The McGill Tribune Vol. 28 Issue 24

THE OLYMPICS HELP AND HURT HOSTS, PAGES 10 & 11

EMBARKING ON A MARCH TO MADNESS, PAGE 19

T h e M c G ill

ublished by the Students' Society o f McGill University

w w w .m cgilltribune.com

Volume 28 Issue 24 • March 17,2009

P ro te s t a g a in s t p o lic e b r u ta lity tu r n s v io le n t 221 a r r e s t e d o n

S u n d a y

M att C hesser The 13th annual March Against Police Brutality turned iolent last Sunday, as protestors and police officers clashed uring the afternoon demonstration.

The Montreal Police arrested 221 protestors; 32 were harged with criminal offences, while 189 were appreended for violating municipal by-laws, given a ticket, and ten released. Protestors caused over $200,000 in property amage and hurled objects at police officers. The protest ras declared unlawful minutes after it began because ome demonstrators held items that could be considered reapons, such as sticks and rocks.

"There are some people who were just at the protest ) demonstrate peacefully,"said Ian Lafrenière, co-ordinator f media relations for the Montreal Police. "Unfortunately, ach year it's attracting a group of people who just want ) get into a confrontation with the police. This event is a retext that they use in order to vandalize property and onfront police officers."

The march was attended by approximately 400 people, nd began just after 2 p.m. near the Mont Royal metro staon. The crowd made their way down St. Denis Street and ito the downtown core via Sherbrooke Street, although îe marchers changed direction repeatedly, presumably in rder to disorient police.

The protest started relatively peacefully, but deteorated as it moved towards the city centre. Some demnstrators hurled vegetables and rocks at police officers, i/hile others launched fireworks, smashed windows, stole iot gear, and vandalized police vehicles. ee OFFICERS on Page 3

Protestors clash with police on St. Catherine Street on Sunday. Two hundred and twenty-one demonstrators were arrested.

V lo lso n S t a d i u m t o g e t 5 ,0 0 0 m o r e s e a t s Expansion funded by Alouettes and provincial and city governments T ori C rawford With construction already underway at various locations in lower campus, McGill will soon begin a new project to ex>and Percival Molson Stadium.

The stadium's capacity, which is currently 20,000, will be ncreased by 5,000 seats. The initiative for the project came rom the Canadian Football League's Montreal Alouettes, vho have been working towards this improvement for many

years.

"When we moved from Olympic Stadium to Molson Sta­ dium, we knew we would need to expand in order for [the move] to be profitable," said Louis-Philippe Dorais, vice-presi­ dent of communications for the Alouettes. "Originally, in 1999, we wanted to start expansion as part of [the initial phase of renovations], but we quickly realized, due to the fact that it's quite old, that we needed to fix the structure. " The total cost for the expansion is estimated at $29.3 mil­ lion. Alouettes owner Bob Wetenhall will contribute $6 mil­

lion, with the provincial government paying $19.3 million and the city covering the final $4 million of construction. But the the use of government funds for the project has provoked some objections from residents of the surrounding MiltonParc area.

"Our main objection is the use of public funds to finance a private football club. That is a very basic thing," said Walter Barber, a member of the Durocher Village Association, "Why See ENLARGED on Page 3

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CAM PUS

N e ils o n b e a t s P e t e r s t o w in S S M U p r e s i d e n c y Brown defeats Sullivan in close vote to become next year's VP internal M att C hesser & T homas Q uail Arts Senator Ivan Neilson was elected as next year's Stu­ dents' Society president on Thursday night, swept to victory by voters drawn to his pragmatic and moderate campaign platform. Neilson captured 50.8 per cent of the 3,631 ballots cast.

In the other contested Executive election race, Clubs and Services Representative Alex Brown edged out Queer McGill Co-administrator Brendan Sullivan to become the SSMU's third-ever vice president internal. Brown, a U3 psychology and economics student, won 50.2 per cent of the vote, while Sul­ livan captured 37.9 per cent, and 432 students spoiled their ballots.

Elections McGill Chief Electoral Officer Nicole Gileadi an­ nounced the results in Gert's, speaking to approximately 100 students. Following the announcement, Neilson, who was visibly excited, embraced close friends and fielded questions from campus media.

"I'm really excited, I'm happy to be through this process, and I'm ready to get down to work," he said.

Marshall Peters, Neilson's opponent in the presidential race, captured 38.2 per cent of the vote. Peters, who has never been elected to a political position at McGill, built his cam­ paign around increasing SSMU's visibility on campus. Neilson applauded his opponent's campaign promises, and acknowl­

edged SSMU's insular reputation.

"I wasn't surprised [that Peters polled at 38.2 per cent]," Neilson said. "I certainly thought that it was going to be a closer race, because he was actually going out and talking to people, and he's got a lot of new ideas which I think are inter­ esting and important to people."

According to current SSMU President Kay Turner, Neilson has the experience and the ability needed to lead a cohesive executive next year. She explained that his experience with Council and Senate would help him effectively lead, and es­ tablish a vision for SSMU. "I'm really excited that Ivan was elected," she said.

Following the announcement, Brown also expressed her excitement with her new position.

"This is something that I've been working towards for a really long time," she said. "But I'm just really happy and ex­ cited, my brain is racing with ideas for stuff to do next year."

Brown, a two-term SSMU councillor and longtime orga­ nizer of events such as SnowAP and Four Floors, emphasized her experience with SSMU events throughout the campaign period.

"I think that in order to make a lot of the changes that anyone would want to make— to make our events more en­ vironmentally sustainable and more inclusive, for example— you really need to know what you're working with," she said.

"And my experience with the portfolio should hopefully help

me make those changes from the first day onwards."

Sullivan, a U3 biology and political science student, coi gratulated Brown on her victory, and claimed that the positic was in good hands for the future.

"I'm happy for her, she's brilliant, she's always been i volved with this, and I know this is what she's wanted," I said.

Brown added that she was impressed by Sullivan's car paign.

Students familiar with next year's SSMU Executive ha\ expressed concern over possible ideological divisions with the group. Neilson allayed these concerns and maintaine that next year's executive would be united in making SSM "the best it [could] be."

"While everybody [on the Executive] might be différer I think we're all united," he said. "These are all hard-workir people that want to contribute to SSMU." The election turnout was down from last year's 5,729 b, lots cast, 37 per cent decline. Along with Neilson and Brow four vice-presidential positions were acclaimed: VP Unive sity Affairs Rebecca Dooley, VP External Sebastien Rondero Morgan, VP Clubs and Services Sarah Olle, and VP Finance ar Operations Jose Diaz.

-With files from I.E. Brow,

CAM PUS

T h r e e t o c h a l l e n g e Q P IR G r e f e r e n d u m v o t e General Assembly, Athletics, and MUSF questions all pass cleanly B ernard Rudny All four of the referendum motions on the Students' Society's ballot passed on Thursday, but only after some election-night drama.

Shortly after 6 p.m., Elections McGill Chief Electoral Officer Nicole Gileadi announced the election results to a crowd of approximately 100 students in Gert's. At that time, she said that the Quebec Public Research Interest Group McGill's fee increase had passed, with 48.3 per cent of votes cast in favour of the increase, and 46.4 per cent against. One hundred ninety-four of the 3,631 ballots cast were spoiled— roughly five per cent of the total vote.

Arts Councillor Hanchu Chen posted this re­ sult on Twitter, a popular social networking web­ site, shortly after Gileadi's announcement. His post drew quick responses from former SSMU President Jake Itzkowitz, former Council Speaker Yahel Carmon, and former Elections McGill CEO Corey Shefman, who challenged the result.

Carmon pointed out that under Section 20.2 of the SSMU Constitution, "referenda shall be passed by simple majority." He also cited a No­ vember 1995 SSMU Judicial Board decision, Miltoy et al. v. SSMU, according to which a majority of all votes cast is required to win a referendum.

Gileadi, Chen, the SSMU Executive, and a QPIRG representative then consulted privately, reviewing the results and a summary of the Milloy decision. At 7:12 p.m., SSMU President Kay Turner contacted the student press and an­ nounced that the referendum result was being upheld.

According to Turner, the precedent set by the M illoy case doesn't apply to the QPIRG refer­ endum because of a difference in the ballot.

"In the referendum question [contested in the M illoy case] ... [the choices on the ballot were] yes, no, no opinion, and then [to] spoil," she said. "Therefore it doesn't actually apply in this situation."

Turner explained that at General Assemblies and Council meetings, abstentions do not count as votes against a motion. Spoiled ballots in the QPIRG referendum were therefore disregarded

I ! Il I f I I I t I I I I I I i *I I I *4

when calculating what qualified as a majority.

However, it’s unclear whether this result would stand up to the scrutiny of a SSMU Judi­ cial Board challenge. According to a summary of the M illoy decision, "when there is doubt as to [the] interpretation of [a] referendum result, [the Judicial Board] favours [a] conservative ap­ proach in favour of [the] status quo." If the QPIRG results were ruled ambiguous, the fee increase could be overturned.

At press time, the Tribune confirmed that three plaintiffs had filed complaints with Stu­ dent Advocacy to challenge the referendum re­ sults. Zach Newburgh, a U2 Middle Eastern stud­ ies student who is one of the plaintiffs, declined to comment.

Although she considered the margin un­ comfortably close, QPIRG Internal Co-ordinator Leila Pourtavaf was pleased that the group's fee increase was approved. She said the additional funds will be used to bolster QPIRG's working groups and programs like Radical Frosh. # ‘ ..

"A lot of the programs that we already run are on a tight budget," she said. "[The fee in­ crease] is just so they can expand more."

Along with QPIRG's fee increase, 54 per cent of students approved constitutional changes to General Assemblies. The question was opposed by 25.4 per cent of students, and drew the high­ est number of abstentions: 748, meaning that 20.6 per cent of students spoiled their ballots.

The changes removed a number of GA regulations from the SSMU Constitution so they could be enacted as by-laws, which are easier to amend. Turner supported the changes.

"I really strongly believe that this is what we needed to do," she said. "I think that what we did to GAs last year was really, really ineffective.

I'm really happy that in my presidency, that was changed. ... But this doesn't make it a perfect system. There's still a lot of work to be done."

In the two remaining referendum questions, 57.2 per cent of students approved a fee renewal for the McGill Undergraduate Students' Fund, and 50.7 per cent approved a similar renewal for ADAMSC01 the Athletics and Recreation Facilities Improve­ Various SSMUshies in Gert's during Nicole Gileadi's announcement of electioi ment Fund. ■ returns.

ww.mcgilltribune.com

17.03.09 -The McGilITribune • 3

A M PU S

E n la r g e d v e n u e w ill h o l d u p t o 2 5 ,0 0 0 f a n s Residents of the McGill Ghetto upset with expansion plans mtinued from cover

ould enlarging Molson Stadium take precedence over the ominable state of our roads, streets, sewers, overpasses, and ispitals?"

Barber also criticized the city's contribution in the face of e $155 million in budget cuts that were announced on March The city, however, believes that the project will benefit many Terent groups. "[Molson Stadium's] expansion will benefit the Alouettes, course, and will give Montreal visibility on the North Amerin sports scene, but it will also provide a major sports and ents centre for the community living in the McGill area," said y spokesperson Patricia Lowe in an email to the Tribune.

Drew Love, McGill's director of athletics, confirmed the issibility of outside events being held at the stadium once e expansion is complete.

"The reality is that we are going to have 5,000 additional ats, which will give us the opportunity as a result to look at me sporting events that were maybe looking for larger vens than we had before," Love said. "The seats themselves may it be that important for McGill athletic events, but they will i of benefit for us if we are looking at hosting some special ents that might be coming from the community."

However, many of those who live in the area are sceptical iout these potential benefits. Barber explained that, for the cal residents, this expansion will mean that several thousand ore people will be moving through the residential area durg the Alouettes'game days.

"When people think of downtown they think of St. Cathine Street or Sherbrooke Street—just shops—and it doesn't ither anyone," Barber said. "On the contrary, there's noise, iffic disruptions ... in past years we've had fans urinating in ir doorways and in our alleys."

Dorais noted that even with a capacity of 25,000, Moln Stadium will still be the smallest arena in the CFL. While ! believes the expansion will be the key to the team making arofit, he also emphasized that the team has already taken ?ps to address any possible concerns.

VALERIANMAZATAUDANDDAVIDBENSON Construction is already underway at several locations near Molson Stadium.

"When we did our planning and all that we consulted every group, including Les Amis de la Montagne, the Friends of the Mountain Group, to make sure that we respected the biodiversity of Mount Royal. We made sure that the minister of culture and communications approved all projects," Dorais said. "We only hold five events per year at Molson Stadium and we think that's fair."

Other than the possibility of hosting outside events, with improved press facilities and new sound technology in the stadium, Love doesn't believe the expansion will have a major impact on the university itself.

"We really are supportive of the move [the Alouettes] made,"Lovesaid."l don't see the stadium construction aschanging any of the regular operations we do as McGill University."*

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The McGill Tribune

S PE A K E R O N C A M P U S

CITY

M a ta s c ritic iz e s A p a r th e id W e e k O fficers in ju r e d Lawyer argues event qualifies as hate-speech Bernard Rudny Human rights lawyer David Matas gave a speech at the Moot Court on Friday, arguing that Israeli Apartheid Week should be banned from university campuses.

Matas is the senior legal counsel for B'nai Brith Canada, and was recently awarded the Order of Canada for his work in human rights, immigration, and refugee law. His lecture, en­ titled "Free Speech, Hate Speech, and the New Anti-Semitism," was co-sponsored by the Jewish Law Students' Association and the Canadian Institute for Jewish Research's Student Israel-Advocacy Program.

Oliver Moore, a fourth-year law student and head of the JLSA's advocacy committee, explained that the lecture was a response to Israeli Apartheid Week at McGill and other univer­ sities.

"David Matas is a legal expert on legal questions relating to Israeli Apartheid Week," Moore said. "The idea was to bring a little bit of hard legal expertise— especially given the fact that we're law students— to bear on the issue."

Matas argued that Israeli Apartheid Week demonizes Israel and the Jewish people, and is therefore a form of antiSemitism. He called the comparison of Israel to Apartheid South Africa "ludicrous,"and suggested that such rhetoric qualifies as hate speech. Matas also repeatedly compared cur­ rent criticisms of Israel to past anti-Semitic myths.

"The agenda of those who utter slurs against Is­ rael for imaginary crimes, and those who claimed that Jews use Christian baby blood to make matzoh, is a similar agenda: a power agenda," Matas said. "The aim of these lla. ' ^ f r. ? - a. l d-:lï!'f.t, ? ! , SpeakS on charges against Israel is Israeli Apartheid Week. not to [change] the be­

Protestors throw rocks

Continued from cover haviour of the Israeli government. ... The aim is rather dele­ Police officers attempted to regain control by launchinç gitimization through demonization." tear gas towards some protestors at around 4 p.m. Two police However, Matas's definition of "the new anti-Semitism" officers sustained minor injuries after being struck by brick: raised a few eyebrows at the lecture. Alexandra Dodger, a sec­ thrown by protestors. ond-year law student, questioned whether Israeli Apartheid "When it became violent, it was when we arrived nea Week qualifies as hate speech under Canada's Criminal Code.

Sherbrooke," said Etiénne Simard, who attended the demon "The term Israeli Apartheid Week might be inflammatory stration.The police charged us, using plastic gas bombs, anc to some people," she said. "But it's a bit of a leap of logic, to they started running after the protestors. And, by this time me, to say that calling Israel any name is anti-Semitic. ... I'm it became really violent because at every street corner, then not confident that it crosses the line where it's incitement to were policemen who were charging in [the protestors] direc cause violence towards a specific group— and that's usually tion. the standard for hate speech." "[The police] did too much. I think if their presence hac Matas was particularly concerned with the role of univer­ been smaller, and less aggressive, the demonstration woulc sities in hosting Israeli Apartheid Week events. He described have been much more peaceful." these events as "self-contained propaganda exercises" which The Collective Opposed to Police Brutality, the Montrea don't represent the full diversity of viewpoints or promote group who planned the event, refused to inform the Montrea open debate. Matas also compared Israeli Apartheid Week to Police of the protest route before the demonstration began the Institute of Historical Review, an American Holocaust de­ The Tribune's requests to the Collective for comment were no nial organization, saying that both of them disseminate hate returned by press time. speech under the auspices of academic freedom.

According to Lafrenière, there are approximately 1,50c "It's not just advocates of the slur that Israel is an Apart­ protests in Montreal every year, yet the March Against Police heid state that gravitate towards universities," he said. "All haBrutality is the only one in which organizers refuse to tell the temongers do, because of the credibility it gives their propa­ police the demonstration route. ganda." "[Most protest groups] want to make sure that we close Although Matas asserted that Israeli Apartheid Week streets and they want to make sure that no one gets injured, meets the standard of criminal hate speech, he said that uni­ said Lafrenière. "This is the same problem we have every yeai versities should ban such events based on internal policies, [with the Collective] though. They don't want to share the such as speech or race relations codes. However Dodger ques­ route— they say that legally they don't have any obligation tc tioned whether such prohibitions are justified. do so.

"I think it's problematic to talk about criminalizing the "They believe if they provided us with the route we woulc kind of speech that David Matas did," she said. "I don't think bug them and do everything we could to confront them. Bu it's a good way for him to express disagreement with students [who] are organizing [events], just because he doesn't agree J even if we knew that they were there to get into a confronta tion with our police officers, we would let them start and le with their politics. It's a pretty serious thing to accuse some­ them walk unless they were committing crimes." body of hate speech."

Speaking at a press conference on Monday morning Eric Van Eyken, a second-year law student, understood Montreal Mayor Gerard Tremblay said that the city woulc Matas's argument about hate speech, but was similarly con­ consider new measures to combat violent demonstrations cerned about clamping down on campus speakers and including a possible directive that would require organizers tc events. divulge protest routes to the Montreal Police.

"I was a bit concerned about any discussion of restricting "The city administration has a responsibityto knowaheac free speech on campus, and was a bit dismayed that [Matas] of time what the demonstrators' route will be," said Trembla) didn't really fully develop the idea of how this would be imple­ to the Montreal Gazette. ■ mented,"Van Eyken said."But [the lecture] was informative."*

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S e r v i c e s d 'e m p l o i p o u r l e s j e u n e s Ignatieff speaks at Montreal Shabbat dinner Liberal Leader Michael Ignatieff addressed a crowd of students, local Jewish leaders, and Montreal politicians last Friday at a Shabbat dinner hosted by Hillel Montreal. In his speech after dinner, Ignatieff elaborated on his condemnation of Israeli Apartheid Week, the controversial event held two weeks ago at McGill and on other Canadian university campuses.

Ignatieff wrote an opinion piece in the March 5 National Post denounc­ ing Israeli Apartheid Week for undermining Canada's respect for diversity.

"International law defines 'Apartheid' as a crime against humanity," Ig­ natieff wrote. "Labelling Israel as an'Apartheid'state is a deliberate attempt to undermine the legitimacy of the Jewish state itself."

Immigration, Citizenship, and Multiculturalism Minister Jason Kenney had previously voiced concern with Israeli Apartheid Week in a statement issued on March 2.

At Friday's dinner, Ignatieff spoke about the trials of the Jewish people over the centuries, but said that criticism of Israeli policies is perfectly le­ gitimate.

"It has to be free or it's not a university," he said.

Though he applauded free speech on campus, Ignatieff said that Israeli Apartheid Week crossed a line by trying to delegitimize Israel and question­ ing its right to exist. He argued that Canada is a state built on tolerance.

"During Israeli Apartheid Week, you felt the fragility of that tolerance," he said.

While Ignatieff denounced Israeli Apartheid Week, about 10 demonstra­ tors from a group called Young Jews for Social Justice gathered outside to condemn Ignatieff's stance toward Israel and his record on human rights.

Martin Lukacs, a member of YJSJ and a McGill alumnus, said that Igna­ tieff's support for Israel's recent actions in Gaza was particularly dismaying because of his former position as the director of the Carr Centre for Human Rights Policy at Harvard. Lukacs also criticized Canada's policies toward Is­ rael more generally, arguing that the government's position is too close to that of the United States.

"Canada has been playing lapdog to the U.S.," Lukacs said.

Local Liberal MPs Irwin Cotier, Marc Garneau, and Marlene Jennings also attended the Shabbat dinner. Cotier, the MP for Montreal's Mount Royal riding, is both a McGill alumnus and former McGill law professor.

— Theo M eyer

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S PE A K E R O N C A M P U S

C o s m o lo g is t d is c u s s e s d a rk m a tte r, e n e rg y Kolb speaks about the stuff that makes up the universe E mma Q uail

Professor Rocky Kolb, a cosmologist and chair of the department of astronomy and astrophysics at the University of Chicago, gave a lecture last Thursday at the Redpath Museum entitled "Mysteries of the Dark Universe."

Kolb's lecture explored the cosmological forces of dark matter and dark en­ ergy.

Scientists have determined that five per cent of the universes mass comprises different quantities of radiation, chemical elements, stars, neu­ trinos, hydrogen, and helium. However, they have yet to determine the composition of the other 95 per cent. On Thursday, Kolb claimed that 25 per cent of this unknown mass is dark matter, and the other 70 per cent is dark energy.

"Something is holding galaxies and other large-scale structures to­ gether. We don't know what it is. It seems to be a new elementary particle and we call this 'dark matter,'" he said. "There's something else that is push­ ing galaxies apart in an ever-increasing expansion of the universe. We don't know what this is, but we have a name for it: dark energy. It does not seem to be associated with galaxies, but it seems to be a property of empty space."

The big bang theory is the jumping-off point for most research on dark matter and dark energy. Einstein's general theory of relativity underlines the big bang theory's scientific claims that the universe continues to expand, and that the universe emerged from a hot primordial initial condition. "[The big bang theory] tells us that our universe emerged from a state of high temperature and density 13.78 thousand million years ago," he said.

"The universe is also expanding and cooling and evolving and [is] dynam­ ic."

The big bang theory, he said, explains the universe's chemical compo­ sition, and the existence of background radiation caused by the hot fireball of the big bang.

"We understand this abundance pattern of the elements because the big bang predicts that three minutes after the bang, the primordial soup turned into 76 per cent hydrogen, 24 per cent helium, and just a little lithi­ um," Kolb explained.

All of the other elements were produced after the first three minutes in a place hot enough for nuclear reactions to occur— the interior of stars.

These stars would then go on to spread, evolve, and produce more chemi­ cals in the universe.

"It is a wonderful thing to imagine that every atom in your body that’s not hydrogen and helium was once made in a star," Kolb said. "So you can either view yourself as star material or nuclear waste. It's up to you."

There are many ways of finding evidence that there is dark matter in the universe. One way in which this can be done is through determining the mass of a galaxy.

"There are two ways we can determine the mass of a galaxy: one is by seeing how bright it is. We see how bright it is and we can estimate how many stars there are in the galaxy, and we know the masses of stars," Kolb said. "We can also determine the mass of the galaxy by measuring how rap­ idly it spins."

Lawrence A. Mysak, McGill professor of meteorology in the depart­ ment of atmospheric and oceanic sciences and a co-organizer of the event, considered Kolb one of the best guest lecturers they have had.

"It was not too technical, he spoke well to the audience [at] not too fast a pace, and he made it entertaining as well as informative," Mysak said.

Ingrid Birker, a science outreach co-ordinator who also helped orga­ nize the event, was equally impressed by Kolb.

"The lecture was amazing. I really don't know much about astronomy and I know that the field has opened up and solved many of the myster­ ies of the cosmic universe," Birker said. "So this was a revelation for me that there are still mysteries in the'dark'universe." ■

CAM PUS

S t u d y lin k s k id s , g a m b l i n g Research shows impulsivity is a risk factor S teven H offer

Montreal researcher and McGill graduate Linda Pagani has recently linked impulsivity in kindergar­ ten students to the likelihood of pre-adolescent gambling habits. The study, published in the March issue of Archives of Pediatrics and Adolescent Medi­ cine, and funded by the Social Sciences and Humani­ ties Research Council, has garnered media attention from media outlets including Time Magazine and CNN. Researchers at the McGill International Center for Youth Gambling Problems and High Risk Behav­ iour also contributed to the study.

Pagani, a professor at the University of Mon­ treal and researcher at the Sainte Justine University Hospital Research Centre, began her study with mul­ tiple cohorts, but chose to focus on the 1999 subject group. She selected 163 students from intact families with minimal gambling habits and high mother edu­ cation to control for various other possible explana­ tions of early gambling tendencies. Kindergarten teachers were asked to evaluate their students on a one to nine scale reflecting tendencies including im­ pulsivity, hyperactive behaviour, and distractibility.

Several years later, when the kindergarteners had reached grade six, Pagani and her colleagues con­ ducted direct interviews asking the students how often they played cards, purchased lottery tickets, played video games for money, or placed bets at sporting venues.

The resulting data displayed a clear relationship between childhood impulsiveness and adolescent gambling, with a one-point increase on the kinder­ garten impulsivity scale corresponding to a 25 per cent increase in gambling involvement by grade six.

According to Pagani, the study of attention span as a predictive personality trait has long been neglected in scientific research in favour of depression and dis­ ruptive behaviour.

"The importance of this study is that it adds to the list of long term consequences of impulsive be­

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haviour detected in kindergarten,"she said."This is a regular classroom ... so it has huge ramifications for public health. Because when you look at the long list of consequences associated with impulsive behav­ iour that is not treated ... you have a lot of kids that could be doing much better."

Adolescent gambling commonly precedes pathological gambling in adulthood, which is con­ sidered an impulse disorder. This particular study is the first study to collect statistics based on selfreported gambling habits by children who are as young as 11-years-old. While working on the study, Pagani collaborated with Jefferey Derevensky, co­ director of the International Center for Youth Gam­ bling Problems and High Risk Behaviour at McGill, and Christa Japel, a Faculty of Education professor for the University of Quebec at Montreal.

"The reality is that gambling is growing and be­ coming normalized in our society," Derevensky said.

"There are far more gambling opportunities than there have ever been before. We will see in Canada, during the next couple of years, widespread Inter­ net gambling. It is becoming a widespread source of entertainment not only for adults, but for adults and children alike."

Derevensky further emphasized the characteris­ tics of developing pathological gamblers. He warned against exceeding self-imposed limits of both time and money on a regular basis, or allowing gambling to interfere with an individual's regular way of life.

Based on her results, Pagani believes that when young children are taught to do addition and sub­ traction at a young age, they should also be taught a sense of concentration and focus.

"We have adult addictions that are associated with early impulsive behaviour," Pagani said. "We have unemployment, unexpected dropout, under­ achievement, grade retention, the list goes on and on."

Pagani and her colleagues intend to revisit and re-evaluate the students in several years as they graduate from high school. ■

St. John's

Monday March 16 7 :3 0 pm Room 1 5 0 0 , 5 0 0 Granville Street, Segal Graduate School of Business, Simon Fraser University 7 :3 0 pm Room 1 4 5 , Science Theatres, 6 1 8 Campus Place, Tuesday March 17 University of Calgary 7 :3 0 pm Room 1 1 3 0 ,Bahen Centre, 4 0 St. George Street, Thursday March 19 University of Toronto Sunday March 22 2 :0 0 pm Room 179 Bronfman Building, 1001 Sherbrooke Street West, McGill University Tuesday March 2 4 7 :3 0 pm Room 1 0 4 5 , Arts and Administration Building, Elizabeth Ave, MUN

r e p o r t i n g , a n d e d i t i n g ? I t 's a h e ll o f a j o b .

S u b m i t a c o v e r l e t t e r , CV, a n d t h r e e r e l e v a n t w r it in g s a m p le s t o a d d r e s s e d to T r ib u n e E d ito r-

in -C h ie f M a tt C h e s s e r.

Contact: Call: Email: Visit:

School of Law, University of Leicester, University Road, Leicester, LE1 7RH 011 4 4 1 1 6 252 5187 law@le.ac.uk Ref: Canada w w w .le.ac.uk/law /canada

University

of

L e ic e s t e r

O

p in io n C O U N T H ER FEET

VOX POPULI

Dispelling Middle Eastern myths

When justice does more harm than good

S arah G habrial SARAH.GHABRIAL@MAIL.MCGILL.CA

R iva G o ld YOURCOLUMNISHURTFUL@GMAIL.COM

he world's greatest intellectuals have al­ ways believed that dialogue is the only effective way to resolve conflict. Yet by voting to "indefinitely postpone" the contro­ versial Gaza motion, students at the Students' Society General Assembly imprudently voted against any form of discussion. This illustrates an unfortunate truth about public discourse concerning the Arab-lsraeli conflict: when looking at the international community's re­ sponse to this issue, there is an inherent bias held by the West that leads it to condone vio­ lence perpetrated by Israelis against Palestin­ ians, while condemning violence committed

by Palestinians against Israelis. Moreover, when legitimate criticism is brought forth against Israel’s policies, it is often met with howls of outrage and persistent attempts to silence such criticism, out of fear that it may lead the average person to question Israel's conduct towards neighbouring Palestinians and Arabs. Rejecting discussion and silenc­ ing criticism further reinforce the widely held misperceptions about both the Arab world and Israel.

Israel is considered by many to be a "vir­ tuous democracy" surrounded by a hostile sea of Arabs who seek its destruction. There­ fore, Israel is justified in doing everything in its power to protect itself when it faces threats to its "territorial integrity"or existence. Although Israel's political system ensures equal rights to its Jewish citizens, it fails to extend those same rights to its systematically marginalized Arab population. Israel should not be held to an unfair standard, but should be judged by the same standards that apply to all democ­ racies, which is appropriate since Israel has often been referred to as "the only democ­ racy in the Middle East." And because democ­ racies draw their legitimacy from adhering to principles of human rights, it follows that, by refusing to grant the Palestinians a state of their own and by denying basic human rights to those who live in the West Bank and Gaza, Israel undermines its status as a democracy.

In the Middle East, the balance of mili­

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tary power decisively favours Israel— not only does it have the strongest military, but it's also the only nuclear power in the region. The difficulties faced by Israel in establishing dip­ lomatic ties with countries of the region are a direct consequence of its behaviour towards the Palestinians, and of its illegal occupation of Arab land. The prevailing rifts between the Arab regimes have undermined any attempt to negotiate with Israel. Nevertheless, Arab leaders are willing to normalize relations with Israel, asking in return that it withdraw from all territory captured in 1967 and provide the Palestinians with a just solution to the refu­ gee problem.

Although terrorism is unjustifiable and should be condemned, it's important to con­ sider the circumstances from which it arises.

Islamist groups have often resorted to ter­ rorism in response to Israel's ongoing coloni­ zation campaign, and to its blockade which encroaches on the lives of millions. No state can maintain a military occupation that lacks international legitimacy and claim "self-de­ fence" to justify large-scale violence against resistance to its own occupation. The words of Noam Chomsky further emphasize this important moral principle: "You can't defend yourself when you're militarily occupying someone else's land. That's not defence. Call it what you like, it's not defence."

Candid and open discussion about this political situation needs to take place if we hope to dispel the existing myths which are held by many about the Middle East. A re­ grettable dimension of this ongoing conflict is that Israel's continued occupation of Arab land, along with its severe blockade, is con­ sidered normal by a large part of the world, and justifiable on grounds of security and self-defence. Such misperceptions not only breed violence against the Palestinians, but also delegitimize their hopes of one day hav­ ing a state of their own. ■

Sarah Ghabrial is U2 political science stu­ dent.

ince 2003, roughly 300,000 people have died in Darfur, and even more have been raped, tortured, and forcibly dis­ placed. This is an unspeakable tragedy, and the international community has widely recognized that Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir is complicit in these crimes against humanity. But it's not clear that the Interna­ tional Criminal Court was right to issue an ar­ rest warrant for him.

On March 4, the ICC charged Omar alBashir with crimes against humanity and war crimes in relation to the war in Darfur. At best, the indictment makes an obvious and widely accepted statement about the Suda­ nese president's moral culpability. At worst, it does tremendous harm to those who have already suffered at al-Bashir's hands. Sudan, for obvious reasons, isn't a signatory of the ICC Statute. Therefore, al-Bashir can only be brought to trial if he sets foot on the territory of an ICC signatory state. In other words, as long as he doesn't vacation in certain coun­ tries, al-Bashir gets off scot-free.

Given that the international community has already (more or less) agreed that the events in Darfur constitute a genocide, for­ mally recognizing this fact isn't much of an achievement. And making symbolic state­ ments without real-life enforcement mecha­ nisms can undermine the very goals the ICC wishes to pursue. Not only does al-Bashir's indictment fail to provide justice for victims in Darfur, but it has enraged an already pow­ er-hungry and vicious leader. As a result of the ICC's actions, a dozen international aid agencies were expelled from Sudan because they were suspected of collaborating with the ICC. These are the groups that were supply­ ing life-saving food, water, and medicine to millions of refugees in Darfur. The Sudanese government has no plan to replace these basic services for its dying people. And while this isn't the first time al-Bashir has held his own population hostage to secure political concessions from the West, we can't ignore

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the refugees' plight.

The controversy created by the indict ment also reduces the already slim possibilit of peace and stability in the region. When thi ICC indictment was issued, the Justice anc Equality Movement— one of the main rebe groups in Darfur— had just signed a good will agreement with the Sudanese govern ment. The JEM is now backing away, becausi it doesn't want to negotiate with someom who has been labelled a war criminal. More over, al-Bashir is using the indictment to in cite nationalistic and anti-Western violena in the region. To make matters worse, th< tenuous 2005 peace agreement betweer Sudan's northern and southern factions car only suffer under an aggravated al-Bashir.

Indicting al-Bashir has also damaged in ternational justice as a whole. When a younç and essentially powerless institution pursue a target it can't possibly hope to catch, i makes itself seem unworthy of support. Th< ICC has reduced its international credibili ty— something it relies upon to survive anc pursue other, more reachable goals.

In theory, we shouldn't let a crazy bat guy hold justice hostage. But, given the re actions from several important powers, i seems necessary to give up on the al-Bashi indictment. Several African nations, muct of the European Union, and China opposée the indictment, recognizing the tremendou harm it would cause in Darfur. Without thei backing, a trial simply won't happen. Ant even if it did, what legitimacy would it hold?

In principle, political realities shouldn' dictate the course of justice, particularly wit! respect to crimes against humanity. But ir practice, they sometimes have to. If it care at all about the current victims in Sudan o the potential for peace in the region, the Uh Security Council should step in and defe the indictment. The ICC can always indict al Bashir at a later date, but they can't resusci tate innocent civilians who die from the cut off of humanitarian aid, or from the vengefu actions of an embarrassed al-Bashir. ■

F O O T IN M O U T H

T h e b e s t k in d o f d i s e a s e ( f r is b e e is t h e c u re ) E ric W eiss ERIC.WEISS@MAIL.MCGILL.CA enioritis sounds like a disease that kills old people, but it isn't. As most people know, it's nothing more than lazi­ ness that sets in as otherwise industrious students ap­ proach graduation. And while senioritis isn't life threatening (unless it's possible to be terminally lazy), it does inhibit one's ability to get things done indoors.

Of course, the term "senioritis" is a bit of a misnomer. I've had senioritis for most of my undergraduate career. I'd much rather watch movies and drink beer than sit in the library try­ ing to memorize information that ultimately doesn't matter.

Let's face it: no matter how well you researched it, nobody cares about the paper you wrote on Louis Riel.

And that's the awful truth. Most of what we learn at uni­ versity doesn't matter in any broader context. As I write this, the weather outside is finally warming up. Days are getting longer, fields are getting greener, and skirts are getting short­ er. Yet most students are still banging their heads against academic walls, caught in a blind panic thanks to the onset of term papers and exams.

Speaking from experience, seniors aren't the only stu­ dents who suffer from senioritis. Eons ago, when I was a first year living in upper residence, I remember watching people

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play frisbee on Forbes field and wishing that I was anywhere other than my desk. Four years later, nothing has changed. I didn't want to work then and I don't want to work now. I'm also certain that the vast majority of students share my apa­ thy. Once spring comes around, our minds are anywhere but here.

To me, this is the great tragedy of middle-class life in North America. Students study for 14 hours a day and make themselves miserable for a month. In exchange, we earn the right be miserable working at jobs that we never wanted in the first place. It's the economic equivalent of reaching the end of the rainbow, and finding that someone swapped the pot of gold for a soggy bowl of Lucky Charms.

Our parents and teachers taught us the virtues of putting work before play, but it's a lesson that we've learned a little too well. North Americans (particularly my compatriots to the south) work longer hours, take shorter vacations, and gener­ ally sacrifice their lives for career advancement and economic gain. This is a grotesque inversion of personal priorities. Hav­ ing $1 million (or even $100) is pointless if you don't have the time to enjoy it.

It's time for North Americans to re-examine our values.

Dilbert and Office Space are

funny because they hit close tc home for far too many people. As a society, we need to re member how to relax.

I'm not recommending that people shirkall responsibility But if a class is making you contemplate the merits of carbor monoxide poisoning, it's probably not worth the effort you're putting into it. Years ago, I resolved to live my life with as little stress as possible. I've been reasonably successful— although admittedly, I kind of cheated. I started studying theatre, which is really just a responsible form of entertainment that will (I hope) keep me out of a cubicle. No matter how many hours spend hanging lights, it never really feels like work.

It's more important to enjoy what you do than it is to do something you hate, even if you do it well. So I'm here to tel you how to reclaim your life. Unless you enjoy writing essays (and plan on becoming an academic), allow yourself a few hours a day to unwind. Have a snack, watch some television, go outside, or stay in and masturbate. Give in to senioritis, and I guarantee you'll feel better later. Senioritis is God's way of telling us that life is too short to spend sitting at a computer.

Now if you'll excuse me, I have to send this column to my editor. ■

17.03.09 • The McGill Tribune • 7

ww.mcgilltribune.com TPI

______ T he McGill

TRIBUNE www.mcgilltribune.com

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E D IT O R IA L

History, not Canada, should judge Bush ever before have so many people paid so much money to hear a speech filled with so many grammatical errors. George W. Bush is giving his first post-presidential speech today to 1,500 exclu­ sive invitees at the Calgary Chamber of Commerce. And given his long history of verbal mishaps, we suspect that guests didn't pay $400 each for the pleasure of hearing the former president speechify.

Bush leaves behind a unique legacy as president. During his term, he received both the highest and lowest approval ratings ever recorded. The Obama administration is currently struggling with the economic and legal wreckage Bush and company left behind, and Americans will be dealing with the aftermath of his presidency for quite some time.

But dealing with Bush's legacy has become a Canadian problem.

Last week, a group of Canadian lawyers sent a letter to the RCMP, argu­ ing that that Bush is legally prohibited from entering Canada for alleg­ edly committing crimes against humanity.

Under the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act, anyone complicit in war crimes or crimes against humanity is inadmissible to Can­ ada. The lawyers claim that Bush has been involved in "deportation, imprisonment, torture ... that, at the time and in the place of its com­ mission, constitutes a crime against humanity according to [interna­ tional law]," which would qualify him as a war criminal in Canada.

Thankfully, the RCMP hasn't shown any interest in acting on this suggestion. There are plenty of reasons to dislike Bush, but it would be foolish to label him as a war criminal. The protestors in Calgary today are free to say whatever they want, but a government condemnation carries a hefty diplomatic price tag while achieving nothing. Barring entry to an American president would understandably be seen as a slight against our neighbours to the south.

If Bush is guilty of violating either international or American law, the relevant jurisdictions should prosecute him accordingly. Until then, people should stop throwing around the term "war criminal."

Those who want to pay through the nose for an afternoon of Bushisms are welcome to do so, and the rest of us can get back to work cleaning up the mess the president left behind. ■

L e tte r t o t h e e d ito r

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f -------------------------------------------------------------------------------T IM E IS R U N N IN G O U T .

T H E T R IB U N E IS O N L Y P U B L IS H IN G T H R E E M O R E IS S U E S T H IS Y EA R . S E N D Y O U R LETTERS IN T O L E T T E R S @ M C G IL L T R IB U N E .

C O M , B E F O R E IT'S T O O LATE.

What it means to be human(istic) With regards to the article "Major on thin ice" in your March 3 issue, I would first off like to thank you for bringing awareness to the problems the department is facing. At the same time, however, I would like to take this opportunity to express what can be regarded as a highly problematic aspect of the program: no one knows about it!

Entering McGill University's Faculty of Arts, one is familiar with the more traditional departments such as history, English, or political science, but little awareness is made about interdisciplinary program options.

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In fact, on a personal level, the only reason I am a humanistic studies major is because of word of mouth.

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wish they knew about it sooner, as it is a fantastic opportunity to explore a wide range of disciplines within the largest faculty the university has to offer.

For many of us, the undergraduate experience is intended to serve as an opportunity to explore our in­ terests, be introduced to a variety of ways of thinking, and to expand our knowledge base in a way that we may not otherwise be able to. The humanistic studies department allows one to do just this. From "Terrestrial Planets" to "Chinese Action Film" to "Feminist Theory and Research," Arts students need to be made better aware of their options. Otherwise, excellent programs which provide a highly comprehensive knowledge base which allows students to explore such a broad range of interests will continue to be in jeopardy.

While one can appreciate Associate Dean Mary Mackinnon's concerns that there "is a huge amount of choice [and] very little structure to the program," is that not what the Faculty of Arts should be about?

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Breaking away from structure is what it is to be human.

As the central theme of humanistic studies, this is a necessary message that must continue to be spread through the Faculty of Arts.

—Tristan Hobbs U3 humanistic studies and history

v C opy E ditor

Tori Crawford

O FF THE BOARD

A dvertising M anager

The truth about Stewart versus Cramer

Matt Ward cpm@ssmu.mcgill.ca

J ames G ilman

P ublisher

Chad Ronalds

C ontributors

David Benson, I.E. Brown, Alex Eiman, Pamela Fillion, Arielle Frank, Huge Galdones, Sarah Ghabrial, iva Gold, Steven Hoffer, Niki Hyde, Joanne Lam, Emma Quail, Ryan Taylor, Eric Weiss

T ribune O ffices

Editorial Shatner University Centre Suite 110,3480 McTavish Montreal, QC H3 A 1X9 T: 514 398.6789 E: info@mcgilltribune.com Advertising Brown Student Building Suite 1200,3600 McTavish Montreal, QC H3 A 1Y2 T: 514398.6835 F: 514398.7490

t was billed as the final showdown in a weeklong war of words, but Jim Cramer's appear­ ance on Jon Stewart's parody news programme The Daily Show last Thursday night didn't even resemble a two-sided fight. Stewart lambasted a helpless Cramer, the host of CNBC's M a d M oney and one of the biggest names in financial jour­ nalism, for his hypocrisy and failure to act as a watchdog of the financial industry.

The feud began when Stewart criticized one of Cramer's CNBC colleagues, Rick Santelli.

In a rant on the floor of the Chicago Mercantile Exchange, Santelli attacked President Barack Obama's housing bailout plan and the "losers" who took out mortgages they couldn't afford.

Using a series of embarrassing clips showing CNBC personalities making horribly inaccurate predictions, Stewart attacked Santelli and CNBC both for their poor foresight, and for putting ratings before integrity in what Stewart termed "cheap populism." One of these clips showed Cra­ mer touting the stock of Bear Stearns, formerly one of Wall Street's biggest investment banks, shortly before it collapsed a year ago. Cramer publicly responded to Stewart's ridicule, kicking off a feud (which, in all fairness, was largely con­ trived by the media) that culminated in Cramer's appearance on the March 12 episode of The Daily

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And yet, when anyone hears about the program, they

Show .

Stewart's roasting of Cramer was brilliant, but hard to watch. It's worth mentioning—as Stewart makes abundantly clear—that The Daily Sh ow is a comedy program. Stewart doesn't have to follow the usual rules of journalistic integrity, arguably giving him an advantage when he goes after another media personality.

Yet, as has been pointed out countless times since the episode aired, there was a great deal of substance to Stewart's tirade—it was more than just a comedic rant. So was Stewart being "unfair" as some have suggested? Or was he stepping up to the plate and doing what the "serious" media had been unable, or unwilling, to do?

Cramer is a buffoon who deserves most of the criticism he's received, but it was unfortunate to see Stewart's legitimate criticisms of CNBC turned into a personal duel with the M ad M oney host. By leaping to the defence of his network, Cramer became CNBC's fall guy. And I'm sure the network's executives were thrilled to see him take the fall, and redirect Stewart's anger from the network to a single on-air personality.

Cramer can be fairly blamed for his mistakes, such as the now-infamous Bear Stearns gaffe, but not for the general failings of financial jour­ nalism—and that's what Stewart, and many oth-

ers, are so angry about. Cramer has made plenty of bad calls, which would be fine if, as Stewart points out, M ad M oney's ads didn't feature the tag line "In Cramer we trust." Financial networks like CNBC consistently misrepresent their prod­ uct, as there's a huge gap between expectations of financial journalists or experts and their actual abilities. As Stewart put it,"I understand you want to make finance entertaining, but it's not a fuck­ ing game."

Cramer obviously doesn't have as much to do with this as the network bigwigs, and that's why it's unfortunate that this became a person­ al feud. Although Stewart was going after the industry in general—and CNBC in particular— the whole affair will likely be remembered as a "Stewart versus Cramer."That's a shame, because Stewart was spot-on about financial journalists' failure to do their job and be the watchdog of Wall Street.

I would have loved to see a high-ranking ex­ ecutive from CNBC go on The Daily S h ow and try to defend the network's record. Yet that would never happen—instead, CNBC got off easy by throwing a single host to the wolves. There's no doubt that Cramer deserved his fate, but many others deserve the same. It's a shame they too won't be held publicly accountable. ■

he McGill Tribune is an editorially autonom ous newspaper published by the Students' Society of McGill University in collaboration with the Tribune Publication Society. Opinions expressed do not necessarily represent those the Students'Society or McGill University. Letters to the editor may be sent to letters@mcgilltribune.com and must include the contributor's name, program and year and contact information. Letters should be kept under ao words and submitted only to the Tribune. Submissions judged by the Tribune Publication Society to be libellous, sexist, racist, homophobic or solely promotional in nature will not be published. The Tribune reserves the ght to edit all contributions. Editorials are decided upon and written by the editorial board. All other opinions are strictly those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the opinions of the McGill Tribune, its editors or its aff. Please recycle this newspaper.

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8 • The McGill Tribune • 17.03.09

BE A P E A C E K E E P E R IN T H E W A R O F W O R D S The Tribune is accepting applications for next year's opinion editor, who will succeed the brilliant and incredibly good-looking Bernard Rudny. The position involves editing letters, columnists, and outside contributors, as well as writing self-aggrandizing house ads.

If you would like to apply for the position, please send a cover letter, a CV, and three relevant writing samples to editor@mcgilltribune.com. The deadline for applications is March 27 at 5 p.m. Late applications will not be accepted.

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"Still Black" is a documentary exploring the lives of six trans­ gender men living in the U.S. This is a joint event between Queer L.McGill and the Anti-Racist Coalition at McGill.

The Honeysuckle Spelling Bee combines spelling and strip ping in front of an audience. Winner (determined by who is still dressed) takes home $50.Tickets are $6.______________________________

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Join Think Pink for an afternoon of entertainment and a silent auction to benefit the Quebec Breast Cancer Foundation. Contact ^514-264-0465 or email thinkpinkmcgill@gmail.com for more info.

Queer McGill's Homo Hop Location: Mar. 2010 p.m.-3 a.m.; Just for Laughs, 2111 St. Laurent

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S e n d t h e n a m e , d a t e , lo c a t io n , a n d o t h e r in f o t o f e a t u r e s @ m c g illt r ib u n e .c o m .

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BE A TRIBUNE EDITOR. TheTribune is calling for applica­ tions for the 2009-2010 Editorial Board. The following positions are open:

A d v e r t is e y o u r e v e n t in c a m p u s c a le n d a r .

This year's Homo Hop will feature DJ Plastik Patrick in Candy Land. Admission is a suggested donation of $5. Contact social.qm@ ■^mail-corn or call 514-398-2106 for more information.

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Paint the Town Pink Location: March 29,1130 a.m. in the Shatner Ballroom

S tr a n g e D a y s o n P la n e t E a r th

Location: March 18, 5:00 - 7:00 p.m. in Redpath Museum The Biology Graduate Students Association and the McGill Green Party present a screening of Strange Days on Planet Earth.

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The Honeysuckle Striptease Spelling Bee Location: March 21,10:00 p.m. at Mainline Theatre

Still Black: A Portrait of Black Tradesmen Location: March 18,6:oo p.m. in Rutherford Physics, room 112

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Managing Editor (2) Production Manager News Editor (3) Opinion Editor Features Editor (2) Arts & Entertainment Editor (2) Sports Editor (2) Photo Editor (2) Copy Editor Online Editor Design Editor (3) Submit a cover letter, resume, and three relevant samples addressed to Matthew Chesser, Editor-in-Chief to editor@mcgilltribune.com, or drop off a copy in the Tribune of­ fice, Shatner 110.

Applications are due by March 27 at 5:00 p.m.

Questions? Email, call, or stop by our office.

6 <_____________________________ >

BRAND NEW 4 & 5 ROOM STUDENT LOFTS w w w .5 1 5 s t e c a t h e r i n e .c o m S P E C IA L A D V E R T IS E M E N T

MORE THAN A ROOMMATE By: Diego Santiago Living with one person is not easy, imagine sharing an apartm ent with four strangers.

Although first thoughts m ight send you running for the hills, the fact is most students will opt for communal living over a semester of solitude any day. Roommates are part of the universi­ ty experience and the relationships you build now will last a lifetime.

515 Ste Catherine West has been matching students since their opening in August 2008.

Boasting a 98% success rate, they have solved the equation that makes the roommate process work.

Property manager, Dino Santelli, explains the formula to effective roommate matching.

1. Take money out of the equation: 65% of roommates squabble over sharing costs. Fights over who consumes more heat and how much hot water a roomie's girlfriend

uses are commonplace. At 515 Ste Catherine West, each tenant has an individual lease and all utilities are covered in the cost of his or her rent.

2. Size d oes m atter: Although your roommate m ight say he is ok with you having the big room and bay window, deep down he secretly resents you for it.

Finding an apartment with 4 or 5 bedrooms of equal size is a challenge. The rooms in the 515 Student Loft Apartments are all generally all the same size.

3. Cabin Fever: Most conventional apartments do away with one's sense of privacy and confines the room­ mate to his or her bedroom for detachment. In the W inter months, when the weather outside drops, the condition worsens as the will to leave the apartm ent diminishes.

515 Ste Catherine West offer all tenants the possibility of temporary escape from their roommates by providing numerous on site amenities such as

a large comfortable lounge with fireplace, cine­ ma room with projection screen and surround sound, cardio and weight rooms, music rooms and a game room with pool tables, foosball tables and video games. During exam tim e, the study rooms are an appreciated space for quiet study.

Enjoy a great apartment and many amenities all under one roof.

4. Asking all the right q uestions: C om patibility is not a game of chance.

Choosing the right roommates for our residents is an enjoyable process of learning the likes and dislikes, habits and behaviors of residents and matching them with other residents with whom we feel they will be most compatible.

With over 400 residents in our building, we have a huge pool of friendly roommates from which to choose.

Any students interested in finding roommates and moving into 515 Ste Catherine West, please visit www.montreal-roommates.com or call 514-844-0999 to schedule a tour.

F

E A T U R E S

A s s e s s in g h e a lth

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p ic

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o p p o r t u n it y : r is in g

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p ro m is e s fo r th e 2 0 1 0 O ly m p ic s ?

M eghna M arjadi For a few weeks every two years, the spectacle of the Olympic Games captures the interest of the world. But once the last goal is scored and every medal has been handed out, the televisions are turned off and the tourists leave, the host city is left with empty stadiums.

Host cities, like athletes, have to get ready for the Olym­ pics years in advance. Preparations usually begin before the bid is even received. Vancouver has been preparing for the 2010 Olympics since at least 2002. Now, close to the games and in the throes of a turbulent economic recession, Vancou­ ver Olympic Organizing Comittee Chief Executive Officer Jeff Furlong maintains that the games will have a positive impact on the economy."There's no city in North America right now [that] wouldn't want to be us," he told the Canadian Press on March 11.

Yet the likelihood of a host city profiting from sponsor­ ing an Olympics is questionable, even when the economy is strong. Residents, activists, students, and politicians have become increasingly critical ofVANOC's management of the games.

Hosting the Olympics is expensive for any city. In 2002, the Salt Lake City Winter Olympics racked up $155 million in debt. In 2004 the Athens Olympics went $3.1 billion dol­ lars over budget. Montreal, which hosted the 1976 games, finished paying for stadiums only two years ago. Conrad Schimdt, filmmaker and director of the documentary Five Ring Circus, which explores the impact the fleeting Olympic Games might leave on Vancouver, feels that the economic costs of the Olympics are extremely detrimental in compari­ son to the economic benefits.

"I can tell you now the people of Athens are really still fuming about their Olympics ... one of the reasons for the Athens riots, according to the BBC, was the Athens games going over budget. It really hurt their economy; it dropped them on the financial index," says Schmidt, referring to the

events in December 2008.“! suspect one of the reasons why the Olympics keeps on having to move to a different city is nobody's silly enough to want them twice."

Shrinking resident enthusiasm and growing financial problems surrounding the games prompted Schmidt, who had no prior filmmaking experience, to investigate the situ­ ation.

"I didn't have any experience in filmmaking. I just filmed stuff that was happening and Ijust put it in a timeline. It's not a very difficult film to m ake.... It just told its own story."

Five Ring Circus examines government accountability with regard to promises made in economic, environmental, and social areas. The film features interviews with prominent political figures, members of the Vancouver Police depart­ ment, academic experts, activists, and residents. Schmidt ad­ mits that, prior to making the film, his outlook on the Games was more optimistic.

"I thought that [the Olympics] wouldn't be as much of a problem as people were predicting,"says Schmidt, who goes on to list the concerns he'd encountered, including ecologi­ cal degradation, social gentrification, restriction of social lib­ erties, and economic distress. He explains his dissatisfaction with the way the government handled financial planning and failed promises. "I thought that Vancouver— this was a naïve view but— would honor some of the statements that they made.They signed all these documents, and I believed them."

Let's talk about SOC 2010 Between the headlines predicting extreme economic problems, the anti-Olympics demonstrations, and constant advertising for the games, students at the University of Brit­ ish Columbia joined the Vancouver public in their confusion over what to think of the Olympics. Sensing the need for dis­ cussion, Jason Ng, a commerce student at UBC, formed the Student Olympics Committee. The SOC organized the Stu­ dent Olympic Conference 2010, which took place January 31.

The day-long event featured almost 50 speakers (including

Conrad Schmidt) who discussed topics from homelessness and social issues to transportation infrastructure.

"We didn't want to cheerlead or trash the Olympics, but we wanted to engage in a critical discussion," says Meena Sharma, a fourth-year UBC student and the Student Oylmpic Committee's external relations director. "The key motto for the conference was 'Think, discuss, act.'... Students and community members are exposed to a lot of news and to the radio, and TV, and often people don't actually know the full depth of the issue."

The event attracted campus media, TV stations such as Global and CTV, local news outlets, and many participants.

"We had a very good attendance, considering it was a day long conference on a beautiful sunny Saturday," says Sharma. "There was good discussion, good turnout, good media attention."

Schmidt, who was a speaker at the conference, saw it differently, and particularly noted that none of the booked VANOC speakers attended.

"Attendance was dismal," he says. "Maybe, 20,30 people had come to the events... And VANOC boycotted the confer­ ence. They boycotted it because people against the games were presenting as well, and VANOC won't send any speak­ ers to any event that tries to present the other argument. So not one speaker from VANOC showed [up]."

Sharma explained that the committee received an email from VANOC, stating why the speakers were unable to at­ tend.

"I guess, due to unforeseen circumstances, the VANOC speakers weren't able to attend. They had some upcoming events and so they didn't want to overextend their speakers.

Because of those concerns the speakers had to pull out," says Sharma.

VANOC did not respond to the Tribune's request for an interview. However, the organization website for speaker ap­ pearances lists an appearance on January 31 at the SOC 2010, and no other speaker appearances until February 5.

Overall, Schmidt is disappointed at the lack of public

isapointment over how VANOC and the government have handled the ympics. He predicts protests may occur during the Games "When this type of stuff happens, when this level of fraud happens, en there certainly needs to be a public outcry, and the problem is that ere is not nearly enough," says Schmidt

How to host the Olympics for Dummies Perhaps bidding cities simply don't know what they're getting into len they decide to host the Olympic festivities. That's why the Internainal Olympic Committee is trying to implement the Olympic Game Imict project which, if successful, should provide new host cities with an ea of how the games will hurt or help their communities. Vancouver is e first host city to engage in the OGI project which will be mandatory r future Olympics. The standardized process requires host cities to work th an independent researcher to evaluate environmental, social, and onomic factors in relation to the games. The process involves producg four reports, two prior to the Games— in Vancouver's case these were oduced in 2007 and 2009— and two following the games, one immeately after the games, in 2010, and one in 2013. VANOC chose to work ith UBC. Bob Sparks, a professor in the human kinetics department at 3C, who worked on the OGI project, explains that the study is long term, îsults from each host city, when they accumulate, will help future Games n more smoothly.

"It's a long term project... the IOC wants to monitor, over time, in a •ry broad, holistic way, the impacts of the Olympics on host communi:s, and their measures extend from the very local, to the regional, to the itional," says Sparks. The analysis is based on monitoring of indicators, lecified by the IOC, which fit into three categories: economic, environ­

mental, and social.

"In those three sectors, [there are] 126 different indicators ... and under each major indicator you have a whole bunch of factors that will be measured. You could look at housing, measures of homelessness, mea­ sures of housing start-ups, [or] measures of social health change," says Sparks.

Examples of indicators may include air and water quality, housing, employment rates, and availability of recreation facilities. VANOC chose to use publicly available secondary research for their analyses, because it should be reliable for a long period of time, Sparks explains. He also stresses that the longevity of the OGI process sets it apart from alternate assessments.

"The B.C. and federal governments have their own impact study that's being conducted by PricewaterhouseCoopers. That one is primary [research], but it doesn't have the longevity, to the best of my knowledge, that the OGI does" he says.

If all goes well, and host countries continue following the standard­ ized process, the collection of OGIs will help future host cities enjoy the successes and avoid the pitfalls of their predecessors.

"As this database accumulates over time, each future Olympic [host city] ideally ... will have more and more knowledge about how to do this better, and what some of the sensitive points are. I suspect that it'll influ­ ence even the bid process, where cities are beginning to look at opportu­ nity and impacts, and some of the potential negatives, and very early on they get their heads around the large scale." ■

When this type o f stu ff happens, when this level o f fraud happens, then there certain­ ly needs to be a public outcry, and the problem is that there is not nearly enough."

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L iv in g F o o d g u ru m a n ia T h r e e n e w t a k e s o n o ld - f a s h io n e d f a v o u r it e s A dam S cotti and S amantha C hang

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F r o z e n P iz z a S p r i t z e r

E a s y m e a ls !

Don't like order-in? Make your own instead

Potato casserole

Ever wanted a good pizza and realized Montreal doesn't have good delivery and your frozen pizza doesn't get your juices flowing anymore? Look no further than your grocery store and vegetable drawer. Adjust the reci­ pe to your liking, but here are a few ideas to make a world class frozen pizza à la carte:

Ingredients • 1 large bag of McCain's cubed potatoes • i large bunch of green onions (ends only) • 500 ml sour cream • 1/4 lb butter • 1 cup grated old cheddar cheese • 1 can cream of mushroom / chicken soup • Salt and pepper to taste • Crushed cornflakes on top

Ingredients • • • • • •

Tomatoes Red, green, orange, yellow peppers Anchovies Blue cheese, cheddar cheese, feta cheese, goat cheese Broccoli, mushrooms, zucchini Spices like oregano, fresh basil, red pepper flakes, garlic powder, fake parmesan

Directions 1. Set oven to 375 F. 2. Place potatoes and green onions in casserole dish.

Mix in sour cream, butter, grated cheddar, soup, and salt and pepper.

3. Sprinkle crushed cornflakes on top until entirely covered.

4. Bake for 25 - 30 minutes. Let sit for 5 min. Serve.

Note: Not everyone enjoys garlic. Make sure the person you are trying to impress likes you after ingesting the heav­ enly substance.

•

Italian cold cuts— Genoa Salami or Prosciutto (or Parma ham if you will) are best

Directions 1. Apply ingredients to pizza as desired.

2. Bake according to directions.

This is a simple idea but often over-looked. Take these ideas and make them your own.

A frozen pizza, before and after reading the Tribune.

J

A u n t N o r e e n 's m a c a r o n i You'll never eat KD in this town again My Aunt Noreen lives in Newfoundland, and I visit her occasionally. However, this macaroni makes up for years of weather-induced trauma on the rocks— and even lon­ ger spent slaving over the microwave to produce a bowl of neon yellow mush.

Once I coerced her (well, asked nicely) into giving me the recipe, I was amazed at both how easy it was to make and how delicious it tasted. As an added bonus, there is enough left over to last for several meals. With this maca­ roni's orgasmic qualities, Kraft Dinner will never be on the menu again.

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Ingredients • • • • • • • • • •

2 tbsp butter or margarine 3 tbsp flour 1 tsp dry mustard 1 tsp ground pepper Paprika to taste Oregano to taste 3-4 cups elbow macaroni 1-2 blocks cheese 1 can diced tomatoes 2 tsp Worcestershire

Directions 1. Set oven to 375 F. 2. Boil macaroni until almost done.

3. Strain macaroni and put into casserole dish while mixing in butter and flour.

4. Having already strained tomatoes, mix them and Worcestershire sauce in with the dry ingredients.

5. Mix in cheese one handful at a time saving some to garnish on the top.

6. Place in the center of the oven for 30 minutes.

7. Remove from oven and let stand for 5 minutes.

8 . Open a good bottle of beer and serve.

L

i

1

A r t s & E n t e r t a in m e n t dance

A s tu d e n t d a n c e c o m p a n y o f b o u n d le s s ta le n t Mosaica celebrates 25th anniversary with their most exciting show yet C arolyn G régoire

With a larger and more stylistically diverse member­ ship than ever before, The McGill Dance Company's (more commonly known as Mosaica) 25th annual performance will showcase a broad repertoire of styles, including jazz, contem­ porary, lyrical, ballet, and hip-hop. OpusXXV: Boundless begins this Thursday, but for Mosaica's members, preparations for the show have been a long time coming.

Mosaica coordinators Amanda Wong, Anton Lim, and Marie-Michelle Boulanger explain that"boundless"is a perfect way of describing the company's growth and diversification in terms of both membership and styles of dance.

"I first suggested the name OpusXXV because it's our 25th anniversary and because it means an artist's work," says Lim, who joined Mosaica in his first year and will be graduating this spring. "[In] the lyrics of our last piece, one of the words used is 'boundless.' It's hard to come up with a theme for a show like this because everyone's doing their own thing and we don't want to restrict anybody creatively ... Boundless is sort of a thematically neutral word but it also shows that there are so many different styles within the company."

Each year, Mosaica puts on a professional calibre, fulllength show at a large theatre with a professional lighting di­ rector, costumes, and both individual and group numbers."It's going to be really entertaining, and even if you're not interest­ ed in dance, it's an entertaining show and people come back every year," says Wong. An estimated 1000 people attended last year's show, and the group is expecting a similar turnout for Opus XXV. "The company has really started to show different sides of dance, diversified its repertoire," says Boulanger. "Not one piece is similar to another and the show is really entertaining ... You get different colours of every style."

Each of the group's 24 members choreographs his or her own dance and also performs in a number which includes all members of the company. Most members are in six or seven dances of various styles, and have been rehearsing since the middle of October.

"Most years, it's an emphasis on contemporary, lyrical, and jazz. We always have hip-hop and some ballet," says Boulanger.

"And you're doing contemporary, but there are around 10 dif­ ferent variations of it which are completely different."

Mosaica recently changed their name from McGill Con­ temporary Dance Ensemble to McGill Dance Company to ex­ press their desire not to be tied down to one particular style.

While Mosaica focussed more on contemporary dance in the past, the group now features more hip-hop and lyrical dance.

"The company's changed a lot,"says Lim."If you watch the show from five years ago, it was a lot more modern [dance] than what it is now."

Boulanger explains that lyrical dance allows for a great deal of variety and creative freedom for both the choreogra­ pher and the dancer. "To put it literally, lyrical is dancing off of

is playing March 19-21 at 7:30 p.m. at The Gesu Centre du Créativité, (1200 Bleury). Tickets are $13 for students and $15 for non-students. Email mcgillmosaica@hotmail.com to purchase.

O p u s X X V : B o u n d le s s

lyrics, so you can have upbeat lyrical numbers as well as really slow, mellow numbers," she says.

Wong echoes Lim's sentiment about the significant re­ cent changes in the company. "In the past two years we've ac­ cepted 19 new members, so it's completely changed. B u t... I feel like every year the talent's getting better and better, with more diversity and people from all over the place with differ­ ent styles," she says.

Boulanger, Lim, and Wong— all of whom come from vastly different backgrounds in dance— cite the opportunity to learn from each other and experiment with new styles as one of the best aspects of being a Mosaica member. "[The variety of styles] is what makes it that much better.

I've done the same thing at my studio for the past 12 years, and now I get to try different things," says Boulanger. Gesturing to­ wards Lim, she adds,"You teach me hip-hop like no other. Your style is so different than anything I've ever seen before."

Boulanger started out with 11 years of training in rhythmic gymnastics and ballet, while Wong was a baton twirler for nine

years before she started dancing at studios at age 13. Before turning to hip-hop, Lim began his dance career with tap.

"I started tapping when I was three or fo u r... I think my first dance was to 'New York, New York,"' laughs Lim. "Then I started doing hip hop and jazz at grade six or seven." Lim claims that he didn't actually "get good" at dance until he was 17 and started taking it more seriously, but it was Mosaica that really challenged him as a dancer.

After spending all of reading week together, dancing from nine to nine every day for five days, the group is more close-knit than ever."Everyone does have such different back­ grounds, not only in dance but in life,"says Boulanger."Because we get so close, you get to appreciate what other people have to offer."

McGill Dance Company's 24 members will each display their individual techniques and styles onstage this weekend, coming together in a symphonic display of boundless creativ­ ity and talent. ■

P O P R H E T O R IC

One hard night at Tokyo uring your first year of university,Tokyo is the only club to be at on a Thursday night. I vividly remem­ ber my first time there, waiting in line with my friends as we shivered in our sequined mini dresses. When we finally got in,T-Pain was blasting through the speakers and everyone was drunkenly grinding to the music. I re­ member thinking to myself, "So this is what college is like."

Ever since then, I've come to associate Tokyo with bad rap music and scantily clad New Rez first-years.

Fast-forward 18 months to last Thursday night, when I slipped that mini dress back on and braved the cold walk to St. Laurent. As I entered the club, the DJs were still play­ ing the same repetitive club pop. Everything was just as I remembered it, except for one distinctly new presence: erections. In the classic 90s cult film Clueless, Cher once suggested to her friends, "Let's do a lap before we commit to a location," and that's exactly what my friend and I did before we settled in a corner near the back of the dance floor.

D

Seconds later, two men simultaneously came up

behind us like a pack of wolves going in for the kill, and proceeded to press themselves against my friend and I. And let me say, I truly am one of those people who goes to clubs strictly to dance. Sometimes it's fun to dance with other guys, but not after the recent development I noticed this past week. Girls, I'm sure you have all experienced this at some point during your club-going careers. You're dancing, having fun, and then all of a sudden the guy you are dancing with really is just that happy to see you. I am by no means a penis function expert, but I assume that men have some control over their John Thompson's.

I am more than happy to dance with a guy, but I don't remember inviting his erection along for the ride. If a man were to find a woman attractive on the street, go up be­ hind her, and press his erection into her back, he could be convicted of sexual assault. Throw in some alcohol, dim the lights, add a pulsing bass, and suddenly this behavior is not only encouraged, but expected. I know for a fact that my mother never had the pleasure of attack of the boners on the dance floor when she was growing up.

A rielle F rank

So why is groping suddenly an acceptable way to get to know someone better?

It's no secret that our generation often relies on the liberating effects of alcohol to attract members of the op­ posite sex. More specifically, a much bigger problem than boners are the implications of our growing club culture.

Our society— which has thrown courtship out the win­ dow in favour of the hook-up— is raising a generation of people who don't know how to meet other people based on anything other than raw sexual attraction. It's no won­ der that so many of these foundationless relationships don't work out.

We justify this by saying that our culture is becom­ ing more sexually liberated. I'm all for women's emancipa­ tion from antiquated societal expectations. If she wants to have a one-night stand, that's her right and her pre­ rogative. But it's also her right to go out dancing with her friends without the lurking fear of getting a boner pressed against her back. Gentlemen, take your erections elsewhere. ■

14 • Arts & Entertainment • 17.03.09

The McGill Tribune

C D R e v ie w s

M U S IC Madeleine

Peyroux.

B a re

B o n es.

Southern siren Madeleine Peyroux has been called a modern Billie Holiday. Re­ leased on March 10, the pop/jazz vocal­ ist's fourth album Bare Bones proves that comparisons to such legendary song­ stresses as Holiday, Ella Fitzgerald, and Edith Piaf are entirely warranted.

Peyroux began singing at 15 when she discovered the street musicians in Paris's Latin Quarter, and soon after joined The Lost Wandering Blues and Jazz Band.

Since then, Peyroux has been perform­ ing and recording to great critical acclaim. With her interesting blend of French and Southern roots, Peyroux's new album is simultaneously remi­ niscent of the different styles of Fitzgerald and Piaf.

As she sings in "River of Tears," Peyroux's album seems to suggest that her listeners "turn off the telephone, open up another bottle ... let it get real quiet, turn that lamp way down low,"and enjoy some soothing jazz.

The rich, deep quality of her voice is immediately noticeable on the intro track"lnstead." All of the album's 11 songs were co-written by Peyroux—with the exception of "I Must Be Saved," which she wrote on her own— and each is lyrically and melodically beautiful. The album's trajectory moves from feelings of despair, to loss, to acceptance and then hope, gaining momen­ tum as it progresses. The first single off the album, "You Can't Do Me" is a fun song with a strong beat and catchy hook. But Peyroux's slow, enchant­ ing songs, such as "Damn the Circumstances" and "Love and Treachery" are definitely the most memorable. Peyroux is keeping vocal jazz alive and well, and Bare Bones will take you right back to a jazz lounge of the Latin Quarter in the 1950s— a highly enjoyable musical relic of more elegant days.

— Carolyn Grégoire

New Found Glory. N o t

W ith o u t a F ig h t.

If you have ever listened to an Am eri­ can Pie soundtrack, chances are you've heard of New Found Glory. The Floridian pop punk veterans have just released their seventh full-length album after a three-year hiatus. N ot W ithout a Fight is nothing short of a return to form for the group, who began to make their name in the late 90s with catchy choruses and a healthy dose of power chords.

The aptly titled intro track "Right Where We Left Off" sets the tone for the album: New Found Glory are back and doing it like they always have, but with a little bit of a twist. For Not W ithout a Fight, the band enlisted the help of Blink 182 singer/bassist Mark Hoppus to produce the album.

Standout tracks include "47," which garners points for having a less predictable form and a sense of humour to it, and "This Isn't You," which is a little too catchy to be buried in the back as track 11. Not W ithout a Fight is just what you would expect from New Found Glory. They're not about to make the next White Album , but they're not ready to fade away quite yet, either.

— Kyle Carpenter

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In s id e F ro m T h e B a s e m e n t Musicians play on their own in live DVD K y le C arpenter From The Basem ent is a DVD compilation of live per­ formances from some of the industry's finest musicians, including Radiohead, The White Stripes, Beck, Sonic Youth, Damien Rice, and Albert Hammond Jr. While this may sound like any run-of-the-mill Live 8 spinoff, there is one thing that's missing: the audience.

The philosophy behind From The Basem ent is that "the artist and their performance take centre stage."

This means the artists perform in front of a small crowd of sound technicians and cameramen only. In addition, each performer plays a maximum of two songs each, ex­ cluding Thom Yorke and Jamie Lidell who appear with their bands (Radiohead and Beck, respectively) and also as solo artists.

The line-up is tastefully chosen. There is enough variety to keep the viewer somewhat on edge with­ out straying too far from the general vibe. The trouble though, is the nature of the project. It must have been difficult to compile a series of crowd-less live shows without turning the hour and a half of footage into a snoozer, and From The Basem ent very narrowly avoids this trap. The DVD is not easy to watch all in one sit­ ting. Instead, the option to select individual groups and

T

O

nly

3

is s u e s l e ft t o

songs makes for more enjoyable viewing.

There are several performances worth a second or even a third watch. The White Stripes bring the same raw energy and striking stage presence to an empty room that they embody in front of thousands of fans.

The close camera work also reveals interesting, under­ stated details of their performance, like Meg White sing­ ing along even though she doesn't have a microphone, and an up-close look at what appears to be Jack White's Guy Fawkes costume. Another key performance comes from Lidell. Without attempting to sound tech-savvy, he performs using a combination of recording and mixing devices that repeat and alter his vocals. Essentially, he crafts his entire song "In The City" using only his voice as instrumentation. Unfortunately, there are plenty of acts consisting only of people sitting at the piano and sing­ ing. Eels, PJ Harvey, and Thom Yorke are offenders here.

The absence of the audience is double-edged. On the one hand, it takes away from the excitement that drives live music. On the other, it provides the viewer with a more clean, detailed, and intimate look at each artist. Although From The Basem ent may disappoint viewers expecting the rowdiness and showmanship of a typical concert, it will captivate music lovers with a de­ tailed look at the art of the live performance. ■

im e is r u n n i n g o u t

!

im p r e s s y o u r f e l l o w s t u d e n t w it h y o u r

SUPERIOR KNOWLEDGE OF INDIE BANDS AND POP CULTURE TRENDS.

A & E WRITER'S MEETINGS EVERY MONDAY AT 5:30

AT GERT'S.

17.03.09 • The McGill Tribune • 15

w w w . m c g illt r ib u n e . c o m

M U S IC

H a p p i n e s s is a C h a r l e s S p e a r i n c o n c e r t Broken Social Scene member reveals his unique solo project at II Motore Ryan Taylor Perhaps o n e o f th e reasons C harles Spearin's The H appi­ ness Project is so w o n d e rfu l is because, a c c o rd in g to Spearin lim s e lf, "H a p p in e s s co m e s fro m th e u n e x p e c te d ."T h is m akes o e rfe c t sense, se e in g as his firs t so lo a lb u m is so u n iq u e ly sp o n ta n e o u s.

The Happiness Project is th e in n o v a tiv e p ro d u c t o f a series af in te rv ie w s th a t Spearin c o n d u c te d w ith his n e ig h b o u rs on the e p o n y m o u s s u b je c t. A fte r each in te rv ie w , he liste n e d to th e ir responses a n d b u ilt songs a ro u n d th e answ ers, m a tc h in g îa c h sp e a ker w ith an in s tru m e n t th a t fo llo w s th e m o v e m e n t and c a d e n c e o f th e ir vo ice . T he re s u ltin g a lb u m is an a s to u n d n g a n d c re a tiv e m usical e x p e rie n c e th a t c h a lle n g e s o u r tr a d i­ tio n a l d e fin itio n s o f b o th speech a n d m usic.

L is te n in g to th e d u e t o f his p a re n ts' vo ice s g ro w in g up was o n e o f Spearin's m a in in flu e n c e s fo r th e p ro je c t. In s p ira ­ tio n a lso ca m e fro m his fa th e r's g ra d u a l d e sce n t in to b lin d ­ ness. "It fo rc e d m e to im a g in e w h a t it w as like to live w ith y o u r ears as y o u r m a in g u id e . It w as e x tre m e ly b e n e fic ia l to m e in te rm s o f h o w to liste n to m u s ic a n d h o w to liste n to th e so u n ds o f life. T h a t sense o f m u s ic as s p a tia l aw areness [a n d] sp atial e n h a n c e m e n t w as s o m e th in g th a t re a lly stu ck w ith me," says

ness," e xp la in s S pearin. "T h e im m e d ia c y o f ch ild re n 's satisfac­ tio n is so a m a z in g b ecause yo u s o rt o f fo rg e t w h a t it's like to liv e w it h o u t lo g ic. T he y w o u ld e a t co o kie s all d a y if th e y c o u ld .

T h a t g ra d u a tio n o f im p u ls e to lo g ic m akes m e th in k : w h a t else is th e re ? W h a t is th e b e st w a y t o live? T he w h o le e m b a rra ssin g h u m a n c o n d itio n is th a t w e all w a n t h a p p in e ss. E v e ry th in g is fo r h a p p in e ss a n d th e re are d iffe re n t a p p ro a c h e s a n d d iffe re n t ways. The ir ra tio n a lity o f a kid's a p p ro a c h is am azing."

For th e liste n e r, th e m u s ic a lity o f speech is a fa s c in a tin g p a rt o f th e a lb u m . "E ve ry p e rso n I in te rv ie w e d h ad a ke y th a t th e y w o u ld sp e a k in," says S pearin. "T h e y w o u ld ch a n g e key q u ite o fte n d e p e n d in g o n w h a t th e y w e re saying."

R h yth m w as a d iffe re n t sto ry. "D e c id in g w h e re to p u t th e m e tre a n d w h a t te m p o to use w as o n e o f th e m o re fu n p a rts o f th e p ro je cts. P eople d o n 't speak w ith a rh y th m as m u c h . Is th is g o in g to fit? No. Is th is g o in g to fit? It w as like a crossw ord puzzle," says S pearin. T hese pieces are a ll th e m o re im p re ssive c o n s id e rin g th a t Spearin has n o fo rm a l m usical tra in in g , h a v­ in g o n ly ta k e n a fe w years o f g u ita r lessons s ta rtin g w h e n he was

13 .

Spearin a n d c o m p a n y b ro u g h t The Happiness Project to

c re d ib ly precise, b u t th e y w e re also e x p a n d e d to show case th e ta le n t o f th e p e rfo rm e rs . "V itto ria " fe a tu re d fa n ta s tic solos

life o n F riday in M o n tre a l a t II M o to re , o n e o f th re e citie s o n a s h o rt to u r. S p earin a n d his n in e -p ie c e b a n d to o k th e stage

fro m th e h o rn s e c tio n , w h ic h in c lu d e d Stars' Evan C ra nley as a

S pearin.

T he e x p e rie n c e w as so v a lu a b le th a t Spearin in c lu d e d

a m o n g s t a m y ria d o f in s tru m e n ts , a fte r a fa n ta s tic o p e n in g set fro m A n d re w W h ite m a n o f A p o s tle o f H ustle.

"G e ttin g p e o p le to g e th e r has b e e n hard," says S p e a rin o f

B raille o n th e a lb u m a rt as a re m in d e r to liste n e m p a th e tic a lly. "T h e B raille is ... fo r p e o p le t o th in k a b o u t w h a t it's like to be b lin d ," says S pearin. "T h e re is n o s y m b o lic m e a n in g to th e tra n s la tio n , s im p ly a series o f lyrics th a t b ird w a tc h e rs assign to b ird s to re m e m b e r th e ir songs. M y m o th e r is a b ird w a tc h e r, so

p la y in g th e s e pieces on to u r. "It's so easy w h e n y o u 're re c o rd ­ in g to ke e p a d d in g a n d a d d in g a n d a d d in g . W h e n it co m e s tim e to p e rfo rm it live I th in k , 'H o w th e h e ll am I g o in g t o d o th is no w ? T h a t p a rt's so im p o r ta n t a n d th a t p a rt's so im p o r ­ ta n t,' so th e b a n d ju s t g e ts b ig g e r a n d b ig g e r a n d b ig g e r. For­

it's k in d o f an in s id e jo k e w ith m y parents."

Recently, Spearin's o w n y o u n g fa m ily has p ro v id e d h im a n e w p e rs p e c tiv e o n h a p p in e ss. A fa th e r o f tw o , he h ad th e o p ­ p o r tu n ity to e x a m in e th e d iffe re n ce s b e tw e e n a d u lt a n d c h ild

tu n a te ly , e v e ry b o d y w as in to it a n d it so u n d s great."

A fte r a b rie f e x p la n a tio n o f th e p ro je c t, th e b a n d la u n c h e d in to "M rs. M orris." Band s a x o p h o n is t a n d M cG ill a lu m n u s Leon K in g sto n e 's n o te -p e rfe c t p e rfo rm a n c e d re w an e n th u s ia s tic

hap pine ss. "As y o u g e t o ld e r a n d w iser, y o u s ta rt to u n d e r­

resp o n se fro m th e c ro w d . T h e b a n d p ro c e e d e d t o fla w le s s ly

sta n d th a t y o u r im p u ls e s a re n 't n e cessarily th e b e st th in g fo r

p la y e v e ry tra c k o f f th e a lb u m , p u ttin g to rest a n y co n ce rn s a b o u t p re c is io n a n d accuracy. N o t o n ly w e re th e pieces in -

y o u a n d y o u have m o re s o p h is tic a te d schem es t o fin d h a p p i­

NIKI HYDE Don't worry, play happy.

g u e s t tro m b o n e player, a n d d ru m m e r Dave C lark p la y e d a fu n a n d h u m o u ro u s s o lo o n "Anna." It w as cle a r w h y S p earin chose to t o u r w ith th e s e m usicians.

T he m o s t p o w e rfu l m o m e n t o f th e e v e n in g c a m e w ith th e p e rfo rm a n c e o f a lb u m h ig h lig h t "Vanessa," in w h ic h th e so n g c lim a x e d w ith th e e n tire b a n d s in g in g th e refra in , "All o f a s u d d e n I fe lt m y b o d y m o v in g in s id e "— th e p ro ta g o n is t's d e s c rip tio n o f b e in g a b le to h e a r fo r th e firs t tim e a fte r b e in g d e a f fo r m a n y years. The "Vanessa" re fra in rea p p e a re d a t th e e n d o f"M r. G o w rie "w h ic h flo w e d in to th e e m b e llis h e d ve rs io n o f"M rs . M o rris " t o e n d th e sh o w , re m in d in g th e a u d ie n c e th a t "H a p p in e s s is love."

"I n e v e r e x p e c te d it to g o p a st m y liv in g ro o m ," Spearin said h u m b ly o f th e p ro je c t. Needless to say, e v e ry o n e a t th e s h o w w as th a n k fu l it d id . ■

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16 • Arts & Entertainment -17.03.09

The McGill Tribune

FILM

W h o h a s n 't w a t c h e d t h e W a t c h m e n ?

Snyder's superhero film has the biggest opening weekend of the year film. The standout execution of this technique is the disturb­ ing and carefully juxtaposed opening montage with Dylan's "The Times They Are a-Changin"'playing against a backdrop of some of recent history's darkest moments.

Snyder should also be commended for not succumbing to the pressures of casting Hollywood A-Listers (supposedly Tom Cruise and Jude Law were interested in playing Ozymandias/

Kyle Carpenter

Alan Moore's critically acclaimed 1986 graphic novel se­ ries W atchmen has finally come to cinematic life at the hands of30odirectorZackSnyder.Thisisa reality that many fans have been waiting years for since the original proposal for a film in 1989. Other fans, however, have been skeptical of Snyder's ability to do justice to such a dense and intricate story. Moore himself has refused the use of his name in the credits and has allegedly claimed that he would never see the film. On the other hand, the graphic novel's illustrator Dave Gibbons has en­ thusiastically supported the film and even designed the first movie poster. For true W atchmen fans, the pressing question remains: does Snyder's adapta­ tion do the graphic novel justice?

The film is certainly very closely tied to the graphic novel. Much of the film's screenplay echoes the novel verbatim. And while the film could not include everything— it runs two hours and 43 min­ utes as it is— all of the major, and most of the minor, points of interest remain alive and well onscreen.

In fact, the film feels as though it is written specifi­ cally for fans of graphic novels. For example, there are subtle hints and references to small details that were left out of the film that show they were not completely lost in the adaptation. These include the brilliant choice of music, which is one of the most striking and unique aspects of the film. While each chapter of the graphic novel closes with a short lyric or poem, Snyder reinterprets Moore's use of these artists— including Bob Dylan and Leonard Cohen— by featuring their music throughout the Silk Spectre (played by Malin Akerman) brings back the pouty face.

Adrian Veidt) who would not fit the parts as well as his lesserknown cast. Another good move was not toning down the violence, sexuality, or general graphic nature of the original in order to get a lower rating. Instead, W atchmen has received an R rating in the U.S. and a surprisingly mild PG-13 rating in Can­ ada. Apparently, scenes of graphic murder, attempted rape, and dismemberment by chainsaw are not offensive enough for even a 14A here in the true North.

As in any adaptation, certain things are bound to be left out, inter­ preted differently, or represented in a generally disappointing way. Cer­ tain interesting plotlines, such as the origins of the original Minutemen, are largely left out, as is the subplot about the pirate comic book Tales o f the Black Freighter — though this will be released as a separate animated DVD available March 24. And yes, the costumes are somewhat different. Ozymandias/ Adrian Veidt holds less of an impos­ ing presence, and Rorschach's voice is a little too similar to Christian Bale's annoying "batvoice". These drawbacks aside, Watchmen is unquestionably worth seeing, especially for fans of the graphic novel. While not everyone will agree on Snyder's ability to pull it off, one thing's for sure: Watchmen is the film for you if you want to see more bright blue glowing sexual imagery than St. Catherine Street. ■

MUSIC

J e r s e y 's n e w a n t h e m

C O U L D BE

The Gaslight Anthem goes international Pamela Fillon In the three years they've been together, The Gas­ light Anthem have quickly risen from an obscure New Jersey band to a favourite of the punk underground scene, attracting a cult-like following. In 2007, The Gas­ light Anthem released their debut Sink or Swim, followed by the Senor and the Queen EP in 2008. Most recently, their sophomore full-length album The 59' Sound picks up where the group had left off. The Gaslight Anthem's drummer Benny Horowitz, bassist Alex Levine, guitarist Alex Rosamilia, and singer Brian Fallon create songs that blend hardcore, rockabilly, blues, classic soul, and coun­ try rock.

This Wednesday, The Gaslight Anthem will be head­ lining at La Tulipe with guests Saint Alvia and Dirty Tricks.

The Gaslight Anthem has previously performed with bands such as Against Me!, the Loved Ones, and New Brunswick's Bouncing Souls. As a testament to their growing popularity, rumour has it that the band will be performing with Bruce Springsteen in 2009.

Rosamilia explains the group's origins: "The four of us were walking down the street one day. Out of nowhere, a squid with needles for tentacles shot forth through the pavement," says Rosamilia. "He managed to prick all four of us, and immediately following we realized we could all play instruments now. Really though, we were a bunch of friends who gave one last effort to try and make it."

This effort is clearly paying off for the band, as they will be touring extensively over the next few months.

"Touring is fun. However, sitting in a van for infinite hours a day is quite an experience," says Rosamilia. "Not that I don't want to deter anyone, but to be in a touring band, no matter how big, makes playing the only part of the day that you're not really working. It has ups and downs, but you have to just constantly tell yourself what you're actually doing.''

The 59'Sound was recorded in just six weeks and is the result of the varying influences of all the band mem-

G O O D March 17-21 Wednesday. Music. Bloc Party. One of the U.K.'s biggest acts brings their commended indie rock clout to Metropolis this Wednesday. While the group's new found electro sound has been pronounced dismissible by some fans, it may still be worth taking this chance to see them outside of a festival setting.

Thursday. Music. Norma Jean. Atlanta-based metalcore/ post-hardcore group Norma Jean brings the songs from their new album The Anti Mother to Club Soda. Don't be fooled by the band's innocent-sounding name: their heavy beats and hard edge will make for a show that's anything but mellow.

RYANRUSSELL At least their musical style is more than just black and white. bers.

Rosamilia describes where he finds his inspiration.

"Personally, early 80s Brit pop stuff like the Cure and other things like Siouxie and the Banshees, The Smith's— I'm a huge Johnny Marr fan. And then a bunch of shoe gaze stuff, like Hum, and more importantly, My Bloody Valentine." In regards to two of the more unusual songs from the new album, including "Film Noir" and "In the Backseat," Rosamilia explains that "It was just us trying something a little different."

According to Rosamilia, in the future, fans can ex­ pect The Gaslight Anthem to be "Touring. Touring. Tour­ ing. Touring Europe. Touring, and then more possible touring." ■

The Gaslight Anthem will be playing at La Tulipe (1220 St. Catherine E.) on March 18.

Friday. Film. I Love You, Man. Two words: Paul Rudd. The sar­ donic and incessantly hilarious actor featured as a supporting character in films like Knocked Up, Forgetting Sarah Marshall, The 40-Year-Old Virgin, and Anchorman finally steps into the spotlight with fellow comedian Jason Segel. While the plot seems a bit questionable, with these two at the forefront, it really shouldn't matter.

Friday. Literature. World Storytelling Day. March 20, the Spring Equinox, marks the annual global celebration of tale-tell­ ing. Consider recounting last night's drunken events to a friend as your way of showing appreciation for the art of oral storytelling.

Saturday. Theatre. Le Code Noir. Put on by the Black Theatre Workshop, Le Code Noir play tells the tragic tale of Joseph Bou­ logne, also known as the black Mozart, who rose from slavery in 18th century France to become one of history's most influential composers. Head to the Segal Theatre to watch the fascinating story of the man who led a life of adventure and was even ru­ moured to have had a love affair with Marie Antoinette.

S

po rts

HOCKEY— M ARTLETS 7, O TTA W A 1

M a rtle ts : q u e e n s o f Q SSF Ed Enos Cup is McGill's, four years running A lex E idman The McGill Martlets have been hot on the trail to Nation­ als all year long, and on Friday night, they finally reached the end. The Martlets overcame a sluggish first period to capture the QSSF championship, defeating the Ottawa Gee Gees 7-1 to sweep the best-of-three QSSF final. The win capped the Martlets' second-straight season with a perfect record, and improved their undefeated streak against Canadian oppo­ nents to 51 games. Canada's top-ranked team can now look ahead to the CIS Women's Hockey National Championship Tournament this weekend in Antigonish, Nova Scotia.

"Since the buzzer sounded tonight we've started think­ ing about Nationals," said defender Catherine Ward, who notched a goal and two assists in her final game at McCon­ nell Arena. "Before that, we were really focussing on the play­ offs. But as a team, we've played really well the last couple of games and that gives the whole team confidence.... Every­ one's really excited about [Nationals] and we can finally talk about it now as a reality."

The Martlets got off to an uncharacteristically slow start on Friday, with the puck constantly changing ends in the first period.

"We just turned Q U I C K H IT S the puck over too many times in the • Leclerc-Auger and Davidson re­ first period and we cently leapfrogged Ann-Sophie talked about that," Bettez for the team lead in points said McGill Head this season. Leclerc-Auger, re­ Coach Peter Smith, cently named Quebec rookie who has now guid­ of the year, has 89 points in 39 ed the Martlets to games, good for 2.28 points per their fourth consec­ game. Davidson is second with utive QSSF champi­ 82 points, but having played four onship. "We stressed less games, she's averaged 2.34 more responsibility points per game. Bettez, whose with the puck and pace has slowed as of late, has 79 getting the puck in points in 34 games, for an average deep.That's what we of 2.32 points per game. did, and I thought it paid off."

• McGill will be joined in Antig­ QSSF offen­ onish by the St. Francis Xavier sive rookie of the X-Women (who are hosting the year Marie-Andrée tournament), the Gee Gees, Leclerc-Auger got the Moncton Blue Eagles, the the Martlets on Laurier Golden Hawks, and the the board midway Manitoba Bisons, who upset the through the first pe­ University of Alberta Pandas in riod, but for a while triple overtime of Game Three in it looked like the the Canada West final.

Martlets would be in

for a 6o-minute fight. McGill's lead would remain ahead by a single goal until Vanessa Davidson beat Ottawa netminder Marie-Helene Malenfant just over halfway through the second frame.

Malenfant faced 47 shots from the Martlets, and stopped 40.

McGill's defence smothered the Ottawa at­ tack all night, however, providing a quiet night for goalie Charline Labonté. The QSSF all-star netminder stopped 15 shots, most of them com­ ing from around the blue line.

"I think in the first [period] we were a little too excited coming out, running around a bit and rushing our passes," Ward said. "It took a little time to calm down and relax, and when we did it made a big difference."

Forward Amber Foster scored the Gee Gees' lone goal eight minutes into the third period, cutting the Martlets' lead to 5-1. But the Gee Gees would get no closer, as two minutes later Leclerc-Auger notched her second goal on a beautiful one-time pass from defender Lisa Zane that knifed through multiple Gee Gees before reaching her stick. Ward provided the knockout punch with a dazzling array of moves, going straight up the right side before cutting hard left to flip the final goal past Malenfant, leaving three Gee Gees in her wake.

"I think this is one of the best teams I've ever played on," said Davidson, a fourth-year forward who equaled Leclerc-Auger's effort with two goals and an assist. "Every once in a while we'll get off to a slow start, but luckily we have team VALERIANMAZATAUDANDADAMSCOTTI leadership across the board, with fourth-year Davidson (top left) and Jordana Peroff (bottom) shined on Friday night. and first-year players making sure we do the job "I think this year it's been tough sometimes to keep play­ and do it the right way." ing at a high level, because we went up a couple goals quick­ Forward Rebecca Martindale and defender Jasmine Sheehan provided the rest of McGill's scoring, both on pow­ ly on some teams," Ward said. "We really made a concerted effort to play at the same level regardless of the score, and er-plays. The Martlets' special teams were the key to victory to play our style and not let other teams dictate the pace of once again, as their seven power plays resulted in four goals.

The Martlets' power-play unit has gone an astonishing 12- the game."

In game one of the best-of-three QSSF Final on Wednes­ for-31 (38.7%) in the playoffs, and their penalty kill was just as day, McGill shellacked Ottawa 7-0 to set up the eventual se­ impressive on Friday night. When forward Alyssa Cecere was ries sweep. Leclerc-Auger and Ward had two goals apiece called for hooking in the second period, the Martlets nearly scored twice on short-handed breakaways by Ward and for­ to lead the Martlets to a victory at the University of Ottawa Sports Complex. ward Caroline Hill.

The Martlets have outscored their opponents 130-15 in conference play and beat Concordia and Ottawa by a com­ bined score of 29-4 in four playoff games. Despite these gaudy statistics, they realize that dominance also has its shortcomings.

The Martlets leave for Nationals as the prohibitive fa­ vourites to win their second-straight national championship.

And if they can continue the calibre of play they displayed in the QSSF playoffs, they'll be lifting more than just a regional trophy over their heads. ■

T H IR D M A N IN

Sweden sour ast weekend, the Swedish Davis Cup team played its first round tennis matches in a practically empty Baltic Hall in Malmo, Sweden. Baltic Hall wasn't empty like the Olympic Stadium was in 2004, when you went to your last Expos game. It was nearly vacant due to the Swedish authorities' belief that, based on impending protests of the match, they could not guarantee the security of the Swedes'opponent: the Israelis.

International athletic events have long strived to be free from politics and to act as a venue for healthy com­ petition and mutual respect between opponents. Despite occasionally veering from these idealist goals, be it for po­ litical reasons outside of the match or loss of emotional composure within, sports should always act as a uniting agent. Yet in the wake of an attack by 12 gunmen on the Sri Lankan national cricket team that agreed to tour Paki­ stan— instead of the Indian team which refused the offer due to security concerns— it's all too obvious how quickly the positive ideals of sport can be derailed.

This was clearly the case in Malmo, where both Arab immigrants and native Swedes rioted outside of Baltic Hall in protest of Israel's recent military operations in the Gaza Strip. The creators of the ad-hoc organization against the

L

contest, known as "Stop the Match," had claimed that the protests would be peaceful, but with the spoken intention of disrupting the contest at all costs, some of the gather­ ings quickly dissolved into violence.

Whenever an athlete represents his country in an international sporting event, there are inherent political implications—regardless of whether he embraces them.

The flag or national emblem that an athlete wears on his uniform is often enough to spark heated political debate.

And so, in reaction to the decision to hold the Sweden-lsrael match in an empty stadium, the cries of oppression from two sides that seldom speak the same language when interpreting the media and government policy quickly surfaced, criticizing the Swedish authorities' decision to bar spectators from the match. A Jerusalem Post editorial claimed that Sweden harboured anti-Semitic policies, and a "Stop the Match" spokesperson argued that the Swed­ ish authorities had censored their cause. Even Israeli Davis Cup team member Andy Ram—who is no stranger to the politics of international sport after being granted a visa to compete in Dubai following the tennis world's widespread protest of the United Arab Emirates' decision to deny fellow Israeli tennis player Shahar Pe'er a visa—called the decision

Steven H offer "stupid."

Obviously, the greater issue at hand is far too complex and heated to be taken on— let alone solved— by looking at the Malmo incident. But the Israeli team, who eventu­ ally defeated Sweden 3-2, is in no way emblematic of the Israel Defense Forces, and despite the claim from "Stop the Match" spokesman Olof Holmberg that "Malmo is Gaza," the Baltic Hall is not the venue for a struggle between Israel and Hamas. During the match, it was the site of a struggle of firecrackers and stones against tennis rackets and run­ ning shoes. Is it really that difficult to distinguish between a nation's athletics and its government?

Watch the protest footage on YouTube of the masked rioters jumping on police vans and slamming bricks through police car windows. Read the hateful comments that the video incites from both sides of the issue. Now step back, take a deep breath, and forget the Arab-lsraeli conflict and any preconceptions you may have about it.

Hateful politics like those in Malmo aimed against athletes representing their home country, regardless of that nation or its history, will never make strides toward solving ageold divisive world issues, and they have no place in the world of sports. ■

The McGill Tribune

18 -Sports -17.03.09

P R O F IL E — M A R T L E T S IN G H A N A

M a k in g a d i f f e r e n c e a t h o m e a n d a b r o a d Soberano and Ward extend Martlets' spirit of giving around the world J acob Kanter Fifty-one consecutive wins over Canadian schools. A 29638 goal differential during that span. Favoured to win their second-straight national championship at St. Francis Xavier University in Antigonish, Nova Scotia this weekend. Without a doubt, Peter Smith's Martlets are a focussed group of hockey players— but that's not all they are.

"We've always tried to reach out to the community," said Smith. "I have to admit, it's a bit of a challenge sometimes, because student athletes at McGill are so busy. And for them to balance their schoolwork and their hockey, it's tough. But every chance that we get, we try to reach out to the commu­ nity."

Community outreach often takes the form of orga­ nized team trips to various places around Montreal, such as the Mackay Rehabilitation Centre for children with physical or communication impairments, where the Martlets volun­ teered earlier this year.

ADAMSCOTTI The Martlets coasted through the QSSF this season, but they made sure to reach out to the Montreal community — as well as several others— along the way.

"We went and spent some time with the kids and played some ball hockey with them," said Smith. "It was an interest­ ing experience for the girls to see a school of that type and [to] interact with those kids."

But Smith's players are also fully capable of taking the initiative themselves. Amy Soberano, a third-year forward from Toronto, was interested in volunteering in Ghana two summers ago. When she was looking for a travelling partner, she turned to Catherine Ward, a QSSF All-Star defender from Montreal.

"We knew each other well, but probably not at that [high] a level,"said Ward of her relationship with Soberano after their first year on the team. "And when you go through something that intense [like visiting Ghana], and when you have such strong emotions, it really can [change a relationship]."

Soberano and Ward spent one month in Vakpo, a vil­ lage located in the Volta region, about 120 miles north of the capital city of Accra. Through an organization called Global Crossroad, which organizes volunteer trips throughout Asia, Australia, Africa, and Latin America, they taught children aged two to four at an orphanage during the day. They were, however, slightly misled.

"The organization portrayed it as if we would go in and teach English, or that we would go and assist the teachers," said Soberano. "But what we found when we got there was that there was no organization. The teachers were literally asleep on the desk or not there."

Both Soberano and Ward found that their own experi­ ences in school had little in common with those of the or­ phans they cared for.

"You literally have to strip the presuppositions you have about what a school would be like,"said Soberano. "There was no curriculum, there was just one ball we'd play with. And it was discouraging, because you come with these high expec­ tations of being able to get in there and make a change in a developing country, and then you quickly realize why it's the way it is. And Ghana is doing well, compared to a lot of other countries."

The differences didn't stop within the classroom, how­ ever.

"At the end of the day, you expect people to come and pick up the kids," said Soberano."But instead they just wander off. At first, we didn't know what to do. We'd just be walking through the streets with kids holding onto us all over. People would say, 'You have to let them go, you have to let them walk.'"

Though they had to overcome a severe language barrier, Soberano and Ward were still able to forge relationships with the children.

"There was one boy, Eugene, who lived really far away with this really old woman who was taking care of him, and often I'd take him back to his house," Soberano said. "The kids didn't speak English, so we couldn't tell them that we weren't going to be back. That was devastating for me, because they had already been abandoned in their really short lives. I re­ member on the last day at the orphanage I was carrying him

PHOTOSCOURTESYAMYSOBERANOANDADAMSCOTTI Soberano (top right, bottom right) and Ward (top left, bottom left) live double lives, and they excel in both.

back to his house, and I was pouring my heart out to this little boy. I was telling him everything I was feeling, and how I was so sorry that I was leaving. And he was just playing with my braids and touching my face—he had no idea what I was say­ ing__Then I never saw him again, and I probably never will."

Despite their short stay in Vakpo, Soberano and Ward were able to mesh with the community. They frequently played in a soccer game with a group of boys that attracted a large crowd.

"The crowd grew and grew because there were girls play­ ing soccer, and we were white," Soberano said. "But there was no animosity because we were so physically different. They were so incredibly welcoming, and happy to have us there."

While Antigonish is obviously closer to home, the Mar­ tlets will not arrive there this Wednesday as simply hockey players. From the Mackay Centre to Vakpo, the Martets have made a difference, but they don't need their skates to leave a mark. ■

HOCKEY— W ESTERN 2, REDM EN 1

M cG ill c o m e s u p s h o r t in q u e s t f o r Q u e e n 's C u p Playoffs end in 2-1 loss, but Redmen still looking forward to Nationals M att C hesser After ending a 62-year drought last year with their first Queen's Cup in over half a century, back-to-back OUA cham­ pionships may have been a little too much to expect from the McGill Redmen.

McGill's bid for a second consecutive Queen's Cup—-the trophy awarded to the winner of a single game, winner-takeall contest for the OUA Championship— fell just short on Satur­ day in London, Ontario, at the University of Western Ontario's Thompson Arena, as the Mustangs defeated the Redmen 2-1.

Both schools had already secured berths in the CIS National Championship Tournament as the champions of the OUA's Western and Eastern conferences, respectively.

"I'm not sure that the players understood how difficult it was going to be [against Western]," said McGill Head Coach Martin Raymond about his team's lone game against the Mus­ tangs this season. "I think that they thought it was going to be another series like the [OUA Eastern Final] against [the UQTR Patriotes], but it wasn't. Western is better than UQTR. [We have] a young team, and maybe I failed at getting the mes­ sage across that winning the OUA Championship wasn't going to be easy."

Rookie forward Keaton Turkiewicz notched the gamewinner for the Mustangs nine minutes into the second period, snapping a shot through McGill goaltender Kevin Desfossés's five-hole. Ryan Martinelli had already paced the Mustangs to a one-goal lead with less than five minutes to play in the first period, capitalizing on a McGill too many men on the ice pen­ alty by firing a shot past a screened Desfossés.

The Redmen outshot the Mustangs 31-27, but were sty­ mied by a superb effort by Western netminder Brad Topping.

The fifth-year goaltender earned Game MVP honors for turn­ ing aside 30 shots, including 12 shots in the third period as the Mustangs sat back on defence, sending only one man deep on the forecheck.

"I seem to be talking like we lost 5-1, but it was actually a close game until the end," said Raymond. "They just went into a defensive shell in the second half of the game— but that's what they wanted to do. No one cares about the score, they just care about winning the game."

Desfossés made 25 saves for the Redmen, turning in an­ other solid performance despite the loss. Desfossés has a 6-2 record and a .932 save percentage in eight postseason games this year— both statistics rank behind only Topping's seven

wins and .939 save percentage among OUA netminders.

Defenceman Ben Gadzic had the lone marker for the Red­ men midway through the second period, wiring a shot past Topping's outstretched glove to cut the Mustangs' lead to a single goal.

The Redmen have a week off before departing for Nation­ als in Thunder Bay, Ontario, on March 24. The quest for the Cavendish Cup kicks off on March 26, as McGill, Western, the Univerisity of New Brunswick Reds, the St. Mary's Huskies, the Lakehead Thunderwolves (the host team), and a representa­ tive from the Canada West conference (either the University of Saskatchewan or Alberta) will battle it out for the CIS champi­ onship trophy.

"We're going to be the smallest team at [Nationals]," said Raymond. "We need to realize that the other teams are all going to be very big, so we'll need to compensate with a com­ mitment to blocking shots, playing solid defence, and pay­ ing the price. We'll need to be smarter with the puck as well, because against bigger teams the passing lanes are smaller and you have to be a lot more precise with where you put the puck. If we try high risk plays, we're going to be playing with fire."»

17.03.09-Sports - 19

www.mcgilltribune.com

P R E V IE W — 2 0 0 9 N C A A T O U R N A M E N T

I t's M a r c h , s o g e t o n y o u r d a n c i n g s h o e s Some pointers to ensure that your bracket rises to the top of your pool J acob K anter

THREE TEA M S SEED ED LOW ER TH A N FO U R T H A T C O U L D S U R P R IS E S O M E P E O P L E West Virginia Mountaineers— 6-seed, Midwest Region In his first year as head coach of his alma mater, Bob Huggins led the seventh-seeded Mountaineers to the Sweet 16, and would have gone further if not for a miraculous performance from Xavier's B.J. Ray­ mond in overtime. West Virginia lost Joe Alexander to the NBA and Joe Mazzulla to injury, but their defence has improved significantly since last year. They maximize their possessions by taking care of the ball and grab­ bing offensive boards, and they don't depend on the three-pointer— although senior Alex Ruoff, who recently broke the school record for career threes, is ca­ pable of heating up in a hurry. They match up well against Dayton and potential opponents Kansas and Michi­ gan State, all of whom pride themselves on solid defence and rebounding. The only problem: West Virginia's defence and rebounding are better.

Virginia Commonwealth Rams— ii-seed, East Region After upsetting Duke in the first round as an n-seed two years ago, the Rams missed out on the tourna­ ment last year after faltering in the Colonial Conference tournament. They remedied that problem this season, storming through their tournament to grab the Colonial's lone bid. Point guard Eric Maynor is still around, and with the notoriety he earned by hitting the game-winner against the Blue Devils in 2007, he is a popular pick to be this year's "breakout'' star. Maynor could easily lead VCU past sixth-seeded UCLA, as the Bruins have slipped up numerous times this year and struggle on defence. If the Rams advance, they'll have to deal with Villanova in Philadelphia, but Maynor is capable of wrapping up Wildcats'guard Scottie Reynolds, and 6'9"forward Larry Sanders should be able to take care of Villanova big-man Dante Cunningham. If Maynor and Sanders come through with solid performances, VCU could ram its way through to Boston for a potential rematch with Duke.

Western Kentucky Hilltoppers— 12-seed, South Region A 12-seed has beaten a five-seed in 18 of the past 20 tournaments, and this looks like the best bet for this year. WKU lost Courtney Lee and Tyrone Brazelton— two important pieces in last year's Sweet 16 run— but still have four players who average double figures. Guards A.J. Slaughter and Orlando Mendez-Valdez are two of those four, and both of them can be lethal from long range. They also boast a win over Louisville— the overall number-one seed— on a neutral floor in November. Illinois, the Hilltoppers'first round opponent, will likely be without their floor general Chester Frazier, and Western Kentucky thrives on the offensive boards— an area where the lllini can be exposed. And if they survive Illinois, Gonzaga, with its track record of inconsistency this season, likely awaits.

T W O S T O R Y L IN E S T H A T C O U L D D O M IN A T E Y O U R W E E K L E A D IN G U P T O T H U R S D A Y Will the Syracuse Orange have enough energy to make a run?

Jim Boeheim's Orange had to play four games in four days last weekend, and needed an extra 30 minutes to beat Connecticut on Thursday night in the second-longest game in NCAA history. Observ­ ers have been quick to draw the parallel between this year's team and that from three years ago, when Gerry McNamara led the Orange to four wins in the Big East tournament, made thousands of people fall in love with them, stole a five-seed, and promptly lost to Texas A&M in the first round. The media pointed their fingers at the Orange's lack of juice due to their exhaustive games the previous week. Can we ex­ pect the same this year? Probably not— they have six days before their first round game, and opponent Stephen F. Austin State University has an anemic offence, and won't be able to deal with Syracuse's 2-3 zone.

Plus, the Orange are athletic enough to "recover" from some extra bas­ ketball by the time the tournament starts.

Has Bob Knight lost his mind?

The polarizing coach-turned-ESPN analyst unleashed what could become one of his most memorable sound-bites after the bracket was revealed on Sunday, suggesting that women be removed from the selection committee since they likely pay attention to the women's tournament more than the men's tournament. It's only a matter of time until any number of gender-equality organizations demand that ESPN reprimand him. But anyone who knows anything about Bob Knight can't really be surprised by that comment, can they? He's one of the last relics of a generation that is now practically extinct, and most of what he has to say is usually quite valuable and tasteful— when it has to do with basketball itself. Comments like the one above should be treated as the cherry on top of the sundae. In this case, it just so happened to be a rotten cherry.

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T H R E E M O R E T H O U G H T S B E F O R E Y O U FILL O U T Y O U R B RA CK ET Compared to past years, Selection Sunday wasn't so bad.

For the most part, the selection committee avoided controversy on Sunday night. There are no mid-major at-larges matched up against one anoth­ er— a problem that plagued last year's bracket— and the only arguably undeserving school that magically found its way into the tournament was Arizona, run­ ning its streak of consecutive appearances to 25. The Wildcats are surely one of the top-65 teams in the country, but they've lost five of their last six, don't have a marquee victory outside of the Pac 10, and only have two road wins all season long. They likely stole a bid from St. Mary's, San Diego State, Creigh­ ton, or Penn State. But if any one of those teams had been picked, Arizona and the other three would be complaining just as loudly. All in all, a pretty good job by the selection committee this year.

Defensively, the 2009 Memphis Tigers are better than last year's.

After coming within a Mario Chalmers buzzerbeater from a national championship last year, the Tigers lost their three most important players— Der­ rick Rose, Chris Douglas-Roberts, and Joey Dorsey— to the NBA. That didn't faze head coach John Calipari or his remaining Tigers, who are riding a 25-game winning streak into the dance. Their size and athleti­ cism shut down any hopes their opponents have of getting to the basket, and their defensive prowess is reflected in the numbers: at 79.4 points allowed per 100 possessions, Memphis is more than points bet­ ter than second-best Louisville. Their offence is sig­ nificantly worse than last year's, but it's still among the top-40 in the country. Of course, the weakness of Conference USA dampens the impressiveness of their record, but with a relatively easy path to the

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Elite Eight— except for third-seed Missouri, who will try to run Memphis off the floor— the Tigers could easily beat UConn in a defensive showdown to make their second-straight Final Four appearance.

The 8/9 games: classic coin flips The 8/9 match-ups are obviously the toughest ones to predict. This year's slate will prove no differ­ ent, but there's no sense in not trying.

In the Midwest, the edge has to go to Ohio State over Siena. The Buckeyes' Evan Turner can take over a game, and when he's thrust into a must-win situa­ tion, you don't want to be guarding him. The Saints will have to play aggressive defence and force the Buckeyes to turn the ball over a lot in order to win.

In the West, we have a rematch of an 8/9 show­ down from last year in BYU vs.Texas A&M.The Aggies prevailed last year, but the Cougars'offence is much improved with the emergence of sophomore point guard Jimmer Fredette. Fredette should be able to lead Brigham Young to a match-up with UConn.

The East features a match-up between two ee­ rily similar teams. Tennessee and Oklahoma State average within .3 points of each other per 100 pos­ sessions on both offence and defence, and both play at a quick pace. The edge, therefore, should go to the Vols with their experience and the fact that they don't rely on the ever-fickle three-pointer.

LSU and Butler, two teams that flew below the radar for much of this season, face off in the South­ ern bracket. The Tigers are stumbling into the tour­ nament, having lost three of their last four games, and benefited from a weak SEC during the regular season. The Bulldogs may be relying on two fresh­ men— Gordon Hayward and Shelvin Mack— but they've been more consistent this year. If they can get to the line and limit LSU's offensive boards, Butler should advance to play North Carolina on Saturday.

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