Photo by Bagingan Bermoral via Flickr
››Calculus has forced me to rethink me and I hate it
Matthew Fraser Editor in Chief
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great man named Marcus Garvey once said: “If you have no confidence in self, you are twice defeated in the race of life.” Conversely, I have been told all too often that I am overconfident and foolish. Unfortunately for me, calculus is a requirement for my degree of choice. As such, I have the great and unavoidable fortune of testing my self-confidence against the strongest fighter I have ever encountered. This is a fighter wellequipped and infinitely capable of testing your limits through guile, deception, trickery and the most confounding techniques you can imagine. It is my great fortune and unending good luck to think I understand things just enough to land in a state of hubris but not enough to get the grades that I believe I deserve. Some would say that this
is a matter of expectations not matching reality. I would prefer to see this as a failure of marks to fully reflect my genius. It has to be that my genius is not properly measured by these tests and not that my ego is outstripping my cognition. If that were not the case, I’d have to find a new saying to guide my life. I have travelled too far and been too successful to have to change things now. The worst part is that I have taken the words of my previous math teachers to heart. They all agreed in one format or another that the secret to mathematic success is continuous and repeated effort. One called it “donkey work,” doing every problem in the textbook until you are assured that you know what to do. Another called it the “kung-fu method,” repetitive training that ingrains the lessons and the methods into you the learner. I call it agony both torturous and painful. Well, maybe not that; sometimes it's cathartic for me
to sit in a dark room and wrestle my mind against the problem. It is so satisfying when I best the problem and the answer at the bottom of my page is identical to that which resides in the back of my textbook. And such success leads to the bloating of my ego. I smile, I preen, I may even holler. My spine gets elongated, I hold my head up high and then I am the very image of self-assurance. Alas, even the mighty must be brought low, and on my way to the top hubris appears and siphons my prize from the ledger of my report card. Damn it all to hell and curse the fact that this is required for the unending glory and achievement I have planned for myself. Isaac Newton is considered by some to be the father of calculus, well I’m glad he died a virgin for the sin he committed of creating this foul discipline.
The Other Press has been a student newspaper since 1976. Since 1978 we have been an autonomous publication, independent of the student union. We are a registered society under the Society Act of British Columbia, governed by an eightperson board of directors appointed by our staff. The Other Press is published weekly during the fall and winter semesters, and monthly during the summer. The Other Press is a member of the Canadian University Press (CUP), a syndicate of student newspapers that includes papers from all across Canada. The Other Press reserves the right to choose what we will publish, and we will not publish material that is hateful, obscene, or condones or promotes illegal activities. Submissions may be edited for clarity and brevity if necessary. All images used are copyright to their respective owners.
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matthew fraser
Matthew Fraser Editor-in-Chief editor@theotherpress.ca
Martha Alejandra Espinoza Illustrator
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Cover layout by Athena Little and CJ Sommerfeld Feature layout by Athena Little and CJ Sommerfeld
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Lettitor I thought so highly of myself too
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news // no. 3 • Comparing the cost of living in Vancouver to Toronto • A significant development in “Babes in the Woods” case ...and that's everything! Mo Hussain Contributor
Comparing the cost of living in Vancouver to Toronto
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ancouver and Toronto are two of the biggest metropolitan areas in Canada, where a lot of people want to live. Whether those two cities are affordable is a different discussion. To move into either city will be costly and there are a lot of aspects where prices are similar including housing, clothing, and entertainment. However, the cost-of-living database Expatistan shows there are some things that may be priced differently in one city compared to the other. Here are some cost-of-living differences between Vancouver and Toronto:
››A lot of similarities, but some interesting differences
PERSONAL CARE It turns out that taking care of one’s health in Vancouver is 23 percent more expensive than it is in Toronto. Things like a short visit to a private doctor in Vancouver is 98 percent more expensive than out east. The visit costs an estimated $143 compared to $73. One box of 32 tampons is also 34 percent more expensive in Canada’s westernmost province, costing $10 in Vancouver compared to $8 in Toronto. Going to the washroom is almost a dollar more expensive out west as well, with four rolls of toilet paper costing $3.67 compared to $2.88 in Toronto. FOOD Satisfying one’s hunger will cost a little bit more in Vancouver as food is 11 percent more expensive compared to Toronto. Expatistan showed that it cost 23 percent more to have a basic lunch with a drink in Vancouver's business district, costing $25 in Vancouver compared to $20 in Toronto. To grab 500 grams of local cheese is also more expensive, with it being $13 in Vancouver compared to $10 in Toronto. People might have to crack fewer eggs in British Columbia because eggs are also more expensive. Twelve large eggs in Vancouver cost $5.31 compared to $4.47 in Toronto.
Photo by Billy Bui
TRANSPORTATION An overall aspect that’s cheaper in Vancouver compared to Toronto is transportation. Monthly public transit fare costs 15 percent more in Toronto. It also costs 12 percent more in Toronto to purchase a base model Volkswagen Golf. However, Toronto does still edge out Vancouver in some areas as gas is 17 percent cheaper and it’s 21 percent cheaper to get in a cab for eight kilometres.
One box of 32 tampons is also 34 percent more expensive in Canada’s westernmost province, costing $10 in Vancouver compared to $8 in Toronto.
news // no. 4
theotherpress.ca
A significant development in “Babes in the Woods” case
Photo by CJ Sommerfeld
››Skeletal remains of two children found 7o years ago in Stanley Park finally identified
Brandon Yip Senior Columnist
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ne of Vancouver’s oldest unsolved murder cases had a significant development. In January 1953, the skeletal remains of two young children were discovered buried in a shallow grave near Beaver Lake in Stanley Park. The children's identities have remained a mystery, until now. The Vancouver Police Department held a press conference on February 15. Inspector Dale Weidman, commanding officer of the VPD’s major crime section, hopes this brings some closure to this tragedy. “These murders have haunted generations of homicide investigators, and we are relieved to now give these children a name and to bring some closure to this horrific case,” he said as reported by Global News. “Although significant folklore has surrounded this case for years, we must not forget that these were real children who died a tragic and heartbreaking death.” Police stated the two children were brothers, Derek and David D’Alton (ages six and seven). Global News reported the boys were descendants of Russian immigrants who arrived in Canada after
the 20th century. They lived in Vancouver and had a relative who lived close to the entrance to Stanley Park. The “Babes in the Woods” case made the front page of the Vancouver Sun in January 1953. The children’s remains were discovered by a park employee (remains were later displayed at Vancouver Police Museum). The remains were covered with a woman’s fur coat. Other items found at the crime scene were a woman’s shoe, two aviator helmets, a lunch container and a hatchet blade, which turned out to be the murder weapon. Police determined the killings occurred in 1947 after the children were bludgeoned by a hatchet (revealed by markings on the two skulls). However, police incorrectly identified the children as a boy and a girl. In 1998, DNA extracted from the children’s teeth revealed the children were two boys (brothers with different fathers)—changing the investigation significantly. Notably, what proved to be the pivotal moment in unearthing the mystery surrounding the “Babes in the Woods” case was the advancement of genetic databases. In February, CBC News reported a portion of the older boy’s DNA was sequenced and later uploaded to a genetic database. As well, Global News reported the samples
were later provided to a Massachusettsbased forensic genetic genealogist company called Redgrave Research Forensic Services: “The Redgrave team was able to identify the maternal grandparents of one of the boys and construct a family tree by comparing the victims’ DNA to people who had submitted their own DNA to private companies for genetic testing.” Lead investigator, Detective Constable Aida Rodriguez, said the assistance from Redgrave Research Forensic Services was a breakthrough. “We knew there were good odds of finding a living family member out there somewhere,” she said as reported by Global News. “But, once we discovered that DNA match, we still had a significant amount of work to do to locate family members, check school records, and confirm specific details about the victims so we could be absolutely certain about their identities.” Police were later able to find a distant relative of the boys living in a Vancouver suburb. In a February Vancouver Sun article, police in 1953 suspected that the mother murdered the two boys—even though they did not know who she was. Inspector Weidman was asked whether the mother is still the prime suspect and he replied, “I think we have to…make that assumption.
She would definitely be a person of interest if this case occurred today. Naturally, we would be looking at the mother.” Police declined to disclose the mother’s name. But according to Vancouver writer and author, Eve Lazarus, she wrote the mother’s name was Eileen Bousquet (birth name). She died in 1996. Also attending the press conference were Dr. David Sweet, forensic dentist at UBC (who discovered the children were two brothers) and retired Vancouver Police Department homicide detective, Brian Honeybourn. Both men have a longstanding association with the “Babes in the Woods” case. Honeybourn spoke about remaining positive and having faith that the two brothers would one day be identified: “[We] kept it to ourselves what biological remains were kept for future advancement and DNA and scientific research. We kept that secret for [many] years.” Dr. Sweet summarized eloquently the significance of DNA in restoring the identity and dignity to the two young victims, murdered in cold blood 75 years ago: “We deserve an identity and we have an identity that we enjoy when [we are] alive. And we also deserve that when [we are] dead.”
sports // no. 5 • Bruce Boudreau is disappointed by Canucks’ inconsistent play • How WWE is similar to HBO’s 'Succession' ...and more
Graphic by Martha Alejandra Espinoza
Sports
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Bruce Boudreau is disappointed by Canucks’ inconsistent play
››Poor starts in games against Islanders and Ducks revealing team’s shortcomings Brandon Yip Senior Columnist
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hould someone inspect the attendance records in the Department of History at UBC and see if any Vancouver Canucks players are enrolled in any classes? The reason is the team is very astute in learning to repeat the past. And this comes after another poor performance at home against the Anaheim Ducks on February 19. This culminated with a sold-out crowd at Rogers Arena for the first time since March 2020—after COVID-19 restrictions for large crowds were lifted by BC health officials on February 17. And in return the Canucks served the home crowd a big bottomless bowl of “unmotivated” and “disappointing” soup, losing to the Ducks by a score of seven to four. Anaheim scored three goals in the first period. Then another two goals early in the second period to make it 5-0 before Thatcher Demko was replaced by Jaroslav Halak. Demko allowed five goals on 14 shots with Halak stopping nine out of 11 shots—as reported by Sportsnet. At the time of writing, Vancouver’s record is 2422-6. They are sixth in the Pacific Division with 54 points, five points out of a Wild Card playoff spot. The Ducks came ready to play and were motivated in trying to end a fourgame losing streak. They sure did, with the Canucks being the perfect medicine. Poor
starts are hurting the team but if you are a glass-half-full person, the Canucks are still in the playoff race. But unfortunately, Vancouver’s poor start against Anaheim mirrors their previous home loss to the New York Islanders (who led 5-1 after the first period)—making the glass half empty. Plus, Vancouver is trying to catch four teams ahead of them for a Wild Card berth. And those teams will also be earning points; so, Vancouver is unlikely to make the playoffs. After the game, Canucks coach, Bruce Boudreau, was disappointed with his hockey club's start. “I think it’s pretty obvious that Anaheim was way more of a desperate team, and they knew what was at stake,” he said as reported by Sportsnet. “And we were just thinking that it was going to be an ordinary game when they knew it wasn't an ordinary game. That's where it started. And then it just unravelled after that. We all knew the importance of this game. To not come out with that sense of urgency is bothersome.” Boudreau also discussed his team’s preparation as he states that the team must change their bad habits now before it gets even worse. “I do this sort of graph and show them trends,” he said. “We tried to explain to them that we won the last two games, but we didn't play great. So we're trending in the wrong direction. In the Islander game, we allowed five goals in the first period. Not a good sign. And so
I mean, the (bad) habits that they might have had earlier are creeping in.” The Canucks would have a better effort in their next game against the Seattle Kraken on February 21, winning by a score of five to two. The game would be highlighted by the effort of Vancouver’s checking line of Tyler Motte, Matthew Highmore and Juho Lammikko. The line was on the ice for two goals, including Tyler Motte scoring the opening goal just 11 seconds into the game. Motte finished the game with a goal and an assist, Lammikko with two assists—and Elias Pettersson also had two assists. Pettersson now has 17 points in his last 15 games. He is showing signs of the player fans have been expecting to see. “Obviously last game [against Anaheim], we don’t like that,” Pettersson said to the media as reported by Sportsnet. “That’s not our identity. We [wanted] to be ready from the start.” In addition, Pettersson discussed his struggles this season and how difficult it was for him to get his confidence back. “It definitely played a part of it,” he said as reported by The Province. “Coming into the season was a little weird. I still had my wrist taped—I feel like that’s going to cause headlines— but I didn’t play for eight months, so it was definitely a slow start for me. It took me way longer than I wanted this season but I feel in the last couple of weeks that I’ve been playing like myself again.”
Bruce Boudreau was pleased with the effort of the “Motto Line,” and for now the line will be staying together. “I think anytime the coach has trust in players and then they have trust back in the coach... it works,” Boudreau said as reported by Sportsnet. “And I think right now, we both have trust in each other. They do what you ask them to do, and they can all skate. They pressure, pressure, pressure. And where they used to just hold their own (defensively), now they're starting to score some goals and that makes them even more valuable in my mind.” Lastly, some sad news as the Vancouver Canucks is mourning the loss of a member of their alumni. Ernie Dougherty passed away at age 97. He was the last surviving member of the inaugural Vancouver Canucks, a minor league team that began playing at the Forum in the Pacific Coast Hockey League (PCHL) in the 1945-1946 season. Dougherty told the Vancouver Sun in October 2019 that he was not a regular player in the lineup that season. “You’ve got to let the people know I was strictly a utility player,” he said. “But I outlasted everybody else.” The Canucks posted their condolences on Twitter on February 22: “Today is [a sad] day for the Canucks family. Ernie was a wonderful man and loved by everyone who knew him. He was a legend and will be dearly missed. Our deepest condolences to his friends and family.”
Is it too early for ››I don’t know if I’m prepared to have memories that are legal drinking age Matthew Fraser Editor in Chief
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ust a few weeks ago the SuperBowl featured what has strangely been a controversial and hotly debated halftime show. Setting aside the conservatives who have predictably come out in force against the rapping of rap music, social media was filled with incredulous teens and young adults watching their parents celebrate Snoop Dogg and Dr. Dre. Apparently, some of these teens had no idea that their mother once sang along to Mary J. Blige as well. But the thing that caught me so off guard was the combined nostalgia and space between young people and the things that they could identify with. I had to ask myself if I was now old enough to be out of touch with the youth. If you google the word nostalgia you will be informed rather quickly that the word is a portmanteau of the Greek words for home (nostos) and pain (algos). This allows people to reinterpret the idea of nostalgia as homesickness for a time long past. But that has made me wonder, is it too early for ‘90s nostalgia? Have the ‘90s receded far enough into the past that it can be painful to think of the home that exists no more?
On one hand, I am forced to admit from the outset that the 1990s are as far away from today as the 1970s were from the year 2000. The forward movement of time has dragged us far enough that the dust on my old walkman is both thick and legitimate. Even the idea of a Walkman is strange and dated; try explaining to someone in high school that you need batteries for your portable CD player. And now, when a song like “Too Close” by Next plays, the people who remember the coordinated dance moves and the weird ‘90s club set that every music video was filmed in are outnumbered and drowned out by those who think of the “Why you always lying” meme. Hell, even the eternal deities of Tupac and Biggie have faded to a shrine lovingly cared for by someone with back pain and grey hair. The resurgence of Kurt Cobain through Nirvana t-shirts sold as a package deal with vinyl records to kids who just want to thumbtack records to their walls doesn’t help either. Kids not old enough to be hipsters or cool enough to pretend salivate after Billie Eilish records that they’ll listen to twice, never understanding that new records today are not the same as the records made 40 years ago. Better yet is the fact that records basically died in the 1990s due to the CD.
The movies that were once in high demand at Blockbuster have receded to wistful online lists, while Blockbuster itself has descended to a longforgotten fairytale. As I write about these things I have no choice but to evoke the misty-eyed feeling of nostalgia I’d rather reject. When I think of my grey Playstation One—known to the loyalists by its codename PSX—and the boxy, veneer-panelled monstrosity I used to connect it to so I could play Spyro, Crash Bandicoot and Metal Gear Solid, I shudder to imagine that those memories are legal drinking age. Though it's cheating a bit due to its 2000 North America release, the excitement I felt first playing Pokemon Gold may be insurmountable as far as video game memories go.
‘90s nostalgia? But at the same time, I don’t want the ‘90s to be far away. I only just watched the Ringu series last year and I want to imagine that I will forever have more to discover from Japan's Golden era of media exports. It’s not fair to me that my love of Ghost in the Shell is antiquated. I just can’t accept that the unsettling beauty of Perfect Blue replete with its shock, its confusion and its strange bubbliness have been worn into the world and forgotten as it’s aged out of novelty and into nostalgia. But what good is it to fight? That weird blue, white and purple combo that was on everything is long gone. If you remember the interior of a ‘90s Taco Bell or McDonald's as well as I do this all makes sense. The garish colours of ‘90s anoraks and windbreakers have transitioned from the evidence of poverty and being out of step with the advancements of time into a delightful fashion statement from years gone by. That nuclear green fabric plastered with purple squares and yellow jagged lines is cool again if you are old enough to get it. Bringing back the look of Fresh Prince Will Smith is all the better now that some media exec has decided to refresh it for Bel-Air. I wish someone believed me when I screamed that it is destined to never be as good and certainly less popular, no matter whose name is on it.
And maybe that’s the nail in my anti-nostalgia coffin. Everything ‘90s is old enough to get tawdry remakes and I am old enough to hate it all. I was there, ready, and able to hate the Ghost in the Shell abomination—some have called it a remake—from its first announcement. I was prepared and capable of shaking my head at each new Eminem song, fully aware that his undeniable rap gift was still there, just buried and hidden. I’m even old enough to remember the Space Jam movie I watched a dozen times and the Micheal Jordan cake I got for my birthday after watching it. (Who thought it was a good idea to remake that? Kids don’t even like Looney Tunes these days and LeBron James is not the same type of awe-inspiring.) I still have the glossy commemorative book that came with the VHS somewhere in my old bedroom. Maybe I just want to keep a respectable distance between me and the Zoomers. I think I like the vision of myself as just old enough to be better, but not old enough to be disconnected. I like that I’m old enough to look down on TikTok but not old enough to be relegated to Facebook. I want to look at them and say: “I remember A$AP Rocky’s first mixtape and Rhianna's first hit. You don’t really get how awesome this baby is,” and really mean it. But at the same time, I like that their enjoyment of The Last Dance to still be connected to mine though less legitimate. I like remembering the time when channel three was necessary to play video games. I remember the time when the only TVs you could find at value village were Cathode Ray and had RCA jacks and Coaxial cables.
When I think of my grey Playstation One—known to the loyalists by its codename PSX—and the boxy, veneer-panelled monstrosity I used to connect it to so I could play Spyro, Crash Bandicoot, and Metal Gear Solid, I shudder to imagine that those memories are legal drinking age.
Illustration by Athena Little
It's too early for ‘90s nostalgia because I’m not prepared for my jokes about being too old for shit to be more than just a joke. If there is only one good reason for us to reject ‘90s nostalgia, it’s to protect unmarried, renter Millenials from the fact that we are closer to true adulthood than we are to the high schools we long ago left behind. Hell, nobody even wants a high school reunion anyways. We may as well keep the cryptocurrency versus Beenie Babies comparison on the hush and turn our heads from the thoughts of Tamagotchis. Maybe I’ll watch Juice and New Jack City before I segway to Demolition Man and White Men Can’t Jump. Nothing soothes quite like the cinematic highlights of the Yester-century.
sports // no. 8
theotherpress.ca
When Ali ‘floated like a butterfly and stung like a bee’ in Vancouver
Graphic by Martha Alejandra Espinoza
››Fifty years ago, Muhammad Ali fought Canadian boxer George Chuvalo that went all 12 rounds
Brandon Yip Senior Columnist
M
uhammad Ali, in his prime, loved to talk. That was likely the reason he was given the nickname “The Louisville Lip.” If there was one thing Ali loved was to tell everyone how pretty he was. Well, he was pretty. He was also “pretty” fast with his movements inside the ring, graceful like a ballet dancer and fierce as a raging bull. Ali was also one of the greatest heavyweight boxers of all time and the first boxer to win the world heavyweight title three times. This year marks 50 years since Ali’s appearance in Vancouver to fight Canadian boxer, George Chuvalo. The fight occurred at the Pacific Coliseum on May 1, 1972, and went the entire 12 rounds with Ali winning by unanimous decision. Ali later told retired Vancouver Sun photographer, Ralph Bower, that Chuvalo was the toughest opponent that he had ever fought. The two men had fought previously at Maple Leaf Gardens in Toronto on March 29, 1966; that fight also went the distance (15 rounds), with Ali again winning by a unanimous decision. Chuvalo would be the first fighter to go the distance with Ali as heavyweight champion. Ali generated headlines in the ring with his mixture of charisma, cockiness and supreme boxing ability. Ali was an entertainer and he knew how to sell himself and his sport. In a 1969 interview with the Associated Press as reported by CBS Sports, Ali admitted that watching professional wrestler, Gorgeous George (real name George Wagner), influenced his persona and behaviour in press conferences when he promoted his future fights (Ali also met Gorgeous George in Las Vegas in
June 1961). Ali was also a significant and influential figure for African Americans during the civil rights movement in the US in the 1960s. Other notable figures in the civil rights movement included Martin Luther King Jr. and Malcolm X. Ali was also a very polarizing figure in the US. He caused controversy for refusing to be drafted to fight in the Vietnam War. His decision was based on his religious beliefs as a Muslim (after joining the Nation of Islam). According to britannica. com, in March 1964, Ali, born Cassius Clay on January 17, 1942, in Louisville, Kentucky, changed his name to Muhammad Ali (given to him by his spiritual mentor, Elijah Muhammad). Ali was stripped of his heavyweight title in 1967. According to a biography on history.com, on June 20, 1967, he was convicted of draft evasion and issued a five-year prison sentence. Ali was also fined $10,000 and given a three-year boxing ban. He served no jail time while his case was appealed. Ali returned to the ring in 1970. In June 1971, his conviction for evading the draft was overturned by the US Supreme Court. According to Global News, the Vancouver fight in May 1972 was backed by Vancouver stock promoter, Murray Pezim and organized by Mario Caravetta— manager for the Pacific Coliseum. Caravetta was also good friends with Ali’s legendary trainer, Angelo Dundee. Greg Douglas, a veteran sports journalist, helped promote the Ali and Chuvalo fight in Vancouver. Douglas told Global News in June 2016 that the fight was “a great night in the history of Vancouver sports.” Douglas also remembered the anticipation of the fight was well-received in Vancouver. “It was electric,” he said. “It stole the
local sports limelight. The pre-fight was an event. Chuvalo was the sentimental favourite. There was no way he was going to beat Ali. It just wasn’t going to happen.” During his stay in Vancouver, Ali had a brief tour of Stanley Park. Ralph Bower recalled Ali loved it: “He said how lovely Stanley Park was, and that it would be a great place to train." According to Len Corben, a North Shore sports historian, Ali would also get acquainted with North Vancouver. Corben wrote about Ali’s visit to the North Shore in a column for the North Shore Outlook, stating the legendary fighter trained at Northwest Eagles gym in North Vancouver. Afterwards, he went across the street to the old city hall located on West Fourth Street to do a radio interview. Ali later met and had a playful interaction with Ron Gibbs, who was city clerk for North Vancouver for 30 years (a photo was taken of two men in fighting stances facing each other). Gibbs’ office was used for the interview Ali had conducted. Notably, Ali also made an impact on a young boxing prodigy named Dale Walters (his father Len was a championship boxer in the 1950s). He later represented Canada at the 1984 Olympics in Los Angeles, winning a bronze medal in the bantamweight category. Walters was inducted into the BC Sports Hall of Fame in 2006. He was at the Pacific Coliseum as a 10-year-old, fighting on the undercard that night and met Ali inside his dressing room. “It was something that I’ll never, ever forget,” Walters said to CBC News in June 2016. “The dressing room was just packed with people, Angelo Dundee had just finished wrapping Ali’s hands.”
Walters shared a memorable story about his interaction with the legendary boxer. Walters told an audience at the College of New Caledonia gym as reported by the Prince George Citizen in June 2016: “He said, ‘What’s your name boy?’ and I said ‘It’s Dale.’ Then he says, ‘Are you going to be the next champion of the world?’ I was [scared] and said, 'Yeah, I’m going to try.' And then he says to me, ‘Well you might be the next champion of the world but you’ll never be as pretty as me.’ And everybody laughed.” Ali retired from boxing in 1981 with a record of 56 wins and 5 losses with 37 knockouts. Sadly, years of absorbing punches from opponents took their toll on Ali’s health in retirement as he had a well-documented battle with Parkinson’s disease. Ali died in June 2016 at age 74. He will be remembered as one of the most charismatic, influential and entertaining boxers of all time. Ali was a pioneer with his antics during pre-match press conferences where he was brash and ostentatious. He laid the foundation for how a media briefing should be conducted in publicizing a fight. He, himself, was his best marketing instrument. Like the Pied Piper, Ali’s words attracted many followers. But 50 years ago, Ali showed why he was the “greatest” during his appearance in Vancouver. In Ali’s view, it was important to put on a show outside of the ring as it was to put on a show inside of it. Before his fight against George Chuvalo, Ali was asked by a CBC reporter, “Where do you go if you don’t win this fight?” Ali was astonished by the question and responded in his typical and unique fashion: “If I don’t win! Listen, if George Chuvalo dreamed he’d beat me, he better wake up and apologize!”
issue 22// vol 48
sports // no. 9
How WWE is similar to HBO’s 'Succession' ››The McMahon’s and Roy’s have a lot more in common than you’d think Mo Hussain Contributor ith WWE releasing Shane McMahon and Vince McMahon continuing to run the company at 76-years old with no end in sight, it’s very hard not to liken the current state of the company to HBO’s Succession. Succession is a television series about an aging media mogul refusing to give up power despite being out of touch with the current media landscape, while his children are in this constant battle to take it from him so they can move the company forward. The aging media mogul in WWE’s case is Vince McMahon, and in Succession, it’s Logan Roy. Both men have indirectly hinted at who could succeed them, but they’ve never given into it. In McMahon’s case, many thought that his son Shane would be the heir to the throne since he’s been in the business his whole life. He’s also had a lot of experience in the corporate world and the ring. Shane’s shown foresight into how WWE could innovate by pitching his dad
Promotional image for 'Sucession'
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to buy the UFC back in 2005, how ECW (an alternate wrestling program) could’ve aired exclusively online back in 2006, etc. However, Vince is yet to give up power to Shane and actually ended up releasing him in January. In Succession, Logan Roy’s son Kendall was supposed to replace his father
as CEO, but Logan is yet to give up power. In the show, Kendall proposes the company start investing a lot into digital platforms. However, Logan continues to invest in television networks despite the ongoing trend of cord-cutting. Like Vince, Logan also fired his own son in the first season of the show.
Both Vince McMahon and Logan Roy also have daughters in high positions of power within their companies, alongside their in-laws. In Vince’s case, his daughter Stephanie is the Chief Brand Officer for WWE, where she is essentially the corporate face of the company. She’s also married to Triple H, who runs WWE’s developmental program NXT, and has a big influence on the overall in-ring product on the main roster. In Logan’s case, his daughter Shiv plays a big role in the company’s strategic direction and PR departments. Like Stephanie McMahon, she’s also the company’s corporate spokesperson. Shiv’s husband Tom Wambsgans runs the company’s news department and plays a big role in developing Logan’s family member Greg into a solid executive. Although Succession is a fictitious show, and no one really knows what happens behind closed doors at WWE, it’s hard to look at the similarities and not think how there can potentially be some element of truth from the TV show to the actual company.
››It’s a nice storyline, but WWE has a couple of problems Mo Hussain Contributor
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he main event of Wrestlemania 38 is set in stone with Roman Reigns taking on Brock Lesnar in a “winner take all” match for both the Universal and WWE Championships. On the bright side, this is a pretty good match to headline with. Having both titles on the line gives the match high stakes, both guys are big names, there’s long-term storytelling dating back to August, etc. But it also presents WWE with a couple of problems. THE DILEMMA The finish of the match is predictable, and a win does nothing for either star. On one end, it makes no creative, financial, or any other sense to give Brock Lesnar the win. He’s getting old, only works part-time (so he can’t defend the championship consistently), doesn’t need the win for credibility, etc. WWE is obviously going to give the win to Reigns, who’s currently the clear-cut face of the company and probably will be for at least the next five years. A win for Lesnar would just destroy everything that WWE has built with Reigns over the last year and a half. The issue with Reigns coming out on top is that he would have nothing else to accomplish and the win would just make his character so dominant that no one in the roster can pose as a real threat. Ever since he debuted his “Head of the Table” character, he’s already torn through everyone. He’s beaten John Cena, Edge, Drew McIntyre, Big E, Seth Rollins, Finn Bálor, Daniel Bryan, Goldberg, Kevin Owens, etc. He’s already beaten the top guys on Smackdown, and the company hasn’t built up anyone in
the meantime that can pose a threat in the foreseeable future. It doesn’t help that Lesnar also plowed through everyone on the Raw roster in the build-up to this match. He beat four other guys at Day One, threw out the remaining wrestlers in the Royal Rumble like action figures, and single-handedly eliminated everyone at the Elimination Chamber. Having Reigns beat someone like that would just widen the gap between him and the rest even further and make his title reign stale because of the lack of viable opponents. Another issue about this match is that fans have already seen it countless times. Both guys wrestled at Wrestlemania 31, Wrestlemania 34, Greatest Royal Rumble 2018, Summerslam 2018, and Crown Jewel 2021. It’s fair to say that both wrestlers have evolved into different characters over the years but it’s ultimately still the two same guys headlining the biggest shows. If they’re going with this match, they need something to make it stand out from the other bouts and have the finish lead the company somewhere in the future. Here’s an alternative route that can fulfill those requirements. THE SOLUTION First of all, If WWE is marketing this match as “winner take all,” they need to go all-in on making the stakes as high as possible. That would mean outlining things like how this will be the final time Reigns and Lesnar will be in the ring, making it a unification match, no disqualifications, etc. The company should also consider adding in another competitor. Since having Lesnar or Reigns win is a lose-lose, WWE should add Seth Rollins to the match to make it a triple-
threat. Rollins has had compelling feuds with both wrestlers in the past, but fans have never gotten to see all three men start and finish a match together. Since the stakes are so high with this many characters, it should also take a special kind of referee to make sure this match goes through properly. That referee should be Stone Cold Steve Austin. Wrestlemania is already in his home state, and he would add an interesting element to the match because of the relationship he would have with all three competitors. With Reigns, Austin would just play into how he is full of himself and how he won’t tolerate his bossy attitude. With Rollins, Austin would play into how annoyed he is with Rollins’s shenanigans through his new ‘drip’ gimmick. With Lesnar, Austin has already had real-life drama with him, so WWE can lean on that story. As for the actual match itself, it should have plenty of moments where all three guys are arguing with Austin, and it looks as if he could cost any of them the match at any point. However, the climax of the match would be Brock Lesnar F5’ing Rollins. Rollins would then kick out of two, which puts Lesnar in disbelief. That disbelief would then turn into rage as Lesnar would put his hands on Austin and beat him up. The Rock would then come down to save Austin by beating up Brock Lesnar since Austin is a long-time friend. After the Rock drops a people’s elbow, Reigns rolls into the ring and both of them
Photo of Roman Reigns by Tiffany Windham via Flickr
How WWE should book Roman Reigns vs Brock Lesnar
have a face-off. Reigns asks The Rock why he’s in his ring, and the Rock should “acknowledge” him, etc. After about 30 seconds of Reigns going off, the Rock picks him up for a Rock Bottom, hits him with a people’s elbow, and leaves the ring. Rollins then slowly crawls and spreads his hands out to pin both guys and wins the match. The finish of this match sets up multiple different stories to run in the future. There’s obviously the Reigns/Rock match that can come about because the Rock cost Reigns the title, and both of them have family ties that they can play around with. The Rock and Brock Lesnar can even have a story moving forward because he also cost him the match, but also because of the history, they’ve had with Lesnar beating the Rock in 2002. Finally, this also helps get the championships off guys who wouldn’t be efficient with them moving forward. Giving the titles to Rollins will make title defences more consistent, and he’d have viable opponents who fans believe can beat him.
Have an idea for a story? arts@theotherpress.ca
Arts
arts // no. 10 • Akaash Singh has a fresh take on race comedy • ‘The Porter’ review ...and that's absolutely everything!
‘Bring Back Apu’ review ››Akaash Singh has a fresh take on race comedy
ver the past few months, numerous comedians have gotten themselves into trouble or become the refocused centre of attention. Dave Chappelle had his last special blow up before he recently got caught opposing a housing development in his neighbourhood; Joe Rogan had a compilation video of him saying the N-word go viral and most recently, a Louis CK show in besieged Kyiv dragged that comedian back into the spotlight even though it was cancelled. As a result, it is kind of hard to remember that the point of comedy is to look critically at the world around us and make audiences laugh. In his first special released for free on YouTube, Akaash Singh highlights his experience as an IndianAmerican in the woke and #MeToo era. He opens the special by talking about white privilege and his disdain for some aspects of racial politics. He is quick-witted and holds no punches as he references Donald Trump and compares white men to cats. His jokes flow naturally and his commentary does not come across as preachy or holier-than-thou. When he gets into the #MeToo movement, he dances between being abrupt and hilarious. The way he plays the relative experiences of women worldwide against each other may be offensive to some but I think makes for a great point. Part of the joke relies on heavy
Photo of Apu by JDZ via Flickr
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breathing and a creepy smile that generates laughs and the required unease from the audience. Maybe the best part of this section is when he hams up his initial misinterpretation of the meaning of the #MeToo movement. One of the more subtle parts of the special was Singh’s clear annoyance at the erosion of freedom of speech. Other comedians have voiced similar concerns recently, but all too often it comes across as self-aggrandizing or self-centred. Singh by contrast just seems to take an observation and then turn it into a humorous comment. The audience gets to see his perspective on the matter and hopefully also the perspective of some people who are also concerned with their ability to say what they think. Singh has a practiced and smooth delivery that shows he is well experienced on stage. He comes across as in control of his audience as well as fully engaged in the performance he is delivering. I do not doubt that he could just as easily command a large arena if he was given the opportunity. The only negative thing that could be said about the special is that it was too short. With its 19 minute runtime plus credits, it is a bit disappointing in how quickly it ends. However, if not for that, it is a highly enjoyable first special and one that shows Singh is a comedian to watch. With his podcast co-starring fellow comedian Andrew Schultz and his other media appearances, I am sure we will see much more of Singh soon.
There’s something more about Henry? ››‘The Porter’ review Jerrison Oracion Senior Columnist
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Promotional image for The Porter
Tariq Ghanzi Contributor
anada has a rich history that has set examples for the rest of the world and led to innovative achievements. There is also a history that shows a different Canada that you may not know and a history that is underappreciated. Some people might know the lost neighbourhood of Logan’s Alley in Vancouver’s Black Canadian history. In the 1920s, there were a group of black Canadians that worked in a major railroad company that travelled between Montreal and Chicago. Their story was almost forgotten until now with The Porter. The show which is a coproduction between CBC and BET is historic because it is the first Canadian show to have both a mainly black cast and crew. The show begins in 1921 during a time when black Canadians did not have a lot of labour rights and prohibition was in effect in the United States. Junior Massey (Aml Ameen) goes on his routine job as a porter for Cross-Continental Railway. He and his fellow porters including his best friend Zeke (Ronnie Rowe Jr.) served during World War I. When one of the porters, Henry, passes away on the job while repairing the train’s air conditioning, their bosses charge his family for his uniform because he is black. His family is at the UNIA where Junior’s wife, Marlene (Mouna
Traoré), works as a nurse while persuading her boss to get more funding for their services. These events lead to a movement where a person’s wealth is not determined by their race but instead by class. One of the first few shots in the first episode of The Porter where we see the porters on their way to work was like watching a 1970s drama and shows how close they were even at work and a flourishing neighbourhood in Montreal during that time. The rest of the episode gave me vibes of a Barry Jenkins film especially the show’s score which has an avantgarde sound combined with jazz music; it shows the grittiness of how all the characters are struggling and looking back at their past. The story is complex but might end up being predictable in the end. The acting in the first episode is great, especially from Rowe Jr. and we will see more of that throughout the show. So far, the bosses of the porters were depicted as trying to stop their movement which could also add to the problems that will emerge later in the season. The Porter got a lot of hype just a few weeks before it began and could shed light on how a group of black Canadian railroad workers championed their labour rights in the country. There was a talk with the creative team of The Porter this week presented by VIFF that aired on their website; they talked about the creative process of the show which I will talk about next week. The Porter airs Monday at 9:00 PM on CBC.
Have an idea for a story? lifeandstyle@theotherpress.ca
Life & Style
life & style // no. 11 • Living small doesn’t mean you have to feel like its small • Birds to look for in Vancouver ...and that's it!
Birds to look for in Vancouver Ash Sabinin Contributor
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s spring starts to bloom, it brings nature back to life in the form of growing flora and fauna. Lots of this nature can be seen from the comfort of one's own living room, especially when one lives in ‘Beautiful British Columbia.’ Looking out the window and seeing a variety of different birds enjoying themselves in the sun is one of the best parts of the warmer seasons. In BC, we are blessed with such a large variety of beautiful birds so this list will introduce you to some that you might see during your daily routine. First up is a classic, the Black-capped Chickadee. Chickadees are absolutely adorable with their little round bodies and black and white markings around their eyes. They don't migrate which means you can spot them in the air or trees all year long. They often nest in birdhouses due to their curious and adventurous nature. Their fearless personality is what makes them most likely to be one of the first birds to explore a new bird feeder which makes them many people's favourite. You can hear them on your daily commute as they have
a pretty distinctive chirp, which sounds somewhat like their name. Next up is my personal favourite, Anna’s Hummingbird. There are over 350 hummingbird species in the world, and we have reports of at least 4 of them being present in British Columbia. Anna’s hummingbird is the one that I see most often which has given me plenty of opportunities to study them up close and really appreciate them in all their glory. From their beautiful iridescent feathers to the speed at which they beat their wings and zoom from place to place, I absolutely adore them. Fun fact, hummingbirds can weigh anywhere from four to eight grams due to their small stature and hollow bones. Setting up a hummingbird feeder or planting flowers that are loved by pollinators is a great way to attract hummingbirds to your home. Another beautiful bird that can be found in BC is the Steller's Jay. This gorgeous bird has stunning blue plumage and is often misidentified as a Blue Jay. The confusion is understandable as they both have beautiful blue feathers, but Blue Jays have light, cream-coloured feathers on their stomach and face whereas a
Steller's Jay has a blackhead. Steller's Jay’s are known to be quite territorial and can get aggressive with other birds when competing for land or food. This bird is definitely one of the most eye-catching with its beautiful colouring and can often be found in forests and wooded backyards. Last but not least is the Bushtit. The Bushtit is a small, tan, and grey bird that travels in groups, often venturing from one feeder to the next in tiny swarms made of little cotton ball-like bodies. These birds are also quite tiny and often hop from branch to branch in search of bugs to eat. They seem to stick to a certain routine so once they’ve established a place as a source of food, they’ll stop by regularly to have a snack. These tiny birds bring me so much joy each morning when they flock to the feeder, and just dig in to their little hearts' content before flying off together as a happy, little family.
Photo by Billy Bui
››Joyous little creatures I like
Setting up bird feeders is a great way to increase your chances to interact and observe other creatures in their natural habitat. Nature gives us so many beautiful gifts and some of them are so little that we really need to know what to look for, so I hope this list opens your eyes to some of the birds that live around us.
Space-saving hacks
››Living small doesn’t mean you have to feel like its small Tariq Ghanzi Contributor
Photo by Billy Bui
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ometimes the only place you can afford is tiny or is shared space. When that happens you might need some space-saving tips to make your life easier. Here are a few things I have picked up over the that will help your small space feel bigger. Use as many transparent pieces of furniture as possible. It sounds weird but having solid objects like wooden desks and leather chairs takes up more visual space. You see, there is this weird optical trick that gets played when you can see through something that somehow tricks your brain into thinking that they take up less space and in turn that you have more space than you really do. So instead of an oak top desk, pick one with glass; for your computer chair pick one that is mesh or at least is fairly skinny and not upholstered. Use the backs of doors as storage. If you go to a dollar store you will find these over-the-door clothes/ coat racks. They are excellent for conserving space. Another great use is an over-the-door shoe rack. A lot of them are made out of cheap fabric but can hold a dozen or mair pairs of shoes. You can stick all different types of things from gloves, toques, sunglasses, and more into unused pockets. It is a useful and creative multipurpose way to conserve space and store things.
Get multi-use furniture. An ottoman that you can store things in is 100 times more useful than a table. A pegboard that you use to hang loose cables, as well as knick-knacks, is more effective than a painting on the wall. Learning different ways to use your limited space in multiple ways will definitely make your life easier. It’ll also help your square footage feel more premium; a higher quality piece of furniture with multiple uses will make your life feel more luxurious and useful. Own less stuff. This is the most obvious of suggestions but I still think it’s a necessary one to make. Owning less doesn’t mean limiting yourself to just one pair of pants, it might mean using your available space more effectively by combining uses. Why own a TV and a computer when you only need one? If you can get a stand for your monitor and move it into a more central location or plug everything into one device then you should do that. Maybe you’ll be better off selling both and getting a new TV that is better suited to dual uses. These aren’t the most perfect suggestions ever made, but they are guaranteed to work. If you are clever, your small space will feel welcoming and enjoyable without being cramped. You will certainly want something bigger or more suitable eventually but in the meantime, this will make it work.
It sounds weird but having solid objects like wooden desks and leather chairs takes up more visual space.
Opinions
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opinions // no. 12 • Montreal is taking steps to hold slumlords accountable and I love it • Is binge-watching a fad? ...and that's all, folks!
Is binge-watching a fad? ››Speeding through the hype
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lmost a decade ago, Netflix changed the way we watch TV shows with the release of the first season of House of Cards. Instead of airing the episodes once a week on traditional TV, the entire season was available all at once. This allowed you to watch it at your own pace or watch it in one viewing. Since then, many streaming services were launched but instead of releasing entire seasons of their shows, they air them the traditional way weekly. When seasons of shows on Netflix are released, there would be a lot of discussions on them for a moment but that would quickly dry up. It is not like when you read a book in a day and still talk about and revisit it to keep talking about it. For me even if I am watching a show on Blu-ray, I watch four episodes at a time or marathon a few episodes of a show on Netflix and then wait until the next season is available. A show airing weekly keeps everyone talking about the show until the season is done, and they would still discuss it overall when it is on break. That is the reason why shows like Succession and Euphoria which are HBO shows that
also stream on HBO Max and shows that are related to the Avengers on Disney+ are trending on Twitter. Airing weekly works if you have to catch up on a show even if an episode is a two-part episode where you can wait a while and watch them as one episode. I was surprised that shows on some streaming services air weekly instead of all at once. Examples of this include Ted Lasso where each season has 20 episodes but feels more like 10 episodes since there are a lot of twopart episodes in the season. When I watch anime shows, sometimes the storyline does not end in such a way that you can take a break when you want to. Watching a show can be exhausting depending on the length of a season and the running time of each episode. A break for a show airing weekly can allow you to do other things instead of taking half of a day to binge-watch an entire season of a show. While Netflix has a few shows that trend on Twitter, most of them do not get a lot of hype so they end up getting cancelled after one season. Because the weekly method works, Netflix sometimes releases seasons in halves. It is kind of still bingewatching but could still create hype leading up to the second half of the season.
It is not the first time that shows are aired in halves. The last season of The Sopranos was split in half even though that was unusual for an HBO show. Even the last season of Attack on Titan where there is a long gap between the two halves of the season and Breaking Bad where its last season was initially going to be split in half but ended up being two separate seasons.
Some of the shows on Netflix that have seasons split in half are Ozark and the new season of Stranger Things—though I still have not finished the second season yet. The idea of watching an entire season of a show all at once will probably still exist regardless of how they are released, but the discussions and hype of shows will always be changing.
Photo by CJ Sommerfeld
Jerrison Oracion Senior Columnist
Hail the landlord registry
››Montreal is taking steps to hold slumlords accountable and I love it
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ecretly I despise my landlord. Well, maybe despise is too strong a word. It might be more accurate for me to say that I find paying him to live in this lightless shoebox extraordinarily disagreeable.
However, Vancouver is expensive and unfortunately, I am poor so this is the best I can do until I either get rich or find myself a rich sugar mama. However, I am aware enough to recognize that there are some if not many tenants who have it worse than me. Some landlords are more akin to the slumlords of horror stories and nightmares.
They rent out dilapidated buildings and care only enough about the well-being of tenants to ensure that they pay their rent in full and on time. On February 15, Montreal Mayor Valerie Plante announced a landlord registry to “tighten the screws” on substandard landlords and their buildings. My first thought: nice. My second thought: this won’t make housing cheaper at all. But, it will forcefully hold some of the worst actors accountable for the poor quality housing that some unfortunate people are forced to live in. According to reporting from CBC, the new measure will first target buildings with 100 or more units before extending downwards to cover all buildings with eight or more units by 2027. When I think of the Sahota family and the horrifying conditions they allowed in Photo by CJ Sommerfeld
Matthew Fraser Editor in Chief
their buildings I think it’s high time that something like this is tested out, worked on and widely adopted. As this plan first targets the largest of buildings before working its way downwards, this should first address the actual businesses—meaning the people who rent to profit—before the small families that live in the same houses they rent as a means to make ends meet. Even though landlords in Montreal have already begun to speak out against the plan, I am unswayed. If the price of doing business cuts into their bottom lines because they have to get their thirty-unit apartment inspected every five years, I don’t care. I would be more sympathetic if it fell on the smaller households first, but the extensive multi-units, no problem for me. There's no doubt in my mind that there will be hiccoughs, problems and lessons to be learned, but I also think that cleaning up the most problematic apartments justifies the trials. Obviously, when landlords have their say, they will argue that the cost of upkeep is just too much and that mould inspections are far too onerous or whatever, but I think its high time that attempts are made to hold these businesses to a higher standard than the one that currently exists.
Illustration by CJ Sommerfeld
The Other Playlist
Letting old and new music continue enriching your everyday listens Jonathan Pabico Senior Columnist
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ur parents will always be the first ones who influenced our musical tastes during our early years. Because of our folks, we got to enjoy many classic songs from The Beatles, The Rolling Stones, David Bowie, Elton John, Queen, and so forth (thank you so much, Mom and Dad, you’re the best). We’ll be fans of these artists forever, of course, yet as we grow up, we encounter more music that may be new or was always there waiting for us to click “Play”. It's an endless cycle of discovery as we come across new and bold music that’s still being released today. You get to learn more about yourself by constantly adding or changing the daily array of tunes that entreat your ears with stories and soundscapes. No matter how weird or experimental a song sounds, this art form inspires anyone to appreciate it differently. While not an exhaustive list, the following playlist consists of songs by bands and solo musicians from Canada or abroad, some old, most being very new to me. It’s been a reassuring experience listening or re-listening to the music below from their respective albums over
the past few years. Perhaps you’ll find music here you’ve never heard of to expand your ever-growing musical palette. In any case, have a relaxing time. 1. Lisa LeBlanc - “Eh Cher (You've Overstayed Your Welcome)” 2. The Pack A.D. - “Yes, I Know” 3. The White Stripes - “You Don’t Know What Love Is (You Just Do As You’re Told)” 4. Billie Holiday - “Strange Fruit” 5. Weezer - “The End of the Game” 6. Courtney Barnett - “Avant Gardener” 7. Cate Le Bon - “Pompeii” 8. Brandi Carlile - “Stay Gentle” 9. Faith Healer - “Cosmic Troubles” 10. The Beaches - “Bad Behaviour” 11. Necking - “Rover” 12. BoyWithUke - “Shy” 13. Juice WRLD - “Conversations” 14. Alex Little and The Suspicious Minds - “Dead Cold Eyes” 15. The Pretty Reckless - “Only Love Can Save Me Now” 16. Makiisma - “Lady Misery” 17. The Tragically Hip - “Blow At High Dough”
Photo by CJ Sommerfeld
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