The Cascade Volume 9 Issue 2 2001-02-16

THE CASCADE

A226 33844 King Road Abbotsford, BC V2V 7M8

easeade@uefv.be.ea v9 i2

Christopher Bolster Coordinating Editor

Kris Lind News & Features Editor Jessica Danylchuk Arts & Sports Editor

Conrad Skuce Layout Coordinator Andrew Bingham Staff Writer / Copy Editor

Jeff Baillie Graphics Editor

Darrell Alary Rock & Roll reporter

The Cascade is the UCFV students' free press. It provides a forum for UCFV students to have their journalism published. It also acts as the alternative press for the Fraser Valley. The Cascade is funded with UCFV Student Union funds. The Cascade is published twice monthly. The Cascade has a circulation of 2000 and is distributed throughout Abbotsford, Chilliwack and Mission. The Cascade Is a proud member of the Canadian University Press, a national cooperative of 72 university and college nuwspapers from Victoria to St. John's. The Cascade follows the CUP ethical policy concerning material of a prejudicial or oppressive nature.

Submissions are preferred in electronic format either through email or on disk. Please send submissions in ".txt" format only.

Letters to the editor must be double spaced and typed. Letters will also be accepted via email only if they meet the necessary requirements as outlined in this section. The Cascade reserves the right to edit letters to the editor for clarity and length. Only one letter per writer may appear in any given addition. The Cascade will not print any letters that contain racist, sexist or homophobic or libelous content. The writer's name and student number must be submitted with each letter. Letters to the editor must be under 400 words if intended for print.

Cascade Contributors

Christine Muise, Samuel Beckett, Sarom Bahk, Candice Pruden, Steve Beketa, Kyle Webb, Natalie Vermeer, Bryce V.R. Jordan

IN THIS ISSUE •••

Child abuse allegations at UCFV ....... 3

Allegations of physical abuse at Abbotsford campus childcare centre have resulted in a police investigation and the suspension of childcare worker.

By Kris Lind

In defense of the humanities 7

Its is always the same question: "You're in school? Good • for you! What are you studying? oooooh, an Arts degree What are you going to do with that?", as if an arts degree were a sort of wllite elephant of higher education; veryJ.randiose and impressive, but quite useless.

By .R. Jordan

GM crops: Food for thought

.............. 10

Genetically modified crops could be used to feed the world's hungry. Why isn't this happening? Sarom Bahk explores the issues.

By Sarom Bahk

Poetic Fodder for Political Souls

......... 13

Christine Muise reviews Professor Ron Dart's new poetry book. It draws us into the appetite many have towards attaining more within the soul while it keeps us grounded in the reality of the world we live in.

By Christine Muise

'Born' Playing 15

Sports reporter Kyle Webb interviews Cassie Born, one of the women Cascades power forward, on her first year in the Cascade basketball program.

By Kyle Webb

While politicians and other concerned grandstanders have applauded the building of the library, they have forgotten that the heart of the library is not the building, but the books which it holds.

-Darrell Alary

CHILD ABUSE ALLEGATIONS SHOCK UCFV ABBOTSFORD CAMPUS

that, "we [UCFV] responded promptly and appropriately once we were told."

By Kris Lind News Editor

Allegations of physical abuse at Abbotsford campus childcare centre have resulted In a police investigation and the suspension of childcare worker.

The alleged Incident occurred on Monday, January 29th. Currently police are conducting an Investigation to determine whether or not there was criminal Intent involved with the incident that would require the Crown to lay charges. Depending on the result of this investigation, the community care licensing authority, part of the Fraser Valley Health Region, could permanently revoke the staff member's childcare license. The community care licensing authority is also conducting an Investigation.

Sources indicate that childcare centre supervisor, Sandi Cubbon, learned of the incident Tuesday morning. A childcare centre staff member witnessed the alleged abuse and reported it on Monday afternoon.

Cubbon failed to Immediately alert the child's mother and remove the child from the facility resulting in the child spending Tuesday under the care of the accused staff member. Cubbon says that she could not act until she had all of the Information on the incident, "at that point [Tuesday morning] I did not know the severity of the allegations."

When asked whether or not she is satisfied with UCFV suspending the accused staff member, the child's mother, who asked to remain anonymous said, "Well, It Is good that the police are investigating.''

Bompas says that, "whenever we're dealing with an event such as alleged physical abuse on behalf of an employee, UCFV's policy is to immediately suspend that person when we become aware."

The child's mother stated, "It is a terrible thing that happened. Hopefully someone [at UCFV] will acknowledge that mistakes have been made; hopefully there will be some creative solutions to this,"

When asked if she will continue to attend UCFV, the child's mother says she is unsure at this point, "Right now I'm at home with my child, so I can't attend classes. I'm worried about my child's health, so I don't know if I can return this semester.''

She stated that she would consider using the UCFV childcare centre again, "I'll have to wait until the police and licensing investigations are over. Depending on their outcomes, maybe some parents and staff members can come up with some new ideas to make the daycare safer."

Bompas stated, "We think UCFV has a very good daycare. There seems to be a problem with one person, and we're going to fix it. We think this Is an unhappy, ghastly Incident."

The child's mother would like to UCFV Vice-President of Student and thank the UCFV Women's Centre Employee Services Barry Bompas stated for their support.

UCFV launches Aboriginal Resource centre

UCFV is one of 21 post-secondary Institutions that received special grants last fall from the Ministry of Advanced Education, Training and Technology to promote programmes geared to aboriginal students around the province. The aboriginal special project fund helps post-secondary Institutions to promote relevant, high-quality educational projects, programmes, and activities for aboriginal learners.

The Aboriginal Resource Centre (ARC) was officially opened on the Chilliwack campus in November with a traditional Sto:lo ceremony, the first ever performed at UCFV.

The University College of the Fraser Volley is taking advantage of special Provincial funding to launch two aboriginal-related initiatives.

Local News Briefs

UCFV Carpentry •tud•nt• re•torln11 •Joey'• Playhou••"

Some University College of the Fraser Valley carpentry students are getting a taste of "real life" for the next three months on site ot Trethewey House in Abbotsford, where they're constructing two buildings as part of an ongoing restoration project by the MSA Museum Society.

"The project is part of a goal to restore the site to the way It looked in 1920,'' says Lynne Wright, executive director of the

Dyer

Is there room for optimism in this new century?

Gwynne Dyer thinks so.

The world-renowned jour• nalist, who specializes in international affairs, will present two lectures with a decidedly optimistic bent at UCFV on Thursday, February 22. He will present his first lecture, "War: Downshift?" at the Chilllwack campus theatre at 11:30 a.m. The second,

Society. "Right now the UCFV students are restoring two of the original buildings."

UCFV instructor Mark Ryan is acting as instruc• tor and contractor on the job.

There will be a ceremony at Trethewey House to open Joey's playhouse on February 25 at 2 p.m The grand opening event to showcase both build· ings will take place on April 15.

SKATEBOARDERS FIND NO SANCTUARY AT UCFV

"The New Canada and the Globalization Shuffle (Reasons to be Cheerful)," will occur at 7 p.m. at the Abbotsford campus lecture theatre.

Admission to both lectures Is free, and the public is invited.

For more information about the Gwynne Dyer lectures call Dave Stephen at 864-4612 or 792-0025, local 4612.

By KrisLind News and FeaturesEditor

Some talented local skateboarders are having trouble practicing on the Abbotsford campus parking lot. Despiteclaims that they have never caused an accident or damaged property, the Yale Secondary school students are routinely asked to leave the property by members of Highland Security.

When asked why they favour the UCFV parking lot and walkways over the established skate-park by Moua! Secondary School, aspiring film student Pat Campbell replied that the Moua! skate-park Is too small nnd more suited for BMX riding. "It's pretty good here; this Is probably the best spot in Abbotsford."

However, the youth find it difficult to practice for any extended peri•

od of time. Campbell says that Highland Security, " always kicks us out. He [the security guard) follows us to the end of the property line thinking we're going to break something."

When asked if skateboarding on UCFV property is a constant problem, Geoff Robinson of Highland Security says, "Only a few give me any problems; most of them are pretty quiet and leave. There is one guy with a camera who says that he's from

a magazine and Is doing his job [photographing tricks]. and to fuck off and leave him alone.''

Campbell says that they have never caused any accidents or injuries to UCFV students, "We watch for people going by."

Robinson says that most of the time the youth are friendly. "Some of them say something [derogatory) usually when they're skating away."

Emergency food help for stu(!ents

is to help both types of situations."

Although this programme Is not particularly new, it is hoped that it will now run at

a more consistent level.

Gracie Slack was born September 21, 1998. She is now 2 years old. Her parents are Bruce and Jen Slack and she has one sister, Hanna, and one brother, Ryan. When Grace was 9 weeks old, she was diagnosed with a liver disease called Biliary Atresla, a disease that affects the bile ducts and bile flow from the liver. Liver failure is the result. Its cause is unknown and the only cure is a liver transplant.

Due to her Illness, Grace has had many surgeries in her short life. At the age of 11 weeks, she had surgery to help create some bile flow from the liver. When only 6 months old, Grace had surgery to correct a blocked bowel. Finally, when Grace was 8 months she received a liver transplant in London, Ontario.

Unfortunately, due to her extreme illness

before the transplant, Grace suffered posttransplant complications which included a brain infection and a stroke, This necessitated her being fed through a feedingtube in her nose. Eventually, Grace and her family were allowed to return home. Although she did well

For UCFV students in needthere is now a chance to have access to free emergency food. In conjunction with the Abbotsford Food Bank, Student Services and the Student Union Society (SUS) are providing food for students who have no money to spare.

to access in the SUS office. This will continue each Friday, · with each student being able to take a hamper home once a month.

With more than 20 000 people to feed in Abbotsford

alone, the programme organisers at UCFV are thankful that the Food Bank is taking time to worK with them.

Dave Murray, the director of the Abbotsford food bank, Is especially to be commended, says Harrison.

initially, it soon became "There are two kinds of students apparent that something who need assistance: was wrong. In May of those In an immediate crisis and 2000, Grace was dlag• those with ongoing nosed with vanishing needs," says Student Activities bile duct syndrom asso- Co-ordinator Jill elated with chronic Harrison, from Abbotsford. "The

The programme started about three years ago as a Food Bank referral service, but It was soon noted that there was a recurring need for immediate help for students. They began to keep food on hand for those in most desperate need, and dispensed It from the SUS office. The programme is helped by funding from the Financial Aid department, and also by contri• butlons from the president's office.

Harrison hopes that word will spread about this programme, and that through teachers' explanations and various advertisements, the students who need this help will be able to receive it. Interested parties should contact either Student Services or the Student Union. rejection. The meant goal of the programme that Grace was heading •_;;_ _____

towards liver failure and by Grace's illness has

that she would need been tremendous to say another liver transplant. the least; the family is

With time comes structure, and presently the programme is in

a trial phase. Beginning this Friday the Food Bank will bring in hampers of food for students

Greenpeace demands false biotech

advertising be removed from TV

constantly struggling. The (GE) rice provides so little vitamin A Thankfully, they found a family's savings have that an adult would have to eat 10 match and Grace been depleted and they Greenpeaceis filing a complaint with pounds (dry weight) of rice a day to received her second are having a difficult time Advertising Standards Canada meet recommended allowances. A transplant this month! keeping up with the costs demanding that misleading biotech two-year-old child would need to eat She is doing well so far associated with Grace's industryadvertisementsbe withdrawn seven pounds per day. and we are all so excit- illness. Please be gener- from broadcast. The Council for ed for her and her fami- ous and donate to the Biotech Information's ads says that ly. "Raising Hope'' initiative at "Golden rice could help prevent blind· either of the Student ness and infection In millions of chil• The Slack family, how- Union Society offices. dren," but recent scientific evidence ever, still needs your Your support will be shows that this Is not the case. help. The financial and appreciated by Grace and emotional stress caused her family.

A Greenpeace report released today shows that the geneticallyengineered

''It is shamefulthat the biotech industry Is using starvingchildrento promote a dubious product," said Michael Khoo of Greenpeace."This

to speak at UCFV's Abbotsford and Chllliwack campuses

Ralalng Hope for Baby Grace by Andrew Bingham Staff Writer

HISTORY STUDENTS SPEARHEAD LIBRARY PETITION

paned In 1991). The Petch Report concluded that collection of 264 945 volumes. At the time of Its sugthe library collectlon was the main concern of stu- gestions, the school held only 47.4 per cent of that • dents at UCFV, and should be addressed as prompt- or 125 558 volumes. This percentage was 2.6 per ly as possible, but to the knowledge of this reporter, cent below the ACRL's lowest ~rade (a 'D'), and an the operating budget of the school remains around apparent condemnation of our library. the 4 per cent level.

By Darrell Alary

The Association of History Students (AHS) is spearheading a petition to put pressure on UCF'V and the provincial government to bring the library's holdings up to national standards.

This effort will take place in the month of February, and will entail the circulation of the petition at the beginning of classes and will be available at table set up around the Abbotsford campus.

Students taking upper level courses at UCFV have probably already realized the deficiencies of our 'beautiful empty building'. A student of this school forwarded this apt description of our library to the Petch Report on University Colleges of British Columbia (July 1998). While politicians and other concerned grandstanders have applauded the build· Ing of the library, they have forgotten that the heart of the library is not the building, but the books which it holds.

The Petch Report found that the library collections at all university colleges In British Columbia were'barely adequate' for their size, and paled in comparison to other similar institutions across Canada. These are not strong comparisons because the schools that were compared with BC university colleges did not have the extra burden of trying to maintaln sublibraries. The report further determined that they (the university colleges) should increase their percentage of the opera.ting budget to about six per cent (from the four per cent, which they had dedicated to the libraries at the time of the report being written). This increase would only draw the British Columbia institutions in-line with other schools in Canada, and would still not even address the large deficiencies for which they were straddled with upon their transformation from college to university (for UCFV this hap-

In a 1999 brief to the Strategic Planning Initiative of UCFV, the Library Advisory Committee asked to receive six per cent of the Institutional budget, main· taining that it was a necessary allotment to establish and maintain 'professional standards.'

This figure was reached after consulting the reports completed by Howard E. Petch, the Association of College and Research Libraries (ACAL), and the Community and Technical College Libraries (CTCL). The six per cent requested was conceived on very conservative numbers, which assumed no growth in the number of full-time students, academic programs, or in the increase in demand for the existing services.Even with the granting of six per cent of the UCFV budget, from the time of the issuing of the brief, the library still calculated that It would take 17 to 22 years for the school to reach its current target of a collection of slightly over 250 000 volumes. Since its suggestion was not taken up, one can only assume that it will take even longer to reach the desired level. This same brief extolled the increase

In the 1998-1999 Library operating budget from just over three per cent of UCFV's total expenditure, to three and a half per cent, evidently happy with the small amount that they could get.

The Library Advisory Committee cites the adverse exchange rates. the annual increases In the subscription costs of journals, amongst other factors, which have severely hurt the purchasing power of the library. That is, the school's decision to continue compiling its meager journal collection has come at the cost of spending money on books (monographs In library jargon). This tough decision is being foisted upon the library when the acquisition of both should be a priority for this school.

Further studies have had similar findings. The ACRL recommended, in 1999, that UCFV should have a

A 1997 report of the Association of Universities and Colleges of Canada (AUCC) to UCFV it was recom• mended that this Institution spend $7.5 million dollars over the next three years (through the 20002001 school year) to 'ensure adequate support for its undergraduate programs.' This advice, which seemed to have fallen on deaf ears, was only for the securing of 'adequate' support for the students. Obviously, in terms of our library catalogue, the pow• ers that be don't even shoot for this marginal goal.

Outright condemnation of the decision-makers is not the right route here, or even the point of this article, because I'm sure that they would allocate the funds if they were readily available to them.

In these times of underfunding the UCFV bureaucracy are faced with difficult decisions, and the people behind this petition understand this completely. But they feel that It is time that the growing problem of the library catalogue be fully addressed, and that the recommendations of all of the reports listed above be implemented. For the school to successfully achieve its mandate of fulfilling the 'academic aspirations of the local communities', it has 901 to fix this problem. As a means of comparison, In the 19961997 operating year, Acadia University, which has 3603 full-time students allocated seven per cent of its budget towards its library. In that year it held 1 012 595 volumes in Its library, while UCFV had only 114 101. While this school has been established for quite awhile longer then our institution, we have a 1999-2000 actual full time student population of 5117. This definitely highlights the benefits of con· centrating on the library budget, as a school with a sizably smaller student population can have a library with nearly ten tirnes as many volumes. It is time that our institution heeds the example of other universities, and the frequent reports on the inadequacy of our library.

For-profit institute gets right to grant bachelor degrees in Alberta

By ChristleTucker Alberta Bureau Chief

EDMONTON (CUP) • The Alberta gov• ernment has granted a for-profit Institution the right to offer bachelor degrees, a move MLA Raj Pannu says is part of the province's plan to promote private post-secondary education.

Pannu, leader of the provincial NOP, says the order in council passed Jan. 31, which allows the US-based DeVry Institute of Technology to grant bachelor degrees in three technology cours• es, will create a two-tiered system for post-secondary education where students can pay more for small classes.

"111 s clear to me and Albertans that we have been exceedingly well served with the system we have, which is the most cost-effective and accessible system. For-profit systems don't work and are not appropriate for Alberta," he said,

Randy Kilburn, a representative of the Ministry of Learning, said the benefit of allowing for-profit universities to operate in the province is expanded choices for students.

"Post-secondary enrollments continue to Increase in Alberta. The message we are sending is that Albertans now have another option to pursue their studies along with our outstanding public Institutions," he said.

Kilburn added that the school would not receive public funding, but added that students wishing to attend It would be eligible for Alberta student loans.

Because an order in council isn't dis• cussed in the legislature, Pannu accuses the government of "rubber stamping,"

However, Kilburn said an independent body, the Private Colleges Accreditation Board (PCAB),the members of which were chosen by the minister to evaluate the problem, gave the recommendation for the change.

''DeVry has gone through a rigorous process of evaluation by two independent teams. The PCAB's recommendation was to grant degree status to those programs, and the minister agreed," he said.

Pannu, who is calling on the government to rescind the decision, points out that Alberta already has elected representatives. "Has the government decided that the legislature is redundant?" he asks.

DeVry has Canadian campuses in Calgary, Toronto, and Mississuaga Ontario. It is a for-profit institution traded on the New York Stock Exchange. Tuition rates at DeVry are higher than other Alberta institutions, at an average of $1,025 a course, or $3865 for the first term, $3,790 for subsequent terms continuedon page 7

National News Briefs

Montreal McDonald's takes new union to court

MONTREAL (CUP) - The more than forty employees at the McDonald's in Montreal ore still in a state of workplace limbo, despite a legally approved vote to unlonlze in November of last year.

The franchise appealed the legality of the vote, and the workers are left waiting for a ruling from the Quebec Labour Tribunal set tor March 30.

During the interim period, executive members from the Peel St. location have been working with their parent union, Confederation des Syndicates Natlonaux (CSN), on fundralslng and training projects.

Both union leaders and union organizers admit that the high employee turnover rates in fast food restaurnnts mean that their hard-fought victory could slip away, and they know that by appealing to the'·courts McDonald's is betting on the same thing.

Seventeen-year-old Pascal McDutf, an organizer of the unionization drive and vice-president of the local, doesn't see himself abandoning the union he fought to create even If that means staying on at McDonald's after he finishes CEGEP.

"Working at McDonald's is boring and tiresome; nobody wants to stay here forever," he said, "But, of course I want to stay and protect the union. I know that they want someone like myself, or other organizers, to quit. That would be a victory for them. But we have fought for this and we won't quit now,"

McDuff says that it is time for McDonald's management to face up to the union and come to the bargaining table in good faith.

McDonald's Canada and Michel Marchand, the franchisee of the Peel St. location, refused to comment on the union drive.

The workers are expected to issue several demands, focusing on improved salaries, safer working conditions, more say in their working hours and a clearer policy on promotions. Currently, burger flippers and cashiers who have been working at the Peel St. McDonald's are paid $7 .15 per hour after one year on the job, They said they seek a raise of $8, the rate paid at a Harvey's restaurant that is also represented by the CSN.

LIBERAL, OPPOSITION

C F S not appropriate for UCFV says Student Union Society

Student Union can better represent its students as an Independent organizationas opposed to being a small member within a national organization."

By Steve Beketa

"Misrepresentationis the Issue at hand," says Student Union Society president Robin Litzenberger regarding the amalgamation of UCFV with the Canadianfederation of Students (CFS).

In a recent interview Litzenberger outlined a number of issues concerning the association of the Student Union Society (SUS) and UCFV with the national organization that is responsible for the alliance of nearly 400 000 students across sixty campuses nation wide.

When asked why UCFV and the Student Union have not taken an Interest in the CFS, Litzenberger responded by saying, "The UCFV

The SUS views the CFS as on outside organization with little interest in matters that specificallyconcern UCFV and its students.

The CFS also charges a membership tee that would be added to tuition costs, but would not be used specifically for campus purposes. The CFS states that these fees are necessary to represent students' interests and concerns at the provincial and federal levels, because no one campus has the resourcesor political ability to Influence educational policies.

The CFS. which was founded in 1981, is an advocacy organization that fights for students across Canada for the right to affordable and accessible post-secondary education. Over the past couple of

years the issue of tuition freezing has become the central core of their mandate, The CFS believes that this is one step in the fight for all BC residents to receive postsecondary education.

Along with the increased ability to research issues and their wide· spread membership mobilization tactics - such as demonstrations and lobbying - the CFS believes that there is ''strength in numbers.'' When asked to describe the Ideology of the organization, CFS British Columbia chairperson Anita Zaenker responded by saying, "The CFS was formed to provide students with an effective and uni• fied voice provincially and national• ly."

The Student Union has taken the approach of lending support to the CFS when issues arise that directly concern the school, but until fl!Jrther notice, the students of UCFV shouldn't be expecting membership cards any time soon.

ARTS AND PEACE FESTIVAL CREATES A CULTURE OF PEACE

Concerts, photo exhibits, drama productions, theatre sports, poetry & prose readings and workshops are just some of the creative events you'll experience when you attend the 2001 Arts and Peace Festival to be held at the University College of the Fraser Valley (UCFV) from February 23-March 4.

that she says brings cultural events to the Fraser Valley that are not often seen here which focus on peace issues.

"Art Is an effective way to raise awareness on a variety of concerns we as a community cannot - with good conscience - Ignore,'' she says. "Often the voice of an artist is prophetic in a creative way and we want to intentionally profile arts in this community with hopes that people will stop and listen by providing entertainment that isn't always available,"

Langley Mennonite Fellowship, and the Anglican Diocese of New Westimlnister. (Peace and Justice Unit). For more information, admission costs, posters or brochures, contact Elsie Wiebe at {604) 850 6639 or 1 888 622 6337 or e-mail her at peace@mccbc.com. Information is also available on the website: www.emmanuelmennonite.com/ artsandpeace.

MPS

CALL FOR PM'S ACTION ON TIBET

OTTAWA (CUP) - Prime Minister Jean Chretien is being pressured by MPs, including several from within his own party, to convene negotiations between Tibet and China during his upcoming Team Canada Trade mission to Beijing.

A group of 83 MPs from all parties, Including all 13 NOP members, sent a letter to the Prime Minister Tuesday saying they're "profoundly con• cerned" with the situation in Tibet.

The letter said the MPs hope the Prime Minister can use the opportunity to "highlight Canada's international reputation as a defender of human rights" on his visit to China this Friday.

The group of MPs hope Chretien can play a role In encouraging negotiations, rather than the confrontations Instigated by the Chinese, that sparked international outrage for human rights violations, particularly in the areas of religious freedoms and political dissent.

"Creating a Culture of Peace" is the theme for this year, which the United Nations declared as the theme for the first decade of this millennium. Some of the highlights of the festival this year include readings by Canadian author Susan Musgrave, a photo exhibit of Iraq by Journalist James Kwantes, and the drama "LIiy" by Chicago Stillpoint Theatre • a one person play based on the experience of a holocaust survivor. Concerts, workshops, a film festival and worship services ensure that there is something here for everyone.

Elsie Wiebe, the Peace Education Coordinator for the Mennonite Central Committee (MCC • one of several sponsors), is enthusiastic about the festival

continued from page4

Isn't about solving childhood blindness, it's about solving blotech's public relationsproblem."

In a recent letter to Greenpeace, the president of the Rockefeller Foundation, which initially funded development of the GE rice, expressed his concern that the biotechindustry'spromotionof vitamin A rice has "gone too far" and is misleading the public and media. He adds, "we do not consider golden rice the solution to the VitaminA deficiencyproblem."

Even the scientist who developed golden rice, Dr. lngo Potrykus,has

Since its Inception in 1992, the festival was held on the same weekend as the Abbotsford International Airshow as a witness to "a world that does not include militarism or the maintenance of a military industrial complex." This year, the festival coincides with the Christian sea· son of Lent to symbolize the tradition of repentance from evil and seeking to do good.

The Arts and Peace Festival is sponsored by Project Ploughshares, Mennonite Central Committee BC, the Political Science Dept. of UCFV,

admitted there is not a single published study showing that the human body can convert the betacarotene In GE rice to vitamin A.

This is not the first time the biotech industry has been caught with false advertising. In 1998, Monsanto was forced to withdraw a similar European TV commercial after leaders of 23 African countries stated to the United Nations that they "Strongly object that the image of the poor and hungry from our countries is being used by giant multinational corporations We do not believe that such companies or gene technologieswill help our farmers to produce the food that is needed in the

21st century." In Canada on October 17, 2000 development groups Oxfam and CUSO joined Greenpeace to declare that "Blotech will not solve world hunger"

In the short term. childhood blindness resulting from Vitamin A deficiency could be cheaply and effectively addressed through distribution of vitamin supplements. In the long term, sustainable agriculture and diet diversification programs must be implemented to increase access to foods naturally rich in vitamin A. Expensive, limited access solutions like GE rice exacerbate the fundamental problems of hunger and malnutrition.

Word of Mouth On my mind

Our Intrepid Cascade reporter Steve Beketa went out to the halls of UCFV to ask students on Feb 12th:

wearing for Valentine's Day?"

KAI JOHNSON (Biology):

"Nothing."

..,.MASAE KOJIMA NORIKO TATHUHARA (ESL):

---,MIKE

BRODIE

By Christopher Bolster

The politicos down the hall from the newspaper office are having their elections next month. Does anyone really care? Does anyone remember a time when students here did?

I will be the first one to admit

that I have been at UCFV far too long. constantly find myself falling into the role of 'local' historian. Given my assumed role, thinking back over the years I can't remember a time that there was anything like a 'real' election for the Student

"A big smile," Union. I mean there doesn't seem to be much of a student political culture here

(General Studies):

"I

RV KONARSKI (General Studies):

name yet."

"A thong, baseball hat, and

slippers."

at UCFV. This could be the reason why this school sometimes seems more like

a dysfunctional high school than a university college. I haven't ever seen slates of candidates debating and running against other slates of candidates. There aren't really any issues or campaigns here at UCFV - At least, that's what everyone thinks anyway. They couldn't be more wrong.

Apathy and indifference reigns. But this Is not shocking news. This isn't particular to UCFV. It's happening everywhere. And yes it is much easier to hide your head in a book. And yes the changing economic realities around getting a post-

secondary education are definitely factors. But we forget the vital role that the student union plays, or at least attempts to play.

For many students, the student union existsto provide them with o nifty daytimer, so they too can become good productive members of our society that understand the vital importance of time management. For a minority, the student union is quite literally a lifesaver. Just look in this issue of the Cascade, the Student Union has hooked up with UCFV Student Events and the local

Food Bank to offer students an emer• gency food program. This is not even to mention the Student Union's emergency student grants program. What most students don't know is that the Student Union has student representatives on many of the UCFV committees repre• senting your interests.

The problem is that if we want dedicated students to represent our views and act as our advocates, we need to give them the resources to do their job. I was talk· ing to SUS president Robin Litzenberger last week and he told me that it has actually cost him money to be the president of the Student Union this year.

The Student Union Council does receive honoraria but it is an absolute pittance and most council members are taking a full load of courses. How can we possi• bly expect them to do a good job when they don't have the resources and they are taking classes full-time? As UCFV develops over the next few years it Is of the utmost importance that this problem is solved. In the mean time, ~t least cast your vote in the election. Even If next month's isn't a 'reol' one.

IN DEFENSE OF THE HUMANITIES

By V.R. Jordan

Its Is always the same question: "You're in school? Good for you! What are you studying? oooooh, an Arts degree .What are you going to do with that?", as if an arts degree were a sort of white elephant of higher education; very grandiose and impressive, but quite useless. After all, you really cannot do anything with It. (Unless you want to teach, and who has not heard that cowardly anonymous phrase: "those who can - do, those who can't• teach''). Yet that Is exactly my point. You are not supposed to do anything with it. It must do something to you. A good Arts program must produce good thinkers, and if that does not earn us the most prestigiousjobs with the highest salaries, that is ok. We have learned how to learn, how to think, how to value the things In life that can't be bought with the almighty dollar.

I like to think that what separates us from the animals is not our scientific or technological genius, but rather our ability to recognize ultimate human frailty and find beauty in it nonetheless. Although science has brought us cures for many of our ills, it has not cured death. It has not cured hate. Indeed, science has brought us nuclear arsenals, biological warfare, landmines and Hiroshima. Was not science one of Hitler's

most abhorrent weapons? Technologyhas made this a smaller world, brought us all closer together. but it has not solved world hunger, it h:.:isnot solved war. Technology has shrunk the world so that we are all much more aware of different cultures all over the globe, but ii has also broughtT.V.to poor countries so that they may envy our crass consumerism,and they too may learn to desire what they do not need.

"At the fall of the medievalage, we lost our sense of certaintyabout who we were and what our existencameant. So we invented a scientificmethodof Inquiryand sent this systemout to find the truthof our situation. But scienceseemedto splinterinto a thousand faces, unable to immediatelybring back a coherentpicture. In response,we pushed away our anxiety by fuming our focus to practicalendeavours,reducedlife to its economic aspects only, and finally entered a collective obsession with the practical,material aspects of life. As we have seen, scientistsset up a worldview that reinforcedthis obsessionand for many centuriesbecamelostin It themselves.ihe cost of this limitedcosmologywas the nar• rowing of human experience and the repressionof our higher spiritualperooption "

The CelestineVision • James Redfield

Science can be either a tool in the hands of an enlightenedand humane race, or merely a destructive weapon In the hands of apes. I am a defector from the science program. I panicked and jumped ship in Septembernot because I abhor scienceor I cannot succeed in it, but because I recog• nize that to be a great scientist. you must first be a great thinker. I want to be more than a monkey in a lab coat, a programmer in a cubicle, another cog in the great machine.

Did not our mothers always exhort us to '1hink before you actl" There must be a stronger emphasis - if not a priorityplaced on teaching students to think, contemplate, consider, reflect, meditate, and ponder. This is what truly separatespeople from animals. Without these abilities, and the use of them, we really do become "the most pernicious race of odious little vermin that nature eversuffered to crawl upon the surface of the earth" (Swift, from Gulliver's Travels). We become mere animals ruled by our appetites and passions. But we are more than that. We can be more than that. Science is not the cure for what ails us, and perhaps neither are the arts, but at least we are asking the right questions.

~your most humble servant

continued from page 5 and $4,125 In the final term for accredited programs.

John Ballheim, president of the DeVry Calgary campus, soid he is pleased with the government's decision. The question of whether private education has a place in Alberta is irrelevant, he says.

"In my mind, it's not a matter of private or public. It's a matter of another accredited, peer-reviewed academic program that meets the needs of students, their employers, and society."

The Alberto government's decision to allow the DeVry institute to grant degrees follows closely behind an October request by the University of Phoenix, a private American university, to open a Calgary campus. The University of Phoenix cur• rently operates a school in Vancouver with tuition rates from $8,500 to $10,500 a year. The government has not yet granted the university operating rights.

"What do you plan on

SARAH COCHRAN (General Studies):

We are not human; We are devo

"I have to work, so a black skirt and red top."

don't know her

The spark neglected burns the house

by Kyle Webb

The lesson this week, my friends, Is ideology 101. "What the ·$@# is ideology you ask, and how does it figure into MY life?" Well, I'm here to tell you. Really! What WOULD you do without me?

(Probably die of ignoranceand boredom.)

If you don't know it by now, we live in Canada, and YES, it is an independentcountry, In theory at least. But do you know what it means to be Canadian? It's a bit more than Molson Canadian and Hockey, I assure y(!)u.

Being Canadianis an entity in itself. Canadlanismis an ideology -there's that word again. Travel abroad and you will see that you are distinct from all other people in this world. It Is significantthat as a people, we are well respected around the world. This fact alone should tell a little of what it is to be Canadian; the rest of the world acknowledgeswho we are, and this is something distinct from our rather contemptible American neighbours.

We live, at least according to the United Nations, in the greatest country in the world. We have wealth comparable to the US while maintaining an overall standard of living that is without par. We have unbounded natural resources and a people that are highly educated and highly skilled. We have a caring society, one that, relative to other nations, looks after the entire population,not just the privilegedfew or the moral majority. We have - relatively speakIng - a free and egalitarian society.

This is not to say that there are no problems in this country; that is far from the truth. The Canada we grew up in--yes, the one that most of us students were born into in the 70's and early 80's-is being eroded all around us. And this is NOT something that is happening slowly and gradually, rather, the country is "crashing at an alarming rate." From the cuts in corporatetaxes, to the rise in tuition fees; from the hike in gas and natural gas pricesto the rise in the debt on your credit cards and mortgages, things are not improving in this country, rather they are disintegrating. The rich get richer (lucky you, you greedy bastards)and the poor get poorer. You'll see. When members of your community and your family start dropping off the socio-economic map and you're too busy and too ignorant lo help them with their problems, who will come to the rescue?

If there are no social supports then nobody will, and then I guess it's just survival of the fittest. Move along, and don't bother helping the weak and the downtrodden,they'll just pull you down with them.

Some more examples as evidence:

Today,while watchingthe news, CBC Newsworlddid a story about how the governmentwants to privatize gun control. Now let me get this straight. A private company--Smith and Wesson, for example--is going to make sure that people register their guns? I'm sorry, but instinct tells me there's something wrong with this picture. Is this the next step towards the legalizationof handgunsand concealedfirearms in this country? When have you ever known a private company-especially an American one-to care about anything but the bottom line? What's to stop the big gun companiesfrom teaming up with the private gun registrationcompaniesto run advertisements supporting the gun lobby? They will both stand to profit enormously by brainwashing Canadians into being gun-toting vigilantes like our friends to the south. And they already have the CanadianAlliance on their side.

This is plain evidenceof our governmentcoppingout of another area of public responsibility. Do Canadianswant this? Do you want to see private AMERICAN firms controlling our forums of public morality and responsibility? I don't believe you do.

Furtherevidence on the sports front:

The Montreal Canadians are now owned by Americans. What could be a worse coup against Canadian nationalism than Americans to own the icon of our country'shockey history? And as George Gillette said himself, "moving the Canadians would be like buying the New York Yankees and moving them lo Oklahoma, better yet, why not St. John's, Newfoundland?

Add to that the hot off the presses newsflash that says David Stern is considering letting Michael Haisley move the Grizzlies. Americansare funny, aren't they? They always come with the best of Intentions saying "we'll turn this around 100%, but as soon as they can't find a quick solution to the problem in their tiny little brains, then they rush back to New Yorkand Washingtonto see if they can move their businessto Texasor Floridawhere it's nice and sunny for the players, and they can hire Mexicans and Cubansto work the concessionsfor $4 an hour.

In conclusion:the sports analogy may be wasted on most of you, but it's what I know, so I'm sticking with it. It's simply to get you to understandthat whether ii be professionalsports or professionalpolitics, the business elite is only around so long as they can make the big bucks. The size of their heads IS relative to the size of their pocketbook,their home, and their stock-price.

Civic pride and responsibilityrests with the people who live in that city and region. If Canadians don't own their businessesand have no say in what happensto their taxes, then there is no accountability and social responsibility to the owners and the government. It's as simple as that.

Things might not be so bad as. I would have you believe, but there is some truth in every word that is spoken. Take that grain of truth that you find in this article and keep it with you as you become an

adult and see the world for what it really is. We are all citizens; you cannot divorce yourself from this fact. It is your duty, you responsibility,and in your best Interests to see that your city, your province, and your country is healthy and strong and free.

Anorexia: A misunderstood disease

This is a psychologicaldiseasethat I believeIs for the mostpart misunderstood.I'm not goingto sit hereand claimto be an experton it, but I am someonewho has sufferedthroughit, and to a certainextentit still affects my life.

Goingback four years,I was slightlyoverweight.Not grosslyoverweight,but enoughthat I couldstandto losea few pounds.The constantnaggingof peoplein my life lead me to decidethat I neededto loseweight, and that I neededto do it now. For a periodof about two monthsI cut down my mealsto maybetwo or

threeper week,no chipsor chocolatebars,and I consumedlots of coffeebecauseit's supposedto speed up your metabolism.

I endedup losingover fiftypoundsin aboutfive weeks. It'scrazyto thinkaboutthat. I lost fully one thirdof my body weight,and I had no clothesthat flt anymore.I thoughtthat beingthin wouldbring me the important things• friends,guys- the wholepopularscene.What it did bringme was to the emergencyward of the hospital.BecauseI had lost so muchweightso fast, my bloodiron counthad decreasedsignificantlyas well. Irontransportsoxygenand not enoughof it was circulatingin my systemwhichcausedme to blackout.

Evento this day I have problemswith my circulation.I have an Ironsupplementthat I have to take every morning.SomehowI havebeen lucky in that I have gainedback twentyof the fifty poundsthat I lost and I weigh in now at a healthy120 lbs. Yes,I'm still on the skinnyside, but I havea much healthierimageof myself.It took goingto the hospitalto help me realize that I had a seriousproblemthat neededto be dealt with. My adviceto anyonewho thinksthey are overweightand are consideringstarvingthemselves- It's not worthIt. I haveto face a long time of supplements beforemy bodywill be able to take care of itselfagain. Pleasedon'tdo this to yourself.

features editor Kris Lind

Mind the Gap

We may be creating problems so complex we can't sequencesof this failureto recognizeour own limita• solve them, says Canadianpolitical scientistThomas lions couldbe drastic. Homer-Dixon,authorof The IngenuityGap

By Paul Reeve, The McGIii Dally

MONTREAL(CUP)- Julian Simon,the late, infamous Americaneconomist,was best knownfor insistingthat the humanrace couldgrow,becomingever more prosperous and more numerous,forever.His rationalefor this surprisingidea was (not at all deceptively)simple: keep the populationgrowing,and you1II increasethe amountof clevernesson Earth.All those cleverpeople willcome up with clevertechnologicalwaysto overcome any and all resourcelimits,giventhe operationsof a free m:.irket.

In fact, he thought, that's hardly even necessary, because"(w]ehavein our handsnow the technologyto feed,clotheand supplyenergyto an ever-growingpop• ulationfor the next 7 million years."(At a one per cent growth rate per year, the human population would increaseover thattime to be vastlylargerthan the number of atomsin the universe.)

Okay,so Julian Simonmay have beena littleoHbase.

Enter Thomas Homer-Dixon,head of the peace and conflictstudiesprogramat the Universityof Toronto,and authorof the recentbookThe IngenuityGap. He tellsus that Simon'sboundlessfaith in the powerof the human mind to overcome any and all obstacles,even those thrownup by its own recklessness,is surprisinglycommon, especiallyamong contemporaryeconomicand politicalelites.

"There'sa kind of triumphalismin the Statesrightnow," he says, "If you take a look at the cover story in the AtlanticMonthlylost month,it's an argumentabout the abilityof the New Economyto get aroundresourcelimits. and it looksat the oil industryin particular.In factthe only case that the guy examinesis the oil Industry,and he drawson that, he extrapolatesfrom that,and comes to an amazingconclusion,that our ingenuitycan exceed all resourcelimitson the planet."

But he says a growingmountainof evidencepoints to the conclusionthat this faith is unfounded.And the con-

Us vs. The Brain

"Lei'sstartfromthe beginning.Let'sstartat groundzero, the engine of our ingenuity,the locus of it," he says. Homer-Dixonis talkingabout the humanbrain,whose historyhe delvesintoin o chapterof The IngenuityGap. "Ourfaithin the humanbrainls part of that generalfaith In our abilityto overcomeany limits that we face.And part of that storyis the optimismthatthe humanbrain is not evenremotelycloseto Its limitson capacity.I'm suggestingthat we may be startinglo reachthoselimits."

"I'm reallystruckby the work of Rick Potts,who'sat the SmithsonianInstitute. He suggests that the reason we·re such good generalistsis because we had to adapt, when our brains expanded,betweenten thou• sandand threehundredthousandyearsago.That was a period of very dramaticclimatechange in Africa.A sharp non-linearevent, perhaps caused by flipped ocean currentsin the Atlantic.Human beings had to developthe abilityto changetheir behaviourquite dro• maticallyas their environmentchanged.An abilityto be a good generalizedproblem-solverhad an evolutionary advantage."

Here he's drawing on researchfrom a field called, appropriatelyenough,complexitytheory.Scientistsin this areatry to draw insightsfroma varietyof domains• from fluid dynamicsto macroeconomics - togetherto gain insightinto the functioningof complexsystems.

It's a kind of unpredictabilitythat, if we ignore it, may leave us with a false senseof securityabout how well we can anticipatewhat our mostpressingproblemswill be in 5, 1O or a hundredyears.That1s the kind of diffi· culty Homer-Dixonis talking about, o kind that may leave us and our creative,problem-solvingintelligence behind.

"We now have u,e capacity to modify the planetary ecosystemin a majorway, and are we now creatinga worldthat'stoo complexevenfor our ownvauntedabil· ities?I wantedpeopleto comeaway with some kind of quite deep appreciationof just how extraordinarythe

humanbrainIs. Butyou don'tsay,It'san amazinglnstru• ment, thereforewe can solve all our problems.It's an amazinginstrument,but it may have createdproblems for Itselfthat are beyondIts capacityto solve."

Jack In, TuneOut

The conceptof the "ingenuitygap" Is simpleenough. Homer-Dixontakes"ingenuity"as the abilityto cometo grips with increasinglycomplicatedproblemsby gener• ating ever-more-complicatedsolutions.The supply of this ability,he says, is subjectto o varietyof limitations, includingthe cognitiveones.Al the moment.a varietyof factors, Includingfallout from our earlier solutionsto other problems,are making our problems more and morecomplicated.The gap ariseswhen the increase,n complicatedproblemsoutstripsour supplyof ingenuity to solvethem.

If our problemIs that we1re betteral creatingproblems throughcomplexitythan we are at comingup with the ingenuity to solve them, is more complexityalways goingto curewhat ails us?

Not quite,but almost,Homer-Dixonthinks,''It may tum out that in some cases the solutionsare simplersolu• tions. But I think the general trend is toward a more complexworld,withmorecomplexInstitutionsand more complextechnologies, a morecomplexrelationshipwith our environment.And when we have problemsat various times becauseof our Institutions,technologiesor environments,we1re goingto needmorecomplexsolutions.There will be exceptions,but in generalit seems that we1re movingin that direction.I don11think that1s necessarilya bad thing."

Healsoworriesthatthe increasinglyself-enclosed,technologicallyenhancedlifestyleof rich countriesis cutting ott the very signalsthatwould promptlJS worryingmore viscerallyabout the pressingenvironmentalproblems that threatenus, therebykeepingus from recognizing the humblingfactsaboutour placeIn the grandscheme.

Franz Kafka is a hooty owl ...

chase receipts, personal ads, public lavatory graffiti, animal licenses,telephonebilling records,utility bills, loans, savings accounts, installment plans, mortgages, equities portfolios, magazine subscriptions, and many other lists and registries throughout Prague, throughout Czechoslovakia , and Eastern Europe.

by Samual Becket

Franz Kalka Is a hootl A hooty-owl hoot, Each and every time I'm in Prague, I make certain I look him up. I've never actually visited him before this Interview, but I've looked him up many, many times! I looked him up In the Greater Prague Telephone Directory,the Czech Insurance Brokers Registry,the Bureau of Vital Statistics • Birth RecordsSection,the city and county marriage registries, Bar Mltzvah recordsat the Alte Neue Schul. I looked him up in the National Citizens Registry and the Department of Jewish Affairs' Master Census.At the PragueCentral Police Bureau, I looked him up in the Traffic and Parking Violations Section. the Misdemeanor Section, and the Felony, Sedition and Treason Section. I looked him up on the mailing lists of the top three Czech direct marketingfirms, the membership lists of all of the amateur writing clubs in Prague, his elementary school, secondary school, and collegiate transcripts, his credit reports and banking records, Special Permits and Licenses, Real Estate records, Old Age PensionAccumulation Reports, his employment records, the last seven years of his National Personal Tax reports, his uni· versity entrance exams scores. Military Eligibilityand Service Records, the Danube Valley Endangered Species List. his health records, physician visit and hospital slay records, his Library records including collected and uncollected fines, his grocery pur·

My interview appointment was on a Tuesday at 4 p.m. in a small but well stocked restauranta few minutes away from Kafka's apartment. Franz arrived precisely dipshit on time, asked for me at the headwaiter's station, and sat down opposite me. He didn't say a word. He just sat there and stared at melike a goddamnedsick chicken - just like in his pho· tograph up there. Kafka glanced at the menu and ordered rolls, butter, and mineral water. For my part, I ordered the snails in garlic butter (they refused), stutted shrimp, pate maison,pate•cakes-bakersman, fried stuffed mushroom caps, artichoke hearts, arti· choke brains, bleu, edam, and wensleydale cheeses, vichyssoises, duck-duck bouillon, duck• duck goose, lobster bisque, gazpacho, soup madrilene,soup toreador (sangfroid), hunter's soup, soup du jour, whorehousesalad, hail caesar salad, chef's and popeye spinach salads, rolls, butter, red wine, white wine, moanan wine, country crackers, backstage ham, cold turkey, tongue-in-cheek,glutton mutton, veal, roast whatsyour beef, afghanl pizza, ural chicken, sweetbreads,sauerbraten,road hogs, stuffed midget, stuffed shirt, shitta kidneys, chien saigonnaise, celestial tripe, extraterrestrial liver, stutfed quail, stuffed partridge,]innapalretrees, tobacco smoked pheasant, browned nose, blood sausages,rolls, butter, pork chops, smoked butt, my butt, cornish hens, salmon, rounder, flounder, pike, mackerel, snapper, perch, fish·in•a•barrel,sardines and anchovies,capon, kamchatkahot dogs, lobster,

shrimp creole, old crab, crab cokes, mussels ,n yellow-matter custard, clams, crawl-daddies, oysters, scallops, nun's habit-rabbit, dead dog's eyes, ham· bourgeoisesquebecolses,squab, rolls, butter, horse biscuits, meadow muffins, lyonaise potatoes, baked potatoes, mashed potatoes, sweet potatoes, corn, grilled blowhards,pickled baked anjou pears, tomatoes, carrots, celery, broccoli, squash, racketball, asparagus, endives, carrots, peas, porridge hot, more peas, porridge cold, beets, more peas-par• ridge, llma-beans-in•a•pot, nine-days-old gherkin, chick peas, white rice and brown rice, cheapdrunk whiskey,pissbeer,water, Harvey's milk, soda, soda, soda, and what will you have Stan, rolls, butter, a slice of cowpie a la mode and a large large large bowl of fruit. "Feeling a bit pecklsh?" inquired this laugh-a-minute Kafka. I quickly retorted: "No, not really. I had a late lunch." Hahl That sure shut his goddamned beakl You know, I swear to god that waiter could've thrown corn or millet around on the floor for Kafka to peck up and I know for a fact that that birdbrainwould be just as happy!

When we finished eating around 2 am, I decided I really didn't like this guy. so just for spite, I told him everything knew about him: everything I'd learned from every single list. Thal process took until 7:45 am. He finally got up, bleary-eyed and sick looking, and said "I have to leave now. You made me feel like on Insect." "That's loo bad, li'I buddy," I replied. "Just because you look like one doesn't mean you have to feel like onel" When he finally left, I just sot there and laughed my stupid arse right off. Then I puked.

Marie Dressler? What the ? What do you mean, Marie Dressler? And owls? What about owls? This is the Rabelasian piece, right? Oh Jesus Christi

FOOD FOR THOUGHT

By Sarom Bahk The Peak

In North America and Europe, genetically modified (GM) foods have become a hot-button issue. They've been dubbed "Frankenfoods" by their detractors, and their creators have been accused of "playing god." Environmental organisations, organic farmers and members of the general public are concerned about the rel• atively unknown impacts of agricultural biotechnology on human health, local biodiversity and ecological stability. Such groups are calling for the mandatory labeling of all GM foods, and promoting boycotts of products that are known to contain genetically engineered Ingredients.

These discussions, led by well-fed citizens of the world's richest nations, have eclipsed the deeper implications of GM crops for poorer countries, whose liveli• hoods are based primarily on agriculture and for whom food security is of the utmost concern.

Ideals versus reality

Proponents of biotechnology argue that genetic engineering could expand crop productivity In the Third World by as much as 25 per cent, thus allowing us to feed the burgeoning world population. The United Nations esti• mates that the world population surpassed six billion In October 1999, while the UN Food and Agriculture Organization states that 790 million people can be clas• sified as malnourished. Clearly, the situation is dire today for members of less developed countries (LDCs) and this need for food will continue to escalate.

Biotech advocates are confident that the "gene revolution" can provide a solution to the hunger epidemic, helping to produce crops that will increase yield, provide better nutrition and be environmentally sustainable. Ismail Serageldln, chairman of the World Bank's Consultative Group on International Agricultural Research, claims that biotechnology "could contribute to food security by helping to promote sustainable agri• culture cantered on smallholder farmers in developing countries."

However, according to Zamir Punja, an SFU professor and Director of the Centre for Environmental Biology, this optimistic vision of the large-scale benefits of GM crops Is far from being realised in poorer countries. "The actual needs and wants of developing countries aren't necessarily being addressed at this point, because all the work is being done by multinational corporations that are in the developed world. [The corporations] are going to meettheir own needs first," he says.

Firms In the biotech industry have spent billions of dollars modifying crops to evade pests, prevent diseases and improve food quality, but the majority of such research Is geared toward commercial crops In the West. Tomatoes are being reengineered to have longer shelf lives, but no large corn· pany Is scrambling to create a bug-proof plantain.

In their book Against the Grain, biotechnology critics Lappi: and Balley further maintain that "To date, biotechnology has been applied to a number of innovations that have made agricultural products more 'consumer friendly,' but few have genuinely Increased pro· ductivity."

So what are the implications of this focus on Westerngrown commercial crops for developing nations? What forces are preventing the "biotechnology revolution" from having a greater impact on the living standards of Third World farmers?

Potential benefits for the poor

Transgenics refers to the Insertion of an alien gene (a gene from another organism) into a plant in order to give It new traits, such as the ability to tolerate herbicides or to kill insects that feed on it. Genes that express specific traits are directly transferred into the modified plant's genetic material. The genes of inter• est can come from an organism very different from the plant, such as a virus, animal, another plant or a bacterium.

Transgenic plants that have been broadly commercialised thus far are designed to resolve specific problems. For example, "insect-protected crops" have been produced containing a gene from the

bacterium Baccillus thurlngiensis (Bt) that codes tor a protein that Is lethal to various insects. Transgenic varieties of Bt corn and Bt cotton produce a toxin that kills the European corn borer and other Insect species. Whereas the protection given by spraying insecticides Is short-lived, a plant containing the BI gene produces the toxin continuously.

At SFU, Dr. Punja Is currently developing genetically modified carrots, cucumbers and ginseng for growth in the Okanagan Valley. The vegetables are being designed to withstand the attack of insects and diseases "so they can be pro· duced with reduced application of chemical pesticides." Researchers like Punja can develop a wide range of traits, such as higher yields and resistance to drought, which could potentially be beneficial to farm· ers in developing countries. The challenge of improving agricultural techniques on a global scale lies in producing technology that Is applicable under highly diverse conditions and that will also be environmentally sustainable. According to one scientist, "yield ceilings [could] be raised, excessive pesticide use reduced, the nutrient value of basic foods increased, and farmers on less favored lands provided with varieties better able to tolerate drought, salinity, and lack of soil nutrients."

An illustration of this is the work performed at the West Africa Rice Development Association, where scientists funded by the Rockefeller Foundation are manipulating tissue cultures to improve species of rice. One rice variety resulting from tissue culture techniques is providing farmers in the Shanghai region with 5 to 15 per cent increases In yield.

A further example of a GM crop designed to benefit LDCs is the introduction of genesin rice plants that produce beta-carotene in their grain. This "golden rice" grain contains sufficient beta-carotene to meet human vita• min A requirements. The rice could help to prevent the thousands of cases of blindness caused by vitamin A deficiency, which also causes one million childhood deaths each year.

However, critics of biotechnology argue that markets are also to blame for the developing world's lack of agricultural diversity and ensuing nutritional shortcomings.

"The reason why all these people aren't getting enough vitamin A in the first place Is that the local indigenous crops have been pushed aside for more marketable ones. If developing nations were already sustaining themselves there would be a much simpler answer than giving them golden rice," says Jeff Nield of FarmFolk/CityFolk. Like many environmental groups, this B.C. organisation, which advocates "a just and sustainable food system," is calling for a moratorium on GM foods.

The PfOblem of a contro hng onvate sec or

An initiative to donate golden rice free of charge to the developing world is underway, led by the Rockefeller Foundation and the biotech firm Zeneca Agrochemicals. Although the management board of this project Is optimistic about its outcome, it still requires the consent of 30 biotech companies for the free use of approximately 70 technologies needed to produce the golden rice seed.

Property rights problems of this sort are typical in agri• cultural biotechnology, where over 75 per cent of global investment is in the private sector and involves only six large corporations. This has vital implications for the focus of agricultural research, the methods by which new varieties are brought to market, and the access of developing countries to the crops.

It is in the best interests of firms to protect their research

investments by excluding others from using their innovations without a fee. By patenting their technologies, they can withhold biotechnology research as private property rather than making ii freely available to the public.

The profit-maximising goals of private sector organisations are undeniably different from those of public institutions. Businesses have little incentive to develop crop varieties that would be useful to developing countries, as these projects do not usually entail immediate payoffs due to the relative inability of small-scale Third World farmers to invest in new technologies. Poorer countries are thus placed at a disadvantage, as the benefits being developed by multinationals target the rich Western markets and largely ignore the agricultural problems of the developing world.

"Local universities and industries in those countries are being left to do their own research. It's not a bad thing, as long as they get their funding," says Punja. His own work Is financed by the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada (NSERC), an agency of the federal government.

Technological development in poorer countries has been mainly funded by public sector institutions such as the Consultative Group on International Agricultural Research (CGIAR), which sponsors a network of 16 International research cen• ters. While yearly research expenditures on biotechnology by each private firm was $1 billion or more in 1998, total spending in the entire CGIAR system in 1998 was a mere $345 million.

This dominance of agricultural research by the private sector Is caused by several factors. Due to high costs, many publicly owned agricultural companies are now being privatised, while funding levels are falling for public sector research systems in developing countries.

Moreover, Intellectual property rights are Increasingly recognised within the international trading system, cre• ating access to a larger market in which spending on private research can earn substantial returns. As a result, many fear the emergence of a "scientific apartheid," or the monopolisation of knowledge by companies, which would lead to a larger gap between the developed and developing worlds.

Disregarding the Developing World's Needs

To date, the private sector has concentrated its research on four principal transgenic food crops: canola, soybeans, corn and potatoes. Of these crops, only corn and potatoes are Important in the diets of most LDCs, and poorer countries that rely on these vegetables can benefit from the existing biotechnology only if their agricultural problems are similar to those of North Americans.

On the other hand, there exists a group of plants known as "orphan crops," thus named because they are sorely neglected by the private sector, even though their Improvement might bring great social benefits in the developing world.

Plantain, cassava, cowpeas, lentil, millet, and sweet potato are examples of crops that form an essential part of people's diets in different areas of the developing world, but the research performed on them Is generally performed by the public sector and is usually under-funded.

The cassava is a key example of an "orphan crop" whose development has been stymied by lack of funding. A tropical vegetable that tolerates acidic and infertile 1 soil, the cassava's leaves and starchy roots make up the world's third largest source of calories after rice and corn. This staple food of many developing countries is highly susceptible to pests and diseases and often costs farmers up to 80 per cent of their crop.

It is estimated that biotechnology could multiply the yield of cassava tenfold, to 80 to 100 tons per hectare. Transgenic cassava plants, which produce genes resistant to the African cassava mosaic virus and the cassava common mosaic virus, have been developed in the labs of public institutions such as the International Center of Tropical Agriculture (CIAT) and the Cassava Biotechnology Network (CBN).

However, these transgenic crops have yet to be Introduced into the fields due to funding problems. Financial support has expired for the CBN, which has dwindled into small regional networks that are partly subsidised by the local private sector and developing country governments. By 1998, only $3 million will have been invested in cassava biotechnology since 1988, a minlscule amount for a crop that is so vital to farmers In developing countries. Since the cassava Is not marketable in industrialised nations, large biotech firms will not undertake research on the crop, so its development continues to be Inadequate.

Possible repercussions of GM crops

social benefits.

There is the possibility of transgenes escaping from cultivated crops into wild relatives and other crops, including organic varieties.

It is uncertain whether the geneswill remain in the relatives and whether this will create adverse ecological effects, such as the production of ''superweeds."

According to Nield, escaped genes due to cross-pollination present a serious problem for nonGM crop farmers. "There's cases in Saskatchewan where Roundup Ready canola [a brand of genetically engineered canola created by the biotech firm Monsanto] cross-pollinated with a neighbouring canola farm, which ended up becoming contaminated with genetically modified seeds."

Further, plants are being developed containing genes from viral pathogens that confer resistance to these same pathogens-these genes, however, could be exchanged with other viral pathogens, possibly creating entirely new virus strains with unknown properties.

A third risk is the possibility that the widespread use of Bt crops could lead to the prevalence of insects that are resistant to the toxin. This would eradicate the benefits of the product and could also undermine the efficiency of natural Bt used by organic farmers. Moreover, the BI gene could harm other insects, including those that prey on the targeted pests.

Finally, there Is the chance that genetically modified crops carrying antibiotic genes may generate antibiotic resistance In livestock or humans. Questions have also been raised regarding the possibility that transgenes may increase allergies through the introduction of new proteins to foods.

An ongoing debate

These and other health and environmental concerns have made genetic engineering, and especially transgenlcs an extremely contentious issue in Europe and North America. Nonetheless, advocates of biotechnology who are anxious to apply new crop engineering to farming practices in LDCs insist that members of the Third World largely dismiss the issue of environmental safety.

Many scientists are contemptuous about the hypothetical risks posed by biotech• nology, maintaining that the greatest concern that developing countries have about GM crops is not about safety, but access. By contrast, biotechnology critics point out that developing countries would not be equipped to handle any health or environmental problems that may arise, and thereby should not be subjected to these potentially risky Innovations.

"The whole debate has become really polarised," says Punja. "Not all new technology is bad, but one of the concerns has been that technologies move forward too fast, so consumers haven't been alerted to what's going on. Now I think we're seeing a backlash from companies literally trying to force things down con• sumers' throats."

Punja observes that the controversies surrounding GM foods could well have an affect on his work, and GM research In general.

"Public protest will affect the rate at which research goes to the marketplace. I think I'd have a hell of a harder time now getting my materials onto the market than I would have two years ago. The research will probably go on, but if we actually try to take it into another country, it'll be harder." Punja emphasises that concerned citizens should try to obtain as much information as possible on the issue. "Many people approach me [about my work] and say, "This is awful," but when you actually talk to them they have absolutely no clue about what's involved. I think Informed decision and debate are definitely the best way to go."

Ill-:

Despite the urgent need to establish food security In the developing world, the yet unproven hazards of GM crops cannot be ignored. Agricultural biotechnology could also entail several environ• mental and health risks that may outweigh its

With the exception of the interviews with Dr. Punja and FarmFolk/CityFolk, research for this feature was obtained from nine articles published In jour• nals ranging from Foreign Policy to Science.

Interview with Robin Mathews

by Andrew Bingham

On a sunny Saturday last week I walked into La Vieille France, a petite cafe In Vancouver, ready to eat and ask questions. With me walked Professor Robin Mathews, an important Individual In recent Canadian cultural and educational history, but as of yet relatively unknown. Why is this poet, professor, socialist, writer of over 20 books and 100 articles, public thinker and political activist unknown? The reason is this: almost all of his protestations, all of his efforts have been against those who write our history and media right now. I had It In mind to change that fact.

Robin Mathews was born in Smithers, British Columbia, and was educated at UBC, Ohio State University, and the University of Toronto In English and American literature. He grew up with Immigrant parents, and so in his youth was surrounded by the cultures of other countries. This effect did not last for long. As a young writer, he began to be interested in and read Canadian writers. He explains how "one begins to be a part of the culture even though the larger part of the society denies the culture exists. There is a culture and you begin to be a piece of it."

Even before he became well known as a political activist, Mathews knew where he stood on Canadian issues, especially where the United States was concerned. As an M.A. graduate at Ohio State University - where he had been studying American literature"Henry James. He's the only American writer worth anything. The rest are trash." - he was one of the people who was asked to give a three minute speech on his experience there. "The others said that they had a wonderful time in the United States, had learned about democracy, and would take back the great message to the country from which they had come, and they were eternally grateful. So they came to me, and I said that I had not learned a sin· gle thing about democracy In this country, my country is significantly more democratic that the United States, but I had found it very interesting to be here, and I realised what an enormous imperial power the United States was."

From that time forward Mathews was intensely inter· ested In the promotion of Canada as a country that did not need foreign influence In order to be great, did not need to think of itself as having a second-rate culture, but that needed to realise that what we have here could be lost if action was not taken in the opposite direction.

From Ohio Stale he went on to take a degree at the University of Toronto, and then worked at Carleton University, the University of Alberta, and numerous other educational institutions In Canada. While at Carleton as the manager of the then Institute of Canadian Studies, which Is the oldest centre of Canadian Studies in North America, he began to question why Canadian culture, literature, and history were not being taught as a major programme in most universities and colleges. This, he discovered, was in part due to the enormous amount of foreign professors that taught In Canadian universities. Action was soon taken:

In 1968 RobinMathews and his co-worker Professor James Steele approached the Carleton University Academic Staff Association (C.U.A.S.A) with their concerns considering the state of Carleton and other Canadian universities. They had discovered that between 1961 and 1968 the percentage of Canadian professors teaching in Canadian universities had dropped from 75% to 49%. They found that the majority of professors wereAmericans who were not taking Canadian citizenship and were teaching American, not Canadian, history, literature, social sciences, and culture. Mathews and Steele found this issue alarming and felt that the American pro• lessor were producing Canadian graduate students that did not know the Canadian social, historical, and cultural experience. Mathews and Steele questioned why the number of Canadian professors was decreasing, and as they discovered, it was not for a

lack of availability of Canadian professors, but because advertising for Canadian universities was mostly being done In outside of Canada. Al they required was an Investigation Into this matter, and a policy Implemented that saw a certain percentage of professors and university administrations be Canadian citizens. Because they took this stance, they experienced ridicule and backlash from the majority of their colleagues over this Issue. However, they had a massive, positive reaction from the Canadian students, who felt that their past and future as Canadians was being erased by the Imperial US. This was something new and because he was fin· ghting against many of the established teadchers who were supported by the corporate elite, "they began to loathe me." This struggle continues on to this very day, and Mathews has not once stepped down or been sidetracked away from the issue.

An event in Canadian history helped him in his struggles, an event that a lot of people in our day seem to forget about. In 1967, our Centennial Year, a Canadian cultural "Renaissance" In life and literature began. Because the federal government could not deny that it was Canada's 100th anniversary, they decided to put on a show In a nationalist spirit. This turned out to be the Expo celebration in Montreal. Mathews feels that they did this with some trepidation: "The federal government Is always afraid of nationalism in Canada, because the federal government bows to the bidding mostly of the United States, and If Canadians seize hold of themselves, then they will begin to demand that less of our wealth be pumped into the United States, they will demand various things for Canadians that we don't have. The federal government is very afraid of that, and so it always tries to downplay the national responses of Canadians." This perception, both on Mathews' part and the federal government's, turned out to be true. Canadians loved 1967, and began to ask questions. Why do we not have this? Why do we not have that? During the first five years after Expo, many Canadian Institutions were started: the Writer's Union of Canada, the League of Canadian Poets, and the National Farmer's Union, the Council of Canadian Unions - these were all Canadian organizations.

One question that was asked was "Why do we not have our own theatre?" This query gave rise to the founding of the Great Canadian Theatre Company, in Ottawa, in 1975. Mathews, as one of the founders, was an important player in its inception. The G.C.T.C. hired only Canadians and enacted only Canadian plays. Of course, it fell under enormous criticism. The art critics (one a Yankee Imperialist and one a British citizen) hated It, the TV and newspapers hated It, and everyone said that it would not last. Unfortunately for those people, it did last, and now is one of the major theatres in Ottawa. It survived despite the presence of the National Arts Centre, Mathews describes, " which at that time had an incredibly bad director," who was "incredibly highly-paid, who had a huge budget, and put on lemon after lemon after lemon." Because of the G.C.T.C.'s success, smaller companies and then bigger companies began to present more and more Canadian plays. Mathews and his companions began to work at moving Canadian plays off of the second stage and onto the main stage in other venues as well. He now reflects that "(that struggle] has not been completely won but it's much better than before.''

A few years earlier, in 1972, he was again at work for the educational future of Canadian youth. With three colleagues who taught in the French department at Carleton University he drew up "The French Report." Subsequently signed and endorsed by a dozen important Quebec literary figures, It was a move to get French Canadian studies into universities, to get Quebec literature taught in English Canadian French departments. This was also used in Quebec to pro· mote the study of Quebec literature over literature from France. It effected a big change In the university curriculum. Teachers began teaching FrenchCanadian literature, and all of a sudden students could learn about that great portion of Canadian culture.

Alter this our conversation turned to more current issues, about which he had a lot to say. He describes himself as a socialist: "I flt significantly far left of the NOP, I am on anti-capitalist, and I don't think there

will be justice in the world until the capitalist system is destroyed. The capitalist system Is rapacious and greedy, its funda· mental ideology is the exploitation of others for the wealth of the few, and since that offends me at everylevel of my being, I am an anti-capitalist. And I don't see how you can be Christian and capitalist, but since most of the Christians I know are capitalist, I guess you can be." Taking this stance, It is not hard to understand that he Is against US infiltration of Canada, and that he sees a very bleak future for Canada unless Canadians become aware and act against this threat.

Speaking of the FTA, that insidious American beast that gnaws constantly at Canada, he describes our situation today as "suicide • cutting our wrists everyday." He states: "The capitalist class - the corporate system - is absolutely determined to change the social structure on the planet. They are absolutely determined to take leadership - internationally - from the U.S. corporate class, and the U.S. corporate class Is a vicious, vicious, lawless class, and globalization In Canada is not globalization, It's Americanization, and the owners of 90% of the 50 major international corporations, globalization corporations, are U.S. [businessmen] " and he goes on to say that " globalization Is at one level globalization but it's fundamentally U.S. power being spread on the planet The world is going to have to deal with U.S. imperialism whether it likes It or not, sooner or later." But we are not told these things, I said. most people think that we are getting better as a country. He replied that this was the case because "the newscasts and everybody are saying 'Go to sleep, go to sleep."'

I then asked him what he thought about the Red Tory Tradition, as it seems that it is a tradition that Is partially popular at UCFV: "I don't belong to it, but I have great respect for it."

He gave me a rundown on certain Canadian thinkers of the past and present. Joe Clark is "a total political opportunist. he hasn't a principled bone In his body. He's a continentalist, he's a sell•out he's a nice guy." Harold Innes was ''very important to me. I read a lot of Innes." Stanley Ryerson "is the first serious Marxist historian of Canadian history. And he taught me a few wonderful things he was a wonderful, wonderful man A much nicer man than George Grant ever was, who was a snob, and a number of other things, and Stanley was not." I asked him what he thought of Celine, and here our agreement sud• denly broke: "Celine's a very strange guy. I'm very, very nervous of Celine, and very nervous of his world view and his philosophical centre, and very nervous of his collaboration with the Nazis and all that stuff I find a lot of self-justification in Celine, a lot of apology for himself And I'm not gassed by his style, you know, one is supposed to be swept away by It. I think it's interesting but I don't think it opens up that much more of human experience as a compositional mode." Fortunately, he almost redeemed himself with "Beckett Is whaler cloth for me.'' As we wound down with a last cup of cafe au lait, I couldn't help but think how difficult It is to find someone like Robin Mathews, someone with a firm grasp of reality, someone who is firm in what they believe to be right, who Is not afraid of fighting for his country, someone who willingly pays for lunch.

Professor Mathews will be speaking at the Canadian nationalist conference at All•Saints Monastery in Dewdney, BC on March 3rd. Those involved with the conference Include Prof. Ron Dart, Archbishop Lazar Puhala, and Canadian philosopher David Goa. For details contact Prof. Dart or inquire at the Cascade newspaper office.

They call him Mario

By Natalie Vermeer

Mario Nieva started "dickin' around" on guitar and drums in grade nine when he was about fourteen. He played drums In the Steve Toon band. When that ended, he went to Mission to try out for The Cretins, for which he soon ployed guitar. Through The Cretins Mario hooked up with Gob guitarist Tom who introduced him to Kyle of Spawner records. He took a year oft and then got a call from Chris of Wisecrack (on Spawner) and Marlo played guitar for them for awhile. Mario also filled in on drums for Brand New Unit for a day when their drummer left to play for Gob. Then Mystery Machine was out of a drummer as Jordon Prott left the band. The drummer of Limblifter tried to fill In for awhile, part-time, while Mystery Machine struggled to find a new drummer. Dean Young called up Marlo to see if he was Interested In being in the band. Mario tried out, and is now a part 9f the band, though they are now called Montapa.

Through years of different shows, Marlo can Identify a few memorably bad gigs. One was with The Cretins, playing a show In Surrey. A bunch of Nazi skinheads showed up for the show and took the opportunity to recruit and shave kids' heads In the back sink. A guy was stabbed in the throat

with a broken beer bottle. A sweater Mario borrowed from a friend was ripped off. The Cretins played about half a set when the show was shut down. Cops had shown up and were macing kids In the face who weren't even involved in the disturbance. So, basically everyone there was not in the best of moods.

In terms of good gigs, it's hard for him to pick out one in significance. Mario says it's also difficult to pick out one band In particular that is his favorite to see live. But he says that he trusts Red Hot Chill Peppers and Descendants/All to always put on a good show.

When asked who he would play with If he had the opportunity to collaborate with anyone he wished, he quickly responded that he would have Mike Patten (Faith No More) on vocals, John Frusciante (RHCP) and Trey Spruance (Mr. Bungle) on guitar and his friend Aaron on bass.

Influences on his playing are simply "rock - anything that's good". He does not like to listen to rock as much as he plays it as he says, "you hear it so much". He affirms, "It calms me to go for a cruise and listen to some rap." Lately he's been listening to WuTang Clan, especially O.D.B Eaze-E, A Tribe Called Quest, and the new Snoop Dagg.

Future plans, he says, are to "make money" and If you would like to see him and the band Montone In the near future, keep your ears open for a show at the Piccadilly Pub (pending) for sometime next month.

Poetic Fodder for Spiritual and Political Souls

By Christine Muise

Crosshairs: Being Poetic, Being Political, Being Canadian written by Professor Ron Dart contains poetry that Is rare in today's liberal individualist society. Powerfully written, it draws us into the appetite many have towards attaining more within the soul while It keeps us grounded in the reality of the world we live in. This is summed up with the metaphor of the unicorn and the lion: "the absence and longing for the unicorn and the obstinate tenacious presence and reality of the lion".

For Dart, poetry is not an act of abstraction or narcissistic escapism but an art form that ,should speak to the deeper common human condition and experience. His is a poetry that looks to the whole and asks the big questions of the sharks rather than focusing solely on the minnows. He also portrays an unqerstanding of the needed Integration of one's head and heart, mind and imagination, past and present, rationalism and romanticism, and most desperately spirituality and politics. It is not poetry for the superficial but for those willing to look at a world whose beauty has been ravished and scarred and challenges notions of what is viewed as freedom that may instead be a kind of entrapment.

Ron Dart brings to the table an aspect that deeply impacts political outlook but is often swept under the rug. His deep connection to Red Torylsm and its even stronger connection to religion: specifically Anglicanism. The poetry brings attention to looking for God, of waiting for Jesus and the seeking of truth. It Is not of faith in a vacuum or ot fundamentalism without critique. He begins in the state of INNOCENCE, of childhood in all Its goodness and na'ivete. This Is quickly broken as EXPERIENCE in the world shatters the early faith. For many this brings a turn away from the faith, sometimes into a world of faith· lessness: for others this brings a turn towards alternative myth seeking, such as belief in Wicca, Lilith and the Matriarchs of old. Dart's poetry articulates his return to the ancient yet new roots of Torylsm of his Christian faith that is gained in experience and rooted In firm soil. It is a faith that thrives In struggle, In activism and in liberation. Eyes are open to the world, open to the constant contradictions of life itself: In the outer world, the inner world and the spiritual world. It Is the tension, the push and pull, and

tugging that, for Ron, is the essence of the human condition.

Crosshairs confronts Issues In the Fraser Valley's yard and issues conlrontlng humanity and livelihood elsewhere. His poems will spark the hearts of many activists, as their loneliness in the struggle for consciousness raising will be temporarily put at bay. He addresses the issues, poetically and sincerely: the struggles of East Tlmor, of the Kurds, of the Irish, and of the Palestinians; the grappling and waiting for the arrival of Jesus, for where is he in all of this suffering. Weyerhauser does not escape Dart's gaze for its rape and greed of the land.

There is a frustration in a society where people are so trapped in their own worlds that the light fails to reach them. A call both personal and political is made to carefully clean out our souls and take responsibility for our failures. A request further to the only place that has the capacity to free us: forgiveness. The poems discuss Bay Street in Toronto and all other business streets that "slay and seduce", the expense of Capitalism. Dart has not forgotten the Kings and Queens of Freedom who allowed eco· nomlc and social injustice to prosper: Thatcher, Mulroney and Reagan, with their support of individuals such as Somoza, Pinochet and Suharto. Back in the Fraser Valley, the poems expunge peoples' diverse journeys and the continued life in tension at the crossroads. They challenge the contradiction that lies in so many hearts In this area of the folks who cheerfully attend the Abbotsford Air Show (supporting the machines of mass destruction and the showcasing of weapons technology) who also devotedly line South Fraser Way each year to protest abortion. Counter to this group are the folks who organize and participate in the Arts and Peace Festival (opposing violence) who are In the same breath pro-choice on the issue of abortion. These are the real tensions that Dart eloquently displays for the reader to ponder. An injection of today that could further challenge our alliances would be the issue of SE::2;both camps were in attendance for this event, allied in the environmental fight. The human condition is complicated.

Dart writes of the culture of consumption that exudes society and of Individuals "struggling to be what we should be, and forgetting what we are meant to be".

There is a yearning for the old Tories and the mean· Ing of commitment in a time where the "distractions

and diversions are many•·. The new Romans have conquered our minds in times where there has been huge tragedy: Tiananmen Square, Hiroshima, Nagasaki, Chechnya, Grozy, Rwanda, and Bosnia; and the evil of the counter-insurgency training at the School of the Americas in Fort Bennings, Georgia. The poems are not for the weak of heart, for they call to those who are willing to not only look In the mirror but to look at the harsh reality we call 'society'.

The thievery of our language and rhetoric has done much to harm the Canadian population, and Crosshairs addresses this. Dart writes that the "rhet• oric of freedom, liberty, equality and individuals are just a sort of iron cage". For those who have had the pleasure to catch a glimpse of Dart's vision, 'freedom' begs some questions with the most vital "WHAT ARE WE FREE FOR?" This may begin philosophically, but it ends at UBC back In reality. It was the 1998 APEC protest where Canadian freedom was pepper-sprayed and non-existent In the face of dining with dictators; and most of our nation slept through it.

Dart is a poet with a long memory, from the English romantics of the late 1700s to our present day. He is a poet who, unlike the Beats, Compradors, Anarchist Liberals and the majority, is off the individualist path, deeply rooted and strongly committed to his faith, his politics and his struggle. He realizes that the path with the Commonweal is one that may cost him some comrades, but asks what their worth Is If they abandon him In his quest for the truth. His poetry cries for the 'vita contemplativa· to balance the 'vita activa' that has infiltrated our daily lives and kept us aimlessly on the move.

To live in Dart's poetry is to live in the human condition, an active contemplation by people to "make sense of their insights not just on the peaks so high but in the valley so low". Much of the poetry takes place on a journey into the mountains in that ominous country to the south of us, through valleys and mountains, across lakes and up and up to 'Desolation Peak'. This is a place I would hazard a guess that many of us have reoched in our souls many times. Dart has displayed the battle of mind and soul, whilst holding fast to religious roots, looking onward and upward. His is a journey to "seek to understand eternity and time, spirituality and politics, sacred and profane, community and the individual, permanence and progression".

SAVING SILVERMAN

FrcncBlcd<aro1hea:t ms "Dog in the Sand"

By Darrell Alary

Frank Black has finally reconciled with his past. The exPixies front-man has finally been able to amalgamate the sound which made him one of the most important musical figures of the 1980's, with that of his solo career, on his fifth album, Dog in the Sand. Of his five post-Pixies albums this is

Death By Stereo "Day of the Death"

By Natalie Vermeer

First of all, I have to put in a good word for the Punk-orama program Thursday nights on CFOX, 11-midnight, from which I received this disc. This is an excellent hour of local and international, old and new school, punk rawk'n'roll: the best stuff I have ever heard on mainstream radio! With that in mind, I describe Death By Stereo and their latest album, "Day of the Death"

K-Ci and Jojo "X"

By Jal Dee

K-Ci & Jojo's latest album, titled X, is a boring R&B wanna-be rant filled with various paces and styles. The first single off of X is the love song, "Crazy", probably the only song that has a similar sound to K-Ci and Jojo's previous CD. It is one of the few slightly enjoyable tracks, only because I recognize it from the radio. You can easily tell that "Thug N U Thug N Me" was written with assistance from Tupac

SAVING SILVERMAN REFRESHING

by Jal Dee

As I ventured to the movie theatre Saturday night, I have to admit I didn't have high expectations for Jason Biggs· new movie Saving Silverman. The decision to spend my hard-earned money on the probably crappy flick was inspired by the fact that my date had seen just about everything else already. My pessimistic attitude was quickly turned around when in the first scene I laughed as hard as the 'Dog fights man' scene In There's Something About Mary. I just knew there would be more good to come.

As somebody who usually frowns at unusually stupid

plots, I found this particular one refreshingly entertaining and downright hilarious. I haven't laughed that hard since Dumb and Dumber.

The only weaknesses that I didn't let slip were the cheesy scenesof Judith's Kung-Foo fighting, and hooker clothes worn by Innocent Sandy. Coach was also very annoying, though he too provided me with some hefty laughter.

The 'flashback' scenes were also classic, as they usually are. Typically portraying the characters as funny looking, uncoordinated morons.

I highly recommend this sidesplitting film to anybody. That especially includes you stuck up, stressed-out

MUSIC ON TRIAL

by far his most consistent effort. He has had moments of brilliance which have surpassed those found on this album (a couple of songs from 1996's Cult of Ray album, and 'Headache' from 1994's Teenager of the Year), but always on albums lacking in depth. This album presents the best of Black's quirky personali--........--' ty, from his faux-Mick Jagger imitation on 'I've seen your picture' and 'Hermaphroditos', to

with the vague term of hardcore punk. Unpredictable, melodious bass lines dominated by solid, cocky guitar chords, mixed with Efrem Schulz' occasionally overly dramatic and erratic vocals make this album a fascinating listen.

It's obvious this band has a fixation on death - be it physical, spiritual or musical. The disc seems to be a collection of battle anthems: fighting against hypocrisy, selling-out, closed-mindedness, greed, conceit, and deceit.

Shakur. His voice is prevalent in the first half of the song and definitely supports the remainder of the track. Another track that jumped out at me was "Game Face." It is a bouncy, repetitive annoying attempt at a catchy hip hop gig. Very unnecessary. The rest of the album is comprised of slow, heart-felt renditions of love songs, very typical of the modern R& B artists. The only ideal rationale to buying this CD is that it could be handy for Valentine's Day. With all the filler love songs, I'm sure you could set

his country-twang, which he has slowly developed over his last couple of albums, on 'Llano Del Rio'. While these oddities might take away from a different performers music, they add to the enjoyment of a Frank Black album. The album reaches it's highest point on the lead-off single 'Blast Off', 'Bullet', and 'I'll Be Blue'. 3.5 / 5.0

A summary of the work can be based on the lyrics: "You cannot take away the pride. You cannot take away our minds. We have the freedom to fight, the freedom to push, the freedom to decide," from the song "You Mess with One Bean, You Mess with the Whole Burrito". Yes, there are some curious song titles - I think they are there to make fun of stupid things people say and to keep the titles from being as intense as the songs they are labelling.

the mood right. But be sure to avoid the tracks mentioned above or you could destroy the mood, and the evening, before it's even begun. There were other appearances by artists such a Jodeci, and help from Babyface and Timbaland Productions. Even with all of this well known assistance, K-Ci and Jojo still managed to barely put together an OK disc.

2/5 records

THE CASCADES KEEP ON WINNING!

By Desiree Mayhew

Your UCFV Cascades were in action again over the weekend of February 2 and 3. Starting off Friday night against Capilano, the men and women both had easy wins. The men's final score was an incredible 116-85, with 27 of these points belonging to veteran Jamie Armstrong, and 26 belonging to Mike Mclaverty. The women had a final score of 70-59 with Rachel Peters being a key player supplying 21 points and rookie Kalisha Reid chipping in with 19 points.

Saturday night was more of a challenge as the two teams faced the Langara Falcons. Like Friday night the evening supplied the Cascades with 2 wins. The men won by 7 points with a final score of 97-90. Sean Horner helped by lead-

ing the team with 17 points and Aaron Wells and Mike McLaverty supplying 15 points each. At the half the score was 42·40 In favor of the UCFV Cascades, and the strong rebounding by Mike McLaverty and Aaron Wells contributed greatly to the finale of the game. The women's game was similar winning by 11 points with a final score of 62-51. Top scorers included Annie Krygsveld with 13 points and Lauren Alonzo with 11 points, and with a halflime score of 34-28 against UCFV delensive play by Lauren Alonzo was a great asset.

Most recently, both teams travelled to the island to take on Camosun College and Malaspina over the weekend. There were victories all around as the both the men and women beat Camosun 94-79 and 58-54 respectively. The next day In Nanaimo, both Cascade teams absolutely dominated Malaspina. The final on the men's side was an 84-63 victory. The women beat them by a 46 point margain, finalizing the score at 94-48.

'Born' playing

By Kyle Webb

This Interview was put together in the eleventh hour, so to say. I'm sitting at home on Saturday wondering how I'm going to write an article on a girl I haven't even talked to yet, the story's due on Monday and she's on the Island playing a game against Malaspina in Nanaimo. Ah, the Ille of the struggling studenVwriter.

Sunday rolls around, and I've lost all hope--how ironic. Then, out of the blue I get a call from Cassi Born about a message that I left her the night before for an interview. Hallelujahlll Glory to God!!! My editor won't skin me alivelll ;)

So I'm sitting at the Tim Hortons scribbling away some questions in my notebook, trying to prepare some semblance of an interview, people

(as of Feb. 6/2001)

staring at me like I'm some sort of extra-terrestrial, and now I'm wondering if she's gonna show or not. "Hi, are you Cassi? Nice to meet you." And thus my first real Interview had begun. Lucky for me, it's her first time as well.

The basic dirt on Cassi Born is, well, there is none. She's a former star from MEI, she played for the under 17's ,BC team that won Gold In the '99 Western Canada Games and Silver at the Nationals that same year.

Cassi is a first year student here in General Studies who is looking even• tually towards a major in English and then becoming an elementary school teacher. Admittedly, she claims "school ls not my favourite'' and the struggle between balancing school and basketball is a constant ordeal.

Cassi Is ta~ing 4 classes this semester while playing a prominent role on the basketball team as a freshman. She's second on the team in ppg at 10 per game and top in rebounds at 5.7 per game.

The transition from high school to college has been a challenging one both on and off the court. Cassi empha· sized the "huge changes" such as "the jump in intensity" and the qualities of "dedication, passion, and desire'' that players and students must learn and come to possess to excel at the collegiate level. Regardless, she insists that the whole endeavor thus far has been a "good learning experience."

Needless to say, her social life has suffered at the expense of increased dedication to school and basketball, but in her opinion it's definitely a worthwhile sacrifice. Under the lute· lage of Coach Sandy Chambers, Cassi has flourished on the court. She had nothing but good things to say about her coach, who has been very encouraging to her personally.

Cassi is possibly in the best shape of her life, and her basketball and life In general has profited accordingly. But she Is eager to downplay her indivld· ual role as she promotes the impor-

lance of team chemistry and unity.

Most Importantly. the whole team is playing well and the winning attitude has certainly translated onto the standings. The UCFV Women are ranked first In the province and seventh nationally and looking to Improve upon their results thus far. Recent victories over Camosun and Malaspina have served notice that the women are the provincial power and legitimate contenders for this year's

The 'Ban' on Grizzly Hunting?

by Kyle Webb

Valentines Day has come and gone, and all of us lonely Individuals are mourning evermore, not just because we're without a Valentine, but also because of the probable loss of our Vancouver Grizzlies. When It comes to Americans, they sure can lie like SOBs can't they? The more that surfaces about this whole fiasco, the more you realize that we've been duped; we've been screwed like a

cheap Abbotsford hooker on a Saturday night (or more appropriately on Valentine's Day). This was a classic relationship of unrequited love. The John McCaws, David Sterns, Michael Heisleys, and Bill Lauries of the world got what they want. They ruined a perfectly viable franchise, and tore the heart out of a community; they gave us a horrible team and ensured that it would continued on page 18

ERIC REISINGER: THE ROAD TO SYDNEY

By Jessica Danylchuk Sports Editor

Eric Reisingergrew up In Della, where his softball career began at the age of seven.Today,this Abbotsfordathlete has made a place for himself on both the Provincial Men's Fastpilch Teamand the Canadian National Jr. Men's FastpilchTeam. He will be travelling to London, Ontario, with Tearn BC in August, where they will compete in the Canada Summer Games. More notably,as a member of the National Men's FastpitchTeam, he will be competing in the World Championshipsthis spring in Sydney,Australia.

Reisinger lived for eight years In Delta before mov· ing to Abbotsfordwith his family ten years ago. He attended all five years of high school at Yale Secondary where he graduatedin 2000. When I asked him why he started playing ball twelve years ago he simply replied, "My parents signed me up''. Up until this year, Reisingerhas had a simple ride as far as his softball career goes, playing rep ball in Abbotsford as the shortstop for the past nine years.

Last spring came the turning point in Reisinger's softball career, when on the same day he was asked to come out for both the ProvincialTeam and National Teamstryouts.

"Team BC was always a goal for me," stated Reisinger earlier this year, "but I never really thought 'National Team' until I was approachedby Kelly McGiffin." McGittin is one of the assistant coaches for Team Canada who invited Reisingerto take the cross-Canadatrip to Nova Scotia for a shot at the National Team.

He spent an intense seven-days in Atlantic Canada, which evidently paid off. This corning April

he Is off to training camp in Long Beach, California right before they take off to Sydney to compete In the Jr. Men's Fastpitch World Championship. They will be play. ing on the same diamonds that were reservedtor the Olympic fast• pitch players in the 2000 Summer Games.

This, however,will not be Reisinger'sfirst athletic vacation around the world. His 6 foot 2 build, accompaniedby broad shoulders and natural muscles, have enabled Reisingerto become a wellrounded athlete. His soccer skills have already taken him to Englandto take part in international competition.In fact, Reisinger recently gave up his nine-year stint with soccer to focus on fastpltch. He played senior boys basketballin high school, he is an avid skier, a recreationaltouch football player, and he has most recently developedan interest in Ultimate Frisbee.

When I sat with Reisingerhe was very humble about the subject of his success, reluctantly answering some of my questions. He was, however, very quick to correct me when I called his sport "softball". It is in fact called "fastpitchsoftball", as the average speed of a pitch is 75mph.

I have been told of his outgoing,yet responsible, nature. His training schedule truly defines him as

• responsible,as the NationalTeam athletes must train on their own according to the packages of instructionthey receive from the coaches and ath· letic trainers. This includes working out at a local gym for a couple hours and running five kilometres six days a week. They must also record a journal of their daily activities and food/drink consumed. Two nights a week Reisingergets together with some oh his Abbotsfordteammatesto throw a ball around. All of his training is topped off with a full time job in construction.

Reisingeris one of two B.C. fastpitch athletes who made Team Canada. The other British Columbian, Justin Neufeld,is also from Abbotsford. He current· ly stars as a top scorer on the MEI senior boys basketball team.

Today,Reisingeris looking for a Canadian Universitythat offers fastpltch softball. So far, it has been a difficult search. Until then, he will be attending UCFV in the fall with plans to become a schoolteacher.

PacificSport sponsors local athletes

By -JessicaDanylchuk

So we all watched Canada compete in the Olympic summer games this past year with somewhatdismal results. OK, so they were absolutely terrible. Three golds,threesilvers,and eightbronzes,for a totalof four• teen medals.That's eighty-threeless than our neigh• boursto the south. In fact, the US scoredalmostthree times as many gold medalsas C::madascoredin total. With other countries such as Russia, China, and Australia also power housing the medal race, us Canadianswere leftseriouslywonderingaboutthestate of amateurathleticsin Canada. What'sgoingwrongand how can we Improveit?

PacificSportGroup,an athleticbureaufor amateurath· letes In BritishColumbia,is a companywhich devotes themselves to helping amateur athletics in British Columbia. They currently house their Fraser Valley Regional Sports Centre in Abbotsfordon the UCFV campus. PacificSportserves all BC amate.urathletes, providingthemwith assistanceand supportas theytrain for their sport.

This organizationwas formedprimarilyfor the reasonof helping amateur athletes, coaches and the develop• ment of sport In BritishColumbia.Under PacificSport's '1hreewaves of services" (Training,Support and Life Services) athletes can take advantageof numerous benefits.Trainingservicesincludefree accessto a network of fitnessfacilities,medicalmonitoring,and a variety of other performance-enhancingservices.Support services Include legal assistance,and discounts for transportation and restaurants. PacificSport Life Servicesdeal with athleteemploymentand Information seminarsin the form of ''ToolkilTuesdays".

These informationseminarsare held at the Abbotsford

Interviewcontinued from page 15 national championship.

campus theatre and are solely sponsored by the PacificSportRegional Sport Center and the UCFV Departmentof Kinesiologyand PhysicalEducation.The seriesis a numberof discussionsconcerningthe mod• ern athleteand are free to athletes,students,coaches, and parents.The next ''ToolkitTuesday"is Feb.20th at 7pm, and the topicwill be "PreventingBurnout".

MorePacificSportbenefitservicesare in the worksand will be offeredin the not-so-distantfuture.TheseInclude specialoffersfor equipmentandclothing,affordableand safehousing,as well.is assistancefor theirlifestyleafter the sport.

When I spokewith CarlaTadla,GeneralManagerfor the PacificSportRegionalSportsCenterin Abbotsford,she explainedthe two biggestproblemsfacingamateurathletes In Canada. These are lack of hometown resources,and lack of funding.

The hometownresourcesissueis onewherethe athlete does not haveaccessto propertrainingfacilitiesin their city. PaclflcSportGroup has vastlyimprovedthis problem in BC by placingregionalcentres throughoutthe provinceto make their servicesmore accessible.With centres In Abbotsford,Vancouver,Victoria,Kamloops, Prince George and Nanaimo,PaciticSporthas done their best to reachathletesprovincewide.

The problemin other provinces,however,is that their amateursportscentre Is usuallylocatedin the biggest cityof the province.This meansthatthe athletesthatlive in the outskirtsof the provincehave a difficulttime taking advantage of the services the centre offers. Consequently,these athletes have a difficulttime furtheringthemselvesin terms of trainingand expertise, and thus face a toughdecision:they must eithermove awayfromhome,friendsand familyto go to the big city; or quit their sport,and chooseto play at a recreational level,ratherthanamateurcompetition.It is saddeningto see a giftedathletequit simplybecauseservicesto fur•

ther theirathleticcareerare hardlyavailable.

The lackof fundingseemsto be an issuethat too many organizations in Canada face these days, and PaclficSportin no exception."There is no doubt we needto increaseathleticfundingfor Canadato be corn· petltlveon an Internationallevel,"says Tadla.

In termsof athletics,the CanadianNationalGovernment providestheir amateurathleteswith a dismalfractionof whatothercountriessuchas the US and Chinaget,and we can all agreethat it showson the podium.

In response to the 2000 Summer Games results, PacificSporthas stepped up their campaign,recently completingan intense document requestingthat the provincialgovernmentprovideamateurathletes in BC with much-neededfinancialaid. They projectthat In the fiscalyearof 2001·2, $3.4 milliondollarswouldbe need· ed to makea noticeableimprovementfor the athletesin BritishColumbia.

PacificSportis stillwaitingfor a responsereportfrom the government. Untilsuchfundsare availablefor amateurathletesin BC and Canada,do not expect too much headwaybeing madeto improvepodiumresults.

On the positiveside,PacificSportleadsthe way in terms of improvingthe amateur athletic programs in all of Canada.The services of the PacificSportGroup are beingcloselywatchedby similarorganizationsthrough• out the country,as they currentlyserveas a templatefor Improvingamateurathleticsin the rest of the country. Throughthe efforts of such devotedorganizationsthe futurefor athleticsIn CanadaIs optimistic,but it will not takeoff untilth1:1fundingis available.

Born rightly attributes the girls' success to the close team atmospherethat

thrives under Coach Chambers. "The team is very diverse in personalities," she says, but this fact is contrastedby the team atmospherewhich is strongly unified. "There is absolutely no conflict, everyone knows their roles," and it makes for a well-roundedall-aroundteam effort.

'

NORM KOCH WILL BE MISSED

UCFV was saddened to hear of the recent death of Norm Koch, a former member of the Board of Governors and of the automotive technician training program advisory committee.

Norm was a strong supporter of trades training for many years. He played an important leadership role at both the provincial and regional levels.

UCFV was privileged to have the benefit of Norm's commitment and expertise from many years. For 18 years he was a member of the Program Advisory Committee for the UCFV Automotive Technician program. He also served for nine years as a member of the provincial Trades Advisory Committee for automotive trades training, which guided the development of provincial curriculum In this rapidly changing field.

As a result of his work with advisory committees, Norm was selected by the provincial government to serve as a member of the UCFV Board of Governors from 1992 to 1995. Although this meant he had to take on a broader view of post-secondary education, he continued to provide leader-

ship and advocacy for trades training in particular.

During his many years associated with the automotive technician program, Norm was instrumental in acquiring many significant donations such as new General Motors vehicles for use by UCFV students, so that they could learn on the latest automotive equipment.

Norm also assisted many automotive technicians launch their careers by hiring UCFV graduates Into the service department at Motorcade Chevrolet Oldsmobile.

Norm played a very important part in shaping the successful Automotive Technician program at UCFV by ensuring that students are well-trained for employment in this demanding field.

His expertise, soft spoken good nature, and commitment to trades training will be greatly missed.

Fraser Valley Arts & Peace Festival Film Festival

The Students for Social and Political Awareness Is presenting a film festi· val at this year's Fraser Valley Arts and Peace Festival on Februraury 27 in the theatre on the Abbotsford Campus at 7 p.m.

Films include 'Children of Fire,' 'Battle of Seattle,' 'The Land is the Culture,' and 'A Time to Rise"

The Student Union Presents: Upcoming Events and Important Dates to Remember

Fine Art in ''The Gallery"

Check out Harry Guliker's work at the UCFV Visual Arts Gallery (B 136 Abby) from February 16th to the 23rd.

Mid•term Break

Yahoooool No classes on either February 19th or 20th.

President's Lecture Series

UCFV

Gwynne Dyer, the world-renowned journalist who specializes in International affairs, will be presenting two lectures with a decidedly optimistic bent on Thursday, February 22. His first lecture, "War: Downshlft?" will be presented at the Chilliwack campus theatre at 11:30 am. The second, "The New Canada and the Globalization Shuffle (Reasons to be Cheerful)'', will be given at 7 pm at the Abbotsford campus lecture theatre. Admission to both lectures Is freel For more Info, call Dave Stephen at local 4612.

Capulet's Feast

The IBT Steering Committee and the UCV Theatre Dept. are proud to announce a fund-raising event In support of the Poverty on Campus lnitla• tive. Capulet's Feast is dinner and theatre event that will take place on March 8th. It involves dinner at Bozzlnl's In Chilliwack, a pre-show chat with Richard Wolfe in Chllllwack (0120), and a viewing of Romeo and Juliet at the UCFV Theatre. Tickets are available for only $25 at Student Services In both Abbotsford and Chilliwack. Unable to attend? Consider sponsoring a fellow UCFV student or making a donation to the Poverty on Campus initiative.

Water Walker Film Festival

The Water Walker Film Festival is coming to the UCFV lecture theatre (Abby) on March 9th at 7:30 pm. The Festival Is like the Banff Mountain Film Festival, but deals only with water sport and travel. Great door prizesl Seating is limited so pick up your tickets in advance for only $6 at the Theatre Box office on the Chllllwack campus, the Mission Pharmasave, Western Canoe and Kayak in Abby, or Little Mountain Outdoor In Abby. Tickets will also be available at the door for $8.

Pride Network Film Series

The film series sponsored by UCFV@s Pride Network continues, with a once-a-month screening. Showtime Is at 7:00 in B101 (Abby). FREE, and open to alll March 14: April 18: @Trick@ (USA, 1999) @All About My Mother@ (Spain, 1999)

Withdrawing from a Course?

The final day to withdraw from a course is March 16th. No exceptions!

End of Semester

The last day of classes is April 10th and the exam period runs from April 17th • 27th. Get studying!

Vancouver Sun Run

Participate in the Vancouver Sun Aun on Sunday, April 22. Walk, run, or even volunteer your time. For more info or to enter online, visit sunrun.com.

Convocation Ceremonies

The dates for the 2001 Convocation ceremonies are officiall There are to take place at the Chilliwack Alliance Church during the following times: June 11, 7:30 pm: Faculty of Community Access, Business, Info Tech, & Drafting

June 12, 9:30 am: Faculty of Arts & Applied Arts

June 12, 2:30 pm: Faculty of Science, Health, & Human Services

Remember, If you plan to graduate at the end of the semester make sure you fill out a @Graduation Request Form@, available from A&R and Student Services.

Check for more events taking place at UCFV by checking out this webpage: www.ucfv.bc.ca/crd/dateline.htm

continued from page 16

absolutely suck for at least 6 years. We miraculously supported this injustice and the bureaucratic bullsh#@ of the NBA In good faith, Just to have them lie, deceive and screw us over time and again.

And the latest depravity and most horrifying of all, Is that It Is turning out like the fix was in ever since Mccaw sold the team to Helsley. Looks like Laurie was behind the sale of the team to Heisley, a smokescreen so the NBA and Laurie, and his buddy Haisley could save face and not appear--at least for a while--as the greedy, old, disgusting American imperialists that they are.

Mind the Gap continued from page 8

"We're becoming so self-absorbed, and so impressed with ourselves, so turned inwards, that we1 re losing a sense of awe, and a sense of our real place in the cosmos."

Conflict and the Environment

Homer-Dixon 1s previous work dealt with links between resource scarcity and violence in the Third World. He tells me the intimate connections between environmental problems and conflict uncovered by the project are a key to feeling out

Haisley 'tried' to save the team all right. He ran up expenditures by building the new training centre--not center-·downtown, signing overpaid bums like Austin and Abdul-Rauf, and didn't even give us a year or two to see if the team might turn it around, and get rid of some of the dead weight of the Mccaw-Jackson era.

And--bloody Ignorant Yanks that they are-they see any currency but their own as glorified Monopoly money. They want the easy-American--buck, low taxes, no community involvement, and ivory towers to count their money in. What better place than America--in New Orleans or St.Louis for example--to find those qualities?

some of these growing problems.

"We1re going to see a lot more violence in the developing world that has environmental factors as one of the underlying causes, simply because the environmental stresses in much of the developing world are getting worse and worse, and there are larger populations there. This is not a prediction that requires rocket science," he says.

"The ecological stress will manifest Itself in sharp events. The Rwandan genocide is a good example which had significant ecological factors In the background. Another is the opening up of the Arctic in open water in the next couple of decades. This is mind-boggling. People should be out in the streets about this. You get a cover story

Canadian

Bottom line Is, you can't have teams and businesses in other countries based on the American model. OTHER COUNTRIES ARE NOT YOU, you stupid Yankslll We're not going to change our whole wonderful country so you can do business here and exploit our labour--not labor-• and consumers to get bigger profits and more cheap takeovers! And a final note to all Canadians: we can save the Griz:zly, both the team and the animal; it just takes a little social activism, letting those a-holes know we're not letting them get away with this, and getting back CANADIANcontrol over our own businesses and resources Ill

in Time magazine and people say CEGee, that, s awful, 1 and they go back to driving their SUVs. When the Hague conference broke down, people should have been out in the streets."

WIii these concerns affect Canado? Homer-Dixon believes so, and other countries as well.

"This is a problem about humanity as a whole. Let1s not fool ourselves that this is just about problems of development,'' he says. "The devel• oping countries have a different set of problems. They1re horrific, and very difficult to solve, given 1 the resources that they have. They have their own ingenuity gaps. But we1ve got another set of problems that are partly generated because of all the ingenuity we have."

WorkOverseas!!I

In Britain, New Zealand., lr-1 Australia, Japan and ~'YI many other countries.

Worl<lngo.-uer.:;eas LsII far1tasticway to errJoJJan exJE'.n(ie4 l?Cllf~ wt<Jh,a1:,clhe i.t<lvcrtt,11"t u/ a lf/dltt1c:, TMsLst:ti'I ilu.kpcndr:.nl program

up lo one _yt..'df work pe,mft.s iifP. o/fcrr.d.If ]l(XA arc a full lime ..-ludmt,manyofltt:r cow1trle:sar,..al.soaual,la/>Je,lnc;lm1~ ll'Mce. CJerm.1ny. ltel.anu, S<Julh'1/rlw, :.tndc:l.~11tlt.c US.t\lAf,jt:1t'.)l11°c.Uon..-. and otltcr corn!ltlct\.'iapplJtfor .somec:oLmlrJc.:..,;.

Script.id

Attention writers, the UCFV Writing group, Script.id, will be meeting on the second and fourth Tuesdays of every month. The next meeting will be February 27 (Tuesday) from 10 a.m. - 1 p.m. In room A225, Abbotsford. Drop in anytime. For more information contact Suzanne Klerks (klerkss@ucfv.bc.ca)

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