The Carillon - Volume 65, Issue 13 - December 1, 2022

And, with a whisper, the semester rapidly begins tumbling to a close. If the last few months have felt like a blur for you, you’re not alone. It seems like there’s always more happening on campus than we’re able to keep up with, so we’re grateful to all our contributors this semester who’ve pitched ideas and covered topics from brilliant novel angles that otherwise may have been outside our reach.

We’ll be taking our publishing break from now until the new year so if you’re looking to contribute or keep up with what we pub lish, make sure you’re checking our website and newsstands come January. Until then, we wish you luck on projects and finals, an influx of joy, and rest-filled holidays to close out the whirlwind that’s been 2022. holly funk editor-in-chief

In

carillon

the staff editor-in-chief holly funk editor@carillonregina.com

business manager thomas czinkota business@carillonregina.com production manager shae sackman production@carillonregina.com advertising manager holden norrie ads@carillonregina.com communications mehrnoush bahramimehr comms@carillonregina.com technical editor vacant tech@carillonregina.com multimedia/graphics editors multimedia@carillonregina.com safal gangwani graphics@carillonregina.com lee lim copy editor aurel dumont copyeditor@carillonregina.com news editor gillian massie news@carillonregina.com a&c editor wren gessner arts@carillonregina.com s&h editor vacant sports@carillonregina.com op-ed editor hammad ali op-ed@carillonregina.com distribution manager chandra wassill distribution@carillonregina.com staff writer amina salah staff writer victoria baht staff writer bodie robinson news writer josh king a&c writer jorah bright s&h writer sophia stevens

contributors pall agarwal, katlyn richardson, will spencer board of directors holly funk, jacob nelson, and honourary members: shiva souri, jorah bright, hammad ali, shae sackman, amina salah and thomas czinkota

the paper

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The Carillon welcomes contributions.

Opinions expressed in the pages of the Carillon are entirely those of the author, and do not necessarily reflect those of the Carillon Newspaper Inc. Opinions expressed in advertisements appearing in the Carillon are those of the advertisers, and not necessarily of The Carillon Newspaper Inc. or its staff.

The Carillon is published no less than 11 times each semester during the fall and winter semesters and periodically throughout the sum mer. The Carillon is published by the Carillon Newspaper Inc., a non-profit organization.

land acknowledgement

The Carillon is written on treaty four territory. As such, staff recog nize that we are living, working, and telling stories on and of Indige nous lands. We recognize that we are on the traditional homelands of the Cree, Saulteaux, Nakota, Lakota, and Dakota peoples, along with the homeland of the Métis nation. The Carillon understands that it is pointless to acknowledge the land on which we work with out demonstrating our commitment to telling stories and prioritiz ing voices that further the return of this land to its sacred place.

the manifesto

In keeping with our reckless, devil-may-care image, our office has absolutely no concrete information on the Carillon’s formative years readily available. What follows is the story that’s been passed down from editor to editor for over sixty years.

In the late 1950s, the University of Regina planned the construction of several new buildings on the campus grounds. One of these pro posed buildlings was a beltower on the academic green. If you look out on the academic green today, the first thing you’ll notice is that it has absolutely nothing resembling a belltower.

The University never got a belltower, but what it did get was the Car illon, a newspaper that serves as a symbolic bell tower on campus, a loud and clear voice belonging to each and every student.

The

the people’s friend; the tyrant’s foe

The Centre for Experiential and Ser vice Learning just opened their doors on campus, offering volunteer oppor tunities, microcredential badges, and internships among other potentials.

A Sask. RCMP officer escorting someone convicted of hate speech was photographed recently with a ‘thin blue line’ on his hat despite the RCMP having banned the symbol in 2020.

news Carillon on the move

gillian massie news editor

With the cost of living shoot ing up, many students are left floundering to make ends meet. According to Statistics Canada, the Consumer Price Index sits at 6.9 per cent year-over-year last month in October, and it is leav ing students with wallets feeling lighter than usual.

Brieanne Oshanek, a fourthyear Business student, has noticed costs going up. Frustrated with the tuition hike, Oshanek is hav ing to save more to compensate for future semesters. Oshanek

forget your pen or pencil when heading to class, it may be a little more expensive to buy it from the bookstore, according to fourthyear Accounting student Roanne Suarez. A hike in textbook pric es wasn’t the way Suarez wanted to start the semester: “I feel like lots of stuff has been increasing in prices.” Rent, groceries, and gas are all hitting high numbers. Suarez said they have not seen an increase in price where they are renting yet, but they have seen housing payments go up in differ ent ads. With the price of gas so high, there is no room for a Sun day joyride in Suarez’s budget.

“I have to really think about

ies, and how much money I am taking out.”

Suarez has thought about taking advantage of the bus pass to get to and from work, but Su arez appreciates the luxury and efficiency of driving in to work. Furthermore, Suarez often works late hours, and the bus system does not run late into the evening which removes it for them as a real option.

“Sometimes [the bus] is late to some destinations, so you can’t rely on them 100 per cent of the time,” said Suarez.

Suarez is putting their $500 affordability cheque toward their rent, but would rather be putting

into institutions.

“I would put it towards schools, education, maybe reduc ing debt towards students,” said Suarez when asked what they would do if they were in charge of money.

Many students continue to struggle with the cost of living. In the fall of 2020, tuition went up by 3.5 per cent.

“Tuition has gone up and I am not happy about that,” said Suarez. Another business stu dent, Meerub Ashraf, is not smil ing about the price for education going up.

“Business is already expen sive, so all I have noticed is a

off or carpooling with friends is how they get to the university for classes. “It is in an effort to save some gas, but we do have some of the same classes, so it is more convenient that way too,” said Ashraf.

Ryan Rimes, a fourth-year Ph.D student is competing with high costs, but said they are not stressed about balancing the bud get. “The frustration level isn’t there, it’s just understanding the economics of the situation… I’m not too frustrated, it’s more or less understanding how to work your financials as a student,” said Rimes.

One of Rimes’ biggest tasks is checking grocery prices: “The food bill has increased a lot. […] Vegetables, fruits, things that are imported into Canada, those types of foods are hiked up a lot, and also the meats,” said Rimes.

Rimes said there has not yet been any grocery cart sacrifices to save a few extra dollars, but in stead cooking from home a little bit more. “[I’m] moreso sacrific ing going out to eat, just focusing on the grocery bill rather than the extraneous things,” said Rimes.

Rimes currently lives in the north end of the city, and gas prices have increased so much, it has added an extra $80 a month onto bills. Rimes explained the potential to use the bus system is hardly an option with how ineffi cient it can be right now. “Living in Regina I have learned to never trust the bus system here.” Their $500 will go towards rent and groceries, but they would like to put it toward savings.

Blake Coleman, a fourthyear Computer Science student, lives on campus.

“I live in dorms, so expenses are pretty steady throughout the year, but going out and getting snacks is getting more expensive, going out and getting clothing is getting more expensive,” said Coleman.

Transportation is also cost ing a little bit more. Coleman has noticed gas on the rise, and their vehicle has jumped from $40 to fill it up to $60. Coleman has no ticed restaurants on campus are getting more and more expensive on snack runs. Their $500 afford ability cheque will be going into rent and fun with friends.

currently still lives at home with their parents but has seen an in crease in groceries.

“I would enjoy spending my money on going out and having fun instead of groceries,” said Os hanek.

Items around campus are increasing in cost as well. If you

how much I am spending on gas. Like what mileage I am taking up? Where am I going from point A to point B? If I go for groceries, what route should I take,” they said. “I must think about what’s the most efficient route to take, in terms of gas, in terms of grocer

it in the piggy bank for a future Law degree. Even still, hopes of a hot vacation sometime in the near future is what they would most look for too. Besides, Suarez said the $500 affordability cheque meant for tackling debt wouldn’t help as much as money being put

goddamn lot of costs, and I think from last year it went up a little bit too,” said Ashraf. Ashraf’s $500 affordability cheque will be going into the bank to help with next se mester’s tuition.

The second-year student said having their parents drop them

A second-year biology stu dent has seen prices increase in rent from $1,200 to $1,400: “Off campus, prices have been increas ing. Rent has gone up over the past year and a half.” Jabez said the rent increase was taking from other parts of their budget: “As a student, it is hard to afford lots of things, so that increase is just a lit tle bit much I guess.”

Jabez has not noticed the in crease in price in areas like gro ceries. Their $500 affordability cheque will go to a car payment to get their car fixed, but they would rather be spending it on school.

Image: Lee Lim

editor: gillian massie news@carillonregina.com

Inflation is taking a bite out of students’ wallets. What do they say?

CESL cuts the ribbon, URGuarantee gets slashed

New program

appeals to shorter programs lengths, loses some benefits

The UR Guarantee program is officially out of the spotlight. On November 22, the Centre for Experiential and Service Learn ing (CESL) opened its doors to students and faculty. The CESL brings together cooperative edu cation, internships, student em ployment services, Indigenous ca reer education, career exploration and counseling, and the volunteer centre all under one roof.

UR Guarantee stopped accepting new applications on April 30, 2022.

“Students currently registered in the UR Guarantee will still be able to use the same supports, advising, and resourc es they previously had access to, or can join in the programming available through the Centre for Experiential and Service Learn ing (CESL) opening in the Fall 2022,” said the UR Guarantee page on the University of Regina website.

The UR Guarantee program is also being swapped out, opting for a microcredential system in volving eight digital badges. The University of Regina is the latest of a number of universities across the country who have started us ing microcredentials, which are short courses designed to teach particular skills. Pilots of micro credentials have been funded by the provincial governments of British Columbia, Quebec, and Ontario.

The new online badges can be completed by students at any time in their university career, and

each badge is supposed to cover specific resume skills. The com pletion of a badge will involve completing certain workshops, events, meetings, or experienc es. For example, the Leadership badge requires completing 13 hours of workshops plus a choice of volunteer opportunities on campus.

The advantage of the new badge program is that the badg es can be completed at any time, whereas the UR Guarantee pro gram had particular require ments for each year of a four-year degree. This change would also open up the program to those completing degrees shorter than four years. The old UR Guaran tee program also involved guar antee of a job offer in a student’s field, or would compensate with free tuition for additional class es if all the requirements were completed. However, there is no sign on the University of Regina’s website about a similar guarantee going forward.

Sandy Pipko, an Indigenous Co-op Coordinator, said that the new center would “revitalize ev erything, and hopefully get more students involved.” CESL will help the university expand their volunteer program to include off-campus volunteering.

“Any students that are in terested in volunteering in the community, they would sign up with us,” said Isha Larson, an Experiential Learning Coordina tor with CESL. “We would get them trained, explain to them what their role will be, what the expectations will be, what they can expect in the program, and how we’re going to be here for the

whole process.”

Zeeshan Nasir, a third-year science student and current U of R Ambassador, attended the CESL opening. Nasir spoke about his experience with the on-campus volunteer program. He said that he originally joined the program because he thought

it looked like fun and wanted to gain more volunteer experience.

“There was one student who drove eight hours just to get here on campus,” said Zeeshan who recounted his experiences vol unteering. “Then when we were able to welcome him and we took him to his dorm, I remember that

he was just so thankful of how great we were with him.”

“We welcome all students to come by and check it out, […] come in and ask us what we’re doing, and we’ll go from there,” said Kevin Fiessel, manager of Career Education.

New decisions for international students as off campus work limit lifts

Studies encouraged to remain a top priority

gillian massie news editor

In October, Canada’s Immigra tion Minister Sean Fraser an nounced that the 20-hour work cap for international students working off campus would be lifted to help labour shortages existing across the country. But the University of Regina Student Union (URSU) International Students’ board representative Parampreet Singh said the federal

government’s decision gives a big choice to international students wanting to work more hours.

“It is a neutral thing, like all the international students are struggling from such a long time to work more than 20 hours,” said Singh.

The pilot period began No vember 15 this year and will end December 31, 2023. There are currently 3,000 international stu dents who study at the University of Regina. International students can work on campus up to and

exceeding 20 hours. While many of them may work on campus, or not at all, this will open doors for students to work off campus for more hours.

“I appreciate [that] the Ca nadian government has taken this step for international students,” said Singh.

Canadian Immigration Min ister Sean Fraser said he does not expect the change to be abrupt.

“I don’t expect that every interna tional student is going to sudden ly start working full-time hours,”

Fraser said to CBC on October 7. “It’s going to give them the flexibility to do so and it’s going to help employers tap into a new pool of labour.”

International students across Canada can currently work full time hours during scheduled breaks.

Singh explained this could help students who are competing with the high cost of living and even higher tuition prices. At the University of Regina, interna tional students pay three times as much as domestic students.

“It was pretty hard surviv ing previous times,” said Singh. “There’s a lot of stress as interna tional students, they were study ing in the university and paying their tuition fees by themselves.”

However, Singh is still recom mending that international stu dents put education as their top priority. “I would say just focus on your studies,” he said. “Because studies [are the] first priority to all the international students. Just work […] so that you can live a really good life, not a stressful [one]. Don’t put too much on your plate.”

International students who have worked over the 20-hour limit have previously been faced

with harsh punishments. On the ‘Work off campus as an interna tional student’ page on the Gov ernment of Canada website, it stated: “Working more than 20 hours per week is a violation of your study permit conditions. You can lose your student status for doing this, and may not be ap proved for a study or work permit in the future. You may also have to leave the country.”

Applying for a work permit is not difficult according to Singh, and is accessible online. Singh said that immigration officers make the rules for international students very clear, but always en courages students to go over rules every once in a while.

“The rules are very much clear,” he claimed. “If some stu dents are facing issues they can ask the immigration officers here in Canada,” said Singh.

Singh currently works parttime off campus, but said that he will not be adding additional hours with finals around the cor ner. Singh said other internation al students he has spoken with will not be adding any more addition al hours to their workload either, but are glad they have the free dom to choose, at least until the end of next December.

UR gone, UR Guarantee.

Photo: Lee Lim

Harsh

Photo:

Indoctrination, exorcisms, and abuse alleged in lawsuit

A cycle of ‘no comment’ from Saskatchewan Christian schools

“Demerits are for procedural vi olations; the paddle is for moral violations.” A line that the pro cedural manual for Accelerated Christian Education (ACE) stated in 1998. Only six years later, the Canadian Supreme Court struck down the section of the Criminal Code that carved out an excep tion for adults to hit children as a violation of the Charter of Rights and Freedoms. The paddle was no longer allowed in schools country-wide.

asking for damages of at least $25 million plus additional punitive damages. There is still no word on whether Crown prosecutors plan to bring additional criminal charges.

However, corporal punish ment in many places was never limited to the paddling and phys ical abuse that sometimes still oc curs. This is the allegation of one class-action lawsuit that was filed this past August. Between 19952010 the defendants all attended an independent Christian school in Saskatoon, which used and still uses materials from the ACE cur riculum. An independent school is a not-for-profit school, which is not a public school, but still re ceives about 50 per cent of the funding that a public schools do per student from the government.

Legacy Christian Academy (LCA) is associated with a church now known as Mile Two Church, which is also named as a defen dant in the lawsuit along with numerous individuals from both the school and the church. The claimants are being represented by Scharfstein LLP, and they are still accepting applicants, accord ing to their website. The lawsuit is

The statement of claim, re leased to the public by Scharfstein LLP, makes a variety of allega tions. One of the lead plaintiffs, Coy Nolin, said he was paddled by several school administrators after they found out he was ho mosexual. In a CBC article from August 2, 2022, he goes into ad ditional detail. He alleges that after the paddling, four school administrators came to his home to perform an exorcism in an at tempt to ‘cure’ his homosexuali ty. His mother stated the school administrators pushed her out of the way and left her crying in the corner of the room while they attacked Nolin for an hour. Nolin states that he was left bruised and limping.

The statement of claim also alleges other students were phys ically struck by staff for being within six inches of the opposite sex, socializing with people who were not members of the church, refusing to pray in front of a group, as well as numerous other infractions.

The allegations have been supported by a former youth pastor at Mile Two Church who came forward to CBC on August 11, saying of the allegations in the statement of claim “all of it is 100 per cent true.”

Yet, this lawsuit isn’t coming out of thin air. The statement of claim cites LCA publications as

admitting to physically hitting children, saying “She disciplined each of her children until their will was broken. The liberal hu manists of our day would go into immediate shock at such a state ment. But in Ps. [Psalms] 143:10, the psalmist prayed for God to teach him to do His will. Jesus said, ‘I came not to do my will, but to do the will of my Father.’”

In the March 10, 1997 issue of Maclean’s, the then principal of the school appeared in the issue to defend the use of paddling stu dents, saying “we use it [the pad dle] when necessary.”

Aside from this one school, the ACE curriculum has been more broadly criticized, receiving similar allegations and lawsuits in several countries. A Ph.D. thesis from University College London was published in 2017 by Dr. Jen na Scaramanga which thorough ly analyzed the ACE curriculum, and included interviewed with students who attended private Christian schools using ACE. The study refers to ACE schools as “systems of indoctrination.”

From her research, she conclud ed “students in ACE schools have been harmed physically, psycho logically, academically, and spiri tually.”

The ACE Canada website does not state publicly which schools in Canada are using ACE, nor how many. However, it says in the FAQ that they will tell people what schools in their area use ACE if contacted. To test this claim, I contacted them using a personal email address, inquiring about ACE schools in

Regina, and was referred to a dif ferent contact than stated on their website, from whom I got no re sponse.

Even here in Saskatchewan, students from other Christian schools have since come forward with more allegations of discrim inatory behaviour, echoing the alleged anti-queer experienc es of Nolin. In a CTV interview published on November 8, 2022, Jordan McGillicky alleges she was fired as a resident supervisor from Christian college Briercrest. As well, on October 21, 2022, CBC reported that a queer teen in Re gina was called “demonic” and kicked out of a Christian kid’s club.

The struggles of the claim ants have continued since filing the lawsuit. Lead plaintiff Caitlin Erickson left her home with her children to stay elsewhere after their outdoor security cameras were ripped down and the phrase “HEB 12” was spraypainted on the house. The graffiti is likely referencing Hebrews 12, a chap ter of the Bible, which includes this verse: “Worship God accept ably with reverence and awe, for our God is a consuming fire.” Not even a week later on November 10, the house Erickson and her children left was burned down.

The chapter also appears to make implications about corporal punishment several times, such as in the phrase: “Endure hardship as discipline; God is treating you as his children. For what children are not disciplined by their fa ther? […] We have all had human fathers who disciplined us, and we

respected them for it.”

Mile Two Church has been largely silent on the class-action lawsuit thus far. In November, the church released a series of sermons on suffering tribulations to their podcast. The Carillon con tacted the church to ask if they have comment on the suspected violence against the claimants who are suing them. Their lead pastor Brien Johnson replied “The Church does not endorse or condone these unacceptable actions taken by others.”

The claimants have also spo ken at the Legislative Assembly and have called on the govern ment to take action against inde pendent Christian schools in the province. The Carillon reached out to Minister of Education Dustin Duncan to ask if he would take further action after Erickson’s house burned down. Duncan re sponded that in August they had already increased unannounced supervisory visits to independent schools, mandated that schools notify the ministry when a crime is alleged, and gave the ministry power to appoint administrators to independent schools. In regard to further action, the ministry stated that “Additional amend ments to the Registered Inde pendent Schools Regulations are under review.”

If you have experiences, big or small, good or bad, at a Chris tian school that you would be willing to discuss for an upcoming article, please contact josh@the carillon.com.

A white shadowed bird carries a scroll that says “Legacy.” Image: mohamed_hassen via Pixabay manipulated by Lee Lim

“Students in ACE schools have been harmed physically, psychologically, academically, and spiritually.”

– Dr. Jenna Scaramanga

arts & culture

Events

victoria baht staff writer

For most of us, the month of December can be a dreadful time with all the exams, final papers, projects, and everything else going on. December can also be the best time of the year as it is time for the holi days, the end of the semester, and a chance to go home. No matter how you’re feeling, I have a variety of events for you to look forward to.

I have a comprehensive event list I have researched to give you informa tion about what they are all about, when they take place, why this may be a great event for you to participate in, and more! Some of the events are free, others may have a price, and the driving distance varies, so be sure you read the descrip tion of the event and do some research

in

yourself to make sure the event right for you. These first two events are com ing up quickly so be sure to talk to some friends and get on the plan coordination.

The Canadian Western Agribition

The Canadian Western Agribition is an event that takes place in Regina, Sas katchewan from November 28 to Decem ber 3. They have a great choice of events to partake in that make you feel like you are a true country cowpoke! One of the most popular events is the Maple Leaf’s Fi nal Rodeo. It is a lot of fun for everyone. It takes place starting at 7 p.m. in the Brandt Centre from December 1 to 3.

The rodeo presents the top 10 can didates who will partake in eight major events. Seats vary in price starting at $15, and reach as high as $46 depending on which day you attend. If that does not ap peal to you, be sure to check out everything

holiday spirit

else on their list: Party on the Dirt, Cowboy Mounted Shooting, Black Angus Show, or the Agribition Ranch Rodeo. Search for “Canadian Western Agribition” and I am sure something will catch your eye if being in the countryside is your thing!

Collective Studio – December Show Case

Collective Dance studio recently opened, giving individuals ages 17 and up the opportunity to keep dancing their hearts away. They are hosting their second showcase to show you several outstanding routines. Buy some tickets to watch dancing in tap, jazz, ballet, heels, and more. This event takes place on December 3 starting at 8 p.m. at Darke Hall, 2255 College Av enue. Tickets are only $18 plus taxes and fees; seems like a great opportunity to me!

Speaking of Collective Dance Studio, they have a few special classes in Decem

ber that may catch your eye. They have a pop-up class called Santa Baby Chair Class which takes place on Monday, De cember 12, from 7:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. Mean Girls Jingle Bell Rock is another class that happens on December 17 from 2:30 p.m. to 3:30 p.m. These look like the perfect classes that would be a lot of fun with friends. Check out their Insta gram (@collectivestudiosregina) to see more details and prices. Plus, see all their amazing dance classes and, who knows, you may be part of the next showcase!

Blast from the past

See what I did there – ha ha – dad joke for the adult activity night! The Saskatche wan Science Centre is bringing back adult science nights. The last one was Science Rocks and it looked like a hit. The next one looks like a hit as well. Their web site states “Grab your Walkman, strap on the roller blades and relive your favourite memories from the ’90s at the ‘Blast from the Past.’” You can participate in Human Hungry Hippos, wiggle car races, and more! The event takes place on Decem ber 8 from 7 p.m. to 10 p.m. Tickets are just $12; you must be 19 or older, and it takes place at the Saskatchewan Science Centre. When was the last time you got to see an adult event for $12 and relive your childhood? It sounds like great fun!

Seussical at SaskExpress

Need something for the kiddos? Sask Express is bringing Dr. Seuss to centre stage. The event will take place from De cember 1 to 11 starting at 7 p.m. and tick ets range from $15-$35 depending on the age of the attendee. This event is expected to be funny, entertaining, and a great live show for the kiddos and family to enjoy!

Jeffrey Straker- A Very Prairie Christ mas

If Dr. Seuss isn’t your thing, that is okay! Jeffrey Straker is putting on a show that has been a hit in the past and is returning. With live music, contemporary storytelling, and Christmas songs, what could go wrong? Check out this event taking place December 10 from 8 p.m. to 10 p.m. Tickets are $35.

Ian’s Christmas Lights – Fundraiser for 1-D

Another holiday inspired event! Ian is putting on a fundraiser to help 1-D in the General Hospital. It works by walking through the pathways of some twinkling lights and, hopefully, it will inspire you to leave a donation. No ticket or booking is required, and it is open from 6 p.m. to 10 p.m. every evening in December. Located half a mile south of McLean, Saskatche wan, go see some twinkle lights, take some cute photos, and leave a donation if you can for the General Hospital’s Unit 1-D.

And there is the list of events that are coming up! Some events are returning, some events are a one-time hit. No mat ter the event, make sure you head out and enjoy some time in December. As I said, for some this is a terrible month, for oth ers this is a great time. With these events, it will be a great time no matter what. If no events here catch your eye, I am sure there are other events that will. The month of December has plenty of events happening, whether they be holiday spirited, listening to music, or your own unique way of en joying the holidays.

Paradise Lost in 12 hours

A truly unique way to experience Milton’s work

bodie robinson staff writer

12 hours, 12 books. On November 24, faculty members and students performed a dramatic reading of John Milton’s epic poem Paradise Lost in its entirety. The po etry binge was held in the Shu-Box The atre in the Riddell Centre. The stage was austere: a row of chairs, a lectern, and a simple slideshow of illustrations. The read ing continued from 8 a.m. until 8 p.m.

Milton’s Paradise Lost was first pub lished in England in 1667. He died only a few years later, in 1674. No doubt, the epic poem is the product of a mature and weathered mind, one that witnessed sev eral calamitous events in English history: the English Civil Wars, the execution of Charles I, the republican rule of Oliver Cromwell, and later the restoration of the House of Stuart under Charles II. In fact, Milton was a civil servant during the years of the Commonwealth of England. Mil ton’s republican sympathies colour most of Paradise Lost.

The poem is over 10,000 lines of blank verse – metred but unrhymed. Since Mil ton had gone blind years prior, he dictated the entire poem to assistants and family. Paradise Lost deals with the Biblical myth of Adam and Eve, their struggle with Sa tan, and later their banishment from the Garden of Eden.

I spoke to Elizabeth Beke, a student in the Faculty of Education, about the event. Beke read the part of Belial. “I am study ing Milton’s Paradise Lost at the U of R. So, when my professor, Troni Grande, let the class know she was doing a public reading for the poem, I knew I wanted to participate,” she said. “While Milton’s Par adise Lost is excellent to read on your own, witnessing how others interpret the voice,

Goncharov –

jorah bright a&c writer

Have you ever seen Goncharov, the 1973 Martin Scorsese classic? That movie about the Naples Mafia starring Robert De Niro, Gene Hackman, Harvey Keitel, Cybill Shepherd, and Al Pacino? It’s listed along side other Scorsese mafia films like The Irishman and Goodfellas.

Well, if you’re confused about this movie you’ve never heard of but that seems to have a star-studded cast and a huge di rector attached to it, don’t feel bad – it’s not actually real. But you’d never know if you’ve visited Tumblr lately, where the movie is everything but fake.

The supposed plot of Goncharov follows Goncharov himself. He used to be part of the Russian mafia, but now he lives in Na ples with Katya, his wife. While living in Naples with Katya, Goncharov meets An drey Daddano, also known as ‘The Bank er.’ Daddano acts as Goncharov’s rival and, potentially, his love interest. On the other side, Katya meets a girl named Sofia. The pair become close friends and, may be, something just a little bit more. There’s also Al Pacino’s character, Mario Ambros ini, a man who gambles a bit too much, and Gene Hackman’s character, Valery Michailov, Katya’s brother.

The movie deals with themes of iden tity as Goncharov struggles between the safety of Naples and the strength he found in the mafia. Goncharov and Katya strug

attitude, and rhythm of how the characters act and speak brings the poem to life.”

It became clear that Beke had a lot of interest and enthusiasm about the poem. I asked her what kind of lessons readers and listeners can take from Paradise Lost. She told me, “Paradise Lost is an incred ible poem that reveals Milton’s prophetic insights on theological and philosophical questions concerning free will and predes tination. The poem also gives insight into the reasoning of characters – God, Satan, Adam, Eve, Angels, and so forth, which helps us understand what lies behind hu man desires. The poem touches on the struggle to understand how thoughts orig inate.”

The subject matter, obviously, is rath er high stakes. But it’s not only a heady moral about the fall of humanity. Paradise Lost is also a joy to read and hear. If one deals with English literature at all, inevita bly they hear of Milton’s poem. I attended the reading of Book V. Having never read a line of Milton before, I was struck by its potent voice and the innovative wordsmith ing. I took note of a few choice lines: “Well hast thou taught the way that might direct / Our knowledge, and the scale of Nature set / From center to circumference, where on / In contemplation of created things / By steps we may ascend to God.” There’s reason, I discovered, that it’s considered one of the greatest works of the English language; it’s actually good.

Like all great works of art, it produces brilliant conversation. Beke shared some more of her insights with me: “The poem highlights how man is made out of dust, which shows how weak we are. We are not made out of a heavenly substance that is formidable, and we do not possess the fore knowledge of God to know the outcome of every decision we make. Because of our human nature, we are full of curiosity and

wonder. After reading Paradise Lost, I am no longer surprised by why Adam and Eve were so easily tempted to disobey.” Yes, Milton described the serpent as the “sub tlest beast of all the field.”

“Therefore,” Beke concluded, “Read ing the poem helps one to embrace their humanity and recognize the need

for grace, hope, love, and forgiveness.”

The World was all before them, where to choose Their place of rest, and Providence thir guide: They hand in hand with wand’ring steps and slow, Through Eden took thir solitary way.

gle to keep their identity while living in Naples. It also deals with ideas of time, as the characters often cheat death and lose time to other characters. It’s exemplified by items like Goncharov’s pocket watch.

There’s a plot written out, scene after scene with events, themes, and locations of each one. There’s a detailed movie poster, a theme song with available sheet music, and even a trailer. There’s everything to con vince you that this movie is entirely real, even though it’s not.

The idea of Goncharov started years ago. Tumblr user zootycoon posted an im age of a shoe. The image showed the tag on a pair of boots that read “The Greatest Mafia Movie Ever Made. Martin Scorsese Presents Goncharov. Domenico Proccacci Production. A film by Matteo JWHJ0715. About the Naples Mafia.”

The user captioned the image “I got these knockoff boots online and instead of the brand name on the tag they have the name of an apparently nonexistent Mar tin Scorsese movie?? [sic] what the fuck.” Tumblr user abandonedambition respond ed to this image stating: “this idiot hasn’t seen goncharov.”

On August 21, 2020, the image was shared again with abandonedambition’s comment, which sparked Tumblr user beelzeebub to make the fake poster, which kickstarted the internet’s creation of what we now know as Goncharov

People have suggested Goncharov origi nated from a misspelling of the movie Go morrah, which was released in 2008 and

was directed by Matteo Garrone. Martin Scorsese was mentioned for promotions of Gomorrah.

The new additions to the Goncharov canon are growing by the day. Things such as more music, drawings of scenes and characters, more posters, and even a video game; not to mention the Goncharov tag on Archive of Our Own. For those who don’t know, Archive of Our Own, or AO3, is a popular fanfiction website. As of writ ing this article, there are 305 fanfics about

Goncharov. The most popular pairing be ing Goncharov and Andrey Daddano, fol lowed by Goncharov and Katya.

And before you ask, yes, Martin Scors ese has heard of Goncharov, and he’s in on the joke. When his daughter asked him about the film, he responded with “Yes. I made that film years ago.”

Maybe one day we’ll get the real Gon charov and we’ll be able to see the passing of time through his gold pocket watch on the big screen.

Goncharov is filled with depth, from characters to plot

real or a hoax?

The first chess scandal in over a decade

jorah bright a&c writer

The year is 2020. The month is October. Netflix has just released their new limited series The Queen’s Gambit. It follows Beth Harmon, a chess prodigy, as she climbs the ladder of chess success. The show sparks an interest in chess for many viewers and the game finds hundreds, if not thousands, of new players.

The year is 2022. The month is Sep tember. Chess is bigger online than it has been ever before, and it’s about to get even bigger because a scandal is on its way to rock the chess world.

There are two main people to know surrounding the 2022 chess cheating scan dal. The first is Magnus Carlsen, a 31-yearold chess grandmaster from Norway. He’s won the World Chess Championship five times. Many consider him to be the world’s best chess player. The second is Hans Nie

Carlsen, he said that he just happened to study the opening that Carlsen used in the match. He claims that it was a miracle that he checked the opening before the match. The problem with preparing for this open ing is that it wasn’t one of Carlsen’s regular openings. In fact, Carlsen had never played that opening before, ever.

A theory about Niemann’s cheating emerged from the depths of the internet. Not only was Niemann cheating, he was cheating by using anal beads. Yes, anal beads. People believed that Niemann had acquired and was using anal beads that vibrated to tell him what moves to make while playing. Reddit user XiTro came up with the theory that Carlsen had original ly started using anal beads to win and had been for over a decade and when Niemann decided to use the same idea. His anal beads made Carlsen’s work incorrectly and caused Carlsen to play poorly. There’s no actual proof of the anal bead theory and it seems to be something Reddit came up

ply left. Carlsen leaving the game only add ed fuel to the fire of the Niemann cheating debacle.

As a response to all of the allegations, Niemann decided to move things from the board to the court, and sued a lot of peo ple. He announced this in a statement on Twitter where he said “my lawsuit speaks for itself,” and included court documents. His statement is a reference to his previous statement where he said “my chess speaks for itself” shortly after his victory against Carlsen.

One strange thing about the lawsuit is that Niemann is suing from Missouri. Nie mann is not from Missouri, nor is anyone he’s suing.

The three main people getting sued by Niemann are the website Chess.com for a document they released about Niemann, Magnus Carlsen for defamation, and Hika ru Nakamura who talked about the scan dals online. He’s suing all three people for $100,000,000 each.

Niemann believes that his reputation was destroyed by the cheating allegations and that it was a planned attack against him by Carlsen, Chess.com, and Nakamura. Every statement in the court case is based on statements made against Niemann by Carlsen, Chess.com, and Nakamura, yet it’s very difficult for a public figure to sue for defamation because there needs to be proof of malice. The statements need to be made by people knowing they are false, or showing ‘reckless disregard’ for wheth er or not the statements are false. In order for this lawsuit to succeed, Niemann’s law yer would need to prove that Carlsen lied about the cheating in order to ruin Nie mann’s chess career.

The lawsuit was filed on October 20 and the most recent update was on No vember 16. On November 16, a judge or dered Niemann to amend his lawsuit to fit the Missouri court’s jurisdiction within the case. There hasn’t been much since then, but this was the first chess scandal in over

Two weeks after Niemann’s defeat of Carlsen, he said that he just happened to study the opening that Carlsen used in the match. He claims that it was a miracle that he checked the opening before the match. The problem with preparing for this opening is that it wasn’t one of Carlsen’s regular openings. In fact, Carlsen had never played that opening before, ever.”

– Jorah Bright

mann, a 19-year-old chess grandmaster from San Francisco, California. He streams chess on Twitch frequently. He is currently ranked the 12th best American chess play er, and the 98th best worldwide.

On September 4, 2022, Niemann beat Carlsen at the Sinquefield Cup Grand Chess Tour. Prior to losing to Niemann, Carlsen was on a 53 classical game winning streak. It had been two years since Carlsen had lost while playing white. This win sky rocketed Niemann’s chess rating.

Following his loss, Carlsen quit the tournament. He withdrew and didn’t play any more matches. It was suspicious to say the least, and got even more suspicious when Jose Mourinho, a manager for foot ball, made a statement about Carlsen say ing “If I speak, I will be in big trouble.”

The combination of Mourinho’s words and Carlsen’s withdrawal got the internet theorizing. The internet started to believe that the only reason Niemann won against Carlsen was because he cheated.

Fellow grandmaster and Twitch streamer Hikaru Nakamura commented on the situation on his stream, agreeing with suspicions that Niemann cheated and insinuating that Niemann had done it be fore. He claimed that Niemann had pre viously been suspended from Chess.com, the popular chess website, because of past cheating.

The thing is, Niemann admitted to cheating – on online games when he was a kid. He stated he’s never cheated in a tour nament, never cheated in person, and that he hasn’t cheated in many years.

On September 8, Chess.com released a statement saying that Niemann would be removed from the website and all future events. They claimed they had evidence shown to Niemann, and that in the future Niemann may be welcomed back depend ing on the circumstances. They also dis agreed with Niemann’s statement about online cheating, saying that they had “in formation that contradicts his statement regarding the amount and seriousness of his cheating on Chess.com.”

Two weeks after Niemann’s defeat of

with as a joke, but people took the idea and ran with it.

Carlsen and Niemann would play each other again shortly after at the Julius Baer Generation Cup. Instead of playing the full match, something unprecedented hap pened. Carlsen resigned from the match. After one move played, Carlsen stood up from his desk, shut off his camera, and sim

Chess.com’s document was 72 pag es, and delved into Niemann’s potential cheating on their website. They claim that Niemann cheated in over 100 chess games, including games for money. The cheating was as recent as 2020 according to the document. The document discusses Nie mann’s “statistically extraordinary” growth in the game.

a decade and the entire chess world was rocked by Carlsen v Niemann. Maybe if we see the lawsuit go to court, the chess world will be rocked again.

Checkmate… I think. I don’t play chess.

Two grandmasters go head-to-head, battling it out over lies and truth

Man down.

Illustration: Jorah Bright

“

Dragon Age through history

jorah bright a&c writer

If you know me, you know that I love Drag on Age a lot. I have 300 hours in Inquisition and I’ve only ever beaten the game once. It’s my favourite game, my favourite fran chise, and there’s a lot going on right now in the Dragon Age world.

But, let’s start at the beginning. It’s 2009. BioWare, the company be hind Baldur’s Gate, releases a new game: Dragon Age: Origins. A fantasy game not afraid to be too dark or too sad. It won several Game of the Year awards and goes down in history with the video game greats.

The story takes place in the fiction al world of Thedas, within the kingdom of Ferelden. Unfortunately for Ferelden, they’ve got quite a few issues. Nobility is fighting over everything, the neighbouring kingdom of Orlais is breathing down their necks, and there’s a Blight on the way. A Blight occurs when an Archdemon com bines forces of monstrous Darkspawn, and they invade an area.

You, the player, are a Grey Warden. The Grey Wardens’ job is to stop Blights. Unfortunately for you, there are only about two Grey Wardens in Ferelden; you’re one of them, and the other is one of your trav elling companions.

You can choose to be a human, an elf, a dwarf, a rogue, a warrior, or a mage. Each choice comes with its own unique backstory and skillset. You get to create what your character looks like and their name. In this game, they don’t talk, so they don’t get a fun voice. As you progress through the game, you level up, gather par ty members, build relationships with party members – sometimes even romantic rela tionships – and work to build up allies to end the Blight.

The characters are all incredibly well-written and fun, with in-depth back

stories. The game isn’t afraid to cause character conflict with the main character, they might even leave the party. The game isn’t afraid to break apart romantic rela tionships either. The game isn’t even afraid to kill you, the main character, if you make the wrong choices.

Soon after in 2011, BioWare released Dragon Age II. Most believe this to be the worst game so far, but it’s honestly my fa vourite. It removes elements from the first game like choosing between a human, elf, or dwarf, and instead only lets you play as a human. The combat system was changed, and instead of taking place through a king dom, it took place in the city of Kirkwall.

In this game, you play as Hawke (who finally gets a voice), a refugee of the Blight, as you arrive in Kirkwall and attempt to make your way up in the city.

My favourite part of this game is the moral dilemma. You spend the entire game seeing different perspectives on who’s mor ally better, mages or templars, and your companions often have strong opinions of either side.

Following Dragon Age II was 2014’s Dragon Age: Inquisition Inquisition is an ab solutely incredible game. The setting is beautiful. You return to choosing between all three races and all three classes, and the moral dilemma from Dragon Age II

One of the standouts in Dragon Age: Inquisition are the incredible companions. Each has a fleshed-out storyline that you can follow along with, and the romance options are dynamic and interesting.

It brings back a lot of things from the first game that were optional side quests and a lot of familiar places. In Origins, you travel to Redcliffe Castle through a secret passageway and you get to take the same passageway in Inquisition depending on the choices you make. Leliana, one of the companions from Origins, returns as Spy master in Inquisition and has different dia logue if she was in a romantic relationship

with the Grey Warden. A small side quest in Origins lets you work with the Red Jennys, a group you can become deeply involved with in Inquisition. The decisions you make in Origins, like who rules Ferelden, who rules the Dwarven kingdom, who lives, and who dies, all affect your character in Inquisition

Unlike the first two games, you can travel to multiple kingdoms in Inquisition You go through Fereldan, Orlais, and in fluence events in other kingdoms like Te vinter, Nevarra, the Free Marches, and Antiva.

The fourth game which is currently unreleased is called Dragon Age: Dreadwolf The title was announced in June of 2022 and will likely be released in late 2023. The main playable character will not be the Grey Warden from the first game, the Champion from the second, or the Inquis itor from the third, and will instead be an entirely new character. The game will take place in a new setting: Tevinter. I don’t want to spoil anything, but Dreadwolf is highly tied to the ending of Inquisition

The most upcoming piece of Dragon Age media is Dragon Age: Absolution. Abso lution is a Netflix original arriving on the platform in December of 2022. It’s an an imated series taking place in Thedas. Sim ilar to Dreadwolf, Absolution will be taking place in Tevinter. This will be the first time Tevinter will be seen on screen.

Netflix has stated that many things already seen in the games will be in the show, including the Qunari race, the Red Templars, elves, and mages, who each have their own struggles and motivations in the games.

The main character of Absolution is an elven rogue named Miriam who is joining up with several other adventurers to try and procure an artifact. From the trailer we see known characters Cassandra and Leliana. Cassandra is an important character from Dragon Age II and Inquisition, and Leliana

has been featured in all three games.

The only other character from the trailer that we know of from the games is Fairbanks. Fairbanks is the leader of a group of Orlesian refugees fighting back against a rebel group in the Dales. He is part of several quests and you can learn his secret backstory in Inquisition.

Definitely check out Absolution when it comes out of Netflix, and let it drag you into the depths of the world of Dragon Age

I highly recommend these games to everyone, all of the time, and you should play them. They’re izncredible. The story is great and the characters are fantastic. If these are the things you look for in a game, you should play Dragon Age

Experience Dragon Age for the first time on screen in the new animated series Dragon Age: Absolution

sports & health

Argos add 18th Grey Cup to win list

sophia stevens s&h writer

The 109th Grey Cup was hosted in Regina at Mosaic Stadium on November 20, 2022. The game was between the Toronto Ar gonauts and the Winnipeg Blue Bombers. The Blue Bombers were looking to win more than two consecutive Grey Cups. This Grey Cup drew a larger television audience than last year, with a seven per cent increase. TSN had an average audience of 3,121,00 viewers while over 8 million Ca nadians watched the full game. The peak audience count came in the last quarter, with 4.7 million viewers.

The first half seemed rather dull, and saw the Blue Bombers take the lead 10-7 going into the second half. However, the game changed when Janarion Grant set a Grey Cup record with a 102yard punt return for a touchdown to start the fourth quarter. Later into the fourth quarter, Argo nauts quarterback McLeod Beth el-Thompson was pulled from the game due to a dislocated thumb which impeded his ability to grip the football properly. The back up Argonauts quarterback, Chad Kelly, would take the place of Bethel-Thompson for the rest of the game.

It just so happens that Kelly is the nephew of NFL legend Jim Kelly, who played eleven seasons for the Buffalo Bills. Therefore, not a bad option to have Chad Kelly as the Argonauts backup. Kelly would go on to complete four of six passing attempts for forty-three yards.

Winnipeg then blocked a field goal attempt by the Argonauts. This meant that the Bombers had a chance to try and get a field goal in order to win the game. How ever, in the last moments of the game, the Argonauts blocked the Bombers’ field goal attempt, mak ing the Argonauts the Grey Cup champions with a final score of 24-23.

In response to the loss, Bomb ers quarterback Zach Collaros spoke at a press conference after the game, saying “I don’t think that we got into a good rhythm at any point in the game offensive

ly. We were able to put together a few good drives here and there, but we weren’t efficient enough on first down, running, or passing the football, and that starts with me. I have to do a better job to help the team win.”

When asked about the lofty expectation placed on the Bomb ers going into the game, Collaros said “I’m not sure that ever truly puts pressure on any team and we certainly have a very mature group, a veteran laden team. We just care a lot, so we put pressure on ourselves no matter what. The guys worked their tails off all week long preparing for this football game.” He also stated that “some body’s got to win.”

When asked about the Ar gonauts’ performance, Collaros had this to say: “they never gave up. For Chad to come in and do what he did, that was impressive. They had a good game plan. They pressured a little bit more on second-downs situations. They were able to get home a couple of times. They kind of did what we were anticipating they were go ing to do for most of the football game, and they did a better job than us.”

After the game, Argonauts quarterback Bethel-Thompson spoke to reporters regarding the expectations of the Bombers win ning: “we heard all the noise. We heard they’re a better team, bet ter position by position across the board. We played them 14 weeks ago and we gave that one away. We know we compare with them. We have the talent in this room. Like this, we can beat anybody. We can beat anybody, and we took the crap all year. We know we didn’t play up to our potential and people decided to throw the hammer down on us, and we de cided to not listen to it.”

In a post-game interview, Argonauts head coach Ryan Dinwiddie spoke mainly of Beth el-Thompson, but said that Kel ly’s entrance into the game helped to change the game. Dinwiddie also explained that “now you see why Chad’s so darn confident. He wasn’t fazed at all. He was ready for that stage.” Kelly’s substitu tion into the game showcases the importance of having a backup quarterback who is confident and

valued as a key member of the team, as you never know when a backup will be needed, especial ly in big moments of key games such as the Grey Cup.

The game’s Most Valuable Player and Grey Cup’s Most Valuable Canadian (the Cana dian player who performs best) awards were given to Argonauts linebacker Henoc Muamba. He ended up recording three tackles and an important interception in the fourth quarter for the Ar

gonauts. However, going into the Grey Cup, Muamba had only three sacks and two intercep tions. When asked about a previ ous drop before his interception, Muamba said “Who am I not to have confidence in myself when I have people around me that be lieve in me so much, so deeply, so greatly? I feel like I was letting my teammates down after the first drop, but they had my back. When a second one came, there was no way I was letting that

drop.”

The Argonauts solidified their spot as the CFL team with the most Grey Cup wins at 18. The Edmonton Elks hold second place with 14 Grey Cups, and the Winnipeg Blue Bloomers are in third with 12 Grey Cups. The celebration in Toronto was held Thursday, November 24. The 110th Grey Cup is scheduled to be played in Hamilton, Ontario, home to the Tiger-Cats.

Winnipeg made for a worthy match, but Toronto topped yet again

Sumo squattin’ the sads away. Illustration: creozavr via Pixabay, manipulated by Lee Lim

“They never gave up. For Chad to come in and do what he did, that was impressive. They had a good game plan. They pressured a little bit more on second-downs situations. They were able to get home a couple of times. They kind of did what we were anticipating they were going to do for most of the football game, and they did a better job than us.”

– Zach Collaros, Blue Bombers quarterback

Campus fitness community: the URFit Squad

pall agarwal contributor

In a world where fitness is seen as a routine, it is reaffirming to be lieve that it could be something beyond that. Sid Khan, Andrew McLennan, and Mohammad Shahazeb Kamal, with the mo tivation to foster positivity in the fitness community, founded and launched the URFit Squad. This is not only a club identified by the University of Regina Students’ Union, but it offers an experience beyond social events and projects that a club typically aims to deliv er.

URFit Squad, unlike other clubs, has a fee of $20 per semes ter for the purpose of facilitation, logistics, and financing equip ment. In a conversation with co-founder Khan, he explained the structure of this community which functions in groups. Reg istered members are divided into different groups with a squad leader who helps each member achieve their fitness goals and train with others as well. “We want to give members access to a more focused-group community,” says McLennan. With a goal of at least 50 members divided equally in specific squads who have access to proper training equipment, the club is open to membership all throughout each semester.

The classes are mostly held in-person, and the founders plan to add Zoom classes for better ac cess to people who cannot go out.

The URFit Squad have a variety of avenues to explore from med itation to boxing, weightlifting, Zumba, and yoga, and they aim to add spin classes to the list as well. If you have questions about these options and would like to get in contact with the group, they can be reached via Instagram (@ urfitnesssquad) and e-mail (urf itsquad@gmail.com).

The founders mentioned during the interview how the en vironment of a gym and working towards fitness can be overwhelm ing for some. Thus, to “make it more approachable to students,” says Khan, the founders plan to take the Fit Squad ahead in their lives. This community is for students who wish to come out of their comfort zone and help themselves get more fit every day. “I want to be in my best shape and feel stronger,” said Kane, a newer member in the URFit Squad. He has been working on achieving his fitness goals since the beginning of this semester, as he finds winter harsh and wants to make sure he continues to stay fit and active.

The club has a well laid out plan of expanding their services and getting in more community engagement. They wish to en gage more with the city seasonals, track, workouts, and expand their horizons of sport. Collaboration with the Centre of Kinesiology, Health & Sport and with UR Mindful University Project could help students across campus have a holistic approach to health and

fitness. They also wish to add snowboarding in the future to help students realize that fitness is about more than life inside a gym doing training and workouts.

Who knew fitness could be a fascinating learning curve for many? Students at the Universi ty of Regina now have access to groups like URFit Squad to get personalized guidance on their fit ness and learn together with their community. In the hustle and bus tle of university life, students can now engage in a routine-focused fitness journey with like-minded people all around campus.

It is indeed essential to ac knowledge the importance of both mental and physical health as students undergo a lot of stress during their course of study, which the URFit Squad aims to lessen. It’s a golden opportunity for students to improve their lives and become more fit every day.

When people ask for your game face, these are what they mean.

Athlete profile: Roger Federer

sophia stevens s&h writer

Swiss tennis player Roger Feder er will go down in history as be ing one of the best men’s tennis players to ever play the game. He represents a generation of ex traordinary tennis which saw the likes of Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic as his main competi tors. Federer has won a total of 20 grand slams which includes six Australian opens (2004, 2006, 2007, 2010, 2017, 2018), one French open (2009), eight Wim bledons (2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012, 2017) and five US opens (2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008).

He has been ranked number one in the world for 310 weeks total, which included a record of 237 consecutive weeks at num ber one. Federer has also won 103 ATP single titles throughout his playing career. From 2003 to 2009, Federer also played in 21 major single finals out of 28 op portunities, which is a massive accomplishment for any athlete. Federer was known for his net game and his ability to execute di verse volleying skills which always seemed to leave his opponent guessing. His best known return skill was hitting the ball between his legs facing away from the

net, which he saw succeed many times.

Federer faced injury setbacks like many athletes, which includ ed a knee surgery and a back in jury in 2016. However, Federer came back in 2017, and saw ma jor success which continued into 2019. In 2020, Federer reached the Australian Open semifinals after a hard-fought battle against Tennys Sandgren in the quarter finals. He would end up losing to Djokovic in the semifinals.

In February of 2020, he would have to undergo an ar throscopic surgery on his right knee, which led to some setbacks as he recovered which required him to undergo another proce dure on his knee. During the 2021 season, Federer struggled to re gain form due to lagging injuries, and he only reached the Wim bledon quarterfinals that year.

In July of 2022, Federer became unranked for the first time in his career, since he hadn’t played a game since his quarterfinal loss at Wimbledon in 2021.

In September of 2022, he announced his impending retire ment from the game of tennis, citing that the Laver Cup that month would be his last. Feder er noted that he would continue to play tennis, but that he would not be playing for Grand Slams or going on tour. Federer’s career

would end in a doubles match at the Laver Cup, with his doubles partner being his long-time rival Rafael Nadal. His last match was his 1,750th career game on tour.

When asked about wheth er or not he would coach in his retirement years, Federer said “I mean, never say never. Stefan Ed berg said the same, he will never coach, until he got the phone call from me, and I invited him over for practice and he said ‘Ok, let me try for a year.’”

Federer coaching is not out of the realm of possibilities go ing into his retirement years. Federer’s passion and love for the game has not gone unnoticed. He helped to revolutionize the game of tennis for generations of tennis players. His expertise on the ten nis courts will be missed greatly, along with the amazing rivalry games when facing Rafael Nadal or Novak Djokovic.

See you in the stands, kid.

Illustration: CIker-Free-Vector-Images via Pixabay, manipulated by Lee Lim

This club welcomes students into the fitness environment and boasts big goals on the horizon

This record-maker’s professional career has drawn to a close, but coaching may not yet be off the table

Photo: Max Gao

Human rights violations in the name of soccer

There is a Hegelian vision of the world that we have allowed to obscure the nature of reality too long. It goes something like this: as history progresses, inevitably, society will march to greater ad vancement socially, technological ly, and economically, all under the auspices of democracy. This, in turn, will lead to more equitable conditions for all. But how do we inject these beliefs into areas that are adamantly against them?

The answer, historically, is money; inject wads of cash and bring entities into the econom ic fold, and thereby induce the country to democratic revolution. However, it is unclear whether the desired results are obtained by this method. Instead, they may result in anachronistic and egre gious ideals being maintained the world over in the name of democ racy, money, and soccer.

Sunday, November 20, marked the beginning of the 2022 FIFA World Cup hosted by Qatar. I recall when the nation won the right to host the tourna ment over a decade ago – I was in high school, and I knew next to nothing of Qatar – but it still appeared to be a strange decision.

The capital city, Doha, did not contain any of the accommoda tions necessary to host the event. Thus, in the space of 10 years, they required nine new stadiums to be erected, including accom modations for the players, coach es, and visitors, as well as planned expansions for current stadiums and a panoply of other infrastruc ture overhauls. Who was hired to build it?

The city of Doha is where the majority of Qataris live. Over two million people inhabit the city, which encompasses over 80 per cent of Qatar’s population. With such a concentrated and sparse population, this implies that Qatar would need to rely on immigrant workers to complete the construction necessary to host the games; and they did, with great fervor.

Between 2010 (when Doha was awarded the right to host the 2022 World Cup) and today, there was a 40 per cent increase in Qa tar’s total population. It was 1.63 million in 2010 and rose to 2.67 million by 2017 – a miraculous surge in population.

If you’re wondering, yes, you read that correctly. Nearly a million immigrant workers were brought to Qatar to make the country World Cup-ready. You may think that’s a hell of a lot of people for some stadiums, and you’d be right. Qatar didn’t need just stadiums, they needed roads, they needed an expanded electri cal grid, they needed fake islands built for billionaires who could be coming in the future (Banana island is a brief ferry ride away from downtown Doha, where you can drop $3000 on a beach-side hotel room that, thankfully, in cludes breakfast).

In any case, Qatar required an exorbitant number of people to be imported lest they hadn’t enough available workers. More over, for those unaware of the Qatar legal code, this influx of immigrant workers created waves in population within the state of Qatar. Until 2020, when you were given a work visa in Qatar, it only garnered you your initial employ ment. Thereafter, your employ ment and your choice of leaving are dependent upon the kafala system.

Again, you read that right: you couldn’t quit and get a differ ent job of your own volition until 2020. Thus, at the beginning of the immigrant influx in 2010 un til 2020, there was a burgeoning slave class within the state of Qa tar. Furthermore, there were no laws legislating a minimum wage for immigrant workers in Qatar until 2021. It appears, then, that the 2022 World Cup has been di rectly subsidized by slave labour.

To make matters worse, the safety record for immigrant work ers who were hired to build the nine stadiums required for the games is egregious. Since 2010, it is estimated that over 6,500 peo ple from India, Bangladesh, Ne pal, Sri Lanka, and Pakistan have perished on site. It is reported that 70 per cent of these deaths were the result of “natural causes,” which is odd considering the rigor of the medical examinations that the Qatari government requires of its immigrant workers. How could it be that 70 per cent of deaths were the result of natural causes when these workers had to receive a clean bill of health to enter the country? One answer is that autopsies to prove otherwise were never properly performed.

Obviously, the government of Qatar has gone to great lengths

to dispute these facts, claiming that only 37 deaths have occurred during the construction of the stadiums. However, a comparison of the statistics regarding mortal ity in Qatar indicate a different picture. In 2020, only 10 per cent of deaths occurred in Qataris aged 20-40, whereas 25 per cent of deaths occurred in immigrants aged 20-40. It cannot be that Qa taris are more naturally attuned to the environment and the im migrants that arrive are merely succumbing to the heat and dry

atmosphere. They have been put into exceedingly dangerous work ing conditions that have resulted in countless, and very much pre ventable, deaths.

Another statistic: 32 teams will play in the 2022 World Cup in Qatar, each team’s roster con taining 26 players. That is 832 players competing in this year’s games, and a total of nearly eight times that amount of peo ple died so that they may kick a patched ball on pristine turf. This is not to hector those of you that

will watch the games and cheer with great zeal for your chosen team; this is to bring to light the lengths to which humans will go for economic gain. That all of this occurred in the 21st century does little to affirm everyone’s fa vourite teleological narrative: the world will become a better place as more money and more democ racy are furiously injected into the veins of every society.

Since 2010, it is estimated that over 6,500 people from India, Bangladesh, Nepal, Sri Lanka, and Pakistan have perished on site. It is reported that 70 per cent of these deaths were the result of “natural causes,” which is odd considering the rigor of the medical examinations that the Qatari government requires of its immigrant workers. How could it be that 70 per cent of deaths were the result of natural causes when these workers had to receive a clean bill of health to enter the country?”

Of all the corners that could have been cut, they picked the safety, freedom, and dignity of workers

will spencer contributor

The World Cup crashes down, along with our hope that things will just get better if allowed to run course.

Image: OpenClipart-Vectors via Pixabay, manipulated by Lee Lim

“

NFL: Nepotism Forbidden, yet Loitering

sophia stevens s&h writer

After losing 26-3 against the New England Patriots on Sunday, No vember 6, the Indianapolis Colts fired head coach Frank Reich. The Colts were 3-5-1 when coach Reich was fired from his position just 24 hours after their loss to New England. This comes after a constant influx at the quarter back position for the Colts, and

for the Hebron Christian Acad emy in Dacula, Georgia, and he stepped down as their head coach in 2020.

However, Saturday played for the Colts from 1999-2011, and was a two-time All-Pro and five-time Pro Bowler while he was in Indianapolis. Saturday has also been a consultant for the Colts over the last few seasons and has worked at ESPN as an analyst since 2013. This coaching move has sent shockwaves through the

ro, it’s reported that Irsay hired Saturday against the advice of his team’s top executives who tried to persuade Irsay into not going with Saturday as the Colts interim head coach. It has also been reported that the benching of quarterback Matt Ryan two weeks prior was also driven by Irsay. Irsay seems to be making power moves that many believe are coming from a place of pas sion, and sometimes impulse, in stead of looking at the best candi

the fair and just hiring practices within the NFL.

At the beginning of 2022, the NFL’s lack of diverse coach es in head coaching positions was called into question regarding several NFL teams hiring White coaches. As of January 2022, there were 30 White head coach es out of 32 teams. According to the NFL’s Rooney Rule, teams are required to interview at least one ‘minority individual’ in order to provide the opportunity to diver

players and the media. Many experts express concern over the lack of experience that Saturday brings to the table since experi ence in the head coaching po sition at the NFL level is seen as being vital.

During a press conference, Irsay referenced Saturday’s lack of experience by saying that he’s “glad he doesn’t have any NFL experience. I’m glad he hasn’t learned the fear in this league. Be cause it’s tough for all our coach

an offence line that has struggled all season, especially when com pared to seasons past.

Colts owner Jim Irsay and the Colts hired former centre Jeff Saturday as their interim head coach. His hire has come with controversy because of his lack of coaching experience. Satur day has only coached at the high school level and has no experience at the college or NFL level when it comes to coaching. His record at the high school level was 20-16

NFL, as Saturday’s move is un precedented in modern NFL. The Colts ended up passing on two experienced assistant coaches who have a combined coaching experience of 73 years. Many around the NFL community have felt that the move to hire Satur day was due to Irsay’s friendship with Saturday instead of basing the hire on the most qualified candidate.

In an article for the NFL by Ian Rapoport and Tom Pelisse

date to make sure the Colts have more winning seasons.

Sources in the article also highlight that Saturday lacks nat ural leadership traits which have become more apparent since navigating this unprecedented situation. In being asked what led him to say yes to the job, Satur day said that he had prayed on it and that he was called to India napolis for a reason: to take the job. The hiring of Saturday has led many to question once again

sify leadership within the NFL. The Rooney Rule was created in 2003 based on recommendations made by the league’s Workplace Diversity Committee.

Although the controversy surrounding the hiring of Sat urday isn’t necessarily based on the Rooney Rule, it does beg the question if the Rooney Rule was implemented in this case. The hiring of Saturday for the Colts hasn’t been received well across the league, especially by former

es. They’re afraid. They go to analytics. And it gets difficult. He doesn’t have all that. He doesn’t have that fear.”

Irsay seeking a coach with a lack of experience has left many NFL commentators and analysts confused, especially since most owners and teams seek coaches who have vast experience coach ing at either the NFL or college levels. The rush to hire a coach without a thorough hiring process has left many uneasy since the re lationship between Irsay and Sat urday seems rather close, almost as if Irsay hired Saturday because he is friends with him.

NFL team owners are of ten billionaires who make their real money in other fields and see their NFL team as some thing they do on the side for fun, thereby increasing the possibil ity they hire individuals who the owner is either friends with or is friendly with. This means that expansive hiring practices such as the Rooney Rule may not even matter if the owner has already predetermined who they want in the role moving forward. These hiring processes and practices are not exclusive to the NFL, but exist in many workplaces around the globe.

On November 13, the Colts beat the Las Vegas Raiders 25-20 in Saturday’s first game as a head coach. Statistically, the game was pretty even. However, the Colts had a higher yard total at 415, while the Raiders only had 309 total yards. The Colts are current ly sitting in second in the Ameri can Football Conference – South ern Division, just behind the Tennessee Titans. The Colts are currently in the hunt for a playoff spot while they sit in tenth in the AFC, as only seven teams in the AFC will actually make the play offs. It will be interesting to see if Irsay’s new hire and the contro versy surrounding it will pay off or be something that Irsay regrets moving forward.

Ol’ buddy being hired as head coach for the Colts leaves many questioning the process

“He doesn’t have any NFL experience. I’m glad he hasn’t learned the fear in this league. Because it’s tough for all our coaches. They’re afraid. They go to analytics. And it gets difficult. He doesn’t have all that. He doesn’t have that fear.”

– Jim Irsay, Indianapolis Colts team owner

Hate to burst your (Tech) Bubble (2.0), but...

In early November, Meta – the company that owns Facebook, WhatsApp, and Ins tagram – announced that it would fire over 11,000 of its employees. That’s about 13 per cent of its workforce.

Since September 2021, Meta’s stock value has fallen 75 per cent, losing over $800 billion. During the same week when Meta’s mass firing was announced in ear ly November, Elon Musk – the new owner of Twitter – fired or scared off over half of its workers. Snap, the parent company of Snapchat, just downsized its staff by 20 per cent, and Amazon announced a hiring freeze. So, what’s going on in Silicon Val ley?

A bubble, many are saying; ‘Tech Bub ble 2.0’ to be precise. The first came in the late 1990s, commonly referred to as the ‘dot-com’ bubble. With the internet rising in popularity, investors saw its enormous potential as a new center of commerce. They weren’t wrong, but they were over zealous. Any company with the ‘.com’ suf fix was a brilliant investment, they thought. Low interest rates in the late 90s only ex acerbated the problem. Money was easy to come by, and investors were wantonly throwing that money into cyberspace. The market had been flooded with overvalued, underproducing tech companies. And then, pop. Only the strong survived.

The pandemic radically altered many aspects of our lives. In particular, we spent a lot more time online, and we spent a lot of that time shopping. Increased internet traffic and an explosion of online shopping was, obviously, a boon for Big Tech. But now that many of us have returned to our pre-pandemic behaviours, that internet traffic and online shopping has significant ly decreased. Consequently, stock prices have tumbled. Amazon’s stock price, for example, has fallen nearly 50 per cent in the past year.

The burst may be imminent. Mergers, acquisitions, liquidation, and insolvency

It’s a grotesque marriage of social jus tice and sci-fi dystopia. This ethos has been called “solutionism,” which Wiktionary de fines as the “belief that all difficulties have benign solutions, often of a technocratic nature.” Big Tech, most notably Musk and his various companies, now seem to believe that it is their prerogative to create the fu ture. Yes, they offer us a future, but one barely worth living in.

Take, for example, the electric vehicle. As a form of transportation, are electrified vehicles the most effective way to com bat climate change and lower greenhouse

hasn’t formulated this vision, and they nev er will, because self-interested actors don’t like making themselves obsolete. Bear with me.

In the past half-century, China has irrefutably proven that capitalism and de mocracy, whatever they might mean, are not always co-existent. The windbag ideo logues of capitalism have long claimed that free markets necessitate a free people, and vice versa. They claimed there is some thing inherent in capitalism that makes it incompatible with authoritarian govern ment. The internet has always had propo

The past decade has also shown Big Tech’s capacity for egregious breaches of privacy. In this regard, Big Tech’s crimes are too numerous to even begin listing. They’re capable of collecting and storing all of our data, and they have shown that they can be unscrupulous about what they do with that data. At this point, it’s laugh able to expect much privacy while using the internet.

Rhetorical question: could the average person living in Nazi Germany or the So viet Union reasonably expect privacy from the state? Of course not. Big Tech has

are all on the menu. When a bubble bursts, inevitably the number of competing com panies decreases. Those that do survive are able to capture larger shares of their re spective markets. With fewer competitors, will the behemoths of tech consume even more of the market? Will the trend toward oligopoly continue in Big Tech?

In the history of capitalism, there have always been influential captains of indus try. But why do these tech billionaires seem so peculiar? I’m thinking especially about the philanthropy and the visionary pretens es of Elon Musk, Jeff Bezos, Mark Zuck erberg, and Bill Gates. Musk wants to get humanity off fossil fuels. Bezos also plans to spend unfathomable amounts of money combating climate change. Gates has spent decades in philanthropic initiatives, partic ularly in the field of agriculture.

gas emissions? The past century has been dominated by the automobile. In North America, at least, we’ve single-mindedly transformed public infrastructure to ac commodate these vehicles. Cities surrender public space to the road, to the overpass, and to the beltway. And suburbia is impos sible without the automobile. So, yes, the automobile facilitated that mass exodus of the White working class from the inner city to the suburbs. The prevalence of the car has spelled the destruction of public space, the pollution of our immediate environ ment, and racist white flight. Tesla wants you to believe that remaining on this trajec tory is the best path forward.

This is only one example. But this ex ample demonstrates that, if effective cli mate action is to be taken, a more radical vision of the future is required. Big Tech

nents that said the same thing. The internet is an inherently democratic technology, we were told. The free, unlimited exchange of information will make a liberated and well-educated public.

Your smartphone is one of the most astonishing pieces of technology ever cre ated. The sum of human knowledge is contained in a device that fits in your pock et. Every conceivable question a person could ask can be answered in a matter of seconds. How many centimetres in a foot? When did the Ottomans conquer Constan tinople? What is Kepler’s third law of plan etary motion? Where is the nearest Tim Horton’s? In spite of this unlimited access to knowledge, your uncle still pontificates over Thanksgiving dinner that aliens from the planet Nibiru built the Egyptian pyra mids.

constructed a surveillance apparatus expo nentially more effective and pervasive than those of the totalitarian states of the 20th century. Stalin would blush.

Tech Bubble 2.0 is probably here. It will mean ruin for many, and especially for those least responsible. To make the situation even more dire, the aftermath may further consolidate power into those handful of giant tech companies like Ama zon, Google, Meta, Microsoft, and Apple. As their influence grows, their capacity for well-intentioned “solutions” also grows. We should always be wary of those who have taken it upon themselves to emanci pate humanity because, as the Romanian philosopher Emil Cioran wrote, “to free a man does not necessarily mean to save him.”

Is the Silicon Valley gold rush coming to an end?

bodie robinson staff writer

Is that Jeff Bezos, somehow hanging on to his business model of underpaying employees and undercutting competition?

Illustration: Lee Lim

“The past decade has also shown Big Tech’s capacity for egregious breaches of privacy. In this regard, Big Tech’s crimes are too numerous to even begin listing.”

– Bodie Robinson

A rule for thee, not for me

Law enforcement officers should be more mindful of the image they project

katlyn richardson contributor

The ‘thin blue line’ began as a means to stand in solidarity with police officers who often die on the job or get seriously in jured due to the dangers of the job. The original symbol meant standing for police safety when they are working. This drasti cally changed in the public eye in the wake of the George Floyd protests where, once again, extreme force against a person of colour was used.

While the situation with Floyd was not the first time the type and amount of force

last.

Following the protest against the police in the murder of George Floyd, more po lice officers were demanding support and trying to gain sympathy for a job that was already stressful enough. The thin blue line came to represent this support which was quickly co-opted by white supremacists to promote harm toward BIPOC individuals, which did a lot of damage to the support of police officers. The RCMP banned this symbol in 2020 from being displayed on officer uniforms as it suggested who the RCMP support. Now that an RCMP of ficer has been seen wearing the thin blue line symbol, many questions are being

impact the idea of how police are often the epitome of “do as I say, not as I do.” This divide between police and citizens is con stantly growing. It seems with each passing day more and more cops are ignoring the law they are supposed to uphold. The iron ic part of this officer wearing the thin blue line is the fact he was escorting someone who has been convicted of hate speech.

The officer failing to follow attire guidelines also posed a threat to himself and his fellow officers. His task was escort ing an inmate. Had a citizen stopped this man to question the pin, the inmate could have the potential to cause harm to resi dents who live near the prison and to any

pay for it.

If I were handed the case of this officer, I would immediately go down the path of disciplinary action and would handle this with extreme caution. To do this, I would first put the officer on unpaid leave while I conduct my investigation. Then, I would put this officer in a communications class that is targeted to demonstrate how the appearance of certain symbols affect how you are seen by others. This officer would also be forced to redo their training to force them to show they have learned from their actions, and so they are made brutally aware of how important their actions are in uniform. If this happens a second time,

the police used was called into question, this was where I started to see the thin blue line become mainstream and seem to be everywhere. The incident with Floyd really called into question the type and duration of training required to become a police of ficer when compared to other fields (espe cially in the criminal justice system), along with how much money is provided to police services if they are going to use excessive force that risk a person’s life. Floyd was definitely not the first BIPOC to be killed by a cop, and unfortunately will not be the

raised about what should be done to this individual.

Personally, I believe he should receive disciplinary action for several reasons. Firstly, he completely disregarded the im portance of the uniform, which is to make them identifiable in public. Further, wear ing a symbol that is identifiable with white supremacy causes significant problems with public opinion. When you are a police officer, public opinion is highly impactful in how well you can show the communi ty that you can be trusted and respected. When used by other groups, these symbols

one else nearby. This complete disregard for the rules is just one of the many sce narios where there is a need to analyze and scrutinize even the smallest actions when you are supposed to be in charge of securi ty for people in your community.

Personally, I’d feel less safe around a cop who clearly supports white suprema cy. We as a society have decided symbols that are commonly tied to Nazism are bad and should be avoided. Any symbols white supremacists get their grubby little paws on should be treated the same. The more support these groups gain, the more we all

they would be immediately removed from the force.

Police have the difficult job of uphold ing public safety in unsafe circumstances. Using symbolism that further inspires fear of them instead of trust in them will only create dire circumstances where people hesitate calling the police for help. Police already take up large amounts of tax dol lars that could be better spent to help the homeless or those with addictions. If po lice are going to support extremists and use symbols tied to extremist viewpoints, they should be punished as part of the group.

“

This divide between police and citizens is constantly growing. It seems with each passing day more and more cops are ignoring the law they are supposed to uphold. The ironic part of this officer wearing the thin blue line is the fact he was escorting someone who has been convicted of hate speech.”

– Katlyn Richardson

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