Wednesday, March 13, 2013

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Just my type Western grad brings unique photography technique to London market. >> pg. 4

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Wednesday, March 13, 2013

Connecting the Worlds

Volume 106, Issue 83

London > Unemployment

London unemployment City rolls out free Wi-Fi hotspots downtown up from January rates Jaclyn Carbone Gazette Staff

Genevieve Moreau Gazette

Jeremiah Rodriguez Gazette Staff In anticipation of the 2013 International Skating Union World Figure Skating Championships, London has significantly expanded free Wi-Fi access to the downtown core.

The expansion comes from London Area Wireless Network, which began as a scalable pilot program created by volunteers from Downtown London, in association with Main Street London and the London Business Association in 2011.

“We started using this well before the [Worlds]. The city [recently] set aside about $150,000 for Wi-Fi, but since we were already doing this, we decided to partner up and save the city considerable money,” Joel Adams, committee chair of London LAWN, said.

“We saved them at least $100,000. The city paid for the additional units and installation that allowed us to expand faster, but Downtown London still plans

to operate this on an ongoing basis.”

“The system is very userfriendly to manage, [and] with no dedicated IT staff, the rest have been volunteer effort from Starch Communications and Nerds On Site,” Adams continued.

According to Adams, London’s network succeeded where other cities’ haven’t because LAWN was planned out more incrementally and timed to coincide with a growth in the number of connected devices being used.

Adams also explained local businesses wanted people to browse within their stores with the added convenience of Internet access, which would supplement service providers.

Kathy McLaughlin, program coordinator for LAWN, said people attending local events and festivals in the downtown core, as well as artists, musicians and photographers, would hopefully flock to downtown more.

“More of our targeted customers, like those in the tech industry,

students and commuters, would appreciate it while waiting for the bus, or waiting for friends somewhere outside Budweiser Gardens in market square in the summer time,” McLaughlin said.

Creative innovations with the Wi-Fi network is critical for longterm implementation as local businesses would need to assess the usefulness of its feature to creating revenue for their stores.

“Any cons [from London LAWN] would have to be made in light of the [hidden] long term costs to see if this would be helpful to see this continue,” Robert Collins, a member of the London Economical Development Corporation, explained. “However, this makes our downtown more attractive and useful to a broader demographic.”

As of Tuesday, London LAWN has seen a sharp rise from the 500 unique users per day to more than 1,000. Adams said he anticipates this to be a great boon to the city, and boasted London now has one of the largest open free Wi-Fi networks available in Canada.

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London and St. Thomas’ unemployment rates increased dramatically between January and February this year.

Statistics Canada released February unemployment numbers showing the local joblessness rate has climbed from 8.5 per cent in January to 9.1 per cent in February.

“The unemployment rate has increased and it may be due to several factors, including that corporations that have closed the doors, such as Ford, paid their employees severance packages and many of these employees may have been able to apply to unemployment insurance for the first time,” Denise Brown, Ward 11 councillor for London city council, said.

Brown also mentioned that although the labour force has increased, so has the population.

As a result, the rise in joblessness in London and St. Thomas could be due to a population increase.

Citizens of London and St. Thomas will have to find a way to cope with this surge in joblessness.

“All I can recommend to anyone unemployed is to network, search available job websites, send out resumes as much as possible and be positive. There are jobs out there,” Brown stated.

Katrina McIntosh, resource coordinator at Western’s Student Success Centre, believes unemployment numbers are the result of many factors, but the numbers do not show how this rise might affect students.

For students, a rise in unemployment could mean less job opportunities.

McIntosh stressed it’s important for students to know what’s going on in the labour market.

She explained students should be aware of the market for their area of interest so they will be able to place themselves in the best position with their resume, skills and where they search for jobs in order to give themselves the best possible opportunity in the job market.

“If a student is interested in a field or path that has a poor outlook for the labour market, that doesn’t mean they shouldn’t go into it, it just means they might have to work a little harder to find that job,” McIntosh said.

All I can recommend to anyone unemployed is to network, search available job websites, send out resumes as much as possible and be positive. There are jobs out there.

—Denise Brown

Ward 11 councillor for London

McIntosh emphasized there are a lot of sources to help students find employment.

“We have so much help, and not everyone uses the help, or finds the help, or they think it’s remedial help. We’re here, our services are free to students, we have drop-in counselling, we have drop-in resume and cover letter [workshops] and we have individual one-on-one appointments,” McIntosh said. “There’s lots of opportunity for everyone.

The numbers and the statistics around employment make that opportunity a little bit harder, and it might be a little bit harder to find it, but there’s definitely opportunity, and there’s definitely help.”

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thegazette • Wednesday, March 13, 2013

Caught on Camera

Crossword By Eugene Sheffer

Andrei Calinescu GAZETTE

BREAK OUT THE SAND BAGS. The Campus Community Police Service issued a flood watch Monday as the Thames continues to rise due to spring runoff.

News Briefs

Western issues flood watch With spring right around the corner, so is the potential danger of flooding around Western’s campus.

On Monday night, Western put out a flood watch, a warning for all staff and students to steer clear of Thames River and surrounding areas.

“Students should definitely be staying away from the edge of the water, because it is up over the banks in certain areas—specifically along the east side of the river through the

Solution to puzzle on page 7

university grounds where the pathways are,” Elgin Austen, director of the Campus Community Police Service, said. “They should also stay away from Medway Creek—we have to remember we have another creek pouring into the river that connects at North Campus Building. It’s another fast-moving stream that shouldn’t be taken for granted.”

Western certainly can’t control the flooding, but Austen explained they have been doing as much as they can to prepare people for it. They have a flood plan, which includes officers checking the river and the physical gage on the river that measures the water levels.

Even though the pathways on the east side of the river remain flooded and closed to pedestrian traffic, all parking lots, including Medway parking lot, are open.

For students who might take risks around the water, Austen said it isn’t worth it, as these areas will remain unstable for a little while.

“Don’t think that even if it turned warmer that any of these areas are

AT TENTION STUDENTS USING SERVICES FOR STUDENTS WITH DISABILITIES We would like to remind you that you must meet with a counsellor at Services for Students with Disabilities (SSD), in the Student Development Centre, to arrange academic accommodation for your 2012/2013 winter courses.

If you have not yet requested accommodation for your courses, and you wish to use accommodation for April 2013 exams, you must meet with a counsellor by Wednesday, March 20th.

Accommodation for April 2013 exams cannot be arranged by SSD if requested after this date.

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safe to be around,” he said. “The water is moving substantially fast and it is highly dangerous.”

—Jesica Hurst

Youth still struggling in job market Since the beginning of the economic recovery, the Canadian labour market has almost gone back to normal.

However, a huge concern remains that youth and the long-term unemployed have been left behind.

According to Philippe Bergevin, a senior policy analyst at the C.D. Howe Institute, more work needs to be done to improve labour mobility and skill training among Canadians.

According to Bergevin, although the government has put lots of efforts into bringing the labor market out of the great recession, a critical mismatch between skill sets and available employment exists, especially for youth and long-term unemployed.

“Problems associated with longterm unemployment, such as loss of skills, are not best addressed by simply trying to boost labour demand, and require some longerterm, structural solutions,” he said.

“Federal and provincial governments should better enable interprovincial labour market mobility.”

He also stressed younger workers, between 15 and 24 years of age, tend to face the toughest difficulties in finding jobs, and the reason could be new graduates lack skills and experiences to compete with their older counterparts. He advocated youth should take advantage of university education and try to gain practical skills from their education.

“Universities provide more chances for the youth to get practical skills,” Bergevin said. “Education and skill training should remain a key priority for the federal and provincial governments, with particular emphasis on youth and the longterm unemployed.”

Bergevin also called for data improvement in regard to the labour market.

“Federal and provincial governments should improve data and information on Canadian’s labor market in order to improve the matching of people and jobs.”

—Xiaoxuan Liu

The Cryptoquip is a substitution cipher in which one letter stands for another. If you think that X equals O, it will equal O throughout the puzzle. Single letters, short words and words using an apostrophe give you clues to locating vowels. Solution is by trial and error. © 2002 by Kings Features Syndicate, Inc.

Take some time to recharge this winter.

Check out the salon and spa coupons in your Westernizer.

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thegazette • Wednesday, March 13, 2013

New policy equal to “assault” Bluewater Health declares flu shots mandatory Smoth soundin’ off

Verbal Azalt

Cam Smith News Editor

Aaron Zaltzman News Editor

Recently, the creation of men’s rights groups, often called “men’s issues” groups, has been a vogue topic in the media. Last week, the Ryerson Students’ Union passed a new policy barring groups that preach about misandry, or decentralize women’s voices in the pursuit of gender equality. This caused controversy because it may prevent the formation of a men’s issues group at Ryerson.

Ideally, a group dedicated to the issues facing men could be beneficial. Mental and physical health, suicide rates, the pressures of toxic masculinity are all problems facing men. But these are not the focus of men’s issues groups.

Instead, they are reactionary groups, formed under the pretences that feminist groups endorse the oppression of men, and that they need to exist in order to counter this subjugation of men. Misandry exists in no significant form. While misogyny is a systemic social problem, misandry, if it exists at all, is an extreme fringe issue. Giving it the same credit devalues feminist advancement.

Men’s issues groups act under the guise of benevolence. Unfortunately, when they make a mandate of their discussion of misandry, they serve to hinder the progress of feminism and gender equality. Yes, men have their own problems, but until a group can be formed that isn’t merely formed in retaliation against women’s groups, they need not exist.

The obstacles to groups like the men’s issues group at Ryerson, and the men’s centre at Simon Fraser University, prove why these things are necessary.

The arguments against them seem to be that giving men a place or group to discuss male-specific issues, such as high suicide rates and emotional expression, would somehow be antagonistic to or take away from women’s issues groups.

Firstly, let’s be clear that we are not dealing with men’s rights groups, which are generally more politically inclined and constitute a different discussion. We’re dealing with groups that want to offer men a place to go for help.

It is important to understand the difference between these two groups because that seems to be the fundamental problem blocking men’s issues groups—it is wrongfully assumed groups designed to help men will automatically become antagonistic toward women. This assumption essentially says men cannot help each other without being misogynistic, a conjecture that is utterly ridiculous.

By all means, monitor any men’s issues groups, as well as women’s issues groups and any other groups, for devolution into sexism or bigotry, but it certainly isn’t fair to reject men’s issues groups based on that notion alone. All it does is prevent men from getting help based purely on their gender—is there a better definition of sexism?

Western outreach aims Eng at girls Aaron Zaltzman News Editor Western is teaming up with Hydro One to create an outreach program for female students looking to enter science, technology, engineering and mathematics programs.

“Engineering is a wonderful professional degree opportunity that opens doors to many career pathways, [but] we would like to have the entry degree be more representative of the population and participant pool in university,” Andrew Hrymak, dean of Western engineering, said.

“We currently have about 20 per cent women undergraduate students, roughly the national average, but well below where we would like to be.”

The partnership, titled the Hydro One Women in Engineering University Partnership program, will increase outreach to elementary and high school girls, increase the success of female engineering undergraduates and increase support for female engineering graduate students.

Though Western has agreed to the partnership, Hrymak said it must still be determined exactly what form the program will take. However, there are some ideas in place.

“We will look at disseminating targeted information materials

directly to students and to schools to showcase engineering both as an applied science, but also as a career opportunity for women,” Hrymak said. “We hope to expand our existing outreach activities at the primary and secondary school levels, building on current activities, such as Go Eng Girl and Engineering Girl Guides Badge Day.”

We currently have about 20 per cent women undergraduate students, roughly the national average, but well below where we would like to be.

—Andrew Hrymak

Dean of Western engineering

“It’s a four-year program deployment, so I expect that each year will bring new activities and ongoing activities improved and reinforced,” Hrymak said. “We will be monitoring and seeking feedback and hope to move the proportion of women in engineering significantly more than where it is today.”

Andrei Calinescu GAZETTE

Jacqueline Ting Gazette Staff

In a board meeting this past January, Bluewater Health, located in Sarnia-Lambton, announced they would be implementing a new policy making flu shots mandatory for all employees.

Mark Taylor, vice-president medical affairs and chief of professional staff for Bluewater Health, said the percentage of workers who voluntarily take the flu shot is alarmingly low.

“We have an abysmally poor record in influencing staff to voluntarily take the flu shot. We [have] around 50 per cent and most hospitals who go by a voluntary system don’t get much more than that,” he said.

According to Karen Bertrand, registered nurse and regional vicepresident for the Ontario Nurses’ Association, this is a human rights issue and comparable to assault.

“The issue is that taking a flu shot is a personal decision, and there are many reasons why people can’t take flu shot—it might be allergies, [for example].”

“Forcing people to take medication against their will is equivalent to assault,” Bertrand argued.

“There is no reason to have that kind of law policy.”

According to Bertrand, hospitals have already taken the necessary precautions to limit the circulation of the flu by ensuring high sanitation standards of hospitals are met.

“All of the facilities have stepped up on hand washing prevention, but also we have to be looking at the cleaning standards within the hospital.”

The flu vaccine is also not guaranteed to be effective. For instance, the flu vaccine had a 50 per cent effectiveness rate this past flu season—one of the worst in memory.

According to Taylor, there is still

value in implementing mandatory flu shots, even without guaranteed efficacy.

“The efficacy varies year to year, and this year it may have been as low as 50 per cent, but 50 per cent is dramatically higher than zero,” Taylor said.

This policy is not unique.

Hospitals in the United States ensure mandatory flu shots for their employees as well. According to Taylor, if a worker did not get the flu shot in the United States, they would be fired.

“I urge everyone to keep in mind the best interest of the public and the patients, particularly the most vulnerable—the very old and the very young. Flu is a very dangerous disease for them and they die from it,” Taylor said.

“It’s a very, very minor inconvenience for those of us in good health to take an action like that which could very well save someone’s life.”

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thegazette • Wednesday, March 13, 2013

Arts&Life Julian Uzielli Online Editor It’s pretty much official—film is dead.

Some hobbyists and lomographers continue to dabble with 35mm, but professional photographers long ago embraced the digital format. However, there is a type of photography even older than film that outdates living memory— wet-plate photography. It’s all but forgotten, but one London photographer is bringing it back from the dead.

“It’s hard for many people to grapple with the fact that photography is traditionally a chemical process, because it’s so digitized nowadays,” says Corey Stanford, a recent Western graduate. “You take

an image, and you plug in a cable.”

Using an antique accordionstyle camera he bought on eBay, trophy plate aluminum and a host of hazardous chemicals, Stanford makes tintypes—photographic images captured on metal plates, instead of film or memory cards, the way some of the earliest photographs were taken in the 1800s.

Stanford, a former Gazette photographer, is the man behind London’s only wet-plate photography business, Tintypist. Though he makes his living taking pictures of local businesses for Google Maps, he spends his Saturdays at the Western Fair Farmers’ Market employing one of the world’s oldest photography techniques.

Not so long ago, in the days before the whole world had cameras in their pockets, photography was a slow, methodical art—and more than just an art, it was a science, Stanford explains. To get the finished product after a shoot required time, patience and a decent understanding of chemistry.

“The image that’s made is purely physical. It’s made through all chemical processes that you control

Courtesy of Corey Stanford

word of the day Ephemera Noun. Things that exist, are used or enjoyed for a short time.

Courtesy of Corey Stanford

PICTURE PERFECT. If a picture is worth a thousand words, local photographer Corey Stanford has a lot to say with his photo stand.

by hand, and the resulting image is one of a kind,” he says. “It’s the only one. That’s what I find interesting about it. It adds a certain value to the image that’s made, because it can’t be so easily replaced.”

It takes about half an hour to make one tintype photograph. A significant amount of that time is preparation—in order to capture an exposure on a metal plate, it first must be sensitized in a dark room using a silver nitrate solution.

The camera is placed and focused, and the still-wet plate—hence “wetplate” photography—is loaded into the camera. Then the exposure is taken. Depending on the type of lighting used, this can take anywhere from a couple of seconds to a few minutes. After that, the covered plate is taken back into the dark room, where the light-sensitive chemicals are washed off in water.

After that, the plate—which at this point still has its colours reversed like a film negative—is submerged

into yet another chemical solution, which reverses the negative effect, slowly revealing the final image, the way a Polaroid picture gradually appears when exposed to air.

Finally, the plate is heated, and the image is fixed.

Stanford performs the whole fascinating process before the eyes of his customers at Western Fair, and the end result is not just an image, but a solid object—a strikingly physical representation of a moment, indefinitely preserved in metal and silver.

Despite all the technological advancements since this type of photography was practiced in the mid-19th century, the clarity of the image produced by a tintype is astounding.

“There’s no other photographic process you can do that can give you such high detail,” Stanford says.

You need only look at an example to see what he means. There is no film grain or digital noise. Since the

image is captured directly on the full-size plate rather than 35mm film or a small digital sensor, tintypes are capable of reproducing the smallest details.

As Stanford explains, “It’s basically as sharp as your eyes can see.”

It’s easy to take photography for granted when most of the pictures we take will never be printed, or physically exist at all. So to see the archaic photographic method firsthand is surprisingly satisfying. “[Digital] has certainly left an impact on photography as a medium, because it’s changed the way people perceive that medium,” Stanford says. “And part of this is harkening back to the roots of photography and trying to understand images as something physical.”

Tintypist is open for portrait sittings from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. on Saturdays at the Western Fair Farmers’ Market at 900 King Street.

To book a sitting in advance, go to tintypist.com.

>> Gazette-tested > White truffle mac and cheese

”Switzerland”—The Last Bison “Switzerland” is The Last Bison’s first single from their debut album Quill. This seven-member indie outfit from Chesapeake, Virginia consists of two sets of families—the Benfantes and the Hardestys. While The Last Bison describe their music as “mountain-top chamber music combined with alternative indiefolk and classical sensibilities,” this complex definition only begins to encapsulate The Last Bison’s sound.

Multi-layered with instrumentals and somewhat reminiscent of the Avett Brothers’ sound, The Last Bison’s music frequently employs the banjo, mandolin, percussion and string instruments alongside

acoustic guitars. In “Switzerland,” frontman Ben Hardesty leads his kin and band members in a folkchestral ode to a beautiful place of home. Textured and engaging, this breakthrough song is not easily forgotten.

—Sumedha Arya “The Cry Forum”—Mother Mother In their 2012 album, The Sticks, Canadian band Mother Mother took a distinctly darker turn in terms of their music.

The Vancouver indie-rockers are known for mixing upbeat music with lyrics dealing with isolation and loneliness in songs like “Ghosting” and “Neighbour.” It is the sudden

unity that gives “The Cry Forum” its intensity.

Ryan Guldemond’s lyrics earn their greatest complexity mixing a rejection of society and a desire for asking, “Are they in some kind of race that I do not have the legs for?”

“Cry Forum” is a fantastic song developing the themes Mother Mother has been writing about since their inception into a lyrical and musical powerhouse.

—Brent Holmes

file photo

March—the month in which students find themselves dashing exhaustively around campus.

The answer to your on-the-go hectic student lifestyle comes in the form of pasta and cheese. Try this simple, classic, yet refined mac and cheese recipe.

White truffle mac and cheese— combing the inexpensive and fasttrack student lifestyle with a bit of luxury and fine taste.

Ingredients

• ½ cup of butter • ½ cup of garlic, chopped • ½ cup of flour • 2 cups whole milk • Cavatappi pasta • ½ cup of chopped herbs mixed

with thyme, basil and rosemary • ¼ cup of white truffle oil • ½ cup grated Parmesan cheese

• ¼ cup breadcrumbs Directions 1. Salt and sprinkle black pepper accordingly.

2. Preheat the oven. Sauté the garlic with butter in a pan over medium-heat until you get that crisp, warm smell.

3. Add flour and milk, whisking them together in a constant motion.

4. Throw in your chopped herbs, Parmesan cheese, along with the pasta (cooked separately) into the dish.

5. Put the whole dish into an oven pan, lay the bread crumbs with more cheese over top of the pasta—and voila! When it becomes that crisp, golden glazed colour, it’s chow time.

—Logan Ly

•5

thegazette • Wednesday, March 13, 2013

Making an almighty musical entrance Nicole Gibillini Deputy Editor

With spring on its way, London is preparing for more than just new weather—new music is about to enter the city too.

The Almighty Rhombus, a fivepiece band based in Sudbury, is preparing for the release of their first full-length album this summer by playing shows in St. Catharines, Toronto and, of course, London. The boys will make their Forest City debut at APK Live this Thursday.

“I’m really excited to be playing in London,” says Mike Kenny, the band’s lead singer and guitarist.

Starting off with three members, The Almighty Rhombus has grown to five since forming two years ago.

“We all had common interests in what kind of music we like. It was just kind of a natural thing to jam together,” Kenny says.

While they aren’t well known in the London music scene just yet, The Almighty Rhombus has had a lot of support back home.

“The music scene [in Sudbury] is very inclusive—there are a lot of great bands within the city,” Kenny explains.

“All the bands kind of try to one-up each other on stage, and it makes for a good progressive

environment for everyone—everyone kind of helps each other out, pushing the envelope a little further,” he adds.

The Sudbury natives have a five-song EP out right now—and it’s up for free download the entire month of March. However, working on their full-length album, set for a summer release, was a unique and exciting experience for the band.

“I think the process, as a whole, was really productive,” Kenny recalls. “We worked together really well—we tried to complement each other’s production, as opposed to trying to step on each other’s toes.”

Kenny says they received funding from the Ontario Arts Council to record their new album, which added to the excitement.

While a fairly young band, The Almighty Rhombus has a clear musical direction. They consider themselves a pop band—but not in the traditional sense.

“I’d like to think that our band tries to develop [the tradional] kinds of pop hooks, but in a way that doesn’t try to lean on that hook, so to speak, and to bombard the listener with it,” Kenny explains.

After their upcoming shows, the band’s next series of gigs will be at the end of August, on Canada’s

Previews trailing behind in quality Holmes is on the Case

Brent Holmes Arts & Life Editor One of the best parts of going to the movies for me is the “coming attractions” preview show before the film starts. This is probably because, oftentimes, the trailers for future movies are better than the movie I’m about to watch. Unfortunately, there is declining quality in film trailers.

When Darth Vader revealed he was Luke’s father in The Empire Strikes Back, the revelation was shocking—delayed spoiler alert.

At the time of release, the only four people to know about the surprise were George Lucas, Irvin Kershner, Mark Hamill and James Earl Jones.

I was not around in 1980, but it’s impossible to deny there are not well-orchestrated twists like these in movies anymore.

Perhaps it is because of the nature of the Internet—spoilers are often accessible in one form or another well before a film or television show has aired, but the worst spoilers are often in the trailer itself.

Trailers often give away the entire film, or at least most of it—in a comedy, we may see all of the best jokes, as well as the awkward serious moment where the characters get it together, or in an action film, the betrayal of the buddy-cop duo

in the third act is depicted.

Too often, the entire plot of a film can be basically determined from its trailer and it dramatically decreases the quality of the film itself. I remember when I first saw Christopher Nolan’s The Dark Knight—part of the film’s fun was that none of the action sequences or dialogue depicted in the trailer had covered the film’s last 15 to 25 minutes. This not-knowing is incredibly effective because it gives a viewer a very real sense of having to observe events as they are happening.

In contrast, last year’s The Dark Knight Rises featured a lot of the film’s final fight between Batman and Bane, taking away from the experience, as anyone who has seen the trailer knows that the film will eventually get there. The same could be said for The Avengers— while the heroes are trying to figure out where Loki is going to strike, anyone who has seen the trailer knows that it’s going to be New York, because they saw it in the trailer.

We are now in an era of viral marketing campaigns—the most effective of which are often the ones that leave most of the film’s plot undepicted.

Trailers are often a film’s one chance to be sexy and mysterious, but unfortunately it’s becoming safer to show exactly what the audience can expect—at which point all the allure of the film is gone.

The fun of seeing a movie is often the thrill of the unknown, and as that becomes harder to do, it requires more subtlety and skill in the art of film trailers.

For more arts content, visit westerngazette.ca/arts-life

Courtesy of Amanda Thirkhill PUTTING YOUR BEST FOOT FORWARD. Almighty Rhombus proving that their music will knock your socks off.

east coast. In the meantime, they’ll continue to make more music, according to Kenny.

“We are pretty much taking it as a full-time venture,” Kenny says of their commitment to their musical

pursuits as a band.

“I think the goal is to keep going,” he concludes. “I think we’ve all sort of talked about it in a way that we want to have a reason to justify going on tours as a

band, and to travel to places that we haven’t travelled to before.”

The Almighty Rhombus will play at APK Live with Fun Fact and Oh Geronimo this Thursday at 9 p.m. Cover is $5. This event is 19+.

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GGGGF David Bowie The Next Day Columbia Records A legend in his own right, David Bowie has often done things on his own terms. The Next Day is no different.

His first record since 2003’s Reality, the album starts off with a literal bang and keeps rocking for another 53 minutes. One of Bowie’s longer LPs in his discography, the record never fully slows down, even with a total of 14 tracks. The latter half of the album is somewhat weaker, but Bowie ends it off with emotional ballads and even a hardrocker. “The Next Day,” “Love is Lost” and “Valentine’s Day” are particularly emotional and well-written.

The album itself is a pleasant surprise in many ways. Bowie’s voice is surprisingly intact and he rarely seems to strain to hit notes.

The songs give off an aura of raw intensity that has rarely been seen

by Bowie since the earlier entries to his discography. It almost seems like he has been storing these emotions and melodies for the past ten years for this album.

Though The Next Day may be heralded as a comeback album for the rock musician, a more accurate description would be an album that cements Bowie’s status as a true legend of music past, present and future.

—Mike Laine

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thegazette • Wednesday, March 13, 2013

Opinions

I guess I’m not that metrosexual. My bathroom cabinet is hardly overflowing with products. I only really have my stuff for shaving.

I can’t honestly say I moisturize, though I probably should.

—Clive Owen, actor

Metrosexuality should Some traditions okay be praised, not mocked From the desk of the managing editor

For those of you not in the know, the Papal Conclave is currently—as of press time—attempting to elect a new Pope. They will continue to debate until a candidate receives a vote of two-thirds plus one. When this eventually happens, it will be announced to the world through one of the most archaic methods possible— white smoke issuing from the chapel chimney.

This, of course, follows an age-old tradition, dating back to a time when the smoke would be the only means of informing the public, since the cardinals meet in isolation. This raises the question, though—is it still necessary in today’s digitalized age?

Consider this. Today, I came across a page where I could watch a live stream of what is presumably the most famous chimney in the world. Although I am over 7,000 kilometres away from Vatican City, I would know at almost the same instant as those gathered outside that a new Pope was or wasn’t elected. So why not do away with tradition, and let the cardinals tweet the results of their ballots as soon as they know?

Well, the thing about tradition is that it’s called that for a reason. Typically, it’s something that’s been done over and over, the same way, for who knows how many years. Obviously, at some point, someone thought it was a good idea, and that’s why we have it today.

There are, of course, points where tradition should be forgotten. For example, in the 12th century, the Conclave was taking a while to make their decision— almost three years—so they were given only bread and water, and were forced to live in a building with no roof until they came to a conclusion. That doesn’t really fly these days, and that’s probably okay. Also gone from these modern days is the requirement cardinals be locked away until they decide—this time around, they’ll be staying in new hotel-style facilities in the Vatican.

And that’s a tradition that didn’t need to stay.

Although perhaps unnecessary, I think the whole smoke signal thing is an appropriate tradition to keep.

With Twitter and all those other social media sites, the smoke may not be needed, but really it serves a symbolic purpose. Black smoke? No Pope, yet. White smoke? People rejoice. Traditions, as seemingly-useless as they may be, are important, as are symbols. And really, what is the Pope, if not the symbol of Catholicism?

Seven Minutes in Kevin Kevin Hurren Arts & Life Editor I attended a party recently where, in hopes of escaping the clustered and overheated main room, I ducked upstairs and found refuge in one of the host’s bedrooms. Another party-goer had a similar idea and followed me up the stairs to the marked off sanctuary.

She and I talked for a while, listening to the muffled music coming downstairs.

It was then that my inability to sit still had me aimlessly browsing the host’s open closet. What started as innocent fidgeting soon became a vigorous raid on the wardrobe. His cardigan collection, his array of colours and patterns, his detachable shoe organizer—I was star-struck, and more than a little jealous. In my slight invasion of privacy, I found the lost realm of style—the Narnia of good taste. While in a state of awe, the guest I was with sensed my wonder.

“Yeah,” she said. “He’s a metrosexual.”

I really don’t like this word, and although I didn’t launch a firestorm of criticism at my ignorant room buddy, I wish she didn’t use it. Many won’t understand my unease with the word or the concept. After all, is it really offending anyone? Well, no, but think about what it means.

A metrosexual is a heterosexual man who puts what is culturally deemed “excessive” attention into their appearance. They maintain this controlled look through personal grooming and educated shopping. There are three main concerns I have when it comes to associating this meaning with the term

metrosexual.

First, it’s aligning behavioural traits— such as a sense of style—with sexuality.

There is nothing sexual about metrosexuality. While the spectrum of sexuality is far ranging and offers a number of varying positions, metrosexuality is not one of them.

Secondly, it’s part of a larger “gay scare.” If a straight male demonstrates a genuine interest toward fashion, style or even something as simple as hairstyle, they risk facing the same stereotypes gay people endure, and are labelled as such.

In order to avoid this horrendous assumption, a defence needs to be imagined. “He’s not gay, he’s metrosexual.” Instead of just being comfortable in one’s sexuality and grooming choices, the chance of being mistaken as a “divergent” orientation is enough to fabricate this subculture.

And finally, perhaps the biggest problem with the idea of metrosexuality is that it’s boxing off a cultural mindset that should be promoted. After all, what’s wrong with a guy caring about how they look?

We might be able to pass with the ‘struggling student chic’ for now, but that won’t last forever. After graduation, many of us will be entering the professional workplace and taking on interviews where snap judgments are frequent and the way you present yourself is important. Men don’t have to strive for what they see on the cover of GQ, but some degree of attention directed at grooming and style can go a long way.

So next time you find yourself standing before the impressive closet of a straight man, whenever that may be, don’t assign him some pseudo-sexuality.

Instead, just commend his good taste and maybe try something on—although that’s totally not what I did…

#win

—Cam Parkes

While it might not be a full 42 kilometres, Bryan Cuerrier’s entry into the Toronto marathon’s five kilometre race is nothing short of sensational. After having his left leg, left forearm, right calf and right fingertips amputated in 2010, the very fact he can walk is astounding.

While Cuerrier may not win the race, he has defied all odds and earned himself this week’s #win.

thegazette

Volume 106, Issue 83 www.westerngazette.ca

Gloria Dickie Editor-In-Chief Nicole Gibillini Deputy Editor Cam Parkes Managing Editor

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Gazette Composing & Gazette Advertising Ian Greaves, Manager Robert Armstrong

Karen Savino Diana Watson

Gazette Staff 2012-2013

Iain Boekhoff, Danielle Bozinoff, Jaclyn Carbone, Mary Ann Ciosk, David Czosniak, Megan Devlin, Jonathan Dunn, Andrew Evans, Chelsey Gauthier, Ross Hamilton, Danny Huang, Amanda Law, Logan Ly, Jared MacAdam, Sarah Mai Chitty, Sarah Manning, Bradley Metlin, Kaitlyn Oh, John Petrella, Sarah Prince, Chen Rao, Herb Richardson, Nathan Robbins-Kanter, Lily Robinson, Jeremiah Rodriguez, Katie Roseman, Jasleen Sembhi, Nathan TeBokkel, Jacqueline Ting, Caroline Wang, Kate Wilkinson, Zoe Woods, Kartikeya Vishal, Usman Zahid, Mason Zimmer

Dear Life

Your anonymous letters to life.

Dear Life, To the person who put gum under the seat in HSB 40: I hate you.

Thanks for wasting my time trying to get it out, ruining my pants, and ruining my day.

Dear Life, It’s a sad day when I have to miss The Walking Dead over a midterm exam.

You are too cruel.

Dear Life, Remind me to never sneeze while peeing ever again.

Dear Life, All Mumford and Sons songs sound the same, why do they only play one on the radio?

Dear Life, Why do we have shuttle buses yet no boats for when rain hits campus hard?

Submit your letters to life at www.westerngazette.ca /dearlife.

#fail It seems NHL shootout attempts have gone too far. When 24-yearold Kaspars Daugavins of the Ottawa Senators took center ice on Monday night, he decided stick-handling was a thing of the past. After dragging the puck the full length of the ice with the tip of his stick, he finished his move off with a spin, only to be stopped

by Boston Bruins goaltender Tuukka Rask. “It sucks not to score there,” Daugavins reportedly said. “A little unlucky, but now I look like a fool.”

News Alex Carmona Jesica Hurst Cam Smith Aaron Zaltzman Arts & Life Sumedha Arya Brent Holmes Kevin Hurren Sports Richard Raycraft Jason Sinukoff Ryan Stern Opinions Ryan Hurlbut Associate Kaitlyn McGrath

Photography Andrei Calinescu Ritchie Sham Cameron Wilson Graphics Naira Ahmed Mike Laine Illustrations Christopher Miszczak Liwei Zhou Online Julian Uzielli Web Cameron Wilson Video Chris Kay

• Please recycle this newspaper •

•7

thegazette • Wednesday, March 13, 2013

The stigma that the Miami Heat play for the playoffs has certainly taken a backseat these past few weeks. Putting together a franchise best 18-game win streak will do that for you.

Mario Chalmers led the way in the Heat’s latest win, putting up 26 points to go along with seven rebounds.

Getting contributions up and down the lineup certainly helps, but so does having the world’s premiere player in Lebron James.

A man amongst boys, James is averaging 7.1 assists and 8.1 rebounds to go along with 26.7 points on the season.

The team sits alone atop the NBA standings with a record of 47–14 and are the only team in the league to already clinch a spot in the postseason. Though regular season accolades are nice, the Heat undoubtedly have their eyes on their second straight Larry O’Brien Trophy.

With Derrick Rose still sidelined recovering from the knee injury he suffered almost a year ago, the Heat are far and away the class of the east and should avoid any real competition until the finals.

If the NHL playoffs were to start right now, the Carolina Hurricanes would be the only team to make the postseason from the Southeast division. This means, that as of right now, they are the worst division in hockey.

The Southeast is comprised of the Hurricanes, the Tampa Bay Lightning, the Washington Capitals, the Florida Panthers and the Winnipeg Jets—five teams whose combined points equals 117—a total that is 26 points lower than the combined total of the second-best team in the Eastern conference.

What’s worse about this division is that if it were not for the divisional format of the playoffs—which reserves the top three spots in the conference for the leaders in each division—the Hurricanes would only be tied in seventh place with the New Jersey Devils instead of the third spot they currently occupy.

The Southeast has to get its act together if they want to stay competitive in the Eastern Conference and the NHL as a whole.

Struggles continue on the mound for the Blue Jays’ Ricky Romero. The 28-year-old has fallen hard in recent years, going from opening day starter in 2012 and 2011 to fighting for the fifth spot in the rotation.

Despite having only pitched five innings this spring training, Romero has given up four earned runs and has not looked good. This suggests that a return to form might not be in the cards for the former ace. Romero’s earned run average jumped to 5.77 in 2012 from 2.92 in 2011. He also walked 105 batters in 2012, almost as many as he struck out.

With J.A. Happ pitching well, rumours abound that he may snag the final rotation spot from Romero. Happ has allowed only two runs in nine innings of work so far this spring training. While the Jays’ rotation will be impressive regardless, Romero will collect $7.5 million in salary for the 2013 season. There’s no telling when he’ll get his act together, or if he ever will, and that’s a scary prospect for the Blue Jays.

Naira Ahmed Gazette

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WESTERN ADVENTISTS PRESENT the documentary film “Forks Over Knives” on Wed. March 20 at 7 pm in UCC 41. Discover how a whole foods, plantbased diet can combat degenerative disease.

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UPCOMING EVENTS WESTERN ADVENTISTS PRESENT “Taste & See Healthy Living” with Dr. Shon Darcy. Learn simple, practical tips on how to improve mental, physical and spiritual health. March 21, 22 & 23 @ 7 pm nightly in UCC Council Chambers. http://westernadventists.wix.com/club

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ANNOUNCEMENTS THE TA AND Post Doc Union’s Foodbank distributes grocery store gift cards of $50-100 to members in need. Stop by the office (1313 Sommerville Hall) or apply at psac610.ca

PUT YOUR SUDOKU SAVVY TO THE TEST! To solve a sudoku, the numbers 1 through 9 must fill each row, column and box. Each number can appear only once in each row, column and box. You can figure out the order in which the numbers will appear by using the numeric clues already provided in the boxes.

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thegazette • Wednesday, March 13, 2013

Sports

saywhat?

“I don’t condone what he does, but he’s my friend.”

NBA Hall of Famer Dennis Rodman remarked on his newfound friendship with North Korean dictator Kim Jong Un.

Rundown >> The Mustangs football team welcomed 34 new recruits last Wednesday afternoon at an unveiling event > This year’s crop includes 15 offensive recruits, 18 defensive recruits and one on special teams.

Records and medals aplenty in Saskatoon Diverse skill set earns purple and white a superb finish Ryan Stern Sports Editor

Heading across the country can be daunting, but for the Mustangs track and field teams, the season finale provided an exclamation mark for their strong season.

Last weekend, the Mustangs men’s and women’s track and field team travelled to the University of Alberta to take on the nation’s best in the Canadian Interuniversity Sport championship. The Mustangs proved successful on both sides of the ledger as the men placed third in the tournament, while the women grabbed fourth place overall.

The tournament titles were captured by the University of Guelph Gryphons and University of Calgary Dinos women’s and men’s teams respectively. Finishing with 11 medals and eight school records, the Mustangs made their presence known throughout the competition Considering the Mustangs’ seeds entering the tournament, head coach Vickie Croley was pleased with the results.

“On paper, based on the entries, our men were ranked third and our women fifth,” Croley said. “So finishing third in the men’s and fourth in the women’s was very acceptable in my mind. Overall, we did what we should have done, and a bit more on the women’s side.”

With strong performances by Mustangs across the board, it was personal and season-best performances Croley kept her eye on.

“I hoped for all of our men and women to have their best performance of the season.

Realistically,that is not possible, but I hoped that most would have

file photo

either a personal best or a season’s best,” Croley said. “We did in fact have 18 personal bests and two additional season’s bests, as well as two others finish where they should have.”

Brenna Thomson impressed her coach with her performance in Edmonton this weekend. The multi-event star drew the highest praise of the weekend.

“Thomson was our top female performer of the meet. She established herself as the best female sprinter in Western’s history, and

now has her name in the record books in four events,” Croley said via email. “Her events happen to be extremely competitive.”

Some other key performances for the Mustangs came from their veterans Caroline Erhardt and Scott Leitch. Erhardt completed a 12.47 metre jump to capture her second straight CIS gold medal, while Leitch ran the 600m in 1:20.25 minutes to earn a silver medal— his fourth straight year earning a medal on the national stage.

Leitch also participated in the

file photo

men’s 4 X 800m that won their race but was later disqualified.

The team—featuring Leitch, Matt Muldoon, Triphon Moodie and Ryan Armstrong—ran to a Western record by two seconds, aided by Leitch running a school record leg, prior to disqualification after the race.

With the CIS season done and spoken for, the Mustangs have a strong group going forward.

Despite the departure of key veterans, strong performances from some of the younger members of

the team has Coach Croley excited for the future.

“There is a very strong nucleus back with experience and good success at the CIS level,” Croley said. “It is very promising that Robin Bone—a rookie—took home the silver medal, and so many others now have this experience to build on next year.”

With events including the World University Games and the Pan Am Junior Games coming up this summer, turnaround from a valiant performance should be quick.

Mike Laine Gazette