that Haitians may be more culturally accepting of rape should have no bearing on the Canadian court system.

However, I doubt very much that Haitians are any more accepting of rape than Canadians claim to be. This was evident in the outrage expressed

by Haitian community leaders at the rapists’ lenient sentence. If anything, this demonstrates that our precious judicial institutions o f so-called liberal democracy can be smoothly corrupted by the bigotry of an individual judge. Extreme political correctness is so patronizing that it Is just as racist as old-fashioned colonialism. The judge, in effect, has expressed to the Haitian community that their culture is barbaric; and that she must make allowances for those who are not sufficiently civilized to live under white man’s law. The notion that the judge’s action could have even stemmed out of multiculturally-minded politics of recognition makes it all the more ironic.

Furthermore, the judgement reveals the pervasive sexism that even this female judge seems to have internalized. While public policy seeks to respect the values of diverse cultures, it appears that the protection, auton­ omy and integrity of women can be easily compromised in order to bear the brunt of multiculturalism-in-action. Perhaps this was the same judge who lightened the sentence for a man charged with sodomizing a girl — the judge rationalized the decision since the man, according to Muslim custom, had kindly spared the little girl her virginity.

The same can be said for misogynist practices such as female circum­ cision, polygamy and even footbinding. Canadians hesitantly approach such practices since the doctrines of political correctness dictate that we should not impose our own values on other cultures. Yet in other spheres, we have no problem accepting our values as universal: it is always wrong to steal and it is always wrong to murder. Why then are issues surrounding women allowed to take on such ethical fluidity?

We must be ready to defend certain ethical principles that should be entrenched in our policies, ethics that cannot be undermined by outs like the notwithstanding clause. Our taws are not ethically malleable.

Canadians should expect their constitutional state to advance specific con­ ceptions and goals that actually protect equality. It is one thing to be accepting of cultural difference. But for the majority of Canadians — women — gender difference is still a liability; tolerance of violence against women completely undermines the foundation of a self-proclaimed democracy. Rape cannot be rationalized.

News Editor Jason Sigurdson Assistant News Editors Renée Dunk L aura MacNeil Network Editor Stephanie Levitz Features Editors Heather Sokoloff Leslie Stojsic

Entertainment Editors Kris Michaud Lee Oberlander

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Stop the Press

Alcohol’s devastating impact In response to Raphael M arcu s’ letter, “Pot addiction grows like weed”. (Tribune, 27 January) Heavy marijuana use is bad for you. Y es, we all know that.

Your sperm becomes retarded and your motivation to do things can drift away on you. Smoking a joint and then trying to study is kind of like an exercise in re-reading the same paragraph twenty times over again and not teaming anything...

But to pretend that marijuana is a “hard drug” is to refer to it in the same category as crack or hero­ in. Any in tellig en t person who takes an objective viewpoint on the matter can see how ridiculous this notion is. What is really absurd, however, is the hypocrisy of a soci­ ety which tolerates, in fact encour­ ages alcohol use yet looks down upon and attem pts to imprison those who would rather smoke a jo in t and be creative than drink alcohol.

Alcohol is directly responsible for roughly 50 per cent o f traffic fatalities each year in the United Sta tes. A study done at the University of Texas showed it to be involved in up to 90 per cent of sexual assaults involving college students as well as an omnipresent factor in on-campus violence.

Last year on Halloween, I was at a party where one of the hosts, in a drunken stupor, went up on the ro o f to ch eck out the view and

slipped on the ice and fell three sto­ ries to his death. Fun stuff.

And yet, when we arrive at M cG ill for Frosh W eek, we are encouraged to drink. W e are encouraged to drink until we can’t drink any m ore. Y ou ng, naive drunken girls fall prey to sleazy, older guys and drunken guys go around breaking things and being aggressive and violent. Compare this to the “hard drug” marijuanauser who is just chilling, listening to music and talking with friends.

Oh, yeah — beat the freakin g Hippie boy to death...and give him a drink — that’ ll straighten him out. Somewhere the logic of all this defies me.

The argum ent for m edical marijuana use is that chemotherapy patients who can’t hold down any food and are always feeling nau­ seous should be allowed to smoke a joint if it’s going to make them fe e l b etter and resto re their appetite. They’re not hurting any­ one and there is scientific living proof that a marijuana joint is bet­ ter than any man-made chemical at helping these people live better, more enjoyable lives. Besides, I don’t think cancer patients are too worried about getting cancer from smoking joints — they just want to end their suffering.

The whole problem with drugs in general is the ignorance in which th e y ’ re used by the m asses.

Throughout the entire world, youth

culture has embraced relatively new drugs like Ecstasy, crystal and various forms of hybrid ampheta­ mines. These are serious drugs but they’re taken very casually by the average partygoer.

This is because we’re so tired of the “Just Say No” rhetoric of the likes of Mr. Marcus. When he clas­ sifies pot alongside heroin, we laugh. We say, this guy doesn’t know what he’s talking about — why should I listen to him? But this is a mistake because his point should be heard; however it will never be heard as long as it’s so biased and closed-minded. Things he says are true, but what he says is not the truth. What we really need is an open, honest dialogue about both the p o sitiv e and negative effects o f drugs.

“C anad a’ s drug p o licie s remain firmly rooted in medieval notions that a war on drugs is the way to stop drug-related harms.

Our current drug laws do not work.

They barely dent the flow of drugs into Canada...our drug laws do not stop or even significantly reduce drug use...legislating more or what has not worked — is not working, and w ill not work — is not the answer.”— Canadian Foundation

fo r Drug Policy, June 4th, 1996.

— William White U1 Computer Science

Letters to the Editor Offensive graffiti

Election promises

This an open letter to the gen­ tleman who recently felt moved enough to write the following mes­ sage on a bathroom w all in Redpath library: 12-06-89 M. LEPINE It’s time to finish the job.

This time use a full metal jacket

This past year, I have had the privilege to serve as a student rep­ resentative in Senate. It has taught me much, most importantly that M cGill is in danger of financial, spiritual and political collapse. We are shackled to an enormous debt, are enfeebled by the loss of staff, and the scholarly culture is in fer­ ment. Y e t I have also seen an administration open to input, will­ ing to change, with the understand­ ing that we must act today in order to preserve tomorrow. In many ways, it is the students who have been slow to react.

Inevitable, the erosion of uni­ versities now confronts us in the classroom. Conferences swell in size or are cut altogether. In class­ rooms of 200+, students spill over into the aisles. Professors isolate themselves from students, their only contact [is though] weekly

In your very public declara­ tion o f misogyny, in your utter contempt for survivors of genderbased violence, in your lack o f respect for the 14 women victims of Lepine’s hatred, anger and rage, you forgot to add one very impor­ tant thing — real men sign their names.

— Paul Ruel

Outreach Co-ordinator SACOMSS

lectures and e-m ail. For some, classes are taught by graduate stu­ dents, who despite their enthusi­ asm, cannot match the intellectual grace of Charles Taylor.

For those who take a leader­ ship role in 1998, the challenges prom ise to be even greater. I would strongly encourage anyone who is com m itted to academ ic excellence, humanism and the wel­ fare o f their university to run for Senate. Don’t run for glory — few will know what you do and still fewer will even care. Rest assured, however, that you will make a dif­ feren ce and the d ecisio n s you make affect everyone. Nomination period closes February 12.

—Andrew Kovacs Science Senator U1 Biology C ontinued on p a g e 9

Rem inder Staff Advertising and Marketing Manager Paul Slachta Ad Typesetters Reuben Levy Jam es Senior H arry Wheeler

Chris Allen, Diana Anderson, Leslie Buckley, Lauren Capped, Catherine Farquharson, Cheryl Fu, Megan Graves, Nilima Gulrajani, Ashley Hall, Tyler Hargreaves, Céline Heinbecker, David Horlock, Berkeley Hynes, Lily Ibara, Sajid Karsan, Thibaut Lefort, Amy Lerman, The Minh Luong, Rebecca McKecknie, Shirley Ong, Ros Price, David Reevely, Rich Retyi, John Sailoum, Chris Selley, Jeremy Waiser

Su b m ission s for Stop the Press must not exceed 500 words and Letters to the Editor must not exceed 250. Deadline for submis­ sions is Friday at 5 p.m.

While the Tribune welcomes anyone to write for Stop the Press and Letters to the Editor, their submissions will not be printed if they do not contain the writer’s phone number and program (ie.

U2 Sociology).

Opinion

3 February 1998

Talker is knapping

Left battles right but they’ve got it all wrong

What the hell is wrong with Micah Knapp [Girl Power outage: Sp ice G irls shame fem inism , Tribune 27 January 1998]?

To be quite honest, there were so many idiotic things in his “Low Talker” column that 1 hardly know where to begin. If I understand him co rrectly , the Spice G irls have “shamed” feminism by labelling themselves prophets of Girl Power, wearing high-heeled shoes, show­ ing clea v ag e, m aking lots o f money and, by implication, repre­ senting “everything that’s wrong with the corporate world in the late 90s, with the music business and with the film industry.” The logical content of such a statement is of course impeccable, but it seems to me predicated on some highly dubious assumptions regarding the nature of feminism and the true meaning of the Spice Girls phe­ nomenon.

Although he does not explicit­ ly define feminism beyond a mud­ dled reference to hairy arm pits and combat boots, he does suggest that the pre-fab quality of the Spice G irls is in co n sisten t with the “autonomy and individuality” that feminism strives for. Even given that rather flimsy definition, what could be further from the truth?

It is well known that the target demographic of the Spice Girls is pre-teen girls, not salivating col­ lege frat boys. Those girls buy S p ice G irls products because they’re fun; they don’t demand a massive intellectual response and at that age it’s nice to be identified with the token irreverancy that those products represent. They don’t buy them so they can look at Geri’s tits.

W hile it seem s that Mr. Knapp would prefer a more intro­ verted (nay repressed) version of feminism, I personally don’t think there’ s anything wrong with the Spice Girls making the most out of th eir G od-given T and A. As Knapp him self says, “the Spice Girls...had a choice.” They made th eir ch o ice, so why not leave them alone?

That leads me to another thing. What bothered me the most about his a rticle was that Mr. Knapp entirely missed the point of the Spice Girls. It’s a joke! Quite frankly, I think it’s ridiculous to be even having this conversation on this level (but he started it). The Spice Girls don’t take themselves seriously, so to pick them apart on a in telle ctu a l basis is only to dem onstrate that you have no sense o f humour. Does it matter what “Zig-a-Zig-Ah” means? No it doesn’t, but it is mildly danceable.

Ironically enough then, the joke is on Knapp. Unfortunately for his sake I don’t think he gets it.

Girl Power!

Why isn’t anybody protesting anything any more?

It’s not like there isn’t any­ thing to fig h t ag ainst. Tuition hikes, funding cuts, a rogue admin­ istratio n that threatens to take M cG ill private every couple o f years, outrageously poor libraries and governments that don’t seem to be making much of anything better for anybody. We should be raising barricad es in the streets, right?

The standard McGill response to that is: “...Uh...uh...nuh-uh.”

According to people who know about such things, young people are rebelling by going to the political right rather than the left. The left is the traditional leader in protests per hour by a major ideological wing, so young people’s rejection of left­ ism is probably the most significant factor in the relative peace on cam­ pus lately.

The Baby Boom ers showed their parents what they thought of their politics by rejecting the mate­ rialism, consumerism and militant homogeneity of the ‘50s, so it’s not surprising that we’re rejecting the Boomers’ values by embracing the things they fought. Crew cuts and V -n eck sw eaters are in again.

Unlike leftist discontent, centreright anger is rarely manifested in street protests and placard-waving and fu riou sly saving up for a

Take sexism in the workplace, for example. Figuring out what to do about it wasn’t really all that hard: “Hire qualified women. Duly punish any knuckle-dragger who can ’t cope with th is.” Tough to implement, maybe, but not an over­ ly complex idea.

Confronting even an obviously villainous corporation — one that pollutes extravagantly, tortures ani­ m als, and enslaves thirdworld workers — is a lot trickier. Don’t buy their products? O kay. But what other companies do they own? Who resells David Reevely their products under a dif­ m sM tm ferent label? Are their suppli­ ers, who profit from their products leftism any more.

Nevertheless, the left is usual­ indirectly, also to blame? And who else makes decent razor blades and ly right. I ’ll try that again. The shaving cream? positions of the left are usually cor­ Those are the sorts o f ques­ rect. M ovem ents that carry the tions the activist left has to concen­ broad banner o f leftism have trate on now that the wars over the brought the problems o f sexism, racism and gay-bashing to light and really big stu ff are being won. turned them into unacceptable atti­ Telling people to avoid evil compa­ nies isn’t enough. Legwork needs tudes and behaviour for the welladjusted. They have made us aware to be done that can’t be summa­ o f the evil we have done and are rized in a catchy motto or pithy doing to the Earth and informed us cardboard sign. Groups like of the gross cruelties humans inflict QPIRG might have done this work on other creatures in the industrial — they probably have, in fact — production of food. The problem, but nobody knows it. They have to do a much better job of spreading now, is that le ftis t groups like QPIRG are fighting their battles in the information; it’s unrealistic to entirely the wrong way and alienat­ ask people to seek it out for them­ selves, especially when the left’s ing people who fundam entally relentless shrill sloganeering has so agree with them.

Chevy Blazer and a summer home isn’t much o f a public expression of rage. Besides, if you’re going to eat, you pretty much have to work, and if yoO’re going to work in this age in which reality bites, you have to have an edge. W e’re all way too busy honing our edges to swing them at anything. The left is wilt­ ing from a lack of attention — our culture ju st isn’t as receptive to

wanker watch

injured its credibility.

Different battles call for differ­ ent tactics. If the battle is to get people to accept basic principles like civ il rights, then m arches, speeches, and civil disobedience are appropriate. The battles the left is fighting now aren’t over ideas.

They’re over how to implement the principles that clear-thinking peo­ ple have already accepted.

I t ’ s easy to shout slogan s, wave signs and indignantly demand the d estruction o f McDonald’s. It’s harder, and much less fun, to provide feasible alter­ natives. “Okay, I believe you that M cD on ald ’ s is m alevolent and w ic k e d ..I w on’ t get a ninetyn in e-cen t B ig M ac, fries, and a Coke for lunch. But I only have three bucks and fifteen minutes before my next class. So you tell me where I can, within those con­ straints, get a comparable meal that doesn’t involve cruelty to animals, d estruction o f the p lanet, or exploitation o f workers.” “W ell, um...”

The simple-solution issues are all taken. If the warriors of the left expect the old tactics to work in the battles that rem ain, th e y ’ ll tilt around the wilderness forever.

Mr. Reevely pays o ff his infor­ mant in the Alley with daily doses o f eco. -friendly falafel

Photo m eeting this Tuesday 6 p.m. in the Alley Talk to the darkroom ladies Rachel and Rebecca for an assignm ent.

AIRPORT STANDBY FARES ONE WAY FARES - M O N T R E A L to: TO RO N TO

VA N CO U V ER

FT. LAUDERDALE

*73

*208

*156

Includes tax $ 1 8 .7 4

Includes tax $ 4 3 .0 2

Includes tax $55 .9 3

FLIGHT SCHEDULE MONTREAL (DORVAL) DEPARTURES FEBRUARY 1998 SAT SUN MON TUES WED THURS FRI TO 09:45

09:45 18:45

09:45

09:45

09:20 22:05

—

22:25

VANCOUVER

—

09:45

-

14:30

09:20 06:00 06:00

—

FT. LAUDERDALE(Mirabel)

— 17:05

— 18:30

TORONTO

-

AIRPORT STANDBY FARES: Are subject to available seats prior to departure. Passengers m ay register 2 1 /2 hours prior to the scheduled departure of flight. Fares are subject to change without notice. Travel on any specific flight is not guaranteed. Payment (Cash or Credit Card only) must be made on departure. One way travel only.

— Nicholas Redler

U3 Arts

Note: Last w eek's cartoon, as well as this w eek's, w ere created by Harry W heeler.

# Reliable

■# Affordable

4» Air Travel

3 February 1998

Page 10

Railup against the Radio’s cacophonous crap Let me begin by stating my hatred for M atchbox 20, Tonic, 13 Engines, I Mother Earth, Our Lady P e a c e , M o ist, T hird E ye Blind, B u sh ...I could go on, but you probably get the picture. I have one big huge monster prob­ lem with the state o f good old ro ck n ’ ro ll in N orth A m erica today. Kurt Cobain is probably rolling over in his grave as we speak. The door was opened for bands like Sonic Youth to gain some much needed recognition in the form o f cold hard cash and the next thing you know Neil Young spurns Sonic Youth to make an album with Pearl Jam and all the decent cutting edge radio stations start looking for the next big iden­ tical thing.

Punk broke in 1991 ^ w e all remember those incredibly catchy opening strains o f “Sm ells L ike Teen Spirit.” Thing is, it is diffi­ cult to remain D IY when a bunch o f corporate types are offering you thousands o f dollars to turn yourself into Stone Temple Pilots.

Everyone knows that “alternative”

is no longer an adjective that can be used while sporting a straight fa ce . To get to my point in a roundabout way, we are living in a period o f stagnancy in popular m u sic.

New C ou n try and ’’Alternative” — two o f the most su ccessfu lly m arketed com ­ modities in music over the past five years are virtually the sam e th in g in my humble opinion.

How dare I compare th e se tw o g en res o f m u sic a l co m p o sitio n you ask ? W e ll, apart fro m bo th spaw ning some of the most intolera­ ble cacap h o n io u s crap I have ever heard, the similar­ ities abound. Shania Twain is m ark eted tow ard s the age bracket encom passing 2 4 to 34 year olds and Alternative is the New Country for fans ages 16 to 25. B oth types offer a “cutting edge” image — they promote socalled new and innovative types o f music when in reality it is the same old derivative stuff w e’ve all heard before. It is an attempt

on both sides to make listeners believe that they are on the lead­ ing edge o f music...everyone likes to feel that

t h e y are into something new and dif­ ferent. Only old folks listen to “Country and Western,” the hip young guns line dance to Teri C la rk .

N ot on ly have New Country and Alternative offered

similar clothing selections (think cowboy hats and plaid flannel), but they also offer fans new radio stations dedicated to promotion, p ro m o tio n , p ro m o tio n . As a Toronto suburbanite, I can display the case studies o f New Country K ISS 92.5 and CFNY 102.1 these stations have metamorpho sed in to co rp orate giants! Montreal is still plugged into the classic rock th a n g ....b u t ’’The B u z z ” from V erm o n t fills the Alternative void.

E v en the b a stio n s o f popular m u sic lik e Rolling Stone (who elimi­ nated its College Chart in exchange for an Alternative countd ow n) and B illb o a r d give top billing to these suppos­ edly new and cool artists.

The promotion o f a specific “type” o f music forces bands to conform, thus it follows that radio sta tio n s, m ag azin es, and fans must conform to w hatever the music industry dictates. Whereas N irvan a and a ll th o se other Seattle folks were at one time at

least slightly unique (and perhaps the same can be said for Garth B ro o k s ), L ee Ann R im e s and Dishwalla don’t exactly cut it. I have but one request — don’t let some guy in a suit continue to tell you what to buy...be adventure­ some and plunge into something that is truly on the leading edge.

— Cheryl Argue

U2 English

P o in t of inform ation:

Conch does not rhyme with paunch — it rhymes with bonk...got it?

T he S tudents1 S ociety of M cG ill U niversity Awards Every Year the Students ' Society o f M cG ill University gives a num ber o f awards to individuals a n d organizations who have demonstrated innovation, leadership a n d outstanding service to the students o f M cG ill. Anyone is welcome to subm it a nomination fo rm fo r any o f the awards listed below. N om ination form s can be picked up at the fro n t desk o f the S S M U office.

• Councillor o f the Year • Campus Group o f the Year • Activity o f the Year • Publication o f the Year • Service o f the Year • Club o f the Year • Committee Representative o f the Year • Senator o f the Year S S M U A w ard o f Distinction • Volunteer o f the Year • Faculty o f the Year

A ll subm issions must be presented to the front d esk of the SSMU office on or before M onday, Feb ru ary 2 0 th , 1 9 9 8 .

For more inform ation p lease contact S arvesh S riv a sta v a at

3 9 8 -6 7 9 9

3 February 1998

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Page 11

Student Ritalin junkies often unaware of health risks Report claims five to ten p er cent o f McGill using speed-like drug

By A my L erman Coping with the pressures of university life, the overwhelming demands of organizing a schedule, meeting deadlines and studying for exams can be a harrowing experi­ ence. Most of us rely on at least one chemical stimulant to make it through each semester, the most common and accessible examples being caffeine and nicotine. The use o f harder substances, such as speed, has long been a relatively widespread practice among stu­ dents, but an illicit one. In recent years, however, the gap of legiti­ macy between hard and soft stimu­ lants has been bridged by medical practice, most notably with the increasing prescription of a drug called Ritalin.

The growing use of Ritalin — a drug prescribed to sufferers of Attention Deficit Disorder (ADD) — was the subject of a study done

by Montreal-based research group IMS Canada. The study, which was published in the Montreal Gazette last week, reported that the number o f R ita lin users in Quebec had increased from 47 000 in 1992 to 179 000 last year.

Ritalin used to be prescribed primarily to children and adoles­ cents, but its use among adults is grow ing qu ickly. T he G azette noted that it is “big on campus,” and accused M cG ill students, in particular, o f being m ajor con­ sumers of the substance. Under the headline, “Many students addict­ ed ,” the G azette reported that

“betw een 1 ,0 0 0 to 2 ,0 0 0 o f McGill’s 20,000 undergraduates, or five to ten per cen t, are using Ritalin to help them study.” This insight cam e from Dr. Norman

him by nurses, floor fellows, and concerned students.

Although Hoffman stands by his estim ates, he fe lt that the Gazette’ s use of the word “addict-

She outlined the main symp­ tom s o f ADD as “in atten tion , im passivity, and hyperactivity,” and described a number o f com­ mon symptoms o f the disorder among ad olescents: not paying attention to instructions, forgetful­ ness, d isorgan ization , lack o f awareness of time, and the tenden­ cy to become frustrated with little

“Ritalin is really just a safer, less addic­ tive form of speed .”

— Dr. Norm an Hoffm an, director of McGill Student Health Services

Dr. Hoffman feels too many McGill student s are using Ritalin H offm an, D irecto r o f M cG ill Student H ealth S e rv ic e s. Dr. Hoffman told the Gazette that he arrived at this figure from “anecdo­ tal evidence [based] on students who passed through his office.”

Hoffman explained that the figures he quoted to the Gazette were estimates based on numerous reports o f students com ing to Health Services and pretending to have ADD in order to get hold of Ritalin prescriptions. Presently, no formal study has been conducted and Hoffman’s estimates are based on his own experiences combined with further “anecdotes” related to

Rachel Ong

ed” was an exaggeration, as most of the students abusing Ritalin are “taking it irregularly, as opposed to high doses.”

Dr. Maria Subak, a child and adolescent psychiatrist and former director o f child psychiatry at the Queen E lizab eth H ospital, explained that the abuse o f this medication by people with no his­ tory of ADD has inevitably “given Ritalin a bad name.”

“The people who really need Ritalin are becoming hesitant to take it because of the way that it has been stigmatized,” Dr. Suback stated.

provocation. Although that list may sound like a description o f the average ad olescen t, Dr. Subak explained that these traits are exag­ gerated to debilitating levels among ADD sufferers Dr. Suback called the Gazette article “sensationalistic,” and said that the numbers claim ed to be abusing the m edication “seem exaggerated.”

The director o f the Quebec Student H ealth A llia n ce, Lev Bukhm an, is also sk ep tical o f Hoffman’s figures. He has request­ ed a report from Liberty Health, the company that provides M cG ill’ s health insurance, detailing the total number o f claim s that M cG ill students have filed for R ita lin pre-

scriptions.

Although he does not yet have the numbers, Bukhman asserted that a consumption as major as that claimed by Hoffman is unlikely to have passed by the insurance com­ pany unnoticed.

“We have methods of monitor­ ing categories o f drugs that stu­ dents are requesting, and if such a large amount o f one drug was being requested, we would have noticed it. If one category of drug goes up, we would have flagged it.” Bukhman added that he would be “very surprised if the actual numbers I receive [from Liberty Health] in any way match those printed in the Gazette."

The abuse of Ritalin by those who do not need it can be danger­ ous.

“People think that because Ritalin is a prescription drug, it is safe,” said Dr. Hoffman. “But it is really just a safer, less addictive form of speed.”

Joan Wolforth of the McGill S e rv ice for Students with Disabilities was deeply disturbed by the IMS report, and stressed the need for students to be aware that Ritalin is not a universally benefi­ cial wonderdrug.

“The use of Ritalin by those who don’ t have ADD and don’t need it can have the effect o f a making them dysfunctional.”

A ltern atives to R italin : P erson al O rganizers

By A my L erman

With the recognition of alternative methods of treatment for disorders like ADD, people are relying less on chemi­ cal treatments alone and more on new methods such as personal coaching and organizing. Re-Organize Consulting, started by Rebecca Nemiroff, a secre­ tary at the Allen Memorial Hospital, was created with the goal of helping people cope with ADD and im pose order on their everyday lives.

Re-Organize Consulting, a private company started in April 1997, was intended to cater specifically to clients with ADD. H owever, an increasing proportion of Nemiroff's clientele con­ sists of people without psychiatric dis­ orders, who simply need help organiz­ ing themselves.

Dr. Subak stressed that the treat­ m ent for ADD is "co m p reh en sive, involving medication, coaching, and psychotherapy." It thus makes sense that N em iro ff's R e-O rgan ize Consulting is an attractive resource for adolescents and adults who have been diagnosed with ADD. According to Dr. Jack Albin, the Director of Psychology at Child and Parent Resource Institute (CPRI) in London, Ontario, this type of consulting is becom ing more w ide­

spread. He added that in the United States, "personal coaches are becoming more prominent."

Rebecca Nemiroff uses the organi­ zational skills that she acquired as a secretary at the Royal Victoria Hospital and the Allan Memorial to assist her clients, The most common problems she deals with tend to be with basic tasks: organizing assignments, priori­ tizing tasks, and breaking jobs down into manageable components.

"I try to stick to the practical, dayto-day bu siness of gettin g things done," she explained. She visits the home or workplace of each client in an effort to get a personal sense of what needs to be done. For clients who have ADD, Nemiroff works together with th eir d octors, giving them regular progress reports.

As appealing as the idea of having a p ersonal o rgan izer may appear, Nemiroff was quick to add that her aim is to teach her clients the skills "to put myself out of business." Nemiroff has compiled an extensive list of resources available to the public, which includes a list of psychiatrists, psychologists, coaches, learning centres, books and internet sites.

Joan Wolforth stated that over the past few years she has seen a number

of in d iv id u als and o rgan ization s claim ing to do w hat R e-O rganize Consulting does. Wolforth said that many of these op eration s seem ed "dubious," and that she did not feel comfortable referring students with ADD to any of them. Nemiroff, how­ ever, has earned W olforth's confi­ dence. "R eb ecca has ex p erien ce," Wolforth explained simply. "And she does it properly."

Karen K ollin s, a fo u rth -y ear McGill student, worked last year as an independent professional organiz­ er with a McGill student with ADD. Kollins helped her client perform var­ ious tasks, including organizing her sched ule and com pleting sm all Treatment o f ADD com bines p b a r - Ros Price errands, such as returning library m aceu tical a n d behavioral approaches. books, necessary to maintain order in her daily routine. Kollins served as a that they, too, pose the threat of addic­ tion. Wolforth cautions that students motivation for this young adult who must learn to cope on their own, or felt that her d ifficu lty in school psychological dependency is likely to stemmed from her ADD. occur.

She reported that some of her "The first thing we did was bought an agenda, Post-it notes and big mark­ students with ADD who have received this type of coaching "have found it ers," said Kollins. Her assistance paid off, resulting in a substantial improve­ helpful, while others found it overbear­ ing." Dr. Subak offers similar warn­ ment in her client's grades. ings. She warned of the pitfall of con­ A lthough these altern ativ e fusing guidance with control: "The approaches to combating ADD might organizer must help the client through seem harm less in com parison with the task, not do it for them." drug treatments, professionals warn

Pagei2Features

3 February 1998

Interviews by Chris Allen

Tribune Streeter

Photos by Rachel Ong

“Are Canadians justified in bashing the banks to the degree that they do (with respect to profit levels, CEO salaries, ser­ vices fees and other issues)?”

David Rubenstein, U3 Management

Cheryl Rosebush, U2 Political Science

Alex Farjo, U2 Economics

Christine Fraser, U3 Humanistic Studies

M arc Chretien, U3 Management

“I ’ m with Royal Bank and I ’ m pretty happy. If they can make the money, power to them. For my purposes, I ’ m happy. T h e re ’ s enough competition. I don’t see the merger as a big problem.”

“The first thing I think o f is the imminent merger between Royal and the Bank of Montreal. It scares me. I would im plore the Prime Minister to, at the very least, ana­ lyze this to the greatest degree.

Monopoly is imminent. They get enough o f my money as it is through credit cards and loans, although I don’t need to announce my debt to the world.”

“Yes. CIBC I’m happy with. Royal Bank didn’t quite cut it. A few stu­ dents didn’t seem to matter too much to them. They d efinitely make too much money — those are the statistics that you have. A big bank would be all right.

Competition is not the big thing.”

“I think it’s outrageous. They’re taking all our money. It’s just extra money that they make. I ’m with Royal. I hate it. The service is bad, and the treatment to students is awful. Service fees are too high.

They’re just making money when­ ever they can. Competition will help. They should treat us as their corporate clients. They can aford to pay for it and we can’t.”

“If the profits are coming from the in vestm en ts, then i t ’ s O K. If th e y ’re com ing from serv ice charges, it’s no good. Personally, I lik e that I can go anywhere in Canada, and I ’ ll have a R oyal Bank branch [nearby], unlike in the US. I don’t think it has gotten to the point where it’s monopolis­ tic. The merger is acceptable. At least Canada will be able to com­ pete internationally. We’ll be able to invest in international endeav­ ours with asset backing.”

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Page13 Features

3 February 1998

Banks in Canada might be big, but are they bad?

B y C hris A llen Are Canada’s B ig Six banks evil? In 1997, they collectively racked up profits of $7.5 billion, an unprecedented amount in Canadian corporate history. The B an k s’ presidents apparently all receive salaries in excess o f $1 million.

Many customers complain about peri­ od ically having to pay fees for service plans and transactions that Americans do not. They also suggest that interest rates on accoun ts are too low. The m ost recent example o f anti-bank culture cam e from this week’s Hour, in which editor- in-chief Peter Scow en argued how our banks are “particularly adept in the screwing depart­ ment.”

But how justified are we Canadians in our hatred o f banks?

Canada Enterprises] or manufacturers like Bombardier,” Ragan said.

Ragan added that bank profits are very cyclical, and that they are required to foot the bill when many of their clients go bank­ rupt in a recession. The average annual profit over, for example, a 10 year period will be much lower.

In 1997, the Royal Bank of Canada, Canada’s largest bank and most profitable corporation at present, earned more than 15 tim es w hat it did in 1 9 9 2 (see ch a rt).

R aym ond C hou in ard , spokesm an fo r Royal, agrees with Ragan’s analysis.

“There is absolutely an exponential increase in profits as the economy is doing well.”

Such arguments are not much o f a con­ so la tio n fo r angry cu sto m ers.

M ike M cCracken, chairman and CEO o f Informetrica, an Ottawabased c o n su lta n cy , told the $ 1 .7 b illio n R o y a l B a n k o f C an ad a Tribune that Canadians are not getting good value for banking $ 1 .6 b illio n C 1BC fees.

“Consumers are not getting a $ 1 .5 b illio n B a n k o f N o v a S c o t ia good deal now. Banks are focused $ 1 .3 b illio n B a n k o f M o n tre a l elsewhere, and simply extract the m axim um p o s sib le from c o n ­ $ 1 .1 b illio n T D Bank sumers in an environment o f no $ 0 .3 b illio n N a tio n a l B a n k o f C an a d a effective federal regulation. I see little likelihood o f the government $ 7 .5 b illio n T o ta l: actu ally facing up to the ch a l­ lenges of providing decent finan­ S o u r c e : C o m p a n y r e p o r ts cial services.”

Observers see the proposed merger between the Royal Bank o f Canada Chris Ragan, professor o f economics and the Bank o f Montreal as representative at M cGill, says that the issue is more com­ o f the banks’ desire for increased power plicated than many realize. and revenue. Nonetheless, although many “The profits are really not that high.

The return on equity [stock held by share­ Canadians profess their disgust with the holders] was fifteen, sixteen, seventeen per banks’ conduct, there seems to be a dead­ cent. That’s not out o f whack when com­ lock in the search for an appropriate alter­ native. pared to [that of] telecoms like B C E [Bell

Big Six Bank Profits in 1997

M urray M acA d am , spokesman for the Canadian Royal Bank of C anada soars.

Com m unity R ein v estm en t C o a litio n , a d v o ca tes the 2.0 establishment o f a financial con su m er o rg an izatio n to in fo rm and p ro tect c u s ­ tomers.

15 “It w ould be a group V) c you could turn to [in order] o to com p are s e r v ic e s and .a fees. It would counter the «*► 1.0 enormous market power of the banks. Systems like this >•£ o exist in the U .S. There is a Ûsense that people lack infor­ 0 .5 mation about the banks.”

C hou inard d isa g ree s.

“W e are very com m unityoriented in what we do. This 0 .0 is being recognized by the 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 people in the places where Source: Company reports we do business. We- are con­ cerned about making more inform ation ucts at banks.

As for foreign competition, the Dutch available. There will be a good number of banking giant ING offers a telephone-based efforts made to understand what the public savings account in Canada that claims to is perceiving in what we’re doing.” offer higher interest rates than those of the The Canadian Competition Bureau is calling for a deregulation of the rules gov- Big Six. erning the banking secto r. T h is would Ragan maintains that while Canada has only a fraction o f the number o f banks alm ost d efin itely see m ergers, but also active in the United States, it also has a heightened presence o f foreign banks in low er annual rate o f bank failu re than Canada.

America’s. On the other hand, he asserted Som e banking deregulation already that more competition could bring lower took place in 1992. Banks, trusts, insurance companies and stock brokers were permit­ cost and better quality banking services, ted by the federal government to carry out keeping the B ig Six “on their toes.” one another’s functions.

Canada’ s B ig Six, wielding the most capital muscle, acquired most o f the other independent dealers, thereby concentrating most o f the financial services’ power solely in the banks. For this reason, consumers can now buy mutual funds, life insurance and oth er financial prod-

Be part of the action... You can make a difference! Join

The Activities or Publication nominating committees You will be directly involved in the selection of positions including the Frosh Coordinators Please submit a: Cover letter and resumé by Friday February 20th, 1998 to:

Sarvesh Srivastava Vice President Internal Affairs Students' Society of McGill University Tel:

398-6799 Fax:

398-7490

The bank m erger and consum ers

The announcement on January 23 by the Royal Bank of Canada and the Bank of Montreal caught most people by surprise. The new bank, with esti­ mated profits of $3 billion and almost half a trillion dollars worth of assets, is supposed to put Canada on the global banking map.

McGill economics professor Chris Ragan is skeptical.

“They [the banks| say that they need to be big to compete in the world.

I'm not sure that's true. We’re not talking about loans of twenty billion dollars in one shot here.”

Ragan says that the real question lies in how important the loss of com­ petition realty is. Only now is intelligent discussion on the subject beginning to emerge, while the federal government reviews the proposal.

Royal bank chairman John Cleghorn is better known at McGill as a champion fundraiser and generous corporate and personal donor. He led the McGill 21st Century Campaign that raised over $200 million. In a recent press release, Cleghorn slated that the merger will be to McGill's benefit.

“The new bank’s contributions in money and volunteer time will be equal or superior to the combined level for Bank of Montreal and Royal Bank, and will total one-quarter of a billion dollars over the next five years.”

Although McGill’s administrators may be rubbing their hands together with glee, Murray MacAdam of the Canadian Community Reinvestment Coalition ironically finds commitment to the public to be the real concern.

“When you hear what Cleghorn says, it’s clear that they’re focusing on the global competition threat with little rationale about how this is going to help Canadians,” MacAdam said. “Our main concern relates to a lack of accountability.”

If the merger passes, Mike McCracken, chairman and CEO of Informetrica in Ottawa, forsees a rise in bank mergers and in the entrance of j international banks into the Canadian market. He also predicts negative reper­ cussions such as lower levels of deposit insurance and some bank failures.

When asked about the probability of the merger, McCracken was acrid.

“Can the Liberals say no? Not likely, given political contributions and financial market blackmail if [the banks] don’t get their way.”

Apply now to compete for the opportunity to spend sum­ mer in sunny Montréal, organizing the September '98 Frosh Program. Not only will you be able to acquire the valuable skills of meeting with the business community on your search for sponsorship, managing money and working with motivated people in a team environment.

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Features pagei5

3 February 1998

U n d e r S cru tin y is a forum for personal o b servatio n s on current issues

Endowment funds at McGill foreshadow need to privatize There has been a lot of specu­ assistance. These donors, explained lation circulating throughout the V ice Principal Phyllis Heaphy, school with respect to how the uni­ indicate “specifically what they versity is to deal with its current want the money to go for, and it is financial situation. While students impossible and illegal for us to go adamantly oppose a likely tuition against their wishes.” With no dis­ increase and the government threat­ respect intended towards these ens to further cut subsidies, a giant philanthropists, maybe our current spectre looms overhead: privatiza­ approach towards supporting our tion. universities should be reevaluated.

Given the array of distasteful Another part o f the problem alternatives before us, however, we lies in the relatively low levels of may have to rethink our attitude fin an cial support shown by toward that despised word.

Canadian alumni to th eir alm a Needless to say, students do maters, as compared with their not want their tu ition hiked, A m erican cou nterparts. V ice whether they can afford it or not.

P rin cip al o f Alum ni R ela tio n s Students can’t afford any sort o f Derek Drummond chalks this dis­ fee hike and the government can’t crepancy up to a cultural phenome­ afford to foot the bill. So what’s the non. solution? The university desperate­ “Am ericans feel an ly needs funds. Something along o b lig atio n , w hich is the line will have to give. There is grounded in tradition, to no pleasant solution. What Canada support their universities. needs is a change in its attitude [Canadians] do not neces­ towards university education — a sarily feel the same w ay...T h is change to a mentality which may mentality stems from the tremen­ seem disturbingly similar to that dous amount o f government sub­ held in the U.S. Public institutions sidy, giving the appearance that like McGill should become more private contribution is unneces­ reliant upon private funds without sary.” completely privatizing.

I would like to draw a compar­ McGill is currently sitting on ison between McGill and a publicly $ 5 1 2 ,7 0 0 ,0 0 0 in donated funds. funded A m erican c o lle g e , the This money has been donated over University o f Virginia. In a 1996 the past decades to benefit the uni-,, study by the organization v ersity and its students. T his N ACUBO , which compared the $ 5 1 2 .7 m illion is not a sort o f endowment funds o f every North reserve fund — in fact it cannot American university, M cGill was even be touched. This money is listed as having US $15,533 per known as M cG ill’ s Endowment full-time student, while University Fund. It effectively sits in the bank of Virginia was listed as having US accumulating interest. $ 5 0 ,9 8 5 per fu ll-tim e student.

It seems absurd that M cG ill “Americans realize that they have cannot use its own money to com­ an obligation to financially support pensate for the most recent cuts in their university from the moment provincial gov­ they g rad uate,” ernment spend­ Drummond said.

What Canada needs ing. A lot could A lso , when is a change in its be im proved C anadians do attitude towards with the help of pledge money to an extra $ 5 0 0 their universities university education million. McGill they are more — a change to a Treasurer John likely to stipulate mentality which may Limeburner where they wish tried to clarify their endowment seem disturbingly things by telling money to be similar to that held in me that McGill s pP e n t . the United States. “cannot touch “Americans have these funds. more confidence This money is given to us in perpe­ in the university to spend their tuity. In other words, it is the uni­ donations w ise ly ,” Drummond versity’s obligation to ensure that added. these funds are there, in its entirety, As a resu lt, fa cu ltie s lik e forever.”

M c G ill’ s m edical sch o o l are If a million dollars is donated always well-funded and well-main­ to the university today, M cG ill tained, whereas M cG ill’s libraries guarantees that twenty years down are financially neglected. No one the line, the same million dollars wants to donate money to cover the will be sitting in the fund collecting university’s deficit because there is interest. The university is only enti­ nothing tangible to show for it. tled to spend the interest it earns B en e facto rs p refer to see their o ff o f the Endowment Fund. The names attached to shiny new build­ interest is usually spent on scholar­ ings instead o f a financial report. ships or academic chairs, but can­ Drummond accu ses the not be spent on things like the uni­ Q uebec governm ent o f being versity’s $60 million deficit. in cred ib ly ignorant as to how Here lies the flaw in the McGill’s endowment fund is oper­ Endowment Fund program: alumni ated and managed. and other people who make these “[The Government] is under tremendous contributions to the the impression that [M cGill] has university, more often than not, $500 million stored away and is not doing anything with it. As a result, sp ecify where they want their money to be spent. Although every it does not fully comprehend the dollar helps, these donations are severity of the cuts.”

But isn’t blame always ulti­ often channelled into areas where mately laid on the government? In McGill is not in need o f financial

like the Quebec government, is in the process of making huge cuts to university expenditures. However, the Ontario government has recent­ ly im plem ented a plan which encourages Ontario universities to seek private funding — every dol­ lar the university raises through private canvassing will be matched by the government. The University o f Toronto has also promised to match every dollar raised, essen­ tially tripling the value o f every donation. University o f Toronto has raised approximately $278 mil­ lion since the campaign began two and a half years agp.

McGill is seriously lacking in all departm ents — an obvious function of severe government cut­ b acks. M cG ill students realize that the current reality o f the university does not live up to its rep­ utation. The only chance o f resuscitating our floundering university is by acquiring new funds quickly.

Someone recently handed me a flier that said we should oppose

Under Scrutiny

By Jeremy Gans the case o f the Ontario government, the situation is quite d ifferent.

Harris’ Conservative government,

any sort of service fees or tuition hikes. This being the case, who are we expecting to foot the bill? The government is effectiv ely broke and ca n ’t continue to subsidize higher education as it has in the past. Students are quick to protest, but have little to offer by way of constructive advice. As unfair as it may seem, we must now pay the debts left by the generations that came before us who lived, worked and studied on borrowed funds.

Ironically perhaps, the people now in power are those that benefited from a cheap education system.

The cycle has to end somehow.

In order to compensate for the current government cuts — a trend w hich seems to have no end in sight — it seem s lo g ic a l that M cG ill put a bigger emphasis on seeking private financial assistance.

C anad ians, as a w hole, must reassess the way we regard private funding o f public institutions. If the current trend stays on course, we may have no other choice.

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Pagei6Features

3 February 1998

Customers gouged during ice storm fight back B y L eslie Stojsic Some people see the good in every bad thing. For certain mer­ chants in Quebec, the ice storm m eant a golden opportunity to jack up prices on emergency sup­ plies and services.

This practice, aptly referred to as price gouging, was im ple­ mented in many o f the hardest hit areas o f Montreal, including the West Island and the South Shore.

Th e perpetrators included, but were not limited to, dépanneurs, grocery, hardware and department stores, hotels, electricians, restau­ rants and gas stations.

On January 12, the Quebec Consumer A ssociation issued a press release to help combat this practice. As told by Marie-Claude Laroche, a lawyer with the associ­ ation, “if people were victimized, they could let us know and we would look into it.”

Laroche estimates that 200300 calls reporting victimization cam e through the asso ciatio n ’ s hotline over the course o f the ice storm . F ou r v o lu n te ers w ere added to the three regular hotline workers.

The association helps co n ­ sumers to seek reparations when they have been victim ized, the re co u rse fo r w hich is u su ally small claims court. In most cases during the ice storm , how ever, cu sto m ers did not keep th eir receipts, making it d ifficu lt for

them to prove wrongdoing.

“W e w ere to p u b licly denounce any companies who were raising prices on essen­ tia ls during the sto rm ,” Laroche said. “As soon as we started calling merchants to investigate the charges, in a lot o f cases, the prices were lo w e re d .” In m any c a s e s , Laroche said, the merchant would admit to raising their prices but tried to justify it by saying that they needed to offset their regular sales loss­ es.

Some companies, such as the m ega-ch ain W a l-M a rt, have flatly denied charges of price gouging. The company has been accused, both infor­ mally on talk radio shows and fo rm a lly w ith the Q u eb ec C onsu m er A ss o c ia tio n , o f charging exorbitant amounts for batteries and other emer­ gency supplies.

“This is absolutely complete and u tter n o n s e n s e ,” cla im e d Edw ard G o u ld , o ff ic ia l sp o k esp erso n fo r W a l-M a rt C anad a. “W e donated o v er $100,000 worth o f product to the Red C ross; we had a m atching donation program; we flew in and donated generators for Wal-Mart international divisions. Not only did prices remain the same, but we went to extraordinary m ea­ sures to help Quebec.”

While these are great acts of

For those o f yo u w h o d o n 't know / the SSM U has a special f u n d fo r M c G ill students w h o a re tackling a p ro ject fo r the b etterm en t o f the com m unity.

corporate citizenship, they do not explain the multiple allegations of price gouging. When prompted, Gould was unable to explain the m o tiv atio n behind co m p lain ts lodged by several customers.

“They are nothing more than allegations. To date, no one has come forward with a receipt,” he maintained.

B e in g fa ls e ly a ccu sed o f gouging has been problematic for som e. H ogg H ardw are stayed open over the course o f the black­

out, letting in customers one at a tim e to be acco m p a n ied by a salesperson with a flashlight.

“Our prices haven’t changed from before, during or immediate­ ly a fter the storm ,” said store m anager A lan H ogg. “W e are operating at a loss, but we never considered raising our prices to o ffs e t that lo s s .” L im its w ere imposed on the amount per cus­ tomer o f vital supplies such as firelogs and lamp oil.

Hogg was confronted in the

A pplications a re a v a ila b le at the SS M U counter in the SHATNER building.

Please submit to: DUNCAN J. REID SSMU VP Finance and Operations

store by customers accusing him o f jacking up prices o f candles.

“B y that particular day, we had sold out o f emergency can­ dles,” he explained. “All that was le ft w ere d e c o ra tiv e ca n d les, w hich co st us more and which were always at that price.” After hearing this explanation, the cus­ tomer was satisfied.

Hogg has had to deal with hearing people denounce his store on the radio. “On air, people don’t have to produce evidence and it becomes a slanderous open sea­ son on the accused. All it takes is one person.”

I f you are in a store and b e lie v e you are the v ictim o f gouging, L aroch e recom m ends asking the m anager to explain why the item is at that price. If he or she can’t justify the price, keep a receipt and contact the Quebec Consumer Association.

The publicity they received during the storm has helped the Quebec Consumer Association to do its job.

“The threat o f public denun­ cia tio n made som e m erch an ts mad, and made others scared of gouging,” Laroche said. She was happy to report that gouging was kept on a relatively small scale.

“People have been telling us, ‘whatever you did, it worked.’”

Got a girlfriend (a.k.a. some­ one you're cheating on), or how about that sugardaddy?

Give a valentine to the Trib.

Shatner B-01A

Page 17

3 February 1998

rts & E n t e r t a i n m e n t Video art exhibit edits conventional notions of medium

By Lee O berlander Gary Hill has taken video and pushed its limits beyond the tradi­ tional two dimensional experience.

In H i ll ’ s h an d s, raw fo o ta g e assumes the physical presence o f sculpture, the nuance o f painting and the depth o f literary composi­ tion.

The bashful artist sits in front o f a cro w d at th e M u sée Contemporain wearing a dark suit and some Nikes. He stares out as the a u d ien ce w aits w ith b a ite d breath fo r som e o f his genius to pour forth. With his hair standing up on end and an over-eager muse­ um curator leering over his shoul­ der, Hill begins to speak. This man is not only a video artist; he is a cultural theorist and it seems, in his soul, a poet.

Six o f Gary Hill’s installations are now in place in Montreal. More than artistic pieces, they are com ­ plete experiences. Each room bom­ bards the view er w ith sight and sound. As im ages fla sh b rie fly , fade in and out and linger lightly in the background, words stream from the recorded voice o f the artist and sounds fill the installation space to add to the all-encompassing feel of the constructions.

P ictu re s are interru p ted by stark strobe lighting and visuals turn to black to release the audi­ ence from the “alm ighty im age” that predom inates in m ost video

exhibits.

Apparently H ill b elieves we are barraged by sights in art and everyday life. As our other senses are so rarely utilized, H ill’ s pur­ poseful break from visual stimulus is as valuable and m eaningful as

sedated by the images, the screen blips and the voice halts, just long enough to make the viewers uneasy as they stand around the table and watch each other’s reactions.

Hill describes the installation as having “a threshold edge to it.”

“D is tu r b a n c e (A m o n g th e Ja r s ) ”— to o s m a r t f o r T. V. the image itself.

The most sensory o f Hill’s set­ ups is titled the “R eflex Chamber” wherein a screen set horizontally on a table reflects im ages from a p r o je c to r a b o v e . H i ll ’ s v o ic e boom s throughout the room and re c ite s d isjo in ted , yet strang ely connected excerpts o f his poetry.

Ju st as the audience is becom ing

It pushes both the senses and the im agination. He built part o f the construction in what he offhanded­ ly mentions was a time o f “clinical depression” — it is clearly reflect­ ed in his work. “I have no limbs...I am paralyzed” is whispered as the footage shows a pan up to the spire o f a tower; we im agine him in a locked room at the top, unable to

move. “It wants me to get on my knees. It wants me to pray.” Who? the audience wonders. “All stones have been turned” is one o f Hill’s last phrases. This narrative has no happy ending; it term inates in a defeated quest for meaning.

The irony is that the work its e lf is shockingly revolu tionary and inher­ ently meaningful. The vio­ len t natu re o f the p iece transmits itself to the audi­ e n c e as the fla s h in g im ages create a sense o f both physical and mental d i s o r i e n t a t i o n .

M esmerized viewers then stumble out o f the cham ­ ber hazily in their quest for more.

A less physical expe­ rie n c e and a n ice break fro m the “R e fle x Cham ber” is the installa­ tion “Disturbance (Among the J a r s ) .” T h e e a r lie s t construction in the exhibit, it is d e fin ite ly the least technically advanced and C heryl Fu is essen tially m ore ce re ­ bral and less absorbing than the others. Seven screens are set up in groups and pine chairs face them in perfect order. These are the artist and his ju d ges resp ectiv ely. H ill discusses a part in which a snake slithers across the separate screens to split the jumbled words written in black and white. They appear at first to be some sort o f hieroglyph­

ic , but o n ce sep arated , reveal a combination o f French and English statements. Hill chuckles while he e x p la in s that th is c o n stru ctio n , “inspired by and rooted in poetic te x t... is a fittin g m etaphor fo r Montreal,” n ’e s t - c e p a s ?

Although Gary H ill’ s pieces may appear to be the fruit o f a true artistic sen sibility, they resonate more as they are further contem ­ p la te d , to re v e a l the ra tio n a l philosopher behind the curtain of verging madness. In his video “Site R ecite,” Hill expresses the idea that the etym ological roots o f the two words are closely related, referring to both vision and speech. He rea­ sons in “full circle or rather in spi­ ral fashion” that “speaking is the means by which im ages get their locomotion.” Through the simulta­ neous use o f video and voice we may lend further meaning to both.

Utilizing the act o f discourse, the re s o n a n c e s o f im ag ery m ove beyond their initial impressions.

A man truly absorbed in the tech n o lo g ical age, who m anipu­ lates his mechanical beasts in the privacy o f his studio reflects on the question o f where he finds inspira­ tion. “Surfing” he says as a wide smile brims upon his face to let us know he is going back to that place in his mind even as he speaks to us.

“W aves that is,” he clarifies, “not the net.”

Top ten reasons to hail the real King of Late Night TV

By Jeremy W aiser

b riefly with the audience b efo re taping begins.

He is not wearing his standard N ew Y o r k C ity is D avid C B S issue double-breasted blazer L etterm an ’ s tow n and you c a n ’ t when he saunters languidly toward help but feel his presence on your the audience, as if he was coming way to see his show. to greet a friend. He fields a few I f that other late night mega­ questions and then host has yet to make headway s a y s, “ Y o u seem in the G reat W id e W ay , he lik e a re a lly n ice sure is trying. At the North end group o f people — o f TimeSquare there is a mas­ i t ’ s to o bad we sive billboard o f Ja y L en o ’ s don’t have a better beaming mug with the caption, show fo r you “Num ber One in L ate Night today.”

Television.” Across the way at The show will the opposite end o f the Square in fa c t su ck . T h e is an almost equally large sign g u e sts a re Jo a n w h ich fe a tu re s D avid Lunden, some fiveLetterm an, w earing g la sses, year old white kid smiling his wide, gap-toothed fro m th e new ironic smile. Letterman’s cap­ C o sb y show who tion reads, “Number Tw o in an sw ers so m any Late N ight T e le v is io n .” The The a u th o r (right) h a n g in g o u t with D a v id A lexis Ball q u e stio n s w ith “ I sign is sweet affirm ation for L etterm an ’s g o o d b u d d y R upert d u n n o” th at true Dave Letterman fans.

Letterman finally asks Paul if he’s Two blocks away at 53rd and “got any q uestions fo r the k id .” and warms up the crow d, in tro ­ B road w ay you can v isit D a v e ’ s fin a lly , m u sica l gu ests G -L o v e duces a short bit on the monitors of friend Rupert at the Hello Deli and with Special Sauce.

Dave talking to kids and then calls buy a t-s h ir t fro m M u jib u r or Letterman, however, does not out the band, who rock the studio.

Sirajul at their souvenir store next disappoint. In addition to his hon­ Paul Shaffer appears next and then to the frigid Ed Sullivan Theatre.

L e tte rm a n c o m e s ou t to sp ea k esty , he is hilariou s. M ay b e the I f you are am ong the tick et holders on D ecem ber 22, you are let into the theatre at 4 :4 5 and if you’re smart, you run for the good seats at the front left on the aisle, hoping Dave will go into the audi­ ence.

A com edian com es on-stage

stran g est thing about the w hole experience is the incredible differ­ ence that is felt in the audience ver­ sus what you are used to seeing at hom e. I t’ s very bizarre to watch and laugh at som ebody who sits directly in front o f you, but faces one o f the three cam eras six feet away and rarely makes eye contact with the audience.

After the show (which runs on real tim e), L etterm an thanks the audience and q u ickly exits, nice and p ro fe ssio n a l. O ne aud ience m em b er f a ils m is e ra b ly in an attem pt to get more than a wave ou t o f S h a ffe r by sh ou tin g out “Hey Paul, you grew up near my dad!”

T h e tw o gu ys w ho did get those aisle seats on the front left side are a little upset that there was not so much as a pan over the audi­ ence fo r their friends and fam ily w a tc h in g at h om e (th o u g h the Canadian flag they were planning on waving was snatched early on by an crafty usher anyway).

Hopefully i f you come to New York to see Dave you will catch a better set o f guests. But if you are a true fan , crappy guests w ill not

ch a n g e how you fe e l ab ou t Letterm an. The ratings don’t lie; North America prefers Jay. Y et for so m e , th at is e x a c tly why Letterm an is b etter. L eno is the catch-all party. He has some very funny bits, but you know his show is really popular in B ib le-b an ger country — ‘nuff said.

B y com ing in second, D ave makes his fans feel special, as if the rest o f A m erica c a n ’ t appreciate him the way they do — that they have no depth. Though he’s not as cool as he used to be, he’s still the b e s t, i f not the m ost p o p u lar.

Before he turns into a modern day Eagles or Stones (a geriatric ver­ sion o f his form er self) it is sug­ gested that you get yourself a cou­ ple o f tickets and go see him.

W hen the show is over, you can g lan ce know ingly at L e n o ’ s pompous sign in D ave’s backyard and grin with satisfaction. You saw the original.

Pageis Entertainm ent

3 February 1998

Internet yields sinful sludge and current A & E news bytes

By Rebecca Mc Kechnie_________ The Internet has moved to the forefront o f information exchange as a result o f its offering o f a wide variety o f entertainment inform a­ tion choices.

E n te r ta in m e n t, th o u g h , is found in many form s on the net and ranges from the risqué to the m undane. F o r in stan ce, can one really classify Pamela and Tommy L e e ’ s sex tape — which inciden­ tally offers a whole new meaning to the term movie review — under the same site category as Oprah’s B o o k Club? For ail practical pur­ poses, though it may disappoint, entertainm ent in this ca se tends toward the tamer side.

No matter what your query, if you search long and hard enough, you are bound to find a more than modest result on the internet. For optimal results though, it is best to start you r search w ith one o f a number o f search engines. Yahoo! is a popular choice and offers the m ost in term s o f e n tertain m en t ty p e q u e rie s . N o t o n ly d o es Y ahoo! h av e a s p e c if ic E n tertain m en t subcategory with quick and “cool” links, but it also claims access to at least 2088 mag­ a zin es o n -lin e . In d eed , th ere is som eth in g fo r e v ery o n e am ong these selections. From alternative foreign zines to news stand estab­ lis h m e n t p u b lic a tio n s su ch as P e o p le , it is amazing to discover what actually exists in cyberspace.

People.com is one'exam ple o f a highly interactive and consumer friendly site. Though m agazines are readily available on the web, do not expect to find all popular publications at your disposal and in such a form at as P e o p le . This s ite n ot o n ly c o n ta in s c u rre n t issues with special reports, but is updated daily, contains an archive o f past issu es and p o sse sse s an extensive gallery o f pictures.

O ther m agazines o f note on the web in clu d e the fo llo w in g : www.billboard.com; N ew M u sical E x p r e s s , w h ich is th e w o rld ’ s b ig g e s t s e llin g ro c k w e e k ly , at w w w .n m e .c o .u k and H olly w o o d R ep o rter.co m , w hich o ffe rs a tw enty-fou r hour wdrld

watch, international and business cov erag e, along with T V , m usic and film reports. M o st o f these sites contain current headlines and the la te s t in term s o f in d u stry information as well as supplemen­ ta ry a r t ic le s , su ch as the “ R e p o r te r ’ s G u id e to th e Grammy’ s and O scars.”

Any international newspaper that you can dream o f is at your fingertips on the web. The conve­ n ie n c e o f this is in d isp e n sa b le, e s p e c ia lly as it see m s th a t the worlds o f entertainment and poli­ tics are in term in g lin g m ore and m ore. C onsid er fo r in stan ce the high drama o f zippergate, fornigate, or Clinton sexcapades in the o ra l o f f i c e , or w h ic h e v e r you choose to call it. The web is circu­ lating with up to the second infor­ mation, as well as evidence unseen on your local news station.

It is no coincidence then, that T he D ru d g e R ep o rt, which broke the L ew in sk y -C lin to n story, has been the buzz amongst the internet savvy for some time. This site is a must visit for anyone wanting to c la im c u ltu ra l lite r a c y . M a tt Drudge, who issues the controver­ sial report and was actually fe a ­ tu red in D e c e m b e r ’ s is s u e o f Vanity F a ir , acquires information from inside sources, who usually w ork in the g o v ern m en t or the world o f big business. His reports are the first to break big stories. He h as, aside from the C lin to n sex s c a n d a l, a lso su p p lied in s id e r in fo r m a tio n on Whitewater, various con­ tr a c t d isp u te s in Hollywood and personal inform ation on govern­ m en t p la y e r s .

S u b s e q u e n tly , D ru d g e has found some trouble o f his own in the form o f an intim­ idating law suit from one W hite House employee.

T h e D r u d g e R e p o r t at w w w .d ru d g e re p o rt.co m is a lso worth visiting for its succinct list­ in g o f th e b e s t p e r io d ic a l and in fo rm a tio n s ite s . O f the m any sites listed, a few noteworthy ones a re ; P a g e S ix , T h e N ew Y o r k P o st's g o s s ip co lu m n at w w w .n y p o s to n lin e .c o m / g o s -

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s i p / 3 1 9 9 . h t m , www.newsday.com/mainnews/lizsmith.htm, and www.eonline.com.

E ! on-line is like an interac­ tive Entertainment Tonight. It has a ll th e n e c e s s a r y h e a d lin e s , “Penthouse makes play for M onica Lewinsky” and celebrity coverage.

It is wildly colorful and caters to females, especially with such arti­ cles (accom panied by many p ic­ tures o f course) as “Hot Guys — who to w atch fo r in 1 9 9 8 ” and “The Ten B est Chick Films o f All T im e.”

E! On-line abounds in trash. It has reports on which celebs are, or have, gone under the k n ife and contains such polls as, “W ho has the best breasts in H ollyw ood?”

The most advanced feature though, and what is more frequently being found on the web, are live bits in real time. Video real time is often problem atic though, fo r its poor q u a lity , its m in ia tu re v ie w in g screen and the heavy com p u ter traffic that congests connections.

H ow ever, real tim e is advanced com puter tech n olog y and offers incredible potential for the future o f entertainment on-line.

O ther sites to bookm ark are www.canoe.ca. Canoe is Canada's On-line Explorer. It is host to both Ja m !s h o w b iz and S la m !s p o rts .

Both o f these sites are worthwhile for their up-to-the-minute informa­ tion and the variety o f their report­ ing. The Jam ! site contains cate­ g o rie s fo r m u s ic , m o v ie s , T V ,

^ SPORTS M l LIFE

video, books and theatre. There is a p hoto g a lle ry , a d a ta b a se fo r a rtists, rev iew s, new s and m ore than three dozen news groups for ardent chatterers. w w w .pathfinder.com /altculture is a site for anyone interested in contem porary culture. A lt.cu l­ ture is accordingly touted an a-z encyclopedia for the 9 0 ’ s. There are 900+ entries on the site’s data­ base, with an incredible range in subject matter. Van Sant, Gus, Wu Tang Clan, X ena, and South Park are but a few e x a m p le s o f the entries you will find. As well, each entry offers corresponding links to sites with more information on the respective subject.

T h e lis t o f p o s s ib ilitie s fo r hours o f trash digging and up-tothe-minute sensational news flash­ es are endless. There is also much to be learned about your favourite artists and stars. Rather than read about them all in this article, get on the net and procrastinate. Half the fun is finding the sites your­ self.

^LEISURE

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Rebecca Catching

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Entertainm ent pagei9

3 February 1998

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T T l M T T I M

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Love, death, and sub-titles abound

By A shley H all L iv e F l e s h is o n e o f th o se movies where critics seem to pay more attention to the person behind the film than the film its e lf. T o m any, the m ost intrigu ing thing about L iv e F le sh is the artistic evo­ lution o f its creator, writer/director Pedro Almodovar.

He is, in fact, an interesting specim en. R aised in rural Spain under F r a n c o ’ s fa s c is t re g im e , A lm o d o v a r m o v ed to M a d rid , alone, at the age o f 16 where he “dedicated h im self to liv in g .” A self-taught film maker, he has risen to international recognition and is, most likely, one o f the few Spanish d ire c to rs w ith w hom m uch o f North A m erican is fam iliar. His most recognizable titles include Tie M e Up, T ie M e D ow n or W omen on the V erge o f a N ervous B reakd ow n , the film that earned him an Oscar nomination in 1987.

For m ost people, how ever, a case study o f Pedro Almodovar is not a particularly alluring incentive to shell out eight-and-a-half bucks.

L u c k ily , fo r M G M , L iv e F l e s h stands for itself.

This tense, sexy story, loosely b ased on th e n o v e l by R uth R e n d e ll, is se t in m o d ern -d a y

T y p ic a l o f m an y C a n a d ia n film s, The Hanging Garden is less about action and m ore about the exploratory development o f char­ acter. W hat makes it atypical is its powerful and smooth execution.

The actual hanging garden is the backyard o f a N ova S co tia n home where dysfunction rules the day. An abusive, alcoholic father cares more his precious gardenias than his w ife and child ren, who are nam ed a fte r the flo w e rs to which they are subjegated W e are guided through the three vignettes o f th e film by S w e e t W illia m (C h ris L e a v in s), w ho returns to his home for his sister Rosem ary’ s wedding a fter a ten y ear depar­ ture. It is a p ain fu l jo u rn e y fo r h im , and W illy m u st c o m e to

f T l M T T M

I if T M

I

I t ’s n o t th e h u m id ity — it’s th e h eat. ..

Madrid. Almodovar’s take on the city communicates all the oppres­ sion and fa ta lism o f a f i l m n o ir w ithout the shadow s. T h e story begins and ends quite symbolically with a birth in the middle o f the street.

But the tale really opens one night in the hallway o f an apart­ ment building where a police offi­ cer is shot and paralyzed. F or the next hour and a half, the audience bears witness to the theatrics o f the five frustrated characters; ranging from infidelity and alcoholism to an innocent in prison. Remaining faithful to its genre, L iv e F le s h ’ s

tragedy lies in the avoidability o f the situations, as well as the moral confusion characters. Also, we get a ju ic y m urder/suicide n ear the end.

Depressing? W ell, maybe a lit­ tle. But the beauty o f the film is its ability to present this melodrama in a way that is both believable and fascinating.

terms with his own past.

A decade earlier, W illy was an abused, overweight and homo­ sexual 15 year old, having his first sexual experience with his sister’ s b o y fr ie n d . W i l l y ’ s m o th e r is d eterm in ed to “ stra ig h ten ” him out by sp o n so rin g a trip to the to w n p r o s titu te . W h e n W illy retu rns hom e a re la tiv e ly w e lladjusted thin (and still homosexu­ al) man, he is forced to reconcile his past with a new child in the fam ily, his mother’ s weakness and the lingering interest his brotherin-law has in him.

T h e H a n g in g G a rd e n is writer-director Thom Fitzgerald’ s debut feature film . It beautifully c r a f te d y e t a t th e sa m e tim e retains a strong sense o f physical reality for the Haligonian people, th e h o u s e , and th e la n d s c a p e .

C e rta in o f th e c h a r a c te r s have b een poorly d efin ed , but th is is not a m a jo r fla w . W h a t we are privy to in The Hanging Garden is th e d a m a g in g p o w e r s tr u g g le between fam ily egos and frailties.

F itz g e ra ld w ea v es the past and p resen t through a s e rie s o f flashbacks that seem disjointed at first, but are later forgiven when the audience realizes that it is nei­ ther F itzg erald ’ s nor the ch arac­ te rs’ intentions to resolv e every issue. This aspect o f The Hanging G arden w hich may be criticiz ed for leaving holes in the story is, in fact, really a device used to make us feel like Sw eet W illiam : sus­ pended and confused in his own surroundings.

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Zero Effect is film noir with a funny bone

By T yler H argreaves

Canada is no Babylon for gay men

By Leslie Stojsic

Ia I

This peculiar film follows the latest case o f the world’s best (and most) private detective. Daryl Zero (B ill Pullm an) and his associate Steve Arlo (Ben Stiller) have been hired by Greg Stark (Ryan O ’Neal) to h elp him fin d his k ey s.

T h eir client, it seems, a walkin closet full of sk ele to n s that make him ripe fo r e x to rtio n .

S ta rk has a s p e c ia l k e y c h a in and he b e lie v e s th at the person who has the keys is u sing them to blackmail him.

Z ero o r hero?

W h a t makes this movie so unique is that Z ero is off-th e-w all bizarre. His h a ir c h a n g e s m o re o fte n than D ennis Rodm an’s and his quirks are a sou rce o f con stan t am u se­ ment. As Zero gets deeper into this case he discovers that the keys are not quite as important as the attrac­ tive param ed ic who is trying to date him . G lo ria S u lliv a n (K im Dickens) has some skeletons o f her own and is trying to vindicate them with Zero’s help.

The strength o f this film relies on three crucial elements. A clever

storyline (that is not as outlandish as it might have been given Zero’s character) which provides b eliev­ able twists and has no loose ends.

The direction succeeds in making this movie visually rich and unique in presentation. The m ost im por­ tant aspect, however, is the excel­

lent chemistry between Stiller and Pullman, who are a treat to watch on screen.

Pullman is surprisingly capa­ b le o f carry in g th is m ovie w ith e a se and S tille r is an e x c e lle n t sidekick. Z ero E ffec t is well worth the visit.

And the keys?, in the couch, o f course.

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Swap talks will be held on: February 4th, 1998, from 12pm to 2pm February 11th, 1998, from 12pm to 2pm Other dates available, please call us.

www.voyagescampus.com

Page

20 Entertainm ent

3 February 1998 — R ich Retyi

SO N IC ROOM The L O X M oney, P o w er & R esp ect (Bad Boy Entertainment) It all began la st y ea r when Sean “P uffy” Com bs (a.k.a. P uff

Daddy) rose from the ashes — lit­ era lly — o f his m eal tick et, the N o to rio u s B .I .G . P u ff D addy h itch e d h is w agon to the p o st­ mortem rising star o f his perforated hom ey and ended up cashing in big.

W ith all this m o n ey b ein g th row n around , P u ff w as h av in g trouble keeping up with the demand.

This is when M a$e jo in e d the w ild ride. Singles were being churned out w eekly. P u ff saw th is and it w as g oo d . O ne p ro b ­ lem rem ain ed — there were s till a ton o f su ck e rs sn a p p in g up a lb u m s, so P u ff c a lle d h is p als

Living on Experience.

T h e L O X , as th e y ’ re now known, have grown steadily since appearing in Puffy’s new hit “All ab ou t the B e n ja m in s .”

Unfortunately this new addition to the E a s t C o a st sta b le share the same bland formula that P u ff and M a$e are running into the ground.

R e fe re n c e s to b itch es, b ra w lin ’ , cash and C rystale perm eate their m um bling rhym es and annoying mixes. This band comes o ff about as m a s te rfu l as M a $ e ’ s stup id dance moves — both only tolerable in fiv e second clip s. T h e ir only redeeming quality is that the L O X resist the urge to wear shiny pyja­ mas in their videos * a * la their employers P.D. and M a$e.

When on the East coast I sug­ gest that you don’t open this L O X. It only contains the sam e porrly decorated room in P u ffy ’ s house that you’ve seen a m illion tim es before.

B ru ce C ockbu rn Y ou P a y Y o u r M o n e y A n d You T ake Your C han ce True North B ru ce Cockburn, eco-w arrior extraordinaire and part-time musi­ cian, pounds the pulpit in his latest release. Not to grind someone with good intentions like Bruce, but this album is an ethics class. With titles lik e “ C a ll it D e m o c ra c y ” and “Stolen Land,” you can probably quickly guess the dry tirades that pepper this production. Bruce does have a certain finesse with a guitar, bu it is o v ersh a d o w e d by the underwhelming performance o f his band and the aforementioned lyri­ cal lessons. Nice try, but no thanks.

— Tyler H arg reav es Goldie S atu m z Return (ffrr/London) A s a g iv e n gen re o f d an ce music “matures” into “art m usic,” actual achievem ent gives way to sheer ambition (read: pretention).

Witness the travesty that was “pro­ g ressive ro ck ” (neither rock nor progressive). Hip-hop has recently joined the act with a slew o f overlong double L P s; many o f them would be masterpieces given a lit­ tle trimming.

A s ju n g le com es o f age, we see the pattern repeating itself yet again. Goldie, ju ngle’s patron saint, begins his sophomore release with an hour-long “autobiography” enti­ tled “M other.” And that’ s just the first disc. Disc two contains several B ria n E n o -e sq u e am bient m in i­ sym phonies o f its ow n. Sev eral tracks see Goldie flirting creatively w ith sou l and d is c o , but the album ’s saving grace is a savage team-up with rapper KRS-One. On “D ig ita l,” the legend ary rapper negotiates Goldie’s frenetic break­ beats with a verbal dexterity sorely la ck in g in co m m e rcial hip-hop, raisin g your e x p ectatio n s (e rro ­ neously) for the rest o f the album.

H ere’ s hoping that the next g e n e ra tio n lo o k s e lsew h ere fo r inspiration. A drum ‘n bass D ark S ide o f the M oon is really not what pop music needs.

— K ris M ichaud

C o m b a t t r e le F e u » B W

v e a u C a ll f o r S u b m i s s i o n s !

We are now accepting poetry, prose and visual art for our bilingual, annu­ al publication, Fire with Water. Deadline is Feb. 15th , 1998. Submissions can be dropped off in the Fire with Water box in the foyer of the Shatner Building or at the SACOMSS office, Shatner 430.

Information

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3 4 8 0 M c T a v is h S u ite 4 3 0 M o n tre a l, P Q H 3 A 1X 9

D IS C O F TH E W E E K The Rheostatics D ou b le Live (Drag) There are a handful o f great b an d s tir e le s s ly w o rk in g the trenches o f Canadian indie-rock and com bin g the T rans-C anad a Highway in search o f g ig s, but few seem to ooze that road warrior quality like The Rheostatics.

T h e se guys have b en efited from / rem ained in o b s c u rity despite their inclusion in that elite g ro u p : “ T h e T r a g ic a lly H ip ’ s Favourite Bands,” but this imagi­ n a tiv e ly title d d o u b le-a lb u m stands in d irect co n tra st to the c a re fu l eco n o m y o f T h e H ip ’ s L iv e B e t w e e n Us. R unn ing the gamut from the blissful m elodi­ ousness o f “Claire” to the blissful silliness o f “The Ballad o f Wendel Clark,” this album never, thankful­ ly, takes itself too seriously. We all have bad nights, after all, and l for one appreciate enormously the singer’s sheepish admission: “I’m a bit drunk.” Well, why not? The guy’s playing his twelfth consecu­ tive night in Kelowna, Saskatoon or Victoria, and he’s going to do

his best anyway!

In the w ord s o f the b an d , “th is p la tte r sou nd s lik e the ro a d ...y o u can fe e l all o f those...tim eless purple evenings.”

This is a must for any fan — as raw , e x u b e ra n t and fu ll o f moments as you’d expect, — C hris S elle y

Entertainm ent page2i

3 February 1998

ASC seeks voice and professorship ¥

C o n tin u e d fro m pag e 7 audience rem ained spellbound, a te s ta m e n t to th e c o n s id e r a b le political clout the dance once rep­ resented.

The A fr ic a n a S tu d ie s Committee’ s goals revolve largely around the attainment o f the posi­ tion o f a c h a ir fo r the A fric a n S tu d ie s P ro g ra m , th e c o s t o f which is estimated at $2 m illion.

Other ob jectives include expand­ ing the s iz e and s c o p e o f the department, securing high quality p ro fesso rs “o f A frican d escen t” within and without the program, and creating a netw ork betw een u n iv ersity p ro gram s and B la c k

.

▼

Write your sweetheart(s) a Valentine(s) in the Tribune. Submit your cheesy poetry in the box outside of the Tribune office (Shatner B 01A).

communities across Canada.

T h e A S C also prom otes the program at CEG EPs. It has spon­ so re d n u m ero u s o th e r e v e n ts , including the African film festival Vues d ’A friq u es, which played at C in e m a du P arc la st y e a r. T h e A S C w ill a ls o be in v o lv e d in “B la c k T a lk ,” C K U T ’ s program w h ich w ill run th ro u g h B la c k History Month.

“A frican S tu d ie s,” the A SC h a s te n s to p o in t ou t th ro u g h M elanie Newton, former Political Co-ordinator o f the M cG ill Black Students Netw ork, “is not ju s t a black thing.” Indeed, the crowd at Isa rt was as d iv erse as the p er­ fo rm e rs; th ere w as w id espread in te re s t in “S h a k e the V is io n ” from many sectors o f the M cG ill community and from others. Isart

article written about his work in last w eek's issue of the Tribune.

S h a k in ’ it u p — A fr ic a n d a n c e a n d m u s ic a t th e A SC b e n e fit Rebecca Catching

certainly isn ’t M ontreal’ s largest venue, but if the A SC can assem­ ble such an impressive collection o f p erfo rm ers and fill it to the brim, there may indeed be promise for the future o f African studies at M cG ill.

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3 February 1998

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Page 23

Red ‘N ’ white shines bright with victory over New York

By Sajid Karsan T h e R ed m en h o c k e y team proved they can play like winners again, snapping a four-game win­ less streak w hich in clu d ed two th ra sh in g s at the hand s o f C oncordia and the U niversité du Q u é b e c à T r o is R iv iè r e s . T h e Redmen cam e out strong to start the game and finished solidly for a come from behind 4-3 victory over York University.

It was Red ‘N ’ W hite night at M cC onnell arena on Friday — a night when fans com e dressed in M cG ill colou rs ready to support their team in louder and hig h er sp irits. T h ere w ere en tertain in g s p e cta cle s in the in te rm issio n s, which featured a human bowling ball com petition and an accuracy com petition fo r a few obviously non-hockey players.

“T he crowd was great,” said forward Mathieu Darche. “I wish it could be like this every game.”

The game itself didn’t pick up until the third period, as the first and especially second periods were filled with penalty calls and stop­ pages. M cG ill came out strong o ff the draw, hitting well and creating opportunities, but, were unable to s o lv e Y o rk g o a lte n d e r B o b b y

R a jjo t who tied the game at one.

DaCosta, who kept the opposition But the game did not stay tied for off the scoreboard in the first. Late long, as Y ork responded quickly in the period, how ever, on a two by crashing the net and banging at man advantage, the C IÀ U ’s lead­ ing sco rer, Mike W illiam s, was le ft alone for ten seconds in fro n t o f the net and buried a pass, putting York up 1-0.

In the sec­ ond , it w as m o re o f the sa m e s to ry .

M cG ill contin­ ued to outplay York but could n ot b eat DaCosta, as he tu rn ed aw ay M c G ill’ s lead­ ing sco rer D a r c h e , on a Redmen back on track clear-cut break­ aw ay e a rly in several rebounds, again scoring to the second. DaCosta also stumped take the lead. M cGill goalie Jarrod C a rl C h a rla n d , w ho w a lk ed in Daniel claimed it was kicked in but u n c o n te s te d ; b o th D a rc h e and the referee was in position to make Charland would later reap revenge the call. on the goaltender.

The Redmen, perhaps frustrat­ Finally, a shot from the point, ed w ith th eir in a b ility to sco re, wildly deflected by a Y ork stick, began to crash the net as well. This found its way to Redm an B en oit

led to several skirmishes after the whistle as York took exception to the Redm en’s play.

In the third, Y ork quieted the crow d and was g iv e n a hu ge b oost as R e d m en fo r­ w ard D av id B u tle r, lean in g and skating fo r­ w ard as he searched for the p u ck in h is s k a te s , w as absolutely ham­ m ered by Y o rk defenceman Steven Konupka in an op en ic e h it th at co u ld be h eard in M o 1 s o n Residence.

B u tle r w as C heryl Fu down for sever­ al seco n d s, but g o t up w ith o u t any h e lp . T h e C IA U ’ s second lead ing sco rer, Jo h n n y B rd a ro v ic , sco red soon after the hit, making it a 3-1 York game. M cG ill never gave up, how­ ever, and they pulled the game out with a late rally.

“It was one o f the best games

we’ve played this year,” said Head Coach Martin Raymond following the gam e. “W e ’ ve been playing well — it ju st hasn’t been clicking.

The guys deserved this.”

Daniel played superbly, keep­ ing h is team in the gam e when they had a d ifficu lt time scoring.

Dave Gourd notched one to get the Redmen back on track in the third.

D arche and Charland, who were robbed by D aC osta earlier, both scored as part o f the fin al rally, with Charland getting the winner w ith ju s t 3 :4 0 rem ain in g in the game.

T h e R edm en co n tin u ed the solid play away with a 6-1 victory o v e r L a u re n tie n on S a tu rd a y .

Mathieu Darche once again put the R edm en ahead with a two goal, two assist game. Teammate Martin Routhier also had a successful day, scoring one goal and two assists.

Routhier’s second assist gave him 107 for his career, which inciden­ tally ties the M cG ill assist record for defencemen. The Redmen now stand at 10-6-3 in regular season play.

The ins and outs of Marie Hildebrand’s winning stride

By Kirstie H udson Winning Q S S F athlete o f the week honours for a strong perfor­ mance at the M cG ill Invitational Track and Field meet is one more feather in the cap o f talented third year track and field athlete, Marie Hildebrand.

H ild e b ra n d r e c e iv e d the

award based on a goldmedal fin ­ ish in the 3 0 0 m , a s ilv e r in the 60m hurdles and top five finishes in the 600m , 4 x 2 0 0 m and 4x400m relays.

H ild eb ran d ’ s six y ear c o m ­ petitive involvement in track andfield has brought her recognition fo r her many a ch iev em en ts, not least o f w hich was H ildebrand’ s

participation in the Francophone Games as a Quebec representative th is p a st S e p te m b e r in M adagascar.

H ild e b r a n d ’ s s u c c e s s has derived from her year round dedi­ cation to the sport. “E ver since I can remember, I ’ve organized my life around tra ck ,” she said. For the last three years, she has divid­

“ I was attracted to the club c irc u it b ecau se o f the fu ll-tim e coaching and having a coach that was real lysp ecialized in what I wanted to do,” she said. “I like the clu b c irc u it fo r all the p laces I travel, all the com petitions I get to com p ete in and all the training camps I'v e been to,” she added.

H ild e b ra n d tr a v e lle d to

©SHÛQ ©9 t&fâ M artlet Basketball hosts the Otm wa Cjge-Geg’s^ Friday 6:(X)pm Currie Gymnasium

C o n tin u e d on p ag e 24

The teams The Martlets have been in a bit of a skid of late and their hopes omaking the play-offs are in jeopardy. Friday’s nights game against the Jess than spectacular Gee-Gee’s offers the Martlets the opportunity to get back on track..

Key Actors The Martlets are counting on big games from conference scoring leader Anne Guildenhuy’s, who is averaging 21.1 points a game, and forward/guard Caroline Malo who’s team leader­ ship is needed in order for the team to be suc­ cessful!.. The Martlets will have to tie their r shoes on tight in order to defend against Ottawa’s tuning offence.

The Records Neither team is tearing up the track this season, The Martlets are sport­ ing a 4-8 record to sit last in the Quebec conference 4 points out of a play-off spot.. The Gee-Gee's are faltering at 2-8 on the season six points out of a play-off spot in the QUA-west.

T h e 4 0 0 m hurdles is where Hildebrand has seen most o f her s u c c e s s ; she placed fifth at the C an ad a G am es in M a n ito b a in Ju ly and ch a lk e d up a sev en th p lace fin ish at the Francophone G a m e s h e ld in S e p te m b e r. In addition, H ildebrand has been a 4 0 0 m hurdle fin alist every year th a t sh e has co m p e te d in the Senior Nationals, the premier out­ door track and field com petition in C an ad a. H ild eb ran d ’ s lis t o f a c h ie v e m e n ts is e v e n m o re rem arkable sin ce the 4 0 0 m hur­ dles is regarded as one o f the most challenging and gruelling races in

Coming up this week

Photo caption ed her tim e betw een com peting fo r M cG ill at the CIA U level in the winter season and com peting fo r her club, the M ontreal based Corsaire Chaparal, on the summer circuit.

H ild e b ra n d e x p la in e d th at com peting in the summer circuit allows her to focus on her special­ ity, the 40 0 m hurdles, which isn ’t offered as an event in the indoor circuit.

L'^ ll,ar‘1 Phoenix last summer for a train­ ing cam p in p rep aratio n fo r the 1997 Canada Gam es in Brandon, M anitoba. H ildebrand d escribed her trip to Phoenix as a highlight in her track c a re e r b ecau se she “w as training w ith the top hur­ dling coachin Canada” and got a ch a n ce to go to the sp e cia liz e d " h ig h a ltitu d e tr a in in g c a m p ” a lo n g w ith m e m b e rs o f the Canadian team.

Martlet Basketball Fri. vs Carleton 6pm. Sat, vs Ottawa 6pm, Currie Gym. Redmen Basketball Fri. vs Carleton 8pm. Sat vs Ottawa 8pm. Currie Gym. Martlet Volleyball Sat. vs Sherbrooke 1pm. Sun vs Laval 1pm. Currie Gym

Page 24

SpOI*tS

3 February 1998

Marlet volleyball takes the sting out of Concordia

By Leslie Buckley The McGill Martlet volleyball team hosted the Concordia Stingers last Friday night, desperately need­ ing a win after having suffered a serie s o f setb a ck s the p reviou s weekend.

Fortunately for the Martlets, a combination o f aggressive offence and solid defence meant the out­ com e o f the m atch was never in doubt. They beat the overmatched Stingers in straight sets by scores of 15-5, 15-8 and 15-6 to improve their league record to 7-4 on the season and remain in second place in the tough Quebec division.

A powerful M cGill attack, led by h itters W endy W h elan and Anouk Lapointe, was sim ply too much for the Concordia defence to

confused

weary

handle. Setter Marie-Eve Bergeron played a strong gam e fo r the Martlets, using all o f her hitters and keeping the opponents off-balance throughout the match. Excellent net play by W helan, who had several key blocks during the match, kept Concordia from mounting a consis­ tent assault.

The win could not have come at a better time for the struggling team.

Having lost the previous weekend to firs t p la ce L av al and then to unranked Sherbrooke, this was a game M cG ill could not afford to lo se. W ith the end o f the season rapidly approaching, the squad need­ ed to rebound quickly from their losses in order to build momentum as they head into the playoffs.

Whelan agreed on the impor­ tance o f the game. “Tonight was a

frightened

. skeptical impatient pressured

overwhelmed

do you feel like

about your career search

re-evaluate our line-up good confidence builder and we cam e up with for us. W e were a little the one that worked well bit down after last week­ tonight,” she explained. end, so it was important Beliveau, however, to co m e out and play would not com m it to strong and have a good w hether or not these match together.” ch an g es w ere p erm a­ If there was added nent, but simply added pressu re to win this “at least now we know gam e, the players c e r­ we have a cou p le o f tainly didn’t show it. In options.” fact, W helan said they O f course, one win approached it lik e any against a weaker team other game at this time of does not mean that the year. “It’ s important to team had put all o f their win all o f your games at tro u b les behind them the end o f the season,” but ju d g in g by their she explained. play, the Martlets appear As fo r the te a m ’ s to be back playing the recent struggles, coach way they would like to R a c h e lc B eliv e a u was be at this point in the quick to point out that season. This is a team i t ’ s not unusual fo r a that certainly has the tal­ team to go through a ent to live up to the high period o f poor play dur­ expectations that come ing a season. “I think you from having reached the expect to go through one national championships tim e during the season last year, provided that when nothing works for they continu e to play you,” said Beliveau. “But D iana Anderson solid team defence and the key to it is that you M arlets spike Concordia that W h elan and get out o f it as soon as Lapointe can continue to possible.” out o f their recent troubles was a lead the team up front.

Beliveau is confident that this slightly new look to the rotation.

A truer test o f how well the win has got the team back on the Beliveau pointed out that had it not Martlets are playing will come when right track. “I was pleased to sec that been for their consecutive losses last they face the tougher teams in their they played with such in ten sity weekend, they most likely would not division. Only then will it be clear of tonight, and hopefully this will pre­ have tampered with the line-up they just how prepared McGill is as they pare us for what we have to do for have used for most of their season. look to make it to the nationals for the rest o f the season.”

“With the trouble we had, we had to the second straight year.

One positive result that came

Hildebrand hurdles obstacles Career and Placement Service

&

C ontinued from page 23

McGill University, Powell Student Services Bldg., Suite 308, 3637 P eel Street Tel: (514) 398-3304, Fax: (514) 398-1831 www. megill, ca/stuserv/caps

track and field. “ T h e 4 0 0 m h u rd le s is the p e r fe c t d is ta n c e fo r m e ” said Hildebrand. “I started o ff running

I t i s s i n p l e . Y o iu m ust b e 18 y e a r s o r o l d e r and have A t h le te s F o o t.

I t c h i n g an d b u r n in g sy m p to m s a r e n o t r e q u ir e d . A l l o u r derm a­ t o l o g i s t t o do a b r i e f e x a m in a t io n o f y o u r f e e t an d d e te r m in e i f y o u r q u a l i f y f o r th e study» L a s t s e m e s te r, lu ck y

to

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3 9 8 -7 0 0 7

long distance in high school, so I always had the endurance to run 4 0 0 m .” Although physically tax­ ing, Hildebrand asserts that to run the race “you have to be strong and focu s on the hurdles to put yourself in a set pattern.”

“I focus on the stride pattern and less on the pain,” she said.

W hen the sum m er club c ir ­ c u it e n d s , H ild e b ra n d s ta rts preparing for the indoor universi­ ty circuit.

"T h e indoor circuit offers dif­ feren t race s and d iffe re n t c h a l­ lenges,” she said. “I get to com ­ pete in a lot more events than I do outdoors.”

Hildebrand has also had suc­ cess competing for M cG ill; in her first year, she captured a gold in both the 300m and 60m hurdles at the Q S S F ch am p ion sh ip and in her second year, Hildebrand cap­ tured silver over both distances.

In b oth y e a rs she q u a lifie d to c o m p e te at the C IA U c h a m p i­ onships, the premier event in uni­ versity level track. She has been a 60m hurdle finalist both years.

F o r H ild ebran d , co m p etin g for M cG ill and running in the uni­ versity circu it o ffers a lo t more excite m e n t becau se o f the team dynamics.

“I run university track for the circu it; it’ s fun, com petitive and c h a lle n g in g ,” she said . “ A t the clu b lev el you d o n 't have huge teams scream ing at you from the track while you race.”

For Hildebrand the highlight o f track at the university level is the o p p o rtu n ity to co m p e te on

b oth the 4 x 2 0 0 m and 4 x 4 0 0 m relay teams: “It’ s so much fun to be stressed out w ith three other g irls ,” she said. “Y ou can share the same feelings about your race with other people and know that you couldn’t have done it without them and they couldn’t have done it without you.”

W ith g ra d u a tio n in M a y , Hildebrand is looking forward to herlast Q S S F and CIA U champi­ onships in February and March.

“I ’d like to win the 300m and 6 0 m hu rd les p ro v in c ia lly andhop efully I ’ ll m edal in the 60m h u rd le s at th e C IA U c h a m p i­ onships.”

M cG ill track and field head c o a c h D e n n is B a r r e t t th in k s Hildebrand is up for the challenge as “she’s looking good this season and she’s part o f a w om en’s team that is potentially really strong.” “ S h e ’ s one o f the standouts on re la y team s that are ranked third or fourth in the country right now ,” Barrett said.

Although uncertain about the direction her track career will take once the season ends, Hildebrand asserts that her experience on the M cG ill team has sw eetened her successes.

“I can ’t picture m yself train­ ing w ith my clu b in the w inter b e c a u s e o f w h at I ’ ve had at M cG ill for the last three years,” she said. “W hen I con tin u e my studies I would go to any univer­ sity to try and find the same thing I found running at M cG ill.”

SpOrtS

3 February 1998

Page 25

From the Bleachers

Don’t read too much into Flutie signing with the Bills B y F ranklin R ubinstein

“All I know is that I played the game at my height all my life . I know no different. This is a game.

It’s football. I know one way to play it.”

Doug Flutie signed a two-year football contract with the B u ffalo B ills two w eeks ago, sa crific in g money and a guaranteed starting quarterback position in the C FL for the opportunity to com plete some unfinished busin ess in the N FL .

Flutie re-enters the NFL with almost impeccable credentials: a Heisman Trophy Award, a winning NFL start­ ing record and six C FL most valu­ able player awards. The only blemish — a 5 ’9 ” frame.

Flutie’s mobility and his ability to read defences made him an attrac­ tive proposition for the B ills. The team’s other two quarterbacks, Todd Collins and Alex Van Pelt, consis­ tently dem onstrated their lack o f experience; neither proved capable of leading a team to a winning season.

W ith new head co ach W ade

Phillips taking control, his first prior­ ity was to upgrade the B ills’ offence and more importantly, the quarter­ b ack p o sitio n . B ut is F lu tie the answer to the Bills’ problems?

With little hesitation, the answer is a resounding no. It would be fool­ ish to expect Flutie to be nearly as effective in the NFL, but speculation persists revolving around the fact that he may not be effective at all.

With the C F L ’ s large playing surface and smaller defensive line­ men, Flutie saw wide passing lanes and was only slightly hindered by his diminutive size. He was able to uti­ lize his speed by frequently finding space on roll-outs, and the large field allow ed him plenty o f room to manoeuvre.

The transition to the NFL will be marked by a more congested field and largçr players. Flutie will be forced to adjust to the bigger, more physical league. The quarterback’ s ability to receive the pounding of a NFL game is certainly in question — at the age o f 35, Flutie cannot hope to survive a constant physical beat-

ing. Furthermore, it is a thrashing he is sure to receive unless the B ills upgrade their porous offensive line which has yielded to faster and more physical units.

It must be conceded, however, that the Bills’ signing o f Flutie was a sound football decision. Flutie has been a winner at every level. He res­ urrected a dow ntrodden B oston College football program, was 8-0 as a Chicago Bear starter and won three G rey Cups with C alg ary and Toronto. Most would agree that the Bills should pay special attention to attracting a proven winner, given their Super Bowl dismantlings o f the early ‘90s.

The B ills also risked little in Flutie’s signing. The quarterback’ s package only offers a base salary of $ 3 0 0 ,0 0 0 — a paltry fig u re.

Although incentives could push the deal near $5 million over the next two seasons, it would the Bills who would u ltim a tely b e n e fit from Flutie’s successes.

In fact, it is Flutie who is bear­ ing the risk o f the transaction. Flutie

is fo reg o in g his b ase salary o f $700,000 to change leagues. That is a fair sum of money for someone who has not been guaranteed a spot on the B ills’ roster.

Finally, few can dispute the fact that Flutie brings experience and leadership to a team which is in dire need o f a quarterback with those qualities. Many believe that Collins has the potential to one day to be an NFL starting quarterback, and under Flutie’s tutelage and aid, his matura­ tion pnxxss may be accelerated; here is the tutor that Collins sorely lacked in the ‘97 campaign.

Further bolstering Flutie’s hopes is the hiring o f offensive co-ordinator Jo e Pendry. The coach ’s ability to utilize varying offensive styles made him the most qualified candidate.

Since Flutie and Collins have con­ trasting talents, his ability to design

Is y o u r p ig g y b a n k ru n n in g lo w ?

S p o rts E d ito ria l

With regards to attendance

By Aron Tonon

As a sports writer and a sports enthusiast I have attended a great number of varsity games since I first came to McGill three years ago. In my time, Ï have found that two things can usually be counted on at any game; entertaining play and boisterous but lew fans.

I've been pondering my tine of -argument for some time now as I’ve tried to figure out how to convince more McGill students lo go check out a few varsity games. This cannot be easily done without turning this article into another lecture about apathy. Therefore, 1 have decided that I’m not going to try to convince everyone to go to the games because the truth of the matter is that these games are not for everyone.

Therefore, this article is written with the intention of helping people decide whether or not a night at the old ball game is a night for them.

First of all ; McGill sporting events are really no different than going to a movie, a bar, or a live show. The game is the movie or the action. Spectators can either sit in their seats as if they were watching a movie or stand up and dance as if they were at a bar. Unlike a movie, beer is on the menu at most of the events, and being loud and uncouth is accepted if not expected from most university sports fans.

Another point to take into con­ sideration is that you will probably know or recognize someone on the teams from your classes. If you’re a fan who is willing to pay $25 to go and watch impersonal pro athletes play sports, then I’m sure that the opportunity to watch people you know play at a high level competi­ tion for the cost of four or five dol­ lars will be just as attractive. You never know — someday you just might have to pay that $25 to watch a McGill athlete play in a venue out­ side the Molson Stadium or the Currie Gym. These games also help foster a sense of community — hell, you might even call it school spirit. Yes. that crazy notion of supporting your fellow students did not die in the *40s; it still fingers In the shadows of our downtown campus and it is most apparent at varsity events. It’s us against them, that other school. For this reason, there are very few occa­ sions that you can sit and watch a game without getting emotionally involved at some level, whether you understand the sport or not. The games have all the drama that a movie does with the exception that you can allow your emotions to con­ trol your actions; the fact that alco­ hol is served at many of the events also makes for some very creative displays of support.

These games a great place to

Athletes of the week Anne Gildenhuys

Redmen Hockey

Martlet B asketball

M athieu D arche

On Saturday, in the Martlets 7157 loss to the University of Toronto Varsity Blues, Gildenhuys notched 34 o f the teams 57 points. In the Martlets 59-55 win over Ryerson on Friday, Gildenhuys once again led the scorin g with 25 p o in ts. Her efforts put her top of the scoring list in the Quebec University Women’s Basketball Conference with a points per game average o f 21.1.

Darche was a key player in the Redmen’s weekend move back into the saddle. In Friday’s 4-3 clincher over the Y o rk Y eo m e n , D arche notched one goal and one assist.

Saturday’ s play saw much o f the same thing with Darche racking up two goals and two assists for a grand total of six points over the weekend.

start an evening. They are almost always played on a weekend, they are early in the evening, the beer prices are good, and downtown is at your fingertips for post-game action.

There is no question that going to a game with a group of people can make for good times. So if you ever find your self saying, “Man, I’d real­ ly like to do something different this weekend...,” for Chrissake’s go to a game — you’ve got nothing to lose and everything to gain.

an offence to suit both players will be tested and necessary.

But count on Pendry not to be satisfied merely with Flutie in his quest to rescue the Bills’ floundering o ffe n c e . Rum ours p ersist that General M anager John Butler has entered contract discussions with Jacksonville unrestricted free agent quarterback Rob Johnson. Butler has also expressed an interest in obtain­ ing a quarterback via the draft; Bryce Paup and a first-rounder for Ryan Leaf sounds tantalizing.

I f Flutie’ s signing has any sig­ nificance, it may be that the Bills are still trying to remain in the upper echelon o f the NFL. His signing is only a harbinger o f events to come; the Bills will be a very aggressive player in this year’s offseason mar­ ket.

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P le a s e c a ll th e S t u d e n t A id O f fic e a t 3 9 3 - 6 0 1 3 / 1 4 f o r m o r e in f o r m a tio n .

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Page 26

SpOI*tS

3 February 1998

M cG ill’s Intramural’s setting the pace for student athletes by

T he M inh Luonc

C ram m ing fo r m id -term s or just generally slacking o ff provides most students with little time to par­ ticipate in competitive sports. The M cG ill Intramural Sports program provides the everyday athlete with the chance to com pete in a wide range o f sports, fo r the cov eted championship mug.

In terms o f participation and sports offered. M cGill boasts one of the five largest intramural university sports programs in Canada. There are over 20 sports offered, ranging from the traditional hockey, basket­ ball, soccer and volleyball to such recently growing sports as ultimate frisbee and broom ball. Individual sports such as tennis and badminton are a lso o ffe re d , but have not proven to be quite as popular.

Time restrictions in the facili­ ties prevent other sports, such as la cro s s e , from b ein g added and m any o f the p layin g sp a ces are

b ook ed so lid . D esp ite the large numbers o f men and women play­ ing the leagues have generally run very smoothly.

“W e have to say it’s worked out very well; there have been few com p lain ts,” said Intramural C o­ ordinator G e o ff Phillips. “W e ’ ve had no problems finding officials to work most o f the sports.”

Teams are generally formed by groups o f friends, many from the same department or fraternity. The free agent system places additional players on a team if they have not been able to find one. In addition to students, M cG ill alumni and staff are eligible to join the intramural program.

T h o u g h a la rg e nu m ber o f players are playing the sport for the first time, many have experience at h ig h ly c o m p e titiv e le v e ls . F o r example, many hockey players have played at junior A levels. However, varsity athletes aren’t permitted to play in the sport in which they rep­

such as hockey and soccer can at tim es be hostile, and injuries are common.

“Sometimes the play gets a bit rough, but fo r the m ost part it is friendly,” said official Erin Lawlon.

split into different groups to com ­ resent McGill. pensate for the calibre o f play. In Som e o f the fraternity teams h o c k e y , the co m p e titio n is so have b een co n tin u in g fo r a few diverse that a D level had to be cre­ years; they have graduating veter­ ated. ans and freshm an rookies as the Seasons last at least 4 games, varsity team s do. R iv alries have developed over the years, as some teams have dominated the A-league. The Hitmen in hockey and the War Pigs in basketball are som e o f the teams that challengers are gunning for this season. “ T h e lea g u e is very com petitive,” said basket­ ball player Marcel Edwards.

"Y ou have some high-cali­ bre play without having to put aside all the tim e for practices.”

W ith the pressures o f university life taking their toll, the games provide the participants with an oppor­ tunity to relax while being p h y s ic a lly a c tiv e . T he social aspect o f team play also proves to be an integral Broom ball com petitors fig h t fo r the cup part o f the intramural expe­ with each team assured o f making rience. the single-gam e elim ination play­ “I ’m playing because I dig bas­ o ffs. The ^ m n e rs o f each group ketball. It’s a great way to keep in receive the distinction o f being the shape during the winter,” comment­ holder o f the cham pionship mug. ed b a s k e tb a ll p la y er Je lle The play usually runs for the good Ouwerkerk. “The players are enthu­ part o f one semester, with the hock­ siastic, and you meet a lot o f new ey season spanning both semesters. people.”

While the players don’t repre­ The league play in a sport con­ sent the university, the competition sists o f divisions o f 4 to 12 teams, in intramural sports can be fierce. with m en’s, w om en’s, and co-rec The play in more competitive sports d iv ision s. T he leagu es are often

Ros Price

“T h e re ’ s d efin itely a fun atm os­ phere in all o f the sports.”

So while the intramural ath­ letes might not gamer the attention o f their varsity counterparts, the games remain a memorable part of the university experience.

Standings H ow you

w ould lik e

to

be a

Peer

A d v is o r

fo r

T h e A rts U n d e rg ra d u a te S o c ie ty (A U S ) an d th e S c ie n c e U n d e rg ra d u a te S o c ie ty (S U S ), in c o n ju n c tio n w ith th e S tu d e n t A ffa irs O ffice o f th e F a c u ltie s o f A rts a n d S cie n ce , a re lo o k in g fo r d e d ic a te d U2 s tu d e n ts to b e c o m e p e e r a d v is o rs .

R e s p o n s ib ilitie s w o u ld in c lu d e : h e lp in g fe llo w s tu d e n ts in d e c is io n m a k in g , e x p la in in g d ro p /a d d p ro c e d u re s , a n d m ore. V o lu n te e rs a c c e p te d to th e p ro g ra m a re e x p e c te d to m a k e a c o m m itm e n t o f at le a s t o n e a c a d e m ic year, a n d w ill re c e iv e a le tte r o f re c o m m e n d a tio n fro m th e Faculty, a tte s tin g to th e s e rv ic e s p ro vid e d .

Men’s Hockey — OUA Far East

Qualifications required: A p p lic a n ts m u s t:

•have minimum C G P A of 3.00 or above (special cases to be co nsid­ ered individually) •be in U2 (second year of a three year program, or second/third year of a four year program) at the time of application •have an ability to listen, to respond in a non-judgmental manner, to be compassionate, and to be interested in others •be prepared to commit to a mini­ mum of two hours/week for the acad­ emic year 1998/99 (Sept. - Nov. and Jan. - Mar.) •to attend training sessio n s during the month of March, 1998 (volunteers will be trained by an advisor from the Student Affairs Office of the Faculties of Arts and Science). The training sessio n s will take place on two alter­ nate Saturdays. Dates, times and location to be confirmed.

It is n o t n e c e s s a ry fo r a p p lic a n ts to h a v e p rio r e x p e rie n c e , h o w e ver, re le v a n t s k ills w o u ld be a n asse t. If y o u h a v e a n y q u e s tio n s , p le a s e ca ll M e lis s a S a w y e r A U S P re sid e n t, o r C h ris to p h e r W a ts o n , A U S V P A c a d e m ic , a t 3 9 8 -1 9 9 3 o r E ric B a le s -K o g a n , S U S V P A c a d e m ic a t 3 9 8 -6 9 7 9 .

A p p lic a tio n s and p o s itio n d e s c rip tio n s ca n be p ic k e d up fro m an e n v e lo p e p o s te d in th e lo b b y o f D a w so n H all a s o f J a n u a ry 26, 1998. C o m p le te d a p p lic a tio n s (and re la te d d o c u m e n ts ) m u s t be s u b m itte d to D a w so n Hall, R o o m 110, in a s e a le d e n v e lo p e la b e lle d “ P e e r A d v is in g ” by F e b ru a ry 13, 1998.

W

L

T

GF

GA

Pts.

UQTR

13

3

2

113

32

28

McGill

10

6

3

68

74

23

Ottawa

10

7

1

105

. 64

21

Concordia

7

8

2

67

77

16

Mid East Division

'

W

L

T

GF

GA

Guelph

11

5

4

106

66

26

Toronto

7

10

2

65

86

16

Queen’s

6

13

2

65

95

14

RMC

2

15

4

54

110

8

Pts.

Pts.

Mid West Division W

L

T

GF

GA

Windsor

15

2

1

92

53

31

Western

13

4

1

74

49

27

Waterloo

9

5

4

57

45

22

Laurier

4

12

2

52

72

10

Ear West Division Pts.

W

L

T

GF

GA

York

10

6

2

92

68

22

Laurentian

6

1.1

1

65

85

13

Brock

5

9

1

51

75

11

Ryerson

1

11

3

38

72

5

W h a t’s o n /S p o rts

3 February 1998 Tuesday February 3 Amnesty International will its annual Write-a-Thon from 9 to 9 p.m. on Feb 3 in Shatner For more info, contaet Liz at 2430.

hold a.m.

108.

845-

Wednesday February 4 The Centre for Developing Area Studies is launching its Brown Bag Series on International Development.

On Feb. 4, the film “Modem Heroes, Modern Slav es” will be shown at 7:30 p.m. at 3715 Peel. For more info call 398-3507.

M cG ill F a cu lty o f M usic Special Project at Redpath Hall at 8:00 p.m. Beethoven sonatas featur­ ing Amanda Keesmaat on the cello and Nadine Thiru-Chelvam on the piano. Free Admission.

Thursday February 5 McGill Faculty of Music CBC/ M cGill series at Pollack Hall (555 Sherbrooke W .) at 7:30 p.m. Works

by B a ch , Fauré and P ia z z o lla .

T ic k e ts $ 1 2 ($8 students and seniors).

Friday February 6 McGill Faculty of Music Noonhour Organ Recital Senes at Redpath Hall. Works by Bach, dc Grigny and Hambraeus. Free admission.

Sunday February 8 Open Auditions for “Ten Little In d ian s” by A gatha C h ristie .

Auditions begin at 1:00 p.m. at the United Theatre o f the Erskine and American United Church, 3407 du M usée (S h e rb ro o k e W . and Crescent). Everyone is w elcom e!

For information call 934-1664.

Monday February 9 Trouble meeting people/making friends? Concerned with communi­ cation in relationships? First Meeting o f the social communication group runs from 3:00 to 4:30. Call McGill counselling services 398-3601.

The departm ent of Anthropology is pleased to sponsor a lecture entitled “Researching Inuit traditional ecological knowledge: Separate genre? Separate ru le s,” Prof. George W enzel. 12:30 p.m, Leacock 738.

Upcoming and Ongoing

A F R E E support group for women who arc involved, or have been involved in a violent relation­ ship (dating or marriage). Meetings are informal and confidential. The place is safe and secure. Individual counselling services are also avail­ able for women and their children.

For in fo , please co n ta ct M elissa G oldband at M c G ill D om estic Violence Clinic - 398-2686.

Sun Youth inaugu rates a Senior’ s Wish Project! People aged 60 or over, regardless of income who are interested in benefiting from their program, or persons who know a senior who can, are invited to write them a brief letter including the per­ son and a brief description o f their wish (ie. meet a particular star who might be in Mtl., sec a professional a th le tic event from a good seat, spend the day in a relatively close c ity ...) Send letters to Sun Youth O rganization, 4251 S t .Urbain St. Mtl., Quebec, H2W 1V6, attention: “A Senior’s Wish Project.”

The McGill Domestic Violence Clinic offers a treatment group for men who abuse their partners. The group m eets w eekly on Tuesday evenings from 6 p.m. - 8 p.m.. There is a small fee. For info, please con­ tact K eith H eck er or B ev erly Sabourin at 398-2686.

The E ld er A buse In fo -L in e , sponsored by the CLSC Rcnc-Cassin U n iv ersity In stitu te o f S o c ia l Gerontology of Quebec, is recruiting bilingual volunteers to operate a lis­ tening, information and referral tele­ phone service for seniors who arc victims o f abuse or neglect. Free spe­ cialized training is offered. Contact K atherine M acnau ghton-O slcr at 488-9163, ext. 360.

The A cco m p an im en t Programme o f the Sexual Assault Centre o f McGill Students’ Society can provide information, support and accompaniment services to members of the McGill community who have been sexually harassed or assaulted in a McGill context. For more info, please call 3 9 8 -2 7 0 0 (daytime) or 398-8500 (evenings).

An illu strated lectu re at the M cCord Museum! In conjunction with the exhibition Les Paradis du M onde, guest cu rator P a sca le

G alip cau w ill d iscu ss the three uniquely different collections that m ake up this p resen tation .

Admission (includes museum visit) $ 7 . Lim ited sealing, reservations required, 398-71 (X) ext. 234.

G A Y L IN E: Information and help fo r lesb ian s and gay men.

Confidential and free. We can help with a personal crisis or simply help find a bar. 7 - 1 1 p.m., 365 days a year. (514) 866-5090 in Montreal or call us toll free at 1-888-505 1010.

F R E E M cG ill B ereav em en t Support Groups arc being offered through the McGill School of Social W ork for adults, ehildren/adolcsccnts, young adults, and family sur­ vivors o f suicide. New groups for 1997 inclu d e “ M o th erless Daughters" and “Loss o f an Adult Child." Anyone who is experiencing any type of loss including the loss of a family member or friends, please contact E stelle Hopmcycr at 39 8 7067.

Going for an HIV test? Peer Health Education is looking for indi­ viduals for an audio broadcast pro­ ject that would be comfortable shar­ ing their exp erien ce. P lease call Darrell at 398-6017.

T he A th eist, A g n o stic, and S ecu la r Humanist S o cie ty meets every Thursday at 7 :3 0 p.m . in Shatner, rm. 435. Come and discuss issues such as church-state separation and non-religious ethics in a relaxed and open atmosphere.

The M cG ill Eating D isorder Support Group open to all students 18 years and up in Montreal. There is no fee and no need to sign up. Just show up Thursdays from 9 :0 0 to 10:00 p.m. at the Newman Centre, 3484 Peel St. For more information, please call 398-1050.

The Sexual Assault Centre of M cGill Students’ Society offers a number o f free, facilitated support groups open to McGill students and the w ider M ontreal Com m unity.

Infolinc 398-2700, Mon. - Fri. 10:00 - 5 :3 0 . Helpline 3 9 8 -8 5 0 0 , every night 6 :0 0 - midnight. All calls are confidential. SACOM SS also offers a number of support groups. Call for info.

Sports Q u iz L et's fin d ou t i f th e n ew m u ltip le c h o ic e fo r m a t m ade the quiz any ea s ier f o r you. C h eck you r respon ses against the answers.

Non-McGill

S o you think that w as pretty easy, eh ? Well le t ’s see how you handle this w eek's gems.

Non-McGill

1. It has been (b )J3 years since an AFC conference team last won the Super Bowl and it was b) The Raiders who did it.

2. The world record for the pole vault is 2 0 ’ 13/4” set by Sergei Bubka o f the Ukraine on July 31, 1994 (roughly equivalent to a two story building).

3. The NHL player who had a McDonald’s commemora­ tive Olympic hockey medallion made but isn't on the team is b) Mark Messier,

McGill 4. The newest addition to the McConnell winter arena is c) the new heaters.

5. The most popular intramural sport at M cGill is a) hockey with c) 65 teams competing.

6. The leading scorer for the Redmen basketball team this year is a) Hubert Davis. The leading rookie scorer is c) Brady Murphy

1. Who is the latest Canadian to have earned a PGA Tour playing card? a) Dave B a a b) Mike Weir c) Richard Zokcl 2. When was the last time the Ottawa Senators won the Stanley Cup? a) 1912 b) 1915 c) They never have, they’re a new team moron.

3. Which of the following are new events to be featured at the Winter Olympics? a) Curling b) Women’s Hockey c) Snowboarding

M c G ill 1. Which facilities will be completed next at the gym? a) The gymnastics room h) The Squash courts c) The Dance Studio 2. When was the last time the Redmen hockey team beat the UQTR Patriotes?

3. Which o f the following sports is not a tier one Varsity sport McGill? a) Martlet basketball b)Redmen baseball c)Martlet vol­ leyball

Sports Q u iz

Free support groups for adults liv in g with lo ss. A co n fid e n tia l bimonthly opportunity to meet with others who have experienced loss of relationships, career, health, finances, etc. Please call Estelle or Sandy at 398-7067

Page 27

B e n e fit for M cG ill A frican Studies Programme. Full night of live performances, dance and music: Reggae, Hip-hop, Duh and Funk. At Isart, 263 St. Antoine, 7:30 p.m.. $7/ $5 for students. Call 393-1758 for information.

T he Y e llo w D oor “E ld erly Project" has been helping seniors in the downtown area for the past 25 years. We arc in urgent need o f vol­ unteers to accompany seniors to and from appointm ents, to help them with their shopping or to have a “ friendly visit” once a week. For more in fo rm atio n , ca ll Leah or Danielle at 398-6243.

S T D s are not s e x y !! M cG ill Student Health Services sells con­ doms, dental dams, female condoms, lubricant (in funky packages) and contracep tiv e gel at really cheap prices. They can be purchased at the Health Service reception desk, 3673 Peel St., rm. 100. Call 398-6017 for information.

T he M aison de Jeu n es de la Côte-des-Neiges is seeking volun­ teers to help youth between the ages o f 11 and 18 with their homework (French, English, chemistry, biology, history and especially math). This will be a good opportunity for future teachers and social workers to gain experience. For more information, call Sandra at 342-5235.

T h e M oderator C lu b, the world’s leading non-profit education­ al o rg an izatio n devoted to the improvement and development o f individual communication and lead­ ership skills, offers training in tech­ niques o f effective public speaking.

Sessions are held on Tuesdays at 6:15 p.m., at 2070 Peel St.. Cost is 5$. For information, call 528-8659.

Q uestioning your sex u ality ?

Looking for info on L B G T issues?

Queer line is a confidential, nonjudgmcntal peer support and referral phone line w hich runs M ondayFriday 8:00 P.M. - 11:00 p.m. Give us a call at 398-6822. We arc here to listen to you.

A re you orig in ally from the Haute-Yamaska (Bromont, Granby, Waterloo areas)? Would you like to learn more about jo b and entrepre­ neurial opportunities available in the region? Townshippers’ Association’s Youth Project will be offering an Our Region, Our Future project over a period o f 3 weekends beginning at the end o f January. Workshops are free; meals and transportation costs will also be covered. Registration is limited, so call now: Joanne Derby, (514) 263-4422; Erin Mallory, (819) 566-5717.

Compeer Montreal is presently recruiting volunteers 18 years and over interested in working in the mental health field. We are a non­ profit community-based organiza­ tion. We provide support services to those suffering from mental illness providing them with a volunteer to facilitate their reintegration into soci­ ety. For more inform ation, please call 489-1007.

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S te a k s

220 Milton >(514) 285-0011

Classifieds

W o r d P r o c e s s in g S uccess to all s tu d e n ts. Papers, résumés, applications, transcription, editing. 29 years experience. $1.50 D.S.P. Cam pus Paulette 288-9638

M c G i ll N i g h t l i n e Mc G i l l n i g h t l i n e o p t i n g o u t Students wishing to be reimbursed @ 0.25, may do so by filling out a form at the SSMU counter in the Shatner Centre, 3480 McTavish

A r e Y o u in A L o n g -

Language Exchange Language Exchange Program . Learn a new language; improve your communica­ tion skills. Eng / French / Spanish / Japanese / Chinese etc. Call Universal Students Services. 865-0898

C o m b i n e h o u s in g a n d S o c ia l J u s t ic e Experience - Study, discuss and live C h ristian Base C o m m u n ity at bottom of Peel Street (301 Young St. just west of Peel). Small house 3 male roomates $250! Quiet. Contact Rick 933-4590

D is ta n c e R e la t io n s h ip Toll-Free: 1-800-871-1819

TOEFL TO EFL language c o u rse . Small class­ es. Call Universal Student Services 865-0898.

S a le s R e p s Motivated, energetic team players to add to a relaxed and comfortable office atmosphere. Great bonus and incen­ tives. Experience an asset but not required. Full time from 8:30 - 3:30 and part time from 3:30 - 7:30. Umited spaces available call 845-0099

S S M U E le c tio n s is n o w a tte p fin g n o m in a tio n s fo r th e fo llo w in g p o sitio n s: S

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The deadline for returning

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Nomination Packages is:

Thursday, 12 February 1998 @ 5:00p.m.

ik P re s id e n t V ic e P re s id e n t (E x te rn a l A ffa irs ) V ic e P re s id e n t (Finance) ^ V ic e P re s id e n t (In tern al A ffa irs ) i V ic e P re s id e n t (U n iv e rs ity A ffa irs )

Nomination kits are available at the: S S M U M a in O ffic e W illia m

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fo r: M ardi 3, 10, 11 and 12 Applications are now available at the SSMU Front Desk. Pay: $7.00 per hoar