The McGill Tribune Vol. 29 Issue 12

TNC TAKES CARE OF PINTER’S CLASSIC, PAGE 14

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STRUGGLES CONTINUE FOR MARTLETS, PAGE 17

M C G IL L

T r ib u n e www. mcgil Itribune .com

Published by the Students' Society of McGill University

Vol. 29 Issue 12 • Tuesday. November 17. 2009

A new approach to Canadian-American border security Championship weekend Redmen rugby, soccer bring home gold and silver

KAILAN LEUNG & THOMAS QUAIL Tribune Editors

ADAM SCOTTI

Ask most Canadians what comes to mind when they think of McGill University, and their answers will invariably be the same— academics, Montreal, Harvard of the North.

After the events of the past weekend, though, there’s another association that’s quickly catching on: home to championship-caliber sports programs.

On the same weekend that the women’s hockey team raised yet another Canadian Intra-university Sports championship ban­ ner at McConnell Arena, the Redmen rugby and soccer teams proved that they can also compete at the highest levels of their sport.

For the Redmen soccer squad, the weekend ended in heartbreak, with a loss to Laval in the CIS championship game in Langley, B.C. For McGill rugby, though, Saturday was all about celebration, as the Redmen shocked power­ house Dalhousie to claim their first Eastern Championship crown. Both matches lived up to their championship billing.

In men’s rugby action, Redmen fly-half Alastair Crow scored a try with four minutes left, leveling the match at 17 apiece. Centre SEE REDMEN ON PAGE 18

The U.S. Department of Homeland Security is proposing a new biometrics program that includes fingerprinting and digital photographs.

SSMU council sets precedent; suspends Choose Life’s club status Motion to suspend status passes 16 -7 at Council last Thursday STEVEN HOFFER N ew s Editor

The Students’ Society Legislative Coun­ cil narrowly passed a two-thirds secret ballot motion 16-7 last Thursday, setting a precedent and suspending the club status of controversial SSMU club Choose Life. The motion was the

second of two Choose Life-related motions put forward that evening, the first of which, had it not failed, would have revoked Choose Life’s club status entirely.

The motion to suspend now transfers Choose Life’s club status to SSMU Equity Committee review and stipulates, as amended, that Choose Life work in conjunction with the Equity Committee to draft a document guiding the club’s adherence to the SSMU constitu­ tion, bylaws, and policies. Should the Equity

Committee approve Choose Life’s club S t a t u s Council would again vote on the issue-this time requiring a simple majority.

Following Thursday’s vote, Choose Life President Natalie Fohl called the decision “disappointing” and “unfortunate.”

“I think the main point needs to be that we are all looking for truth—what is ultimate­ ly right,” said Fohl. “Of course we don't want to make people uncomfortable, but no societal changes ever happen without uncomfortable

re-examination of our current practices. I don’t see the spirit of this motion embracing that.”

While Choose Life has come under heavy scrutiny for several of its initiatives since achieving full club status—including the use of graphic images and participating in the Silent No More Awareness Campaign—this series of motions came to Council in light of the November 6 incidents surrounding Jose Ruba’s “Echoes of the Holocaust” talk, which SEE MOTION ON PAGE 3

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P R O V IN C E

Government to research feasibility of Olympics in Quebec City Committee to assess province’s sport infrastructure MARfA FLORES C ontributor

On November 9, Quebec Premier Jean Charest announced the establishment of a committee to determine Quebec City’s feasi­ bility to host future Winter Olympic Games and other international sporting events. This is the second time Quebec City has looked into making a bid for the Olympics, after their first attempt in 2002.

“The Prime Minister has always said that Quebec City has the potential to host the Olympics. According to him, there is no bet­ ter city to host the Winter Olympic Games,” said Alexandre Boucher, Minister of Labour and the minister responsible for the Quebec City region. “We had the 400th anniversary of Quebec City, and that made us realize to what extent the city is capable of organizing big events.”

The provincial government’s desire to position the capital as a favoured location for holding national and international competi­

tions, as well as world championships, has led to the creation of Team Quebec, a committee that will assess the province’s sport infrastruc­ ture.

“Team Quebec is a group of businessmen, athletes, and people with various economic, social, athletic, or touristic backgrounds, peo­ ple with different experiences that are working together to make Quebec a privileged destina­ tion for national and international events to take place,” said Boucher.

Their goal is for Quebec City to host as many sporting events as possible over the next few years in order to boost a future bid, and to allow the province to position itself in the highest rankings. Claude Rousseau has been appointed head of Team Quebec, whose man­ date will be tenable for three years with an op­ eration budget of $1 million.

“Our first task is to evaluate the existing infrastructures and determine which infra­ structures could be missing,” said Rousseau “The second one is to work towards bringing international competitions to Quebec, and the third is to measure and evaluate the different financial methods.”

Rousseau explained that the assessment of

the province’s infrastructure is not exclusively to make Quebec City an eligible location for the Olympic Games, but also to provide more athletic facilities for the general population and to encourage other international competi­ tions to visit Quebec City.

“It is not about hosting the Olympic Games, but about having all the sports infra­ structure. It means that everyone will have ac­ cess to these facilities in order to practice dif­ ferent sports, host international events, etc.” said Rousseau.

Other provincial ministers have sup­ ported the establishment of Team Quebec and have approved its budget, which was left over from the celebrations of Quebec’s 400th anni­ versary.

“The Quebec City region is an outstand­ ing location and an ideal setting for winter sports. It is therefore with much enthusiasm that we support the city in its efforts to play a leading role in prominent sports events,” said Minister of Education, Recreation and Sports Michelle Courchesne in an email to the Tri­ bune. “These ambitions will enable the Cap­ itale-Nationale region to equip itself not only with high calibre infrastructure, but also with

a sports culture that will, in the end, benefit athletes from across Quebec.”

Boucher emphasized the economic im­ portance of the Olympic Games as well as the other benefits that they could bring to the province.

“It will be extraordinary, think for ex­ ample of Vancouver, where all eyes will be watching the city and will live at the rhythm of the performances of the athletes,” said Bouch­ er, “It is a major project with huge economic costs, but there is also an investment return that' is beneficial to the city.”

Team Canada has not set a fixed date for Quebec City to possibly host the Games, but the organizers mentioned the possibility of it happening in 2022 or 2026. The bid will also need to be approved by the Canadian Olympic Committee.

“Quebec has proved to be a fantastic in­ ternational city, people who come from abroad fall in love with Quebec City, it is remarkable and touristic, so there is another reason to say, why not?” added Boucher.

CAM PUS

SSM U referendum period achieves quorum Sustainability initiative passes with overwhelming support THOMAS QUAIL E ditor-in-C hief

The fall referendum period, which wrapped up on Thursday, secured qualified quorum and each fee that was put to referen­ dum passed.

The Sustainable Projects Fund—a nonopt-outable $0.50 per credit semesterly fee geared towards novel campus sustainability initiatives—secured 78.9 per cent of the stu­ dent vote. Jonathan Glencross, the Fund’s chief spokesperson, said that the referendum was a clear mandate for “scaling up” campus sustainability initiatives.

“I was expecting a majority, but that was more than a majority—it was a statement,” he said. “We can use [that vote] as leverage in later conversations about student opinion on sustainability.”

Nevertheless, Glencross maintained that the fee was “only an opportunity,” and that “we haven’t accomplished anything yet.”

After a sustainability coordinator is hired and a Sustainability Projects Fund website is up and running, Glencross said that he will organize a “huge sustainability event” where the fund’s application process will be further explained.

“The event will serve as a mobilizing force,” he added.

The ambassador fee passed by a slim margin, with 51.6 per cent voting in favour.

The $1 semesterly fee will provide funding for students, or student groups, to “sponsor travel to and participation in academic and extra-cur­ ricular competitions and conferences.”

The slim majority, Students’ Society

Vice-President Clubs and Services Sarah Olle explained, was caused, in part, by the fact that she “got the flu during campaign week” and unfortunately couldn’t advertise or “further clarify exactly what types of projects could be funded by the fee” during campaign period.

She plans to work closely with the faculties to ensure groups understand that there’s now funding available for off-campus and travelrelated expenses.

“And while it’s incredibly unfortunate that I didn’t get the chance to clarify this in­ formation before [because I was sick], I hope that by doing it now, people will see exactly why it was so great that [the ambassador fee] passed,” she said.

In the past, if students, or student groups, needed additional funding, they applied to the campus life fund, which could only fund on-campus-related initiatives. Now, student groups can apply to the ambassador fee to help fund travel-related expenses for conferences, competitions, and off-campus initiatives.

The ambassador fund application will be “very similar” to the campus life fund, accord­ ing to Olle.

“I ’m currently making an application for it right now, and writing bylaws to further clar­ ify what applications should aim to show,” she said. “I ’m really excited that it passed. And I hope that a lot of students who have been pre­ viously frustrated by not receiving campus life funding will be able to receive funding from the ambassador fee for their travel-related ex­ penses.”

The McGill Legal Information Clinic nonopt-outable $3.25 fee was renewed, capturing 74.6 per cent of the student vote. The MLIC will continue to provide “free and bilingual legal information,” and “advice and represen­

tation for students alleged to have committed a disciplinary offence or who have a grievance against the university.”

Students voted in droves this fall referen­ dum period: 5,245 undergraduates voted in the referendum, and 1,026 voted in the First Year Committee of Council elections. Last year, the fall referendum period failed to meet quorum, and, according to Elections McGill’s Chief Electoral Officer Michael Vallo, there was “a lot of pressure” on them to change that.

Vallo was pleased with student turnout, and attributed the fall referendum period’s success to his team’s accessibility, extending the FYC nomination period, and dedicated “yes” committees. “[Elections McGill staff] tried to email and call back almost immediately. We made ourselves very accessible,” he said. “It also helped that the campaigns were very good, es­ pecially the sustainable and MLIC ‘yes’ com­ mittees—they ran wide-ranging campaigns, so that definitely helped out.”

Students also voted in two non-binding plebiscites, with 52.7 per cent voting in favour of moving coursepacks and course materials completely online, and 70.2 per cent voting against shortening add/drop period to allow for an earlier release of the exam schedule.

In the First Year Committee of Council elections, Larah Maunder captured 56.8 per cent of the first-year vote, securing the FYC presidency, while Sarah Lazure, a bilingual life-long Montrealer, won the FYC vice-presi­ dent external race. Lazure, as VP external, will sit on SSMU’s Legislative Council.

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CAM PUS

Manning discusses expressions of religious faith in public life Urges Canadians to rethink separation o f church and state SEAN WOOD C ontributor

On the eve of the Students’ Society Coun­ cil vote on Choose Life’s club status, Preston Manning, former leader of the Reform Party of Canada, gave a talk at the Faculty Club dis­ cussing expressions of religious faith in public life.

He argued against the current taboos on mentions of faith in public life, especially in politics. According to Manning, incorporating religious voices into public dialogues would help society’s understandings of personal rela­ tionships, add depth to moral discussions, and give perspective on the nature and purpose of laws.

“I profoundly believe that the spiritual perspective, the faith perspective, has some­ thing to add,” he said.

While he did not discuss the abortion issue explicitly, he did argue that a broader dialogue would help society address a rigid

political distinction between the religious and the non-religious.

“Our American friends like to polarize, they like to have contrary things out there and somehow arrive at some kind of a decision. I don’t think that’s compatible with the Cana­ dian character,” he said.

He also argued that the current cultural climate, in which it is improper for any poli­ tician to mention his or her beliefs, is out of touch with the Canadian public’s spiritual feel­ ings. He cited polls saying that 80 per cent of Canadians believe in God or a universal spirit, and that 62 per cent of Canadians say that re­ ligious institutions are a force for good in so­ ciety. “[Manning] laments the disconnect be­ tween the elite discourse, which marginalizes any kind of discussion of the role of faith and belief, from the prominence of faith in the lives of more average Canadians,” said Dan­ iel Cere, a professor in the department of reli­ gious studies.

Manning cited a number of reasons why Canadian society prefers to keep faith out of politics, chief among them a strong belief in

the doctrine of separation of church and state.

He agreed that church-state separation is a fun­ damentally healthy thing, but made a distinc­ tion between the institutions and issues.

“You want to keep the institutions of religion and the institutions of government separate, but that doesn’t mean you keep the notions or the discussion of faith and politics separate,” he said.

Equally legitimate, he granted, is a fear that an increased openness to religion in public life will amplify the risk that certain religious groups will impose their beliefs on others.

“You have to acknowledge that this is a legitimate fear ... because there are instances in the past where this is exactly what has hap­ pened,” he said.

An audience member pressed Manning on this issue during the question period. The solution, Manning argued, is not to stop dis­ cussing religion altogether, but to allow peo­ ple of varying spiritual beliefs to address their concerns from their unique perspectives.

Manning said that the main reason why faith is kept out of politics, however, has less to do with serious objections to the substance

of religion and more to do with its impractical complexity. In a political climate too focussed on boiled-down messages tailored to win elec­ tions, religion carries too much baggage.

“Any commentary by a leader or candi­ date on an issue from a faith perspective, in an election campaign particularly, is considered, by most political managers and by most party leaders an ‘off message’ ... ‘Your personal spiritual convictions are ‘off message’-Shut up!’“ he said.

Victoria Shipman, U3 psychology, noted that Manning’s own discussion of his Christian beliefs at the beginning of his lecture related to his argument.

“When you’re so directly faced with someone’s beliefs, [you’re] always sort of thinking that you need to be able to get past [them] in order to understand someone’s point, when [the religious beliefs are] really part of that [point],” she said.

The talk was offered by the Centre for Research on Religion (CREOR) as part of an ongoing lecture series titled, “Religion and the Public Sphere.”

CAM PUS

Motion to revoke Choose Life’s club status voted down 11-14 continued from COVER posited abortion as a genocide comparable to the Holocaust. That event, which SSMU Council preemptively censored, resulted in the arrest of two McGill student protestors.

Debate over the two motions, which lasted approximately four hours, generally remained tame aside from a few outbursts, as both sides voiced their arguments. Motivators and sup­ porters of both motions claimed that Choose Life had violated the SSMU equity policy, cit­ ing incidents of false health information being distributed, the use of graphic images in pub­ lic spaces on campus, and affiliation with the Campus Life Network.

Sarah Woolf, motivator of the motion to suspend Choose Life, argued that a SSMU club should not be granted communal resources if those resources are used to “intimidate, harass, or offend another group or individual.”

While the SSMU bylaws offer suspen­ sion as a possible punishment for postering violations, clubs are technically subject only to revocation for controversial. By borrowing this course of action from another section of the bylaws, the motion sets a precedent for SSMU. “This resolution is innovative, sensitive, and allows for the due reflection and consulta­ tion that this Choose Life case deserves,” said Woolf.

SSMU Vice-President External Sebastian Ronderos-Morgan, who co-signed the motion to suspend, emphasized that the council’s deci­ sion was a critical one.

“Not only was it really important that we did something about Choose Life but it was important that we acted to deal with this cir­ cumstance and look to interpret our governing documents further,” said Ronderos-Morgan.

“In light of both the issue of Choose Life and the institutional issue, I think this is the best

JULIA WEBSTER

The gallery looks on as Choose Life president Natalie Fohl offers her rebutai to the motion to revoke her club’s status. thing that could have come out of this. It pro­ vides a process for the club to go through.”

During her address, Fohl stated that her club never intended to distribute false infor­ mation and that the club aims to operate with­ in the SSMU equity policy. Fohl also argued that, contrary to points previously raised cit­ ing Health Canada, the scientific debate over a link between breast cancer and abortion re­ mains inconclusive.

Elaina Kaufman, a member of the student group that protested the “Echoes of the Holo­

caust” event, began her motivation speech to revoke Choose Life’s club status by attempting to define the issue at hand—a focus that con­ tinually resurfaced throughout the evening.

“This is not about the larger politics of abortion or the concept of free speech,” said Kaufman. “Abortion, as dealt with by the law, is an issue of health and safety, not of politics ... Choose Life has become an issue of health and safety at McGill. This club has acted in dangerous, harmful, [and] harassing ways ever since it has been a SSMU club.”

The motion to revoke Choose Life’s club status, failed 11-14, also in a two-thirds secret ballot.

Looking forward, Fohl said that, given the amendment to the passing motion, the club will need to reconvene and determine how to proceed. Fohl mentioned that she was open to self-imposed restrictions, a policy idea that was raised several times during council.

mcgilltribune.com

4 • Tuesday, November 17, 2009

C IT Y

Prince Charles’ visit to Montreal is met with demonstrations First Montreal visit fo r royal family in 17 years KATRINA SIENIUC C ontributor

Prince Charles and his wife Camilla vis­ ited Montreal last Tuesday as part of their Ca­ nadian tour, marking the first time a member of the Royal Family has visited Quebec in 17 years. Their arrival was met by angry pro­ testors throwing eggs and bearing signs dis­ playing phrases such as “Majesty go home,” indicating the desire of some Montrealers for the province of Quebec to break free from the British Commonwealth.

Unlike previous visits, large and enthu­ siastic crowds didn’t greet the royal family at every step. Their lukewarm reception across Canada, including the protest here in Montre­ al, raised an important question for many Ca­ nadians: does the monarchy, which represents more of the past than the future, still make sense in Canada?

Justin Margolis, member of the McGill Bloc Québécois and a Tribune Columnist, said that this is a complicated issue.

“The monarchy is extremely irrelevant to daily life. However, it still does represent so much of our history,” he said. Margolis be­ lieves that it is too expensive for Canadians to be funding the royal lifestyle, and wondered how poorer commonwealth countries are able to do the same.

Margolis also remarked that support for the monarchy differs between the different linguistic regions of Canada. For example, in Francophone communities inside and outside Quebec, the feeling is very different compared to Anglophone ones.

“Living in Quebec, I feel no attachment whatsoever to the British monarchy,” he said.

Professor Richard Schultz, chair of the McGill political science department, said that in Montreal and across Canada the turnout for Prince Charles’ visit was rather small, which he believes indicates the low level of support Canadians have for the monarchy.

“The monarchy makes sense in England, but does not make much sense here,” said Schultz.

Schultz and Margolis both believe that the monarchy does not provide any great political stability to Canada. In fact, Margolis believes that it actually makes the Canadian system in­ herently unstable.

“Instead of having an independent panel of constitutional experts deciding what would happen with a coalition government, one sin­ gle woman who was appointed by the Queen of England still had the power to decide what is best for Canada,” he said, specifically refer­ encing the constitutional crisis that happened last December.

Similarly, Schultz said that although the Governor General does hold some important powers and can provide limited stability, “she lacks a political base because she is appointed by the Prime Minister on recommendation of the Queen.”

Schultz believes that an important next step is to change how the Governor General is

appointed. He said that if the Governor Gen­ eral were to be elected by the House of Com­ mons, requiring nomination by both the oppo­ sition and the Prime Minister, then this would increase overall system stability.

However, Schultz maintained that the Canadian political system does need a head of state that is separate from the head of govern­ ment because, for stability, the government needs someone above the conflict to make im­ portant decisions when the time calls for it.

“I don’t think we should change to an American system,” he said.

Schultz and Margolis agreed that the monarchy in Canada is only relevant histori­ cally and should be terminated once the Queen dies.

“There is no way to further reduce the power of the monarchy than dumping it en­ tirely,” said Margolis. Likewise, Schultz said that he respects the Queen and admires what she has done, but that there is an appropriate time to cut the monarchy off.

P R O V IN C E

CAM PUS

Commission releases report on homelessness

BSN hosts summit Black Students Network organizes inaugural summit

Organization releases 33 recommendations

CARA WILSON

SAMANTHA COOK

C ontributor

Contributor

On November 4, the Quebec Health and Social Services Commission on Homelessness released 33 recommendations to combat the issue across the province.

The Commission has received 145 brief­ ings, 104 testimonies and travelled to vari­ ous Quebec cities to research on-the-ground homelessness initiatives since its mandate began in September 2008. MNA for JacquesCartier and Commission President Geoffrey Kelley applauded the province’s decision to allow the Commission to hold public hearings in Quebec City, Trois-Rivières, Gatineau, and Montreal.

“A lot of attention and effort went in to meeting with people to try to understand better the situation faced by homeless people in Que­ bec,” said Kelley. “It is unusual for hearings to be held outside of Parliament. The experience allowed members of the Commission to bet­ ter understand the unique challenges faced by community organizations who help homeless and formerly homeless people on a day-to-day basis.”

The 33 recommendations are broken into various categories, including citizenship, revenue, housing, health and social services, education, and social and professional integra­ tion. The report also contains recommenda­ tions aimed at specific minority groups, such as urban indigenous people.

Andrée Prepanier, coordinator with the Réseau Solidarité Itinérance du Québec (RSIQ), a coalition of 250 agencies that work with homeless people or those at risk of home­ lessness in 12 areas throughout the province, applauded the report’s focus on social housing

LORRAINE CHEUNG

The Commission travelled around the province to research homeslessness initiatives. and funding to community organizations. He also emphasized the importance of four politi­ cal parties being in unanimous agreement over the importance of the issues of homelessness.

RSIQ was pleased that the creation of a global policy on homelessness, for which they have been asking for years, was included in the recommendations. Despite these positive aspects, Prepanier said that RSIQ sees the re­ port’s recommendations on poverty as being too weak.

Speaking on behalf of the newly formed Coalition Anti-Pauvreté Montréal, Sebastien Rivard, coordinator of the Regroupement In­ tersectoriel des Organismes Communutaires de Montreal (RIOCM), also echoed these sentiments. The Coalition, composed of seven Montreal community organizations, was cre­ ated to help testify in front of the Commission, and has a broader set of demands than those listed in the current recommendations.

“Homelessness is only the tip of the ice­

berg about poverty. It’s really maybe the worst cast of poverty you can see on the street, but there are many people you can’t see ... we are asking for a measure to help all these people ... even if they put 10-15 million here it wouldn’t solve the problem of poverty,” said Rivard.

Rivard stressed that while federal money would be welcome, homelessness is ultimately a provincial issue. The need to put “gas” into the recommendations—to get the government to approve money in the next budget to back up the recommendations—is key to the recom­ mendations’ success.

While the Coalition Anti-Pauvreté Mon­ tréal thinks that the recommendations can be effective, particularly if their organization re­ ceives funding, there will be a protest on No­ vember 23 in Montreal outside of the minister of social services and the minister of employ­ ment’s offices regarding the Montreal compo­ nent of the new recommendations.

Saturday, November 14 marked the first McGill University Black Empowerment Sum­ mit, a full day event held in the Shatner Ball­ room from 10 a.m. to five p.m.

The summit featured a dance perfor­ mance by Nyata Nyata, a keynote speech by Dr. Dorothy Williams, and a student panel dis­ cussion led by Charmaine Nelson, a professor of art history at McGill.

The Black Students Network organized the summit with support from the McGill Af­ rican Students Society and the Caribbean Stu­ dents Society.

During the student panel discussion Nelson posed questions regarding mentor­ ship, identity, and black focus in curriculum.

She also stressed the importance of enforcing McGill’s official diversity position.

“We oscillate between invisibility and hyper-visibility,” she said.

Haynes discussed the “absence of Ca­ ribbean aspects of Canadian history” in the McGill curriculum. She said that for blacks in Canada it is not a problem of diversity or awareness, but “a problem of acceptance.”

Nelson agreed, saying that, “psychic vio­ lence occurs from being in the minority and carrying the burden of the black identity.”

Nelson concluded the panel discussion with a call to all students.

“The level playing field is a fallacy—we have to take up space and feel the right to take up space here at McGill.”

The BSN hopes that The Black Empow­ erment Summit will become an annual event at McGill and bring awareness and acceptance of the black student population at McGill.

Curiosity Delivers

Tuesday, November 17, 2009 • 5

P R O V IN C E

Quebec College of Physicians cautiously supports euthanasia College seeks to consider all options in end-of-life care MOLLY GOMOLIN C ontributor

The contested and sensitive issue of eu­ thanasia has been brought to public attention recently after the Quebec College of Physi­ cians cautiously expressed support for limited euthanasia, calling for an open debate on the topic.

Many opponents of euthanasia have spo­ ken out against the decision, expressing fear that this may lead the rest of Canada to be­ come more driven towards “mercy killing.” As defined by the secretary of the Quebec College of Physicians, Dr. Yves Robert, “Euthanasia is the active action, usually done by a drug, to shorten a life.”

The College reported on Nov. 3 that they believe the current legislation does not reflect the clinical reality of patients or their doctors, and has restricted the development of appro­ priate end-of-life care.

“It is not an endorsement of euthanasia,” said Robert. “The College is neither for nor against euthanasia, but is rather concerned

with promoting appropriate care for end-oflife patients that could include all options.”

Robert also emphasized that euthanasia is not a medical issue but a social one. In recent months, there have been a series of Quebec polls, position papers, and a private member’s bill in Parliament that have demonstrated sup­ port for euthanasia.

This past May, Francine Lalonde, a Bloc Québécois MP, introduced Bill C-384. The bill would essentially legalize both euthanasia and assisted suicide in Canada by amending sections 222 and 241 of the Criminal Code. It would extend itself to “people at least 18 years of age, experiencing physical or mental pain without prospect of relief or suffering from a terminal illness.” The Bill does not define ter­ minal illness.

Robert did not express support for Bill C-384, and claimed that it is too broad and includes assisted suicide, which he claims is “outside the scope of medical practice.” He said that the main concern of the Quebec Col­ lege of Physicians is to find what the most ap­ propriate care is for a patient in each specific situation.

The College seeks to legalize the deci­ sion-making process regarding end-of-life

care and to consider all possibilities, includ­ ing euthanasia. This decision-making process would include the patient and the physician.

Should the patient be incapable of making the decision, a third party must be involved, and a consensus needs to be reached.

As of now, euthanasia is considered to be murder in Canada and is treated as a criminal act. Robert said that he feels this does not re­ flect the reality of the patient facing imminent death.

“Physicians disqualify themselves as being seen as judges of quality of life, yet they must share their clinical opinion regarding the treatment and/or care of a patient,” he said.

There are others, however, who are strongly opposed to any sort of legalization of euthanasia and see the potential danger of the procedure being expanded to include nonterminally ill patients.

Margaret Somerville, Samuel Gale profes­ sor of Law and professor in the McGill Faculty of Medicine, said that she believes euthanasia is “a very bad idea.” She stated that today there exists an overemphasis on individual rights and values without considering that this type of changes to laws could support killing.

Somerville described euthanasia as being

ALISSA FINGOLD

“harmful to societal values and to medicine.”

Furthermore, she cited the 30-year legalization of euthanasia in the Netherlands as indica­ tive of the fact that it is increasingly difficult to confine the circumstances for permitting euthanasia. Somerville said that euthanasia legalization poses an ongoing challenge to prevent what she sees as the almost inevitable expansion to include situations involving the mentally ill.

Newspapers everywhere are going down the shitter. Get in while you still can-and while it’s still worth working for no money.

News meetings are Mondays at 5:30 in the Tribune office.

If you’d really like to write, but can’t make it to the meeting, send us an email at news@ mcgilltribune.com.

With love, Tori and Steve

www. bouLevar dsai nt Laur ent . com À

6 • Tuesday, November 17, 2009

rk reitner @ m e g-i'lltr-ibun'eT^Qin A SANDWICH ARTIST “Shooting spree at Orlando office ap­ pears driven by suspect’s failures in life.”

—Associated Press headline The media narrative following mass shootings in the United States generally fol­ lows the same pattern. People shot. People killed and/or badly injured. Suspect found and/or shot. Suspect without friend in world.

Suspect lonely. Suspect crazy. Guns probably bad. Tearful memorial ceremony. People show fortitude. People find God. People move on.

Give or take a few details, one could use the little speeches given and the lessons learned from each tragedy and apply them to the next, and the next—meaning either the les­ sons are never learned, or we’re learning the wrong lessons.

The general supposition is usually that the assailant was uniquely depressed or lonely or frustrated, and that there is no greater lesson to be drawn from the catastrophe but that you can never really know a person. There’s always the neighbour who’ll vouch for the guy next door as the last guy who you’d think would ...

It’s always like that. In fact, the media has learned to expect such a narrative, so it’s not unwilling to help things along.

Most of the coverage of the recent shoot­ ings in the U.S. has focussed on whether Major Nidal Malik Hasan, the Fort Hood suspect, was a radical Islamic fundamentalist. Howev­ er, there was one ubiquitous little detail in the media coverage of the Orlando shooter, Jason Rodriguez, that I found quite revealing.

Many news organizations published ar­ ticles, some within hours of the shooting, re­ flecting something to the effect of what the New York Times wrote: “In his [personal bankruptcy] filing, Mr. Rodriguez described himself as a ‘sandwich artist,’ working at a Subway sandwich shop in the area.”

Note the condescending way in which the reporter subtly accuses the suspect of claiming

BRENDAN LIKES THE GITXSAN’S STATUS UPDATE “Native tribe will petition Ottawa to re­ move its Indian status ” — Globe and Mail headline When I read this headline last Monday my jaw dropped. I was in complete shock.

The Gitxsan, a native band in northwest­ ern British Columbia, will be lobbying Indian Affairs Minister Chuck Strahl to put an end to 130 years of treaty tension by removing the tribe’s Indian status. The Gitxsan hereditary chiefs claim that they want to bring down the

O p in io n to be something more than he really is. The implication of those quotation marks being: “Ha! You call yourself an artist, but you are merely an unskilled fast food employee, bare­ ly making minimum wage.”

But Subway actually calls its employ­ ees Sandwich Artists®. See, they even trademarked it. They have an online portal called the University of Subway®, where, I suppose, prospective Artists® go to hone their trade. If you are good enough, you can even become a Senior Sandwich Artist®. The New York Times, with its quotation marks and non-capitalized letters, treated Rodriguez’s filing as if he were exaggerating the importance or the glamour of his trade. But he didn’t need to do that. Subway did it for him.

Strange then, that the Times was not the only news outlet to make the mistake, and with such snobbish presumption. Article after arti­ cle described Rodriguez’s former occupation in similarly derogatory tones: WDBO, a local radio station: “In a bank­ ruptcy statement filed in May, Rodriguez listed his occupation as a ‘sandwich artist.’”

United Press International: “Rodriguez listed his monthly income as a ‘sandwich art­ ist’ at an Orlando Subway restaurant, where he had worked nine months, as $890.67; his monthly expenses, $815.”

CNN: “He said his monthly income as a ‘sandwich artist’ at a Subway Restaurant in Orlando, where he had worked for nine months, was $890.67, and he listed his month­ ly expenses at $815.”

One blog, Hit Coffee, reported that Rodri­ guez has a Bachelor’s degree in engineering and was working toward an MBA; however, it noted, “None of this expensive education ap­ pears to have done him much good, as his most recent job was ‘sandwich artist’ at Subway.”

The problem here is not the blatant pla­ giarism, but rather that so many people find it convenient to neatly mould an event into some prefabricated narrative, context be damned.

We want to wrap these stories up into a little ball and chuck them in the basket labeled: “Depressed assholes who couldn’t handle their shit.” I think it makes us feel better. As if the rest of us are handling our shit.

“parallel society” that exists between them and Canada.

Giving up Indian status doesn't just in­ volve losing a title. It means losing reserves, housing, tax exemptions, and other perks pro­ vided by the Federal Indian Act. Why do the Gitxsan want to lose their Indian status? Reconciliation. They are seek­ ing a way to preserve their culture and unique government while breaking down their “paral­ lel” status.

The Gitxsan hereditary chiefs, not the elected band chiefs recognized by the gov­ ernment as the tribe’s leaders, proposed the change in status. The Gitxsan use an intricate system of local government lorded over by hereditary chiefs. Despite being unelected, the chiefs rule based on political consensus. The Indian Act demands a more Western style of democracy, but the Gitxsan argue that theirs is just as acceptable.

The chiefs’proposal is almost poetic: “We come to the table as committed Canadians, paying our taxes and contributing to the coun­

1 have few nice things to say about my hometown of Cleveland, Ohio. I have never regretted my choice to permanently move to Montreal, leaving the “mistake by the lake” behind me. Nonetheless, there is one thing for which I will commend Cleveland: in 1968, Cleveland became the first city in the west­ ern hemisphere to connect its airport to its downtown core via train. Since then, nearly 80 major global airports have followed suit.

Passengers can reach Central Tel Aviv in 20 minutes from Ben Gurion Airport, London’s Paddington Station in 15 minutes from Heath­ row, and the National Mall from Washington’s Reagan Airport in 11 short minutes. Ironically, it took Canada over 40 years to catch on. This August, Vancouver became the first city in Canada with direct downtown to airport rail access, a project that likely wouldn’t have been undertaken without the increased traffic expected for the 2010 Olympics. Toronto’s blue22 airport link has been in discussion since the mid-1990s, and was originally slated to be operational by 2008, however construc­ tion hasn’t started. And Montreal?

The first formal call for a rail link from downtown to Montreal’s Trudeau Airport came at the 2002 Montreal Economic Summit.

Aéroports de Montréal (ADM), the authority for both the Trudeau and Mirabel airports, cites the inconvenience of the current public transportation links, the congestion of the local highways and access routes, and limited park­ ing facilities at airports as the main reasons for constructing a rail link. Nonetheless, seven years have passed and construction hasn’t commenced. In ADM’s 2007 report, they cited the express rail link as an “urgent need” for Montreal. They recommend a non-stop shuttle link, running on 20-minute intervals, with a total travel time of less than 20 minutes.

This August, the ADM completed a $1.5billion-dollar expansion to Trudeau Airport, including a new Transborder terminal. The

try ... we want to live as ordinary Canadians in our own way in a multicultural society.”

The Indian Act was intended to allow Native culture to thrive, to acknowledge their unique place in Canadian history. But it has failed. The reserves are disconnected and suf­ fer from poverty and a host of social problems.

In this atmosphere, culture can only shrivel, while the Aboriginal peoples of this country suffer from difficulties imposed on them by restrictive legislation.

What the Gitxsan are asking for is simple.

They are asking to be treated as any other mi­ nority, with the same rights and responsibilities as any Canadian. They want to keep a system of government they have used for centuries, and to inherit their land the way any Canadian does.

What do they get in return? The Gitxsan get to preserve the unique richness of their Aboriginal society. They will receive social services from the federal and provincial gov­ ernments, just as they should. They will gain access to the wealth of the land and build their

mcgilltribune.com

terminal nearly doubled the size of the former concourse, adding two more security lanes, nine new customs counters, a 500-space un­ derground parking lot, a 275-room Marriott Hotel, and, most importantly, an underground train station. The problem is that the govern­ ment has been unable to approve a plan to con­ nect this station to a downtown train service.

The biggest issue facing airport transit plans is deciding which route to use. Accord­ ing to Joël Gauthier and James Cherry, the two men in charge of ADM’s project, there are two options that use existing rail lines to reach downtown. ADM’s preferred option would use CN tracks to connect the airport to Gare Centrale, Montreal’s main train station, as it provides a direct connection to the Metro, the AMT commuter rail, as well as VIARail and Amtrak intercity train services. Their concern is that the additional traffic from the airport would flood the already congested station.

The second option would use the CP tracks to connect the airport to the Lucien L’Allier sta­ tion (adjacent to the Bell Centre). Though this would be the faster option, it has a less conve­ nient downtown terminus.

In addition, the Taxicab union has ex­ pressed vocal opposition to the project. Taxis essentially have a monopoly on service link­ ing the airport to downtown Montreal. Taking public transport to the airport is the cheapest option at $2.75. However, that requires tak­ ing the Metro to Lionel-Groulx, and then con­ necting to one of two different busses that run on infrequent time schedules, in addition to schlepping luggage around on public transit.

During rush hour, the commute from Metro McGill averages 50 minutes, with that figure reaching up to 80 minutes early morning or late at night. There is also the Aérobus that leaves from the Berri-UQAM Metro station; however, when one factors in the time and money that it requires to get to the station via taxi or Metro, the $22 savings loses its appeal.

As of now, the $38-fixed-rate-plus-tip cab ride to the airport is the easiest way to complete the 19 kilometre commute from McGill to Trudeau. This is extremely overpriced given the short distance. However, until our govern­ ments can finally connect the missing kilo­ metre of train tracks between the airport train station and the existing tracks that run near the airport, Montrealers (and our visitors) will be forced to cough up over $40 every time they go from downtown to the airport.

own economy. Perhaps the best part is that they maintain a unique form of government they have used for hundreds of years, while willfully intertwining with the Canadian polit­ ical system. The terms of the proposal would also award the Gitxsan a portion of the re­ sources from their 33,000 kilometres of tradi­ tional land. That condition would provide the Gitxsan with some of the financial resources needed to combat poverty and successfully transition into Canadian society.

Perhaps this solution is only plausible for the Gitxsan, and not for other Aboriginal peoples. But it is exciting to contemplate a real union between Canada and her Aboriginal peoples.

This kind of political maneuver is ambi­ tious, but it is also courageous. If it succeeds, it would create a new model for a Canada where Aboriginals can protect their culture within a multicultural society. All they need is to do away with their restricting status as legal In­ dians.

Tuesday, November 17, 2009 • 7

Curiosity Delivers

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— — — E d i t o r i a l --------------Liberals should ignore PQ advice on Bill 104 Quebec language politics are back in the headlines this week, as the Parti Québécois at­ tempt to stir up nationalist sentiment by claim­ ing the provincial government should use the notwithstanding clause to combat a recent Su­ preme Court of Canada ruling. Quebec hasn’t used the notwithstanding clause since 1988, but the PQ is calling for it to be invoked in re­ sponse to the Court’s ruling that struck down a law—the infamous Bill 104—limiting access to English public schools.

Under Quebec’s Bill 101, a package of language laws passed in 1977, access to Eng­ lish language schools is limited to students who have a direct connection to English lan­ guage schooling in Canada—either through attendance at an English school in Canada or through Canadian-educated Anglophone parents. The Bill forces almost all children of immigrant or Francophone parents into French language schools.

Bill 104 was passed by the provincial leg­ islature in 2002 in an attempt to close a large loophole in the language laws, wherein parents could enroll their children in an unsubsidized English language private school for a year and

then successfully claim entry to the English public system.

However, last month, the Supreme Court of Canada ruled Bill 104 unconstitutional and gave the provincial government a one-year grace period to make the law comply with the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms.

It would be disingenuous for the Liberal government to heed the PQ’s call and use the notwithstanding clause to bypass the judicial ruling on Bill 104. This is a complicated prob­ lem and Bill 104 was a flawed “solution.”

The old system that allowed students to circumvent the rules by spending a year in a so-called “eligibility mill” was clearly prob­ lematic. But a blanket solution that ignores the nuances of individual situations is just as bad.

In their zeal to close the loophole, the mak­ ers of Bill 104 ignored crucial factors such as learning disabilities, temporary residence, and length of time spent at unsubsidized private schools (for example, students who spent five years at an English language private school would still not be eligible for English-language public education). These, along with a number of other factors, should be taken into account

when deciding what’s best for each child.

The Supreme Court’s decision was a thoughtful and pragmatic verdict that ac­ knowledged both Quebec’s right to protect the primacy of the French language, and the right of students to receive an English language ed­ ucation when they have legitimate reasons for doing so. In his ruling, Justice Louis LeBel said Bill 104 was “total and absolute, and it seems excessive in relation to the serious­ ness of the problem.” He is absolutely correct.

There’s a sensible solution to this problem somewhere in between the hyperbolic rhetoric of each side: an individual screening system that separates students looking to exploit the loophole in Bill 101 from those with learning disabilities or other mitigating factors.

It won’t always be easy to determine which students have genuine reasons for seek­ ing English language education, but the least the provincial government can do is try. It’s no surprise that the PQ has rallied against the Supreme Court’s ruling in order to pander to Francophone extremists. We hope the Liberal government will ignore their partisan cries and fix this flawed piece of legislation.

university I could, I diligently read the rank­ ings published in the U.S. News and World Report and other magazines. They made ev­ erything so simple: Columbia was better than Northwestern, which in turn was better than Ohio State. McGill was better than Dalhousie, though Dal still trampled Trent.

Universities also value such rankings, of course, and few do so more openly than McGill. Though our university enjoys a presti­ gious reputation in Canada, our administration has made little secret of the fact that it would like McGill to be compared to Harvard and Yale rather than the University of British Co­ lumbia. For this reason, the rankings the uni­ versity administration takes most seriously are the international ones compiled by Britain’s Times Higher Education-QS. However, once you enter university you may notice that these rankings seem far more arbitrary than they did in high school. But it’s difficult to realize just how useless such rank­ ings are until you study at another university.

Two months ago, I began a semester abroad at University College London, which the Times Higher Education-QS recently ranked the fourth-best university in the world.

Because McGill placed 18th in the same rank­ ings this year, I figured that I would notice some sort of difference in quality between the two universities. But I haven’t. As far as I can tell, UCL’s academics are no stronger than McGill’s. If anything, I’ve received a better education back in Montreal.

What actually makes one university better than another, though? If better means superior teaching by brighter faculty members—the aspect of university that would affect under­ graduates the most—then ranking universities is nearly impossible. Every major university in the world possesses some brilliant and com­ pelling lecturers along with some pedantic and moronic professors. You’ve just got to choose your classes carefully and hope for the best.

This isn’t to say that all universities are the same. Some schools are undoubtedly far better places to get an education than others.

But this has more to do with a university’s aca­ demic culture than anything else.

I’ve enjoyed my time at McGill because I’ve been surrounded by curious, intelligent people eager to discuss everything from theo­ retical physics to the exile of King Zog. I’ve become a better writer by taking some good classes, but also by spending far too many hours working for this newspaper. Maclean’s doesn’t factor these aspects of university into its rankings.

McGill’s unique academic culture is what makes it a great place to spend four years, not the size of its classes or the amount of neurosci­ ence grant money it receives. While Umberto Eco is right to note that that lists like wills and menus shape human culture, university rank­ ings are one type of list that don’t deserve to be celebrated.

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When the Musée du Louvre in Paris asked Umberto Eco, the well-known Italian intellec­ tual, to create an exhibition for the museum, Eco decided that it would focus on one of his personal fascinations. The exhibition, which opened a week and a half ago, is devoted to the list.

Lists, Eco recently told the German maga­ zine Der Spiegel, interest him because they at­ tempt to create order in a chaotic world. From menus to wills, he argues, lists and rankings are key components of our culture. “How, as a human being, does one face infinity?” Eco asked. “How does one attempt to grasp the in­ comprehensible? Through lists, through cata­ logues, through collections in museums, and through encyclopaedias and dictionaries.”

For ambitious high school students across North America, few lists are more influential than college and university rankings. As a high school senior trying to make it into the best

lished by the Students’ Society of McGill University in collabora­ tion with the Tribune Publication Society. Opinions expressed do not necessarily represent those of the Students’ Society or McGill Uni­ versity. Letters to the editor may be sent to letters@mcgilltribune. com and must include the contributor’s name, program and year and

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1 ) W rite a s to r y t h a t ’ s less th an 100 w ords, or 2 ) W rite a s to r y th a t ’ s lon ger th an 1,000 w ords.

the right 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 staff. Please recycle this newspaper.

The best stories will be published in the November 24,2009 issue. Runners-up will be published online at www.mcgiUtribrme.com. Sendyour submissions to editor@mcgiUtribime.coin before November 18, 2009, at 11:89 p.m. Late entries will not be accepted. See online for details.

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8 • Tuesday, November 17, 2009

ROLL THE DICE, STUPID If you are looking to alienate your friends and ensure that you never again have to en­ tertain at your apartment, host a board games night. If you really don’t want to take any chances on keeping your social network afloat, I suggest some combination of Monopoly, Apples to Apples, and Trivial Pursuit. Fun for the whole family? Hours of entertainment?

Not exactly. Cleverly obscured by the cheerful slogans and bright packaging is the fact that the board games listed above are some of the most cutthroat and divisive games available to modem society. Allow me to explain.

In Monopoly, the object of the game is to colonize the board as thoroughly as possible, developing increasingly expensive real estate along the way in an effort to drive your fel­ low competitors into bankruptcy, or, at the very least, have them groveling at your feet as they plead with you to increase the liquidation value of Baltic Avenue. Built upon extortion, humiliation, and a set of metal game pieces that have no relevance to anything, Monop­ oly caters to the most sordid impulses of the human psyche.

The anti-camel toe movement.

Re: “Fresh Hell: Calling out a major fashion crime’’ by Zoe Daniels (10.11.09) Dear Zoe, First off, I want to say that I am 100 per cent on your side. As I sit down to write this letter, I can’t even begin to put into words my disdain for tights-as-pants. However, as soldiers in the war against tights-as-pants, I feel that we must choose our battles. I see shorts-over-tights as an improvement, how­ ever small, on this horrifying fashion trend.

While I may not love shorts-over-tights, they at least cover front and back crotches that I do not wish to see. Ladies, if you want others to see those specific areas in that much detail, just skip the tights all together. Once all butts have been properly clothed and all camel toe situations have been dealt with, then we can get more specific about what kind of cover­ ings we are partial to. Shorts-over-tights may be a rehabilitating step on the road towards full-on pants wearing. Let’s not marginalize those who are making an effort to resist the siren call of tights-as-pants. At least not yet.

(To support the cause, see tightsarenotpants.com) — Beansie Saretsky U2 Cultural Studies Does William Shatner count?

Re: “Pop Rhetoric: Can’t con” by Kyle Carpenter (10.11.09) Carpenter’s anti-Canadian TV screed is fairly typical of a certain point of view in this country. And so breathtaking is its dismissal that the only response possible is this: if only McGill produced comedy writers as great as those kids out of Harvard, maybe we’d have a shot. But sadly, we all know that nobody funny has ever come out of McGill. Ever. Not one.

—Denis McGrath

But while Monopoly is decidedly animal­ istic and cruel, each player’s success hinges largely upon the roll of the dice. The same can­ not be said for either Trivial Pursuit or Apples to Apples, both of which, in their own socially stigmatizing ways, have the capacity to cause far greater long-term damage.

Demanding the instant recall of obscure facts from six different categories, Trivial Pur­ suit stands alone in its ability to separate smart from stupid, promote lifelong self-loathing, and put a self-satisfied smirk on the plaid-clad smart-ass you didn’t even invite. Even if you know the answer to a question, it’s often ad­ visable to keep your mouth shut. While you might impress yourself by knowing that the movie Gremlins first introduced audiences to a Mogwai named Gizmo, in a social setting, that type of information does not make people want to be you. It makes them want to kill you.

There is no winner in Trivial Pursuit, only los­ ers of varying degree.

Personally, though, Apples to Apples is the game I find most arduous, as it fails to offer even the slightest pretense of impartial­ ity or fun. Players are dealt a hand of “noun­ cards” (i.e. ‘Sun Tan’, ‘Afghanistan’, ‘Lawn Bowling’) to match with a randomly selected “adjective-card” (i.e. ‘Catastrophic’). Once everyone has laid a matching card down, a judge reviews the cards and picks a winner, who is then congratulated for their wit/sensitivity/depth with much laughter/head nodding/ head shaking. For me, Apples to Apples only proves what everyone has already guessed:

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While it might seem fitting that my bitter attitude be the end result of a childhood full of hard labour and gruel, my parents were in fact strong supporters of game nights. The truth is, I’m just terrible at board games and hate to lose, and if you can’t win at something, you whine about it in a column. Now if you’ll ex­ cuse me, I need to run and get my Monopoly set—I think I hear people at the door.

that I am an unfunny, inappropriate, and un­ cultured jerk. How many laughs can I get out of “Monica Lewinski”? “Michael Jackson” is clearly the best match for “child-friendly,” but maybe this judge would prefer “car seat”?

Predicting the moods and humours of my peer judges is a constant struggle for me. Like a slot machine, I may get lucky a couple times, but by the end of the night I will have wasted a week’s worth of credit.

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Tuesday, November 17, 2009 » 9

C A M P U S S P O T L IG H T

Become a friend of Médecins sans Frontières M SF promotes awareness during Wolrd AIDS Week JANET MCMULLEN C ontributor

The humanitarian assistance provided by Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) to people in need around the globe can seem like a distant reality, but McGill’s Friends of MSF brings that reality right to our campus.

“It’s important to have Friends of MSF on a university campus [for] spreading aware­ ness and introducing MSF to a younger gener­ ation,” says President Mamie Shum, U2 neu­ roscience. Although Friends of MSF groups have sprung up on many university campuses, McGill's chapter is Canada’s oldest.

Undergraduate students are not permitted to participate in the overseas work practiced

by MSF field workers, who provide emergen­ cy medical relief in areas of conflict or disas­ ter, but Friends of MSF lets interested students gain experience with the organization.

“You can actually start raising awareness and doing essentially what they do within the

university context before [participating in field work],” explains campaign director Alexander Nosrat, U2 immunology.

One way Friends of MSF raises aware­ ness is through on campus campaigns, such as this week’s World AIDS Week. Friends of MSF will continue their highly successful “Angry Faces” campaign on campus through­ out the week. After being informed about the lack of access to HIV/AIDS treatment at dif­ ferent locations around campus, McGill stu­ dents will be asked to make an angry facial expression, captured on camera by Friends of MSF volunteers and posted on Facebook.

“The idea is to start this movement on Facebook where you tag these pictures and this spreads throughout your social network to raise awareness,” says Shum.

Another on-campus effort is “A Million Miles for MSF,” a national campaign which will be running until December 4. In this com­ petition between universities across Canada, McGill students and supporters can donate their Aeroplan Miles to MSF, which will then be used to pay for field workers’ flights over­ seas to minimize the group’s operating costs.

The group will soon be introducing an­ other campaign called “Condition Critical” to raise awareness about vicitms of the conflict in the Democratic Republic of Congo. Cur­ rently in the works are a photo campaign and an online social networking initiative. “The aim of the site is to allow people who have been involved in the conflict, or MSF work­ ers, to come and to collaborate on the issue so people can hear their stories,” explains Nosrat, who will be coordinating the campaign next semester.

“Even though MSF goes and provides immediate medical relief in disaster sites, these issues [are] the cause of why they need medical relief,” says Shum.

There is no doubt that MSF is achiev­ ing considerable progress in areas of conflict around the globe. With Friends of MSF sup­ porting the organization on McGill’s campus, students learn more about these humanitarian endeavors. “People who wouldn’t have oth­ erwise received medical aid or treatment, did because of MSF,” adds Shum.

CO N STA N C E LA H U N A

Volunteers for Friends of MSF man a table in Bronfman earlier this week.

M IN D F U N K

G IZ M O S A N D G A D G E T S

Meditating your stress away

Stay ahead by backing up

Get back on your game with these three podcasts

How to avoid a crisis during exam period

FRANCESCA FERENCZI C ontributor

This time of year brings busy days and sleepless nights, creating an unending recipe for stress. Although dropping out of school may seem like the best coping mechanism, it doesn’t have to be. People often shy away from guided meditation because it seems overly spiritual or time-consuming. However, it can be a quick and useful resource for man­ aging school-related stress and anxiety.

Guided meditation is a structured way of utilizing stress management tools like heavy breathing, deep sleep, and a one-step-at-a-time attitude. Even if these seem obvious, some­ times being told what to do, and how to do it, is the best way to begin meditation. iTunes has a great—and free—selection of guided meditation Podcasts and meditation tips. Here a few Podcasts that particularly stand out:

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Chill Meditation (#11) This stress-relief meditation uses visu­ alizations and breathing to focus on complete relaxation. It may be the guide’s British accent or her soothing voice, but after 11 minutes, I felt renewed, rejuvenated, and ready to get back to work.

The Meditation Podcast (#6) This meditation focusses on helping you fall asleep. Good work requires good sleep, but too often stress makes that impossible.

This 23-minute meditation is designed to help you fall asleep and to have a deep rest. Al­ though it’s a relatively long session, it guides you into sleep, and you can choose to listen to only as much as you need.

Meditation Station (#6) This 12-minute meditation is designed to help calm pre-exam nerves and recall what you have studied with ease. This recording uses breathing exercises and visualizations so that you can walk into your examination feel­ ing calm, focussed, and prepared. I suggest doing this the night—or even a few hours— before an exam.

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Cairo, Alexandria, Luxor $3300

Flight from Toronto, visa, hotels, breakfasts, daily transportation, entry fees (TEL) 416-727-1040 www.egyptgrouDtours.com

Although meditating might seem a little silly, there is a reason that it is popular in so many parts of the world. Even if it is a quirky option, when it comes to reducing and manag­ ing stress, whatever works for you is the right choice. If the first try isn’t effective, don’t be discouraged—it can take a bit of practice to get used to meditation. Make sure to browse through the available Podcasts yourself. Play around with it, be patient, and remember: your solution to a less stressful exam period is just a few clicks away.

IAIN MACDONALD C ontributor

Hard drive failure and theft are the two major causes of data loss. According to a 2007 study at Carnegie Mellon, over the course of this semester, nearly 800 McGill students will have one of their hard drives fail. Another 500 will have a laptop stolen. While these events are often unavoidable, like those in the Bumside basement last week, the data loss associ­ ated with them can be avoided. Most vendors will refund a failed hard drive, but they will not ensure the data stored on the disc will be recovered.

If you own a Mac or Linux computer and think you are safe from hard drive fail­ ures due to the lack of viruses targeting your machine, you’re wrong. Mac computers use the same hardware as Dell, IBM, Lenovo, and any other manufacturer, and so the failure rate is no different. If you work on your computer several hours a day, you should back up your data daily.

Data back-up can be unnecessarily in­ timidating for non-tech-savvy users. The first step is to identify where you would like to store your data backup. Usually this is on an external hard drive, USB flash memory drive, or via an Internet service. When looking at ex­ ternal hard drives, consider capacity, portabil­ ity, the interface provided, and the warranty.

There are also numerous websites that will let you back up your data on their servers, for a price. Services such as Adrive, Dropbox, Powerfolder, Windows Live Mesh, and Ubuntu One (for Linux-lovers) will give users about

two GB of free storage for free. More space, though, costs more money. Adrive stands out, as it offers users 50 GB of space absolutely free. However, the uploading and download­ ing process may be slow and awkward for some users.

The next step in backing up is to iden­ tify which files need to be saved, and how frequently. For example, I back up my docu­ ments folder twice a day, but the last time I backed up my “old documents” file was sev­ eral months ago. You can determine how fre­ quently you need to save each folder by asking yourself: “If my hard drive crashes right now, how much time will it cost me to redo the lost work?” The answer shouldn’t be longer than a few hours.

To backup your selected files, plug in your external drive, and open a filesystem window (such as Windows Explorer, Macin­ tosh HD, or Places) to that drive. Open an­ other window to your current data location.

Now, simply drag and drop the files from your data location to the external drive. For an on­ line backup system, you usually need to login to the website and use the uploader to store files on remote servers. While this is generally slower, it is more secure because it protects from fire and theft.

A small, 100 GB external hard drive costs roughly $50. That amount of space stores 100.000 large word documents, 10,000 MP3s, 15.000 JPEG pictures, or 2,000 YouTube vid­ eos. Backing up requires only a few clicks, and can save weeks of lost work. With final exams approaching, losing even a day’s worth of work is not something any student wants to worry about.

Features - Border Security

Biometrics at the border C a n a d ia n s c o u ld

f a c e fin g e r p r in ts a n d

ir is s c a n s a s t h e

CAROLYN YATES M anaging Editor

The U.S. Department of Homeland Security is proposing a multi-billion-dollar biometrics campaign that will collect fin­ gerprints and, eventually, facial recogni­ tion and iris information from all foreign travellers at American airports as they exit the country.

The discussion comes in the wake of the deployment of non-intrusive radia­ tion scanning equipment along the entire Canada-U.S. land border. Completed Oc­ tober 29 at Trout River, New York on the border with Quebec, the devices are part of a larger ongoing U.S. initiative for lay­ ered border security. Capable of detecting nuclear devices, dirty bombs, and other radioactive materials, the radiation portal monitors scan all personal vehicles and cargo entering the U.S. by land from Cana­ da and Mexico. Mail and express packages from Mexico are also scanned in a similar program.

“Securing our Northern border while facilitating legitimate travel and trade re­ quires a strategic combination of technol­

U .S . lo o k s n o r th

ogy, personnel, and infrastructure,” said DHS Secretary Janet Napolitano in a No­ vember 5 statement. “This technology enhances our capability to guard against terrorism and criminal threats while expe­ diting border crossings for lawful trade and travel.”

The US-VISIT program While collecting exit data is a more recent idea, the United States has been amassing fingerprints from most foreign travellers since 2004 as part of the USVISIT program. The program is part of a long-standing mandate to track entries and exits by non-citizens. For the moment, the only biometric data collected is fin­ gerprints, though iris scanning and facial recognition are possibilities for the future.

This type of data ensures that there are fewer mistakes than when only biographi­ cal information—which includes names, date of birth, and the reason the person was flagged—is used.

“Every time you read about a watch list, it’s a biographical watch list, which is effective, but may sometimes have prob­ lems,” said Anna Hinken, a DHS spokes­ person. “But with biometrics, it’s a known

thing because nobody’s fingerprints are the same.”

If the program’s exit-data collection system is instituted, the U.S. won’t be the first to implement such a system—Japan, Korea, and some European countries also collect biometric information from travel­ lers upon entry and exit. This has the dual benefit of enabling monitoring of immigra­ tion records, and of deterrence.

“If bad people ... know that we’re checking fingerprints, they’ll try to figure out some other way to come to the United States. Or they won’t come,” said Hinken.

So far, there have been several phases of test deployment, with varying levels of success. In 2004, the DHS tested col­ lecting exit biometrics at 12 international airports via ATM-like self-service kiosks.

Travellers were responsible for finding the kiosks, and then scanning their passport or visa and providing their fingerprints. How­ ever, the tests were problematic: airports were reluctant to give the kiosks a prime location, making them difficult to find. And because checking out via fingerprint was not a requirement, many travellers were ei­ ther unaware of the process, or ignored it.

“The problem we had with those sets

of tests was that airports ... gave us spaces that were out of the way, down long hall­ ways where nobody could find [the kiosks], and we did our best to tell people they needed to check out, but a lot of people didn’t remember,” said Hinken. “It wasn't a requirement; they ignored it.”

The test was stopped in 2008 in favour of exploring other ways of collecting exit biometrics. Having the airlines be respon­ sible for collecting data was considered, and rejected—Hinken says the industry, which was facing severe financial difficul­ ties at the time, opposed it—and so another test ran last June. Officers from the U.S. Transportation Security Administration collected exit metrics at security check­ points in airports at Detroit and Altanta.

“We had hoped that these tests would inform us as to what we’re going to do for deployment nation-wide,” said Hinken.

“We’ve only gotten so far with that—the thinking now is that DHS needs to make a decision. The technology works—the only thing the decision needs to say is which process.”

Whether data is to be collected by TSA screeners, by kiosks—in the boarding area this time—or by Customs and Borders

Tuesday, November 17, 2009 • 11

ALISSA FINGOLD

officers at the boarding gate is yet to be de­ termined, but Hinken says a decision will be made by the end of the year.

That decision will apply to every trav­ eller without an American passport or visa, including Canadians, with only limited ex­ ceptions—the same people who currently provide fingerprints on entry by air to the United States. While a land deployment might be a possibility in the future, for the moment, it’s a distant prospect.

“That would be the next phase, which we would have to work on setting up,” said Hinken. “Land will involve a little more time.”

And while fingerprints and digital pho­ tographs are the only biometrics currently collected—the U.S. has more than 110 mil­ lion prints in its database—it’s possible that other data might be collected in the future in conjunction with fingerprints.

“We’ve been collecting fingerprints now for five years ... We want to, and are starting to, explore other technologies, such as facial recognition or iris scanning. In the next year or so, you might see a pilot [pro­ gram],” said Hinken.

Biometrics in Canada Canada does not have a biometrics system on par with US-VISIT. However, some frequent travellers can opt to use Nexus, which allows faster border crossing

for pre-approved, low-risk individuals.

Unlike US-VISIT, which verifies al­ most all travellers to the United States and is run by the DHS exclusively, Nexus is a joint Canada-U.S. program. Members sign up with the program and, after an enrol­ ment process and interview, receive a card that is valid for five years. After arriving at an airport that supports the program, mem­ bers use self-service kiosks, which scan their cards and irises. Once the kiosk has confirmed that the scanned iris matches the one on file, the entry process is completed.

“Our Canadian border with the Unit­ ed States has been a place where danger­ ous people have been apprehended,” said Thomas Velk, a professor of public policy and economics at McGill. “In Canada, we are a lot less vigilant about people who are dangerous, so I think we shouldn’t be surprised if these kinds of situations crop up at our border with the U.S. If we feel uncomfortable about it, what we might do is require our own government to be more vigilant with respect to dangerous people.”

Pointing fingers at biometrics Critics of biometric border security note that those entering the United States might pose a greater threat than those leav­ ing it. And while the program will allow for tracking immigration records, it is an in­ complete solution in other respects. Track­

ing exit data by air, but not by land, ignores roughly 80 per cent of visitors to the U.S. Additionally, high-risk individuals for ei­ ther terrorism or immigration violations can already be tracked through biographi­ cal factors or passenger lists.

“The idea that there are serious nation­ al security risks that we’ve identified but we haven’t pursued because we don’t have an exit system is simply not plausible,” said Stewart Baker, DHS undersecretary of policy from 2005 to 2008, in a statement to the Washington Post.

However, supporters argue that in­ creased security measures are necessary and will allow a honed level of individual verification not otherwise possible—and that Canadians should be just as scrutinized as anyone else.

“We in Canada are not as vigilant as the Americans have been,” said Velk. “That could be a dangerous policy if one day ter­ rorists decide to target us as aggressively as they have done with the Americans ... If we can be a little more aggressive at attack­ ing the real problem, which is terrorism, then we won’t be distracted by going after what I think of as the subsidiary and much less important problem of being bothered a little bit at the border.”

/ /

We want to, and are starting to, explore other technologies, such as facial recognition or iris scanning. In the next year or so, you might see a pilot [program]."

—Anna Hinken, DHS spokesperson

WIKIMEDIA

mcgilltribune.com

12 » Tuesday, November 17, 2009

T O O T ) § W R V ---------------

CASH & CAREERS

Globetrot, and boost your CV

A side of sweetness

M cGill offers hands-on learning experiences around the world

A healthy twist on French fries

REBECCA KASMIN C ontributor

Any stressed McGill student would jump at the chance to travel abroad. Study abroad programs are popular, but many are non-stop parties. While this may be appealing, it does nothing to boost your CV. Fortunately, McGill offers students many opportunities to travel abroad and expand their horizons, and their resumes.

International Student Volunteers, Inc. is an organization that takes over 4,000 students from 800 universities each year to a wide range of countries to volunteer. ISV boasts a large repertoire of locations, ranging from Australia to Ecuador to Eastern Europe. What sets ISV apart from typical tours is that for at least two weeks, students work on volunteer or conservation projects, such as teaching English to Thai orphans or monitoring dol­ phin populations in Costa Rica. Afterwards, students can travel and become more familiar with the captivating natural habitat of the host country. This organization combines educa­ tion, conservation, community development, and adventure into one.

Engineers Without Borders takes aspir­ ing engineers to Africa during the summer to improve living conditions and create opportu­ nities for rural Africans struggling with pov­ erty. The Junior Fellowship Program of EWB accepts engineering and non-engineering university students alike and helps them cul­ tivate their development and leadership skills as they positively influence the communities by helping to solve technological problems.

The one requirement is that students must be a

T h e

M

c G

member of an EWB chapter, and must remain a member for at least a year after. If you’re an aspiring engineer and eager to apply your skills towards those in need, the Junior Fel­ lowship Program of EWB is a constructive way to spend a summer.

Aspiring medical students can participate in travel programs geared toward developing their interests. Global Medical Training is an organization similar to EWB: it takes students interested in medicine or dentistry to medically underprivileged countries like the Dominican Republic and Panama to volunteer in medical clinics and participate in diagnoses and treat­ ment. This gives participants an amazing first hand experience of medicine and how it is practiced internationally.

A field study is a great way to avoid losing any ground in school while studying abroad.

With programs in Africa, Panama, and Barba­ dos, a field study program combines travel and academic interests. Field studies are worth 15 credits and span a semester. While abroad, you’re required to take classes related to the location and mission. For example, African field study participants are required to take Bi­ ological Diversity in Africa (BIOL 428), while students going to Barbados must take Water Resources in Barbados (AGRI452).

No matter your faculty or career interests, there are plenty of travel programs that will satisfy your travel wishes.

For information regarding dates, costs, and other details, visit www.isvonline.com, www.mcgill.ewb.ca, or www.mcgill.ca/students/international/fieldstudies.

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FRANCESCA FERENCZI C ontributor

French fries get a pretty bad rap—it turns out that deep-fried sticks of starchy goodness are unhealthy. Unfortunately, they seem to come with just about every meal at a restaurant. And once they’re on the plate, they’re almost impossible to resist. Fries are also a prime comfort food, so giving them up completely seems like a rather impossible feat.

Comfort foods should really be home­ made, as it is difficult to find comfort in any­ thing that comes prepackaged or in a restau­ rant. It seems the best comfort food always comes piping hot out of the oven. The one caveat to this is French fries, which are often best in restaurants. However, it is my belief that there are better, homemade options.

Of course, when it comes to comfort foods, everyone’s tastes are different; meat loaf, mashed potatoes, and lasagna are al­ ways big winners. For me, sweet potatoes are one of the best comfort foods. They are rich in flavour, hearty, and can be whipped up in so many different ways, all of which bring out different sides of this food.

My personal favourite is these ovenbaked fries; roasted at a high temperature for a short period of time, they develop a crunchy exterior with a soft interior. They can be seasoned in many different ways, but cumin and chili flakes really complement the sweetness and add a piquant kick. This recipe is pretty quick and very easy, and it will definitely give a whole new meaning to the phrase, “Do you want fries with that?”

L

FRANCESCA FERENZI

Ingredients • • • • •

3 sweet potatoes, washed and scrubbed 2 Tbsp. extra virgin olive oil 1 Tbsp. cumin 1/2 Tbsp. chili flakes Salt, to taste

Directions 1. Preheat the oven to 450 degrees Fahr­ enheit and line a baking sheet with parchment paper.

2. Cut sweet potatoes lengthwise into sticks. Toss with oil, cumin, and chili flakes.

3. Roast for 15-20 minutes, turning once.

Sprinkle with salt.

4. Cool for about 10 minutes before eat­ ing. Makes about four servings.

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W

e e k

THIS IS YOUR LAST CHANCE. 1 ) W r i t e a s t o r y t h a t ’s l e s s t h a n 1 0 0 w o r d s , o r 2 ) W r i t e a s t o r y t h a t ’s l o n g e r t h a n 1 , 0 0 0 w o r d s .

S u b m is s io n s a r e d u e b y N o v . 18 a t 1 1 :5 9 p .m .

The best stories will be published in the November 24, 2009 issue. Send submissions to editor@mcgilltribune.com.

The competition is open to manuscripts of exactly 100 words or fewer (category one), or greater than 1,000 but no longer than 1,200 (category two). Entries outside the word limit will be disregarded. Include your full name, year and program, phone number, and email address. The contest is only open to current McGill students. Entries must be sent to editor@mcgilltribune.com with “Literature Week” in the subject line or they will not be received. All entries should be submitted in .doc or .rtf format. You may submit up to three entries for category one and one for category two. All entries must be in English, original, unpublished, and not submitted or accepted elsewhere at the time of submission. The McGill Tribune reserves one-time publication rights to the 1st- through 10th-place winning entries to be published in an issue of the McGill Tribune, and kept online in perpetuity. Entries must be dated

by Wednesday, November 18, 2009 at 11:59 p.m., or they will not qualify. Winners will be notified by Saturday, November 21, 2009. See site for full details.

A&E

Curiosity Delivers

Tuesday, November 17, 2009 * 13

ART

T otalitarianism never tasted so sw eet Sugar Bombs exhibit at the MAI combines pop art and politics KYLE CARPENTER A & E Editor

At the Montreal Arts Interculturels’ Sugar Bombs exhibition, bright, glossy prints of thinly veiled propaganda line the walls, while robotic arms breaking through Ming vases fill the room’s display cases—which begs the question: what does it all mean?

“Thematically, the idea of Sugar Bombs [is] the idea that this work is secretly really powerful. And [both artists’ works] have re­ ally interesting things to say, but on the surface they really seem innocent, and they seem really approachable,” says artist Brendan Lang, who created the exhibition’s ceramic sculptures.

Sugar Bombs is a collaboration between Lang and fellow British Columbia artist Diyan Achjadi, who contributed a series of colourful prints to the exhibition. Together, their work explores cultural identity, history, and the way information is misrepresented to children. For Lang, the collaboration by the two artists cre­ ates a symbiotic relationship.

“I think when Diyan and I are working

JULIA WEBSTER

Not your grandmother’s vase.

together, or are shown together, both of our works are really playful and they have a child­ like feel about them,” says Lang. “Hers look like illustrations from children’s books, mine looks like some sort of Transformers thing going on. [Together,] I feel like our works’ vi­ bration intensifies.”

Achjadi’s work juxtaposes totalitarianism with bright layers of oranges, yellows, reds, and pinks—which may be a play on the Unit­ ed States’ terror alert colour-coding system— with cartoon-like imagery. Her work features a recurring character, known as “The Girl,” a culturally androgynous figure who is always portrayed as larger than her environment, and who blurs the line between dictator, soldier, and child. Depending on the piece, the role of The Girl changes from the leader of an army of clones, to the symbol of a nation, and even to the possible destroyer of her world.

Achjadi was initially inspired by the change in American culture post-9/11, where new games and toys marketed towards chil­ dren oversimplified the idea of the war on terror. She was also intrigued by the Beijing Olympics, which made her want to explore the feelings of ownership and loyalty that we have for a country because we happened to be bom there. This combines to create work that is eye-catching and ultimately unsettling.

In true Transformers spirit, there is more to Lang’s work than meets the eye. His earlier pieces contain Ming vases and robot-like ce­ ramic pieces touching each other, but barely interacting. As you move through the exhibit, the interaction between the two—each repre­ senting either the past or the present—increas­ es as they appear to be pulling and pinching one another. When asked which one was going to win, Lang laughed and said, “It’s a tough call ... it really is a tough call.” By the end, however, the two appear to be working togeth­ er to form some sort of hybrid machine.

Lang was inspired by European cultures that used to import Ming vases from China, only to min their intended beauty by decorat­ ing them with gold. “[It’s about] making things make sense to us as a culture,” says Tang. “I’m kind of play­ ing with looking at how history is really mal­ leable and how it can really shift. We almost think that history is this kind of static story

f

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JULIA WEBSTER

What happens when Ming meets manga. that’s unchanging, but it’s not.”

Stylistically, Achjadi and Lang’s work share some common ground. They both draw heavily from pop art, while also delving into anime and manga influences. However, there is an element of campiness in both as well. “[It’s] almost making the past kind of cool and sexy, and that’s what we do as a culture,” says Lang. “The things that are coming in that are retro and vintage ... it’s just like we’re put­ ting this sort of spin on it to make it more eye­ catching, more sexy.”

In his non-fiction work Stranger Than

Fiction: True Stories, author Chuck Palahniuk writes about the effects of “narcotization,” a tendency for people to ignore problems when they seem too large or realistic and to instead see them as inevitable. In Sugar Bombs there’s no lack of serious themes filled with disturbing content, but they are presented in a way that is, well, sugar-coated—which makes them much easier to swallow.

Sugar Bombs runs until December 12 at the MAI, 3680 rue Jeanne-Mance. Admission is $15 for students.

JULIA WEBSTER

The world ending? Or just Dora the Explorer playing tug of war?

f j

RYAN TAYLOR

CHOOSE SNOB*I I get called a music snob a lot. I’ve used the music at parties and social gatherings to show off my “indie cred.” I buy vinyl and think it’s the best medium for music. I have an unhealthy obsession with the Polaris Music Prize. My friends have even started using “music snob” as the sole descriptor when introducing me to new people—but I'm not sure they’re right.

After all, I may not like your music, but I appreciate how it makes you feel. I’ll prob­ ably scoff if you say your favourite artists are Nickelback and Green Day or Kanye West and the Black Eyed Peas, but if that’s what you like—as misguided as I think you may

be—more power to you. Music is supposed to be about communication, telling stories, and connecting with other human beings.

I’m sorry that Kid Cudi doesn’t speak to me the way Adrian Jewett does, but if “Day and Night” is your anthem, listen to it. I may dis­ agree, but I’m not going to stop you.

I am not a layman listener. I analyze and participate in my music. I understand the skill it takes to play in 13/8 time, and I admire a well-placed Lydian passage and phrasing over the bar line. I don’t get excited over radio and club-friendly music because it's not challenging enough for me. I seek out the obscure not because I’m a snob, but because the mainstream is boring and I know better. It’s a “been there, done that” conviction, but I know not everyone has. In

the end, you do what you can do with what you’ve got.

This is what creates the difference be­ tween artists and entertainers. When was the last time Britney Spears wrote a song of her own? Has Lil’ Wayne ever recorded a song without the obvious mark of a producer?

It’S the entertainers that are making all the money and doing none of the work. I don’t support bands that no one knows in a con­ trived attempt to be “hip”; I support them because they are worthy. Why give more money to the millionaires when you can help those who do meaningful, artistic work and are barely scraping by?

If you're foolish enough to claim either The Beatles or Fall Out Boy as the “best band ever” and I tell you that you’re wrong,

it’s because you are. That’s not me being a snob—that’s the truth. Music is far too sub­ jective to have any absolutes. You may have a best band, but it’s the best band in your opinion, not mine, not anyone else’s. For all of my snobbery, I personally would never be that brash.

Excuse me for spending more time at II Motore and La Sala Rossa than at Tokyo and Blue Dog. I like what I like; you like what you like. We’re both right. My music is similar to a religious conviction in that I have 100 per cent faith in it. The fact that other people may have 100 per cent faith in their musical choices doesn’t bother me at all. But new converts are always welcome.

mcgilltribune.com

14 • Tuesday, November 17, 2009

THEATRE

Tw o brothers, both alike in rage and craziness TNC explores power dynamics in The Caretaker CAROLYN YATES M anaging Editor

Picture this: there are two brothers. One says everything he can think of, rapidly, and the other says nothing at all. Between them is an old homeless man: the caretaker. Thrown together by accident and rainy weather, the three juggle friendship and power against a backdrop of an abandoned house. And while nothing happens in Harold Pinter’s The Care­ taker, directed by Laura Freitag, it is inexpli­ cably transfixing nonetheless.

The play opens as Aston (Amanda Mc­ Queen) brings Davies (Melissa Keogh), an old homeless man, to live in a junk-filled room in an otherwise abandoned house, apparently maintained by Mick (Joy Ross-Jones), Aston’s younger brother.

Keogh has “smelly old homeless man” down to an art in her portrayal of Davies. Da­ vies rejects shoes with mismatched laces in favour of socks with sandals, is unnecessarily racist, and prefers drinking Guinness from a thin glass instead of a thick one. He is also, he confides, traveling under the name Bernard Jenkins, and he has to go to Sidcup—a London suburb—to get papers to prove his real identi­ ty. When Aston offers him a place to stay with disinterested charity, Davies is confused and distrustful, but accepts.

The next day, Mick discovers him alone in the house and tackles him. As the two en­ gage in tension-tinged banter, Aston returns, and what follows forces audience and actors alike to explore a compelling manifestation of power dynamics between the three that is at once relatable and very uncomfortable.

“It’s about power relations, it’s about every day life; anyone should be able to relate to it,” says Freitag. “It asks a lot of the audi­ ence in terms of intellectual stimulation ... I think it’s great, I think it’s funny—and if you don’t get the humour, you’ll get the serious­ ness, and the seriousness is the part you need to get.”

As the play progresses, it becomes in­ creasingly evident that all of the characters are completely insane. Davies is racist, dithering, and smelly; Mick speaks with the pace of a heroin-addict; and Aston’s experiences, unjus­ tified or otherwise, with electro-shock therapy have left him almost completely unable to con­ nect with those around him.

Despite a two-and-a-half-hour running

time and a fairly abrupt ending, the perfor­ mance was strong throughout. Ross-Jones’por­ trayal of Mick was volatile to the extreme, de­ livered with volume and speed, not to mention knives and two-by-fours. Slick and aggressive, Ross-Jones talks insurance and interior deco­ rating with equal ease, giving The Caretaker an almost surreal quality, and perfectly high­ lighting McQueen’s kind-but-creepy Aston.

The actresses highlight Freitag’s own spin on the play: casting women in the men’s roles, yet leaving those roles masculine.

“I like the idea of re-enlivening old scripts by casting gender neutral, so I cast women in male parts,” she explains. “We do use male pronouns because of the rights of the play but we can’t change any of the genders—it cues in

to the watcher that these are women playing men’s roles, but as women, and I really like the idea of that.”

At its heart, The Caretaker is about power relations. It explores inner fears and anxiety in alternately entertaining and sombre tones, which creates a high tension that is never sat­ isfactorily resolved. It is also designed to make the audience uncomfortable. And after opening with initially stilted dialogue, TNC’s produc­ tion blossomed into a genuinely uncomfort­ able experience—yet one that is completely engaging.

The Caretaker plays at TNC Theatre in Morrice Hall, November 18-21 at 8 p.m. Tick­ ets are $6 for students and $10 fo r adults.

F IL M

The M uppets w ere never this scary A Christmas Carol is darker, and better, than you remember RYAN TAYLOR C ontributor

The story of A Christmas Carol must be familiar by now: callous and greedy Ebenezer Scrooge is visited by the ghosts of Christmas past, present, and future, who show him what a pathetic excuse for a man he’s become and how he needs to reform his ways if he wants to avoid a lonely death. It has been adapted for theatre, television, and opera, and remade into countless movies by everyone from the Mup­ pets to Barbie. But never has the story been told in Imax 3D. Or been so dark.

Technology is director Robert Zemeckis’ forte and with A Christmas Carol he’s perfect­ ed the motion-capture technology he employed in The Polar Express and Beowulf. From the opening sequence, flying over the buildings and down into the alleys of Victorian London amidst falling snowflakes, it’s clear that 3D is in good hands. Avoiding the problem of so many 3D flicks these days, Zemeckis never lets the technology distract—it only enhanc­ es the spectacular landscapes and details the characters. We see every wrinkle on Scrooge’s scowling face and bony hands, every ghostly puff of chimney smoke, and every footprint in the freshly fallen snow. Like all films that

use 3D well (Up being a perfect example), you stop noticing it after 15 minutes, as it enhances but doesn’t dictate the story.

The movie belongs to Jim Carrey, and rightfully so: he plays Scrooge at three differ­ ent ages as well as every Christmas ghost. For the most part, he does well, bringing a level of humanness and sympathy to the bitter Scrooge as he slowly discovers the error of his ways.

Maybe the most impressive feat is that he doesn’t turn Scrooge into the cartoon villain he so easily could have.

Carrey’s work as the ghosts is equally im­ pressive, being unsettlingly jolly as the Ghost of Christmas Present and ominous as the Ghost of Christmas Future. His only misstep may be the Ghost of Christmas Past—a living flame with a falsetto voice that sounds like a hippy on acid is impossible to take seriously.

Though it may be a Disney movie, A Christmas Carol has little of that typical Dis­ ney feeling. Zemeckis’ take on Dickens is dark—not surprising considering Scrooge is essentially terrified into reform, but jarring because it’s unexpected. Scrooge’s deceased legal partner, Marley, is genuinely frightening as he clambers through the door shackled with weights to inform Scrooge of how the evening will proceed. Combine that with the shadowy Ghost of Christmas Future and its demon horses, and the feral twins of “Ignorance” and “Want” hidden under the robe of the Ghost of

Christmas Present as he dies, and it’s surpris­ ing Disney decided to put this one out. Kudos to Zemeckis for staying true to the nature of the original book and successfully terrifying five-year-olds everywhere who were brought to the movie by parents expecting something more akin to Mickey and Minnie.

If you’re going to see A Christmas Carol,

see it in theatres, as smaller screens really won't do the visuals justice. And while you’ve heard it before, Zemeckis succeeds in injecting some new life into Dickens’ classic story. If you don’t leave with even the slightest bit of holiday cheer, you might be a, well, I shouldn’t have to tell you.

THEPEOPLESMOVIE.WORDPRESS

Even when CGI’d, Carrey’s trademark facial expressions shine through.

Curiosity Delivers

Tuesday, November 17, 2009 • 15

BOOKS

A tale from the belly o f a w hale Crummey’s novel Galore up for Governor General’s Award LAURA TINDAL A & E Editor

“When I started the book, I just had this guy coming out of the belly of a whale. I didn’t really know who he was or why he was there.

So I was writing the novel, in a way, trying to figure him out as I went.”

In this way, the paths of the author and the reader are similar when it comes to Michael Crummey’s latest novel Galore—the reader is always trying to figure out the meaning and character of the man bom on the shore from the belly of a whale. Focussing on the lives of the inhabitants of a small Newfoundland fish­ ing settlement, the book follows the Devine and Sellers families over a span of centuries, and the feuds, marriages, curses, and redemp­ tions that tie the two together. Nominated for the Governor General’s Literary Award in Fic­ tion, Galore is a spellbinding read, straddling the line between folklore and historical fiction, telling a tale that mixes surreal, dreamlike events with a cold, harsh reality.

Crummey—a Newfoundlander himself— did a year of intense research at the provincial archives, reading community histories and speaking to locals about their family histories to collect the basis for the stories that make up his novel.

“Even a lot of the most outlandish stuff is pretty realistic in the sense that it’s mate­ rial that exists here, it’s not stuff I made up,” Crummey says. “My idea at the outset was not to make up anything, and just have every­ thing that happened in the book be stuff that I found. Now, I couldn’t help myself in the end.

I did end up making up quite a bit of the plot

RANDOMHOUSE

of the book, but in terms of the material that’s in there and the kinds of folklore especially that’s in there, almost all of that is stuff that I discovered.”

The entire novel plays with the idea of the truth behind unreal folklore, intermingling myth with reality in a poetic community histo­ ry. One character describes the coastal town as “a medieval world that was still half fairytale,” which is definitely how Galore paints New­ foundland.

“I wanted all of Newfoundland to happen between the covers of that book,” Crummey says.

At times, Crummey paints a land that is cruel, cold and ruthless, especially in the early days when homes were little more than shacks, and people survived winter by eating rotten potatoes and burning chairs.

“Newfoundland has always been a diffi­ cult place to make a go of it, but I was a little surprised myself while doing research at just how ruthless the place could be,” Crummey says. “If the fish didn’t show up—and often the fish did not—then people had nothing to fall back on.”

But Crummey believes that this same brutal lifestyle led to the surreal yet deeprooted beliefs and stories that make the history so interesting, and which fill Galore with tales of murderous husbands back from the dead, and identical triplets who are unaware of who was originally whom. “I think the extremity of what things were like here somehow fed the craziness of the folklore that sustained peo­ ple,” he says.

And these stories do seem to be what the community feeds off of in Galore, as each outcast character and their infamy is passed on to the next generation. The novel’s pages are filled with strong, determined female char­ acters—shaped by the harsh Newfoundland existence—who always seem to be pulling the strings.

“I think that women were put in positions where they had to be strong to survive,” Crum­ mey says. “I don’t want to give the impres­ sion that all women in Newfoundland are like that—and not even all women in the book are.

But the ones who interest me really are, and I think that’s why they play such a prominent role in the novel.”

Going into the Governor General’s Awards, Crummey is up against equally powerful women. “Who’s gonna beat Alice Munro? Really?” Crummey jokes, referring to the Canadian legend who is in the run­ ning for her novel Too Much Happiness. Of course, Crummey definitely has what it takes to be a contender. Galore isn’t a sprawling, dry, depressing family epic—it’s Newfound­ land’s history in a fairytale, and it can stand its ground, even against a legend.

The winners o f the Governor General’s Literary Awards will be announced November 17.

N o v e m b e r 1 7 -2 3 Wednesday. Film. The Real Ka­ zakhstan.

Most of what the average person has heard about Kazakhstan has come from an overhyped satiric film. The travelsontheglobe series, which exposes viewers to little-known and often misunderstood cul­ tures, is premiering an exploration of the conflict between rural life and Russian au­ thority in Kazakhstan. Seating is limited.

7 p.m. @ Cinema du Parc.

Thursday. Music. Daraja Benefit Concert with Claptrap.

Claptrap, Kings of the Juice, and Clinton Street will be playing a show to raise money for Kibale Health Clinic in Uganda. Feel good about yourself and hear great music at the same time. There will be a raffle with tons of great stuff as well! 9 p.m. @ 3 Minots.

Friday. Music. Dropkick Murphys.

Infamous for both their boisterous Celtic punk and love affair with Massa­ chusetts, Dropkick Murphys will be ship­ ping up to Montreal this Saturday. Grab your BoSox hat and a pint of Guinness to celebrate in true Murphys style. @ Me­ tropolis.

THEATRE

BOOKS

An Ecoholic Home m akeover Learn a greener way to clean SAM JESSULA C ontributor

It’s easy to say you care about the envi­ ronment, but harder to understand the impact that everyday household products have on the world around us. In her new book, Ecoholic Home: The Greenest, Cleanest and Most En­ ergy-Efficient Information Under One Roof, Adria Vasil sets out to resolve this issue by educating readers about the ecological impact of products from dishwasher soap to paint.

The result is a learning tool that presents an enormous amount of information. It seems that how we clean every part of our homes can affect the environment. Covering everything from cooking and cleaning to heating and cooling, Vasil provides both how-to instruc­ tion and a product guide in a voice that is al­ most, but not quite, humorous.

Vasil has written a column called Ecohol­ ic Home for the Toronto-based NOW Maga­ zine since 2004, and the book is a compilation of her articles. While the do’s and don’ts of household chores are interesting, the amount of information can be a bit overwhelming. In the original column format, the message would be more succinct and thus much easier to ab­ sorb than going through an entire list of heat­ ing techniques in one sitting. This feeling of

encyclopedic reading causes the reader to miss much of the intended humour in the book. The witty comments—albeit funny—don’t make up for the fact that you seem to be reading an oversized grocery list for fun.

The practical applications of Ecoholic are obvious, but its potential to make people change their attitudes toward their household chores is less so. Knowing that a certain win­ dow cleaner is more environmentally friendly might not be enough to justify a higher price tag, especially for students. With the exception of homemade toothpaste, it seems that saving the planet starts by depleting your wallet.

One of Vasil’s redeeming qualities is her low-key approach to environmental education.

She does not point fingers or threaten civili­ zation with apocalypse unless we radically change our lifestyles. She doesn’t discuss en­ vironmental policy, the economics of climate change, or sustainable development. She is simply providing us with a guide to making minor changes that might benefit the world around you. This is quite a change from most environmental discussions and it feels great to read a text that does not make you feel guilty for having once been in a car.

Ecoholic Home is extremely beneficial, although somewhat tedious. While handy as a reference, it is by no means a life—or life­ style-changer.

ADAM SCOTTI

Everybody’s favourite heroin junkies come to McGill in Players’ production of Trainspotting, the gritty yet witty dark comedy about self-destruction in Scotland. Runs November 18-21 and 25-28 at 8 p.m. in Players’ Theatre. Tickets cost $6 for students.

DO YOU ENJOY ART, THEATRE, MUSIC, OR FILM? DO YOU LIKE WORKING FOR FREE? WRITE FOR A&E! MEETINGS EVERY TUESDAY AT 5:30 P.M. AT GERTS

The University of Ottawa: among Canada's Top 10 research universities.* Collaborating with some of the country's top minds in the heart of the nation's capital.

It starts h ere » nm uOttawa L’Université canadienne C anada s university

www.grad.uOttawa.ca ^Source : RESEARCH Infosource Inc.

Sp o r t s

Curiosity Delivers

Tuesday, November 17, 2009 • 17

M A R T L E T B A S K E T B A L L - M C G IL L 57, C O N C O R D IA 6 6

Fourth quarter collapse, Stinger surge dooms young Martlets Inexperience on display as M cGill blows early lead WALKER KITCHENS Contributor

For the first 35 minutes of action at Love Competition Hall on Saturday night, the McGill women’s basketball team held their own against the visiting Concordia Stingers.

In a game that featured eight ties and six lead changes, the finishing touches belonged to the more experienced visiting squad. The Mart­ lets allowed Concordia to outscore them 16-7 over a five-minute span, and dropped to 0-3 in league action with a 66-57 loss.

“We need to start playing [the full] forty minutes,” said McGill Head Coach Ryan Thome.

Playing in front of a sizable home crowd, the Martlets got off to a good start, taking a 29-26 lead at halftime. Both teams employed a similar game plan, running whenever pos­ sible and utilizing a full-court press to force a combined 20 turnovers. The Martlets began the second half with plenty of energy, pushing the lead to 39-33 after consecutive jumpers by freshman forward Helene Bibeau. However, the lead was the largest McGill would enjoy all game.

The Martlets entered the fourth quarter up by four points but quickly let the lead slip away. McGill was unable to come up with any key defensive stops in the fourth quarter and quickly descended into foul trouble. The home team’s lack of defensive focus resulted in the Stingers shooting 14 free throws in the final quarter, running their total up to an astounding 41 foul shots for the game.

“We’ve just got to play better [man-to­ man] defence,” said Thome. “We foul too much, we use our hands too much, [and] we step in and reach too much instead of just play-

ALICE WALKER

Injuries to veterans Anneth Him-Lazarenko, Rikki Bowles and Elise Lepine forced the Martlets to start four freshmen. ing position [defence] and moving our feet.”

Concordia put the nail in McGill’s cof­ fin with 1:23 left in the game, and the Mart­ lets trailing 57-54. After stopping McGill on defence, Concordia forward Yasmine JeanPhilippe calmly hit a three to double the Sting­ ers’ lead. McGill freshman guard Françoise Charest failed to convert on two consecutive layups, ending any hope of a comeback.

Martlet veterans Anneth Him-Lazarenko, Rikki Bowles and Elise Lepine missed the game with injuries, forcing Thome to start four freshmen and bring another four rook­ ies off the bench. First-year guard Marie-Eve Martin commented on the difficulty of adjust­ ing to a new system and new players.

“It is tough [to play with new team­ mates],” she said. “We’re not [all] used to

playing with each other. We need to [improve our] chemistry and learn so we don’t have to talk.”

Thome, for one, knows that this year’s squad is a work in progress.

“It’s a young team,” he said. “I think what’s big too is that we have a couple veter­ ans who are key parts of what we do offensive­ ly [who] are out right now, that we could use, and [who don’t] make our rotation as young as it is right now.”

While the Martlets are certainly young, there is no denying that the team has talent, as Bibeau and Martin led the squad in scor­ ing. Bibeau scored 13 points and added four rebounds while Martin scored 22 points, 14 coming in the second half. Martin impressed with her ability to attack the offensive glass

and score off of broken plays. “[Martin] worked hard,” said Thome.

“She didn’t get easy buckets, she crashed the boards [and] got some loose balls. That’s what we ask from everyone.”

While the loss dropped McGill to the bottom of the QSSF West Division, the Mar­ tlets are optimistic that their potential can be realized over the course of this season. With a fully healthy roster and an improving rookie class, the Martlets could wind up surprising many teams later in the year.

McGill’s next game comes against the Bishop’s Gaiters on November 20 at 6 p.m., and the squad will get another shot at Concor­ dia the following day.

T h ir d M ax I n — KAILAN LEUNG

BOTH TEAMS PLAYED HARD*I If I had to compile a top-10 list of jobs I would hate to have, refereeing would cer­ tainly make the cut, just above working in a morgue, and right below being Kanye West’s publicist. Having played a variety of sports at reasonably high levels over the course of my high school and university career, I’ve come to realize that referees are some of the most universally detested individuals around. While I can appreciate the difficulty in officiating sports, and commend those who strive for impartiality night in and night out, I’ve played and watched sports enough to also realize that refs—just like everyone else—sometimes deserve to be criticized.

Last week, Manchester United benchboss Alex Ferguson was fined roughly $40,000 and suspended four games for sug­

gesting that the referee who officiated a loss to Sunderland lacked the fitness to keep up with the pace of the game. While Ferguson’s comments were inappropriate and unprofes­ sional, they certainly did not cause $40,000 worth of damage. The Football Association’s response to referee criticism is indicative of the insecurity surrounding officiating and “good sportsmanship” not only in soccer, but in all major professional sports today.

Over a three-day span in October dur­ ing the NBA preseason, three coaches were punished for publicly criticizing various referees. These coaches, along with their respective franchises, were fined a collec­ tive $155,000. Chicago Bears quarterback Jay Cutler was charged $20,000 a few days ago for verbally abusing a referee. Earlier this month, Edmonton Oilers coach Craig MacTavish was slapped with a $10,000 fine by the NHL after criticizing a ref for disal­

lowing a goal that video replay later showed should have counted.

Referees deserve to be protected, but not to the extent that we have seen in the past few months. The FA, NBA, NFL, and NHL are making a killing through the arbi­ trary suppression of honesty and emotion from players, coaches and management.

People constantly talk about the need to pre­ serve the integrity of the game, but forcing everyone to smile and nod at press confer­ ences doesn’t help achieve this at all.

Do referees deserve a certain level of respect from all those who play or watch a sport? Undoubtedly. Do they need to be pro­ tected from the criticism of their coworkers?

Absolutely not. Spiderman taught us that with great power comes great responsibil­ ity. I’d like to add to this truism, and suggest that with great responsibility also comes an obligation to be open to criticism.

Part of being a referee is knowing that you’ll make mistakes and offend a vast number of people. Accepting criticism should be part of the job. Yes, verbal tirades that devolve into personal attacks should be isolated and punished. But fines in the thou­ sands of dollars for “publicly criticizing” the officiating of a match is ridiculous.

Referees are human, and they get things wrong. Often, they deserve the criticism they receive, just like many athletes and coaches deserve the criticism that comes their way. By threatening individuals who dare to voice their opinions with huge finan­ cial losses, many professional sports leagues risk becoming increasingly bland, robotic, and uninteresting. Let them rant and rave.

The refs don’t need to be protected, and nei­ ther do the fans.

mcgilltribune.com

18 » Tuesday, November 17, 2009

M A R T L E T H O C K E Y - M C G IL L 4 , C A R L E T O N 2

Martlets rip Ravens in rare come-from-behind victory M cGill caps off banner-raising ceremony with solid win JOHN HUI C ontributor

With all the festivities surrounding the banner-raising ceremony at McConnell Arena on Saturday night, it was hard to tell that the McGill women’s hockey team still had a game to play. The 2008-2009 CIS champions were honoured at centre ice for their undefeated sea­ son last year, and got a chance to reunite with past players and coaches. Apparently, the visit­ ing Carleton Ravens decided that if they could not join the fun, the least they could do was try to spoil it. After the pre-game celebrations had died down, the visitors put the pressure on the home squad, forcing the Martlets to fight for a tough 4-2 win.

On a night that was reserved for CIS royalty, the Ravens forced McGill to play a champion’s game. Carleton came out strong, forcing McGill deep into their defensive zone and continuously pressuring the Martlets for opportunities, Carleton was rewarded with a power play goal from rearguard Victoria Germuska midway through the first period.

“I thought they forechecked us very hard,” said Martlets Head Coach Amey Doyle.

“They took advantage of turnovers, and they got some bounces and it gave them the early lead.”

Junior winger Ann-Sophie Bettez man­ aged to tie the contest midway through the sec­ ond frame, but Carleton continued to pressure the McGill backline. On defence, the Ravens blocked numerous shots and collapsed around the goal, while their forwards continued to clog up the neutral zone in order to prevent the Martlets from securing easy opportunities. The frustrated Martlets turned over the puck one too many times, and the visitors were able to capitalize with less than three minutes remain­ ing in the second period. The Marlets headed into the intermission down two goals to one.

However, McGill flexed their champi­ onship muscle and responded strongly in the final stanza.

“We were a little excited and nervous earlier on because it was a big game,” said

ADAM s c o r n

The Martlets scored three goals in the final period to run their win streak against CIS opponents to 61 games. third-year forward Jordanna Peroff. “Once we calmed down, though, they couldn’t catch up to us.”

After being penalized five times in the first two periods, McGill settled down into a consistent offensive flow in the third, domi­ nating possession and continually testing the Ravens’ defence. Freshman forward Kim TonThat scored the equalizer with a nice tap-in from the side of the net less than three minutes into the period, and Peroff staved off overtime by connecting on the game-winner near the 18-minute mark. Doyle wasn’t surprised to see her team persevere and snag the comeback victory.

“They never gave up,” said Doyle. “They worked hard from start to finish and played a full 60 minutes. I don’t think that they pan­

icked, they trusted each other, and at some point the puck was in the back of the net.”

Peroff’s goal capped a resilient team ef­ fort, and put the finishing touches on a night that truly belonged to the Martlets. Charline Labonte, McGill’s All-Canadian goaltender from last year’s championship squad, was on hand to celebrate with the team, thanks to a lull in her national team training commitments.

“It’s always so impressive and so special,” said Labonte of the banner-raising ceremonies.

“It is only our second title. It’s nice to be back and celebrate with the girls.”

Although the Martlets came out on top on Saturday night, there is still a lot of work that needs to be done if the team wishes to repeat last season’s performance. Cutting down on in­ fractions in the offensive zone and committing

fewer turnovers will be essential as the year progresses. Nevertheless, Doyle believes that the Martlets have the right mindset to achieve their goals.

“We continuously think [about] the pro­ cess,” she said. “We never focus on the out­ comes. We work hard every day and I think [hard work] pays off in the end.”

So far, it certainly has. McGill pushed its win streak against CIS opponents to an im­ pressive 61 games, and remain in total control of the top spot in the CIS national rankings.

The Martlets head east over the weekend to challenge St. Francis Xavier in non-confer­ ence play, before returning to Montreal on November 27 to take on the upstart Montreal Carabins.

Redmen bring home gold and silver over championship weekend Continued from COVER Gideon Balloch then made the conversion from a tough angle, putting McGill ahead 19-17 in the dying moments of the match.

“The wind was going across the field,” said Associate Co-Coach Craig Beemer. “It was a sideline kick—he put us over the top.”

Dalhousie came out swinging, tackling and rucking fiercely. But McGill was up to the task, dominating set pieces and capitalizing on the Tigers’ turnovers.

“Our forwards were probably bigger and more physical in the set pieces,” said Beemer. “[But] Dalhousie wasn’t holding anything back.”

The Redmen’s backline—a dominant force in the Quebec Students Sports Federa­ tion-played well, consistently exploiting gaps

in the Dalhousie defence. In turn, the Tigers’ backline moved the ball well and successfully maintained possession. Dalhousie drew first blood, jumping ahead 5-0 after hooker Ewan Wilson scored his first of two tries. The Redmen responded, though, pulling ahead 7-5 after Balloch converted another tough kick on fly-half Kyle Buckley’s try.

The Tigers were ahead 10-7 at halftime, but the Redmen came out with impressive focus. After trading tries, Crow then scored with five minutes left, setting up Balloch’s clutch conversion.

“I’m extremely happy with the way things ended up this season,” said Redmen Head Coach Sean McCaffrey. “It was a goal that we set aside at the beginning of the year—and we worked hard for it all year.”

Thousands of miles west in Langley, B.C., the Redmen soccer team looked to put the finishing touches on a memorable run to Nationals, taking on QSSF rivals Laval in the CIS national championship game. The match marked the first time two Quebec teams have met in the CIS finals of any sport.

The Redmen looked unstoppable early in the match, jumping out to a 2-0 lead. However, the team’s youth and inexperience showed as the game progressed, as McGill lost focus and allowed the Rouge et Or to rack up three goals in the final four minutes of the first half. Firstyear Head Coach David Simon, a former Red­ men player himself, commented on the bitter­ sweet nature of the tournament.

“This hurts right now,” said Simon. “[But] when we look back on the season in a few

weeks time, a silver medal finish is pretty good for a team that wasn’t expected to be here. We exceeded all expectations and I’m proud of what we accomplished this season.”

Rookie striker Louis-Charles Laliberté scored the championship-winning goal for the Rouge et Or, blasting a 40-yard free kick past Redmen goalkeeper Jean-Lou Gosselin in the 45th minute of play.

“If you hit it right, the ball moves in the wind and that makes it hard for the goal­ keeper to make the stop,” Laliberté said.

Though the Redmen applied waves of pressure in the second half, the Rouge et Or, playing with five men back, stymied the on­ slaught, en route to their first national champi­ onship in school history.

If y o u a r e

1

or u n d er

9

you can n o w

be

v a c cin a te d a g a in st

H1N1 flu ► Where: The clinic nearest McGill’s downtown campus is at Plaza Alexis Nihon, located at Atwater and Ste. Catherine Street (Atwater Metro Station on the Green line). ► When: The clinic is open from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m., 7 days a week.

Coupons to determine your appointment time are distributed each day first come first served, until daily supply of vaccines is exhausted. ► What you need: Quebec residents need health care card and proof of residency; students from other provinces need provincial health card and student id, plus proof of residency; students from out of the country need student id, plus proof of residency. ^

Why: Public health authorities recommend vaccination as an effective way to avoid H1N1 (swine) flu, a virus that can make you very sick for several days.

► If you live off campus you may want to go to another clinic that is more convenient. Here is where to find a clinic near you: http://vaccination.msss.gouv.qc.ca/index_en.php V a c c in a tio n s fo r g e n e ra l p u b lic [o ld e r th a n a re a v a ila b le as o f D e c e m b e r

7, 2009.

79 y e a rs

w ith o u t a n y u n d e rly in g m e d ic a l c o n d itio n !

NB. This d a te is s u b je c t to c h a n g e d e p e n d in g on the

s u p p ly o f vaccines. See c o m p le te up to d a te in fo rm a tio n a t w w w .p a n d e m ie q u e b e c .g o u v .q c .c a

W M c G ill

For more information about the flu and how to avoid it, please visit www.m cgill.ca/health

M CGILL REMEMBERS

PHOTOS BY ADAM SCOTTI