January 26, 2012 by The Ubyssey

Frankly, we don’t have a bone in the dogyard SINCE 1918

January 26, 2012 | VOL. XCIII ISS. XXXV

CATCHING

WIND

UBC’s collegiate sailing team is taking off

AMS THE UBYSSEY

EN DORSE

MENTS Ubyssey staff gives its take on the elections

COME FOR A

RIDE

Geeks after Dark an excellent adventure for partying nerds

2 | Page 2 | 01.26.2012

What’s on 26 THU

This week, may we suggest...

Our Campus

One on one with the people who make UBC

SUS>>

Science Week’s Professor Pageant: 12:30-2pm @ Abdul Ladha Following the Arts Undergraduate Society’s Arts Week, the SUS presents Science Week. Swing by the Abdul Ladha Science Student Centre to witness four professors strut in style across the runway to be crowned as the SUS’s Science Professor 2012.

27 FRI

AMS>>

29 SUN

THEATRE>>

AMS Elections Results Night: 7pm @ the Gallery If you’ve been following the elections and want to see how things turn out, come by the Gallery for a few pints and hear the results. Revel in the hackery.

SAT

FILM>>

Turkish Movie Night: 7-9pm @ Global Lounge Looking for something calm and new to try this Saturday? Look no further than the Global Lounge for the Turkish Student Society’s night of movies, tea and snacks. $5 entry.

30 MON

NYC-based poet Sarah Kay says that the immediacy of spoken poetry is refreshing in our digitized age.

The Idiot closing: 2pm @ Frederic Wood Theatre Theatre at UBC and the PuSh International Performing Arts Festival presents the awardwinning production of Fyodor Dostoyevsky’s The Idiot. Considering the world as it is today, how could you miss a show where the only place for sanity would be a sanatorium? Tickets can be purchased from Theatre at UBC and online, $32+.

GREEN COLLEGE >> Ritual, Community and Conflict Dialogue: 8-9pm @ Coach House UBC psychology faculty member Jonathan Lanman explores how some of the worst atrocities have been caused by groups defending their personal beliefs. An event of the Resident Members’ Series of Green College.

CHRIS BORCHERT/THE UBYSSEY

Sarah Kay lets the truth fly at SLC Catherine Guan Staff Writer

There is a moment in her performance that transports you, a startling realization that beneath her Care Bear positivity, there is old-soul wisdom. Spoken word poet Sarah Kay brought her blend of infectious joy and unbridled passion to UBC as the opening keynote speaker for the Student Leadership Conference on January 14. To say she was well-received by the student delegates would be an understatement. They were impressed. They were inspired. They were moved. “It was really wonderful and lovely to see all those faces,” Kay said. Kay, 22, is something of a child prodigy. She began to garner attention when she was 14, performing in poetry clubs around New York City. But her first acquaintance with poetry came much earlier. “When I was a kid, [my parents] used to write me a poem every single day and put it in my lunch box,” she recollected. “So I kind of approach all poetry the same way. It’s this surprise…It interrupts my day in the best possible way.” While she is known for her

spoken word poetry, Kay works in a variety of mediums as a documentary filmmaker, playwright and singer-songwriter. However, the role that she perhaps cherishes the most is that of a teacher. She is the founder of Project VOICE, an organization that she runs with her “partner in poetry crime,” Phil Kaye. Their goal is to teach youth self expression through spoken word poetry. Her favourite memory of being onstage occurred during one of Project VOICE’s poetry tours, when they visited a middle school in Southern California. “We try to make room for people in the audience to come onstage and share some of their poems with us. The previous year, nobody had come onstage because they had no idea what spoken word poetry was. “But the second year, as soon as I asked a question, this boy jumped up and ran up to the stage immediately. He didn’t even wait for me to call him. He said, ‘I wrote this poem the day after you left last year and I have been waiting all year to share it with you.’ And it was beautiful.” In recent years, spoken word poetry has witnessed a major revival, Kay said.

She’s not surprised. “Spoken word poetry is one of the oldest art forms that we have. Technically, Shakespeare is spoken word poetry; Homer, even, was spoken word poetry. “I think that part of the reason that people are getting so excitedabout it right now [is because] most of our interactions are digitized, or mediated,” she said. “We have most of our experiences through some kind of screen. So the fact that there is still a space that exists where people can gather in the same room and share the same air, it’s a return to the campfire effect of the earliest humans. There is something really wonderful about that kind of gathering that happens.” While she is immersed in the New York City spoken word scene, Kay said, “I do know that the scene is very different depending on where you are and that’s wonderful, and that’s a part of what makes this art form so exciting. There is something regional about it.” Kay has now returned to her tour in California. Her brief stay in Vancouver didn’t allow her to dive into the local scene. She promises, however, to return soon. “I have to come back a second time to check it out.” U

U U

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THE UBYSSEY January 26, 2012, Volume XCIII, Issue XXXV

EDITORIAL

Coordinating Editor Justin McElroy

coordinating@ubyssey.ca

Managing Editor, Print Jonny Wakefield printeditor@ubyssey.ca

Managing Editor, Web Arshy Mann webeditor@ubyssey.ca

News Editors Kalyeena Makortoff & Micki Cowan news@ubyssey.ca

Art Director Geoff Lister

art@ubyssey.ca

Culture Editor Ginny Monaco

culture@ubyssey.ca

Senior Culture Writer Will Johnson wjohnson@ubyssey.ca

Sports Editor Drake Fenton

sports@ubyssey.ca

Features Editor Brian Platt

features@ubyssey.ca

Copy Editor Karina Palmitesta

BUSINESS

CONTACT

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Business Office: Room 23 Editorial Office: Room 24 Student Union Building 6138 Student Union Blvd Vancouver, BC V6T 1Z1 tel: 604.822.2301 web: www.ubyssey.ca

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STAFF

Andrew Hood, Bryce Warnes, Catherine Guan, David Elop, Jon Chiang, Josh Curran, Will McDonald, Tara Martellaro, Virginie Menard, Scott MacDonald, Anna Zoria, Peter Wojnar, Tanner Bokor, Dominic Lai, Mark-Andre Gessaroli, Natalya Kautz, Kai Jacobson, RJ Reid

LEGAL

The Ubyssey is the official student newspaper of the University of British Columbia. It is published every Monday and Thursday by The Ubyssey Publications Society. We are an autonomous, democratically run student organization, and all students are encouraged to participate. Editorials are chosen and written by the Ubyssey staff. They are the expressed opinion of the staff, and do not necessarily reflect the views of The Ubyssey Publications Society or the University of British Columbia. All editorial content appearing in The Ubyssey is the property of The Ubyssey Publications Society. Stories, opinions, photographs and artwork contained herein cannot be reproduced without the expressed, written permission of The Ubyssey Publications Society. The Ubyssey is a founding member of Canadian University Press (CUP) and adheres to CUP’s guiding principles. Letters to the editor must be under 300 words. Please include your

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Put your bone in our dog yard

WRITE FOR OPINIONS Brian Platt | features@ubyssey.ca

News

01.26.2012 |

Editors: Kalyeena Makortoff & Micki Cowan

ELECTIONS >>

Election infractions committed by Senate and BoG candidates Micki Cowan News Editor

This year’s elections have been fairly tame for elections administrator Carolee Changfoot. Last year saw the disqualification and then reinstatement of a presidential candidate, Omar Chaaban, and slating accusations leveled against current AMS President Jeremy McElroy and VP External candidate Mitch Wright. This year, seven candidates have been placed in the “penalty box”

for election infractions. “Both Katherine Tyson and Carven Li promoted their campaign via social media before the campaign period even started,” said Changfoot. Caroline Wong also ended up in the penalty box. “Her volunteers got the message at the wrong time and ended up postering before her material was even approved,” said Changfoot. The idea behind the penalty box is that voters see the names of those who committed infractions when they go to vote online. “Generally

the penalty box will be put up where it is right now; it’s very close to the ‘vote here’ button. It’s in a visible place,” she said. According to a news release sent by the 2012 Elections Committee, the most recent additions to the penalty box are Erik MacKinnon, Dawei Ji, Aaron Sihota and Jordan Stewart for participating in slatelike activity. MacKinnon’s name was at the bottom of an email sent to the Faculty of Pharmaceutical Sciences that also included statements

supporting other candidates from the faculty. MacKinnon said that when he inquired about sending out the email with the IT announcements, they informed him they would only send out one email. In order to be fair to the other candidates from his faculty, he informed them of the opportunity and submitted their write-ups along with his. “I specifically put in the email to Margaret Nicholson, who handles this at Pharmacy, that it can’t go out on my behalf and if it has my name

SCHOLARSHIPS >>

President’s Entrance Scholarship axed Ming Wong Contributor

In a bid to maximize its effectiveness in attracting students, over six million dollars’ worth of UBC’s scholarship budget is being overhauled. The UBC President’s Entrance Scholarship (PES) program, which gives one-time financial awards to incoming students based on their high school grades, will no longer be awarded as of January 1, 2012. The PES was set up as a financial incentive to persuade students to choose UBC over other post-secondary institutions. But UBC said that research shows the scholarship is not determining students’ choice to enroll at the university. “Our reputation, choice of program [and] our geographic location, were much more powerful considerations than a $500 PES,” said James Ridge, associate VP and registrar of UBC Enrolment Services. “The award itself was not a significant factor—in some cases, it appeared not to be a factor at all—in choosing UBC. So we began a few years ago to think there might be a much better use for this money.” The scholarship was a tiered program which automatically offered $500 to $4000 scholarships depending on admission averages of the applicant. Other Canadian schools such as the University of Toronto and McGill still provide an entrance scholarship based on admission averages. The decision, made by members of the university executive through a budget process, was made two years ago and it has been winding

on it [that’s] a violation of elections rules,” said MacKinnon. His name was also misspelled at the bottom of the email. MacKinnon sees it as a mistake. “I made it very clear that the...intention was never to run as a slate, we don’t even have similar views on anything.” Although the candidates and the faculty stated it was unintentional, the committee has still found them in violation of code. They will each receive a penalty and a fine of ten per cent of their maximum spending limit. U CONFERENCES >>

Africa Awareness Initiative expands campus focus

ALEXANDRA DOWNING/THE UBYSSEY

Conrad Compagna Contributor

PHOTO COURTESY KALYEENA MAKORTOFF

The elimination of the President’s Entrance Scholarship will allow UBC to fund more Go Global opportunities.

down since then, phasing out lower tiers of the scholarship. Ridge says 70 per cent of awards funding went to PES. “At any given time we have three times more continuing students than we have entering students, so we really did want to adjust that imbalance.” The approximately $6.1 million dished out to the PES annually is now being put towards Work Study, bursaries and multi-year Major Entrance Scholarships. $2.5 million will go toward student Work Study salaries, $1.2 million will be allocated to Go Global (funding students’ travel costs and

other uses) and $1.1 million will fund bursaries. Additionally, about $500,000 will be used to stabilize endowed awards that were impacted by the recession. $150,000 and $100,000 will go respectively to the Major Entrance Scholarship and the Loran Scholar programs, and $500,000 will be allocated to a variety of programs, such as moving scholarship and bursary applications fully online. “We wanted to align the money... to programs that were elements of our strategic commitment to give to students to enrich education

opportunities,” said Ridge. Beatrice Collier-Pandya, a firstyear Engineering student, suggests a balance between bursaries and rewarding incoming students with good grades. For herself, scholarships were a factor but it wasn’t the deciding one. But third-year Arts student Christy Fong received a PES when she was accepted to UBC, and said that it was important in her final decision. “I would’ve chosen UBC whether or not I got a scholarship, but I think that having it offered to me really influenced my choice to go here.” U

Wingmen shown to be lying for their friends

Existence of arsenic bacteria challenged by UBC prof

UBC study examines polygamous marriage

“Shit UBC Says” goes viral

A new UBC study investigated how much “wingmen” lie for their friends. The study showed that wingmen will lie to improve their friends’ reputations and downplay their worst qualities. “I think that we defend the impressions of those that matter most to us,” said Jennifer Argo, a professor at the Alberta School of Business. “You’re willing to mend other people’s impressions for them if they can’t do it themselves.” According to the study, empathy motivates people to lie for others. “If you’re low in empathy, you’re not a good wingman,” said Argo.

UBC microbiology professor Rosie Redfield has performed experiments which seem to disprove the groundbreaking, controversial discovery of bacteria which incorporate arsenic into their DNA. In December 2010 a research team led by Felisa Wolfe-Simon claimed to find a bacterial strain living in an arsenic-laden lake which sometimes used arsenic in place of phosphorus. Redfield led a group criticizing both the results and the haste with which they were published. Redfield’s findings were posted on her blog, and have not yet been submitted to a peer-reviewed science journal.

A study on monogamous marriage found that polygamous societies tend to have greater levels of crime, violence, poverty and gender inequality than societies that practice monogamy. UBC professor Joseph Henrich, who led the study, said this is due to the increased social competition between men in cultures where women are less evenly distributed, which increased chances that men would engage in criminal behaviour competing for the women available for marriage. The study concluded that monogamy leads to improvements in child welfare and less conflict in households.

News briefs A YouTube video titled “Shit UBC Says” has gained nearly 36,000 views since it was posted on Sunday. The video was written by UBC student Kaveh Sarhangpour, with contributions from David Pratt and Thomas Jeffery, who also acted in the three-minute film. The video featured Kevin Lee and Enzo Woo as actors. In it, students get lost in Buchanan, play Starcraft while conversing in Korean, yearn after Blue Chip cookies, hint at the phallic shape of the clock tower and struggle to pronounce “Ubyssey.” The video follows the meme established by the popular video series “Shit Girls Say,” the first instalment of which has 12.7 million views. U

The words of Zimbabwean author NoViolet Bulawayo have been a rallying cry for students and faculty that have called for an African studies major. Bulawayo, a professor at Cornell University, spoke at the African Awareness Conference held at UBC last week. She said that in a school that prides itself on creating global citizens, neglecting other parts of the world while emphasizing East Asia is not enough, especially when so many students are volunteering in Africa. “[When] I hear sentiments like, ‘You are the first African writer ever to visit my classes,’ then it becomes a cause for concern,” she said. The conference hosted guest speakers from UBC and around the world in an effort to expand focus on a continent that has often been portrayed as a land of famine and war. Critical study of the continent remains badly underfunded at UBC, organizers said. The initiative, founded in 2002, has urged the university to expand its African studies program, which currently only offers a minor. “I would say that UBC, at the end of the day, it’s a commercial institute,” said Osaze Omokaro, an African Awareness Initiative executive. “The sort of rhetoric that we’ve gotten from the administration is, ‘If you can show us the demand for the African studies program, we’ll work on the African studies program. And I think that there’s something quite wrong with that.” One student who attended the conference, Maneo Mohale, said the African studies class she wanted to get into was so packed there were two wait lists. “I don’t necessarily buy into the rhetoric that you’ve been given that there is not enough demand for the class,” she said. U

4 | News | 01.26.2012 ELECTIONS>>

Place Vanier hosts AMS elections debates

GEOFF LISTER PHOTOS/THE UBYSSEY

VP Finance debate

President debate

VP Administration debate

During Tuesday’s AMS election debates at Place Vanier, Tristan Miller, the sole candidate for VP Finance, took questions concerning his vision of the AMS’s financial future. “The sustainability fund in itself is here to provide funding for sustainability projects on campus,” said Miller. “[What] I would aim for is to directly approach faculties rather than having them apply to this fund. Not that many people actually apply to it, because people have to come and find that money.” When asked about his position regarding the AMS’s relationship with clubs, Miller said, “Moving to a system where they get a week-long period three times a year to elect someone to look after the money is one of the things I would do differently.” Miller was then asked about what he would have done during the controversy surrounding the Gaza flotilla donation. Though he couldn’t remember all the details of the event, he said he would not have withheld the money. The next question pertained to the amount of financial control the AMS should hold over resource groups. “They view the AMS as an organization in opposition to them. They view us as encroaching on their autonomy. We deserve the right to know what they spend their money on.” —Scott Macdonald

The presidential candidates voiced their opinions on issues ranging from Gage South to student engagement. On Gage South, Alyssa Koehn said the Gage South petition was a good example of the AMS communicating well with the student body. Matt Parson placed importance on designating the land as academic rather than making it available for market housing. Meanwhile, Ben Cappellacci focused on how he worked on the issue as VP Academic two years ago. “The future is uncertain. It should remain a priority in the AMS to make sure it suits the students’ needs,” he said. All three candidates had different ideas of how to reach out and involve students. Koehn stressed the importance of fixing the AMS’s website and generally being more clear and collaborative in communications. Cappellacci’s solution was to collaborate with groups on campus. “A simple way would be to create a video or presentation on what’s happened at the AMS Council,” he said. Parson had a very concrete example of how to engage the UBC population. He plans to speak with four different students every day and document the meetings in a blog. —Micki Cowan

With little difference between their platforms, VP Administration candidates Elaine Kuo and Caroline Wong tried to make their respective cases to the audience at Place Vanier. Wong touted her strong background in the workings of the AMS, while Kuo focused on helping student clubs and enhancing student life and involvement. Both candidates agreed that the under-utilization of the Clubs Benefit Fund and the Sexual Assault Initiatives Fund was an issue to be rectified. They each pledged to improve communication on how students, clubs and groups can apply for and receive money from the funds. When discussing the new SUB project, which is part of the VP Admin portfolio, both Wong and Kuo spoke on the need to keep students updated on its progress and to promote sustainability initiatives. Wong mentioned the idea of putting similar clubs in the same room to help solve the issue of too many clubs and not enough space. One issue the candidates differed on was whether clubs should be able to include “UBC” in their name. Kuo supported this, while Wong didn’t take a side. U —Colin Chia

01.26.2012 | News | 5 AMS ELECTIONS >>

Would slates improve our elections?

The AMS banned student political parties in 2004, but the debate hasn’t disappeared

Before the slate prohibition, posters such as these decorated the UBC Vancouver campus.

Kalyeena Makortoff News Editor

When many student unions hold elections, voters are given a choice between a number of student political parties called “slates.” But this year marks the eighth consecutive AMS election with a strict ban on slates, to the point where even “slate-like activity” can result in fines or disqualification. Slates have been in and out of UBC’s political culture since the 1970s, according to AMS archivist Sheldon Goldfarb. Between 1991 and 2002, 56 out of 60 elected executives were part of slates, leaving independent candidates in the dust. An apparent systemic bias against independent candidates and the highly adversarial environment created by competition between slates were the main arguments for banning slates in the AMS. In 2005, when independent presidential candidate Spencer Keys won the election, he succeeded in banning slates altogether. But, as anyone who’s involved in AMS politics knows, this didn’t put the slate debate to rest.

What’s wrong with slates, anyways? Proponents of reviving the slate system have argued that we’ve thrown the baby out with the bathwater. If slates came back, we’d have better engagement, better gender and minority representation, and more accountability. Now graduated, longtime Arts councillor Matt Naylor was a strong advocate for bringing slates back to the AMS. He backed the student engagement argument, saying that allowing slates would be another way to draw new students into student politics who otherwise might not know where to begin or would rather unite with a group of students who had similar concerns. Voters might also be better engaged and informed with a slate system. Richard Johnston, a UBC political science professor who holds the Canada research chair in

public opinion, elections and representation, said that voter turnout is likely hurt by not having slates. “We’re talking about a relatively low-information environment [in AMS politics]. How do people navigate in low-information environments? They look for crutches, they look for proxies, they look for cue-giving entities,” Johnston explained. Imagine if you were given candidates for members of parliament, but only the names, Johnston said. Then, imagine you were then given each candidate’s party label. “Merely by giving you those [labels], I would be telling you 75 per cent of what you need to know.” Former VP External Tim Chu agreed. “It really does not help when you have students who are going to school, taking five courses, working a part-time job to pay tuition fees and you’re trying to ask them to do research on…30, 40 candidates.” The information is inconclusive about voter turnout after the loss of slates; some years are higher than before and some are lower, and factors such as the voting system likely have a large effect. But Naylor said that it’s still a matter of being transparent with students who aren’t on the inside of the AMS. “Candidates already help one another, and those relationships play out in Council. The only thing the slate ban does is deny that information to the voting populace.” Another problem is that candidate’s political views can be buried in their platforms, with their full position only being disclosed after they’ve been elected to their position. “Think about it,” said Chu. “If a right-wing slate starts up on campus where their position is, ‘It’s okay for tuition fees to increase,’ how many students will be voting for them? “[But] that’s actually the position of a lot [of the] AMS executive, and people don’t know that because they’re running as independents,” Chu argued. “They’re talking about their

own experience and how they’re best suited for the job, but we don’t quite know exactly where they stand.” Political parties can also ensure ethnic minorities and women are not left behind. “If you’re concerned [about] incorporating more women into political life, you have to take steps to make it happen,” said Johnston. “It helps to have a centralized nominating process that sets up quotas... If there are no parties, there can’t be any quotas.” There used to be a quota for women in each slate, and while it did lead to more women running and winning, women were often elected to VP Finance or VP Administration positions. However, no women have been elected AMS president since the abolition of slates.

Toxic slates But there are others that think the AMS isn’t the place for partisanship. “Some view the AMS as a student government, but I see it as it legally is—the Board of Directors of a $30 million non-profit service providing organization,” said Jeremy McElroy, current president of the AMS. He considers himself political, but tends to avoid placing himself in parties. “While people may disagree on issues, we are based on a consensus model that aims to bring about the best possible outcome. “Needlessly politicizing Council would not engage students more, it would only bring more division around the table.” Keys said this is exactly what he saw before he banned slates. In his experience, political competition was an underlying current in everything that Council did. “The environment itself was toxic...It doesn’t make sense to have that kind of a hyper-partisan environment that poisons everything— even the smallest of decisions in regard to who sits on an appointments committee—for what you actually got out of it.”

Johnston said this holds for most political party systems. “Parties are seen as getting in the way of proper deliberation, and indeed, they do! We know that the extremes of partisanship can often get in the way of the real business of politics.” The existence of parties also tends to produce boundaries and oppositions that can get artificial and rigid. According to Keys, in the days of slates, AMS councillors were not friends, didn’t spend any time with each other and everyone stayed on their own side of campus. When executives from different slates were elected, it caused infighting that might not be resolved until 9 months into a 12 month position. Student unions that have slates sometimes have rules that mitigate the problems that plagued the AMS. Keys points to the University of Alberta, which has strict rules on slates and doesn’t have the culture of divisive politics that the AMS did. Queen’s University, in comparison, has compulsory slate voting, where you only have one vote, and you vote for a slate. But there, slates don’t continue from year to year, meaning their brands aren’t associated with certain political views. Instead, slates simply take on the initials of a coalition of people running for executive position.

To slate or not to slate So the question remains: has the AMS had enough cool-off time after slates, or are they inherently wrong for student politics at UBC? In 2009, a proposal to resurrect slates was introduced, but the motion did not achieve the two thirds of Council support required

to pass. But slates have since been brought into the Student Legal Fund Society (SLFS) race. The 2009 SLFS board passed a resolution to allow them, said Naylor. “[We] thought that slates would provide valuable information to students who weren’t likely to get jazzed up about the six individuals running to sit on the board of the legal fund. “I think it’s helped the society by providing some stability, and also by fostering debate about the society.” This year a new slate, using the name of an old slate called Student Progressive Action Network (SPAN), has entered the race, providing a left-wing perspective to challenge the incumbent slate, Students for Responsible Leadership. “A contest of ideas is going to inject some innovation into that race, and that society,” said Naylor. But Keys doesn’t think the AMS would be able to sidestep the polarization that comes with the reintroduction of slates, and insisted that projects like the new SUB would never have passed under a partisan system. “Look at what the AMS has accomplished since slates have been gotten rid of, and compare that with the accomplishments in the same period of time before slates were gotten rid of and then tell me slates are better,” said Keys. “I don’t think you can. “Everyone I’ve ever seen that’s advocated for a slate system in the last ten years, not a single one of them actually saw slates in action. The only people who saw slates... have said, it’s better the way things are now.” U

6 | Sports | 01.26.2012

The UBC Sailing Club: Trying to catch a breeze Somewhere in between competitive and social, the UBC sailing team joins the growing collegiate sailing movement in the Northwest

t is a brisk, wet early October morning on Lake Washington in Seattle. People dressed in heavy rain jackets walk from their cars to the dock at Sail Sand Point in Magnuson Park, a former naval base that is now a sprawling sports complex. Inside the open doors of an old warehouse is the dry storage for the UBC collegiate sailing team. A sail lies on the floor. Neil Roberts and Karl Jensen, both engineering students, are debating about which number to apply to the new sail. Another member of the team walks in. “We’ve got to be on the water in ten minutes,” says Becky Power, a fourth-year student in integrated sciences. A crisp number eight is stamped onto the sail as the team rushes down the dock to get out on the water. The fresh sails fly into the air as other members scramble to set the rudder and tiller together. The team is ready to set out into the drizzling bay for a day of racing at the University of Washington’s Cascadia Cup.

he UBC collegiate sailing team started in 2009 after students from the AMS Sailing Club joined the Inter-Collegiate Sailing Association (ICSA), a governing body that includes teams from across the United States and Canada. “We were talking one day, and Queen’s [University] has quite a developed [team] and we were talking about how we all considered going because of that,” says Power. “We decided that [a team] would be an excellent addition to the school because a lot of sailors get deterred from coming to UBC because there is no collegiate program, and then they will go out

Photos and story by Geoff Lister

east to McGill or Queen’s. We kind of want to keep other sailors here and get more people involved on the West Coast.” The AMS Sailing Club provides UBC’s team with access to boats, equipment and training facilities. The team recently bought new sails—a small advantage, as sails lose their effectiveness over time. College sailing competitions, called regattas, require teams of two to sail small boats of the same model, most commonly the 13-foot Flying Junior. The skipper “drives” the boat, controlling the main sail and the steering, while the other sailor is responsible for the weight distribution of the delicately balanced bats. They’re also responsible for the jib, a smaller sail on the front of the boat. Host schools provide all of the boats and basic equipment, although most schools bring their own sails, rudders and tillers. These simple boats level the playing field and keep the cost of regattas down. Compared to the other schools at this regatta, UBC is an amateur club. UBC holds open practices twice a week during the school year, and many of the team members practice only once a week and don’t consistently practice with the same teammate. Only two of the teams— Power and Byron Roehrl, and Jensen and Roberts—have sailed together before.

fter rigging the boat, the teams push out onto the lake. A lackadaisical four-knot breeze ripples across the surface and the boats slide through the water quietly. The start line bobs about half a kilometre

reaches zero. A quick start is key to a good race, but toeing the line, often crowded by more than 20 other boats, is a complicated dance. Boats that push the limit are penalized by having to come back around and repeat the start. UBC comes slow out of the gate, with boats 4 and 8 placing 15th and 18th out of 23 boats in the first race. Scoring is calculated by adding up how well a team places over several races; each division completed eight races over the weekend. The winner is determined by the lowest cumulative team score at the end of the regatta. The boats sail two races and then switch sailors; if the B division doesn’t sail a series, the A division’s races are discounted.

offshore, stretching 100 metres to another buoy. The committee boat, a 16foot dinghy, sits on one end, setting the course and managing the start. Sailing races start on a sequence, with the aim being to cross the start line exactly as the countdown

he rain permeates everything. My camera bag is soaked by the second race and I’m suddenly glad I paid for weatherproofing. The wind, on the other hand, isn’t nearly as consistent. After two races (and just enough time for the B division to sail to the line) it drops to a whisper. Half an hour later, rippling water lures the teams back onto the course. “Some people say [sailing] is 60 per cent athletic and 40 per cent mental, so it’s a large component of sailing. The environment is a huge factor in sailing. You have to be extremely adaptable,” says Power. “Sitting onshore, you have to keep an open mind and you

can’t get frustrated because when you get frustrated you’re just not going to do well.” The wind picks up consistently through the afternoon. The wind has sailors hauling themselves out of the boat to hike out, flattening the boats against the stiff breeze. Sailors train in and out of the water. Sitting halfway out of a small skiff for hours requires more than just patience—it demands a gym membership.

We decided that [a team] would be an excellent addition to the school... A lot of sailors get deterred from coming to UBC because there is no collegiate program, and they...go out east to McGill or Queen’s. Becky Power Member of the UBC sailing team

“Sailing’s a sport you can get into no matter your level of fitness or general health, but in order to get to the top you’ve got to be on top of your game just like any other sport,” says Roberts. “If you look at top sailors, they’ll all be training on the water four or five days a week and in the gym six days a week.” For some, the wind is giving them more trouble than a sore abdomen. Smaller and more inexperienced sailors suddenly find their boats upside down. As they flail to right themselves, frigid October water rushes into every crevice of their boat, shocking their senses and their pride.

01.26.2012 | Sports | 7

Becky Power looks out across a windless Pontiac Bay Sunday morning.

Neil Roberts packs up sails at the end of the weekend regatta.

“It’s frustrating when I let it capsize. I’ve never been afraid of capsizing because I’ve been around the water so much, it’s more, ‘Oh no, now I’ve lost my position in the race and I’m going to come last,’” says Power, who managed to keep her boat upright for the weekend. “But if you’re pushing it, it’s kind of inevitable.”

ailing may be competitive, but it’s not a varsity sport on the western seaboard. While top boats at regattas have competitive crews that have sailed together since kindergarten, local teams have people sailing in their first competition ever. “It makes for a more challenging situation at times, because you have to expect the unexpected, flailing and capsizing and doing odd random manoeuvres that are moderately annoying or dangerous at times,” says Jensen. UBC’s team has made outreach a key part of their mission. At this meet, they’ve brought new sailors to teach them how to race. “Most people on our team have raced before, but there’s a couple of people who grew up in [recreational sailing] programs. You definitely need to know how to sail before you join our team, but we’re all for teaching and improving your knowledge of racing,” says Power. With varying levels of experience and points not counting towards national rankings, this weekend’s regatta has a slightly more relaxed atmosphere. “This was a small regional regatta,” says Power. “If you’re at the western championships you take things more seriously. [If] it’s like a local regatta, it’s not necessarily serious...It’s competitive yet fun; we like to let loose and have fun.” Tickets to a Sam Roberts concert

on Friday were purchased before the trip. When the team arrived on Friday, they headed to a frosh party at the University of Washington before leaving to see Roberts play at a local bar. The small bar is packed with Canadians who have come down to see him. On Saturday, fresh off the water, the team wandered for several blocks before arriving at a keg party held at a University of Washington team member’s house. As I wandered around the party taking photos and watching sailors from various teams banter back and forth, I could see a gradual osmosis of brotherhood developing. The sharing of drinks and stories was just another facet of sailing’s most fundamental requirement: the necessity of trust. And while most team sports create this, there is a certain amount of artifice in games created for stadiums and arenas. But there is something pure in sailing, the necessity of two people trusting each other as they combat nature’s angst; howling winds and

the cascading waves of frigid, icy water.

he team arrives on a clear Sunday morning to a waterskier gracefully carving across a perfectly flat lake. Teams mingle, talking about sailing or school, while others sit in their car to catch up on homework. “I’m kind of used to it. There’s a social aspect of sailing that occurs on no-wind days, so it’s kind of a natural part of sailing culture,” says Roberts. “It’s not ideal but there’s good things that come from it. A lot of my best friends I’ve made hanging out at regattas.” Eventually a gentle puff of wind coaxes the teams out onto the water. It’s slow going and races are abandoned and restarted as the wind comes, shifts and goes. UBC’s boats are placing well enough; veteran team members Ryan Cutting and Jen Grierson take a big early lead by charging the entire fleet in the wrong direction on the start line, called port-tacking the fleet. The racing ends in the early afternoon and presentations are made. Sailing teams rarely stay for trophies, as getting back home at a reasonable hour takes precedent over waiting for hardware. UBC places 11th and 12th out of 23 boats. As for UBC’s sailing team, it’s growing despite undesirable winter conditions. “It’s not really developed quite yet, but our goal is to become more like the Queen’s team,” says Power. “It’d be nice for us to eventually get to that level. Obviously the team is only a year old, so we’re still in the testing phase. “I think that with UBC, it’s more to promote people to continue racing. It’s a little bit competitive— like, we didn’t win, but it’s not the Olympics.” U

If you’re at the western championships you take things more seriously. [If] it’s like a local regatta, it’s not necessarily serious... It’s competitive yet fun; we like to let loose . Becky Power Member of the UBC sailing team

Karl Jenson and Mike Fischer cross the line for a first place finish on Sunday.

Culture

01.26.2012 |

Editor: Ginny Monaco

THEATRE>>

The Idiot is a subtle and engaging adaptation Rhys Edwards Staff Writer

Harley Quinn, Sergeant Slaughter, Two-Face and Thor all just want to have fun. If you do too, take a walk through the fourth dimension to Geeks After Dark.

PHOTOS COURTESY OF GEEKS AFTER

NERD CULTURE>>

The best nerd party this side of Mos Eisley

Sebastian Yoh Chern Contributor

It’s not a question of how nerdy you are, it’s a question of when nerdy you are. Geeks After Dark (GAD) is a unique marriage of dancing, comedy and nerd fanfare. The group organizes quarterly nights of trivia, costume contests and burlesque— or, as the case may be, nerdlesque. Their upcoming British science fiction-themed club event, Geeks After Dark: Bigger on the Inside, is this Friday at The Cellar. GAD began about two years ago when artistic director Fairlith Harvey wanted to organize a convention fundraiser, though the event itself ultimately fell through. “Fairlith’s been part of the burlesque community for a long time, and she thought it’d be fun to have nerdy, geeky, videogame and comic book-themed burlesque numbers,” said Cameron Russell, an executive of the group and co-producer

responsible for hosting, social media and writing. “It was a huge success, and even though the convention didn’t happen, we just thought, let’s keep doing that because it was a lot of fun.” Bigger on the Inside, the company’s fourth nightclub event, will be hosted by the Tenth Doctor from Doctor Who and Arthur Dent from A Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy, portrayed by Russell and fellow co-producer Tyler Nicol, respectively. “The hosting sequences are usually themed,” noted Russell, who also played Marty McFly and The Riddler in past events. “We write a little story about why they’re there and what they’re doing. It’s like a little show.” GAD separates itself from the crowd with its nerdlesque dance numbers that feature talented individuals from around the city in a variety of costumes. “All of the burlesque numbers

are nerdy-themed. It doesn’t matter what kind. It can be from Carmen Sandiego to Batman Returns to Pokemon,” said Russell. Participation is open to anyone hoping to showcase his or her skills or even those interested in just trying their hand at burlesque. “Anyone can participate. If you got a number and you know how to do that stuff, you’re welcome to come out and try,” Russell said. “If anybody wants to learn how to do that or try something out, please feel free to contact us. We like to give new talent a way to show themselves off.” However, don’t expect to see any half-hearted routines and execution. “We plan it far in advance,” said Russel. “We have to stage it all out, make sure it’s the right kind of number and time it all out. It’s a process.” Nerdlesque and quirky host segments aside, GAD is an excellent place to meet like-minded

individuals and unabashedly wax nerdy. There’s also a $2 discount if you go in costume. “Whether a movie night, a pub night, or any other event, Geeks After Dark is an all around positive experience,” said Dan Haselhan, a regular attendee. “It’s a small but growing community embracing everything dorky with an adult twist. You can show up a stranger and leave with a ton of new friends,” he added. GAD has grown steadily since its humble beginnings, and Russell anticipates Bigger on the Inside will be the biggest one yet. “From the amount of advertising we’ve done and the amount of buzz we’ve gotten from newspapers such as the Georgia Straight, we’re probably looking at around 250, so it’s going to be at capacity. We’re really excited about that.” U For more information, check out facebook.com/GeeksAfterDark.

Fish and Bird avoid falling into genre traps Anna Zoria Staff Writer

Fish and Bird are a band who have a hard time fitting into any sort of boxes. When asked what genre best describes them, the group ponders the question for several minutes before finally replying, “Microwave folk newspaper music.” “We’ve had a lot of extensive and fruitless conversations about what we should call it,” says Taylor Ashton, the BC band’s leading vocalist. The band’s co-founder, Adam Iredale-Gray, agrees: “At one point we decided on indie folk, but folk is such a broad term that it doesn’t really mean anything at this point.” It all started when Ashton and Iredale-Gray came together over their love for old-timey music. Three albums later and thousands of touring miles under their collective belts, the band is now a five-piece award-winning machine. While they have a traditionally roots line-up (banjo, guitar, fiddle, upright bass, drums), their music often goes beyond what people typically classify as “Americana-bluegrass.” But with lyrics like “Though

we try and try to conjoin/Every whisper is a shout across the void,” it becomes clear that this is not your grandparents’ back-porch music. Ashton explained that the main themes of the new album are isolation, miscommunication and dreams that stem from personal experiences of “being really close with someone and having what you say come across as totally wrong.” He adds, “I sort of imagine us all on our own planets, screaming at each other, trying to get our point across.” Although the new album and a number of cross-country tours have brought Fish and Bird great critical acclaim and nation-wide attention, the band seems pretty set on staying true to the small town communities whose hearts they’ve won over in recent years. “You can be struggling and poor as an artist in New York City or Berlin or your home town,” says Ben Kelly, who plays drums for the band. What’s more, Fish and Bird appear to be genuinely rooted in the communities that have made them who they are today. As we sit in the coffee shop and chat, I notice posters advertising the band’s upcoming shows plastered to the shop’s

COURTESY OF THE ARTIST

The forests of Victoria, BC are Fish and Birds’ natural habitat.

windows, and the baristas holler out inside jokes at various band members during our interview. They seem relaxed and at ease, and come across as the sort of band that is quietly confident in the value of their own art. This quiet confidence is perhaps what allows Fish and Bird to be so playful about the labels that the media often tries to assign to them. As I point out that they’re not

helping the situation by wearing all plaid, they look over at the only member of their crew who isn’t wearing any and say, deadpan, “She didn’t get the memo.” With a good sense of humour and a talent that’s grounded in years of practice, Fish and Bird are sure to stick around. And judging from the support they get at their shows, people are ready to listen to whatever they’re shouting. U

Following on the success of Neworld Theatre’s 2005 production of Fyodor Dostoyevsky’s Crime and Punishment, UBC’s Frederic Wood Theatre is host once again to another adaptation by the great Russian sensualist: The Idiot. The Idiot follows the exploits of the tragicomically innocent Prince Lyov Nikolayevich Myshkin, who has returned to St Petersburg after several years of treatment for epilepsy in Switzerland. He is soon embroiled with an entourage of neurotic, conceited and passionate characters, who lead the Prince into a desperate conflict of love, dignity and truth. Much of the narrative has been altered or simplified for the stage. This allows the audience to engage in the production without succumbing to weariness, though it is perhaps worrisome that some of the more subtle qualities of Dostoyevsky’s rich cast are lost in the transition. Furthermore, some crucial plot points are only briefly detailed, which can be confusing. Thankfully, the brevity of the narrative is more than balanced by the subtlety with which the ensemble delivers their performance. With deftness and precision, the cast communicates the deeply funny aspects of Dostoyevsky’s tale, while also conveying the urgent humanity of their distinct characters. Kevin MacDonald renders a convincing naivete as the titular idiot; also notable is Craig Erickson’s sharp portrayal of Ganya, the terse, selfdeprecating, sometimes-friend of the Prince. To streamline the narrative, director and playwright James Tait, along with composer Joelysa Pankanea, has employed the use of brief musical dialogues; these provide context for certain plot points, while emphasizing others. These segments are occasionally dissonant, but are generally effective, if not altogether profound. Also laudable is the outstanding costume design by Mara Gottler, which complements the cast without degrading the work into a historical period piece. Tait has managed to develop a coherent and moving production out of Dostoyevsky’s text. It is miraculous that, at a running time of three and a half hours, Tait’s adaptation of The Idiot does not once lose momentum, particularly considering the sometimes obtuse nature of the plot. Rather, Tait’s direction is succinct and entertaining. Most praiseworthy is the self-sufficiency of the production; it is an outstanding work of theatre, regardless of taste or familiarity with the text. The Idiot runs until January 29. It is produced by Neworld Theatre Production and Vancouver Moving Theatre, amd co-presented by Theatre at UBC and the PuSh International Performing Arts Festival. U

ubyssey.ca/culture

Get enlightened

01.26.2012 | Opinion | 9

AMS Elections

The Ubyssey’s official endorsements for the 2012-13 AMS executive

Endorsements

his year, 12 Ubyssey editors and volunteer staff met for two and a half hours to decide who we would endorse in the AMS elections. We operate on a one-person, one-vote system, and this year, in the interest of transparency, we’re releasing our internal vote totals as well. Coordinating editor Justin McElroy, being the cousin of current AMS President Jeremy McElroy, did not take part in discussions or voting for our endorsement of president. The vote totals differ slightly, as some staff did not vote on certain races. For a full explanation of the thought process behind our endorsements, visit the AMS Elections blog on our website.

President

VP Academic

VP Administration

VP Finance

Matt Parson: 11 for, 0 against

Kiran Mahal: 6 for, 4 against

Caroline Wong: 9 for, 0 against

Tristan Miller: 9 for, 0 against

For the first time in recent memory, there are three competent candidates for president. Alyssa Koehn is passionate about student engagement and has a proven desire for involvement with campus. Ben Cappellacci is a great speaker and did a good job as VP Academic with the AMS. And Matt Parson is hardworking and has experience in many levels of campus life. But when you break down both what was said in the debates and the candidates’ platforms, Parson has so much more to offer than the others. Parson has clear, specific plans for dealing with the most important issues facing both UBC and the position of president. These include governance, Gage South, housing affordability, student mental health and student engagement. We especially appreciate that Parson knows enough about campus issues to speak in detail on all the planks in his platform. With the new Performance Accountability Restriction (PAR) on $5000 of executive pay next year, there is a good chance he will achieve his goals. And for the first time in recent memory, a presidential candidate is willing to pledge something concrete in terms of engaging the student body. Parson plans to meet 1000 different students as president and document this in a blog. It’s lofty, but it’s better than anything we’ve heard from the other candidates. While Cappellacci’s overall vision is inspirational, his plan for leadership is reminiscent of the current president, Jeremy McElroy. They both speak about grandiose visions for the society, but back it up with little detail. With so many clear issues to be worked on this year, the AMS needs someone who has a more focused plan. Koehn’s lack of experience in a VP position is one thing that holds us back from endorsing her—we would have likely endorsed her for one of those positions instead. We’re also concerned that by focusing so largely on student engagement, she would not help the AMS gain ground on many of the other policy areas that it has been working on. Again, these are three strong candidates and the AMS would benefit from all of them. But Parson is knowledgeable and passionate enough to take the AMS in the direction it needs to go—and that’s why we’ve unanimously endorsed him.

We are endorsing Kiran Mahal by a narrow margin over Bahador Moosavi. Iqbal Kassam is passionate, but lacks the knowledge of UBC necessary to oversee the very broad portfolio he’s running for. Carven Li’s platform, while having its share of good ideas, is too focused on issues that aren’t pressing for the portfolio, such as athletics fees. Both Mahal and Moosavi have the skills required to make good VP Academics. But though Mahal might not be as qualified when it comes to the university affairs part of the portfolio, she has a clear vision for its academic responsibilities. The emphasis of her campaign on student mental health also impressed us. As SUS president, she has shown that she can competently manage the responsibilities required of an executive. Moosavi is well-rounded and reliable in his work on Council, and we think it would be a significant loss if he left the AMS. Ultimately, though, we feel that Mahal’s strength on academic policy outweighs the balance Moosavi would bring. We should also add that The Ubyssey will not comment on Party Rock’s candidacy; an offspring of Rock has been sitting in our office for a week, giving us a conflict of interest in this matter.

We are unanimously endorsing Caroline Wong for VP Administration. Wong’s experience as an AMS rep sitting on the Business and Facilities Committee and chairing the Student Life Committee has given her a reasonable grasp of many aspects of the VP Admin portfolio, and she is known to possess a strong and efficient work ethic. Her platform contains concrete plans for the new SUB regarding sustainability and disability access, touches on some positive new plans for club administration, and also has a strong focus on improving AMS services (although this issue partially falls under the VP Academic portfolio). Elaine Kuo demonstrated a fundamental lack of experience in this portfolio. Though she has been president of the English Club, at the AMS level she has only served as a student-at-large on the Student Administrative Commission. Her platform focused on AMS clubs to the exclusion of all other issues. Compared to Wong, Kuo also showed a general lack of confidence and knowledge in debate. There are a number of areas in which Wong needs improvement, however. Demonstrating a lack of knowledge regarding the Clubs Benefit Fund, she stated in debate that it could be used for travel expenses but was correctly informed by Tristan Miller that this was not permitted. Her communication style could also use more professionalism. But on the whole, there was consensus that Wong’s experience and knowledge gave her a clear advantage over Kuo.

Tristan Miller is a very well-qualified candidate for VP Finance, and we are unanimously endorsing him in this uncontested race. Due to his work as vice-chair of the Finance Commission, Miller has solid knowledge of the AMS’s finances and his proposal for having Council adopt three-year plans is a good idea that will help bring consistency to the society’s budgetary priorities. Our endorsement does come with a small caveat. In the past, there has been an issue with the VP Finance not being able to communicate effectively with the student community, as Miller has pointed out in some of his interviews. The problem is that Miller leaves much to be desired in his public speaking skills. He has promised to increase consultations with other AMS organizations before making decisions, but for this to work he will need to improve his ability to speak in front of large groups. We do wish he had some competition to force him to defend his positions more robustly, but we are confident that Miller will be a dependable and trustworthy VP Finance.

fiasco that he bears some responsibility for. Yet there are many reasons Warwick deserves this endorsement. His knowledge of policy at every governmental level is unrivaled on Council, which is a particularly important asset in the VP External portfolio. He brings a long institutional memory to the executive and pays close attention to detail during debates. Warwick also has a proven commitment to advocating student issues and can back up his rhetoric when challenged. Finally, on a personal level, Warwick is the least egotistical candidate that the AMS has had for a long time, which is refreshing in student politics. He consistently puts principle before politics and values the importance of open, honest debate. We always prefer competition in election races, but Warwick will serve the AMS well in this position.

code, his lack of plans for federal lobbying is excluding UBC from important debates that could impact students. Warwick’s political affiliation as a staunch federal Liberal—he ran for them as a sacrificial lamb in the 2011 federal election—opens the door for partisan politics influencing AMS policy. He may claim it won’t be a problem, but it has always been a problem with partisan VP Externals in the past. He was also the leading advocate of the PAR performance bonus for executives, which was bungled terribly and disillusioned many students. Also in question are Warwick’s abilities in advocacy itself. Having knowledge of the issues is one thing, but convincing others to take your side is another. There is no doubt that Warwick is a very intelligent, passionate individual and an asset to the AMS, but he isn’t the ideal candidate for VP External. U

VP External Kyle Warwick: 5 for, 4 against, 1 abstention We are endorsing Warwick, but the vote only passed by a narrow margin. The race for VP External is uncontested, which means a vote against Kyle Warwick is essentially a vote for a by-election and a hope for

more candidates. The chief concerns about Warwick are his political ties (he ran as a Liberal candidate in the last federal election) and his mismanagement of the executive pay raise as chair of the Legislative Procedures Committee. But given that the Liberals have been reduced to third-party status, this is less of a concern than it might normally be. We also hope that Warwick has learned something about the importance of public relations after the pay raise

Dissenting Opinion While Warwick is extremely knowledgeable on the inner workings of AMS bylaws and

10 | Opinion | 01.26.2012 Board of Governors Seat 1: Sean Cregten, 10 votes Seat 2: Erik MacKinnon, 6 votes Runner up: Justin Yang, 4 votes

The two students elected to UBC’s Board of Governors have a giant responsibility. On the affordability of education, on governance of the largest urban area in Canada without a municipal government and on letting the most powerful people at UBC know exactly what students think, their voice is crucial. The good news is that all seven candidates have the experience and passion to be a positive force on the Board. It’s the strongest

field any of us have seen. The bad news is we have to choose two. For our first choice, we are endorsing Sean Cregten for the Board of Governors. The vote was unanimous in his favour. His two years as AMS Associate VP for Academic & University Affairs has given him the knowledge, contacts and sense of history to succeed in the role. On Gage South and land use issues, he has second-to-none expertise among the candidates. Most importantly, he knows how to manage the fine line of being respectful to the administration while pointing out the ways their plans do not benefit current students. His lack of vigorous campaigning means his chances of winning are small, which is a shame. But you won’t be disappointed if you vote for Cregten. Sumedha Sharma has served on the Board for the past year, and while she is passionate and knowledgeable, her tangible accomplishments are few. Nobody will accuse her of not working hard, but we feel it’s time for a different

Senate

perspective on the board. Tagg Jefferson, despite having the least campus-wide experience, has impressed us with his nuanced answers. However, his lack of knowledge on the governance of UBC (at least when he was interviewed by our writers) precluded us from seriously considering his candidacy. Mike Silley, though helped by his experience on the AMS executive, was too vague on anything other than tuition increases for us to have confidence on what he would do on the Board. In addition, complaints by councillors and fellow executives about his work this year gave us pause. Candidates aside from Cregten who received the most consideration by us were Erik MacKinnon, Matt Parson and Justin Yang. The debate for Matt Parson was brief— while we have high confidence in his abilities, the many potential conflicts that could arise from being president and a Board member meant that ultimately we couldn’t consider him.

Justin Yang is, in many ways, an ideal type of Board candidate. We have no doubts that if elected, he would be diligent, competent and courteous, while pushing forward one or two ideas that would benefit all students. Yet his selfacknowledged problem of passivity would hinder his effectiveness in a group of 18 very powerful and very wealthy people. Which leaves us with Erik MacKinnon. We endorse him partly because he ran the best campaign of any candidate in this election—if you want to represent all students, you should put the energy in to getting their support, and MacKinnon did that. But we also endorse him because we know he would work hard, be reasoned in his opinions and speak out when he felt it necessary. We haven’t had a Board member that was a real public advocate for student interests in some time. MacKinnon would be a breath of fresh air. However, a note on the elephant in the room—MacKinnon’s documented history of offensive

statements about women and minorities on his personal blog, Bald Truth. We condemn those statements unconditionally. But ultimately, even those most put off by MacKinnon’s past statements acknowledged that when he wants to act professionally, he does so. Now he has to understand that if elected, he’ll be representing all students; with many of them, he’s already at two and a half strikes. Our endorsement is for MacKinnon, not for Bald Truth— and we hope he won’t make us feel silly in six months.

The referendum questions

Justin Yang Kiran Mahal Katherine Tyson Montana Hunter (all unanimous) Five out of the six candidates in this race will be elected. We are unanimously endorsing four of them: Justin Yang, Kiran Mahal, Katherine Tyson and Montana Hunter. The other two candidates, Dawei Ji and Barnabas Caro, both failed to get enough support from our editorial board for endorsements. Yang, the incumbent, continues to have an outstanding understanding of academic issues and will provide needed experience to the body’s student caucus. Mahal is focused on academic issues and will be able to translate that in a useful way to Senate, with strong ideas on how to bridge rifts between Senate and AMS Council. Katherine Tyson’s skill set will apply better to a role on the Senate than it did to the role of AMS VP External, and she appears ready to forcefully argue for her positions. Unlike the first three, Montana Hunter has less experience on the issues, although he has expressed a willingness to learn and will comport himself with maturity on a body where students must work side by side with professors and staff. Both Ji and Caro possess less of an understanding of the workings of Senate and do not have the experience to support themselves stepping into the role. Caro is passionate and well-intentioned but did not impress us with his knowledge of the issues, while Ji is outspoken but lacks substance in his positions.

COURTESY MICHAEL KINGSMILL

Question 1: Reducing the Student Spaces Fee Yes 8, No 2

VS Student Legal Fund Society We unanimously endorse a split board In the race for the Student Legal Fund Society (SLFS) board of directors, we are endorsing a split board. We believe both slates are flawed, and wouldn’t want to see either with full power. However, we’re endorsing a ballot with four seats for the Student Progressive Action Network (SPAN) and two seats for the Students for Responsible Leadership (SRL). Ultimately our decision was a result of both the SRL’s refusal to fund many legal initiatives and the number of sensible proposals from SPAN. Because the board has nine total members, a four-person block from SPAN would mean that they would be able to push initiatives such as funding Freedom of Information requests and criminal background checks for students, but would still have other board members to act as a check. We have qualms about specific candidates on both slates, such as SRL’s Maria Cirstea, who appears to have no interest in the SLFS, and SPAN’s Arielle Friedman, who irresponsibly managed funds as treasurer of the Social Justice Centre. However, SPAN is offering new ideas and enthusiasm to a board that has lacked both. And that’s a good thing.

We endorse voting yes to this question. Although students put plenty of money into this fund every year, little of it is used and even less will be needed in the future. With a new SUB, the costly renovations that are regularly needed to keep our current aging building in shape won’t be needed. Part of the reason the AMS is in bad financial shape is because too much of their money is forced to go into funds that can’t be spent properly—and this helps to rectify that. Question 2: Putting the Endowment Fund in code Yes 10, Abstain 1 We endorse voting yes to this because the new AMS Endowment Fund is a good idea. Our student union should have a fund where they keep the principal but spend the interest, creating a more sustainable business model. It’s important to protect large endowment funds from manipulation from future councils, and codifying the fund through a referendum will do that. Question 3: The Whistler Lodge Yes 5, No 4, Abstain 1

Virtually every member of our staff agreed there is very little hope of the AMS running the Whistler Lodge well anytime soon. It was built by the Varsity Outdoors Club when Whistler was a sleepy outpost, the AMS took it over, and now they simply do not have the capacity or the organization to effectively manage it in the 21st century. However, we were also in agreement that the AMS did not do their due diligence in trying to sell the lodge. Getting rid of a much-cherished service that many students feel passionately about should require transparency and building a case. Our student union didn’t do any of this. The question is, what matters more: being accountable to stakeholders, or immediately saving the AMS quite a bit of money? A slim majority of us believed that since selling the lodge is inevitable, the sooner the AMS gets on with doing so the better. But we wouldn’t argue much if you voted the other way. Question 4: Selling three pieces of art from the Permanent Collection Yes 1, No 9, Abstain 1 We overwhelmingly endorse voting no. The question is not transparent and students do not know what

they are authorizing the AMS to do. The Permanent Collection has many culturally significant pieces of art and it would be a shame to see them sold because the AMS doesn’t wish to pay $9000 annually in insurance fees. Furthermore, the AMS has recently stated that they are looking to sell their most expensive pieces—which are the strongest pieces in the collection. One of these is Lawren Harris’s Mountain Spirit. Harris is one of Canada’s most renowned painters and Mountain Spirit was a gift to the AMS from Maclean’s magazine. Selling paintings that were previously received as gifts is a massively insulting act. Pierre Berton, Canadian icon and former Ubyssey editor, was the managing editor of Maclean’s when the AMS received this piece. By selling it they are tarnishing the trust created between one of UBC’s most famous alumni and the student union. If we give the AMS the permission to do this—to legally sell a culturally significant gift—we are giving our elected executives permission to shine an incredibly negative light on this campus. To be clear, we aren’t against the idea of selling a couple pieces of the collection to have funds available for maintaining (and building upon) the collection. That’s a good idea. But do it transparently, and do it honestly. U

Scene

01.26.2012 |

Pictures and words on your university experience

HUMOUR >>

All in the name of art

Let’s sell those moldy old paintings and get some art students will actually understand Warnes World Bryce Warnes On the upcoming referendum, students will decide whether to grant the AMS the right to sell the three most valuable works from their “Permanent” Art Collection. The collection is being stored in less-than-favourable conditions, and the AMS can’t afford the insurance and security payments necessary to display it. I hope this passes and that the AMS sells the pieces. Current predictions point to the sale bringing in a giant heap of money, destined for the Student Art Fund. Some of that cash can go towards improving the situation of the unsold pieces. More importantly, that money needs to go towards art that students will actually enjoy, art that will appeal to UBC’s masses. Instead of being stored in a dank, leaky room, the AMS’s art should be on permanent display as murals around campus. Further, these new works of art need to appeal to the majority of students. And the best place to find art that appeals to a broad swath of the student population is at the Imaginus Poster Sale. For instance, how about a portrait of Bob Marley smoking an immaculate doob, spread across the

south face of Buchanan Tower? If one image sums up the Faculty of Arts, it’s Tuff Gong blazin’. The front of Henry Angus would look great with a film still of Tony Montana wielding his “little friend.” What image better summarizes Sauder mentality than a coked-up gangster mercilessly mowing down other human beings in pursuit of wealth and fame? Imagine the interior walls of the BirdCoop graced with giant prints of Da Vinci’s “Vitruvian Man.” That way everyone who is sweating and straining towards perfection can fix their eyes on the impossible ideal they’re pursuing. Stills from Fight Club belong on all of the frat houses, due to implications of violent homoerocitism. I’d like to say there’s a place somewhere on this campus for Audrey Hepburn in Breakfast at Tiffany’s, but she’s smoking a cigarette in that picture. If people see that, they could very well take up smoking, a habit which is morally Wrong. Those “Keep Calm and Carry On” posters would provide handy advice in the Bookstore, where the cost of textbooks often throws customers into fits of anxiety and dismay roughly equal to that experienced by British citizens during a hypothetical Nazi invasion. There is a chance that the cost of maintaining all this public art (keeping Bob’s spliff lit, wiping jizz and blood from the Fight Club mural, etc.) would be prohibitive.

EJ Hughes and other BC art heirlooms could learn a thing or two from the Imaginus poster sale.

In that case, I recommend the AMS begins hiring their own artists to churn out work. I’m picturing a Grapes of Wrath situation here, where the AMS president pulls up in front of an independently-owned coffee house (perhaps the Boulevard) in a Ford roadster, watch fob dangling from waistcoat pocket, cigar a-puffing,

and enters the building. “Y’all lookin’ fer work?” s/he hollers to the baristas behind the counter. Shortly, jalopies begin parking outside the SUB. They are piloted by men and women with new tattoos and thick-framed glasses, their improvised truck-beds loaded with easels, cameras, modelling

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clay and iMac workstations. Before long, AMS businesses and clubs are graced with oil paintings of anime-eyed pop surrealist heroines, Super-8 dream sequences set to ambient microtechno, indecipherable India ink contour drawings and Polaroids of half-naked skinny chicks smoking. All in the name of Art. U

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Presidential hopefuls Matt Parson and Ben Cappellacci battle for supremacy in the Science Undergraduate Society’s Jello wrestling contest. The event is a battle royale for the heads of undergraduate societies, as well as AMS executive candidates. Contestants attempt to wrest a Jello-soaked sock from their opponent’s foot.