'Pak to the Future

P.5

FIRST PEEK

March 29, 2016

PEAK SPEAK

“The knowledge has gone away about that lately. [. . .] People, I think, have kind of forgotten about it. I certainly have.”

Brodie McKenzie Fourth-year health science

“I really don’t know much about it.”

Tanner Spray Third-year health science

More than four out of five of you reading this didn’t vote in the SFSS elections.

Part of me doesn’t blame you. As someone who has spent four years of his undergraduate degree trying desperately to get SFU students to care about stuff, I admit the SFSS is a tough sell. It’s boring, it’s crooked, it’s full of buzzwords and tedious meetings and overly enthusiastic students with way too much time on their hands. Getting involved is a tall order, especially when you’re not sure you even want to know what all the fuss is about.

But here’s the thing: very few of you likely understand how much power the SFSS has, and just how much money they are taking from you every semester.

And that is not okay.

Again, this isn’t really your fault.

The SFSS is notoriously difficult to learn about, despite its best efforts at outreach. For example: did you know that the SFSS’ budget for the past financial year was 2.5 million dollars? Or that only 24 people ran for the SFSS Board of Directors this year, a board that’s meant to represent roughly 24 thousand students?

I’m guessing the answer is no.

Even if you’re not moved by statistics or inadequate attempts at democracy, you’ll probably be interested to know that, if you’re

an undergraduate student taking a full course-load, the SFSS takes $458.64 from you every single semester. That’s more than it would cost to buy a new Playstation 4.

This isn’t necessarily a bad thing. Plenty of things the SFSS charges you for go towards things you probably want, like your UPass, funding for campus clubs, and your health and dental plan.

The issue here isn’t that the price tag is too high — it’s that few students seem to understand that there’s a price tag at all.

For whatever reason, even attempts by regular students to get us to care about SFU tend to fall flat. Remember No to Build SFU, the movement that voiced opposition to the incredibly expensive SFSS project to build a student union building and stadium? Despite their best efforts, the last SFSS Annual General Meeting attracted about one percent of the student population. And the project passed with flying colours, adding another 10 bucks to your semesterly fees.

Just to clarify, I’m a lot more ambivalent about the Build SFU project than many others. But this inability for people to drum up significant opposition for a multi-million dollar project — one that should have been more

controversial than it is — is clearly a sign that people are not engaged at SFU. All of this is a shame, because despite how boring and fundamentally out-of-touch the SFSS often is, they have a lot of potential. The student society is meant to represent the interests of the SFU students in a way that administration and faculty simply can’t.

They have the power to lobby government on issues that matter to students, such as clearer sexual assault policy, environmental action, and increased funding for problems like deferred maintenance. They negotiate with the university on tuition hikes, student resources, and labour disputes.

They spearhead campaigns to address discrimination, accessibility, and equal rights for all students. And, like it or not, they choose how best to spend your money.

When we dismiss student politics and elections as unimportant and boring, we’re giving the SFSS carte blanche to act in whatever way they want. And the less students care about what the SFSS is doing, the less they will see themselves represented in its actions and policies.

So while you may shrug off election season as just another pathetic attempt at making the SFSS seem relevant, keep in mind that they really do have the power to make this campus a better (or worse) place for all of us. But until more than only out of every five of us is paying attention, they won’t be able to.

“I haven’t really looked into it that much. [. . .] I’m not for [trespassing on Aboriginal land], but if it helps the economy, sure, go for it — as long as it’s done in an ethical way.”

Laura Carpentier First-year undeclared

“I do not know much about the Kinder Morgan pipeline.”

Avery Herbert First-year engineering science

“I think they’re just destroying the [greenery], and they shouldn’t do that, [. . .] but there’s no other way to do it. [. . .] I never like [taking] sides.”

James Jehanzeb Third-year communications

3

4

NEWS

“Deepak, your life is going to be hell for the next year [. . .] but this is it, you’re elected, you’re the next President.”

Those were the words from outgoing Simon Fraser Student Society (SFSS) President Enoch Weng, moments after Deepak Sharma was announced as the new President-elect of the SFSS. Both referendum questions passed and with over 19 percent voter turnout, the referendum overcame the five percent threshold to be passed.

While all 11 Connected slate members went undefeated, not all were winners. The Science Representative race saw a tie after polls, with both slate member Tomas Rapaport and Jimmy Dhesa garnering 280 votes.

Independent Electoral Commissioner (IEC) Vanna Lodders commended the candidates on

news editor email

March 29, 2016

the campaign they ran: “Everybody acted like adults — for the most part.”

Shama, current VP Student Life, spoke to The Peak about how he’s excited to use the next 365 days to put his plans into action. “We’ve all spoke a lot,” he said. “Now it’s time, come May 1, for our actions to speak louder than our words.”

He spoke to the lessons he learned during his campaign: “As a team and as a leader, you’re only as strong as your weakest link.”

After it was announced that Sharma won, his opponent Darien Lechner, who ran as an independent, congratulated his opponent as is tradition. Said Lechner, “The voters are never wrong.” During

Enjoy Summer Take courses online this summer.

• Soak up the sun while you study; take your education with you wherever you go.

• Keep your summer job by studying at a time and place that works for you.

• Earn credits now and lighten your workload next year.

• Choose from over 500 courses.

• Register anytime and get started right away. There are no fixed registration dates.

truopen.ca/summeronline 1-877-543-3576

Jamal Dumas news@the-peak.ca

associate news editor Nathan Ross

his campaign, Lechner brought up issues regarding the Build SFU project and bylaw reform. He mentioned that he is looking to work with the new board on these issues.

Said Lechner, “I hope they stick to their promises.”

On the science representatives tie, Dhesa said, “I thought that the student body would be torn with the pick, and definitely that’s what did happen.”

His suggestion was to have both of them sit on the board in lieu of the missing seat for the Environment Representative without a candidate. Lodders said the IEC will get back with what happens in the coming days, as she could not find anything immediate in the case of a tie.

The VP Finance race was especially close with Connected Slate candidate Hangue Kim winning with 55.9 percent. Said Kim, “I feel great.” He spoke to the overlap between him and his opponent Ibrahim Hafeez. Hafeez said to The Peak about the results, “I’m happy [. . .] I poured in my 100 percent.”

Curtis Pooghkay won the VP Student Life with a 76.3 percent approval rate.

He expressed pride in all the Connected members, and was happy with the effort his slate put forward during the campaign.

“I’m really happy about our Connected results, I think that everyone that won deserved it and I think that everyone that won worked hard for it.”

The most decisive winner of the night was Larissa Chen, who won the VP Student Services position with a 86.5 percent approval.

She was also the most emotional of the night, breaking into tears upon hearing her victory.

“I know I’m crying right now, but I’m not crying for myself.

I’m crying for my team, they got in and I’m so emotional,” she said.

“I just Facetimed my mom and she’s so proud of me and I got 86 [per cent approval] and that’s an approval in Asian standards.”

Arr Farah rounded out the rest of the Connected executive winners, taking VP University Relations with 77.6 perfect approval. When asked how he was feeling, he said “Feels great. My whole team won.”

On the election being over, he said, “It’s great. I can get back to doing school stuff.”

However, it won’t be too long before they take over the SFSS, and Weng had outgoing words for Sharma.

“You’re going to suffer a lot, you’re going to make sacrifices, sometimes you’re going to wake up wondering what the heck you’re doing. But this is it, you’re elected, you’re the next president. You gotta carry it on, I’m passing the torch on to you. I have high hopes for you.”

NEWS

March 29, 2016

SFU hosted a two-day workshop at the Surrey campus for elementary school students from Surrey. The program, running March 23 and 24, was a partnership between SFU’s Faculty of Applied Science, Surrey Schools, and the HR MacMillan Space Centre.

The Sticks And Stars and Girls In Action programs this year will welcome 150 boys and 150 girls in grades 4–6 to SFU to learn coding, robotics, and teamwork while building robots out of Lego bricks.

The program is intended to familiarise these students with science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM).

The Sticks and Stars program has brought over 560 boys to SFU since its creation in 2012, and the Girls in Action has brought over 300 girls since its creation in 2015.

“We want to bring [elementary students] to campus to give

them experience with technology and expose them to positive role models,” said Daniela Abasi, the Faculty of Applied Science Outreach Program Manager.

On the last day of the workshop, the boys and girls had a battle royale with their robots, in a sumo-style competition where one robot tries to push the other out of the ring.

“It’s very similar to MSE 110 I took, without the complex coding,” according to Rana Hassan, third-year Mechatronics Engineering student who was part of the team of SFU student facilitators.

“The students were very creative with weapons,” Hassan continued. One group made a “hammer-type thing,” which was very impressive.

“A lot of kids built better robots than I did [in MSE110],” said Sharry Shabbir, a fourth-year Software Systems student who also helped to facilitate the program. For him, it was a “great opportunity to develop leadership [. . .] and teaching skills.”

The most rewarding part for Mircea Taras, second-year Computing Science major at SFU, was learning to “explain difficult concepts in simple terms.”

SFU students are calling it a dream come true.

With a bright red banner hanging over the space where the dollar store used to be in Cornerstone, it was officially confirmed last week that BC Liquor will be opening a store on Burnaby Mountain.

The banner has already been turned into the store’s official signage, and the store is set to open on April 13.

There has been a lot of speculation in the past few months

from Chitter posts and general buzz around campus, but now there is no doubt that a liquor store is coming to SFU Burnaby.

BC Liquor is going the extra mile with this store, and is excited to announce that “the store will also feature a coldzone with refrigerated beverages,” according to Viola Kaminski, Senior Communications Officer, Corporate Policy & Communications for BC Liquor Distribution Branch.

She also made note that the store should please students who are concerned with its environmental footprint.

“The new SFU BC Liquor Store will feature light and earthy wood flooring that contains recycled materials, energy efficient lighting, warm, contemporary colours, and finishes that have low chemical emissions and contain recycled content and bio-based

5

The attendees were incredibly enthusiastic once the sumo battles started. A round-robin followed by single elimination eventually determined the winner.

Regardless of which team won, if the elementary students “left, knowing something about coding, with a better understanding of computing science and SFU, then our job is done”, said Harp Parmar, recent SFU grad and facilitator.

“Kids have an idea of engineering but not computing science,” noted Parmar, and through this program they

“realize that building a robot is more than just the physical object.” Learning about robots also means learning how to code, as an integral part of making the machine move is through coding.

When asked about their experience with this program, the elementary students’ response was overwhelmingly positive: “It’s awesome because robots.”

“It was really good learning to code.”

“It’s good because we won [. . .] the best part was

beating the other team.”

“I learned robots take patience.”

“The best part was robots fighting.”

One elementary school student said that his library teacher had given them an understanding of robots, and this program furthered their knowledge of the process by showing them “how to attach parts [. . .] and use coding.”

The program will continue in the summer, with dates scheduled for July 4 — 5 and also on the 6 — 7.

materials,” said Kaminski via email correspondence.

John Flipse, Food and Beverage Manager for the Simon Fraser Student Society (SFSS), said that he’s not worried about how the liquor store will affect sales for the pub.

but I don’t think it’ll be anything really different. It’ll just be a bit less planning involved for students to get their own product.

“There’s a certain social component to a pub which you can’t get, and that’s what a lot of the people come to the pub for.”

He did acknowledge, though, that there have been problems for a while with what the SFSS is able to offer.

“We’ve been losing a lot of money for a long time, and of all of the things that are happening on campus as far as new outlets, chains, it’s affecting us,” he said.

Flipse did note that, when he was hired, he expressed interest

in bringing a liquor store to SFU, but the administration turned him down.

“This is one of the first things I wanted to open up here when I came here in 2012. I said, ‘We’ve got a pub license, let’s get a beer and wine store, maybe a whole liquor store, why can’t we do this?’

It’s not our liquor license; SFU won’t let us even do off-sale.

“I suspected that [a liquor store] would be coming up here, it only makes sense.”

While students took to Twitter to express their joy over the announcement, BC Liquor also pointed out that the store will also benefit those who live in UniverCity as well, which is home to about 3,000 people.

Kaminski stressed that BC Liquor is aware that some SFU students are under the legal drinking age of 19, and will be taking their responsibility to see two pieces of ID “very seriously.”

“Students already buy liquor at liquor stores,” said Flipse.

“This will be more convenient for pre-drinking in the parkade,

6 NEWS

March 29, 2016

GOVERNMENT INTERVENTION

Woodwards

Erika Loggin Peak Associate On March 8, BC Green Party leader and MLA Andrew Weaver proposed Bill M205, the Post-Secondary Sexual Violence Policies Act, following a recent wave of highly publicized sexual assault cases in Burnaby and across BC. The proposed bill would legally mandate post-secondary institutions to develop policies on sexualized violence, something SFU currently does not have. Weaver said that a legislative approach is necessary because the issue is currently not being addressed.

He cited several recent highprofile incidents of sexualized violence at post-secondary institutions that motivated this government action. For example, UBC has highly underreported sexualized violence cases compared to the RCMP detachment on their campus. Thompson Rivers University (TRU) recommended that a female student there transfer schools after she was sexually assaulted twice.

Weaver explained that there may be a deeper reason for student discontent with the way universities handle cases of sexualized violence.

“There’s a culture of concealment

by post-secondary institutions across British Columbia,” he said.

He added that post-secondary institutions are not disclosing information about incidents of sexual violence in order to be perceived as a safe place for students. Students have complained about feeling dismissed or not having their cases addressed in a timely manner.

The Post-Secondary Sexual Violence Policies Act would require universities to report anonymous data about sexualized violence to their boards and the ministry.

Once this information is made public, Weaver said, it will force post-secondary institutions to address this issue if they still want to maintain their reputations as safe places for students.

Weaver said that, while recent prominent cases of sexualized violence have greatly affected female students, it is an issue for students of all gender identities. He defines sexualized violence as any sexual act, physical or psychological, that targets a person’s sexuality, gender identity, or gender expression and is committed, threatened, or attempted without that person’s consent. This includes sexual assault and harassment as well as voyeurism and sexual exploitation.

The bill allows the province to hold post-secondary institutions accountable through fines and punitive measures if they do not adopt and enforce policies to address sexualized violence. Weaver also hopes to create province-wide standards

A series of public talks and roundtable conversations titled “Speaking of Dance” will be held on Tuesday March 29 at 7 p.m. at SFU Woodward’s.

The world of dance and its place in art, culture, and society will be explored, as well as the position of female choreographers in contemporary dance. Prominent choreographers, writers, and creative thinkers will be present at the discussions to provide participants with the information needed to start a conversation surrounding dance.

Photo courtesy of Thompson Rivers University (Flickr)

so that students across BC can feel supported and protected by their post-secondary institutions.

The BC Liberal government has strongly supported the proposed bill, and Premier Christy Clark has committed to implementing it by the fall.

BC’s Ministry of Advanced Education said in a statement, “Our government takes student safety very seriously and is committed to working with the post-secondary sector on tackling the issue of sexual assault.” The ministry also noted that they will look at existing legislation in other provinces like Ontario.

Weaver said that students must also be involved in policy development.

“Get your voice heard and you’ll make change,” Weaver said, adding

that student consultation is required to ensure future policies reflect their values and concerns.

SFU’s recent #consentmatters campaign has raised the issue of sexual assault among students. The university already has some policies to address sexualized violence, including a section in its human rights policy on sexual assault, and a clause prohibiting disruptive or dangerous behaviour included in student conduct requirements.

The university’s website states, “Everyone at SFU plays an important role in creating a culture of zero tolerance for sexual violence.”

Weaver hopes his bill will produce province-wide standards for sexualized violence policies, and keep post-secondary institutions committed to student safety.

Surrey A free information session on SFU’s Craft Beer and Brewing Essentials Certificate will be held at the Surrey campus on Thursday March 31, from 6 to 7 p.m. This program, presented

by Management and Professional Programs, Continuing Studies, is for anyone curious about the theory and processes behind beer production and interested in working in the craft beer industry. The certificate is also suitable for industry professionals looking to gain further expertise.

Vancouver

Bernice Puzon Peak Associate Most individuals don’t look forward to the time of the month where they get their period, as it is often accompanied by painful cramps, bloating, and mood swings. But the Blood Cycle Conference is an initiative that is aiming to change the conversation around menstruation by encouraging people to make informed decisions about their menstrual health.

Lana Friesen is an SFU alumnus who is hoping to host this conference in Vancouver to serve as a platform for people to learn how to make informed decisions on the process of menstruation, and to be able to share resources with one another.

Friesen is hoping to challenge and address the social taboo associated with periods.

“You hear about people coughing in the bathroom to cover up the fact that they’re unwrapping a tampon, and I’m surprised that we still have to do that,” she said. “It’s crazy that one of our natural bodily processes evokes so much shame and fear.”

Some of the issues that will be discussed at the conference include diet and lifestyle choices affecting menstrual

health, alternative contraceptive methods to the popular birth control pill, and how one’s period acts as an indicator of their overall health.

One of the concerns that Friesen raised was the fact that the pill is often used to regulate a body’s hormonal cycle instead of for its main contraceptive function. “[By taking the pill for menstruation,] we are implying that the body can’t regulate itself,” she explained, “We’re not aware of what happens to the body when we take synthetic chemicals to regulate our hormones.”

Friesen also said that people of all genders are welcome at the conference, as the target audience for this event would be all “menstruators,” a term she created herself.

“There are female-bodied people

who don’t menstruate, and we also want to address the nonbinary experience of menstruation,” she said.

She also wants all of her guests to leave with the knowledge to make informed decisions on their menstrual health, and with more options to make their cycle go more smoothly.

“We often feel like victims to this bodily process, when it actually should empower us,” she said, “[We want to] give people control of how they live their life and experience menstruation.”

Friesen and her team have created a Kickstarter campaign with a goal of $25,000 to make this event a reality, and it has raised over $2,200 thus far. The Blood Cycle conference, if fully funded, will take place on September 8 and 9 of this year.

A hands-on workshop on Jingju Luogu, or Peking Opera percussion music, will be held on Friday April 1 from 7 to 8:30 p.m. at SFU Vancouver.

This free event will introduce participants to basic concepts of Jingju Luogu, which comprises of five main percussive instruments played by four musicians. Attendants will also learn to how to recite luogujing, a unique “oral notation” which articulates the percussion patterns Jingju Luogu is based upon, and will learn how to play some of these patterns themselves.

By Maggie Li

NEWS

Cristina Agatep SFU Student “What makes a place ‘bikeable’?”

That’s the question to which Dr. Meghan Winters, an SFU Health Science professor and a Healthy Cities researcher, is looking for an answer. Winters had developed a Bike Score metric measuring the bike-friendliness of a city, ultimately earning her the Early in Career Award from the Confederation of University Faculty Associations of British Columbia’s (CUFA BC) Distinguished Academics. She’ll be receving the award at a gala dinner on April 14.

The study tested whether a city’s Bike Score is associated with its cycling behaviour, so that cities may use the score to assess their own infrastructure for cyclists and active transport.

Winters worked with the company Walk Score to develop the Bike Score metric, studying a number of factors that affect bike usage in 24 different cities.

“There are three main components in [the Bike Score]: there’s a topography score, looking at how hilly an area is; a bike lane score, measuring the quality and the

Amneet Mann Peak Associate Five SFU students are coming together to spearhead an initiative with a simple goal: buy a cup of coffee for a stranger, and use the opportunity to get to know them.

Peter Duan, Sumeet Minhas, Dietmar Heidler, Adélaïde Dgyt, and Kyle Chong started their initiative, Cup For You, as part of an assignment for their project management class. In an interview with The Peak, the team explained that the entire class was told to form groups and come up with a project to promote a good social cause.

March 29, 2016

availability of bike facilities,” Winters said. “The third component is the destination score: whether there are places that are easy to cycle to.”

Compiling these scores resulted in the Bike Score metric, giving cities a score out of 100, with higher scores given to the more bikefriendly cities. What Winters’ study did find was that overall, a 10-point increase in the bike score meant a 0.5 percent increase in people cycling to work.

“The number seems small, but unfortunately very few people cycle in North America; typical cities are one to two percent, so that 0.5 percent change is substantial.”

The metric gave Vancouver a score 78 out of 100, with around 4.1 percent of people commuting by bike. Among the 24 cities included in the study, Vancouver ranks as the fourth-highest scoring city, only behind Ford Collins (83.6) Montreal (78.8) and Saskatoon (78.7).

With cycling and the idea of active transport gaining popularity around Vancouver, the Bike Score may help us uncover some issues that the city still faces in increasing the number of cyclists from surrounding areas.

“We see a lot of variation within each city,” Winters said.

“There are areas in Vancouver that score very well, with good access to infrastructure, but there’s surrounding neighbourhoods that still have work to be

7

Photo courtesy of Wikimedia Commons

done. In this case, the score is meant for us to see where improvements in cycling infrastructure can be made within the cities themselves.”

As an ever-growing city, “Vancouver still needs to address congestion issues, sustainability concerns, and to promote cycling is one way to address them,” she said.

Along with the development of new bike programs and facilities, Vancouver has seen a recent increase in the cyclist population. Bike facilities that allow for safer cycling around the city may be one factor in this increase.

“It’s really important that people feel safe. The infrastructure

being built that provides a place to cycle where they feel safe, like the cycle track networks downtown, and bike lanes separate from motor vehicles; these have had an impact,” said Winters.

Other developments that offer more accessibility and opportunity, like the bike share program rolling out in Vancouver in June of this year, may also be key to getting a broader population to start cycling.

As Winters put it, “In Vancouver, the effort is towards all ages and abilities infrastructure. It normalizes cycling and make everyone feel like it’s accessible to them as a transportation choice as well.”

She is happy to see improvements in the developments that encourage cycling across North America. “It’s great to see different cities put active transport on their priorities list, and that these infrastructure changes are not only found in the larger urban centre, but in smaller cities within North America.

“The work that we’ve done shows that you can use the Bike Score as a measure of environmental supports for cycling, and we’ve validated that it is associated with cycling levels,” Winters said. “Researchers studying built environment can now use Bike Score as a standard indicator of cycling behaviour.”

The act is meant to set off a chain reaction, whereupon the stranger then uses the saved money to buy a cup of coffee for someone else. What began with an afternoon standing in the SFU Academic Quadrangle with a carton of Tim Hortons coffee built up to partnerships with a dozen downtown coffee shops.

The project officially ran from February 15 to March 15, and Cup For You held its final challenge on Thursday, Adélaïde Dgyt March 17 in the SFU Business student AQ, sponsored by David’s Tea. It is random acts of kindness In addition to personally like this that the group seeks to pro- visiting coffee shops, the stumote. The five business students dents’ initiative also held an are hoping to use this to build con- online presence on Facebook nections not only all over Vancou- and Instagram, where pictures ver, but their own university as well. of strangers who received this

random act of kindness were posted, alongside a story about the connections they formed over a warm drink.

The social aspect of the project not only resonated around the community, but it also impacted the very founders of the project themselves. Dgyt, an international exchange student from France, recalled her disappointing first impression of SFU, as she found it much harder than expected to connect with her classmates and make new friends. She was dismayed at the fact that “nobody was really talking to each other.”

However, after spending the past few months working on Cup For You, she has gained greater insight: “I complained at the beginning of the interview about strangers not talking to me, but I’m also not talking to strangers. Because of this project, I had to. And it’s really nice. You get to hear amazing

stories about people you normally just pass by.”

The team ultimately felt successful in helping break through social barriers throughout their experiment. Minhas recalled an encounter she had during the final event at SFU when a participant inquired as to what faculty the initiative founders were in, and was surprised to find that they were all business students. “He said, ‘I didn’t know business students cared about this stuff, I would’ve thought you were art students.’ So I thought it was nice to be able to break that barrier.”

The future of Cup For You is as yet undecided, as the group has yet to discuss whether the project will be an ongoing one. But, as stated by Minhas, “it’s not a big deal for others to do, even if we don’t continue the project ourselves.

“Anyone can buy a cup of coffee for a stranger and start a conversation.”

When asked what led the group to choose to pursue a pay-it-forward type initiative, Duan revealed that the motivation for the project came from a personal experience he’d once had when a stranger paid for his friend’s groceries who had forgotten his wallet.

“You get to hear amazing stories about people you normally just pass by.”

8

OPINIONS

Why had I allowed the homeless crisis that had initially shocked me to my core to become a complacent

everyday background scene? Better yet, why has the entirety of Vancouver done the same thing?

With the closure of Riverview mental hospital in 2012, the resources available to help the mentally ill became scarce. “[M]ore than half of Vancouver’s homeless [. . .] suffer from schizophrenia” according to a study conducted in 2010.

Statistics Canada found that the “2015 count results show that Vancouver’s homeless are in poorer health today than 2005.” These are people who are sick and in need of assistance, who deserve help as much as anyone with any other sort of health condition. So why does Vancouver shamelessly sweep the issue under the rug and continually corral them to less desirable neighbourhoods? Homeless people sleeping in public places are asked to leave just because they’re homeless, homeless protest camps are evicted, last year it was confirmed that BC Housing no longer collects data on the thousands turned away from shelters.

Carin Rahmberg, childcare and family coordinator, recently said to me, “welfare for one person per month is $608.

This is hardly enough to pay for rent, let alone utilities or food.” After working directly with these families who are in need of assistance,

When news headlines around the world broke out that Otto Warmbier, 21-year-old American student from Ohio, was sentenced to 15 years of hard labour in North Korea because of “crimes against the state,” I could not feel sorry for him at all.

While the prospect of working 15 years in a labour camp where prisoners are barely fed and routinely tortured is very disturbing, why do we now suddenly care? There is an estimate of over 100,000 people in labour

camps in North Korea who have spent their lives in the same country’s work camps which have been accused of housing rape, and where, according to the Human Rights Watch, people have forced labour, starvation, and guard abuse. For some reason, though, we can only think of Warmbier.

Don’t get me wrong — I’m not saying that the American student deserved the punishment he got.

We all know that North Korea is a scary place, but that’s the point.

If you and I (and most, if not all, of the world) are aware of the harshness of the dictatorship, from having read Escape from Camp 14 or even from James Franco’s (awful) movie The Interview, why did Warmbier put himself in that position?

It’s not too far-fetched to expect someone to research what they are and are not allowed to

It was a beautiful day. The rare Vancouver sun was shining and I was merrily on my way to Harbour Center via the 135. Enjoying the day to its fullest was on the agenda, despite the responsibilities of school. As I neared downtown, I couldn’t help but notice that even the people who had made the streets their home seemed to have a certain pep.

Then it occurred to me that in my seven short months of living here, I had completely grown accustomed to this relegated group being a permanent fixture on the streets of Vancouver.

March 29, 2016

opinions editor email

Adam Van der Zwan opinions@the-peak.ca

Rahmberg argued that if Vancouver provided the appropriate resources for those in need, the city would save money in the long term.

Housing is becoming less and less affordable to locals, as international entities with large purchasing power drive up prices. Although racist undertones implicate this, which I have absolutely no desire to perpetuate, it is a contemporary issue that could offer a solution with the help of government policy.

I argue that wealthy internationals who have the means to purchase property in this

desirable city should be taxed.

The conditions that should apply to buying property here is to pay a yearly fee that goes directly to the treatment, rehabilitation, or long term care to those who have been left forgotten on the streets.

It should be mandatory that buyers contribute to the community they invest in. This will, in turn, shy some investors away or merely be a minor inconvenience for others. The luxury of owning real estate from afar should come with consequences.

I want Vancouver to stop pretending there isn’t a problem. I want this city to have some pride in

itself, take responsibility and offer a real solution to homelessness.

While I risk sounding extreme with my ‘socialist’ solution, I challenge you to ask yourself why this sounds like an extreme solution. Housing should be a right in our free nation.

I love Vancouver, and every day I am ecstatic that I made living here a reality, but the way Vancouver shuns the homeless is utterly disgraceful. It’s time we did the right thing and stop viewing this issue as a perpetual and inevitable problem. So I’m demanding this: Vancouver, show the world where your values are — with people, not money.

do in a tyrannical dictatorship before going to one for vacation, or at least to be extra cautious of what they do while in the country. Even then, even if Warmbier hadn’t bothered to research the laws of the country, stealing a political propaganda poster simply seems like the wrong thing to do in North Korea. So why did he do it?

‘importance,’ perhaps Westerners feel like they have something to rely on if they get caught.

The same is true for Lindsay Sandiford, a British woman currently waiting on the death row for carrying 10.6 lb of cocaine into Indonesia. Indonesia is known to implement harsh punishments to drug traffickers; yet every couple of months we hear of a foreigner asking for clemency.

Am I in favour of the death penalty? Not at all. I think the death penalty, especially for drugrelated crimes, should be abolished everywhere.

Do I feel sorry for Sandiford, who admitted having carried all that cocaine into Bali? Not really. This is especially because Sandiford

has the privilege of having international news outlets covering her case, while Indonesian people don’t.

The same can be said for North Korea. While international news coverage is what North Korea least wants for its thousands of prisoners, what about the many innocent North Koreans who are unjustly arrested for crimes? The American media’s self-entitled pity coverage seems to be what Westerners rely upon when they commit crimes in undemocratic countries. Sadly, this doesn’t always work.

Even though Indonesia and North Korea are very different places — Indonesia is not a dictatorship, after all — both Sandiford and Warmbier should have known better. Both their sentences are inhumane and wrong, but why should the laws in those countries not apply to them?

The issue is entitlement. It seems like Westerners feel entitled to special treatment when it comes to committing crimes abroad. Because of their countries’

OPINIONS

March 29, 2016

world. He constantly laments the consolidation of newsrooms and the death of print. For him, the advent of social media is a slap in the face to traditional newspapers.

On top of this, he feels that, despite the fact that we as millennials have more access to news through social media, we really don’t take advantage of it. We just skim over headlines and don’t make an effort to learn more.

When I tell people that I don’t read through physical newspapers on a regular basis, it comes as a surprise to most. Yes, I know that you’re reading an article that was written by me inside something that is indeed a newspaper.

My grandfather and I had this discussion the other day, and it quickly became heated.

He is the kind of person that reads his newspaper every day with breakfast, scouring through the news sections with typical looks of disapproval. His objections toward the events of the day carry into discussions with my parents. Usually, I idly listen until he brings me into the discussion, asking what I think about various issues.

There were some issues that I had opinions on, but most of the time I was indifferent. I’ll admit that my indifference is my responsibility — I don’t read newspapers often enough to be able to follow major stories that are going on in the world. However, that doesn’t mean I am out of the loop.

This is where my grandpa and I had our disagreement. He swears by newspapers, relying on print media as his window to the

Here’s the thing: I am constantly bombarded with news.

Seeing as social media has become such a big part of millennials’ lives, news corporations needed to come up with more creative ways to engage the younger audience. Being able to post and share news articles on Facebook has made it easier for millennials to see news of the day — a study by the American Press Institute in 2015 found that 88 percent of millennials get their news from Facebook.

Other notable sites for news are Twitter, YouTube, and Reddit.

The point that my grandfather makes about not engaging with the news is one that I disagree with completely. In this society, there are many more opportunities to receive news, and it’s much easier for us to find answers to the stories that we follow, as long as we make an effort to do our homework.

Social media has cluttered the millennials’ news media landscape. However, despite the massive flux of news stories and new corporations that proliferate on our timelines, there have been some steady trends of news consumption by millennials.

A study entitled “Generation News” by Newsworks and the University of Bath in England found that “74 percent [of millennials] turn to newsbrands to get a balanced point of view,” and a further “78 percent agree their newsbrand introduces them to stories they wouldn’t otherwise read.” With various news brands engaging on Twitter, not only are younger demographics exposed, but they are able to follow updates right from the moment the story breaks.

The biggest benefit to this model of news is that it can enable real-time followings of stories, as opposed to waiting the next day for a full recap in the newspaper.

By the time the story hits print, people would have already read and reacted to it. In a digitized age where everything is quick and fast, maybe this is the solution that news needs to keep up with the millennial age.

So, Grandpa, get back to me on your debates about the pipeline and the current state of Middle Eastern politics. I promise I’ll look beyond the headlines and read the stories.

9

There is nothing more precious in this world than an imaginative writer (except for maybe a dancing carnival bear). Filled to brim with abundant bounties of the most richly promising stories, the writer is nothing short of a blessing to those who lack a scrap of creativity and crave the warming sustenance of entertainment at their bosom and belly.

A writer can weave stories about the human condition that inspire us to new heights of purpose. Alternatively, they can

scare the living shit out of us, redefining our fears and nightmares like never before. Or they can simply get us hot and bothered with hormone-boosting erotica privy to get even the most well seasoned nymphomaniac’s rocks off (Ahh, Sylvia Day, what would I do without you?).

In closing, cherish the writers who inspire you because they are the ones who help you realize the beauty and the majesty of this weird and twisted world we live in.

They are the butchers of prose and the defacers of your most spirited works. Armed with red fountain pens and fuelled with the dark truth that they themselves are incompetent writers, behold the editor: the great defiler of your favorite poems and short stories.

These godless beasts will strip your work of its well-founded and whimsical intentions, and purge it of its rich vibrant sophistication. They are the very

embodiment of necessary evil, as your hopes of being published are hinged on their existence. Rest assured, with the right amount of cunning, these foul odious fucks can be overcome with great tactical writing prowess.

Mark Twain himself said it best, “replace every ‘very’ in your writing with ‘damn.’ Instinctively, your editor will go in and change every ‘damn’ to ‘very,’ leaving your piece exactly how you meant it to be.”

ADVERTISEMENT

10 OPINIONS

Dear editors of the Peak, Re: SFSS Candidate Endorsements You recently published an article endorsing certain candidates to the SFSS Board of Directors. While I agree that you should be able to endorse candidates simply on the basis of free speech, I believe that given the source of your funding and the lack of competition on campus, you have a responsibility to produce objective and informative endorsements – or don’t endorse anyone at all. Getting together in a room and taking a straw poll of your editorial board is nowhere near the standard students deserve.

I don’t doubt that you have a greater understanding of the Board’s inner workings than the average busy student – it’s not as if that takes very much – but you still have a responsibility to represent the views of students over your personal opinions on an issue as large as this one.

Your lack of awareness for this responsibility is clearly evident in your discussion of which VP Finance candidate to endorse, where you claim that “large structural changes” are necessary, without explaining what that means, before sweeping

For those of you who don’t know me very well, I like to read a lot. Like, a lot.

I don’t brag when I claim that picking up a good novel is my equivalent to a solid Netflix allnighter, or an Xbox-coma intensified by a bottle of Mountain Dew. Though just like any other dutiful binge-booking student, I find it immensely difficult to navigate the treacherous terrain

check requisitions and student outreach – a major issue for DSU and Club Executives – under the rug.

On the topic of student outreach, you encouraged students to entirely disenfranchise themselves by telling them to not vote for a president, and in an election where gender played a prominent role, you chose to belittle a female candidate because she “came off as … nervous” and a male candidate was “able often able to speak over her and dominate the conversation.”

Although I could go on, my hope is that next year you will continue to endorse candidates. However, I hope you will do your due diligence, find out what students want and need, and then investigate which candidate would address those issues best. Anything less would be an abuse of the privileged position you are fortunate enough to find yourselves in.

Sincerely, Tomas Rapaport Disclaimer: Tomas Rapaport ran for Science Representative in the aforementioned SFSS election.

of balancing my love for Mordecai Richler with, well, the life of being a student. As each semester begins, and I pay homage to the library while imploring myself to “make more time to read this term,” I find my personal reading goals held hostage by a demanding social life, textbooks, papers, you know — the usual.

Soon those library books I vow to read within the ridiculously short lending period I’m given stack up in a reluctant corner of my house; I become busy, sometimes a little forgetful, and quite suddenly I discover an unobtrusive email from the SFU library claiming I owe at least $40 in overdue book fees. Right — after having borrowed 10 books from the library (a small feat, honestly), at $1 per

March 29, 2016

Imagine a good little girl who always kept her head buried in a book.

Throw in frameless glasses and plastic braces, and you’ve pretty much got a picture of what I looked like in high school. Along with that pious image came a pretty strict Christian upbringing and a rule that was ingrained into me from a young age: I was never allowed to swear.

In my house, F-bombs were off limits and an ass was the donkey that Jesus rode into the city of Jerusalem on Palm Sunday. For the longest time, I thought that ‘stupid’ was a terribly offensive word, and gasped when my favourite author released a novel titled Junie B. Jones and the Stupid Smelly Bus.

This mentality, believe it or not, lasted up to my senior year of high school, the period in which teenagers are some of the most foul-mouthed creatures out there as they hate everyone and everything. Despite the fact that I was surrounded by kids who gave out curses like candy, my Christian upbringing prevailed. I was determined to do well in school and make my parents proud.

All that changed when I took a creative writing class in high school, and met one of the sassiest and wittiest teachers I would ever come to know. Along with her sharp humour and blunt criticism of our work came a precise usage of profanity that was utilized to get her point across. Suddenly, swearing didn’t seem evil anymore, but an alternative means of playing with words in my writing.

Profanity became the forbidden fruit that I just had to taste.

I was walking home from school one day and stubbed my

toe on a rock in my path. “Ouch!”

I exclaimed, hopping on one foot like a flamingo. As the pain passed, I felt an inexplicable curiosity flow through me, and I felt like I had to try saying it.

“Fuck,” I whispered in amazement, as I couldn’t believe I was really saying that word. It rolled easily off my tongue, as if it had been waiting to come off it for the longest time. I said it again. . . and again. . . and again. “Fuckfuckfuckfuckfuck!”

I guess I had to make up for all of those lost years of not swearing somehow. It was in this moment that I, frankly, stopped giving a fuck about swearing (or rather, gave several fucks away freely).

The rest of the words came out naturally, as all I had to do was take in the atmosphere of high school like a sponge. I eventually learned how to curse like a sailor with the rest of them, as any high school student should.

Well, I’ve spent far too long talking about this fucking shit. Peace out, motherfuckers.

item, per day, a simple four-day overdue charge racks up to a whopping $40.

Before I dread lugging back a large bag of novels that expose me for the nerd that I am, I consider all those tireless students locked away in their rooms with mountain-high library materials. Completing theses and research projects they meant to finish three weeks ago, their library due dates edge past, unnoticed in the musty shadows.

My point being: the overdue fines offered by the SFU library are far too expensive for a practically destitute student population. Yes, I can understand that the fines charged at our library are pretty much a normal rate you’d find at any library outside of an academic

environment, and that such high fees are to encourage us to ‘be responsible’ and bring our borrowed materials back on time. However, student life can be hectic; this is a nobrainer. Amongst a cluttered schedule, it’s easy to forget, or not find the time to travel to a campus library.

And, in many poor students’ case, it can be difficult to even scrounge up enough money to pay for the fines.

Because of this, SFU fines should be half as much as they are now. A good alternative would be to offer all year-round the semesterly “Food for Fines” initiative that the library typically offers for three weeks. For those who are unaware, this campaign allows students to

deliver one non-perishable food item for every $2 charged. In the end, this alternative is considerably less expensive than doling out the original fortune I was charged with.

Considering the fact that all my ‘food fines’ would be going straight to an extremely good cause, especially in light of the numerous students who are forced to use a food bank every semester (the far cheaper alternative to the SFSS’s new Nester’s Food Bank program) I’d gladly trade my exorbitant fees for the extra time it takes to visit the grocery store and load up Mr. Noodles.

Let’s give students’ wallets and pride a break, and allow them to complete their education as financially stress-free as possible.

March 29, 2016

COMMUNITY PHOTOS June 29, 2015

photo editor email

Lisa Dimyadi photos@the-peak.ca

Write. Edit.

Design. Publish.

Langara Publishing Program This one-year Publishing Diploma Program will give you the skills to communicate your message online and in print. The courses are hands-on and taught by instructors with industry experience. Apply now. Start September.

Info session: Wednesday, April 27, 4:30 pm - 7:30 pm www.langara.ca/publishing

11

SFYou

An interview with Nathan Marsh, SFU’s own superstar composer

“[I want] to lessen the emphasis on how the music sounds and focus more on why it sounds that way.”

NATHAN MARSH Lisa Dimyadi / The Peak

SFU graduate, Nathan Marsh, reminds us that following your heart will reap great rewards.

A former SFU student reminds us to march to the beat of our own drum Alexandra Nikotina SFU Student Nathan Marsh, an SFU graduate with a BFA Music Major, has been selected as the 2016 New Voices Composer in Residence through Spectrum Music.

Spectrum Music, a group of canadian composers, focuses primarily on mixing classical and jazz genres. Over the next few months, Marsh will mentor with well-known professionals from his field and create a piece that will be highlighted in a concert this summer.

The Peak sat down with Nathan to talk about his journey from being a student to a young composer.

The Peak: What prompted your interest in music and composing?

Nathan: I always had an interest in music, but for the longest time it was just a hobby on the side. When I first [started at] SFU in 2010, I was actually planning to pursue a career in business. I took a few economics courses, but was not too excited about them.

Around that time, I decided to take a music theory course for extra credit, and I liked it so much that I guess I never stopped.

Going into composing was challenging, especially since music theory and composition were not my strongest points; but the more courses I took, the more I wanted to produce. I realized that I had a lot of ideas, and I enjoyed creating, ADVERTISEMENT

starting from the concept and building it into a music piece.

P: Why did you decide to stay at SFU for your BFA in Music?

N: I believe I got very lucky with the music program. When I first entered SFU, Woodward’s campus and the programs there were fairly new, so I didn’t have to do an entrance exam. This enabled me to actually pursue music. I think if I applied at another school with the knowledge and skills that I had at the time, I wouldn’t have got in, nor would I have a music degree now.

P: What did you enjoy the most throughout the music program?

N: One of the best aspects of my program was having opportunities to collaborate with other members of the School of Contemporary Arts. Throughout my studies, I did music for

student films, dance productions, visual arts installations. It was interesting to learn to work together with artists from other disciplines, since we didn’t really speak the same artistic language. I mean, I see everything from the music perspective, while in dance, they speak dance language. I think we learned a lot through our collaborations.

P: What was the journey to becoming 2016 New Voices Composer in Residence?

N: I was getting close to graduation and looking for a reason to continue writing music, researching different organizations for composing opportunities.

More often than not, organizations wanted well-known composers for different projects and shows, so it was challenging — but I was really eager.

Eventually, I found a program through Spectrum Music in Toronto with a category for emerging composers. I submitted my application, and was one of the five composers chosen to attend music workshops in Toronto, where we went over music composition and techniques, and talked about our artistic statement and goals. Upon the completion of the workshops, I was chosen for the project. I will have a chance to perform at the concert on June 4, which I am excited and grateful for.

The concert is called the Tower of Babel and is based on the Biblical story: different religions got together to build a tower up to God, but God knocked it down, dividing people though language barrier. For the concert, I’d like to write one coherent piece, but have the software randomly alter the signals from the instruments,

creating disruptions that I am not in control of — the same way God created disruptions for the builders of the tower. It’s an ambitious project, but I hope to see it live.

P: Can you share a bit of your artistic vision with us?

N: I like to highlight the conceptual intention behind my music. I think that in the music industry, there is still a lot of emphasis creating something that is aesthetically-pleasant, and I’m interested in challenging that. Of course, I don’t want my music to sound bad, but the notions of good and bad are also very subjective. My goal is to lessen the emphasis on how the music sounds and focus more on why it sounds that way, and how the space of life performance is used as an element for the composition itself. In the pieces that I compose, I’d like the music content and the message to work together, impacting and engaging the audiences.

P: Where do you see yourself in the next 5–10 years?

N: That’s a difficult part about music and art: there are a lot of opportunities, but it is also very competitive. For now, I’ve been looking into graduate programs: part of me thinks I could really use more guidance, and the idea of continuing education is intriguing to me.

P: Any advice you would give to the young musicians out there?

N: I think the most important point is: it is possible.

If you love [music], chances are you will find a way to be good at it — [so] just go into it! Believe in yourself and don’t listen to other people unless they’re encouraging you.

“

16

ARTS

While I’ve been given the opportunity to write a review on Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice, I’ve got to be honest with you: my feelings towards this film could be just as well articulated through a cacophonous scream of anguish.

There’s no sugarcoating it: The problems with the film are so numerous they seep into every nook and cranny, derogating what should have been an actionpacked cinematic battle for the ages. More than just a trainwreck and an irreparable scar on DC’s reputation; Batman v Superman is the biggest comic book movie letdown ever created, far surpassing the likes of X-Men: The Last Stand, Spider-Man 3, and even Green Lantern.

Batman v Superman is nothing less than a mosaic of scenes that are hastily jammed together with little to no justification. Even with a runtime of two and a half hours, anyone who has seen any number of the film’s trailers have basically seen the movie’s entirety.

One of the biggest problem with the film is that it shifts its focus too many times to nonessential plot points. Scenes

Limitless is a show about a man who takes a pill to become a genius and works with the FBI to catch criminals. It is as weirdly brilliant as its premise.

The series is a follow-up to the 2011 film of the same name and follows Brian Finch (Jake McDorman), a twenty-something slacker who lives with his parents and performs in empty bars as the last member of his

arts editor email

March 29, 2016

containing Lois Lane, Wonder Woman, and staff members at the Daily Planet could have been scrapped entirely to put more focus on the film’s leads. Instead of having film which focus on the stark ideological differences between the the Last Son of Krypton and the Bat of Gotham, we are rather subjected to a film greedily fixated on it’s future sequels and spinoffs.

Scenes that set the stage for future movies in the DC cinematic universe not only clutter the already overly-packed film, but stall the main plot from moving forward. Screen time which should have been dictated to the cataclysmic brawl between these two heroes is instead stilted by unwanted footage of a generally abhorred fish king and a popular scarlet speedster shopping for milk.

Jess Whitesel arts@the-peak.ca

Ben Affleck’s performance as the Caped Crusader is at best adequate; while he’s by no means a bad actor, Affleck fails to portray the role of Batman to its fullest capabilities. Aesthetically, though, the Dark Knight has never looked better. The cowl,

gadgets, cave, and Batmobile have never been so visually stimulating and true to the comics. Even Jeremy Irons’ performance as Alfred is a welcome breath of fresh air to the classic supporting character.

Ultimately, the movie’s biggest weakness is Superman, who sucks the life and excitement out of every scene he frequents. While once a personification of hope and justice, this Man of Steel is quite frankly depressing and unwatchable. Even worse,

Superman’s dialogue in the movie is scarce, and when he does speak it feels clunky and out-of-character.

Amazingly enough, the one character who does excel in Batman v Superman is Lex Luthor. Jesse Eisenberg not only brings a unanticipated edge to the iconic villain, he arguably brings the only captivating performance in the whole film.

Everything from his nefarious plan to his unsettling personality helps to make his scenes not only the most enjoyable, but also the most memorable.

Alas, it is a true pity that the same cannot be said for anything else in the film — the fight scenes included.

The more I think about Batman v Superman: The Dawn of Justice , the more I want to a punch a wall. What should have been a simple, fun film about two people fighting each other capsizes under the weight of unnecessary and unwanted side plots, tie-ins, and characters. It saddens me to say this about the film, because no one was rooting for it to succeed more than myself.

I desperately wanted this film to kickstart an exciting DC cinematic universe for fans and casual moviegoers to fully get invested in. Sadly, this movie doesn’t even give me enough incentive to rewatch it on a pirated movie site.

high school rock band. In the pilot episode he is introduced to NZT, the mysterious miracle pill that gives him perfect recall of everything he has ever seen or done, making him the smartest person in the world for the twelve hours after taking it.

He is soon paired up with FBI Special Agent Rebecca Harris (Jennifer Carpenter) who acts as his handler while the FBI investigates the drug and the reason why Brian is apparently immune to its fatal side-effects. Secretly, this immunity is from an injection given to Brian by Eddie Morra (Bradley Cooper), the protagonist from the 2011 film, in exchange for Brian spying on the FBI’s on Morra’s behalf.

The series drops the thriller aspects from the original film

in exchange for a slot in the crowded police drama market and, while the two leads do follow the cliché “responsible lady skeptic” and “quirky immature dude” pairing, what they do with the rest of the show is fascinating.

One thing that separates Limitless from other cop shows is its refusal to fully adhere to the normal “cop show” episode pattern.

We’ve seen the pattern before: dead body is found, cops investigate, weird evidence/ complication, crazy theory, personal issues, sudden revelation, mystery solved. As the show goes on, however, this becomes the plot less and less. Recent episodes have dropped this pattern entirely, such as having Brian work to arrest the FBI’s

entire 10 Most Wanted Criminals list as part of a bet to get his own office.

Where the show excels is how we see things through Brian’s imagination, like picturing his co-workers in dramatic action film scenarios before getting corrected. Another episode — where Brian visits his first bloody murder scene — has him retreat into his mind where a Barney the Dinosaur lookalike suggests replacing all the “scary” words with “fun” words. Then the rest of the episode has the agents say things like “we have a serial hugger on our hands” and referencing the “soda pop” spatter on the walls and body.

In a recent episode, Brian bribes a high-ranking Russian

official with spoilers for the ending of the TV series Game of Thrones. No secret mistress, no gun to his head, just a cellphone with a direct line to George R.R. Martin and the ultimate fate of Westeros. The writers of Limitless didn’t need to do that. But they did. And it made me smile.

It is moments like this that set this show apart. This fun little moment is Limitless in a nutshell, telling you everything you need to know about Brian Finch, about the world he lives in, and about the show itself. It is a fun, well-written show with likeable characters that is not afraid to buck convention.

And it is brilliant.

Limitless airs Mondays at 9 p.m. on Global.

ARTS

To those in the know, it is no secret that outgoing Simon Fraser Student Society (SFSS) President Enoch Weng has a passion for music. His past involvement with different music clubs campus gave him a unique perspective on the relationship between the clubs, “I started to notice that there was a few people who overlapped, but for the most part, the music clubs were all so isolated,” Weng told The Peak.

After witnessing this isolation first hand, Weng thought he “could unite them with some purpose.” Out of this, the idea for the Music Showcase Extravaganza was born, albeit in a nebulous form. “I called a meeting with all the presidents of the music clubs at the time together, to see what we could work on. It was great connecting everyone together, as many ideas were shared, and in the years afterwards, collaborations between clubs started happening,” stated Weng.

His ultimate goal, however, was to see all the music clubs on campus come together to perform in a single concert that would showcase SFU’s “musical ohana” as he called it. This dream wasn’t actually realized until this semester with the first Music Showcase Extravaganza happening on March 31.

He brought the idea forward to the Events and Promotions

March 29, 2016

Committee for two reasons.

The first being to realize his long standing dream of a single music clubs concert, the second “to offer something new to the SFSS. Primarily the events thrown have always featured the same types of genres (like EDM), and the lack of diversity did not reflect our entire student membership,” he stated.

While the Music Showcase Extravaganza might have been Weng’s brainchild, he noted that “the clubs have all been very enthusiastic and have been on board since the very beginning. They have helped give input on the planning of the event, and have been so responsive throughout.“ Nathalie Scott-Hsiung the co-president of the Concert Orchestra, and current co-lead for the project, the other being Weng, stated through email, “It’s a great feeling to host a concert where the final result is due to all the extra time students volunteer on top of their school and work life, and to do it with other student musicians is a real treat.”

Scott-Hsiung also stated that, “We [the Concert Orchestra] are most excited to expand our audience and give a little taste of our sound to those who haven’t attended a concert of ours.”

Aside from the Concert Orchestra the Music Showcase Extravaganza will feature Jazz Band, Recital Society, Vocal Jazz, and SFU Choir.

Light the Sky is the first Englishlanguage album to be released by Canadian hip-hop group Radio Radio. Their earlier albums featured rapping in Chiac — a variety of Acadian French.

I will admit that I really wanted to like this album. I love supporting Canadian music when possible, but Light the Sky makes that really hard. I feel like trying to break into the English

language market wasn’t the best choice they could make. They do have really good backing tracks and they clearly know what they are doing in terms of putting an album together, but vocally they sound like the bastard child of Classified and Chromeo. This vocal sound works much better in Chiac than in English.

Young Thug’s latest is more of the same, which is going to be either a good or bad thing depending on what you think of the divisive rapper’s stream-ofconsciousness style.

If you’re already a fan of Young Thug (like me), you’ll find Slime Season 3 to be one of his strongest works — the production is tight and Thugger sounds more confident and

flippant than ever. There’s also plenty of quotable lines that will reward repeat listens. It’s not likely to convert nonbelievers, but SS3 is a good entrypoint for non-fans who want to give the rapper a shot.

Highlights include: “With Them,” “Slime Shit,” and “Tattoos.”

17

Highlights include: “My Dance Floor,” “Happy Hustler,” and “Remodel (Mike Holmes).”

ADVERTISEMENT

Live in the city.

Walk to class and experience the Downtown Vancouver lifestyle.

SFU’s Vancouver Graduate Residence

Graduate students can

APPLY NOW

and move-in this summer!

Contact us! housing@sfu.ca

OPENING SUMMER 2016!

Located at 308 West Hastings Street in the SFU Downtown Business Innovation Centre follow us @SFUliveDT

18 ARTS FF

March 29, 2016

FOOD FIGHT

El Santo will shatter your conceptions of authentic Mexican cuisine.

Founder Alejandro Diaz and Head Chef Shane King have formed a soon-to-be legendary collaboration to bring the fresh and modern

cuisine culture of Mexico City to New Westminster.

Proudly local, Diaz has expressed his excitement for belonging and giving back to such an amazing community. “I love the heritage and character of New West,” said Diaz. “At El Santo, we want to emphasize the extraordinary social experience of eating.”

He went on to tell me that the company’s phenomenal interior design is all done by New Westminster companies, and that all their beers and wines are from BC. With the aim of keeping their food as fresh as possible, everything including the tortillas, salsas, and guacamole is prepared daily, and you can certainly taste the difference. “We’re trying to place more focus on staying true to exposing people to the authentic, regional dishes of Mexico rather than the stereotypical foods associated with Mexican cuisine,” explained Diaz. “We want to show people

SUSTAINABILITY PEER EDUCATORS PROGRAM

ADVERTISEMENT

BECOME A SUSTAINABILITY PEER EDUCATOR

HELP MAKE SFU A MORE SUSTAINABLE CAMPUS • Learn about sustainability at SFU • Share your knowledge with fellow students • Develop advocacy, outreach and education initiatives • Gain valuable experience

Tesicca Truong Sustainability Peer Educator

Apply at sfu.ca/sustainability by April 11

that it’s much more than beans and cheese.”

El Santo’s head-to-tail sustainable menu is carefully curated by King, inspired by years of traveling around the world. The menu is a fusion of foreign and familiar flavors, with both traditional Spanish and modern regional Mexican influences. The ‘El Santo Huevo’ is a popular favourite and a part of their 3 to 6 p.m. Happy Hour menu.

In King’s take on a scotch egg, the dish is a masa battered soft boiled egg, wrapped with house made chorizo, and served with habanero apple jam. Other popular items are the ‘Cachete taco,’ made of slowbraised beef cheek, and ‘Pescado a la veracruzana,’ which is a West Coast rockfish served head to tail with cilantro pesto green rice.

Although El Santo has an obviously meat-focused menu, King does not neglect vegetarian appetites. “We want to include everybody in the flavours and in the directions where we are going,” said King. “I think it’s natural as a chef to include vegan and vegetarian options, it’s not a challenge.”

From the Happy Hour menu, there are several vegetarian options including ‘Rajas con crema,’ a creamy skillet dish of roasted peppers, grilled pineapple and corn, served with an abundance of tortillas on the side, and ‘Chiles Padron,’ blistered peppers with lime and sea salt seasoning. Other eclectic options include a of trio of guacamole and salsas, uniquely crafted salads, and my personal favourite ‘Verduras’ tacos, a unique blend of roasted cauliflower, sikil pak, and mango salsa.

If you are a fan of adding spice to your food, ask for some of that exquisite habanero apple jam, but use an easy hand — at first you get the sweetness of the Okanagan McIntosh apple, then slowly but surely the habanero comes back to kick you in the taste buds with a feisty fire. It’s absolutely incredible, and we not-so-subtly suggested that Diaz and King consider selling it by the jar.

All in all, El Santo’s creativity and passion is impressive. The prices are fair for the quality dining experience it is, and reservations are accepted. Happy Hour is on every day from 3 to 6 p.m. along with delicious lunch options involving irresistible Mexican versions of eggs benedict. They have the largest selection of 100 percent agave tequilas that I’ve ever seen, and other beverages made to complement their dishes.

El Santo is well worth a visit, but be warned: you will be enticed back again and again.

If you’ve ever seen a film by Terrence Malick, director of elusive films such as The Tree of Life, The Thin Red Line, or Days of Heaven, you know about his ‘Twirling Women.’ Malick’s fragmented female characters are often depicted dancing over pristine natural backdrops with a whispered voiceover; they can be seen as feelings and symbols more than actual characters. Malick is a spiritual and sensual filmmaker who rarely casts ugly people in his films, but the obscuring of Malick’s characters and narrative is by no means a gendered phenomenon. The male figures in his films are equally elusive.

Since To The Wonder premiered a few years ago, many critics who praised Malick’s early films have derided his recent works as self-parody.

Knight of Cups, his most recent masterpiece, has undoubtedly been the most divisive film of the year so far, with defenders crowning it as the pinnacle of his experimentation while many detractors label it ‘misogynistic’ and ‘male privilege garbage.’

Centering on Rick, a screenwriter in Hollywood, Knight of Cups is a variation of John Bunyan’s The Pilgrim’s Progress, a Christian allegory about an everyman who leaves the City of Destruction for the Celestial City, representing a shift in mindset from the material to the eternal.

Rick is similar to the protagonist of The Pilgrim’s Progress; he embarks on a journey from the synthetic reality of Hollywood hedonism to the spiritual connection with an immaterial deity. Malick’s

film is overtly metaphysical in its thematic concerns, considering the implications of materialism, but it is also his most overtly political film, particularly in terms of its representation of women.

However, Knight of Cups is quite frankly overtly feminist, a film that actively deconstructs the male gaze of advertisements, Hollywood film, and the libidinal desires of its central male character. One of Rick’s lovers, to whom we are introduced wearing a phony wig in the reflection of a pane of glass, is represented through the sexualized idea with which Rick perceives her. Inside his mind, she is merely a façade, a put-on used to please his gaze.

Through a voiceover this woman declares about Rick, “You don’t want love. You want a love experience.” Images and the pictures in the heterosexual male’s sexual fantasies are not real women; they are synthetic reproductions.

They reduce female identity to a flavour, something to be tasted then discarded.

Similarly, later in the film, Rick is at a strip club where an adult dancer tells him she can be whatever he wants. She is malleable. She can orient herself to any of Rick’s fantasies. Contrary to the arguments of many film critics, the women in the film are not devices to serve the male protagonist. But, rather, through his womanizing tendencies, Rick becomes unsatisfied with his decadent lifestyle. He sees the need to journey toward the Celestial City.

As Malick’s form has become progressively more abstract and experimental, it’s been easier for critics to read his films under the same presuppositions they would use to evaluate any other filmmaker. But Malick isn’t like any other filmmaker — he is a visionary. He uses the evocative and spiritual potential of the cinema to challenge our materialistic and hedonistic impulses, including the insidious male gaze.

ARTS

was a point as a child when I just stopped watching cartoons. I’m not entirely sure what nebulous social rule told me I needed to stop doing something that I liked, but I stopped watching nonetheless.

It wasn’t until I was older, wiser, and out of my everythingthat-I-do-must-be-cool-or-rebellious phase, I came to realize that cartoons were cool. Specifically, ones that were created for an intelligent audience. That’s not to say that every episode of these shows is filled with references and humour that only the most educated will understand, but they do go beyond needing to be funny for the sake of having to be funny. They also avoid fart jokes as the main source of humour, which is always a win in my books. Here are five of my

March 29, 2016

favourite animated shows currently on the air.

Before I start my top five list, I would like to throw out two honourable mentions of shows that are no longer with us.

The first goes to Futurama.

Even though it was also created by Matt Groening, I’ve always felt that it was the far superior show. Don’t get me wrong, I like The Simpsons, but there was just something about the humour of Futurama that makes me wish it was the 20+ season show.

The second goes to Gravity Falls. Don’t let the fact that this is a Disney show fool you, there is just as much in it for adults as kids.

While it saddens me deeply that this show was only two seasons long kudos to Alex Hirsch for killing it before it could get bad. That takes balls.

19

I won’t be the first or last person to say it, but this show has been on the decline since that disastrous Archer: Vice season. I get that you needed a way to get ISIS out of the show ASAP, but that season just sucked. It doesn’t look like the newest season will be loads

better, although it does look like it will be returning to its James Bond-esque roots, but I will always hold out hope the it will reclaim the glory of its early seasons. Otherwise, the sugary and non-gritty plots will attract ants.

That is how you get ants.

Cartoon Network has had some hits (Adventure Time ) and misses ( Annoying Orange and Uncle Grandpa) in their kids programming as of late. Thankfully, Steven Universe is a hit. Each 11-minute episode usually ends with a neat and tidy solution, but that’s not why you watch it. You watch

it for the host of relatable characters and the overarching plots. Sometimes it can get bogged down by the fact that this is actually a kids show, but those times are rare. Also can we talk about how Steven and Connie are the OTP of OTPs? Too cute.

I was sceptical of this show when I first heard the premise, mostly of the fact that it seemed like a waste of an animated show. A sitcom about a struggling family living above their restaurant? Please. The first season didn’t do much to ease my skepticism, but the seasons since haven’t

disappointed. The characters are expertly crafted, especially Tina, Gene, and Louise. They provide the perfect balance of angst, comedic relief, and maniacal plots that keep the show moving forward. Also, the appreciation of butts will never go out of style.

A show about an alcoholic mad scientist who lives in his daughter’s garage, mostly ignores his granddaughter, hates his son-inlaw, and goes on interdimensional adventures with his grandson. How did this get past the pilot? Because this show is relatable. Even though you might not have parties

with Abradolf Lincler and Bird Person, the themes that are present throughout the show get you invested in the characters pretty quickly mostly because you can see a little bit of yourself in each of them. Also Rick’s phrases are pure gold, especially, “Riggity riggity wrecked!”

This show is hands-down the best animated show on TV — well technically Netflix, but at this point they really are the same thing.

I guess you could technically classify this as a comedy, but it has many aspects of other television genres expertly brought in. Again, it has the relatability factor going for it, but it is so

much stronger in BoJack than in other shows.

It deals with depression, substance abuse, and the overwhelming feeling that you might have peaked too soon. Also, the one episode when Todd actually gets to help and feel useful even though he fucks it up? That gets me everytime.

I understand your pain, Todd.

20

SPORTS

March 29, 2016

sports editor email

Nick Bondi sports@the-peak.ca

Elsewhere in SFU athletics. . .

SFU Lacrosse won their past two games, beating Sonoma State 12–9, and the University of Nevada 17–9.

The team’s next game will be against the University of Idaho on April 1. The two wins move SFU to a 5–4 overall record with three games remaining.

“I think we’ve just got to bare down and execute, it’ll just come down to the intangible things like loose ball, hard work, communication throughout our team,” says sophomore Greg Lunde.

He’s talking about what the team has to do to win an important conference game later in the season, one that he figures SFU will need to win if they hope to make the playoffs. The lacrosse team is 1–3 in conference play, and likely needs to win out the rest of their in-conference games (four of them) for a shot at postseason glory.

“We’ve really struggled with scoring on our chances so our defence and our goalies have been playing great so we just got to bare down and execute on our plays and make sure we score when we have the chances,” he explains.

Talking to him, though, he sounds less like a player only in his second year on the team, but a leader — a coach, even.

And perhaps that’s by design.

In addition to his role as an attackman on the team, the 6’1 business student also devotes his time to coaching the game he’s played for 14 years.

He started coaching box lacrosse — not field, the version SFU plays — for his club team, the Port Coquitlam Saints. His first students were peewees — 12-year-olds.

“I had an A1 team which was the highest level at the time, so I really enjoyed that. That was my first real experience, so I wasn’t too in a serious position, which was great because it allowed me to bond with the guys, make good connections, and just be myself on the floor. So actually I still kind of mentor and see the guys I coached that first year.”

Throughout the years, Lunde has coached a variety of different teams.

“Second year I coached a bantam team, that was a little bit of a lower division, [. . .] great learning experience and they were a bit more of beginners so I got to tailor my communication and teaching style to more beginner levels,” he notes.

“Then last year I had midgets which

Lunde shares the team lead in goals, and is second on the team in points. were 16 year olds, which is quite a jump. They were good guys again and they already knew the game.”

Recently, he’s been coaching with the Burnaby Mountain Selects.

Lunde got to travel with the team to San Diego, and was able to specialize, teaching them how to attack.

Just because he’s caught the coaching bug, doesn’t mean he’s not an effective player on the field. Greg co-leads the lacrosse Clan in goals, and is second on the team in points.

Over the years, Greg has represented BC multiple times.

“It was awesome. In peewee, so when I was 12 years old, we actually ended up beating Ontario because Ontario and BC are kind of the two powerhouses. We beat Ontario in the final and that was the first time BC had ever won,” he says. “I played at the provincial level when I was 12, 14, and 16.”

However, BC isn’t the highest level he’s played for. That honour, he says, is reserved for Team Canada at the U19 Indoor Games last summer, an opportunity he received through former SFU assistant coach Chris Fox. “He reached out to me and got a group of guys together. It was a really unique experience because it was more of a handpicked team, and then we got to play against

Ontario — Ontario was the other kind-of Canadian team — we got to play against a whole bunch of Iroquois teams, the States, Germany, Israel, teams from all over Europe.”

The team did quite well, even beating the other Canadian team 5–4 in the finals.

“We won gold,” Lunde explains.

“We beat the Americans in the semifinal, pretty handedly because the Americans are actually more field lacrosse based, it was box lacrosse we were playing, so we played them in the semi-final, we beat them, and then we actually ended up playing Ontario in the final and beat them pretty marginally, but it was awesome.”

The drive that he’s displayed playing lacrosse, and in coaching, also shows up in his academic pursuits. He entered SFU with a variety of scholarships, including the Gordon M. Shrum entrance award.

“I didn’t really get too sidetracked with social aspects,” he says with a laugh.

When he lists the reasons why he is pursuing accounting as his future career, the player, coach, and academic in Lunde all connect.

“What draws me to that is both, it’s very competitive, for the CPA background, so I’m drawn to it just from that point of view,” Lunde explains. “Also there’s the numbers side of view which I’ve kind of thrived at my entire life, but there’s

also the social and client-facing aspect which I really like, because throughout my life I’ve worked in customer service and dealing with clients, so I see myself doing that in the future and helping out clients — potentially going into consulting and seeing their business and how they work.”

But for now, he’s focused on helping his team anyway he can.

“I think last season I wasn’t quite aware of what my role was, I was able to step into a great role — a starting position — and really made an impact, but I was really nervous and didn’t really solidify my role until the middle of the season,” he says. “This season, although I wasn’t officially a leader, I kind of took more of a leader role and I think the guys saw that.”

And though he admits it might be a “stretch” this year, it all comes back to one goal.

“I really want my team to go to nationals.”

SFU lost both games against Western Oregon on Saturday the 19. The losses snapped a seven game win streak for the Clan. In the first game, SFU lost 2–0, only managing three hits against Western Oregon pitcher Alyson Boetz. In the second game, SFU surrendered a 5–0 lead they had in the third inning to lose 6–5.

Western Oregon scored four in the fourth inning.

Last weekend, SFU Quidditch won the first annual Vancouver Island Quidditch Tournament. SFU went undefeated, against the University of Victoria Valkyries, and the newly formed Nanaimo Nightwings. SFU walked away from the tournament with all of their chasers scoring at least once.

Ellen Kett and Jordan Herdman have been named SFU female and male athletes of the year by SFU Athletics. Kett was in the top five in both assists and three-point percentage and was named to the GNAC All-Conference first team. Herdman was named the GNAC Defensive Player of the Year, and was also named to the NCAA All-American Second Team. Herdman also set the GNAC record for tackles in a single game this season.

SPORTS

Nick Bondi Sports Editor It all seemed to be looking good for the SFU Men’s Hockey team.

They had won nine of their last 10 games heading into the tail end of the season, and were looking like they would clinch first place in the BCIHL.

However, they lost three of their last four games in the regular season, with two games in particular standing out as particularly tough losses; they lost 5–0 to Selkirk in a game

The losses are continuing to pile up for SFU’s Men’s Basketball team on and off the court this year.

Just a month after Junior Max Barkeley decided to transfer away from the Clan, promising freshman Oshea Gairey is poised to do the same.

“First off, I want to say thank you to Coach Hill and his staff for the opportunity and also the SFU students and family that came out to the game[s] and supported us during the season,” Gairey told The Peak.

“I just want to be a part of something where I can reach my full

March 29, 2016

that could have clinched them first place and the top seed in the playoffs, and suffered a 4–3 overtime loss to UVic in the final game of the season — where they blew a two-goal third period lead. When it was time to head into playoffs, the team lost the first two games of the best of three against Trinity Western, the series-winning goal coming in overtime from Burnaby boy Matthew Vela.

“Sometimes you go on a good winning streak in the middle of the season, and maybe you want to have that going into the playoffs instead of the middle of the season,” said Head Coach Mark Coletta. “I think the mindset might have been too casual within the dressing room and the player group.

We prepare and work hard every week, from August right through to the end. So I don’t question their work rate or effort.

There might have been a little bit of a mental lapse, let’s Mark Coletta just say, that last Head Coach week and it was tough to recover.”

In the playoffs, SFU played uncharacteristically bad defence, allowing 11 goals over the two games. They also struggled on the powerplay, going one for 19, a .05 conversion percentage.

potential and compete everyday to get better as a person, a player, and a team [member].”

Gairey had been one of the few bright spots in an extremely difficult season for the Men’s

21

“Right off the bat, those two things from an analytics side of things equal losing,” remarked Coletta. “From the effort level to the gameplay, I thought we did okay Friday night. I thought we got a couple of bad bounces and I don’t think [ Jordan] Liem played his best.

“I thought we outplayed them [in] the Saturday night game, [but with] playoff hockey, you never know what can happen.”

One of the biggest storylines of the season was captain Jono Ceci.

He broke the all-time BCIHL scoring record on November 28th, and finishes his illustrious career at SFU with 177 in 108 games through five seasons with the team. However,

the team wasn’t able to reward him and the three other graduating seniors with a BCIHL championship.

“Any time you have four seniors or one senior graduating, those guys have given a lot to the program and you feel — like I said — disappointment,” remarked Coletta. “But a part of you feels like you’ve let them down as a coaching staff, to bring them a championship. They work hard on the ice, they work hard in the classroom, and those four guys deserve a lot of credit. They [were] part of the building blocks of a program at SFU that’s getting bigger and stronger every year.”

Next year, Coletta expects to score a lot more goals and

compete for the BCIHL championship that has eluded the team for the last few years.

“Up front, obviously [we] lose Jono, who’s the all-time leading scorer and led our team in scoring again this year. But guys like Callegari, Basham, Lamont, Tidy — we look to them to carry the torch and have better years.

I thought Callegari could have been better, and Basham and guys like that should be full credit for getting 30 points on their own next year each.”

“The future looks bright,” Coletta said on next season. “I would suggest our standards and our goals will be very high next year.”

Basketball team — one where they registered just two wins, and only a single one in conference play.

Gairey, who was born in Cleveland, Ohio but raised in Toronto, led all freshman in the Great Northwest

Athletic Conference in scoring, averaging 13.3 points per game, as well as 3.1 assists per game. In our men’s basketball season review, published on March 7, The Peak wrote that “if he [Gairey] stays for four years, he will almost certainly be the star of the program.”

The decision was made last week after talking to the coaching staff, according to Gairey. He does not have any other offers from schools at the moment, but stresses that things did not end on bad terms.

“Coach Hill just wants me to happy as a player and an individual,” said Gairey. “So no, he didn’t want this to happen, but he’s a supporter of me and we both wished each other the best in the future.”

Head Coach Virgil Hill declined to comment.

This marks the seventh departure from SFU’s men’s basketball

team in this season alone. Denver Sparks-Guest left the team, and both Pape Seck and Graham Smith are transferring out of SFU. Junior Max Barkeley left the team with four games left in the season, and has received an offer to attend Cal State San Bernardino, according to www.verbalcommits. com. Matt Rud is leaving the team according to reports, and senior Michael Harper is graduating.

As of right now, SFU appears to only have eight players heading into next season. Gibran Sewani is the only returning senior, with UBC transfer Kedar Wright joining the team for next year. Chase Hobenshield is joining the team next year as well, and is expected to redshirt.

The above roster moves are from verbalcommits.com, and could not be officially confirmed

by Head Coach Virgil Hill at the time of publication.

22 SPORTS

Well it didn’t come without controversy, but the Vancouver Whitecaps got their first win of the season on March 19th over their Cascadia rivals in Seattle. Captain Pedro Morales slotted home a pair of penalty kicks in a 2–1 victory at Centurylink field.

Due to their close proximity, the Seattle Sounders have been rivals since the old days of the NASL. That fierce competition between the two cities has only intensified since both teams joined MLS. One advantage of only being a two-and-a-half hour drive away is that opposing fans can make the trip to cheer on their team.

On Saturday, nearly 1,000 Whitecaps supporters, many of them Southsiders (members of a Vancouver Whitecaps supporters group) made the trip down the I-5 to cheer on the boys in white. I was such a fan, joining in on the Southsider bus trip.

The day started with pickup downtown and then the drive to the border. Everyone was in high spirits and there was an energy on the bus.

As soon as we crossed the border, however, we kicked it into high gear and the party really started. The kegs were tapped and a quick stop at the supermarket meant that everyone

was well equipped to drink our way down to Seattle. The bus was filled with songs and laughter as we hoped to see our team come home victorious.

We didn’t have to wait long for the game to get going. In the eighth minute, newcomer Blas Perez played a ball down the wing and Christian Bolanos (another addition this season) charged it down only to be taken down in the box and a penalty awarded. It is very unclear if much contact was made with Bolanos or if he was lightly clipped, but regardless, Captain Pedro Morales stepped up and coolly put the ball into the left corner. 1–0 Whitecaps.

said. “It’s something that I’ve dreamed about since I was a kid. So it was really cool to accomplish it.”

At the NCAA Division II Wrestling Championships, Tyler McLean battled back from an opening loss to finish in fourth place in the 165 pound weight class. On top of that, he was named an All-American, becoming only the second male wrestler in the school’s NCAA era to achieve the feat.

How did being named All-American feel? “Really good,” McLean

Heading into the tournament, McLean was the third seed from the western region, and faced a tough challenge ahead of him in the ultra competitive 165 pound weight class.

March 29, 2016

The game would pick up from there and begin to get more physical — however, the Whitecaps would take the lead into half.

Shortly after play resumed Seattle would equalize after a glorious free kick in the 52nd minute. Andreas Ivanschitz curled a beauty

from 25 yards out to get Seattle back in the game. It would be for nothing, however, as referee Mark Geiger awarded Vancouver their second penalty of the game in the 72nd minute. Perez struck again, running down a beautifully played ball from Morales that he slide tackled in the box.

Both teams traded chances in the final 10 minutes of the game, but it was Vancouver who left with the three points. A lot of attention

was directed towards the poor officiating from Geiger who has a history of bad calls. All I can say is that I’m very happy that we were on the winning side of it this time, as the Whitecaps have been victims to his poor judgement before.

As everyone happily piled back onto the bus home we reveled in the victory and the start of perhaps better things to come for the rest of the season.

Winning is sweet, but winning against your rivals on their home turf is even better. Coming back across the border, all we had to declare were the three points we brought home.

“Yeah I was pretty worried, because that weight class had seven returning All-Americans,” explained McLean.

“And I haven’t [faced] any of them before, so it was kind of nervewracking. I lost at regionals one match [and] I was like ‘Oh boy, this is going to be a tough weight class.’”

Still, McLean persevered. After losing the first match, one McLean argued he “should have won,” he was forced to compete on the consolation side of the bracket, where every match was win or go home.

“When you lose in the championship side, you have to battle back,” he explained. “So then it’s like, do or die. So you kind of have that comfort zone when you’re on the championship side. “[After I lost the first match] I was like, ‘well, now you just gotta go out and enjoy it.’ Do you wanna get eight [place] or no place? Or do you want to get fourth?”

McLean credits the environment of a National Championship with helping him relax and also stay motivated.

“It was great,” said McLean. “I guess the whole experience, there was tons of fans, it’s something that I’ve never experienced before.

Just the environment to have those

die-hard fans travel in all across the country and come watch, I kind of got that momentum going and just started enjoying it. I was telling Justin [Abdou, Head Coach]: ‘hey, I’m just going to go out there and have fun.’ [. . .] I was able to relax and just do what I love.”

The goal from now until the start of next season is to prepare the body and mind to win a national championship.

“Lots of lifting,” said McLean on his plans for the offseason. “Got to get stronger, probably a lot of speed work as well. We have the Olympic guys in there, it’s an Olympic year, so I’m going to try and grab all of those guys and hopefully pick their mind on some [techniques].”

DIVERSIONS / ETC

March 29, 2016

23

CLASSIFIEDS@ THE-PEAK.CA

LAST WEEK’S SOLUTION

46. Across

EVENTS AT (OR AROUND) SFU: MARCH 28 — APRIL 8 28: MONDAY

29: TUESDAY

30: WEDNESDAY

31: THURSDAY

1: FRIDAY

4: MONDAY

5: TUESDAY

6: WEDNESDAY

7: THURSDAY

8: FRIDAY

EVENT LISTINGS ARE FREE FOR SFU STUDENTS AND STUDENT ORGANIZATIONS. SEND THE DATE, TIME, LOCATION, NAME, AND A 15-WORD DESCRIPTION TO CLASSIFIEDS@THE-PEAK.CA

24

HUMOUR

humour editor email

March 29, 2016

Creator’s Pet (Destiny Hsu)

Magical Hot Take (Mark Britch)

(Reuben Newton)

Justin Stevens humour@the-peak.ca

HUMOUR

E

tsy is home to spirited crafters everywhere; it’s a site full of artisan homemade items.

It’s essentially an online craft fair — the Internet-equivalent to a tent filled with the smell of sandalwood incense and gluten-free brownies.

Sadly, all these authentic goods can be hard to haggle for, making the process of obtaining these

treasures a convoluted mess of confusion.

Fortunately, The Peak’s got you covered with a useful guide that will help you step up your Etsy bartering game like never before.

After you’re through reading this, owning your very own authentic braided baby hair necklace will not be a dream but a reality.

You want to a buy: Customized Monopoly: The CIA Edition board game: “Who’s your favourite government agency which gathers, processes, analyzes, and records the mounds of information you unknowingly gift them? You don’t know? Well let’s keep it that way! The classic game of Monopoly is reimagined with a CIA-theme. This innovative board game features a fully blacked out board and set of cards to keep the players unaware, and the paper cash is replaced with a credit card with a budget without oversight! The classic Monopoly tokens are replaced with handmade clay figurines of prominent CIA symbols like blindfolds, Guantanamo Bay prisoners, and unmarked duffel bags full of bribe money! Fun for the whole family!“

Hey SFU, I’m a history student, and I’m wondering if I can learn more about the portal that opened up two months ago, days before the current school government took control from the previous oppressors.

We all know it’s controlled by belief, but how did it open in the first place? Just curious.

You know, for history.

Maria Cole, gender: F, dept: history, BT: A, GPA: 3.2, good standing Maria, I will certainly address your concern, but I should take a moment to draw attention to what is on the minds of everyone at the Students’ Republic of SFU. What is not on everyone’s mind, I should say; the resulting destruction of Dr. Wolf Mann, the wolfman.

SFU students: yes, Dr. Mann does not exist. With a heavy heart, we admit that. He did exist, because we real individuals, as a collective, made it so. But we have imagined him out of existence. I, too, have lost the power to believe in his existence, giving into pressure from the Republic’s collective consciousness.

humour editor email

March 29, 2016

You want to buy: A life size bath bomb replica of an adult male saltwater crocodile: “This lavender based bath-bomb took a team of three herpetologists roughly two years to perfect. The scientific accuracy of this replica of an adult male saltwater crocodile is astounding, right down to the four chambered heart.

The chamomile in this 2,200 pound bath bomb will soak you into a coma of drowsy wonder, and the soya milk will invigorate your skin — leaving you glowing as fiercely as the viciously powerful teeth of any member of the family Crocodylidae.”

This can be traded for: Homemade gluten-free lipstick made of dead wasps and aged peanut butter, a custom-made embroidered pillow with all 31,102 verses of the Bible (both testaments), and a 1960s struggling jazz musician costume for children aged 10–12.

But I can assure you that the remainder of SFU’s governance continues to exist strongly, because we’re real. We’re real and you remember that we’re real, and there’s no reason to think otherwise. Your respect and, indeed, your fears are real. We are real. You don’t want to drive yourself insane by the thought of our non-existence.

After all, if we didn’t exist, how could you be reading this right now? How could you have spoken to us? How could we have names?

How could you remember us so vividly, as if from even before you met us? A story.

A story.

I’m sorry, SFU students: can’t think straight. I’m tired. i’m tired.

So you’re wondering about the portal that makes The Students’ Republic of SFU great. It is indeed opened by belief, but not only belief. i feel light It’s also opened by intent. One would have to have the intent to close the portal permanently. we as a collective believed in our existence, and we focused, and we opened, and we built our Students’ Republic of SFU. SFU is strong. We are strong, if we are together, because we all we all exist, sfu best, the sphynx sfu president

Justin Stevens humour@the-peak.ca

You want to buy: A handknit crotchless onesie: “Covering from the top of the head down to your toes, this onesie features a hole for your face so you may enjoy peering into the world and a tasteful crotch-hole for you to enjoy the wind. Featuring a alpaca/wool blend, this onesie caresses the soul and body simultaneously. The onesie is custom-knit, so alternative designs can be made (eg. a fox-themed onesie, a Christmas-themed onesie, a Stephen Harper/Conservative party-themed onesie). This onesie is good for casual weekends spent lounging on the brisk spring beach, family picnics, or formal events like weddings or dinners with your boss.

ADVERTISEMENT

Please visit the website for more information: www.talk.go.kr Contact information: Consulate General of the Republic of Korea 604-681-9581 vanedu@mofa.go.kr

25

This can be traded for: A Kim Jong Un body pillow, a tub of organic glitter glue and several hand-crafted paper mache masks of each of the Von Trapp children from The Sound of Music.

This can be traded for: A set of Justin Trudeau party supplies (complete with a game of Pin the Tail on the Prime Minister!), a uterusshaped palm stone, and a wedding veil made out of used onion ring wrappers.

26 HUMOUR

March 29, 2016

1. You, like, get all 4. The puppies are the likes on social soft, like your UGG media. boots.

My pic with the cutest Golden Retriever doggie got me 150 likes on Insta! I felt so fetch.

2. You feel #blessed.

OMG I just went to the most adorbs exam stress reliever event EVER: puppy therapy!

Here are like some of my reasons why these doggies are like, wayyy better than Starbucks Pumpkin Spice Lattes.

Like, it’s not everyday where I get to pet a cute animal, you know? How #blessed I am.

3. You get cuddles and kissies! XOXO When the puppies lick your hand and face it’s like, OMG.

It’s like you’re cuddling your cozy UGG boots — so like, they’re not just for your feet anymore, but that, like, soft cushiony feeling is everywhere.

5. CUTENESS OVERLOAD! :O :O :O OMG ALL THE DOGGIES ARE CUTE AF ASJFDKJFIDSOJFLSJDFL <3 <3 <3

[VANCOUVER] – An SFU Van-

[BURNABY] – SFU Burnaby recently unveiled itself as a flying mountain fortress. The project’s success was due to a collaboration between Star Wars and Star Trek fans to pursue intergalactic space travel. However, politics have prevented the school fortress from taking off, citing issues in safety. For now, students will no longer have to take the malfunctioning system of transit, as hovercraft vehicles have been made to reach the campus, which continues to be elevated in the sky. The fortress is also equipped with long-range cannons, designed to destroy even the strongest of pipeline supplies of the Kinder Morgan pipeline project.

couver professor was baffled and awestruck when he was slapped repeatedly by pizza slices that he ordered from a nearby pizza joint. The professor reported that the pizza slices went berserk after he took a single slice from the pizza box and bit into it. The incident convinced SFU’s scientific research division to restart a late program that was built upon the theory that various food items possess a collective consciousness. The program was initially shut down back in the 1960s due to the one question that no one in the program was willing to answer: “Are you nuts?”

[SURREY] – After reading a book on Stoicism by William Irvine, City Counsellor Cenaka Matiisin was inspired to employ the technique of temporary selfdenial on a macro scale.

Matiisin denied underappreciated public services such as public transportation, schools, parks, and recreation centres, while also increasing the cost of water and electricity.

ACTUAL VIEW FROM FLOOR 17

SAVE UP TO $15,000

IV

D UN

GH

T

TRE

AND C

S CEN

HIGHL

ST

SA L E

HI

UNIV

ERSIT

Y CR

ES C E

NT

Burnaby Mountain

Presentation Centre Open daily 12-5pm except Fridays at 8955 University High Street, Burnaby

2 BED HOMES FROM $409,900 604 559 5795 · PEAKATSFU.COM

PRICE & AVAILABILITY SUBJECT TO CHANGE WITHOUT NOTICE. THIS IS NOT AN OFFERING FOR SALE. ANY SUCH OFFERING CAN ONLY BE MADE WITH DISCLOSURE STATEMENT. E.&O.E.

ARTS R

TY SI ER

• The tallest tower at SFU • The highest point in Metro Vancouver • Canada’s #1 Comprehensive University • Best views in the province • Over 10,000 sq. ft. of amenities • Built by the pioneers of SFU-Intergulf

BEST CONCRETE VALUE

65% SOLD OPENING WEEKEND

28 LAST WORD

Features Editor email

Tamara Connor features@the-peak.ca

March 29, 2016

Photo by PAIGE SMITH

Caffeine should be the only thing in your bloodstream.

The ideal formula is four venti coffees from Starbucks per exam. It also helps to stock up on some junk food and miscellaneous snacks — you will most likely attempt to eat your stress away.

You won’t just be wearing pajamas to bed anymore — they’re a finals season wardrobe staple. The softer, fluffier, and cozier the pajama material, the better. If you’re preparing for a final that’s worth 40+ percent of your grade, strongly consider a onesie. Ugg boots are basically pajamas for your feet, so the two pieces naturally go hand-in-hand.

Make sure that your phone is near you at all times. After about five minutes of studying, you may need a break — a phone with the essential applications like Netflix, Chitter, and Candy Crush is the best way to procrastinate efficiently. Use this tool wisely, as it can be a catalyst for emotional breakdowns later.

Did you stay up all night and wake up with your face in your textbook and your hair going in 12 different directions? Well that’s nothing that a handy toque can’t fix!

Along with its ability to pass as a stylish accessory, it’s also an easy solution for hiding the fact that you haven’t showered in days and your hair is a greasy mess.

Many tears will be shed in frustration and exhaustion, so it is best to prepare for the aftermath of the waterworks.

A general rule of thumb is to buy four-ply Kleenex tissues in bulk, and to carry a small pack of tissues on you at all times. It will also be there when your exams are finally over and you are able to cry tears of joy.

The backpack is the treasure chest of student essentials during final exam season. It should include, but is not limited to: a variety of salty and fattening snacks, any notes you managed to make in the two hours’ worth of studying you did, and your sticky and faded student ID card to show your professor before an exam that sadly, you are who you say you are.