Wear a poppy We remember so we will never, ever forget.
Monday, November 5, 2012
SPOKE
A LEARNING NEWSROOM FOR JOURNALISM STUDENTS Conestoga College, Kitchener, ONT.
www.spokeonline.com
Christmas year-round Brenner’s is your one-stop festive shop. Page 6
43RD Year - NO 23.
Students help the United Way BY WENDY CZAKO-MAH
Another two weeks of United Way fundraising at the col lege has come and gone, with faculty, staff and students donating generously. Campaign organizers set a goal of $50,000, with approxi mately 50 per cent of that being raised as of Oct. 29. According to Janina Robinson, a Student Life pro grammer at the college, the final amount raised won't be known until later this week. “All the student events fin ished Nov. 2,” said Robinson. The college kickoff was Oct. 17 and featured guest speak ers who talked about the agen cy's three focus areas: Poverty to Possibilities, Healthy People, Strong Community, and All that Kids Can Be. The United Way is an orga nization that believes that together, we can strengthen the community for all. It sup ports agencies with funding so they can offer services to better improve lives in the community.
These non-profit organi zations include the John Howard Society of WaterlooWellington and Big Brothers, Big Sisters. “I think it’s important for students to be aware of the United Way because it is so far-reaching in our communi ty,” Robinson said. “You may not know someone is access ing the resources that they fund, but it’s really important in terms of overall community benefit.” At Conestoga, the United Way Student Committee this year consists of 12 students who have dedicated their time since the end of September. Paulina Cisneros, a vol unteer and a student in the human resources program, said, “I’ve worked for organi zations in the past that have been funded by the United Way, and I’m just happy to be helping out. It gives you the skills of fundraising and I really enjoy it.” A number of fundraising events were put together and organized by the student
PHOTO BY WENDY CZAKO-MAK
Kyle Archibald, a second-year recreation and leisure services student, concentrates as he carves his pumpkin in a contest to raise money for the United Way on Oct. 29.
committee and the business foundation students as part of their curriculum. One event was the pumpkin-carving contest, held Oct. 29. “The students on the com
THE ZOMBIES
mittee have been having meet ings once a week for the past six weeks,” said Robinson. “It's mid-terms now and they’re still all coming out to the meet ings. It’s pretty impressive.
“I really enjoy getting to work with the students for the United Way and I think it’s really a true testament to what they feel is important,” she said.
r etu r n
PHOTO BY ROB MENDONSA
Zombies invade the Cambridge Farmers’ Market on Oct. 27, getting a jump-start on Halloween festivities as part of a downtown Galt Harvest Celebration.
COMMENTARY
Page 2 ♦SPOKE
Monday, November 5,2012
Courage has no age BY ROB MENDONSA
At first glance, young Malala Yousufzai is just an ordinary 14-year-old schoolgirl. In reality she is far from an innocent child. Her courage and public advoca cy for girls’ education in a country that has little desire to defend those rights has distinguished her beyond Pakistan’s borders. It was in her homeland that the Taliban tried to silence her need for education by shoot ing her in the head on Oct. 9. Yousafzai lives in Pakistan’s Swat Valley, where the Taliban has established a presence of intimidation and oppression. She has been an outspoken critic of the Taliban since she was 11, blogging about her desire for peace in the region and throughout Pakistan, as well as becoming a voice advocating for girls’ education - some thing the Taliban opposes with brutal force. For her courage, Yousafzai was nominated for the International Children’s Peace Prize in 2011 and was the inaugural winner of Pakistan’s 2011 National Youth Peace Prize. She is now in the United Kingdom recovering from her bullet wounds. The Taliban has vowed to target her again. Ehsanullah Ehsan, a Taliban spokesman, called her out spoken commitment to education and peace an “obscen ity,” condemning her for “openly propagating” Western culture. Ehsan said of the attack, “Let this be a lesson.” Indeed, it is a lesson of the brutality with which the Taliban operates in its quest for control, at the expense of basic human rights. Occasionally in life people are confronted with actions that are so horrendous that they can’t help but step back and say “enough;” this happens to be one of those occasions. Pakistanis from a broad political and reli gious spectrum have united in outrage and revulsion at the attack, making her a beacon of light in a country filled with the darkness of oppression and ignorance. This will not be the last attack from groups that try to assign noble intentions to their deeds while hiding behind the guises of religious teachings. But it should serve to remind us all that whatever our worries are here, they are dwarfed by life in a land where even day-to-day living is not just a struggle, but dangerous beyond our comprehension. On Sunday, we will once again be reminded how coura geous men and women paid the ultimate price for the free doms we take for granted, the very same rights Yousafzai is fighting for. The least we can do is take a few moments from our busy daily schedules and honour that sacrifice. The views herein represent the position of the newspa per, not necessarily the author.
Letters are welcome Spoke welcomes letters to the editor. Letters should be signed and include the name and telephone number of the writer. Writers will be contact ed for verification. No unsigned letters will be published. Letters should be no longer
than 500 words. Spoke reserves the right to edit any letter for publication. Email letters to: www.spokeonline.com with the subject line “ Letter to the Editor,” or bring them to Room 1C30 at the Doon campus.
They shall grow not old, as we that are le ft grow old: Age shall not weary them, nor the years condemn. A t the going down of the sun and in the morning W e will remember them. - From the poem For the Fallen by Laurence Binyon (1869-1943)
Ignorance isn’t bliss It amazes me that people who are environmentally insensitive believe the world will just go on the way it always has despite their abuse. I could care less if someone called me an annoying tree hugger because, the truth is, I’m one of the people who help keep the world revolving. I’m not asking everyone to mimic what I do, I’m asking people to stop being lazy. In the past few years, I’ve started to see a lot more sort ing bins in public places for recyclables and garbage. They have four sections for differ ent trash items - waste, com post, paper and plastic - but some people still don’t get it. The lights are on but nobody’s home. I once saw someone go up to one of the sorting bins with two plastic bottles. She threw them in the garbage section instead of the recy cling one conveniently placed five inches to the right. That is the height of ignorance. People excuse it by saying, ‘Who cares? It’s just one bottle.” Wake up and smell the roses because it’s far from it. There are over seven billion people in the world. If half the population threw a bottle in the garbage
Kristin Milani O p in io n
each day, that would be close to 3.5 billion bottles that could have been recycled, or 24.5 bil lion in a week. Let’s not forget that many places in the world have limited recycling. My mom once told me that she walked around Chicago and it took her over a day to find a recycling bin. That’s just pathetic. I am losing faith in humanity due to things like that. What a Wonderful World by Louis Armstrong is a beautiful song but the lyrics couldn’t be any further from the truth. The world isn’t invincible and people need to stop treat ing it like it is. I don’t believe the world is going to end on Dec. 21, 2012 like the Mayans predict, but if people don’t figure things out, it will even tually happen. The environ ment can only take so many beatings before it throws
in the towel. It’s time that people took a look around and realized that the world may still have a fighting chance to become a better place. If you honestly think that changing your ways won’t make a difference, you are mistaken. It’s simple. Go a little out of your way. Laziness isn’t acceptable especially when it deter mines the future of the plan et we live on. If you feel good about yourself when you lay down at night knowing you did nothing to help, then so be it, but when the world starts falling apart, give yourself a pat on the back for contributing to that. If the reason people don’t care is because they believe the end of the world won’t happen during their lifetime, they should be ashamed. Who cares about future generations who will live in peril due to pure negli gence, right? That thought makes me sick. Why should they suffer because of other people’s lack of intelligence? Let’s give future generations and the environment a fair shake instead of being so selfish.
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OPINION
Monday, November 5,2012
More than just a backpack When 16-year-old Jakub Markiewicz took a photo of an arrest-in-progress in a Burnaby, B.C., shopping mall, he did not expect to be the one wearing handcuffs. Nor should he have. It all began on an ordinary day in September, when the aspiring journalist witnessed a group of Metrotown mall security guards arresting a man in the concourse and, deeming it newsworthy, snapped a single photograph. When the guards spotted him, they demanded he delete the photo; Markiewicz explained he was using film and could not delete it. As he turned to leave, RCMP officers arrived on the scene and he took another photo. The next thing he knew, he was grabbed, pushed to the ground, handcuffed, placed under arrest, dragged outside and thrown in the backseat of an RCMP cruiser. His back pack was sliced from his shoul ders and searched, without a warrant or his permission, and the guards again demanded he delete the photos. “I was like, just perplexed,” Markiewicz said after being released. “I was like, ‘What’s going on here, why am I being treated like this?”’ It’s a valid question. And one which needs to be asked. According to Section 8 of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms, “Everyone has the right to be secure against unrea sonable search or seizure.” Unreasonable doesn’t begin to describe it. While malls are considered private venues, Markiewicz was within his rights to be photographing until he was asked to stop. The RCMP, however, was not within its rights to search and destroy his property with out just cause or, more impor tantly, his consent. While he was not charged with any crimes, he was banned from the mall for six months.
Ryan Bowman O p in io n
And while the incident may not be the starkest example of the state’s ever-increasing disregard for our freedoms, it is the latest in a long parade of personal injustices in a country supposedly rooted in liberty and democracy. Due process, it seems, has been replaced by an “act now, ask questions later” mentality. Still fresh in our collec tive mind is the tragic and avoidable death of Robert Dziekanski, killed in 2007 by repeated Taser blasts from RCMP in the Vancouver International Airport. Then there’s the 2010 G20 summit in Toronto. Granted some of the rioting was grounds for apprehen sion, but accusations by jour nalists and peaceful protes tors of unlawful arrest and use of unnecessary force were heard loud and clear across the globe. Follow this with similar accusations (accompanied by video) during the Occupy Toronto protests last summer and you have a disturbing pat tern of public servants infring ing and encroaching upon the rights of the citizens they’re supposed to be protecting. And all of this in the midst of police chiefs crying for sup port of Bill C-30, which would allow officers (among others) to obtain Internet and cell phone records of Canadian citizens, without warrants, at any time and for any reason. We have the right to photo graph in public. We have the right to protest. We have the right to our privacy. Today it’s just a backpack. Tomorrow it’s everything our country stands for.
On Spoke Online (www.spokeonline.com) this week: ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■
Th e varsity men’s rugby team is back in the playoffs. See who takes home the hardware at the 39th annual Cam bridge Sports Banquet. M ovem ber kicks off at Chainsaw in Waterloo. A D -D a y veteran talks about the war and Rem em brance Day services. S ee the Kitchener R angers in action. Learn what Conestoga students were up to on Halloween.
SPOKE ♦Page 3
Swift’s CD a catchy pop album BY ASHLEY CURRIE
Taylor Swift’s fourth album, Red, was released on Oct. 22, in both a regular 16-track version and a deluxe 22-track version. This album will leave long time Swift fans satisfied but will fail to draw a new audi ence. The album is packed full of love songs, which is the norm for Swift, with only one song straying from her usual story line about failed or future relationships. Track 13, a personal lucky number for Swift, is aptly titled The Lucky One. It tells the story of someone’s Hollywood rise to fame, and then how this person chose to leave the celebrity lifestyle. Swift sings about how she understands why this star chose a regular life saying, “It took some time, but I under stand it now. 'Cause now my name is up in lights, but I think you got it right.” Swift has not yet revealed whose story this track tells. The album also features two collaborations. The Last Time is a slow duet with Gary
Lightbody of the band Snow Patrol about a failed rela tionship. Swift and Lightbody sing, “This is the last time I’m asking you why, you break my heart in the blink of an eye.” The other collaboration is Everything has Changed, which features the vocals of British musician Ed Sheeran. This ballad captures the feel ing of when you meet a new love and everything seems to shift into place. Sheeran and Swift describe this moment perfectly when they say, “All I know is you held the door, you’ll be mine and I’ll be yours. All I know since yesterday is everything has changed.” The album also has some upbeat tracks such as the lead single We are Never Ever Getting Back Together, and Trouble, which is about know ing a person is trouble but falling for him anyway. 22 is another upbeat track about living life, being 22 and hav ing fun. Swift attempted to jump back into the pop charts with this album, however, it still
features some country influ ences that can be heard in instruments used for songs such as the title track Red and I Almost Do. The thing that could pos sibly turn new listeners away from this album is the repeti tiveness of the lyrics in some of the songs. Swift is known for her normally insightful and witty lyrics but some songs on Red don’t showcase this. One example is the song Stay Stay Stay where she sings “Stay stay stay, I’ve been loving you for quite some time time time, you think that it’s funny when I’m mad mad mad.” It leaves the listener thinking that per haps just four albums into her career Swift has finally run out of creative ways to write about love. If you were expecting intui tive lyrics and country music from Swift this time around, you will be disappointed. However, Red is a catchy pop album that features songs that will get stuck in your head and leave you wanting more after the first listen.
NEWS
Page 4 ♦ SPOKE
Now deep thoughts ... with Conestoga College Random questions answered by random students
If you could be any fruit, what would you be and why? “ I don’t want to be a fruit or vegetable, I like being a hum an.”
Tyler B atten ,
first-year journalism print
“An apple because they are usually s w e e t”
B ren da S ittid a h ,
first-year health informatics
“A grapefruit because it’s my favourite.”
Monday, November 5,2012
Conestoga is Ontario’s fastest growing college BY W ESLEY BUTLER
High job placement rates, a reputation for quality educa tion and the addition of over 200 new programs in the last six years has made Conestoga College the fastest growing college in Ontario. Figures released by the Ontario College Application Service confirm that full-time post-secondary enrolment across Conestoga’s campuses exceeds 10,000, up eight per cent from last year. First year enrolment sits at 6,161, up more than nine per cent from last year. The college’s full time enrolment growth from 2007 to 2012 is 61.1 per cent, the highest in the province. International enrolment increased by 74 per cent, attracting students from over 56 countries. The col lege’s degree programs have increased enrolment by 15.8 per cent, and graduate certifi cate program enrolment is up 33.8 per cent. Waterloo Region’s growing population and dynamic econ omy are also factors. Toyota, Linamar and other compa nies in the high-tech sector
usually don’t hire people who don’t have some kind of post secondary education. “With the region’s compre hensive economy, there’s a need for high-level entry posi tions,” said Conestoga College president John Tibbits. “There’s also a lot of innova tion. Some companies strug gle, while others emerge, so there’s often a need for retraining.” Some of Conestoga’s newly developed programs include corporate training and post secondary apprenticeships, including automotive service, electrician construction and maintenance, and tool and die making. The college regularly renews and develops its training pro grams to meet industry needs. This year, they are looking into adding a number of new programs in the health-care area, such as a possible degree in public health. Because of Conestoga’s growing enrolment, college administration has discussed possible expansion. The col lege owns the land on the other side of Highway 401 where the new Cambridge
campus is located, so a build ing could be placed there. They have also considered building an addition at the Doon campus, which would be built across the street from the rec centre, an area which is approximately 28 acres. Possible expansion may also take place at the Waterloo campus, to implement new programs in food processing and culinary hospitality. “There’s great capacity at all of Conestoga’s campuses, said Tibbits. “But at some point, there would have to be fur ther growth of the buildings.” The other area of expansion is at the Brantford campus of Wilfrid Laurier University. Conestoga College already offers an articulation agree ment where Laurier’s thirdyear journalism students can take the broadcast television, video broadcast journalism/ documentary, new media: convergence, or integrated marketing communications programs at Conestoga. “Our economy and popula tion is continuing to grow,” said Tibbits. “This means Conestoga will continue to expand as the years go on.”
C h ristin e Lang,
first-year nursing
“A mango because they are juicy and d eliciou s.”
M ai Phung,
first-year business administration marketing
“A sweet and juicy apple.”
PHOTO BY WESLEY BUTLER
Conestoga College is Ontario’s fastest growing college, with enrolment this year increasing by nine per cent over last year. C o rin n e W ebb,
second-year business administrative supply chain
“A starfruit because being a star would be fun.”
B e ck y S h ea sb y,
first-year journalism print
Smile Conestoga, you could be our next respondent!
NEWS
Monday, November 5,2012
SPOKE ♦ Page 5
Community heroes shine at recognition breakfast BY MIKE ViELM A
“I wish we had more people like them, where they just say yes,” said Dianne Murphy, faculty member of prepara tory programs at Conestoga College. “If they can, they say yes. They are willing to help people who are having tough times and I just wish we had more employers like them.” Murphy was referring to Scott Wilkie, promotions manager for 91.5 the Beat and Dave FM, and George Vandermey, director of human resources services for the City of Cambridge, both of whom won an award at the seventh annual Employment Facilitation Network of Cambridge and North Dumfries Employer Recognition Breakfast at the Galt Country Club on Oct. 24. The event, which had more than 90 people in attendance, was held to recognize local employers who have exceed ed expectations in assisting people by providing various work experiences, employ ment opportunities and train ing. There were a total of 12 employers recognized at the breakfast. Wilkie, a.k.a. Silks the Prize Guy, was specifically recog nized by Conestoga College for helping students go through a
co-op program at the radio stations he works for. He also works with Murphy to help individuals find a career path they are interested in. Murphy, who has been on the breakfast’s planning com mittee since its inception in 2005, runs two programs that help individuals decide their career path before they sign up for college or uni versity. The programs are called Focus For Change and Discover Your Future. The people in these pro grams tend to be going through a transition phase and are out of options. They are looking for a fresh start. “They are literally on an island, they are on their own,” Murphy said. She does as much as she can to help these people overcome educational, financial and personal barriers in order to become successful. She can always count on Wilkie to be a positive role model and lend a helping hand. Murphy said, “The fact that I know I can say to my stu dents, go to Scott at Dave FM and you’ll be treated right, is really amazing. “It doesn’t matter what I ask, it may not even be within the scope of his department, but he’ll say he knows who can help, for any situation.”
Murphy had one of her stu dents graduate from the broadcast - radio program at Conestoga last year because she brought him to Wilkie and he introduced the student to helpful contacts in the industry. Wilkie said, “Someone took the time back in 1998 to take me as a co-op student and show me the ropes and basi cally led me to my career. I just want to make sure I pay it forward and give it back to someone else. “It just seems like a regular thing to do at work (run the co-op program). But some times you don’t understand the impact you’re making on people’s lives.” The co-op program involves students helping out around the studio, and shadowing Wilkie and other employees. “In your job you have to find certain things that make you want to go everyday, and that’s totally one of them,” Wilkie said. The other award winners at the recognition breakfast were: Cambridge Towel, Cambridge Career Connections, Blind Ambition and Solar Tech, T irecraft C am bridge, Canadian Hearing Society, Moores, Robinson Solutions, Neatly Maid Cleaning Service, Upper Canada Food Group and Liquidation World.
P H O T O B Y MIKE V IE L M A
Scott Wilkie proudly shows off the award he received at the seventh annual Employment Facilitation Network Recognition Breakfast at the Galt Country Club on Oct. 24.
Page 6 ♦SPOKE
FEATURE
Monday, November 5 ,2012
CHRISTMAS W ONDERLAND Bronner’s celebrates the holiday 361 days a year BY ALLANAH PINHORN
The jack-o-lanterns thrown in the garbage and the fake fangs packed away for anoth er year are both signs that Christmas is right around the corner. There's no better place to gear up for the holiday season than at 25 Christmas Lane, Frankenm uth, Mich,: Bronner’s Christmas Wonderland, A four-hour drive from Conestoga, the “W orld’s Largest Christmas Store” is a treat for the senses. Covering nearly 30 acres of sparkle, flash, glitter and glitz, Bronner’s has over 88,6000 products for sale, from bulbs and handcraft ed ornaments to postcards, lights and pre-lit Christmas trees. Hundreds of candy canes, polar bears, nativ ity scenes and nutcrack ers adorn the over-hanging eves, carols dance through the air like so many sugar plums and red-vested employees flit around like Santa’s elves. Need an acrylic cowboy hat strung in garland? Bronner’s has it. Tiny starfish, artic ulated lizards, sushi or canoes? Bronner’s will ship it. If you can hang it on a tree this sprawling, bright and magical place will pro vide it. Started in 1945 by Wallace, “Wally,” Bronner and his wife Irene, the Michigan landmark moved to its cur rent chalet-style building in 1977 and is open 361 days a year, closing only for New Year’s Day, Easter, U.S. Thanksgiving and Christmas. Sam (who wouldn’t give her last name) is a custom-orna ment artist year-round at the store. She said they’ll serve over 40,000 customers next weekend alone; they serve hundreds of thousands of cus tomers throughout the year. During the months of November and December spe cial events adorn the calen dar: Santa visits, glassblow ing seminars are held and artist show up to sign their creations. Traditionally every Christmas Eve Silent Night is sung at the chapel outside the entrance - Wally himself led the sing-along until his death in 2008. In addition to in-store shopping Bronner’s ships worldwide, through online, mail, telephone and fax P H O TO S B Y A LLA N A H P8NHORN orders. For more information go to A custom ornament artist paints bulbs on a busy Saturday at www.bronners.com. » Bronner’s Christmas Wonderland, in Frankenmuth, Mich. Oct. 27.
Monday, November 5,2012
FEATURE
Halloween Hijinks
PHOTOS BY WENDY CZAKO-MAH
Students who got into the Halloween spirit included, clockwise from top left, Megan Friesen, Joscelyn Garvey, Adam Reinhart, Emma Budziarek, Matt Howell, Ashley Wright and Melissa Reid, and, in centre photo, Emma Baldwin.
SPOKE* Page7
NEWS
Page 8 ♦ SPOKE
Monday, November 5,2012
Career counsellors here to help College service offers students education on choosing the right path BY BRAD COUGHLIN
While the path to any given career may seem more like a maze, students who change their goals midway don’t nec essarily have to start all over. Sometimes students need education about their educa tion. Last year, career advisers at Conestoga College’s Career Services met one-on-one with 1,330 students and counselled more than 500 others in work shops. The students they most often see are those who think they’re in the wrong program.
“We can help with career decision-making,” said Karen Shoemaker, an adviser at the service. “(We) help them choose the right program for the career they want to get into.” Shoemaker said students most likely to switch are those who hadn’t done enough research into their college program, took parent’s or friend’s suggestions, or don’t know what they really like. For these students, Career Services can help with for mal and informal assess ments connecting interests to
careers. “A big piece of it is selfawareness,” said Shoemaker, “and that’s something that we always emphasize - good career planning really begins with self assessments.” But, the service doesn’t choose careers for its clients, it encourages students to research careers for them selves. In order to make well-informed decisions, stu dents should conduct web and labour market research as well as research interviews with people in the field. Students need to know
themselves and the career that best suits their interests.
("We) help them choose the right program for the career they want to get into. " - Karen Shoemaker “We never make decisions for people - it’s just not that easy,” said Shoemaker. “It’s a full range of career-related needs that we help students with.” The long process, which begins with a decision in high school to go to college and uni versity, is not something most students want to redo. “What we try to do is give some flexibility so people can extend the path that they’re on or change their path,” said Wayne Morris, Conestoga’s chair of academic administra tion. On top of helping students decide on their initial post secondary college experience, Career Services aids students looking to further their educa tion. Articulation agreements are contracts between post-sec ondary institutes, most often colleges and universities, set ting guidelines for transfer credits. Students looking to turn their college diploma into a degree use the agreements to enroll into higher levels of education with advanced aca demic standing. While students can apply to other institutes and receive advanced standing on a easeby-ease basis, articulation agreements are formal con tracts streamlining the pro
cess and providing a guide for students. The agreements not only allow students to further their education on one career path, but also allow for the opportunity to transfer cred its into another path. “I think it’s a big advan tage for students,” said Shoemaker. Set up with institutes around the world, from Canada to the United Kingdom to Australia, each articulation agreement offers students different entry standing and degrees. Shoemaker advises most students to start looking into the agreements at least a year in advance of graduation. For students looking to study overseas, KOM Consultants is a helpful organization that facilitates applications, trans portation and accommoda tions. But, in some instances, stu dents need not travel any far ther than Conestoga College for degree programs. Currently offering 11 of them, the college can provide students with a higher level of education that only univer sities could before. Where universities are abstract, expecting students to take theory and apply it after graduating, colleges lean more toward applied learning. “Our applied degrees are really more academically rig orous than the universities because we have the same theory plus the application,” said Morris. Students can begin their research on the Conestoga College home page by fol lowing the “Academics” tab to “Turn Diplomas Into Degrees.”
CHILLY VIBE on the bus ride
PHOTO BY ASHLEY CURRIE
A s the days grow short and colder, early m orning com m uters ride a Guelph transit bus under an eerie blue light just before 7 a.m . on Oct. 23.
NEWS
Monday, Novembers, 2012
SPOKE ♦Page 9
To get the shot, or not BY JESSICA REPIKER
Influenza is a dirty word. For some, it motivates them to stand in a long line waiting for a needle, while for others it causes them to roll their eyes at the very idea of being vaccinated. Whatever side of the issue you’re on, there’s no arguing that flu season is upon us. W idespread in fection because of the virus typically occurs from mid-October to January globally, creating an annual epidemic that results in three to five million severe cases and up to 500,000 deaths each year, according to the World Health Organization. The flu can infect any one but children and adults over 65 years of age run a higher risk of complications. “People who are susceptible to diseases ... or those who have chronic illness such as diabe tes, can greatly benefit from getting the flu shot,” said Meghan Clark, a peer health educator with Conestoga’s health services, adding that if you are in good health, get ting the flu shot is still recom mended, but not as urgent. With so many students at Conestoga, germs are catch ing a ride from one person to the next. It is important to know the difference between symptoms of the common cold
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PHOTO BY JESSICA REDIKER
While some college students line up at the annual flu clinics on campus, others choose to walk on by.
and something more serious. The telltale flu signs to look out for, according to the Region of Waterloo Public Health’s website, include fever, headache, severe pains and extreme exhaustion. These symptoms are uncom mon for a cold, but present in those infected with the flu. So why would anyone think twice before getting the shot?
Its effectiveness is a point of much debate. Though most health depart ments will cite the effectiveness of the flu shot at between 70 and 90 per cent, a recent study challenged this, as well as the fact that most of the statistical data on the vaccine’s effective ness began in the 1940s. The findings of the report place the vaccine’s effective
ness at a rate of approxi mately 59 per cent in healthy adults, and even less in young children and adults over 65. The report, The.Compelling Need for Game Changing Influenza Vaccines from the CIDRAP Comprehensive Influenza Vaccine Initiative, summed up more than 12,000 relevant documents, as well as personal interviews.
However, the vaccine was not intended to be a cure-all, as it only protects you from three of the expected strains of the virus. “You can still get the flu after you get the flu shot because strains of the influ enza virus mutate and the flu shot may not contain pro tection against those specific strains,” said Clark.
A fantastic feast for the fight BY WHITNEY SOUTH
An evening of decadent delights and culinary concoc tions greeted diners at the inaugural Chefs Gala for the Cure on Oct. 27. The event, which supported the Canadian Cancer Society, was held at The Holiday Inn Kitchener-W aterloo. Guests were welcomed with a glass of rose champagne as well as a variety of hors d’oeuvres including empana das and stuffed dates. Silent auction items tempted attend ees as they filed into the ball room, ready to sit down to a five-course gastronomic dinner. Rogers TV’s Susan CookScheerer and Mark Paine of the talk show Daytime, were the evening’s hosts and even took the audience behind the scenes via TV monitors. Segments included a look at the kitchen as well as inter views with the chefs prepar ing the delicious dishes. Each culinary creation was prepared by a Fortis Property Hobday Inn chef, with empha sis on their respective region. With proceeds going to The Canadian Cancer Society,
guests not only enjoyed an incredible meal, but also took part in live auctions for a din ner for 10 and a trip to Ottawa in between two of the courses. Salim Mukadam, general manager of The Holiday Inn Kitchener-Waterloo, said the idea for the gala couldn’t have been realized without the support of other managers of Holiday Inn properties. “The team wanted to do a big event but we couldn’t do it by ourselves,” said Mukadam. “As general managers of five different properties we always get together every year and this time we wanted to come up with an event that would promote our chefs, but would also tie to a charity.” The Canadian Cancer Society is an organization that Mukadam said is very close to him and his staff. After los ing their chief engineer two years ago to cancer, the hotel team decided to participate in Relay for Life in his memory. From then on, finding ways to give back to the charity has been a top priority. “Being in a community and representing a facility like this, we need to give some
thing back to the community,” said Mukadam. “It’s our duty and obligation.” He said the most important goal for him was being able to make sure 100 per cent of the proceeds went straight to the charity. “When you do one portion or one part people always think you are trying to make a prof it off a charity. I don’t want to be known for that,” he said. “For me, if you’re going to do something, you do it 100 per cent.” Having cancer survivors in his family, Mukadam sees the difference that charities can make. ‘You don’t hear a lot of sur vivor stories but now, because of the research, you’re start ing to,” he said. “It’s positive. There is a cure out there for it. There’s hope.” The Canadian Cancer Society is a national community-based organization of volunteers whose mission is the eradica tion of cancer and the enhance ment of the quabty of life of people hving with cancer. As the largest national funder of cancer research in Canada, the society has a greater impact in
more communities than any other Canadian cancer charity. Karen Griffiths, manager of the unit office of the Canadian Cancer Society in Waterloo Region, said she was pleased with the evening’s turnout. “For a first-time event, we were thrilled to see almost 200 people in attendance,” she said. Griffiths said it is always important to bring awareness to the Canadian Cancer Society in order for them to continue to raise money for life-saving research and support services for people hving with cancer. Even something as simple as transportation to and from appointments is something that not everyone can afford. One in five cancer patients cannot even get to treatment. “Just $50 will provide transportation for one cancer patient to a life-saving treat ment appointment so that they can focus on getting well,” said Griffiths. “In effect the cost of the ticket to Chefs Gala for the Cure will help enable three patients to get to treatment.” With all proceeds going to charity, the evening took in over $24,000 in ticket sales
and donations. “It is extremely rare for 100 per cent of the proceeds to be donated back to the soci ety,” said Griffiths. “Usually with an event of this calibre there are significant logistical expenses, not to mention the cost of the meal.” The fight against cancer has come a long way since the Canadian Cancer Society started funding research in the 1940s. At the time, only 25 per cent of people survived compared to the approximate ly 60 per cent who are recov ering today. According to Griffiths, 75 per cent of research projects still struggle every year due to insufficient funds. “The more money that is raised in the community means that we can increase funding to the best possible research projects and work towards finding a cure for cancer,” she said. For more information about the Canadian Cancer Society in Waterloo Region, including upcoming events and volun teer opportunities, visit www. cancer.ca/waterloo or call the office at 519-886-8888.
NEWS
Page 10 ♦ SPOKE
Monday, November 5,2012
Animals are forever gifts Think before adopting that animal at Christmas BY CALEIGH MCLELLAND
With Halloween costumes off the racks and trick-ortreaters nearly finished their candy, our attention now turns to Christmas. And while many enthusias tic shoppers finish their shop ping well before Dec. 25, oth ers leave gift buying until the bitter end. But there are some gifts that need much more thought than just deciding what colour of shirt to buy an hour before the mall closes on Christmas Eve. Animals are often popular gifts for children, but many parents rush into buying or adopting a puppy or a k it ten without considering just how much work a pet actu ally is. Because of this, staff mem bers at the Guelph Humane S o c ie t y make sure the entire family is prepared for a new addition. “Everyone in the family has
to meet the animal to ensure they are all comfortable with the idea,” said Caroline Dunmore, lost and found coordinator/adoption counsel lor at the Guelph Humane Society. Often animals are sur rendered or brought back to humane societies shortly after Christmas because of allergies or because people are unaware of the hard work and dedication involved in taking care of an animal. “For this reason,” said Dunmore, “we stop adoptions around two to three days before and after Christmas so the adoption is not a lastminute decision.” Like a child moving from home to home, animals can become stressed in new envi ronments, too. Some animals also have special needs, whether it be a health issue, a fear of men or small children or a dislike of other animals, and may require a particular
person or family to take care of them. “That is why we are very careful about our adoptions,” said Bonnie Deekon, execu tive director at the Cambridge and District Humane Society, adding that she finds it dif ficult to see an animal getting comfortable in a home, only to be moved or taken back to the shelter. “This just adds to the confu sion of the animal,” Deekon said. “When we send an ani mal home, we want to make sure it is their forever home.” According to Deekon, many animals do not initially adjust well to groups of people. And since Christmas is a time when friends and family get together, Deekon recommends people hold off on bringing a new pet home until after the holidays. “Instead, people can pur chase a gift certificate. That way everyone can come in and the animal can be chosen by the entire family,” she said.
PHOTO BY CALEIGH MCLELLAND
Cambridge and District Humane Society kennel assistant, Brandilyn Logan, holds one of the many cats available for adop tion at the shelter.
Guelph Riverside Park Goes to the dogs
PHOTO BY BRAD COUGHLIN
Jeff Daniel and Chiquita cuddle at the Guelph Humane Society’s 20th annual Wiggle Waggle Walk-athon in Riverside Park on Oct. 28. The event included a 5-km walk, merchandise booths and an agil ity course.
PHOTO BY BRAD COUGHLIN
Amanda Osmond encourages Sheeba to jump over an obstacle at the fundraiser for the society.
Monday, November 5,2012
FEATURE
SPOKE ♦Page 11
The calm before the storm
PHOTO BY RYAN BOWMAN
A pair of Conestoga students shelter themselves from the rain on a chiliy October morning. Waterloo Region received 50 mm of rain from Oct. 26 to 29.
It started out as drizzle, but it was the first sign of an approaching superstorm. Sandy, the post-tropical cyclone that travelled along the east coast of the United States last weekend, sent us gentle rain on the morning of Oct. 29. As it made landfall in New York, Kitchener experienced periods of
PHOTO BY BRAD COUGHLIN
Hang Vu walks across Conestoga’s rainy campus on Oct. 29. Southern Ontario caught the edge of Hurricane Sandy last week.
downpour overnight, and wind gusts of up to 87 km/h which uprooted several trees in the area and left por tions of the city in a state of blackout for hours. Though this was nowhere near the epic destruction Kitchener citizens had been told to anticipate, stu dents came to Conestoga armed with umbrellas to protect themselves.
PHOTO BY KRISTIN MILANI
First-year interior decorating student Keweda Pinnock experiences the backlash of the superstorm first hand on Oct. 29.
SPORTS
Page 12 ♦ SPOKE
Monday, November 5,2012
Greyhounds outwork Storm Guelph team loses 6-2 BY LINDSAY TESSiER
After starting off the Ontario Hockey League sea son with a string of successes, the Guelph Storm got a taste of failure. A disorganized and lacklus tre performance by the Storm on Oct. 28 culminated in a 6-2 loss to the Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds in a chippy, fightfilled game at the Sleeman Centre. At times, scoring seemed secondary to the fighting on the ice. There’s no love lcJSt between the Storm and the Greyhounds after they played each other last week (Oct. 21) with Guelph pull ing off a 7-1 win. By the end of Sunday’s game 36 infractions had been called with three players being removed from the game - Guelph’s Scott Kosmachuk for slashing, and Sault SteMarie’s Mark Petaccio for shoving an official and Colin Miller for slashing. W orse, the Storm lost defencem an Audrey Pedan for at least two games after he was given a match pen alty for kicking a Sault player. ^Guelph has already lost a number of players to injury this season, most recently for wards Ryan Horvat, Patrick Watling and Hunter Garlent. The team will have to make some adjustments to their line up with another three games in three days coming up. The game against Sault Ste. Marie started slowly, with Storm players looking dis tracted and sluggish right out of the gate. w as a scoreless first p eriod , b u t th a t q u ick ly ch a n g e d w h e n th e G reyh ou n d s let loose w ith fou r goals in the first 12 m in u te s o f th e secon d period. The Storm had a number of opportunities to get back m the game but struggled on the power play, missing scor ing opportunities and having trouble keeping the puck out of their end. Even two fiveon-threes produced nothing. Storm coach Scott W alker said he w as d isa p p oin t
ed w ith the lack o f disci pline he saw on the ice but w asn’t about to berate his players’ perform ance, sa y ing that a tough schedule and the loss o f players to injuries has been tough on the team . “We came out a little flat ter than we should have. Mentally we weren’t into it. We weren’t moving our feet and got out of it early,” said Walker. “I think their hearts want ed to take them places their minds couldn’t tonight.” “But, w e can live w ith it w hen w e w ork so hard som e oth er n igh ts,” he added. “W e’ve handled som e tough gam es before and w e ll con tinue to handle them .” Garret Sparks started the game in net, but was relieved by Jason Da Silva in the third period after allowing six goals on 28 shots. His poor play came after a stunning performance the previous night in London, where he made 42 saves in regulation and then stopped all five London players he faced in the shootout as the Storm defeated the Knights 4-3. A hangdog Sparks couldn’t explain what happened. “I dunno. E very n ig h t’s a differen t night. Y ou never k n o w h ow th e p u c k ’s goin g to b ou n ce an d I ju st d id n ’t th in k I w as gettin g the b rea k s th a t m aybe I got on S a tu rd a y n igh t,” he said. “P a rt o f it w as m e, p a rt o f it w a s ju s t b ou n ces. I ta k e re sp o n sib ility fo r it th o u g h a n d n eed to h a ve a b e tte r w e e k e n d n e x t w e e k e n d .”
TICKET PRICES -
Student tickets are
-
Students can also take advantage of the $8 weekend pass - where on two-game weekends, you can add a second game for only $8.
$19.50.
PHOTO BY LINDSAY TESSSER
Zack Mitchell of the Guelph Storm attempts to score on Sault St. Marie Greyhounds’ goaltender Matt Murray on Oct. 28.
Defensive mistakes cost Condors the playoffs BY DYLAN DACOSTA
Conestoga’s men’s outdoor soccer team rued their defen sive mistakes as their early elimination from the play offs meant that they had to watch Humber College win the Ontario Colleges Athletic Association (OCAA) champi onship with a 2-0 victory over Seneca College on Oct. 27. The Condors had a solid record of five wins, one draw and two losses as they approached their qualifica tion game against Sheridan College on Oct. 14, but mis takes and bad luck sent them home licking their wounds as Sheridan edged them 3-2 and secured a spot in the quarter finals. Sheridan became bronze medalists as they defeated St. Clair 4-2 in the bronze medal game - a title which Conestoga held just one sea son prior. Coach Aldo Krajcar was proud of his team’s perfor mance against Sheridan, but was left regretting some bad decisions from both his play ers and the officials, as defen sive lapses and a goal disal lowed for an offside call cost his team the game. “I really thought that in the second half against Sheridan we would win the game,” he said. “But we made some mis
takes and the referee also missed some important calls.” The result was a reflection of the season as a whole for the Condors, who were good offensively but collectively needed to tighten up at the back. “We were good offensively but we can’t hold our own defensively sometimes,” said Krajcar. “We can always score a goal or two but we shouldn’t concede some of the chances that we do.” The team had a tendency to be flat-track bullies; they beat up on inferior opposi tion but didn’t get the results they wanted against some of the more competitive teams in the league. This was evident in a 1-1 league draw against Sheridan and also a 1-0 loss to Humber early in the Condors’ season. Midfielder Keith Araujo, a student in the business insur ance co-op program at the col lege, agreed. “We struggled against the big teams to get results,” he said. “We made some defen sive blunders and struggled to score in the big games.” Krajcar recognizes the need for consistency against all levels of opposition and hopes that he can add a third practice to the team’s week ly schedule next season to increase the level of prepara
tion and build on what the team accomplished this year. “I’d like three different prac tices a week to focus on tac tics, fitness and technique,” Krajcar said, adding that this would help the team reach the level of consistency and performance that he desires. Araujo’s Condors career came to an end this year as he completed his fourth season for the team, but he believes that next season the team can reach their playoff goals if they work hard in practice. “We had good team spir it and were all friends,” he said. “But we need to work on our focus and commitment to actually improving our selves.” Krajcar always expects his teams to make the playoffs and challenge for the OCAA championships, and he believes that if the rookies improve and the team learns to play more as a unit then they have a great opportunity to go far in the competition next season. “We have speed in attack and good technique but some times we are too individual and need to work on being a team more,” he said. “We have to implement the impor tance of playing as a team and making intelligent decisions throughout the game.”