The Argosy, November 30, Vol.147, Iss. 11

NEWS Mt. A listed in Paradise Papers leak (Pg. 5)

ARTS & CULTURE Conduct Becoming coming soon (Pg. 11)

Graphic design is my passion since 1872

(be)

SPORTS Energy drinks: not even once (Pg. 12)

OPINIONS Student artists deserve fair compensation (Pg. 15

Mount Allison’s Independent Student Newspaper

COVER: SARAH NOONAN, FLYING OFF THE TRACK, INK AND DIGITAL MEDIA, 2017.

November 30, 2017 Vol. 147, Iss. 11

02 NEWS

EDITORS: EMMA BUSH & MAIA HERRIOT | NOVEMBER 30. 2017 | ARGOSY@MTA.CA

CHARITY

Mt. A students form new club to volunteer with Atlantic wildlife

Campus club assists the Atlantic Wildlife Institute in actions and activism THURSDAY, NOV. 30 Fine Arts Show and Sale Purdy Crawford, 9 a.m.-5 p.m.

Mental Health Day Student Centre, Main Floor Atrium, 4-8 p.m.

Music of the Giants: Mahler, Mozart and Beethoven Con Hall, 8-9:30 p.m.

Open Mic with Habitat Ducky’s, 9-11:45 p.m.

Walrus / Klarka Weinwurm / Sorrey / DJ Dizzy Kitten Thunder & Lightning, $10 or PWYC, 9 p.m.-12 a.m.

ATLANTIC WILDLIFE INSTITUTE IS A REGISTERED CHARITY THAT DEPENDS ON THE COMMUNITY THROUGH DONATIONS AND VOLUNTEERING. AWI/SUBMITTED

FRIDAY, DEC. 1

EMMA BUSH News Editor

Maritime Tick Map Information Session Avard Dixon, GIS Room 115, 7-8 p.m.

Wind Band Favourites Con Hall, 7:30-9:30 p.m.

SATURDAY, DEC. 2 Third Annual Holly Jolly Holiday Showcase Maritime Conference Centre, 9 a.m.-2 p.m.

LCB: Push Me To The Edge, My GPA Is Dead The Pond, $5, 10 p.m.-2 a.m.

SUNDAY, DEC. 3 Berry Basket Workshop Atlantic Wildlife Institute, 1-4 p.m.

Mt. A Women’s Volleyball vs. STU Athletic Centre, Main Gym, 2-4 p.m.

Town vs. Gown Charity Hockey Game for the Sackville Food Bank Tantramar Civic Centre, 1 food item/ person, 6:30-8:30 p.m.

TUESDAY, DEC. 5 Christmas Collegium Conservatory of Music, 004 and 100, 4-5 p.m.

WEDNESDAY, DEC. 6 Advanced GIS Project Presentations Avard Dixon, Room 118, 12-1 p.m.

December 6th: Day of Rememberance Owens Art Gallery, Foyer, 6-9 p.m.

Mount Allison offers many clubs and societies that allow students to engage in the Sackville community.

However, a relatively new club, the Atlantic Wildlife Institute (AWI) Mount Allison has broadened the scope, both in terms of volunteerism and location, of this community engagement.

Fourth-year biology student and president of the club, Erica Geldart, founded AWI Mount Allison, with integral support from vice president Emily Hubley, secretary/ treasurer Mary Austin and former secretary/treasurer Allison Harris, a 2017 graduate. The club works in collaboration with the AWI, a nonprofit organization that provides emergency care and rehabilitation for injured or orphaned wildlife and facilitates an educational forum for community and school groups.

Their website says that they are “the leading wildlife response service in Atlantic Canada,” as well as “the only one licensed to handle injured or distressed migratory birds in all four Atlantic provinces.”

In her second year, Geldart, along with friends Hubley, Austin and Harris, started to spread awareness.

“We received a large number of interested students by making a Facebook group, putting up posters and posting on the MASU Facebook page,” said Geldart. Members were introduced to the AWI with a tour and, later, fundraisers and get-togethers. Members were then able to go and volunteer with the animals. Though the club was not

officially recognized by Mt. A at that time in terms of paperwork, this was completed in the early months of 2016, and by the 2016-17 school year the club had secured spots at both the Clubs & Societies Fair and Garnet & Gold rush during orientation week.

In explaining her inspiration to start this club, Geldart said, “Animals, specifically wildlife, [have] always been a passion of mine; therefore, coming into Mt. A, I was interested in getting experience with them.” Geldart quickly realized that there were no such forums available at the University. “I introduced the cause to Mt. A students so that others who share my passion could have the opportunity to get the same experiences that I was hoping to find.”

One of the activities that the club has undertaken is weekend volunteering, one aspect of which, Geldart explained, consists feeding wildlife, including squirrels, birds, porcupines, beavers and woodchucks.

“When animals are too young to eat for themselves we will hand feed them formula. I have helped [to hand feed] a lot of squirrels, a bear, a baby bobcat and lynx,” said Geldart. Volunteers also help out by doing dishes and laundry, cleaning enclosures and cages, preparing and distributing daily meals and water, building enclosures or buildings, taking animals on walks, and, “finally and hopefully,” releasing animals back into the wild.

The involved students are able to spread awareness through Clubs & Societies fair, the Garnet & Gold Rush, environmental events and local media. There are also opportunities

to attend biweekly meetings to brainstorm other fundraising ideas together.

The club also has educational aspects, such as the opportunity to attend wilderness strategy workshops, seminars and conferences either at or in collaboration with Pam Novak and Barry Rothfuss, the directors of AWI. Novak recently visited the University campus to meet with the new group of this year’s volunteers about what the AWI is, what it does and the impact of the club. She shared that AWI had been providing emergency and rehabilitation care to Atlantic wildlife for the past 20 years. However, this is not all that they do, as they also host education and research opportunities for surrounding communities, schools and universities. They cannot do this alone; as a non-profit organization, they must rely on a community of professionals, as well as volunteers, in order to accomplish the work that they do. She expressed her appreciation for the club, saying, “We love our Mt. A volunteers.”

Caitlin McGowan, a third-year biology student recalled volunteering at AWI through the Mt. A club during the fall of last year. “I absolutely love animals and thought it would be a great way [to] learn more about the species we have around here, as well as [to] help a great cause,” she said. “There are many things that volunteers can do – from feeding, to cleaning cages and dishes … last year I even helped clean the bear enclosure!”

Shae Scully is also a third-year biology student. Though she has not been able to attend the AWI to

volunteer yet this year, she expressed her appreciation for the organization.

“The Atlantic Wildlife Institute is a really special spot,” she said.

“It provides students with a rare opportunity to interact with wild animals in a safe environment while learning more about them.”

“Volunteering at AWI is a great way to take a step back from academics while also getting a unique [volunteering] experience,” added Catherine Fiset, a fourth-year biology student and year-long volunteer.

Geldart reflected that she likes to help this particular institute because she can feel like she is helping the wildlife, not only in a hands-on manner but also by spreading awareness. “It is important for me to give back this way because, unfortunately, humans cause many of the environmental issues that are affecting our wildlife … [This] affects the everyday interactions that wildlife have with [their] ecosystems,” she said. “I would therefore like to do my part to help the … animals that may have been impacted directly or indirectly by human activity.

Though Geldart is graduating in the spring, she has high hopes for the future of the club as they start to look for their new executive members, who will officially take over the group in May 2018. “This is a very new club but I hope that it continues to be offered at Mt. A and that it grows and improves each year,” said Geldart.

AWI is located in Cookville, N.B. If you are interested in volunteering or learning more about this organization you can visit their website, atlanticwildlife.ca, or reach out to the club through their Facebook page, AWI Mount Allison.

Colin Robertson named Mt. A’s 54th Rhodes Scholar The Rhodes Scholarship is a prestigious postgraduate award, valued at over $100,000, that gives the recipient the ability to pursue postgraduate studies at the University of Oxford free of tuition fees.

54 Mount Allison graduates have been awarded the scholarship, seven in the past decade.

Currently a history major at Mt. A, Robertson is one of 11 Canadian students to win the scholarship this year.

Robertson plans to pursue a masters in history at Oxford.

NEWS

THE ARGOSY | WWW.SINCE1872.CA

RESEARCH

03

Mt. A facilitates tick and Lyme disease research Faculty and students have six-year history of collecting data for public access and benefit AMELIA MACDOUGALLFLEMING News Reporter Six years ago, Mount Allison biology professor Vett Lloyd realized how little was known about ticks and the diseases they carry after she was bitten by a tick. Lloyd started a summer research project about ticks in New Brunswick, and since then, both tick populations and tick research at Mt. A have grown.

One of the main ways that this research takes place at Mt. A is through veterinarians or pet owners sending in ticks found on cats and dogs. The ticks are then tested for Lyme disease. The process involves taking a picture of the tick, crushing the tick, extracting its DNA, performing polymerase chain reaction testing and then looking for the bacteria that cause Lyme disease through gel imaging. The vet clinics involved do not have the means to test ticks for Lyme disease bacteria; they can only perform tests on pets, which is costly. Because of this, many pet owners choose to send ticks found on their pets directly to Lloyd’s lab to test, and only go through with the testing of their pet at the vet clinic if the tick in question carries the disease. The number of ticks that the lab has received has grown by about 20 per cent each year over the course of the research, with 2017 expecting to top 1,200 ticks tested.

Many students are involved in tick research at the University. In the

biochemistry department, Dan Bailey is developing antibiotic compounds for his honours project. “We develop what we call ligands, and we tack those ligands on to metals and then the corresponding metal complexes are what we’re going to use as hopefully antibiotics,” said Bailey.

Alexandra Foley-Eby, a graduate student in the biology department, is specifically looking for the bacteria that causes Lyme disease in ticks from Prince Edward Island. Foley-Eby also tests blood samples from dogs from P.E.I. to see if they are infected with Lyme disease. “There are previous studies that have shown that there is actually a relationship between the prevalence [of Lyme disease] in dogs and the prevalence in people.

We could, theoretically, be able to estimate the number of cases we would expect to see on P.E.I. and then compare that to the number that’s being reported by the Public Health Agency,” said Foley-Eby. Tick numbers are naturally high throughout the Maritimes. “The local tourism industry has worked very well on the tick population — beautiful beaches, lovely wildlife, lots of blood,” said Lloyd. However, climate change also has a role to play in the increased number of ticks in New Brunswick. Historically, ticks would die over the winter due to cold temperatures. Recent mild winters have allowed for tick populations to survive long into the spring.

There has also been an observed increase in the amount of ticks that

RESEARCH HAS FOUND THAT CLIMATE CHANGE ALLOWS TICKS TO LIVE THROUGH THE WINTER, CAUSING THEIR POPULATIONS TO GROW. LOUIS SOBOL/ARGOSY are transported by avian migration patterns. This means that they attach to migratory birds in Europe and fall off in the Maritimes, transferring with them new European pathogens.

This is potentially dangerous because local clinics only test for local strains of Lyme disease, meaning people and pets could be infected with a European strain and go undiagnosed.

Because of migration, there are more ticks in areas that are popular for migratory birds.

Anna Jamieson, a fourth-year environmental science student, is looking into local hotspots for ticks

and awareness of ticks and Lyme disease in the province for her honours project. Specifically, she looks at how different environmental variables, such as river density, forest density and distance from the coast, relate to where tick hotspots are.

She then mapped these tick hotspots through the use of ArcGIS and Maxent modelling. All of the data that Jamieson used has come from Dr. Lloyd’s lab. “All the ticks that [the Lloyd lab] receives and tests are sent to our lab and we’re able to add them to the map and do some analysis with them. We do less on the genetics

biology side … [and] more about distribution and public awareness.”

Jamieson has also hosted focus groups teaching the community to navigate the new Maritime Tick Information Portal website on Nov. 25 and 28, and is hosting another on Dec. 1 at 7 p.m. in Avard Dixon 115.

The information gathered through research at Mt. A aims to make knowledge on ticks and Lyme disease in the Maritimes more accessible to the public. With this information and increased awareness, people will hopefully be able to better navigate growing tick populations.

SOCIAL JUSTICE

National chief speaks at Mount Allison

Chief Bellegarde gives lecture on Indigenous rights and the University’s role in reconciliation REBECCA BUTLER Contributor On Wednesday, Nov. 22 in Convocation Hall, Mount Allison welcomed National Chief of the Assembly of First Nations Perry Bellegarde to campus. As the third speaker in this year’s President’s Speaker Series on Indigenous Action, Chief Bellegarde shared a powerful speech on reconciliation, Indigenous rights and the role our community has in achieving justice for Indigenous communities.

A strong theme throughout Bellegarde’s speech was the necessity of peaceful coexistence and mutual respect between settlers and Indigenous peoples. Bellegarde shared

statistics from the United Nations Human Development Index (HDI), which lists Canada as 10th worldwide for human rights, but 63rd for the human rights of our Indigenous population. Bellegarde used this to emphasize the fact that Canadians and Indigenous communities are not “mutually benefitting from shared resource wealth.” Bellegarde stated, “Nations make treaties; treaties do not make nations,” but stressed that treaty relationships predicated on peaceful coexistence and mutual respect are still necessary for the mutual prosperity of both groups of people.

Bellegarde also spoke in great detail on the intergenerational trauma that has resulted from the

CHIEF BELLEGARDE CITED THE RESULTS OF INTERGENERATIONLAL TRAUMA AS A LEADING ISSUE IN INDIGENOUS COMMUNTIES. GILLIAN HILL/ARGOSY

Indian Act and the residential school system. Despite the topic, every word he spoke was outlined with hopeful optimism. Bellegarde shared his belief that understanding the impacts of the colonial oppression of the Indian Act and the cultural genocide of the residential school system plays an important part in the process of reconciliation. He said, “Reconciliation will not happen without understanding,” and went on to state that education and awareness are integral steps to reaching the understanding necessary to reconcile this intergenerational trauma.

Learning about these processes of oppression is key in moving forward.

Emphasis was also placed on the necessity of language revitalization and retention. “Language is so fundamentally important to our survival as First Nations people because it’s linked to our ceremonies and our culture,” said Bellegarde.

“Our language is our identity, it’s who we are.” Bellegarde proposed the introduction of traditional Indigenous language curriculum in public schools, as an integral step in undoing the “deliberate erosion of language and cultures,” and recognizing the cultural value of

Canada’s many Indigenous nations and tribes.

Fourth-year environmental science student Caeleigh Marshall was one of the many guests in attendance.

She described the talk as uplifting, inspiring and practical. When asked how she thought Bellegarde’s words could be translated into action by the Mt. A community, Marshall’s main suggestions were Indigenous faculty hirings and community integration.

She said, “There’s lots of separation, and people don’t know each other very well,” proposing a need for more connection between settlers and Indigenous communities on campus.

Addressing the heart of the question of integration, Bellegarde ended his speech with the following.

“People ask me, ‘Chief Bellegarde, why do we as First Nations people want to celebrate Canada’s 150th birthday? Why are we going to celebrate all those things that happened to our people — from the residential schools to the Indian Act. To civilize the Indians, to assimilate the Indians, to terminate the Indians, now integrate the Indians. Why are we going to do that?’

“We may not be celebrating it, but we’re going to participate. Because

we want to show that in spite of the genocide of the residential schools, and in spite of the colonization and oppression of the Indian Act — in spite of all those dreadful things, we’re still here as First Nations people, and we’re getting stronger. Our young people are getting more proud, they’re starting to speak their languages and starting to feel good about who they are. We still have our ceremonies.

That’s what we’re going to celebrate.

That we’re still here. And it’s more important now to learn from that 150 years, but it’s the next 150 years that matter. We’re not going anywhere, and neither are you. We’re in this together, so its your children and my children and my grandchildren and your grandchildren that are going to write the next story of our Canada, our next 150 years, our next chapter — and that’s going to be the best story because it’s going to be built on reconciliation and built on respect and built on the rights of our nation, because we’re not integrating anymore and being ashamed of who we are. We’re proud. We’re starting to get that pride back. That intergenerational wellness is starting to happen. We see that hope, we see that light. It’s a beautiful light.”

04

NEWS

NOVEMBER 30, 2017 | ARGOSY@MTA.CA

STUDENT RESEARCH

ARCHIVES

Honours student research profiles

HALL Former Reporter

LAURABETH GILL IS A FOURTH-YEAR HONOURS STUDENT IN THE DEPARTMENT OF BIOLOGY.

“I’m in the biology honours program working with Dr. Lloyd on Lyme disease. I’m looking at a chemical that might have antimicrobial properties and testing it on a causative agent of Lyme, the Borrelia burgdorferi bacteria. To me, research is fascinating because it’s generally the first time anyone has ever done that experiment. For example, the compound I’m testing has never been tested as an antimicrobial before, despite having been used clinically for years. Being able to work on Lyme disease, an emerging and serious issue in Canada, with the opportunity to help people who are currently sick is both humbling and incredibly exciting.”

From the archives brings you old news today. As time passes, the news we report on changes, as does the way we report on it. Conversely, we’ve been covering some of the same issues since 1872. Today, students request dietary accommodation and a functional soft-serve machine. In 1970, we were worried about our right to light up while enjoying a meal served by wait staff.

Thurs. March 20, 1970: vol. 99, issue 22.

During discussion of the Dining Hall Committee Constitution, by the S.A.C. on Tuesday night, Ron Muir (‘72) questioned the legality of the Dining Hall Committee’s legislating on smoking in the Dining Halls. In answer to Mr. Muir, Ian Scott (Secretary) pointed out that the committee had interpreted the clause concerning “orderly running of the facilities” as their legal ability to make the ruling, President Robertson mentioned that at the present time, there are no ash trays available, which would mean that students would butt cigarettes in their dishes. However,

Mr. Robertson also added: “It is now up to the Dining Hall Committee to seek out student opinion on this issue. At such time as student opinion is obtained, the S.A.C. will direct the Committee in the direction of their smoking regulation. It would seem in order that Dining Hall Committee conduct an opinion poll.” The Constitution was once again tabled and returned to the Committee for this further discussion of powers given to head waiters in enforcing regulations.

Sign up for Tantramar’s new volunteering database!

Introducing volunteertantramar.ca: our region’s first volunteer database. A partnership between the Town of Sackville, the Sackville Commons, Mount Allison Students’ Union, MTA Career Services and local amazing volunteers, the site was launched at the Sackville Volunteer Fair at the Commons on Nov. 23.

The database allows organizations and volunteers to sign up and post their own opportunities, share blog stories and more. “The community has been asking for this for years,” says Julia Feltham, co-founder of The Sackville Commons, “and I think it will especially make a difference

ADAM BECKETT IS A FOURTH-YEAR HONOURS STUDENT IN THE DEPARTMENT OF CHEMISTRY.

“Hello everyone, I am pursuing my honours research with Dr. Glen Briand. My research dives into the realm of green chemistry, in which the main goal is preservation of the environment using different chemical techniques. In particular, my goal is to create a new catalyst that can make biodegradable and biocompatible plastics from green starting materials. This would effectively allow industry to move away from petroleum-based plastics that have huge negative impacts on the environment and into a world where plastics break down into safe components.”

SAVANNAH MILEEN HARRIS/ARGOSY

for students and youth who want meaningful volunteer opportunities and titled roles so they can have a richer experience in our community.

Plus! It’s a great one-stop-shop for volunteer and community organizations to share their news and build capacity together.”

If you have any questions about volunteer database, get in touch with Julia at us@coworksackville.com.

Whenever you have an exciting opportunity or want to volunteer. make sure to check out and populate volunteertantramar.ca.

NEWS

THE ARGOSY | WWW.SINCE1872.CA

PARADISE PAPERS

05

Leak reveals Mt. A’s offshore trusts in Cayman Islands

South of the border, universities get rich quick with tax avoidance schemes. Up north, Mt. A reaps no rewards from unheard-of and asset-less island trusts settled over 45 years ago

THE PARADISE PAPERS IS THE SECOND-LARGEST DATA LEAK IN HISTORY NAMING OVER 3,000 CANADIANS WITH CONNECTIONS TO OFFSHORE ENTITIES IN TAX HAVENS. SYLVAN HAMBURGER/ARGOSY

MIRELLE NAUD Editor in Chief Mount Allison has been listed in one of the largest data leaks in history, which revealed entities with offshore assets in tax havens. Known as the Paradise Papers, the leak identifies over 3,000 Canadian companies and individuals with connections to firms in low-tax and tax-free jurisdictions such as Bermuda and the Cayman Islands. Mt. A and the University of Toronto are currently the only Canadian educational institutions included in the Paradise Papers.

Over 100 other universities and colleges, mainly American, were added to the Offshore Leaks Database by the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists on Nov. 17.

The educational institutions were found in the client database of law firm Appleby, a prestigious firm that has been a source for most cases in the Paradise Papers.

Mt. A is listed as a beneficiary of two entities in the Cayman Islands, the Alice I. Campbell Settlement and the James G. Campbell Trust. Both entities appear to be trusts and were settled by individuals of the same names almost 50 years ago in 1969.

A trust is a fiduciary arrangement involving a settlor who transfers assets to a third party, usually a law firm. The trustee acts on behalf of a beneficiary and ensures the beneficiary receives the trust’s benefits over time. Sometimes beneficiaries are not made aware of being named in a trust because they have not been notified by the settlor or trustee.

The entities connected to Mt. A were registered with trustee Appleby

Trust (Cayman) Ltd, the Cayman Islands office of Appleby, that serves high net worth individuals. Mt. A is among five other beneficiaries in the Settlement and five others in the Trust. The Offshore Data Leaks entry does not give details of what kind of holdings are inside the entities or how much is held by them.

Robert Inglis, Mt. A’s vicepresident of finance and administration, reported that the University has no record of having received money from either of the trusts.

“This is the first that we have ever heard of these two entities,” Inglis said.

“In addition, the University, as far as I know, has never had any dealing with the firm Appleby, which is the firm from which all the records came.”

Trustees are obligated to notify beneficiaries if they will be receiving income from a trust. Since Mt. A has not heard from Appleby, it is possible that no assets have been placed in the trusts or that the terms of the trust have not yet begun. Why the trust was registered in the Cayman Islands is unclear.

Mt. A’s relationship to its offshore trusts does not resemble the offshore business relationships of the other universities listed in the Offshore Leaks Database. American universities such as Dartmouth, Columbia and Princeton are listed as shareholders, meaning that they have investments in offshore firms.

Universities, particularly in the U.S., are increasingly investing in offshore hedge funds and private equity funds to grow their endowment and pension funds further. Riskier and potentially more lucrative than investments in mutual funds, these

“THIS IS THE FIRST

TIME WE HAVE EVER

HEARD OF THESE TWO ENTITIES.”

specialized investments contradict the charitable tax-exempt mission of a university and open it up to taxable consequences.

“In order to keep their tax-exempt eligibility, they’re not allowed to have what’s called ‘unrelated business income,’ ” said Ben Pershick, the head of hedge fund services at global advisory firm Maitland. Under U.S. law, unrelated business taxable income (UBTI) refers to investment earnings of charities that are considered for profit.

“The only way that these large foundations and pension funds can invest in hedge funds is actually done best offshore through ‘blocker’ corporations,” said Pershick, who has worked at Maitland’s Cayman office for eight years. “Blocker” corporations are identified by U.S. federal income tax law as corporations taxed separately from their owners.

“What the ‘blocker’ corporation does is it stops the trail of income,” allowing universities to avoid paying taxes on the capital gains of their offshore investments.

The Canadian Revenue Agency does not specify an equivalent to UBTI or blocker corporations, but its Income Tax Act has regulations with offshore investments, according to Rhonda McIver, a professor of business administration at St. FX. The ITA specifies that foreign investments deemed business-related by a “purpose test” are subject to a fee each year. Additionally, McIver said that “there are huge penalties now for not filing what they call a T1135, a form you have to file if you own any foreign property out of Canada.”

The U of T is currently the only Canadian educational institution identified with offshore investments in the Paradise Papers. It became a shareholder of WLR IV Loans AIV Feeder (Cayman), Ltd., a

company founded by U.S. Secretary of Commerce Wilbur Ross, 10 years ago.

In an article published by the Varsity, U of T economics professor Michael Smart stated that the University invests offshore not to avoid taxes, but because the investment firms of its endowment and pension funds receive tax advantages in tax havens. He also said that offshore investment in general has the added benefit of secrecy, which can hide inappropriate attempts at tax avoidance and obscure controversial holdings. U of T administration released a statement that said its annual pension and endowment statements do not reflect its investments in the Cayman Islands, prompting concerns over the transparency of the University’s investment strategies.

Mt. A’s transparency regarding its investment holdings has also been a subject of scrutiny from students and faculty, but its name in the Paradise Papers is not connected to its investments.

“There’s the problem of tax avoidance and evasion, [but] that’s not [a problem at] Mt. A so much as it is a wider problem,” said Mt. A economics professor Stephen Law. The Paradise Papers taps into growing concerns over rising income inequality and the structures that permit the income gap to persist and widen. Although legal, tax avoidance

redistributes financial support that wealthy individuals might otherwise put into the public sector.

“There’s a wider problem that wealthy individuals who have been under-taxed relative to their level of income, their reliance on public services and public infrastructure have influenced the laws that then permit them to legally move income into places where it is untaxed or less taxed,” Law said.

Concerning Mt. A’s name in the Papers, the University “looks like it got in with a bunch of bad kids by accident mainly, so it’s less of a concern.” However, he added that there’s still “the issue of Mt. A’s endowment and its transparency and how it’s invested.”

The revelation of Mt. A’s relation to offshore trusts came after the Board of Regents agreed to make public the stock and bond holdings of the University’s pooled funds earlier this year on April 26.

Accessible on the Mt. A website since this fall, the 71-page Endowment Fund Holdings Report lists the underlying equity and fixed income holdings of the University’s 150+ million dollar endowment fund as at Dec. 2016.

Details of Mt. A’s trusts can be viewed online on the Offshore Leaks Database.

“THERE’S A

WIDER PROBLEM THAT WEALTHY

INDIVIDUALS...HAVE

INFLUENCED THE LAWS THAT THEN PERMIT

THEM TO LEGALLY MOVE INCOME INTO PLACES

WHERE IT IS UNTAXED OR LESS TAXED”

06

NEWS

NOVEMBER 30, 2017 | ARGOSY@MTA.CA

STUDENT ACHIEVEMENT

Second-year student places first at District Toastmasters Competition in Vermont Local Toastmasters club, Bagtown Babblers, pool funds and support Talia Steeves to her win

LILY FALK News Reporter Talia Steeves has always loved giving speeches. “I was that nerdy kid back in middle school who did speeches for fun,” she said. Her passion and skill was rewarded when she won the district Toastmasters competition earlier this month in Vermont for her speech about her pants falling down while performing at a singing competition.

Toastmasters International is an organization with clubs around the world whose goal is to help people improve communication, public speaking and leadership skills. The Sackville chapter, the Bagtown Babblers, was started in 2011 and welcomes both community members and students.

“I wish that I knew about Toastmasters when I was a student,” said Ewan Stafford, president of Bagtown Babblers and club coach for Toastmasters in Miramichi. “I was never comfortable speaking in class, let alone presenting in front of the

class. Having the confidence to give a presentation in front of your class is a skill that every student needs while studying and when they enter the workforce.” Stafford highlights that Toastmasters isn’t just about public speaking, but also about learning skills like thinking on your feet, planning and running meetings and organizing projects.

Steeves, a second-year anthropology and sociology student, first heard about the Toastmasters while flipping through an old magazine in Avard-Dixon. Steeves joined in her first year and now sits on the executive as vice-president of membership.

The club has been a supportive community for Steeves. Her most recent speech won at the club-, area-, division-level competitions, then the district competition in Vermont.

Her fellow members rallied together to ensure her attendance at the Vermont conference. They pooled their money and found her a drive and a roommate so that she could afford to go. “They were so eager to see

COMMUNITY MEMBERS AND STUDENTS ARE WELCOME TO JOIN LOCAL TOASTMASTERS CLUB. TOASTMASTERS/SUBMITTED me there.… I wouldn’t have thought about going if it wasn’t for them. And it was a super helpful experience. I got to see how much bigger it is then just our little club,” Steeves said.

The Babblers would love to see more student participation in the club. Steeves is currently the only

student member and enjoys the intergenerational community. “For me, it’s most beneficial because I’m learning from their life experiences, which is super cool and not something you get in a university classroom where everybody is your age,” Steeves said.

Steeves is unsure when she will compete next, but is happy to keep up with the weekly meetings. If students want to join or find out more about Toastmasters, they can contact Ewan Trafford at ewantrafford@outlook. com.

A UNIQUE JOB. AN ICONIC LOCATION. AN UNFORGETTABLE SUMMER.

Become a PARLIAMENTARY GUIDE Applications due January 12, 2018 This summer, be part of the action at the Parliament of Canada.

Find out more and apply online at

lop.parl.ca/guides

EDITOR: ALIX MAIN NOVEMBER 30, 2017 | ARGOSY@MTA.CA

THEATRE

ARTS & CULTURE 07

‘Paradoxes: The Life and Music of Fanny’

CULTURE

For those who checked the box labelled “other”

GILLIAN HILL/ARGOSY

TENEA WELSH, KAVANA WA KILELE & MARISSA CRUZ Contributors

FANNY HENSEL (AMIE RILEY) AND HER MOTHER, LEA MENDELSSOHN (HANNAH TUCK). GILLIAN HILL/ARGOSY

JANET HAMMOCK Professor Emeritus Paradoxes: The Life and Music of Fanny Hensel took place on Sunday, Nov. 19, 2017, at the Marjorie Young Bell Conservatory of Music. A coproduction of the departments of music and drama, this 21st century theatre piece was a potpourri of delights and exciting discoveries from start to finish.

The show celebrated the music and life of Fanny Hensel (1805-1847), whose compositional triumphs were achieved despite the prevailing attitude at the time that a woman’s proper place was in the home doing housework and raising a family.

A gifted pianist and composer, Fanny struggled against tremendous opposition to bring her compositions to light. She knew her work was good but having it published presented an almost insurmountable challenge.

The imaginative staging was guided by Mount Allison’s director of drama, Glen Nichols, as well as playwright Jena McLean. Five actors dressed in spectacular period costumes — Amie Riley as Fanny, Colton O’Shea as Felix, Hannah Tuck as their mother Lea, Mark Turner as their father Abraham, and Brandon Steel as Fanny’s husband Wilhelm Hensel — brought Hensel’s musical and personal life to the audience in dramatic vignettes, between which were performances of Hensel’s music: solo songs, chorale music, piano solos and a four-movement string quartet.

Gayle h Martin, professor and organist in the department of music, was an inspired music director.

Under Martin’s nuanced baton, the Elliott Chorale, a small professionalquality ensemble comprised of mainly undergraduate singers, treated the audience to many beautiful Hensel songs throughout the program.

The show began a half hour early in the Conservatory atrium, where

entering guests heard a gorgeous performance of Mozart’s String Quartet No. 19 by the Atlantic String Machine from P.E.I. Between the first five vignettes, which introduced all of the characters, four songs Fanny wrote between the ages of 14 and 18 were performed by the Elliott Chorale, reverberating in the acoustically lively atrium like the “merry birds” of their lyrics.

Later, the audience moved quietly into Brunton Auditorium, where the delightful sounds of a piano wafted into our ears. Christelinda Laureijs, a young student of former Mt. A piano teacher Penelope Mark, was playing French Suite No. 6 in E Major, of J.S. Bach, one of the composers who had the greatest influence on the young Fanny.

Morgan Reid, Emily Steers and Sarah Sharpe, three Mt. A voice students, performed solos between the next several scenes.

Their accomplished collaborative pianist, Martine Jomphe, provided support and musical insight to their interpretations. I was struck by the realization that these young women are approximately the age Fanny was when she composed their songs.

During the intermission, listeners strolled into a lounge area and nearby room where black and white photographs by Thaddeus Holownia were displayed. It was during Hensel’s lifetime that photography was born.

The idea of combining Hensel’s music with Holownia’s photography was brilliant. It helped me to understand why Hensel was so eager to get her compositions published. She wisely intuited that the “permanent” recording of photographic images and music notation on paper was to become crucially important to the success and longevity of creative works from that point on.

We savored Ed Knuckles’ delicious chocolates while listening to the Elliott Chorale offer a thrilling, powerful

contrapuntal song, composed by Fanny, Nachtreigen, a text by her husband. Conductor Martin inspired them to do some of the best singing I have heard from this ensemble.

Movements of Fanny Hensel’s String Quartet in Eb Major, written in 1834 at the age of 29, were placed between vignettes leading to the death of Fanny’s mother, Lea. This quartet revealed expert compositional skill and a deepening maturity of musical content.

I felt increasingly moved by the actors’ portrayal of the family drama and was especially drawn to Fanny herself, played with spirit and lively emotion by Amie Riley. Sporting bouncy ringlets at the sides of her fashionable, tightly coiffed hairdo, Fanny was portrayed as a powerful, intelligent, creative, charming young woman. And stubborn, too! She had to stand up to her very traditional father and later, repeatedly, to her composer brother, Felix.

Two high points of the program were saved until the end: solo piano works entitled January and February, from Hensel’s collection Das Jahr, performed by Jomphe and Lynn Johnson. Jomphe’s strong, dramatic playing and Johnson’s virtuoso keyboard pyrotechnics brought the afternoon to a sparkling close, followed by enthusiastic curtain calls that went on for several minutes.

Paradoxes was a fine example of what can blossom when arts departments collaborate in creative ways. To hear so much of Fanny Hensel’s music at one time was important. I gained new appreciation for this composer’s work, and a renewed zest to continue the fight for the equality of women in every way.

Thanks to the President’s Research and Creative Activities Fund, the Mount Allison Independent Student Research Grant Program.

other is a new publication created with the purpose of giving people of colour (POC) a space to express themselves in any way they see fit.

In a roundtable discussion in Purdy Crawford, Marissa Cruz, a third-year fine arts student, pitched the idea as a reaction to the lack of representation of POC voices within the Sackville community. The publication exists as an online space that enables POC to share their uninhibited perspectives.

POC have historically and contemporarily not been able to do so through the written word, art and almost all modes of expression due to respectability politics. Respectability politics refers to the public and selfpolicing of people of colour in their expressions of their lived experiences.

The policing pushes POC to appeal to and become part of the mainstream rather than challenge the mainstream for a failure to accept difference.

Cruz remembers being a bit nervous about this idea at first. Her apprehension was largely fueled by the idea that people would believe that her efforts were racist and there would be comments about “reverse racism.” However, she was greeted with many positive responses, one being from Kavana Wa Kilele. Wa Kilele immediately supported the idea of creating the publication and started taking the steps to make other a reality. “This is something we need at Mt. A,” said Wa Kilele. “There are very few POC.… We wanted to give a place for people to speak without being drowned out.”

As for managing the page, Cruz wants “to have as many people on board who are POC.” Wa Kilele and Cruz now work collaboratively as co-editors and welcome any other POC at Mt. A and in Sackville to get involved. Chao Yi Liang, a third-year philosophy student is the newest member to join the other editorial team. Liang explained he has experienced an internal dilemma of being misunderstood in regards to his first language within socialization.

“Those who might understand me, do not understand my first language; and those who speak the same language may not understand me,” said Liang.

“Maybe conversations are just going on somewhere I do not notice. I want to figure it out, and see what I can do.”

Cruz and Wa Kilele plan on securing a website domain name, printing a small run of copies and

potentially paying contributors. They will not to be applying for funding through the University for their publication. In their perspective, they don’t want the school to tokenize their contributors for the goal of looking more diverse and culturally sensitive.

Instead, Cruz and Wa Kilele have been fundraising independently.

“We don’t want older, cisgender, white men to look at this project that is not for them and be the deciding voice as to whether this publication is necessary [in the world] or not,” said Cruz. “It feels wrong to look for help from an institution that is also one of the inspirations to start the project because of its oppressive nature.” other is not just solely for POC here at Mt. A and in Sackville. “We want it to be as far-reaching as possible,” said Wa Kilele. POC can submit through any medium of expression they wish, including music, videos, poetry, paintings, anecdotes or essays. Furthermore, Cruz and Wa Kilele encourage individuals to write in their own languages. They understand and value the importance of sharing and keeping the integrity of one’s own culture.

Wa Kilele and Cruz both also acknowledge that this world is not a utopia. “Both Kavana and I, as an example, have faced and will continue to endure different forms of racism based on our backgrounds.” said Cruz. “Thinking about the complexities of colourism, class, sexuality, disability… race will never be a singular identity because it is connected to other parts of an individual.”

Cruz and Wa Kilele thought that the name other was fitting because of the nature of today’s world. “We are alienated. We are pushed aside, emotionally, physically, spiritually … pushed to the side,” said Wa Kilele.

The name other therefore recognizes the “others” and purposefully gives them a platform to voice their opinions. POC are pushed aside daily by a society that is still rooted in white supremacy and that continues to see them as something outside the status quo. Tenea Welsh, also a student at Mt. A, believes that other will break down barriers of the unknown between POC and white people. It will give white people a place to learn, listen and understand POC, and not necessarily reply. Most importantly, it will give POC a place to express themselves and a platform that broadcasts their words, which are too often silenced.

For more information or to submit to the journal, go to otherpublication. weebly.com. The editors will also be holding events in Sackville, so be sure to like the Facebook page, “other: writings and art from people of colour” to stay up to date.

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MUSIC

Tafelmusik presents Bach concert program

World-class ensemble presents new learning opportunities for students and community members

TAFELMUSIK WILL CONCLUDE THEIR EASTERN CANADA TOUR IN HALIFAX ON NOV. 26. LIANG CHAOYI/ARGOSY

ISAIAH YANKECH Contributor On Nov. 22, Sackville was treated to a full day of learning and listening from one of the world’s top baroque ensembles. Tafelmusik is a 17-member baroque orchestra based in Toronto, specializing in early music and performing on periodbased instruments.

Students and community members took part in a masterclass, a presentation and pre-concert lecture, finishing off with an inspiring evening concert inside a packed Brunton Auditorium.

The day began with an afternoon masterclass with violist Patrick G. Jordan and oboe player Marco Cera.

Students had the chance to receive

feedback on repertoire that they are working on this term. A variety of music students participated, including wind instrument players, a vocalist, a pianist, organist and members from the Elliott Chorale.

The guest clinicians shared their knowledge of the baroque period to their best ability, even though they didn’t specialize on any of the instruments played by the participating students.

Shortly after the masterclass, a Colloquium Musicum presentation took place in Brunton Auditorium.

Oboe player John Abberger gave an introduction on how J.S. Bach’s music would have been heard.

Double bass player Alison Mackay

also gave a brief pre-concert lecture discussing the process behind creating their J.S. Bach Circle of Creation program.

The much-anticipated concert, one of Tafelmusik’s four fully memorized programs, concluded the events, an addition to this year’s Sackville Festival of Early Music.

“It was easily one of the best performances I’ve seen in my three years at Mt. A,” said third-year voice student Emily Steers. “This year’s Early Music Festival as a whole has been without parallel.”

From the opening sounds of the concert, the audience was immediately drawn to their stylistic approach to the J.S. Bach–themed

“ONE OF THE BEST PERFORMANCES

I’VE SEEN [HERE].”

program. The ensemble performed with excellent coordination and it was clear that they had the music internalized. One could tell that they were having fun with the music.

The concert was unconventional in the sense that it did not progress in the usual format to which classical concert listeners are accustomed.

Narration was interspersed in between the featured works, with images projected on a screen.

“The combination of interesting and informative visuals, a narrator to help contextualize the music and the way that the musicians themselves moved around onstage based on instrumental relationships in the music made it so much more compelling,” says fourth-year voice student Kaye Klapman.

The discussion of coffeehouse-style performances, described as informal performances, was implemented into the performance. Violinists from the ensemble performed Bach’s Partita for violin in D Minor, BWV 1004: Allemande from various locations within a dimly lit Brunton, from in an aisle on the main floor to in a stairway in the balcony. Their impressive and seamless transitions between the violinists came across as one soloist even though the work was divided up among multiple violinists.

“These world-class performances in our small town showcases how much our school works on opportunity for its students, and how we are recognized on the larger scale of the musical community,” says third-year tuba student Bryenton Innes.

FILM

‘Justice League’ Review

Despite the low bar for DC, its newest flick somehow manages to be worse than you think

DEREK SHARP Columnist We all wanted Justice League to be good, didn’t we? The blockbuster landscape is Marvel’s playground right now. DC possesses the only superhero characters (Batman, Superman and Wonder Woman) with enough pop-culture clout to possibly rival Marvel. I report with great sorrow, however, that Justice

League is incapable of meeting the most basic requirements of modern blockbusters; the characters are uninteresting, the action is basic and the story is bafflingly bad. Consider this review a post-mortem.

The thinly conceived plot is this: There’s a bad alien named Steppenwolf (an unremarkable character from the comics) who has a grudge against Earth. He invades Earth again, but for some reason

needs to collect three mother boxes in order to efficiently subdue the planet. The boxes function as lazy ways to give the story the illusion of pacing. Oh, he has the first box!

Bad news… Oh, the second! We’re about halfway through the movie!

Oh, he has the third? Climax time, baby! It’s pretty lazy and contrived, honestly. There isn’t any indication of why Steppenwolf doesn’t just punch everyone really hard. He has an army

and he himself is stronger than any hero currently alive. So why doesn’t he just… invade? Because of those boxes, damn it!

The movie introduces us to three major characters: The Flash, Cyborg and Aquaman (the latter is my favourite comic character, FYI).

None of these characterizations are particularly bad, but the movie is incredibly busy and there are no meaningful moments with anyone, new or old. They attempt with Cyborg, but it’s too shallow. The Flash functions as comic relief. Some jokes land, some don’t. His powers are fun to watch, but it seems any attempt to give him depth was an afterthought. Batman and Wonder Woman are here too, but they don’t do much.

The film is obviously trying to incorporate the antipathy of modern life into its themes. We’re all sad and anxious, and Justice League blames that on the lack of Superman in our lives. There’s never any attempt to comment on this theme; it essentially boils down to “People are sad! But we’ll fight anyway!” This, while shallow, is admirable, I guess.

I want to be clear that Justice

League is a dumb movie. It’s not just the boxes and themes. Characters spout exposition left and right.

The action is uninspired (re: no cool team-up moves) and often nonsensical. At one point, a character ties a massive metal box to an arrow and successfully shoots it across a field like in a cartoon. I know this is a comic book movie, but the director, Zack Snyder, has always tried to go for a more grounded aesthetic.

Atlanteans, people who live and breathe underwater, need air bubbles to talk. Also, google the Henry Cavill moustache fiasco. It’s hilarious and completely distracting. His upper lip looks rubber two-thirds of the time.

Overall, this film is exasperatingly bad. Nothing you’d want to see is here. Aquaman and Wonder Woman are both classical warriors; is there a scene of them sparring and bantering?

Nope! That would make too much sense. Everyone wanted you to be good, Justice League, especially after the resounding success of Wonder Woman. I’m disappointed. Maybe Aquaman will be good? I’ll just go watch Wonder Woman again. And again and again. Maybe I can forget Justice League ever happened.

ARTS & CULTURE

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COLUMN

DRAMA

09

Review: Motyer-Fancy Theatre’s Fall One-Acts

Erik Garf’s ‘No Misstakes’ and Justin Green’s ‘In This World’ both provide a heavy dose of sincerity REBECCA BUTLER Contributor

TINA OH Columnist I received a few questions in regards to my participation at the United Nations and why I chose to attend for the second time after repeatedly criticizing the productivity of its space. I have been thinking about this question for quite some time and thought it would serve well as the last of three pieces on my experiences at COP 23.

I did not attend COP 23 under the notion that I believe in the United Nations as a purveyor for change. It is a Eurocentric organization that has been built on mutual cooperation by the wealthiest nations in times of war. Wherever there is a base of United Nations’ peacekeepers in the Global South, there is a stark increase in sexual assault and violence. At COP 23, I watched delegates from the United States promote coal and nuclear energy. I saw wealthy nations use tactics like filibustering in attempts to take up as much space as they could in the timed sessions.

These tactics disrupted timed sessions and forced the forfeiture of submissions that were products of years of work. The United Nations is a broken system, but that doesn’t mean it’s not relevant.

There are a number of justiceoriented organizations that attend COP. Their mandate, much like ours with the Canadian Youth Delegation (CYD), is to hold our governments accountable to their international commitments. We also do work that crosses borders, because climate change knows no borders. This year, young people across Turtle Island, including myself, organized an action on the North American Free-Trade Agreement (NAFTA) being trumped

by the United States. While certain NAFTA deals are up in the air, the only thing that isn’t is the expansion of fossil fuels. We called out the hypocrisy of how violations against human rights and climate laws are unenforceable, yet trade deals are.

There were approximately a dozen direct actions that were organized every day during the conference. Not a lot of people know this because it’s rarely captured by the media.

Last year the CYD disrupted a Canadian reception at an $800+ per night hotel. We called upon Minister of Environment and Climate Change Catherine McKenna and her government to reject the Kinder Morgan pipeline and delivered to her over 250,000 signatures from First Nations, municipalities and civil society. We took away a space for selfcongratulations from the minister and her government that boasted about their “climate leadership.” We gave the Liberals one last reminder to make the right decision in the lead-up to the government’s crucial pipeline announcement. In the action, I was physically assaulted by a RCMP officer who seized me by the back of my neck. I still feel chills when I think about his hot breath in my ear as he said, “That’s fucking enough, don’t you think?”

No, it’s not enough. We are composed of civil society that is demanding for justice to be included in policy and action. We cannot let our governments escape the pressure from those who are most affected by their poor policies, and we cannot let those who have never been systemically affected by these policies write them. As always, it is important for there to be resistance within these spheres of injustice, no matter how ineffective the spaces might be.

The first show staged in this double bill of performances was Hannah Moscovitch’s In This World, directed by fourth-year drama major Justin Green. The curtain rose on two girls involved in an intense physical altercation, punching and screaming as dramatic lights strobed and music blared. The scene then segued to the principal’s office where the two girls quarrelled and connected while waiting to receive their punishments.

Neyssa, played by Sertara Wilkinson, is a student attending a prestigious private school on scholarship, who holds a strong connection to her home of Jamaica.

Bijou, played by Maggie Daley, is a student at the same school from an affluent, though emotionally distant, family. As they navigated heavy topics of class, race and sexual assault, the chemistry Wilkinson and Daley shared grounded the performance in sincerity. The rapport shared between them kept the play down-to-earth, while Green’s dynamic blocking prevented it from becoming stagnant.

The use of lighting and sound throughout paralleled the performance’s impact. Elements were effective when employed subtly and with attention to detail, but

were jarring and awkward when they emphasized dramatic flares of intensity. Lighting and sound beautifully transitioned and flowed throughout the performance to support the mood of staged action, just as Daley and Wilkinson’s connections to their characters led them through the dialogue steadily.

But as the choice to intersperse dramatic lighting elements throughout the play robbed the piece of its sincerity, occasional moments of conflict were performed too melodramatically, which forced characters to stumble their way back to the powerful sincerity maintained through moments of calm.

Beyond these moments, which are few and far between, this play was well done: well directed, well performed and well staged.

The second show of the night was No Misstakes, a fully improvised performance directed by Erik Garf. It began with a musical prelude by Kylie Fox, featuring three comedic tunes and a theme song for the show.

Loosely based around the popular improv format “the Harold,” the play featured three main storylines of interconnected characters. On Friday night, the show explored eating disorders, break-ups and the pressure to have sex. The cast did a wonderful job engaging with each other and

recreating authentic moments in the lives of university students.

At times, the uncertainty of actors was palpable, and it appeared the pressure to create cohesive narratives got in the way of the performers’ abilities to connect. But when their apprehensions and uncertainties were abandoned, the piece shone.

From a heartbreaking split between Lily Falk’s and Mark Nicol’s characters, the humorous confusion shared by Molly Bowes and Keegan Hiltz, vulnerable monologues by Max Farella and Carly Penrose to hilarious improvised songs by Kylie Fox, each member of the ensemble contributed to the construction of a strong, honest piece.

Both Garf’s direction and his design of a mutable format gave the performers a dynamic set of circumstances to work within. But the introduction of elaborate shelving compartments that opened to reveal props like alcohol, video games and food occasionally seemed to distract both performers and audience.

Nevertheless, the construction of an environment that parallelled the cast’s own ensured the final piece was grounded in authentic experience, leading it to draw from the wealth of emotion ever-present in university life.

NO, IT’S NOT ENOUGH.

CLOCKWISE FROM TOP LEFT: MAGGIE DALEY AND SERTARA WILKINSON IN IN THIS WORLD; KYLIE FOX PROVIDES A SOUNDTRACK TO NO MISSTAKES WHICH FEATURES MAX FARELLA AND MARK NICOL (BOTTOM). PAUL DEL MOTTE/SUBMITTED

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NOVEMBER 30, 2017 | ARGOSY@MTA.CA

ALUMNI

From Mt. A to ‘Miracle on Mercer Street’

Mount Allison alumnus Tom Hearn to appear in annual Second City holiday show

HEARN WAS A PART OF OVER 40 PRODUCTIONS AT MT. A. TOM HEARN/SUBMITTED

JENA MCLEAN Arts & Culture Reporter “It’s hard work and attitude that get you everything,” said Tom Hearn when asked about Mt. A’s most important teaching. He explained that success comes from “putting in that extra effort and going that extra mile.”

When I spoke with Hearn on the

phone last week, I learned that these lessons have been the foundation for a successful career as a writer, performer and producer.

In his time at Mt. A, Hearn was a part of over forty productions.

“I mainly did theatre versus doing my school work,” he said. An active member of Garnet and Gold Musical Theatre Society, Live Bait Theatre, Black Tie Productions (a

former musical society) and Windsor Theatre (known now as MotyerFancy Theatre). Hearn also honed his comedic skills with Presents: the Improv and Flint Improv.

Since moving to Toronto and graduating from the Second City conservatory, he has remained as busy as ever. A recipient of the Second City’s Tim Sims Encouragement Award, Hearn improvises with the Bad Dog Featured Players, performs award-winning sketch comedy with Erica Gellert and is part of the Sketchersons’ weekly Sunday Night Live.

“I write a brand new sketch show every week,” he said. “It’s the most stressful thing that I do and it’s the most fun thing that I do.”

Outside of his jobs as a performer and writer, Hearn has spearheaded the formation of Kinsey Fail, an LGBTQ improv troupe.

“The entire reason behind it is I just want to see more queer performers out onstage,” he said. In addition to a rotating cast of 12 to 15 improvisers, Kinsey Fail also runs “an LGBTQ safe space drop-in for people who

want to try improv for the first time.”

“It’s the best queer performers in the city all performing together for what tends to be also an entirely queer audience,” Hearn said, and added, “It’s just letting people recognize that they can see themselves onstage and in turn the stage reflects the audience.”

In addition to his sketch and improv work, Hearn is currently in rehearsal for the Second City’s Miracle on Mercer Street.

“It’s about a 13-year-old girl who goes to visit a town called Hollydale where not everybody’s like her, not everybody celebrates Christmas,” Hearn said. “So she’s learning about all of the different types of holidays that happen at that time of year in a fun way with puppets and songs.”

Hearn believes that highlighting these differences as good is important, especially given the current political climate. He said, “I think it’s a good message right now for young people in the world that we live in to realize that not everybody has to be the same and that’s okay.”

He is also excited by the opportunity to work with the Second City, which will be his first time doing so in a professional capacity.

He said, “It’s something that I’ve wanted to do for a very long time and it’s coming true.”

Despite how busy he is as an artist, Hearn wants current drama students “to know that it’s okay to take a break.”

“Nothing goes away,” he said. “If you take a break, it’s not like you’re going to come back and people aren’t going to remember who you are. It makes you a better performer when you take a step back and look at the world.” He also stressed the importance of learning through doing, something he learned in his time at Mt. A. “It’s important to realize that it’s okay to make mistakes. You’re not going to figure it out in your first go,” Hearn said. “It’s realizing that everything is in motion constantly and just riding that wave is really important.”

MUSIC

GILLIAN HILL./ARGOSY

Kylie Fox debuts EP ‘Balcony’ KELT LERAY Contributor Kylie is a storyteller at heart, expressing loneliness and heartbreak with sincere lyrics. Filled with clever rhymes and a satisfying overall arc, her debut EP Balcony is an intersection of pop and folk, evocative of an older Joni Mitchell.

It’s digestible pop with an edge that a lot of mainstream music is scared to express.

The instrumentation is pleasing but predictable, while the chord progressions, melodic ideas and lack of rhythmic integrity are frustrating at times. The album embraces a popfolk style, a decision that is rewarding if you enjoy her sound, but to me, it occasionally felt redundant. One of the songs that caught my attention was Alberta, the fourth track on the album and probably my favourite.

Songs about often-traveled locations can easily end up sounding selfishly sentimental or indulgent, but Kylie managed to avoid this through sincere and patient lyricism. The guitar riff was initially repetitive, but ended up getting stuck in my head and I found myself singing it a few days later.

The first two tracks of the album, Montreal and Skydiver, have their moments, but I prefer Skydiver for its clever analogies and the wonderful fills and counter-melody of the

violin (played by Nienke Izurieta).

The vocals in the song Montreal feel slightly rushed, so it took a few listens to connect to the melody. The lyrics in Montreal are self-aware and self-deprecating: “People call me a bum on the street, I guess that’s accurate/ – I’m a regurgitated piece of shit, that’s ok, I’m used to it.” These, coupled with the sing-songy melody, grab your attention with the contrast of emotions. Things with Sam, the last track on the album, is just Kylie and her guitar. The song rushes and drags at random, but is propelled by an upbeat melody and engaging words: “To salvage all the time I had, I melted in his couch, to pass the pipe and binge watch Planet Earth.”

Kylie’s debut EP has many interesting moments and is a great addition to her career. I enjoyed her imaginative storytelling and hope to hear more from her. The solo songs on the album were more powerful to me than when she was with a band.

Changing up her instrumentation would help her songs evolve and create a gateway to exploring new genres.

The overall themes of the album have a youthful quality reminiscent of 90s’ grunge, but infused with Kylie’s own mood. Mixed by Corey Bonnevie, Balcony features Geoffry Smith on drums, Chuck Teed on Bass, Nienke Izurieta on violin and Jamie Comeau on lead guitar. The EP is available on Bandcamp.

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THE ARGOSY | WWW.SINCE1872.CA

MUSIC

Conduct Becoming hosts first open mic night

Local musicians perform at Ducky’s, offering a glimpse into this year’s CD compilation.

JORDAN DUNHAM PERFORMS AT THE EVENT. GILLIAN HILL/ARGOSY

MARINA MAVRIDIS Production Manager This past Thursday, Conduct Becoming hosted their first open mic night of the year. Students performed original songs as well as covers, which provided what Conduct Becoming co-producer Sadie Donahue called a “showcase of what’s on the CD.” Open mic nights allow students and community members to gain confidence in sharing their music.

“Even if you’re not on the CD, you can play a song and network with those on it,” said Donahue.

Since its inception in 2001, Conduct Becoming has given students and community members a platform through which to share their original songs. The annual CD showcases local talents while raising money for the Canadian Cancer Society.

Conduct Becoming was founded to memorialize Mount Allison student Jason Abraham, a cancer victim. “2000 is kind of where the story began, because there was a guy working at the pub and I was the manager of the pub,” said Jonathan “Scooter” Clarke, one of the founders of Conduct Becoming.

“He called in sick on a Friday night toward the end of January,” Scooter said. Abraham had a stomach ache and “less than a week later he flew to Toronto and by then it was too late.

They operated on him the next day and he passed away six weeks later.”

Abraham’s death impacted the entire community; as a fourth-year commerce student, a member of the varsity hockey team and an employee of the pub, everyone knew him.

Scooter’s roommate at the time, Marc Carnes, and Mt. A student Drew Dudley “had been talking about putting together a CD of local artists,” said Scooter. The CD became a way to honour and remember Abraham.

The name of the initiative, Conduct Becoming, was a play on words imagined

by Dudley. “If you did something bad, you had to go to the judicial committee and were fined,” said Scooter. “One of the charges for doing something stupid that wasn’t cut and dried like breaking a bottle was just ‘conduct unbecoming of a student.’ ” In its first years, Conduct Becoming relied on donations and community support. The first three albums were recorded at Scooter’s house. Since

“[IT] CREATES AN

OPPORTUNITY FOR

THE COMMUNITY TO COME TOGETHER”

then, Conduct Becoming has moved from Scooter’s basement to the CHMA offices. Production, headed this year by Donahue and Clare Maguire, is a lengthy process and involves compiling recordings of each artist’s voice and of any instrumentals they want to use.

“If a person has a song that is guitar and voice,” said Donahue, “we would do the guitar first and lay that down, and then do the voice.” The songs are recorded professionally and the producers often add other instruments such as “bass, drums and overdubs of other guitar, piano, violins, it all depends on the track,” said Donahue.

Chloe Budd, a fourth-year international relations student and this year’s Conduct Becoming manager, has been involved in the group since her second year. Conduct Becoming allowed her to record

her original music in a professional environment for the first time, teaching her about music production and helping her develop as an artist.

“Conduct Becoming creates an opportunity for the community to come together to support not only local musicians, but a cause that has touched everyone’s lives at some point,” said Budd.

To Scooter, Conduct Becoming’s current importance comes “not so much from the fact that it was designed to memorialize one person or that it’s a fundraiser for cancer research. It’s more just the sense of community. It gives a lot of local musicians the chance to do something for the first time that’s sort of semi-official and lets them work together and at the same time it is for a good cause.”

This year’s Conduct Becoming CD will be released in the spring of 2018.

Music students share composing process

Joseph Fitzner and Hanna Wilson talk about creating their own music.

MAX CHAPMAN Arts & Culture Reporter Mt. A’s music department allows students to grow and live with music.

They are encouraged to explore their tastes and learn the rich history connected with music. Composition is a big part of this degree too – learning how to produce music yourself is a difficult skill to acquire.

Music students must transform their mode of thinking from recital to creation to achieve this lofty task.

Hanna Wilson and Joseph Fitzner, second-year music students, are both taking composition classes. They agreed to sit down and share some insight on composition.

When auditioning for a spot in the department, you must choose one instrument (or voice) on which

to focus. In learning to compose, students are encouraged to explore other instruments. Each has a different personality and requires a different skill set. “You have to understand the instrument so well,” said Fitzner. “I really do enjoy the breadth of instrument choices.”

Wilson said, “It’s really useful. You really need to understand whichever instrument you choose; you have to know how it works.”

Kevin Morse, acting department head and professor of the composition classes, helps young composers express poetry musically.

The students choose their own poems and transpose the writing into music.

“We analyzed the poems, figured out meaning and stayed true to it through the music we wrote,” Fitzner said.

When discussing her creative process

on this assignment, Wilson said that she tries “to think of a feeling or mood I would like to convey, then figure out the tempo from there.”

“Starting is the hardest part, just sitting down and beginning to write,” Fitzner said.

Fitzner did not always see himself committing to music full time. He was accepted at Mt. A in Grade 12, but to the physics department, not music. “I’d always kind of wanted to do music but never thought I had the talent or education to be able to do it.”

It was one of his high school teachers who changed his mind with a visit from some marimba players. “After that, I decided I had to do music,” said Fitzner. “It inspired me so much.”

During his exam week, Fitzner emailed Mt. A’s music department about an audition and included an

audition tape. “I somehow managed to get in!”

Wilson started playing guitar when she was 11. “Through learning chords and listening to songs, I started writing Taylor Swift-y pop songs,” she said. In high school, “[jazz band] ignited that creative spark again” when Wilson learned how to improvise music. Upon arriving at Mt. A, Wilson knew that she had to be a part of composition classes.

“I figured, I love creating music, so why not focus on composing. It has pushed me to put stuff on the page instead of sitting and thinking you’re not good enough,” she said.

Classes like these help young musicians develop their skills and take initiative in writing their own pieces. For Fitzner, composing movie scores has always been his passion. He

LOUIS SOBOL/ARGOSY dreams about “going up to Pixar and handing them my resume.” Wilson has something different in mind. She would like to pursue the performance aspect of her focus instrument, bass trombone. Both of these artists are continuing composition classes and will produce more music along with their classmates. Keep an eye out for their end-of-year composition recitals.

12 SPORTS

NOVEMBER 30 2017 | ARGOSY@MTA.CA

WELLNESS CENTRE

HEALTH

Coffee has proven to have more benefits than just providing an energy boost

Beyond alcohol: three questions to ask yourself when having an energy drink

The extreme bean Rethinking the drink KATHLEEN MORRISON Contributor Coffee is often given a bad rap, but recent studies suggest that it could actually have numerous health benefits. These would include protecting against Type 2 diabetes, liver disease, liver cancer and Parkinson’s disease, as well as promoting a healthy heart. Studies have even shown that coffee may reduce the chances of developing dementia, Alzheimer’s disease and it may aid in lowering mortality rates.

A study from the Harvard School of Public Health (HSPH) found that participants who increased their coffee intake by an average of 1.69 cups per day reduced the likelihood of getting Type 2 diabetes by 11 per cent. Similar research at University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) has shown that coffee intake increases plasma levels of sex hormonebinding globulin, which plays a role in the development of Type 2 diabetes. Therefore, increased coffee consumption may reduce risk of Type 2 diabetes.

HSPH also looked at the relationship between drinking coffee and heart health. It was found that people who consumed four cups of coffee lowered their risk of heart failure by 11 per cent, in comparison to those who did not. This correlation was shown to exist; however, it is important to note that this is dependent upon how much coffee you drink.

One of the most shocking studies I came across was one investigating the effect coffee consumption has on developing Alzheimer’s disease. According to a 20-year study, researchers in Finland and Switzerland found that those who consumed three to five cups of coffee daily in their midlife years had 65 per cent lower chance of developing dementia and Alzheimer’s disease compared to those who drank coffee only occasionally or not at all! Those findings are hard to ignore.

Before I try and oversell coffee based on its perks, there are risks to drinking too much of it. Caffeine can cause anxiety symptoms, especially in vulnerable individuals with preexisting anxiety disorders. Also, studies have shown that regular coffee intake could reduce your chances of becoming pregnant. Like many things in life, coffee is good in moderation. A moderate intake of caffeine is around 300 mg per day, or three to four cups of ground roasted coffee.

Mount Allison students Jill Harris and Lauren Chitty responded to learning about these health benefits.

Harris said, “I usually limit myself to drink coffee once a day. I drink it mainly for the energy benefits,

but now knowing about other perks of drinking coffee, I feel more comfortable with increasing my daily consumption.” Lauren Chitty, who is not a coffee drinker, stated, “People tend to give coffee a bad reputation, which is why I have never really tried to get into coffee. But these findings make me consider trying to start drinking coffee in the future.”

Harris agreed with Chitty, saying, “This research is interesting, but very shocking.”

People consume coffee daily, which has sparked an influx of research about its effects on our health. The results have shown positive benefits that go beyond its ability to give you an energy boost. Us coffee lovers now have an excuse to keep drinking one of the world’s most popular drinks!

ULTIMATE

ANNA HARDIE Contributor We’re approaching that time of year when our desk lights begin to stay on into the early hours of the morning.

We all know what that means: caffeine becomes our best friend. By simply studying in a public space, you’ll see people chugging Red Bulls or have cans of Monster next to them.

Drinking energy drinks as a substitute to coffee has become a social norm as 20 to 30 per cent of adolescents consume energy drinks regularly.

This is concerning when you consider the consumption of energy drinks being linked to heart problems, dental issues, weight gain, stomach aches, anxiety, shakiness and sleep problems. Here are some questions to ask yourself when consuming an energy drinks: 1. Am I drinking lots of water?

According to a study at Brown University, caffeine in energy drinks leads to severe dehydration.

This is because the combination of caffeine and guarana, two prominent ingredients in energy drinks, acts as a diuretic. In the case where you have an incredibly full schedule and must jeopardize your sugar level, blood pressure and heart rate for a quick boost of energy, make sure you drink lots of water.

2. When was the last time I had an energy drink? Essentially, Mountain Dew and Monster are soft drinks with caffeine in them. Sugar contents in energy drinks are often high. For example, Monster energy drinks contain 11g of sugar per 100mL, the same ratio found in a classic CocaCola. This is a big concern considering that the neural substrates of sugar reward appear “to be more robust than those of cocaine,” according to a 2013 review published by Wolters Kluwer in their Current Opinion in Clinical Nutrition and Metabolic Care journal. Energy drinks can therefore be addictive and consumers must be mindful of their intake.

3. Can I make time to get an extra hour of sleep and eat three solid meals?

If you answered yes, your body and mind will thank you for doing these things rather than having an energy drink. Justin Alvey, an associate professor at the University of Utah of Medicine, said, “Really there is no substitute for good old-fashioned healthy food.” So even spending an additional five minutes in Jennings to peel an orange or to make a side plate of chickpeas, spinach and olives will give you healthy, long-term energy.

In addition, sleep is at the heart of it all. The National Sleep Foundation recommends seven to nine hours of sleep for people between the ages of 18 and 24. If you have the time to get these hours, there is no point in having an energy drink.

Take care of your body. It’s simply not enough to be awake; it’s equally important to be in good health. While energy drinks may help you survive that midterm they will not help you thrive. Once again, it’s time to rethink the drink.

Rebuilding year for ultimate

Club team eagerly pursuing new members in winter semester KEIFER BELL Sports Reporter The Mount Allison ultimate frisbee team has had a busy fall semester with a roster full of fresh faces. The club team has three new captains this year, as the previous set all graduated at the end of last season. Along with new captains, the team has many rookies who had little to no experience before their first practice.

Despite the new set of faces, the captains were chosen to host the Canadian Atlantic University Ultimate Championships (CAUUC) in October here on campus. Acadia,

St. FX, Dalhousie and UNB were all in attendance for the tournament.

Captain Lauren Waye commented on the tournament, saying, “It was great to see people come out to watch some games, support the team and ask questions on the sidelines after.

It’s always awesome to see people’s interest in the sport as it has really grown over the past couple years.”

Along with support on campus, the experience also helped the team learn the game better, with hands-on experience during the tournament.

Since then, the ultimate team has attended other tournaments hosted

by Acadia and a tournament in Halifax.

Captain Hannah Sholtz passionately spoke about what matters most to her: “My favourite part about ultimate is the people.

I love running around and being a goof, but the best is all the friends I make and how much they put into the game.”

As the team continues to grow year after year, the captains admitted that they took a slight dip this season. “This year, we’ve lost a ton of older players, but it has given us an opportunity to create and bring together a new team,” Sholtz said.

“On a whole, the learning curve has been huge, which is very important to me, learning to be a better player on

GAME DAY: MT. A HOSTED THE ATLANTIC QUALIFIER ROUND FOR THE CANADIAN UNIVERSITY ULTIMATE CHAMPIONSHIPS SAM THOMSON/SUBMITTED

a whole.”

Despite the struggles of first semester, the team hopes to attend more tournaments and continue to grow the club as they transfer to indoor ultimate. “As this is a big rebuilding year for us, it has been hard to improve our skills and work towards a good team dynamic,” Waye said. “We are hoping to work toward building that team dynamic with more frequent practices which will also allow us to improve our skills.”

The ultimate team will be holding open practices in the winter semester hoping for new players. Join their Facebook group, MTA Ultimate 20172018.

CLAIRE GENEST AND MAGGIE SHOREMAN HUG IT OUT AFTER AN EPIC POINT. EMILY FORWARD/SUBMITTED

EDITOR: ALLISON MACNEILL| NOVEMBER 30, 2017 | ARGOSY@MTA.CA

LETTER TO THE EDITOR

OPINIONS 13

Capitalism is incompatible with feminism Feminism must be anti-capitalist in order to liberate marginalized women JILL MACINTYRE Contributor After reading an article published in last week’s Argosy about the interaction between capitalism and feminism, I felt the need to respond as a long-time feminist and a lowclass woman.

My feminism is inherently and necessarily anti-capitalist, as feminism must demonstrate solidarity with poor women, otherwise it is not based in genuine liberation. We must stand in solidarity with the millions of incarcerated BIPOC (Black, Indigenous, people of colour) women who live and die in privatized prisons that profit off of a racist “justice” system. We must stand in solidarity with peasant women farmers who grow the majority of the world’s food, yet are forced to compete with major agribusinesses. These have the initial wealth to accumulate more land and capital in order to

outcompete small producers. We must stand in solidarity with women worldwide who have been forcibly impoverished by neoliberal austerity measures implemented by capitalist governments. And we must stand in solidarity with the millions of girls whose families have been murdered by imperial states in wars designed to prime poor countries for natural resource theft.

While workers worldwide fight for liveable wages, corporate executives earn billions and are quite adept at tax evasion. The greatest irony of capitalism is that the bourgeois class have tricked many of us into believing that they have somehow earned this wealth, as if it was not literally made through the blood and sweat of the poor. Liberal, capitalist feminism would have us believe that a multi-billion dollar corporation run by a woman is a victory, but I do not care whether my oppressor is wearing a tie or stilettos.

To defend capitalism is to defend a system that is predicated on the exploitation of poor, racialized women. As a student of economics, it is easy to recognize that the fathers of capitalism held deeply bigoted views that inform their philosophies.

Within capitalist theory, there is a false assumption of merit, an assumption that every person starts on an equal playing field and has the same ability to participate within this economic system. We know this is deeply false in a world where racism, classism and other forms of oppression thrive. To assume that capitalism does not have differential impacts on marginalized communities is to ignore reality. The reality of capitalism is that initial capital accumulation is based on the dispossession of Indigenous and/or peasant lands, on the exploitation of the poor and on productivity at the direct cost of the environment. Do sexism and racism predate capitalism in much of the world? Absolutely,

because patriarchy and white supremacy are systems of oppression in and of themselves. But has capitalism worked with and on behalf of these systems ever since it became the dominant economic ideology?

Without a doubt. Capitalism is a lot more complex than ECON 1001 would have you believe.

We do not need surface-level equality. We need liberation – liberation from a patriarchal world order that does not count domestic labour as work, that undermines the bodies and minds of femmes at every stage in our lives and that is killing our potential to live on this planet in the face of global climate change.

Liberation is our goal, and I believe that genuine liberation is inextricably bound to anti-capitalism.

In love and solidarity to my anticapitalist sisters and allies.

Consider studying abroad! An experience you’ll never forget

Mount Allison currently offers over 20 exchange programs across four continents, catering to many unique interests

KEIFER BELL Reporter Note: All personal experiences are from my study abroad at L’Université de Strasbourg in France. Other universities will offer different experiences, but with similarities.

I was shocked to find how inexpensive my study abroad experience was. That’s right, living across the world didn’t leave me broke. Studying in Strasbourg, France, for a semester didn’t cost me any more than studying here in Sackville. I actually saved money.

If you attend a partnered university, you pay Mount Allison’s tuition. Therefore, the main added expense is a flight. My rent in France was significantly less than here in Canada at C$237.50 a month, all utilities included. The money I saved on rent alone was enough to pay for the flight. Food was approximately the same price as here in Canada; my phone plan was $25 a month for unlimited data and unlimited worldwide calling. If that isn’t enough for you, Mt. A offers travel grants for those that are doing studies overseas.

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on Unceded Mi’kmaq Land 62 York Street W. McCain Student Centre Mount Allison University Sackville, New Brunswick

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EDITORIAL staff EDITORS-IN-CHIEF | Adrian Kiva, Mirelle Naud MANAGING EDITOR | Mathieu Gallant NEWS EDITORS | Emma Bush, Maia Herriot ARTS & CULTURE EDITOR | Alix Main OPINIONS EDITOR | Allison MacNeill

Disclaimer: Jill MacIntyre is the Argosy’s business manager.

TRAVEL

These aren’t guaranteed to everyone, but can often offer financial support.

If you can afford to live in residence and pay a meal plan, you can afford many of the study abroad programs offered through the International Centre here on campus.

My experience studying abroad gave me the chance to really expand my view of our world. Growing up in Atlantic Canada, I had never really left. Sure, I had vacations here and there, but that isn’t leaving.

Travelling to Europe is one thing, but living there is a completely different experience. Leaving sounds scary, but a new life is easy to adapt to quickly.

You learn to do things on your own and not depend on others.

Studying abroad was never about the actual studying to me: it was about the experience I’d get. The people you meet, things you see, foods you try – everything was new and that is why it was special. Finding a new favourite restaurant, a new grocery store, new friends, new everything. You make your own choices and make the best of it in a country where nobody knows who you are or anything about you.

Luckily for me, I had two different reading weeks, both two weeks off. This left me with time to travel Europe. There are discount airlines that offer flights for next to nothing.

I literally flew to Ibiza for ten dollars.

I don’t think I ever spent more than C$50 for a plane ticket during my time in Europe. You see all these photos of people studying in Europe travelling around the continent; this is because plane tickets often cost less

THE ARGOSY

HUMOUR EDITOR | Carly Penrose COPY EDITOR | Charlotte Savage

PRODUCTION staff PRODUCTION MANAGER | Marina Mavridis PHOTO EDITOR | Savannah Harris PHOTOGRAPHERS | Gillian Hill, Chaoyi Liang ILLUSTRATION EDITOR | Sylvan Hamburger ILLUSTRATORS | Sarah Noonan, Louis Sobol VIDEOGRAPHER | Louis Sobol VIDEOGRAPHY PRODUCER | Lily Falk

REPORTING staff NEWS REPORTERS | Amelia Fleming, Lily Falk ARTS & CULTURE REPORTERS | Max Chapman, Jena McLean SPORTS REPORTER | Keifer Bell

OPERATIONS staff BUSINESS MANAGER | Jill MacIntyre DISTRIBUTION MANAGERS | Matthew Hamilton Fyfe, Shannon Power

CONTRIBUTORS Rebecca Butler, Marissa Cruz, Julia Feltham, Dr. Janet Hammock, Anna Hardie, Cullen Johnson, Kavana Wa Kilele, Kelt Leray, Sarah MacEwan, Marina Mavridis, Alexis Blanchard Methot, Kathleen Morisson, Tina Oh, the Rev. Perkin, Derek Sharp, Alanna Stewart, Connor Tamminen, Will Traves, Olivia Venini, Tenea Welsh, Isaiah Yankech COVER | Sarah Noonan

PUBLICATION board Leslie Kern, Owen Griffiths

DISCLAIMERS & COPYRIGHT The Argosy is the official independent student journal of news, opinion and the arts, written, edited and funded by the students of Mount Allison University in Sackville, New Brunswick. The opinions expressed herein do not necessarily represent those of the Argosy’s staff or its Board of Directors.

MT. A’S EXCHANGE PROGRAM CONNECTS STUDENTS TO EDUCATIONAL OPPORTUNITIES AROUND THE WORLD. LOUIS SOBOL/ARGOSY

The Argosy is published weekly throughout the academic year by Argosy Publications Inc. Student contributions in the form of letters, articles, photography,

than North Americans taxis.

I suppose I should conclude this article talking about the actual studying part. Your credits get transferred to Mt. A, but the letter grade you receive will not show up on your transcript. If you pass the class, you get the credits, it’s that easy. Your GPA is essentially “frozen” for the semester, meaning if you get all As or all Fs it won’t have any change on the GPA that you had when you left. All you need to do is get D- or higher in your classes and you are good as gold, credit-wise. However, remember that if you’re going to graduate school,

they can look into your marks.

In my opinion, everyone at Mt. A should look into doing an exchange.

Spend a semester outside of this small town and experience something new.

Take the five minutes and apply. This doesn’t mean that you have to go, but at least it opens up opportunities for your future.

graphic designs and comics are welcome. The Argosy reserves the right to edit or refuse all materials deemed sexist, racist, homophobic, transphobic or otherwise unfit for print, as determined by the Editors in Chief. Articles or other contributions can be sent to argosy@mta.ca or directly to a section editor. The Argosy will print unsolicited materials at its own discretion.

Letters to the editor must be signed, though names may be withheld at the sender’s request and at the Argosy’s discretion. Anonymous letters will not be printed.

Comments , concerns or complaints about the Argosy’s content or operations should be first sent to the Editors in Chief at the address above.

The exchange application for 2018-19 deadline is Jan. 12, 2018, at midnight. Learn more at mta.ca/ studyabroad.

If the Editors in Chief are unable to resolve a complaint, it may be taken to the Argosy Publications, Inc. Board of Directors. The chairs of the Board of Directors can be reached at the address above.

All materials appearing in the Argosy bear the copyright of Argosy Publications, Inc. Material cannot be reprinted without the consent of the Editors in Chief.

14

OPINIONS

NOVEMBER 30, 2017 | ARGOSY@MTA.CA

RESIDENCE LIFE

Academic mentors: an under-used resource

Residences come equipped with ac-mens to guide students through the stresses of academia

SARAH MACEWAN Contributor Moving into residence at Mount Allison, I was extremely excited about meeting new people and making new friends. But I was also a bit nervous about academic life, and I had a ton of questions. Would I be able to handle the pressures of university courses? How would I know if I was even taking the right classes for my degree? And how would I have time to finish all my assignments and study for the midterms and finals without becoming a hermit and completely sacrificing my social life? I didn’t know where to start, or who to ask.

Fortunately, I found myself in a very academically-focused house with an academic mentor who seemed to know everything about university courses, and who I knew I could turn to for help at any time.

This is not, of course, everybody’s first-year experience. A lot of people

start university worried about whether they will sink or swim in their classes, but they may not find the resources they need to succeed.

Add the “party culture” in residence to the mix, and you have a perfect storm for a lost first-year student to end up drowning in work.

However, there are lots of good academic resources available to students, such as the academic mentors who live in each house. A large part of the ac-men’s job is to connect students with resources around campus, such as the registrar’s office or the writing resource centre.

They also aim to help students gain study skills, both one-on-one and in group workshops.

Unfortunately, the resources that ac-mens offer are not always well utilized. When I was an ac-men, we held office hours for students to come with any questions they may have about academics, so that we could help them find the resources on campus that they may need for their academic success. But people almost never came to me with questions during my hours, and I was not the only ac-men who experienced this. When I was working in residence, a common sentiment among the ac-mens was how we wished students would ask us for help rather than asking their friends or the RAs, who may not have had the correct information or been able to help. This left us feeling rather

ACADEMIC MENTORS CAN HELP STUDENTS IN RESIDENCE STAY ON TRACK BY DIRECTING THEM TO RESOURCES RELATED TO DEGREE PLANNING AND TUTORING, FOR EXAMPLE. GILL HILL/ARGOSY underappreciated.

Another poorly utilized resource offered by ac-mens was the study sessions we hosted for the large introductory courses. Shortly before the midterm or exam, we would hire a tutor or two to come in for an evening and help students with the course material. Only one of the study sessions that I hosted was well-attended, with the vast majority

having a small turnout.

It seems that students in residence are not taking full advantage of the resources available to them, but it’s hard to say who is to blame for this. Is it the University’s fault for not having enough resources available? The acmen’s fault for not connecting with the people in their residences? Or perhaps it’s us students, who don’t always seek help when we need it?

I believe that no one group is fully to blame. That being said, I also believe that, ultimately, the onus is on the student when it comes to their academics. The University can hire great ac-mens, offer good study help sessions and provide information to students, but it’s up to the students to choose to ask for and accept help when they need it.

POLITICS

In defense of October

100 years after the Russian Revolution, what is left of the communist hypothesis?

ALEXIS BLANCHARD METHOT Contributor November 7 marked the 100th anniversary of what is probably the most defining moment of the last century. On that day in 1917, the military committee of the Petrograd workers councils (soviet in Russian), led by the Bolshevik party, deposed the provisional government of Alexander Kerensky and, for the first time, created a federal republic of councils of workers and peasants.

In the first 33 days of this government, Russia was turned upside down. Factories and other workplaces were placed under the control of their workers, abortion and divorce were legalized, homosexuality was decriminalized, the eight hour work day was put in place, peasants were granted the right to seize the land they worked, discriminatory laws against Jewish people and Muslims

were torn to shreds, the equality of all nationalities was declared in Russia, and the death penalty was abolished.

All of this was considered a small step toward the creation of a new world, the first measures taken toward a radical transformation of everyday life. Russia became the first country to be part of the future world’s socialist workers republic.

Why should we care today about these events today? Especially given what came after – how the Soviets became an empty shell under the oppression of a devastating civil war, how the Bolshevik party became a bureaucratic monster that inspired a series of authoritarian governments, each one more dreadful than the previous. The piles of bleached bones that are stacked from Cambodia to Siberia should be enough to discourage any person that would be tempted to hold the red flag aloft.

There is, however, an argument that still remains for those who cling to the communist enterprise: the world around us screams at us to reconsider the communist hypothesis that was defended by Petrograd workers on that fateful day. Facing our own extinction – either slowly, by overproductiondriven climate change or brutally, by state-driven nuclear war – humanity must now reconsider the way the

world is organized. The two leading institutions of our world, the Nation State and economic Capital, seem to have failed in guaranteeing the very survival of our species, let alone its well-being. The communist hypothesis – that a classless, stateless world can be built, that national borders and the production of commodities for profit must be dealt away with – seems now more than ever

SYLVAN HAMBURGER/ARGOSY

a necessity. October still represents the most concrete experiment of that hypothesis. A flawed, even a failed, experiment, but one that cannot be discarded, that must be learned from. It represents humanity’s heroic attempt to dynamite all that remains in the way of the full self-actualization of our species, and for that “the great October socialist revolution” still deserves a place in the history of

emancipation.

A note on months: At the beginning of the century, Russia was using a different calendar than Western Europe. The calendar then used by Russia was eleven days behind our own Gregorian calendar. Therefore, our November 7 was, in fact, October 25 in the calendar used at the time of the revolution. That is why an event that occurred in November is known today as “the October revolution.”

OPINIONS

THE ARGOSY | WWW.SINCE1872.CA

COLUMN

15

The Bible and its teachings must be lived, not commemorated in museums

THE REV. JOHN C. PERKIN Columnist A new museum has opened in Washington, D.C. Funded by wealthy Evangelical patrons, the Museum of the Bible presents the ancient text in a modern form, through the use of cutting-edge technologies. The idea of the museum is to engage an increasingly secular population with the history, narrative and impact of

the Christian Bible.

The cost of the new museum is estimated at over half a billion dollars.

Exhibits include fragments of the Dead Sea Scrolls, although questions abound regarding their provenance, costs and even their authenticity.

One exhibit is a simulation of the world of Jesus in his boyhood town of Nazareth: artificial olive trees are complete with life-like leaves and hand-made olives hanging in

bunches, and every ninety minutes the sky changes from day to night so that visitors can live through a day in the life of Jesus.

The scholarly wing of the museum has produced a number of works, including a syllabus for a course in the Bible suitable for use in private high schools; the hope is that the same syllabus will be attractive for use in the public school system in the United States.

Despite all the impressive displays using the latest technology, the artifacts which may or may not be genuine and the life-sized dioramas, at the heart of the museum is the Bible itself. It is not the physical object, of course, that is on display, although there are many examples of different Bibles to be viewed; it is about the sacred text which is also the story, the centre of the faith which is revered almost to idolatrous levels by some evangelical Christians. The mission statement of the Museum of the Bible captures this devotion to the text in its goal of inspiring confidence in the “absolute authority and reliability of the Bible.”

I may be branded a liberal, or even heretic, when I suggest that the Bible does not deserve a museum, but should instead be seen as a living document, continually being read, reinterpreted and differently understood. I suspect that to enshrine the Bible in a museum suggests that it is somehow dead and worthy only of veneration rather than allowing it to be a living tradition that continues to shape life. From the medieval fourfold reading of the Bible (in literal, allegorical, topological and analogical

ways) to the modern historicalcritical methodologies of analysis to newer readings of the text from liberationist, feminist, post-colonial perspectives, the Bible is still a living work that speaks to people in living, and different, ways. The stories are significant not just because they are rooted in an ancient past, but because they intersect with our own stories in the present.

The Bible, for me and for countless other Christians, is not an artifact to be honoured in museum displays, but a story that lives in people and communities of faith, inspiring, encouraging, comforting and challenging them. It is not limited to its past and our attempts to read it literally, with or without impressive technological support; rather, it is open to being read vibrantly by God’s people in their various contexts in the world. The Bible is, as Paul wrote of faith in echoes of the prophet Jeremiah, not written on tablets of stone, but on the human heart. That cannot be enshrined in a museum, but only made tangible in lives of faith and action.

FINE ARTS

A fair price for an artwork

OLIVIA VENINI Contributor In my brief brush with art history, I’ve noticed that financial motives divide artists into camps of booed sellouts or glorified starving geniuses. The less artists live off of, the more their genius is adored. Never mind the privileged ones, it’s moments of artistic agony that achieve common knowledge.

Consider Van Gogh selling his pieces for 25 cents (if at all), Edgar Allan Poe’s down-and-out lifestyle, Frida Kahlo and Jean-Michel Basquiat: the list goes on of famous artists who have made art through adversity. This glorified narrative of toil and trouble for art excuses exploitative prices and distances artists from having a claim on what they are owed.

This is especially the case with young artists – from all disciplines, but I write from experience with visual arts – who toil plenty as students, but probably don’t wish to make it a lifelong habit.

This past summer I had the opportunity to sell works among experienced artists, and the general formula for pricing your artwork

was an hourly wage (as was common advice online). Compared to the prices seen at Mt. A’s fine arts sales, which are mostly under $10 and have had no doubt more than an hour’s work put into them, an hourly wage may seem a better, fairer strategy.

But as I stepped into this standard it struck me that dividing a piece by the hours involved in it, subtracting its materials and adding up its cost is harder to stomach than the typical student job. It has you worrying that what you’ve just birthed leaves you in the red. The standard method of pricing art is reductive in my mind and I’m eager to see more young artists challenge it.

In a wider perspective, professionally recognised artists, such as Willem de Kooning, can sell a single painting for as much as $300 million.

Making more than a million dollars per hour is usually saved for CEOs, so it would seem this is an American dream ending to the suffering-artist narrative. Don’t worry, de Kooning was only paid $2,000 (in 1955, so this would mean around $17,000 today) for that piece, the art market claimed the rest. Reactions to such a momentous price are often the mean laugh, the questions about the “practical” value of “smudged colours,” the “my daughter could do that” comments and so on. I believe these last opinions, heard in most exhibits, shame independent artists toward shyer, lower prices. It then follows that any artist selling work would price somewhere between Mt. A student sales and the most inflated price imaginable.

In an ideal world, artists might only trade, gift or just make their art without poverty coming to knock.

The pressure to “stay practical” pushes too many creators out of the arts. I believe this pressure also costs us a cynicism amongst artists and fosters conformism to art market rules. Moreover, entering the job market expecting to be undermined, and counting on the powers that be to exploit our work must be putting a serious dent in our optimism and, consequently, in our ability to see a

near end of capitalist culture.

My suggestion, worth a try, is when selling your artwork, don’t compensate yourself with an exploitative formula, but an encouraging one instead. If asking money for a piece, price it – to the taxed and rounded 5 cent – to cover the costs of your grocery bill; the train ticket to your next project; the monetary cost of the paintbrush, kitchen knife or sweater that is going to add to your next work.

In more equitable terms: when

selling your art, make your buyer an investor. If you charge enough for your next project, the piece you’ve just made can fund your continued practice. This way the exchange of dollars is an encouragement to work: a reinvestment, instead of a recovery of costs. This might even begin to tackle the attitude of work being laborious, revealing it to only be so tiring when it’s paid like a task instead of a sustainable practice.

AS OF 2011 ALMOST 75 PER CENT OF CANADIAN ARTISTS WERE SELF-EMPLOYED, ACCORDING TO STATISTICS CANADA. OLIVIA VENINI/SUBMITTED

16 HUMOUR

EDITOR: CARLY PENROSE | NOVEMBER 30, 2017 | ARGOSY@MTA.CA

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ACROSS 1. The last part of the semester 6. Seizures caused by unusual brain activity 14. Molecule that gives energy to cells 17. Nova Scotia’s largest brewer 19. Terrorist group frequently in the news 20. “____ Y, you ain’t got no alibi…”

21. What you might fill out before a study 23. Buzzing instrument that anyone can play 24. Something that is awake at night and asleep during the day 27. To bite or nibble 28. To employ the sincerest form of

flattery 30. Devices used to remember things 32. South African and Austria, online 33. A cherry-flavoured licorice candy 36. After fa and before la 37. Newton’s apple went the opposite way 38. Province that joined Canada in 1949 (abbr.)

39. One of these is worth $1.52 CAN 43. Catch the ____ VIA to Truro 48. A money machine 50.

Government department responsible for coordinating garbage pickup, for example 52. His Holiness 54. Like Mike Pence or Joe Biden

56. Surname of a Marvel villain who is often fighting Captain America 57. The green Teletubby 58. To run your car when parked 59. Biological term that refers to the process of formation of eggs 63. Dolla dolla bills y’all 64. A squirrel’s favourite treat 65. Use this to keep your leftovers fresh 68. First name of the quirky star of the Pitch Perfect films 70. “___ Captain, my Captain” 72. When both options are bad 74. Egyptian sun God 75. Sippin’ on gin and juice 78. How you might respond to your

ADVICE

TRILL WAVES Contributor Hello peasants. It is I, King Trill.

Sorry for not blessing you with my impeccable tips last week. It was a rough weekend, just like this one was! Anyhow, I’ve got some good ones (I think) for you this week, so let’s get it. A question the modern university student often asks themself is how they will be able to afford to eat this week. The answer, my dear friends, lies in the grocery store. This week’s tips are on how to choose what to buy at the grocery store.

Tip 1: Make sure it’s edible. Now, you might think this one is obvious, but I’ve been fooled before and I don’t want it to happen to you.

Make sure you’ve actually entered the grocery store. There have been multiple times where I’ve gone into my dearly beloved second home,

oversharing friend 80. The other Mountain Equipment (corporation not co-op) 81. Birthstone for October 83. 12-Step program for rehabilitation 84. Prefix for organic chemical compund that makes up vinegar 85. Abominable snowman, to the Nepalese 87. Make it snappy!

88. You will find an iris here 89. Pay-per ___ 90. Invented the “smize” 91. Yanks something out of someone’s hands DOWN 1. “I wanna wish you a merry Christmas from the bottom of my heart” 2. Finnish cell phone company 3. Cheesy (yet sweet) coffee pun “thanks __ ______” 4. First name of Jamaican reggae singer Morgan 5. What comes out of a runny nose 7. The littlest piggies 8. Prefix meaning “equal” 9. Don’t do this to a pole in the winter 10. The time zone to our West 11. Arouses, or powers up 12. Rock type made of hardened lava 13. Main ingredient in famous New England chowder 14. Text term meaning “a lot” 15. American activist and novelist Morrison 16. What sleeping beauty did on her spinning wheel 18. A deer, a female deer 22. Provincial representatives in Parliament 25. Conversation filler when you’re drawing a blank 26. High decibel level 29. When you add dried barley powder, a milkshake becomes this 31. “You’re Welcome”, texted 34. ____ x2 Black sheep

35. A potential reason why it burns when you pee 40. This is ____ (TV) 41. Enemy of everyone’s Movember moustaches 42. Mano a mano 44. To turn a vehicle in a specific direction 45. Cow-like 46. Lasso-ed 47. Protagonist in most recent Star Wars film 49. Famously swatted away a handhold from her husband 51. Media company involved in sports, entertainment and fashion 52. Safety, push or bobby 53. “Oppa Gangnam style” singer 55. Southern nut 57. Term for weed, or slang for cool 60. Hillary Clinton was called this kind of woman in a 2016 debate 61. Twain thought it was incompatible with happiness 62. Take a big gulp 63. Tropical fish, when doubled 66. GPS options (abbr.)

67. Wonder Woman Godot 69. Very influential lobbyist group in the US 71. House Hunters channel 73. This by any other name would smell just as sweet 74. Completely absorbed in an activity 76. Jewellery store jingle, “Every kiss begins with ____” 77. Smirnoff cooler 79. Famous New York museum 82. To make a faux ___ 86. Poli-Sci 1001 is the prerequisite for this degree program 87. With -15, a type of semi-automatic firearm Find last week’s answers on the Argosy’s Twitter feed: @The_Argosy!

POETRY CORNER

Kent Building Supplies, thinking I was going to secure a solid meal with the money I had earned there, only to come out with nothing to eat but an armful of two-by-fours and some nails. Lucky for me, I have a VERY strong stomach and was able to digest my hearty dinner easily, but I realize many of you are not so lucky.

Other places that are not the grocery store/places you can get edible food (usually) are the mechanic’s, the RBC and Jennings Dining Hall (zing).

Tip 2: Frozen, never fresh. Once you’ve made sure you are, in fact, in the grocery store, you have to select a meal. Lucky for you, they come premade! That’s right, you’ve been living your whole life thinking that you had to make meals yourself. NOPE. There are a plethora of ready-made meals for you that can be found in the freezer section of any grocer. You name it, you can find it ready to eat after a

quick zap in the microwave. If you can’t even be bothered to go through the effort of the going to the store or heating the food up, you can just order some MREs online by the crate.

Tip 3: It’s gotta be KD. Now, there’s a lot of debate in the sciences over whether we are influenced more by nature or nurture. I would say one of the strongest cases for nature is me. Like me, my father, [NAME REDACTED], is also a fucking legend. We are talking about a man who drank brews, wore a sheepskin vest and went to a Styx concert, all at the same time. Now you’re probably wondering what this has to do with your diet. Well ol’ [NAME REDACTED] is a very smart man who did the math and worked out the cheapest way to eat. That way would be Kraft Dinner, three meals a day, every day. Now there is a downside to this: as he soon found out, your skin will turn a slight tinge of orange, but only like, a little, so it’s not a big deal.

I live in my father’s shadow.

Alright guys, hope you keep these tips in mind on your next trip to the grocery store. Hit me up on FB (Trilliam Waves) so I don’t have to think these tips up entirely by myself. Catch you on the flip flop and bon appétit. ~Trill~

Ode to exam week

Students express feelings about finals An acrostic...

FUCK! It’s Next week?

A’s are pipe dreams.

Library time, Suckers!

A sonnet...

Now it is almost December Think of all you’ve learned If only you could remember The material from this term Not long til it’s time for vacation To spend with friends and family A time for fun and jubilation But not until I write for biology We study for long hours Drink exorbitant amounts of caffeine But I believe we have the power To emerge from this battle supreme

Some limericks...

It soon will be time for exams We're no longer happy as clams But now we must study Not drink with our buddy We need to get with the program Finish up projects this week Go on a handing-in streak!

You have worked very hard I have the highest regard For you and the grades that you seek

Though there are many finals to write You needn’t worry -- You’re so bright

A haiku...

Last week of classes Term is coming to an end Shit – Forgot that’s due