November 20, 2008 Grating cheese on those abs since 1875 Vol. 138 Iss. 9

ArgosyThe

I n d e p e n d e n t S t u d e n t J o u r n a l o f M o u n t A l l i s o n U n i v e r s i t y

HIV’s end?pp. 4 & 23

Jessica Emin

“Policy change is needed to prevent hypothermia amongst our youth,” someone shouted, dressed in old clothes, handing out pamphlets. Behind him, a fire burned steadily in an old oil drum, and others poorly dressed individuals huddled around to keep warm.

Not a usual sight on Mount Allison’s campus by any means, this was part of a demonstration that took place last !ursday to protest student debt. !is day of action, organized by the SAC and spearheaded by VP External Mark Brister, included students dressing up as hobos and constructing makeshift shanties.

According to a press release circulated by the SAC, the striking visuals of the event were meant to connect the issues of student debt and socioeconomic status to the a"ordability of post-secondary education (PSE). !e day was was designed to draw attention to the failure of student financial aid in New Brunswick.

!e demonstration at Mt. A was part of a larger day of action, with events taking place on university campuses across New Brunswick. !e New Brunswick Student Alliance

Zoe WilliamsArgosy Staff

(NBSA), a New Brunswick student lobby group that is campaigning to decrease student debt, held a press conference on the same day.

Overall, the student reaction to the protest was positive.

“I think it’s a good idea,” said second-year student and o"-campus councilor Alex Mcdonald. “I think it’s great that all New Brunswick universities are doing this, but we are making it a lot more visual.”

Fourth-year student Greg White saw the issue as one that a"ects us now and in the future. “Student debt is important to everyone. If you don’t have debt, your kids might.”

High levels of student debt are a concern for many students at Mt. A.

“I’m screwed. We’re graduating in six months and we have to start paying it o". It makes me want to throw up” said fourth year student Jessica Comeau. When asked if she plans to attend graduate school, she said she does not have a choice “unless I want to work at a call centre” which will of course lead to more debt.

According to the SAC press release, 39 per cent of students at Mt. A rely on student loans, with the average loan size being approximately $8,000. !e total amount of government loans taken out last year by Mt. A students was over $7 million.

Although students across the

country must deal with student loans, New Brunswickers are particularly hard-hit, carrying a student debt load that is significantly higher than the national average.

!e use of the hobo visual however, was problematic for some.

“I’m o"ended by it. I think equating middle class students choosing to go to one of the most expensive schools in the country to a homeless person is o"ensive. Mt. A has one of the best scholarship programs in the country” said third-year student Chris Roberts.

According to the organizers, the university’s administration has been fully supportive of this student-led event. Both university president Dr. Robert Campbell, and VP Student and International A"airs Ron Byrne, stopped by the protest.

“!is is a really serious issue. !e capacity to access the Mt. A

experience is as important as any other issue [to the administration]” said Campbell. “On the one hand we are working as hard as we can to support students but it’s not enough. !e government has to step up. If it’s a matter of government commitment, it can be done.”

Government commitment on this issue, however, has been lacking.

“We have been fighting this battle for years and we’ve made incremental progress” said Brister, of the NBSA. “!e government isn’t willing to put resources into making the tuition freeze work properly.”

!e tuition freeze and the tax breaks, policies of the government of New Brunswick, are, according to Brister, policies for the middle class and do not help students who are less well o". !erefore, the NBSA has proposed a number of policies they feel will go further to improve the situation.

!e first of these is a $6000 debt cap, that would ensure that no student graduates with more than $24,000 debt load. Also advocated is an increase in access grants and outreach programs, and a debt repayment program that ensures students pay no more than they can a"ord, based on their income, in loan repayments.

According to Brister, “given the choice between a debt cap and these

Students dressed as hobos and sat on campus in a makeshift shanty town to protest and raise awareness on the high levels of debt graduating students face in New Brunswick

From Bachelors to bindles: protest advocates debt capNew Brunswick students face the largest debt in the country upon graduation

I’m screwed. We’re graduating in six months and we have to start paying it o!.

- Fourth year student Jessica Comeau

alternative policies, the debt cap is an obvious choice.”

Byrne echoed this statement. “I certainly feel that the approach of moving away from ‘tuition freezes’ and trying to find ways to really drive the funds to students who are truly facing accessibility issues is absolutely the right spirit and the right way to be moving forward.”

Brister emphasized that these protests are coming at the end of much negotiation with the provincial government.

“!is protest is the culmination of two years of negotiation with the government,” he explained. “!is is definitely not radical... and we get the same old trash. At this point we were forced into this.”

Brister feels that the protest was modestly successful. !e NBSA has scheduled a meeting with Minister of Post-Secondary Education Donald Arsenault, and the protests across the province garnered some media attention.

“Most importantly, with this province-wide campaign we have shown that young people are capable of mobilization to defend accessibility and a"ordability of post-secondary education,” said Brister.

“We must continue to insist upon this political repercussion.”

“”

PAGE 2 • THE ARGOSY • NEWS • NOVEMBER 20, 2008

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!e meeting began with SAC chair Greg White outlining to the Council what are and aren’t acceptable reasons to miss council meetings.

SAC president Mike Currie said he is going to have a meeting with the university Board of Regents about the Pub. Issues he is going to bring up included the pub being too bright, the lack of a dance floor, and the bland walls. O"-campus councilor Doug MacLean said the pool tables were useless in such a small space and should be taken out, and !orton House rep Victoria Munnoch added that there isn’t a stage for bands to play on.

Notable during counselor concerns was Campbell Hall rep Tim Lang voicing the complaint that students on the unlimited meal plan only receive three guest meals. O"-campus councilor Sam Gregg-Wallace asked if there was a list of student jobs available at Mount Allison and VP External Mark Brister replied that the government maintains a list of jobs available, but he wasn’t sure Mt. A uses it. VP Campus Life Pat Barry added that there is not central list at the school, so students should visit student life, the Meighen Centre, and all the individual departments, and ask what’s available. Brister then added that the government list is not useful because all the hiring processes in Sackville

involve nepotism. Barry and VP Communications Abigail

McGillivery then gave presentations on their activities, which included tunnel tours to raise money for Global Medical Brigades, Trick-or-Eat, and SAC Awareness Week. Barry also mentioned that campus security will now be patrolling the King Street parking lot more, and that eventually there will be video cameras installed.

In Brister’s report to council, he talked about his meeting with Sackville mayor Pat Estabrooks. He mentioned he was impressed with Sackville’s commitment to the environment which has included the newly implemented Share-a-Ride program, hosting a sustainability conference, and working on a carbon-inventory for the town.

Brister also mentioned that in the future there will be a student representative on the town’s environmental committee. !is was followed by a lengthy discussion of his plans for a hobo-themed protest of student debt in New Brunswick.

Question period’s most memorable question came from Science Senator Nathan Walker, who asked if something could be done about the exit signs in the students centre, because he frequently hits his head on the one near the SAC o#ce.

!e meeting began with James Grady and Nicole Belair introducing themselves as Service Canada Ambassadors. !ey described their role on campus as helping give people information on careers in the public service, as well as help filling out related-forms.

During councilor concerns, o"-campus councilor Sam Gregg-Wallace complained

Chris DurrantArgosy Staff

Student politics and chocolate chip cookies were served on November 5

VP Ac’s first meeting accompanied by ginger snaps, apples, and candy bars on November 12

about bad tasting water fountains in the library. Harper Hall rep Naomi Wheatley was concerned that there are no philosophy professors with a specialization in logic, and that neither gym has a punching bag. O"-campus councilor Cejay O’Riley wished there was more advertising of intramural deadlines.

In his maiden report to Council, VP Academic Ryan Robski discussed the events of the last university Senate meeting. He mentioned the Senate had passed a resolution rea#rming their academic independence in response to the provinces report on post-secondary education. He also said that Senate has created a temporary committee on teaching evaluations, which will included Robski and one other student.

Robski then described a meeting he had with University Librarian Bruno Gnassi. Topics of the meeting included the possibly of getting a self-check out system, adding more comfortable chairs to the library, the unadvertised changes in library rules (such as food being permitted anywhere in the library, and the third floor and sub-basement status as quiet floors). Additionally, Robski mentioned discussing library hours, and said that Gnassi wants more input about when students want the library to be open.

When questioned by SAC Ombudsman Katherine Joyce about why the third floor of the library was so loud, Robski said that librarians have been told to enforce quiet on third floors, but no signs will be put up because library sta" believe that the new quiet system will not work, as noise from the first floor floats up to the third.

!e meeting ended with VP Finance and Operations Dan Wortman reminding council that the deadline for clubs and societies funding is November 21.

Justine Galbraith

For the second year in a row, Mount Allison earned the top spot on Maclean’s annual university rankings. !is year, the university is no longer sharing the honour with Acadia, which dropped from first to third on the list.

Rounding out the top five rankings are the University of Northern Britsh Colombia in second, St. FX in fourth, and Wilfrid Laurier in fifth.

!e magazine bases its results on publicly available information, and also publishes results from student surveys, such as the National Survey of Student Engagement (NSSE).

!e rankings are divided into three categories: medical doctoral university rankings, comprehensive university rankings, and primarily undergraduate university rankings. Mt. A is included in the primarily undergraduate category, and is judged on thirteen indicators concerning students and classes, faculty, resources, student support, library and reputation.

While the magazine has released its overall rankings, the complete results in each category will not be released until the November 24 issue of Maclean’s hits the stands.

!e bulk of the criteria categories deal with a university’s resources, or inputs, said Mt. A President Robert Campbell.

“!e Maclean’s report is a kind of inputs report, so it’s di"erent from the Globe and Mail report which is an outputs report.”

Campbell believes that Mt. A does well in the survey because the university is organized and spends its money well in important areas.

“It seems to me that what the Maclean’s rating shows [...] is that we’re allocating our resources in the right sort of way,” said Campbell.

VP International and Student A"airs Ron Byrne agrees.

“I think that we’re consistently high [in the rankings] because we’re very intentional about what we do,” he said.

!ese surveys, explained Byrne, are aimed at prospective students considering their options.

Mt. A maintains excellence: Maclean’s

“We know that many prospective students and parents pay particular attention [...] to the Maclean’s survey,” he said.

!e Maclean’s rankings had a large influence on fourth year student Isabel Gertler’s decision to come to Mt. A. In her home town of Toronto, Maritime universities have low profiles, she explained, and Maclean’s “seems like the most authoritative [source] to me.”

Allison Carlson, another fourth year student, agreed. “If I hadn’t know about [Mt. A’s spot in the rankings], I wouldn’t have come here.”

!e Maclean’s article also has an influence on international students, who may not have other sources of information on Canadian universities.

“All we hear about are the rankings when applying towards colleges,” said Kevin Geiger, a second year student from New York.

Still, Geiger stated that the rankings were not the only factor in his decision.

To others, such as first year students Melanie Richard and Sammy Lutes, the survey had no e"ect at all on their decision to attend Mt. A.

“I don’t know what that is,” said Lutes on the rankings.

Still, many universities are concerned about the methodology of the survey, and in the past some have even refused to disclose information to the magazine.

Both Byrne and Campbell believe that the Maclean’s rankings focuses on just one aspect of

the university experience, and that other surveys such as the Globe and Mail and NSSE o"er relevant information on student satisfaction.

Campbell believes that the input surveys need to be considered in unison with output, or student satisfaction, surveys to give a comprehensive view of how the university is doing.

“You can have the best inputs in the world and be doing a lousy job,” Campbell explained, “and you could have the worst inputs in the world and have the greatest outputs.”

“I would rather have a good rating on the output.”

According to Byrne, the NSSE is becoming a more relevant tool for prospective students as Canadians become more familiar with it.

“More and more are paying attention to what that one says,” he explained, “because that’s really talking about how students feel about their experience at the campus.”

Campbell believes that a main purpose of the Maclean’s rankings is to validate the school to the external world.

“[!ose who support us] want an accountability check on if we’re doing as good of a job as we say we’re doing.”

He also said that the survey serves as validation for those involved with the school, whether it be alumni, faculty, sta" or students.

“I think that the biggest impact of the rankings is on the moral of our community.”

Justine GalbraithArgosy Staff

Mount Allison received top marks in Maclean’s survey of undergraduate universities

NNOVEMBER 20, 2008 • NEWS • THE ARGOSY • PAGE 3

Eurozone enters first-ever recession; Germany falls the hardest

On Friday, the European Commission reported that the 15-country Eurozone, which includes four of the world’s seven most powerful economies, had o#cially entered its first recession in the history of the euro. !e gross domestic product of the entity, defined as the total value of all the goods and services produced in the country, shrank by 0.2% from June to September, with another 0.2% drop in the quarter before, reported the London Times.

Germany, the bellwether of Europe’s economic health and also the largest economy in the Eurozone, reported that it was in recession on !ursday, as did Italy. !is is the first recession since 1999 when the euro was created, and analysts forecast an uncertain future for the next while as markets adjust.

“Looking ahead, we can expect further quarters of negative GDP growth, until the third quarter of 2009,” Gilles Moec, a senior Bank of America economist, told the BBC.

In recent times, the euro’s relative strength compared to other currencies, particularly the newly-weak American dollar, has hurt exports, which are becoming an increasingly crucial part of the Eurozone’s economy. In response, the European Central Bank has cut interest rates to 3.25%, and the Organization for International Co-Operation and Development (OECD) has predicted “prolonged”

!is week in the worldA weekly miscellany compiled by Tom Llewellin

recessions across the board for the Eurozone, the US and Japan, which are now all o#cially in recession.

Citigroup cuts 75 000 jobs

In an addition to the steady stream of economy-related bad news flowing out of the US, banking giant Citigroup, the world’s second-largest bank, announced on Friday that it plans to cut 75 000 jobs. !e cuts represent about 20 per cent of its workforce – 23 000 were already given notice earlier this year, and the remainder were just recently announced.

In the last year, the bank has lost over $20 billion, reported Reuters, due to its position as a consumer bank and its stake in the mortgage market. !e cuts have attracted particular scrutiny because the organization is one of the beneficiaries of the US Treasury’s “cash injection” bailout program, to the tune of $25 billion. !e company’s total market value is only twice that, and its plans to increase that were scuttled when its attempt to buy the Wachovia Group failed when the bank went under.

!e cuts will occur throughout the world, said the company’s chairman, Win Bischo", and the bank’s international presence will decrease. !e bank’s shares have fallen over 70 per cent in the last year. !is represents the second largest job cut by any company in history, second only to IBM’s cut of 65 000 jobs in one fell swoop in 1993.

Ceasefire in Congo broken

In defiance of a United Nations ceasefire, rebels in the eastern part of the Democratic Republic of Congo have launched an o"ensive near the provincial capital of Goma, according to the Associated Press. !e rebels claim to have captured the town of Rwindi, 125 km north of the capital, in a culmination of fighting that has thus far has displaced upwards of 250 000 people.

Bertrand Bisimwa, spokesman for the rebels, claimed that the Congolese army has been pushed back to just northeast of the town. Rebel leader Laurent Nkunda told Agence France-Presse that he would support a reinstatement of the ceasefire in order to e"ectively keep them there, something which would have to be brokered by the US.

Peacekeeping processes so far, however, have done little to to cause a break in the fighting or protect civilians, even with a presence of 14 000 troops – currently the world’s largest peacekeeping mission

– in the country. Nkunda began the conflict in 2004, with the stated aim of protecting the country’s Tutsi population, who were the targets of 1994’s Rwandan genocide, from Hutu militias that had entered the country from the nearby Rwanda border.

Since then, Nkunda’s forces have sparred with the Congolese government over control of the Congo’s extremely valuable mineral resources – which are essential in the manufacturing of virtually all consumer electronics.

Accused in murder of Russian journalist go on trial

In an encouraging move for worldwide press freedom, four people who had a role in planning the contract killing of Russian journalist Anya Politkovskaya will go on trial in a Russian military court that will be open to the public.

Politkovskaya, a senior editor and reporter at the Novaya Gazeta (New Gazette) newspaper, was highly critical of the Russian government’s treatment of the situation in

Chechnya. She was shot dead as she rode the elevator up to her Moscow apartment in October 2006. However, the four named in the trial – an FSB (Federal Security Bureau) o#cer, a former Moscow police o#cer, and two Chechen brothers suspected of being accomplices – do not include those who had originally ordered the contract-killing, nor the man who actually fired the gun that killed Politkovskaya.

An earlier attempt at a preliminary hearing in October was prevented, reported the Guardian, when Karrina Moskalenko, the lawyer representing Politkovskaya’s family, was poisoned with mercury. According to Reporters Sans Frontières, a French press-freedom organization, Russia is the third-most dangerous country in the world for journalists to work in, after Iraq and Afghanistan, due to a pattern of censorship by the Kremlin and contract killings, many of which are suspected to also be ordered by the Kremlin.

Early on a Saturday morning, Beth Briscoe sat at Mel’s Tearoom. !e Sackville resident was there to share stories with Mount Allison students on some of the charitable work being done in the community.

!e residents of Sackville frequently contribute to Mt. A’s fund raisers, collections, concerts, and activities. Still, some students may not know about the activities of volunteer organizations within the town or realize their scale.

!e Sackville Community Association is a group uniting representatives from all of the churches, service clubs, police, and school principals. It began back in the 1960s and has been organizing projects to ease the di#culties of those in need and to help integrate people who have been marginalised for one reason or another into the vibrant life of the town.

One of its main programs is Christmas Cheer, which last year helped 625 individuals in the Sackville area, including children, soon-to-be mothers, and the disabled.

“Numbers of those in need are greater this year,” said Fran Smith, one of the founding members. Christmas Cheer has a variety of undertakings, most prominently the

‘Christmas Cheer’ in SackvilleRebecca DixonArgosy Correspondent

collection of toys and clothing to be distributed during the Christmas season to families in need. !ey also accept monetary contributions, used to fund things such as transport for out-of-town medical appointments, school supplies, and for sending local children to summer camps. If a need is expressed, Christmas Cheer tries its best to provide some form of assistance.

Despite the name, the program is active all year, and the group encourages contributions from all in the community.

“Every person who makes a donation of clothing or money for Christmas Cheer, who knits or sews, who packs bags on December 10 or distributes fruit baskets to the elderly or shut-ins [...] are all part of the Christmas Cheer committee,” said Smith, explaining that this is truly a community e"ort.

Last year over $30 000 of cash donations were collected. While some of this comes in through contacting donors by mail, the biggest source of finances comes from their yearly “Christmas at Home” concert, held at Sackville United Church. !is event features local performers and this year’s line up includes Ivan and Vivian Hicks, Bordertown, Royal Hicks, the Fundy Fiddlers and more. Taking place at 7 pm on November 22, tickets can be bought at Jean Coutu for $10 or at the door for $12.

Since last April, the Toronto Stock Exchange has lost 30 per cent of its value. !is has caused alarm in all sectors of the country, including university campuses.

Recently a rumour has cropped up that there would be no Bell Scholarships o"ered at Mount Allison next school year because of the financial downturn. According to university o#cials, this rumour is false.

“!e short answer is: it’s business as usual. We expect to have all of the scholarships next year,” said Robert Inglis, Controller of Financial Services, in reference to the school’s entrance scholarships and financial aid, in addition to the Bell Scholarships.

Mt. A’s plans to continue scholarships as usual does not mean the financial crisis is not having an e"ect on the school. Inglis reported that as of October, the university’s endowed funds’s looked as if they will provide 20 per cent less income next year, as compared to this year.

VP Administration David Stewart explained that the Bell Endowment will be able to support the scholarships, though the Fund’s additional revenue won’t be able to fund additional projects this year.

“!e commitments of the Bell endowment fund are not more than

Weathering the financial crisis

Chris DurrantArgosy Staff

the fund can currently support; nothing has happened at this point that would change our plans for spending from the Bell endowment fund,” said Stewart. “Usually each year we have additional monies which we can spend on this that or another project; this year we’re not doing that.”

!e newly-built Gemini Observatory is one example of a project funded partly by the Bell Endowment.

!ough endowments for other scholarships have also fallen, Mt. A is planning on maintaining the current number of scholarships in the upcoming year. Inglis explained that the university will be able to make up the di"erence through various means, including support from the Operating and Special Purpose funds, and new donations for financial aid.

However, further declines in the economic situation could change the university’s plans. Usually, the financial aid plan created by Student Services is reviewed late in the fall term by Financial Services to ensure that it is feasible. !is year, however, estimates were made in October, and will be made twice more before the budget is made up in January.

Even if scholarships remain una"ected, other areas of the university that rely on endowed funds are likely to see a reduced amount of money in the next academic year. !e library’s acquisition fund, the Purdy Crawford Teaching Centre, and the

Meighen Centre all receive most to all of their funds from endowed funding.

Softening the blow will be the fact that many endowed funds carry a cushion, meaning money avaliable but not spent one year is carried over to the next the year. Stewart made it clear that the endowments were prepared to weather the current crisis.

“You have to keep in mind, markets go up too. We expect volatility. Our spending is five per cent of market value, and often our value goes up a lot more than five per cent. We expect that it’ll go up and down.”

!e decline in the stock market will not a"ect any financial matters for the current year, because budgets for each academic year use the revues generated by endowments as of April 30 the preceding academic year.

As for whether students will feel the e"ects next year, Stewart commented, “you’re not going to see too much as a result of this.”

Inglis highlighted that “the endowments will not likely have much of an impact, what’s a much bigger is deal is how many students we’ll get, and what the government grant will be.

At $42 400, Mount Allison has the biggest endowment per student of any independent post-secondary institution in the country. Only Victoria University, which is part of the University of Toronto, has a bigger per-capita endowment.

While scholarships are safe, other areas relying on endowments could see reduced funding

NATIONAL

TORONTO (CUP) – A University of Western Ontario researcher has produced an experimental HIV vaccine that is approaching human trials.

Using a technique similar to Jonas Salk’s famous polio vaccine, which is now verging on completely eliminating that disease from the world, Chil-Yong Kang’s treatment involves the injection of a killed whole HIV-1 into the recipient.

Kang’s method di"ers from previous attempts, which have only utilized a portion of the HIV virus.

“We have engineered a virus in such a way that it can be produced in larger quantities in shorter periods of time and . . . doesn’t cause the disease,” he told Canwest News.

“We have tested animals and they do respond to the vaccine and we now have to try it in humans.”

HIV is the virus that leads to AIDS by damaging the immune system. !e World Health Organization estimates that there were 33.2 million people living with HIV in 2007, and that 2.1 million died of AIDS.

On Kang’s UWO website, he

Western announces HIV vaccine breakthroughUniversity bids on $88 million facility to produce vaccineJoe HowellCUP Ontario Bureau Chief

describes his research as an attempt to produce “an e"ective vaccine to prevent AIDS” by creating “pseudovirions” that “produce protective immune responses.”

“!ese pseudovirions, carrying many important regions of both internal proteins and external envelope proteins of AIDS virus, will be used to generate the neutralizing antibodies which will prevent the virus infection and also generate cytotoxic T lymphocytes, which are designed to kill and destroy the AIDS virus-infected cells in the body,” reads the site.

!e HIV breakthrough is only days away from the toxicology testing that will determine if such clinical trials are safe.

Kang expects results from these tests within three months, meaning the first stage of testing on HIV- Kang’s experimental HIV vaccine is nearly ready for trial in humans.

Meaghan Walton/ the Fulcrum

EDMONTON (CUP) – A new study shows that Canada is losing fewer graduates to the United States than anticipated, but it’s the smarter students who are taking o" in search of greener pastures.

!e study by David Walters, an associate professor in the Department of Sociology and Anthropology at the University of Guelph, examines the current state of Canada’s labour market and whether or not graduate trends have changed over time. “!e purpose was to investigate labour-market outcomes of post-secondary graduates, and also to compare

Canada’s most vital graduates drawn to U.S.Kirsten GorukCUP Alberta and Northern Bureau Chief

graduates of Canada with the U.S.,” he said. “I think much of the inspiration was [that] most of our knowledge was guided by media reports, for example, largely of medical doctors leaving for the United States because they’d been attracted by high wages.”

With the most recent data dating back to the mid 1990s, it was no surprise when Walters discovered a di"erence from today’s graduates.

“!e good news that we found is that graduates aren’t leaving, not nearly as many of them as we had anticipated before the actual study. Based on the media reports, we found that lot of what we were anticipating had been sensationalized somewhat, or that the labour market was di"erent before,” he said.

But the downside is that Walters

realized Canada was losing some of its brightest students to its southern neighbour. “!e bad news is that of those who are leaving, they generally tend to be the better students. !ey’re the ones who generally are more likely to get scholarships, and if they get scholarships, they’re more likely to get more money in terms of scholarships. And they generally tend to be in the fields that are considered vital to this new knowledge-based economy,” he said.

While engineers, computer science graduates, and those in help-related fields are at the top of the list, Walters also uncovered a noteworthy statistic about those in the medical field.

“What was interesting is that we also found that of those help-fields who are leaving, it wasn’t the medical

doctors, it was the nurses,” he said.In fact, a Statistics Canada survey

of 6,700 graduates showed that about 6.9 per cent exported their labour to the U.S., and very few were medical doctors.

!e study itself excluded those from the survey who were graduates of a trade program or a community college, as well as those from social sciences and arts programs, as they’ve been shown to remain in Canada for their employment.

Despite the somewhat positive results, Walters is adamant this research could be used to influence the role of employers and the government when it comes to graduate retention.

He believes the government might want to look into providing tax incentives for particular types

of graduates, or making additional e"orts to keep them in Canada. He also feels that businesses could profit from this new information.

“Businesses might want to consider, for example, recruitment strategies to keep the more qualified graduates in the country. !ey might also want to consider providing competitive wage rates or other incentives that may not be related to wages,” he said.

Regardless of what actions may or may not be taken in light of the study’s findings, Walters is confident the knowledge will have an encouraging e"ect. “I think that the importance of it is to be reassuring in the sense that people are worried that the best people in our country are leaving – and that’s true – but not as many of them as we thought.”

WATERLOO (CUP) – !is week, the History Students’ Association at Wilfrid Laurier University in Waterloo, Ont. temporarily pulled the sale of one of several t-shirts amid controversy over its message.

!e shirt depicted Josef Stalin, the former leader of the Soviet Union, with the text “Got Purge?”

!e HSA’s t-shirt intended to satirize the “Got Milk?” series of advertisements, as well as reference the Great Purge that occurred in the Soviet Union in the late 1930s.

Stalin t-shirts spark controversy at LaurierMorgan AlanThe Cord Weekly (Wilfrid Laurier University)

Sale of the shirts led to complaints directed towards the HSA, as well as the O#ce for Student Diversity, which has since intervened to mediate the controversy.

!e HSA has been selling t-shirts since 2005 as means to o"set club costs and pay for events.

!ough shirts with similar messages have been sold in the past, only this year have they faced serious backlash.

!e HSA argues that the shirts are not intended to o"end, but are meant as a form of humourous satire.

“We’re not trying to be o"ensive,” said Stephen Arnold, the vice-president of HSA administration. “We don’t support Stalin; we’re

ridiculing him.”“It’s something humourous of

a historical event. It’s not to de-humanize the event, or to say we support it.”

Brian Bork, University Chaplain for Laurier and the University of Waterloo, has questioned the HSA’s defence.

“!e satire is a little out of place, especially coming from very comfortable, Western young people who are 50 years removed from what happened then,” said Bork.

“It concerns me that they are making light of . . . one of the darkest moments in human history,” he added.

!e O#ce for Student Diversity

will hold an open meeting to attempt to resolve the matter on Nov. 13. Members of the Laurier community who wish to voice their opinions about the shirts are invited to attend.

Until this meeting, the HSA has voluntarily agreed to remove the shirt in question from public viewing.

Regardless of their stances on the issue, many agree that to simply censor the HSA is not a viable solution.

!e O#ce for Student Diversity “is not big on censorship, but we’re big on creating an inclusive environment,” said Student Diversity Co-ordinator Adam Lawrence.

!e open meeting “can be a learning experience so that people can really express why they don’t feel

the shirts should be there, and the History Students’ Association can explain why they have created these shirts,” said Lawrence.

Arnold agrees with Lawrence’s sentiments, stating that “a hopeful resolution is one where we’re not being censored, but we’re not o"ending people.”

Bork also agrees that the meeting is a good solution to the issue.

“Instead of shutting [the HSA] down, have a discussion about how we talk about history, how we do historical inquiry, how we speak of the horrors of the past in a proper way. I think that’s a really constructive way of going about it,” he said.

We have tested animals and they do respond to the vaccine and we now have to try it in humans.

- UWO researcher Chil-Yong Kang

“”

positive humans could potentially begin in the spring.

!e work will have to be done in the U.S., however, because Canada lacks the facilities necessary for such testing. UWO is one of four organizations being considered by the federal government to receive $88 million to build the country’s first “Pilot Scale HIV vaccine manufacturing facility,” according to a press release issued by the university on Wednesday.

Ted Hewitt, UWO’s VP of research and international relations, seized upon Kang’s breakthrough to bolster Western’s bid for this facility.

“We have our work cut out for us, as I am sure the competition will be tough, but London and Western have a great history of research and manufacturing success. !is is exemplified by the leading research of Dr. Yong Kang in developing an HIV/AIDS vaccine,” said Hewitt.

!e other three organizations under consideration have yet to be announced, but UWO is the only contender from Ontario.

London Mayor Anne Marie DeCicco-Best said that her city “now has an opportunity to show that we can play a key role in saving lives around the world.”

“We are ready,” said Best.

OPINIONS

Zoe WilliamsArgosy Staff

Elections bring out the worst in people. Lying, stealing, racism, sex-ism - the last few American elections have had it all. !is year, with Barack Obama’s less than overwhelming vic-tory, has been no di"erent. In fact, with both a woman and an African American in the race, the number of inflamatory issues o"ensive attack ads and deluded Fox News commentators could address multiplied. From claims that Obama is a Muslim married to a Black Panther, and worries about Clinton’s potential PMS-related mood swings, it seemed that the civil rights and feminist movements passed some people by.

Luckily all this ire and idiocy lent

itself to some pretty hilarious pop cul-ture; the SNL skit lampooning Sarah Palin’s interview with Katie Couric (almost as funny as the real thing) is the obvious example. My favourites though were the “Get Your War On” cartoons, on the Left-leaning 236.com

However, on the same website, there are a series of fake ads mimicking the Swift Boat Veterans for Truth cam-paign, that played during 2004 elec-tion. !e Swift Boat ads were created to oppose democrat John Kerry’s bid for president. !ey featured men who served with Kerry in Vietnam, claim-ing that many of the statements Kerry made about the war were false, and that, therefore, he was not fit to lead the country. !e fake ads on 236.com are called Swift Jews for Truth.

!e Swift Jews for Truth ads consist of four or five obviously Jewish seniors, expressing their concern over Obama’s candidacy. !ere are three videos, each about a minute long. Solemn music plays, and images of Obama, Muslims, and African Americans flash by in the background. “!is other one, this Obama, what I’m concerned about… not that it’s a terrible thing” says one

woman against the backdrop of what looks like a civil rights rally. “I’m not judging, I’m just saying” says an-other, with Obama in a turban in the background. “!is is white, this is not white. John McCain, Barack Obama” says a third woman, pointing to the two sides of a black and white cookie (of Seinfeld fame). “John McCain is white” pronounces an old man.

!is is supposed to be funny, and it does lampoon Republican attacks ads, which play upon people’s fears by us-ing misrepresentation and outright lies to skew an issue – something I would usually appreciate. But, this is an in-accurate and o"ensive portrayal of the attitude of American Jews towards Obama. Most American Jews claimed to support Obama during the election, most Jews vote democrat, and Obama has been staunch in his support for Israel (never mind that being Jewish does not automatically entail unwav-ering support for Israel).

So why Swift Jews? As mentioned above, 236.com is an obviously Left -leaning website. !ey are unabash-edly partisan, lauding Obama while skewering Republicans. Given this, I can’t imagine them using any other

ethnic group as the butt of this kind of joke. But judging from the comments on some other websites where these ads are posted, a lot of people have no problem with Swift Jews. Swift Jews plays upon tired, o"ensive Jewish stereotypes and presenting any ethnic group, even as a joke, as an undi"er-entiated whole, while placing them on the “wrong side” of a popular issue is irresponsible. !e fact that this ad ap-peared quite realistic, and was posted out of context on other websites, makes this all the more unsettling.

Racial Stereotypes: not just for conservativesSwift Jews exemplifies bigoted political parodies

Swift Jews is just a drop in the ocean of o"ensive and bigoted material that came out of this election. !e sexist, Islamophobic, and racist rants that were given legitimacy during the last year by the mainstream media are far more worrying to me, overall, than Swift Jews. Unfortunately, they all play upon stereotypes and misinformation to achieve their goals – whether it be to get yet another white man elected as president, or make some college stu-dents laugh.

Katherine Boyle - B.O.D.I.E.S

My relationship with Cosmopolitan (Cosmo) magazine has been a long one. Age 12: surreptitiously checking it out at the grocery store, knowing that it was taboo because of the large emblazoned word sex located multiple times on the cover (I’ve heard that it appears four or five times on each cover). Age 15: poring over it with friends; the information on proper lip gloss application was more relevant to us at this point than the wide variety of unmentionable things to do with pearls, saran wrap, and ice – but everything was extremely interesting nonetheless. Age 17: spending countless days at the beach, using it as a shield from the sun and covetously checking out the models, clothing, hot guys, and learning what I thought were very useful relationship tips; don’t tell him you are mad, bake cookies if you get in a fight, flowers and cards for all occasions should be expected.

I’m not sure what Cosmo and other magazines of its ilk have that is so enticing, but they always seem so thick and full of pertinent life information that it is hard to resist their charm. !ey are an easy read on a long flight, and easy to slip in and out of while trying to pass ten minutes. But reading Cosmo at age 20 is quite di"erent then reading it at age 15; I no longer believe that everyone can solve their relationship problems by slipping on a sexy negligee and serving homemade cookies. !e advice is dated, stuck in the fifties’ housewife mentality, and yet this advice has its allure; it is so easy to buy into. I wish that problems could be solved with double chocolate chip, and I think that sometimes everyone

!e changing perspectives on Cosmo

wishes that the most di#cult and challenging aspect in their life would be learning how to curl one’s eyelashes with a heated spoon, or having really shiny, healthy hair. It’s a cheap form of escapism that draws on normal wishes of young women but then magnifies them into a grand proportion, convincing me for a few minutes every now and again that I absolutely must invest in sparkly champagne eye shadow or else my new years will be

absolutely horrible.So at age 20 I still read Cosmo,

but somewhat ambivalently, knowing that it is not the bible of life that Elle Woods once told me it was. It is still an enjoyable form of escapism, but now more than ever I am often excited to close Cosmo and return to real life, where unsexy late-night Zoodle-dates with friends and messy play-dates with my dogs, not hunk of the month, occur.

Vivi ReichArgosy Staff

On November 6 I went to the B.O.D.I.E.S. Co"ee house at Bridge Street Cafe, pretty much just to support a friend who was reading a poem (which she did brilliantly). But I am actually very glad I went, because I learned a few things, especially something about myself.

Because the theme of this co"ee house was violence against women, one participant read an excerpt about “blaming the [rape] victim” from a feminist book (I apologize, but I don’t remember the book name or author). After describing the phenomenon of “blaming the victim” in the case of rape, she mentioned some cases that had come before a court in Italy in recent years – I don’t have the exact quote, but the basic idea was that the court claimed the woman who was raped was not actually raped because she was wearing jeans, and she would have had to help the rapist take them o". !at is just one example. Another point that was brought up during this reading, and the one that really got me thinking, was that if a prostitute were to be raped, and if she were to take her problem to the authorities, the person who raped her

Everyb.o.d.i.e. should think about this

would probably never be charged – and the prostitute in turn would be blamed. I started thinking: “if I heard about a case like this, what would I say?” and I realized that I would probably think what everyone else would think: “She was a prostitute. Of course she’s going to be raped at some point.”

As soon as I had that thought, I felt ashamed, mostly because I am not the kind of person who would have such a thought, but also because I had the thought at all, and also because I believe that prostitution should be legal (which would be a whole ‘nother opinions article, so I will stop there). I had read the “Sex Bomb” article in the last Argosy issue just a couple hours before, in which a college student’s career as a “call girl” was described. After reading that article, I had thought, “Yeah! Good for her! She has made a choice to have that career, power to her!” But then I had an opposite reaction to the thought about a prostitute being raped.

!e point is: we need to look at how we think about these things, and whether or not we are agreeing with a status quo that could (and does) alienate people for their life choices. We need to pay attention to whether or not we are being hypocrites about, well, anything. We are complicated human beings and our emotions often contradict each other, but when it starts to hurt other people, or a race/group/class of people, we need to stop and consider why we are thinking that way. !e problem of alienation will not go away if we fall into the habit of this thinking, and neither will the problem of violence against women – they will only go away if we stop judging and start understanding and listening.

What does Cosmo mean to you?

OPAGE 6 • THE ARGOSY • OPINIONS • NOVEMBER 20, 2008

!e word on the streetBlood Donor ClinicNovember 20 2:00 - 4:00 pm, 5:30 - 8:00 pmTantramar Veterans Memorial Civic CentreFor more information contact 1-888-2-DONATE

German Night!e German Club is hosting a night at meal hall to sample delicious German food.Jennings HallNovember 22, 5:00 - 8:00 pmTickets are being sold to o"-campus students for $7. You must email vvreichhenbest@mta.ca to reserve your ticket by 4:00 pm on the 22nd.

St. Paul’s Annual Christmas BazaarNovember 22, midnightSt. Paul’s Anglican Church

Christmas Tea and SaleNovember 23, 4:00 - 6:00 pmSt. Vincent’s Church Hall

MONTREAL (CUP) – !e easy part is over.

Barack Obama succeeded in transforming his mantra from “Yes We Can” into “Yes We Did.” After a seemingly endless campaign, in one giant sigh of relief, Americans made history. Now comes the hard part.

!ere are crises that need dealing with. Obama faces a plethora of issues threatening America and the world, many of which have the potential to wholly consume a president’s time.At the top of Obama’s agenda is the financial crisis. His current plan focuses on helping those worst a"ected: the middle class. While his goal is laudable, it remains uncertain whether the president and congress can have much impact on the inherent structural problems in the global financial system. If there’s money to be made, even imaginary money, can regulation really constrain the bloodlust of CEOs and speculators? New laws simply mean new loopholes.

!en there’s Iraq. In a New York

Obama’s got a ways to go

Mike Currie

In the past couple of weeks, I have heard a number of concerns about how the SAC (Student’s Administrative Council) ran the recent unprecedented by-election for VP Academic. Although I know this is a vocal minority, from seeing the voter turnout and most students being unaware of the election, I still think their concerns are important to be heard. I will agree that our current way of doing things may not the best possible way. I have seen firsthand throughout my four years at Mount Allison – three of them being on the SAC – that voter turnout for SAC elections is a perpetual problem. !e question is: why?

It has been suggested by some that we extend the campaigning period and leave nominations open throughout the process. !is would hopefully generate some excitement about the elections and ensure that a lengthy, healthy competition would take place, resulting in the best candidate being elected. Personally, I like this idea; we can extend campaigning and also keep nominations open longer. Another suggestion is having an open debate, which also makes sense. I will admit myself, when I was campaigning last year; I found it strange that candidates running for the same position could not criticize the other’s platform. As long as it is done in respectful manner, there is no harm in healthy debate.

However, the ultimate question is…will this increase voter turnout? A number of people during the election period openly stated they were opposed to the SAC and didn’t wish to participate in the democratic process. I can respect a person’s decision not to vote if he or she has no idea what it entails, but I still question the rationale of actually being opposed to the SAC and why we as the SAC have not been more successful at getting students informed. Mt. A is a busy place with a lot going on, but that is still no excuse. !e SAC plays an important role with every student going to class or living in residence at Mt. A, and that is why

What do you think?!e SAC welcomes suggestions; we’re here for you.

we have to let students know. !e SAC provides the avenue for student voices to be heard… over 100 students sit on various committees on all levels of the university (e.g. the Board of Regents, which is the highest governing body at Mt. A, or Senate, which is the highest academic governing body at Mount A… just to name a few) and obviously most of this advocacy is never recognized or appreciated.

Much like anything political or like life in general, it is easier to express concern and complain than try to fix a situation (sounds vaguely familiar to the pub situation!). However, the SAC unifies these concerns and tries to make things happen. For instance, the SAC organized a meeting between students, administration and the pub to try to resolve some of the issues with the pub, and hopefully some of the solutions we came up with will be implemented soon! !is likely would not have happened if there was not a unified body that represents students’ voices. !at is just one small example and it seems rather moot, so that is why we try to vocalize our more tangible services (e.g., orientation week, used book sale, condom service, yearbook, housing directory, bar services and extended library hours during exam time), just to show that even the small tangible things the SAC provides have an impact on our experience at Mt. A.

!is letter is meant to welcome criticism to the SAC, so that it can continue to improve and also to provide an inside look from a member of the SAC. !e countless hours your vice presidents, senators, councillors and other appointed/elected members put in is incredible, and I extend hearty thanks to them for a job well done so far. !ey are here for the students at Mt. A, so I encourage all of you to take advantage of their experience and knowledge of Mount Allison and also their approachability to reap more out of your time here. !anks for reading and shoot me an email anytime at macurrie@mta.ca if you have any questions… or just stop by the SAC o#ce; we always love visitors and good chats. Times opinions piece published in

July 2008, Obama wrote that on his first day in o#ce, he would order the military to end the war. !is goal would be accomplished by steadily withdrawing all combat troops within 16 months. With all the news generated by the economy, it’s easy to forget that Obama’s candidacy was launched on the basis of his opposition to the war.His final decision regarding this issue is crucial, as it will be the litmus test that proves whether he can keep his word.Ending the Iraq War will save the United States vast amounts of money, build credibility abroad, and save thousands of Iraqis from a terrible fate, but Obama will have to navigate between a too-slow withdrawal, which alienates his base, and a knee-jerk retreat that increases violence throughout the country.

Once these current crises have been tempered, he will need to tackle climate change by reconciling the scientific community with a once-hostile White House.Obama’s ambitious energy plan targets both America’s growing carbon dioxide emissions and its energy shortage, but will also reform a lax culture of conservation, which is just as crucial. His proposed solution

involves investing heavily into green infrastructure and renewable energy sources. !e plan’s goals are nothing less than slashing carbon dioxide emissions by 80 per cent by 2050 and eliminating America’s dependence on Middle East oil in 10 short years. However, since Obama has four to eight years maximum in which to enact his plan, he will be forced to leap onto some more measurable goals if he wants to remain credible.

To make matters worse, underwriting all these huge policy initiatives is a wounded and angry Republican Party. !ough thoroughly trounced in last week’s election, the Grand Old Party is going to make sure they throw every obstacle into Obama’s path.

Only after solving the above can Obama turn his attention to the issues on which he built the majority of his campaign: America’s failing healthcare system, its aging population, immigration policy, education, the budget deficit, Iran, Pakistan, and Afghanistan.

Americans asked for leadership, vision, integrity, courage, and yes, hope. “Yes we can,” Americans told Barack Obama. !e question they need to ask him now is: “Can you as well?”

Can Obama do it all?

Jessica Emin

Hamza KhanThe Concordian (Concordia University)

blogs.newsobserver.com

ENTERTAINMENT

When they aren’t expanding minds with art exhibitions and visual media workshops, the good folks at Struts Gallery like to kick back and put on a rock show. On Saturday, November 15, Struts served up a pop feast with locals Matt Lewis and !e Skinks and !e John Wayne Cover Band, finished by Cam Malcolm and !e Owls of Hamilton, Ontario.

Before I go on, allow me to be serious for a moment. We here at the Argosy are not immune to scheduling mishaps. After stopping at the ATM on the way to Struts around 9:00 pm, a quick glance at a poster revealed that the show had actually started at 8:00 pm. !us I missed out on the opening set from Matt Lewis and the Skinks. Matt, Skinks – sorry I missed you, but judging by the quality of the rest of the acts on the bill it was probably a terrific set. Readers, check them out if you have a chance. In the meantime, enjoy these fun facts about skinks. Did you know that skinks are the most diverse of the lizard families, with

Neil BonnerArgosy Staff

close to 1,200 di"erent species? Some of the larger species, including the Solomon Islands skink, can be as long as 35 cm. Tell your friends! !e John Wayne Cover Band is a mysterious bunch. !ey are not, as their name might suggest, a John Wayne tribute act, nor are they a vehicle for the songs of John Wayne Cover. Instead, they’re a group of three Mount Allison students, and they’re pretty good, too. Joel Carr’s vocals float over a soothing crunch of guitar chords similar to Neil Young or Sun Kill Moon. It’s road music – an atmospheric, dreamy blend of power-pop and country music, the soundtrack to leaning against a passenger seat window and watching the passing landscapes. Carr also played a song from his previous band, Conduct Becoming veterans !e Financial Group.

Cam Malcolm is an Ontario-based singer/songwriter who hit Sackville on the last night of his East Coast tour. Accompanying him was !e Owls, which as of August is his backing band. He played material from his addictive EP A Little Bit of History, as well as some unheard material. On record, Malcolm’s songs are a

laid-back take on classic power-pop, tinged with folk rock and psychedelia. Songs conjured memories of unsung pop heroes like the Apples in Stereo, Fountains of Wayne and Matthew Sweet. !ey’re songs you can know by heart before the first chorus is over, but they’ll still keep you coming back for more. In the live setting, !e Owls flesh out Malcolm’s solo tunes, with muscular support from drummer/brother Frasier Malcolm, bassist Adam Melnick and guitarist James Taylor (no, not that one), who added ripping mini-solos. Sometimes it was too loud for the confines of Struts, but even though Malcolm’s guitar occasionally overpowered Taylor’s, the hooks were never completely submerged.

By all accounts, this was an excellent concert with a slate of talented young bands. Yet something troubled me about it. !e first part of the show enjoyed a good-sized crowd, but a large portion of the audience disappeared before !e Owls went on. With shows of this caliber, we need all the people we can get to come out to these concerts, so keep your eyes on strutsgallery.ca/calendar.htm for news on upcoming shows. See you then.

Guy Davis warms up George’s Roadhouse

Locals and birds, oh my!Sackville students open up for Hamilton’s Cam Malcolm

Preceding the legendary Guy Davis, George’s Roadhouse welcomed a much less known artist to the stage: guitarist Graham Isaacson.

While not known widely, this Maine-based acoustic player is not without serious talent. Jokingly pointing this out several times between songs, Isaacson is predominantly a sad-song artist. Having a bit of a Damien-Rice-meets-rough-rocky-Eels guitar sound and a heavy husky voice, Isaacson certainly made good on his warning of “turning George’s into a bit of a cry fest.”

After you take a minute to get over the hilarious image of a collection of Roadhouse patrons bawling their eyes out, I’ll clarify that while I myself didn’t see any blubbering Sackville townies,

the mood was undoubtedly solemn. Isaacson’s sound is the kind of thing you’d love to listen to while looking out the window at a rainy day when you’ve got a heavy head or an even heavier heart. It’s not emo; don’t think it’s emo. While I would agree that if one were to read out his lyrics it’d sound pretty pathetically sentimental, I’d retort with the challenge to read some of the Ramones or the Smiths’ stu".

Once you’ve taken the time to recall their lyrics it’ll become evident that cool music has very little — if anything at all — to do with what’s being sung.

Getting past that, it must be pointed out that there were a couple songs of Isaacson’s that were a bit more of a rock and blues styling than his usual work. His rough and low singing voice (which is amusingly di"erent from his soft speaking voice), however, didn’t really mix well with a rock or even particularly a blues style of playing.

While I wouldn’t say that Graham Isaacson has a future in blues, despite the fact that the blues-loving audience and George’s received his stu" well, he certainly has a sound of his own that deserves some serious recognition and perhaps a return tour to Sackville.

Isaacson’s music is what I would — and now fully intend to — listen to on a depressing and lazy Sackville afternoon when the sky is gray and I can’t see past the downpour of rain at the window. It’d help too to have a case of beer at my side, because even on that particularly jubilant Friday night, this guy had me feeling like a beer is just what I need to get through the moment. I mean that in the most loving way.

!ree out of five guitars by my rating; come back again, Graham, and I might bump that up with a preview and an attendance to your gig.

Sasha van KatwykArgosy Staff

Jessica Emin

Graham Isaacson a good, but sad and somber a"air

www.google.ca

Guy Davis played a long but extremely well-executed set at George’s ‘Fabulous’ Roadhouse on Friday, proving that blues are not anywhere near lifeless, archaic or even a little limp. During an expansive set that spanned almost two and a half hours, Davis, who plays in the East Coast Piedmont blues style that incorporates a lot of fingerpicking and a more minimalist approach, led

Tom LlewellinArgosy Correspondent

the audience through a wide variety of blues standards, original material, and Dick Cheney jokes. !e New York native, who taught himself to play guitar on a train trip across America, was touring to promote release of Guy Davis On Air. His cover of Robert Johnson’s “Walkin’ Blues” turned heads, and his thundering baritone shook the room. Davis has an incredible prowess on the harmonica, which he put to good use on “Joppatowne.” His backing band, with only an upright bass player and keyboardist, lacked a drummer

but hardly needed one. !e trio kept a solid beat flowing through the set virtually uninterrupted, and there were plenty of catchy grooves that emitted from his well-worn 12-string guitar, coupled with impressive piano solos. Davis and his band are clearly very comfortable with the old-school 12-bar blues formula, but they showed a willingness to move beyond it in their original material that characterized them as outstanding. !ere were a total of three standing ovations - a first for the venue. Jessica Emin

Davis pulls out all the stops in a two-hour marathon

E PAGE 8 • THE ARGOSY • ENTERTAINMENT• NOVEMBER 20, 2008

Mongol (2008, UK, starring Tadanobu Asano, Sun Honglei, Khulan Chuluun, Odnyam Odsuren; Directed by Sergei Bodrov )

Epic battles, exotic places and a foreign time; these are what make up Mongol, the thrilling first film in a trilogy about Temujin, the man who would become Genghis Khan.

At first, I was a bit hesitant about watching Mongol due to the description given on the Film Society flyers. Not in the mood for a gore-fest, I was pleasantly surprised in the theatre when I realized that there would be no guts spilling out of torsos or unnecessary,

Betty LiangArgosy Correspondent

drawn-out battles. !e most gore you will see is blood splattering and swords impaling bodies. !at is not to say, however, that a large portion of the film is not dedicated to awesome battle scenes that will fill your system with adrenaline.

Of course, the action is balanced out with storytelling, showing Temujin’s struggles growing up in a hostile environment and his brave e"orts to unite all of Mongolia. !e more biographical scenes in the movie were not as enjoyable as the battle scenes however. !is is due to the sometimes awkward transitions, involving leaps in time where little is explained about how point A got to point B. To be fair, this may be due the fact that there are significant gaps in Temujin’s history.

Young @ Heart (2008, UK; Directed by Stephen Walker)

My favorite Film Society pick so far probably has to be Young @ Heart. !e movie documents the weeks before the Young @ Heart Chorus’ performance and is able to captivate its audience through its uplifting and touching presentation of senior citizens.

By watching this film, you gain a lot of respect and admiration for the dedicated members of the Young @ Heart Chorus who, despite what may deter them from rehearsals, are shown to strive to make their performance great.

At first, the documentary just seems a bit silly (these are elderly folks singing rock ‘n’ roll after all). But the troubles of having an all-senior-citizens’ chorus quickly becomes apparent. From trivial problems, like the generation gap between the chorus members and the

Betty LiangArgosy Correspondent

I enjoy crime dramas as much as the next person, and Pride & Glory with Edward Norton, Colin Farrell, and Jon Voight is a very good one. !e movie centers on the conflict between the duties that Norton has to to his family and his job. It’s a family a"air as Farrell and Norton play two cops in a family of cops - Norton’s father (Voight) and brother are both cops, as is Farrell, his brother-in-law. !e film opens in the middle of a football game between precincts of the NYPD, and as the game ends we learn that four cops under Norton’s brother’s command

Alexandra TherouxArgosy Correspondent

Redefining good cop/bad cophave been killed in a shooting.

!is is the point in the movie where I almost walked out – not because of the movie itself but because of the camerawork. !e camera is obviously handheld and it seems like it is being held by a two-year-old who thinks it’s a rattle. Not only is the camera shaky, but the shots go between visual extremes: from shots dark enough you have to squint to see what’s going on to basically staring into a light bulb with no warning at all. !is isn’t enough to trash the whole movie, which is good, since the frantic camera only lasts for about twenty minutes, although the the transitions from dark-as-a-cave to bright-as-the-sun (unfortunately) don’t stop.

allmoviephoto.com

However, I feel that this could have been easily remedied, especially since director Sergei Bordov is said to have taken artistic liberties in the process of writing the script.

Storytelling issues aside, epic battles were not the only thing worth watching. Mongol was aesthetically beautiful simply for its exotic settings. Coupled with the fantastic costumes donned by the actors, Mongol is able to evoke a wonderful sense of the exotic and faraway – every scene felt somehow otherworldly, beautiful and grand.

Despite the flaws in storytelling, Mongol is a great film to watch purely for the visual excitement to keep you mystified. And as one guy said when leaving the theatre, it “kind of makes

!e Mongolians are coming!Mongol’s exotic and lush setting a visual treat

songs they sing, to the more serious topic of illness and death, Young @ Heart is able to prove itself as a film about love of life rather than a film about a group of old people singing.

What really make this documentary wonderful are the endearing personalities who show that you must continue living even close to death. !e members of the chorus persevere through personal hardships as well as through stressful rehearsals. Such a large amount of hope and love is embodied in all the chorus members. !ough their bodies are not what they used to be and there is both fear and mockery of death, the members are shown to live life to the fullest, to suck the marrow out of the bone.

!ere is really nothing left for me to say because I cannot possibly express in words all the emotions that Young @ Heart stirred in me as I watched it. !is is a documentary that is real without being melodramatic; fun without being mocking. !e only thing I can suggest is to watch it yourself.

You gotta choose

Young @ Heart is top of the popsDocumentary is heartwarming and endearing

After monopolizing the board game world, the venerable game of real estate capitalism is heading to the big screen. Hasbro and Universal Pictures have signed a deal for at least four major motion

pictures based on board games over the next six years... !e first to make its silver screen debut will be Monopoly, with director Ridley Scott (Blade Runner, Gladiator) tentatively attached to direct. Really.

!e Argosy ponders...

www.iwatchstu!.com

wildaboutmovies.com

Back to the story; naturally every cop in New York is as mad as the killer bunny from Monty Python and the Holy Grail, and no one more so than Norton’s family. After much persuasion from his father, Norton agrees to work on the task force which is looking for the killer. At this point we learn that Farrell’s character is basically a hitman for drug dealers – enter the film’s central conflict.

When Norton learns of this it comes down to a choice of whether or not he should do the right thing for the cops who died or the right thing for his family. A twist in the plot makes the decision even harder, and Norton’s character’s choice is ultimately very surprising.

GET READY FOR FUN! FUN! FUN!WRITE ENTERTAINMENT

ENOVEMBER 20, 2008 • ENTERTAINMENT • THE ARGOSY• PAGE 9

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E-mail tom@kencamp.com or Phone Tom Troche at 305-673-3310Browse our website at www.kenmontkenwood.com and fill out our application.

Contact us if you would like to meet one of our staff on your campus.

Max Payne (Starring Mark Walberg, Mila Kunis, Beau Bridges; Directed by John Moore. 2008)

I’ll spare you the puns, but this one really did hurt. As a part-time nerd, I was unable to keep from getting my hopes up for this one. Every time I hear about another video game movie adaption, I think maybe it will finally be ‘the one.’ If any video game source material can make a good movie, this is it, but sadly all we have here is another overdone, poorly-written mess that has the additional o!ense of moving at an absolute crawl for the first 60 minutes.

"ere have been good reasons why most big screen adaptions of popular video games have been so poorly received by critics in the past. Trying to transform ten or more hours of wall-to-wall action into a coherent plot is an impossible task for filmmakers, and sacrifices have to be made. "e original hope I had for Max Payne was grounded in the game’s surprisingly strong characterization and dialogue (for a game at least) consistent with an overall grim but darkly humourous style. But you’ll find none of that in the movie. In fact, it almost seems like every e!ort was taken to remove

Dylan CunninghamArgosy Correspondent

everything that made the game so good. Let me explain.

First, the plot. In the game, things jumped into the action right o! the bat, and while there were pauses to flesh out characters and details, the gameplay always advanced. "e movie instead takes a much more passive role, meandering around for an hour or so as if wondering just what to make of itself. It was roughly an hour before there was ever even a proper shootout. "e amazing thing about that is it manages to sacrifice both a strong plot and strong action at the same time while characters sift through papers vainly trying to convince the audience that some sort of mystery is unfolding.

What really hurts is the way the characters are portrayed. Nerdishly enough, I commonly cite the ‘real’ Max Payne as one of the most convincing video game characters out there. He’s gru!, brooding and badass, but also is very much human and flawed. Even better, throughout the games he narrates in a style that is as cheesy as it is awesome, with lines like “It was colder than the devil’s heart, raining ice pitchforks as if the heavens were ready to fall.” What makes such melodramatic writing work is the self-referential humour. However, in the film, Mark Walberg’s Max barely

speaks; he only shows emotion when it’s in the script and is just blank-faced the rest of the time. Between this and !e Happening, the future isn’t looking bright for Marky-Mark. Moreover, formally likeable characters such as Mona Sax and Jim Bravura (Mila Kunis and Ludacris, respectively) are reasonably portrayed, but are given so few empty lines that no viewer could possibly care about them.

I hoped this one could at least pass as a good mindless action movie, but what action there is, while nice to look at and suitably intense, is bizarrely short-lived. "e style is there, with a grim, washed-out colour to everything as the snow falls, but that’s about all that can be said. I think the best indication of the simultaneous contempt for the source material and the audience is in the treatment of Valkyr, a fictional drug. In the game, after being injected with an overdose by his enemies, Max su!ers through a nightmarish hallucination that brings his survivor’s guilt to the forefront and then he wakes up in a puddle of his own vomit. In the movie he gains superpowers. Really.

Gamers, action movie-lovers and everyone else must avoid this one. More than that. Shoot it. With two guns. While diving through the air. In slow motion.

www.canmag.com

A Debutante ball is a big step in any girl’s life, especially if she is a member of elite society. Unfortunately, Torrance Caldwell’s (Scout Taylor-Campton) big ball is ruined by a prank gone bad.

Since it’s April Fool’s Day, pranks, and nasty ones, are to be expected. However, the garden-variety tricks are dispensed with and a devious trick is planned on Milan Hastings (Sabrina Aldridge). A compromising video is to be made and then posted on the Internet showing Blaine ( Josh Henderson) and Milan knocking boots, with the previous knowledge of the former. However, the nasty trick takes a bad turn when Milan accidentally dies as the trick is sprung.

Milan, as it turns out, was poisoned by a particularly nasty trickster. "is detail enacts a revenge plot, involving Milan’s angry ghost, that will kill o! the accomplices unless the guilty party comes forward. Not surprisingly, the rest of the movie finds the friends running around like chickens with their heads cut o!, unwilling to tell the truth as to who was responsible for Milan’s death.

It was a HORRIBLE FILM! "ere was a funny twist that was left to the very end of the film, but it’s not a big enough payo! to make it worth watching.

Jocelyn TurnerArgosy Correspondent

As for the genre, I’m not sure where you would place it. "e plotline seems to be that of a horror film, but when you’re actually sitting there watching it, it’s more like a comedy since you spend a lot of time laughing. "e beginning follows all the conventions of a standard horror story: girl dies, ghost of girl comes back on anniversary of her death to seek revenge on those responsible, and many die. At the end of the film when you find out the identity of the poisoner, and that everything that happened was a prank to get the character to confess, you’re kind of left wondering what kind of movie it is, and after a while, that’s all you focus on.

"e acting was horrible. "e way they reacted to being attacked and murdered each time leaves lots to be desired. "ere was no way it was believable. When Charles was drowned, it was supposed to be because he didn’t know how to swim. Unfortunately when he jumped into the pool to save his poor Chihuahua, he was swimming. Now in my experience, if you don’t know how to swim, you don’t jump into a pool to save a dog.

"ere is a very good reason why I’m not going to bother to recommend it. When I did, as a kind of April Fool’s joke, it was turned o! within a few minutes. It doesn’t even deserve a one out of ten!

!e vitals:"e Nuclear"e Mean Something DeliciousGeorge’s ‘Fabulous’ RoadhouseFriday, November 21, 10pm, $6

!e details:"ree Moncton bands descend upon George’s with an unique blend of punk and the eclectic. Something Delicious defies categorization. Perhaps likening the band to the wild, unpredictable

sound of Mr. Bungle or the Mars Volta is a compromise. "e Mean have a lo-fi, guitar heavy sound that is the purest ‘punk’ sound of the three. "e headlining "e Nuclear have an upbeat pop/punk sound that is reminiscent of old Green Day (before American Idiot so it’s not so bad).

Further reading:www.myspace.com/somethingdeliwww.myspace.com/useyourreceiver www.myspace.com/thenuclear

Sackville nuclearized

Max Payne is painfulMovie lacks the fun of game series

Mark Walberg takes a crack at the game’s iconic slow-mo gun fighting

April Fool’s DayDeath by viewing

FEATURES

Cindy CrossmanRegistered Nurse / Educator

We spend the majority of our day working indoors with little or no bright light and then rush home to spend more time indoors to read, watch television, use the computer, listen to music, or exercise. Is this impacting our health?

According to an article from the /International Journal of Risk & Safety in Medicine (1998), the following are the common signs that may indicate that you may not be getting enough bright light in the beneficial wavelengths: Depressed Mood, Low Energy, Irritability, Di!culty Concentrating, Carbohydrate Cravings, Social Withdrawal, Reduced Libido, and Trouble Sleeping.

As the days get shorter, many individuals find that they begin to experience the “winter blues”. We feel down and lose interest in things that we used to enjoy, have less energy, and find it di!cult to wake up in the morning. When these feelings persist and a"ect the person’s ability to accomplish simple daily tasks and performance at school and at work, a person may be su"ering from something called Seasonal A"ective Disorder (SAD).

According to the Merrian Webster medical dictionary, SAD is a medically recognized sub-type of major depression that tends to occur as the days grow shorter in the fall and winter. It is believed that a"ected persons react adversely to the decreasing amount of light and the colder temperature as autumn and winter progress.

Research into the causes of SAD is ongoing. As yet, there is no confirmed cause. However, SAD is thought to be related to seasonal variations in light a “biological internal clock” in the brain regulates our circadian (daily) rhythms. #is biological clock responds to changes in season, partly because of the di"erences in the length of the day.

So how is SAD Treated?According to the Mood disorders Society of Canada, many people with SAD respond well to exposure to bright, artificial light.

“Light therapy,” which involves sitting beside a special fluorescent light box

for several minutes day. A health care professional should be consulted before beginning light therapy. However, the use of anti-depressant medication and psychotherapy is also though to provide beneficial results.

How does the light therapy work?Light therapy involves exposure to bright light of a particular spectrum. Specially designed Light therapy boxes or visors have been designed to treat SAD.

It is recommended that 30 minutes of light exposure (if you have a box with 10,0000 lux), and one hour (if you have a box with 5,000 lux) particularly in the morning, can have a positive benefit to lifting mood and energy. If it is e"ective, you should feel some relief within two to four weeks of initiating treatment. Treatment is usually continued throughout the winter period when symptoms are present.

Some people with predictable episodes of SAD initiate treatment in advance of experiencing symptoms as a way of pre-emptying the onset of depression. Research has proven the e"ectiveness in treating SAD with fluorescent light boxes in approximately 65% of cases.

#e most common side e"ects of light therapy reported are: eye strain or visual disturbances, headache, agitation or feeling “wired”, nausea, sweating and sedation. #ese side e"ects are generally mild and subside with time or by reducing the dose of light. Hypo mania and mania have also been reported as uncommon but serious side e"ects of light therapy.

Please consult your health care provider about the treatment and do not start light treatment without an accurate diagnosis by a trained clinician. It is extremely important to let your health care provider know if you are considering light therapy because exposure can cause severe reactions in people with certain medical conditions, like epilepsy, or with severe eye ailments like glaucoma, cataracts or retinopathy or if you are taking medication which increase photosensitivity before initiating treatment.

What is the procedure for light therapy?Light therapy for winter blues usually consists of 15 to 60 minutes of bright

light every morning as early as possible upon waking – ideally before 8 AM.

Find a routine that works best with your schedule. You may find it easiest to get your light while eating breakfast, exercising, applying makeup, or while working at the computer.

Some people find a second exposure of bright light in the middle of the afternoon gives them an extra boost of energy to make it through the day.

#e Litebook should not be used in the evening as it could interfere with your normal sleep time. (there is an exception for 50-plus adults desiring to adjust their early sleep pattern)

Everyone is unique in their light needs; you may have to try di"erent exposure times to find your best level.

Where is this “light therapy” available on campus and how much does this cost?#e litebook is available at the Wellness Centre for all Mount Allison University students to utilize. No appointment is needed and there is no charge for the utilization of this treatment.

General Usage Instructions of the LitebookPosition the Litebook approximately 12 to 24 inches (30-60 cm) from your face, and o"set it to a 30 to 45 degree angle, like sunlight coming in a window.

Direct the Litebook’s light beam at your eyes. Your eyes must be open to achieve the benefit.

To provide benefit, the Litebook’s light beam is very bright, like the sun. As with the sun, you do not stare at the Litebook, although it is not harmful to glance at it occasionally.

Typically, you will know when you have received su!cient light. Most feel a sense of heightened alertness, energy, and/or mood.

For people who are more severely a"ected by SAD, counseling and sometimes medications may also be helpful for winter depression.

If you or someone you know su"ers from SAD and/or who is interested in “lite therapy” please do not hesitate to contact the Wellness Centre at Mount Allison University at 364-2163 to meet with the Nurse/Educator or the Personal Counsellors.

New International Centre hopes to increase awareness on campus

How important is light?Christina AshleyArgosy Correspondent

Over the past six months there have been numerous changes in the international field at Mount Allison. From the creation of the International Centre in the new Wallace McCain Student Center, to the change in title of Ron Byrne to Vice-President of International and Student A"airs, Mount Allison has attempted to enrich the “international experience” for its sta" and students.

#e o!ce of the new International Centre now serves as a centralized information point for all things international. With the creation of this o!ce came a new title for Adam Christie, now Manager of International A"airs. In this role, he will work towards creating an international atmosphere across campus, to allow every student at Mt. A. to have an “international experience.”

“I don’t want people to think they have to go far to reach international; I don’t want them to think it isn’t accessible, or that it is impossible,” says Christie.

#e “international experience” is often seen as going on an exchange or study-abroad program. #e new International Centre hopes to expand this definition for students, promoting the idea that an international experience can simply be sitting down for co"ee with a student from Brazil and sharing stories about life, past and present.

Ron Byrne’s new title as VP of International, as well as Student A"airs, ideally positions him to contribute to this idea of a new student “experience” at Mt. A.

“Our job is to facilitate the students, to give them all the opportunities and tools to have an international experience at Mount Allison,” said Byrne.

Assisting Christie in the International Centre is Pronoti Majithia, recently appointed to fill a vacancy in the position of International Student Advisor. In her position, she aims to help students smoothly transition towards internationality. From incoming international students to students who are looking for study-abroad and exchange programs, and all the way to just wanting to get involved, she is there to help.

As in previous years, the International Lounge represents a space where students of any nationality or background can go to enjoy themselves and find stimulating conversation and a worldly experience, right here at Mt. A.

In addition, the centre recently held an International Mini Fair to promote study abroad and exchange programs. #is is one of many events the centre is planning to promote the international experience, and allow students to get involved. #e International Centre hopes to increase attendance to these events.

“When they see that [international] heading,” says Byrne, “they automatically assume that it is for international students and only international students. What we want to show is that these events are for everyone and that they are the perfect opportunity to expand your horizons and enrich your experience at Mount Allison.”

Recently, discussions have been held with students across campus to find new and creative ways to promote the international experience and to create events that will bring the community together. Some of the ideas have been quite innovative. An international food crawl, for example, is one idea that sparked the imagination of many. #is entails going from house to house, tasting international cuisine. As well, finding a way to finance international experiences such as studying abroad or going on an exchange is part of the program’s initiatives; this includes finding new scholarships and grants within the academic community, both inside and outside of Mt. A.

#is week, for example, Mt. A has been hosting a week of International Education activities, along with other university campuses. From Monday to Friday, student presentations, workshops, and foreign films have been presented in the International Lounge, between six and nine o’clock, exploring such diverse cultures as Ghana, China, and Germany.

Even with these new initiatives, the toughest of all challenges may simply be increasing student interest.

“I overheard a student ask why international is important to Mount Allison,” said Majithia, “and it struck me that no matter what steps we take to enrich the international experience, none of it means anything if the students are not behind having an international experience.”

“International is a way of enriching who you are as a person,” comments Byrne, “so that you can go out into the world and know that you have stepped outside the prepared box of life and are ready to experience every aspect of life, not just that that is your own.”

with files from Darren Mercer

Going international

A student takes advantage of the Wellness Centre’s free “Litebook.”

Jessica Emin

Free “Litebook” for use at the Wellness Centre

Jessica Emin

F PAGE 12 • THE ARGOSY • FEATURES • NOVEMBER 20, 2008

Rev. John C. PerkinUniversity Chaplain

For the politically obsessed, it has been a full fall. Now the Canadian election is over, and after a lengthy process, the American election is over.

It has been a fascinating process to bear witness to; of particular interest was the way in which the election south of our border has re-shaped some traditional alignments, particularly those that link faith and political allegiance. I wonder if Canada will feel the impact of this re-shaping.

While on the one hand, the role of religion in the election process in the United States has been vastly overplayed, on the other hand there was a significant shift of support to the Democratic ticket from evangelical voters who traditionally have supported the Republican platform.

!e role of faith in the identity of the leaders came under scrutiny more as a tangential extra than a matter of substance. !e more substantial matter was the shift among some evangelicals to a platform that represented a larger look at the nation and the world, particularly among younger voters.

What has emerged in the fall of 2008 is nothing less than an indication that there may be some significant changes emerging in the American evangelical community. Younger people are looking out beyond a theology that, over the last generation, has focussed on a personal morality, and has sought to impose the standards of that personal morality on the state. Now, younger evangelicals are becoming more concerned with social values: from the environment to the poor, from refugees to the traumas

of war, from rights of minorities to rights of all sexual orientations, there is a realization that the gospel of salvation is also the gospel of concern and of justice.

As one religious commentator in America observed, “Most elections are just power rearrangements; this one was a transformational moment in our history. A fundamental shift is taking place in America, and we saw the evidence on November 4. It is a political shift, a cultural and racial shift, a generational shift, and a religious shift.”

!e election drew in many people from a diverse evangelical community, which is not a monolithic bloc. !ere is the evangelical community with which we may be most familiar: the white middle-class evangelical community in mega-churches in the suburbs of large American cities, concerned with maintaining white middle class values under the guise of biblical values.

!ere is also an increasingly large, charismatic evangelical community whose worship style is di"erent, whose theology is rooted in that same message of a personal relationship with God, but whose background is Hispanic, and often rooted in Catholicism. !ere is a black evangelical theology which, again, is rooted in a notion of a personal God and personal Saviour, but which also holds fiercely to the prophetic message of the challenge to transform a corrupt world into a just and equal society.

In the transformational message of hope preached – yes, I use that word advisedly – by Barack Obama, the elements of transformation lined up to create a perfect storm among the evangelical community, resulting in evidence of this change – time will tell whether it is transitory or the beginning

!rough stained glass

Argosy Staff

!e death of Bloody Mary, Queen of EnglandOn November 17, 1558, Queen Mary I died of a possible tumour in her brain, grudgingly leaving the throne to her sister, Elizabeth I (a Protestant), due to the fact that Mary had no heirs.

!e first child and daughter of Henry VIII by his first wife, Catherine of Aragon (daughter of the Spanish monarchs Ferdinand and Isabella), Mary I was known for her Catholic fanaticism, as she had re-established it as Britain’s national religion, rejecting her father’s break from Rome to form the Church of England, and the establishment of Protestantism by her half-brother, Edward VI. Mary I ascended to the throne on July 19, 1553, after the death of Edward’s cousin, Lady Jane Grey (who had become queen for nine days after Edward’s death).

Soon after she became queen, Mary I married Philip II of Spain, the son of her cousin and advisor, Emperor Charles V of Spain; Spain being a strong Catholic country, made Philip the best possible match for Mary. Also following Mary’s coronation, an anti-Catholic rebellion rose, objecting the new queen and supporting her Protestant half-sister, Elizabeth, to be named as queen.

Mary I had the insurrectionists arrested and executed. !is persecution of Protestants would last for almost four years, during which time, Mary had over 280 Protestants burned at the stake, in attempt to decrease the people’s hatred of her.

She even went as far as to arrest Elizabeth and hold her in the Tower of London, trying to exclude her Protestant sister from gaining the throne when he died. It was because of these burnings, that she earned the epitaph “Bloody Mary.”

Presenting Mickey Mouse in his first sound cartoonOn November 18, 1928, Disney released its third Mickey Mouse cartoon, Steamboat Willie. !is would be one of the first animated cartoons to be featured with a fully synchronized soundtrack.

!e cartoon was directed and written by Walt Disney and Ub Iwerks, in which Mickey pilot’s Pete’s ship, all the while trying to impress Minnie (at that time Minnie had no name), and making music with various farm animals.

Even though there had been two cartoons featuring Mickey Mouse before Willie, the Disney corporation recognizes Nov. 18 as Mickey’s birthday. In 1994, Steamboat Willie was nominated as number 13 in the 50 Greatest Cartoons

of all time by members of the animation world.

!e Piltdown man hoaxOn November 21, 1953, authorities from the British Natural History Museum released evidence that the “Piltdown Man” skull, believed to be one of the most famous human skulls in the world, was a hoax.

Fragments of a skull and jawbone had been found in a gravel pit in a village called Piltdown, East Sussex, England in 1912. Many experts believed the bones to be the remains of an early human. Until it was exposed as a fake, the specimen was subject of much controversy as several zoologists and palaeontologists concluded that the jaw bone was that of an ape and the skull being human.

In 1923, German anthropologist Franz Weidenreich examined the remains and reported that it was a modern human cranium with a jaw bone of an orangutan with the teeth filed down. Weidenreich had easily exposed the hoax for what it was; unfortunately it took thirty years for the scientific community to agree with his findings.

Also this week in history:Nov. 16, 1384: Jadwiga is crowned King of Poland, even though she is a woman.Nov. 16, 1849: A Russian court sentences

A weekly compilation by Sarah Robinsonwriter Fyodor Dostoevsky to death for anti-government activities linked to a group of radical intellectuals; however, later, his sentence is reduced to hard labour.Nov. 16, 1885: Leader of the Métis and “Father of Manitoba,” Louis Riel, is executed for treason.Nov. 17, 1502: Birth of Atahualpa, the last emperor of the Inca.Nov. 17, 1796: Death of the Dowager Empress of Russia, Catherine the Great.Nov. 17, 1903: !e Russian Social Democratic Labour Party splits into two groups, the Bolsheviks and the Mensheviks (the majority and minority).Nov. 17, 2005: Italy’s choice for national anthem, “Il Canto delgi Italiani,” becomes the o#cial anthem of Italy after using it for nearly 60 years after the birth of the Italian republic.Nov. 18, 1307: According to legend, on this day William Tell shot an apple o" the top of his son’s head with an arrow.Nov. 18, 1985: !e first Calvin and Hobbes comic strip appears in 30 newspapers across the U.S.Nov. 19, 1863: American President Abraham Lincoln delivers Gettysburg Address (“Four score and seven years ago…”) at a military cemetery dedication ceremony during the American Civil War, now one of the most quoted speeches in American history.

Nov. 19, 1990: Pop group Milli Vanilli are stripped of their Grammy because they didn’t actually sing on their album Girl You Know It’s True.Nov. 20, 1947: !e future queen, Princess Elizabeth marries Lieutenant (Prince) Philip Mountbatten at Westminster Abbey.Nov. 20, 1962: !e Cuban Missile Crisis ends after the Soviets agree to remove their missiles from Cuba and JFK lifts the quarantine on Cuba.Nov. 20, 1975: Death of Spanish dictator, Francisco Franco.Nov. 21, 1694: Birth of the French philosophe, François-Marie Arouet, better known as Voltaire.Nov. 21, 1877: !omas Edison announces his invention of the phonograph, which is able to record and play sounds.Nov. 22, 1819: Birth of Mary Ann Evans, the writer behind the pen name George Eliot.Nov. 22, 1922: Howard Carter and Lord Carnarvon open the tomb of Tutankhamun.Nov. 22, 1963: American President John F. Kennedy is assassinated during a political trip to Dallas, Texas; later that day Lyndon B. Johnson is sworn in as President.Nov. 22, 1975: Juan Carlos is declared King of Spain after the death of Francisco Franco.

of a significant shift in the future. !is seemingly new faith perspective

has voted for a broad new moral agenda for faith in public life. It is not about imposing the trappings of Christianity in the public sphere (posting the ten commandments in court rooms, reciting the Lord’s Prayer in school rooms), but about much more sweeping changes; a concern with racial and economic justice, a new interest in the environment and care for creation, a will towards peacemaking, are among the keys of this growing shift.

!e changing evangelical community gave Barack Obama a net gain of four million committed Protestants and Catholics over the election of 2004, and as a result provided significant shifts in some key states. In many of these states, along with the increased number of voters who had previously not registered, there were also real number gains among a new generation of white evangelicals.

For instance, in Colorado, the home state of evangelical leader (and Focus on the Family founder) James Dobson, the percentage of white evangelicals voting for Obama nearly doubled from Democratic support four years ago. Obama won the state of Indiana by a margin of less than thirty thousand votes, but indications in polling are that upwards of two hundred thousand votes came from white evangelicals who had previously supported the Republican party.

It is clear that the leadership of the African-American and Hispanic churches was more important than ever before in an American election. But alongside that shift, white evangelicals also played a supporting role. !e increased support from white evangelicals – some in spite of pleas to vote Republican from pulpits around the United States

on Sundays leading up to the election – marks a growing shift within the religious landscape in which theological conservatism is finding a kinship a commitment to social justice.

Indications are also that there is a new generation of younger evangelicals (post baby-boomers, and even post-Generation Xers), including church leaders and ministers, who see the evangelical church existing in a “post-conservative” future.

Conservative in theology (still holding to some of the fundamental elements of the faith, such as the inerrancy of scripture, the literal reading of the gospel stories, and the idea of a personal relationship with the Saviour who has won salvation in an atoning sacrifice), this next generation is also seeing that the gospel is not a call to personal prosperity, but to global justice.

!e goal of political victory is not to regulate personal morality through law, but to govern responsibly. Issues on the agenda for this upcoming generation of outward-looking evangelicals include responding to poverty, genocide, war, and climate change. !ere is still an interest in concentrating on families, and focussing on healthy families, but instead of seeing this in mid-twentieth century middle class terms, the understanding of family and challenges are also changing.

Jim Wallis, a progressive evangelical, notes that “!ese religious voters refuse to be distracted by the culture wars of the previous generation. !is new generation are not the evangelicals the country is used to seeing and hearing about in the media, and they are already reshaping the future agenda.”

In part, there is a broadening of the political agenda among evangelicals. !is past election was not, for them, going to

be decided on single issues, such as the stance on abortion.

In the past, there has been a real focus on the influence of religion on politics in the United States. Could Kennedy, a Catholic, appeal to the nation? Do the Democrats represent religion enough to appeal to evangelicals? Is Obama’s church background acceptable?

In 2008, the influence has been in another direction: political issues, and the election, have been a focus in evangelical circles so that religion, rather than seeking to influence political process, is starting to be shaped by the political process.

Seeing themselves in categories other than traditional “left” or “right” politically, some Christians in the United States are also starting to see themselves in categories other than traditional “religious right” or evangelical. Still holding to some foundational tenets of the faith, they are looking beyond the church doors and beyond personal moralities to larger issues such as poverty, equality, rights, peace, and caring for the world.

I am watching to see if this influence, like the traditional evangelicalism of the last generation, will also come north of the border. While religion has not, recently, had an overt shaping influence on political process in Canada in recent decades, it will be interesting to see whether the politics of compassion and concern will start to reshape religion in Canada, in events such as the Liberal leadership race.

As some look out to the churches, synagogues, mosques and temples from government and political o#ces, I will continue to look out towards Parliament Hill, through stained glass.

This week in history

FNOVEMBER 20, 2008 • FEATURES • THE ARGOSY • PAGE 13

Arr matey, thar be booty!

Vision in Blue

!is past weekend, I went to a movie night with some female friends. !e movie they decided to watch was Pirates. No, not that Disney film, but rather the highest budget porno ever produced.

When you think about watching porn, it’s usually a guy thing. Most guys watch porn, girls, well, not so much. It was interesting to watch this particular movie and make note of not only the plot (there actually was one), but the sexual acts themselves. For example, have you ever been with someone who did something in bed, and you were like “Where the fuck did they learn that, because that was SO not sexy?” Chances are, they got it from a porno.

!ere was a lot of ass slapping, and while that sometimes can be hot, I’m not entirely sure that vaginal slapping is. Whether it was little finger slaps to full out hand smacks, every girl in the movie got her vag smacked during sex. As one girl mentioned during the movie, hitting a guy on his dick with as much force as they were hitting the girls would have them on the floor in tears.

Maybe some girls like this, I don’t know of any who do, but keep in mind that if a girl doesn’t like getting her ass slapped, chances are a vag smack will ruin the moment. If she likes it, hopefully she’ll let you know, but until then, leave this one for porn.

Some people say that saliva is the best lubrication there is, and while that may be true, I’ve never found spitting on genitals to be sexy. It’s kind of gross.

If you can find a way to do it more politely, maybe spitting on the hand before giving a handjob or spitting on the fingers before sticking them in an orifice, or even drooling a bit when giving oral, fine, whatever, but to blow spit on someone honestly looks like you’re horking it, and that’s just not sexy.

I was with this guy who had this thing with his tongue in that he would use it like a jackhammer. It hurt, and I never understood where he got it from until I watched this movie. When you go down on a girl, and most guys might not know this, the area is kind of sensitive. Some girls like rough sex, and maybe rough oral sex too, so the jackhammer tongue thing might work there, but leave this one to the vaginal area, ok?

Don’t go doing this tongue thing, say, on her tits, or worse, in her ear. Yeah, that’s right IN THE EAR. Just don’t. Also keep in mind that in porn, those girls fuck so much that they’re a little desensitized, so you need to use this tongue force thing to get them o". Normal girls who don’t

make a living by having sex, tend to be more sensitive down there. If she wants you to use more force, she’ll ask.

One chick was really annoying in that she’d make this really weird high pitched sound while getting fucked. It sounded like a squeak toy for a dog. Do guys actually like this? I understand that you should probably make some noise during sex so that the person/people you’re with know that you’re enjoying yourself, but try for believable and not annoying.

On a similar note, it’s weird when guys don’t make any noise during sex. It’s fine to be involved while doing your thing, but if you don’t want girls to be starfish, then some vocal involvement on your part would be nice too.

At the same time, the whole “Oh yeah, OH Yeah, OH YEAH, Oh baby, YEAH!” thing is a bit much. Really, it’s laughable. If you do this, you should work in the porn industry. I’m sure you’d be a highly paid actor.

One fun thing about this movie was the costumes. I think more people should incorporate role playing into their sex lives, because it keeps things interesting. When you dress up, it spices things up; you’re still you, but maybe a di"erent version of you. It’s new and exciting, and besides, how many people have secretly wanted to fuck a pirate?

Oh, and how can I forget the cheesy lines in the movie. Now, I was expecting this, and they were pretty bad, but the fact that this porn actually had a plot made me slightly forgiving, however, cheesy lines should never be used during sex.

If you’re trying to be funny, fine, but if you’re actually looking to score, or say something nice about your girlfriend, then a line should never be used, mostly because it comes o" as pathetic and unoriginal. She’s gonna know it’s a line.

All in all, the movie wasn’t actually that bad. Most of the main male actors were actually good looking, and the only exception had what was probably the biggest dick I’ve ever seen in my life. All three men were built, and as a result, had tons of stamina, which is always hot.

Most of the girls had fake tits, which was to be expected. If I was a guy, perhaps I would have enjoyed the giant tits aspect of the film, rather than reflecting on how they looked like water balloons with nipples and that in certain sex positions, you could even see the surgical scars (ick). However, some of the girl-on-girl action was kind of hot.

I’d recommend this movie to anyone getting together with a group of friends for a night in, or to girls who are just starting to get into porn and want something more like a movie, but with lots of sex.

piratesxxx.com

Corey Isenor andJames GoddardArgosy Correspondents

Hong Kong Kitchen 170A Main Street

On the first of July, 1997, Hong Kong changed hands, going from a British protectorate to a Chinese Special Administrative district. We don’t know what impact this had on Sackville’s Hong Kong Kitchen.

History aside, the Hong Kong Kitchen is located behind Sassy’s convenience store and in the same strip mall as Jack’s Pizza. It’s been around at least as long as we’ve been in Sackville and the interior seems to suggest that it is something of a timeless institution. !e wall hangings and general atmosphere are very much in line with what one might expect from a Chinese-Canadian restaurant.

We went for dinner around 7:30 pm on a !ursday night. When we arrived there was one other table of people just finishing their meal, so we had our choice of table and received all of the

server’s attention. !is meant that we were expected to be ready to order as soon as we looked at the menu. !is of course did not happen, and it wasn’t until her third request for our orders that we were able to comply.

Being the only patrons, our food arrived quite soon after being ordered, much to our pleasure. Corey chose to create his own combo consisting of Moo Moo Guy Pan, chicken chow mein, and pork ribs. James and our guest, Editor-in-Chief Zoe Williams, chose to split a Vietnamese soup, basil beef with pineapple, and special fried rice.

!e soup arrived first and it was delicious. !is set the bar high for the rest of the meal and the Hong Kong Kitchen did not disappoint.

Corey’s Moo Moo Guy Pan and the chicken chow mein were quite good, being both flavourful and filling. !e basil beef and the special fried rice arrived at the table last, both steaming hot. !e basil beef with pineapple had a savoury sauce which was complimented by the fruitiness of the pineapple.

!e fried rice was fried rice, although the special fried rice comes with the

works, so there were many surprises as we dug in. We all received generous servings of food, having enough to take home afterwards.

!is brings us to the menu; Hong Kong Kitchen has arguably the deepest menu in town. O"ering three full pages of edible options, we’re not talking spaced out, but a densely typed page.

!ere are classics, specials, combo choices, Canadian, Vietnamese, and Chinese options; more o"erings than we could properly cover in one visit. !e combos consist of pretty standard North American interpretations of Chinese food, chicken balls and the like. Many of the dishes had vegetarian counterparts as well.

Given the amount of food and the quality Hong Kong kitchen is quite a"ordable. Corey ate for under $12, while James and Zoe’s triple dish meal came to just under $35. !is may sound expensive, but we chose to order liberally and ended up with more food than we could eat in one sitting.

Overall, we highly recommend the experience of eating at the Hong Kong Kitchen. One and three quarter thumbs up.

Corey and James eat out

Emily Bird Argosy Correspondent

A stylish outfit never alludes to an empty wallet. As many of us are constantly managing a tight budget, the wardrobe, consequently, loses it’s priority.

What little pocket money one has goes towards gas, library photocopies, and co"ee runs. !e wardrobe however, is not dependent on new pieces in order to evoke inspiring originality. A wardrobe’s eccentricity is not representative of it’s monetary value, but of the stylist’s creative method of collaborating clothes, shoes, and accessories.

!rift shops are often treasure chests of vintage glamour however, their price tags have a few less digits than those of Valentino and Christian Lacroix. Reflect upon the saying “one man’s junk is another man’s treasure.”

!e key to a successful thrift store expedition is open eyes and determination. Don’t expect to be overwhelmed by mountains of quality valuables, but the e"ort makes your found piece ever more treasured and representative of your style.

It doesn’t always have to be the fine jewellery that one skimps on. Most individuals accumulate a vast variety of stones and gems over the years, so why not take the opportunity to turn a unique medallion into the centerpiece of an outfit?

Make the accessory a simple dress, such as a black longsleeve cotton tunic paired with slouchy leather boots. If it is a large necklace that is to be on display, pull the hair back away from the face, and refrain from adding any more accessories around the visage that may take away from the necklace.

Now when it comes down to a last minute party invite and there is no time for thrifty spending, check out the wardrobes of other household members and friends. !ere’s no harm in borrowing one key piece to add to an old ensemble. A staple item such as a vintage leather belt can transform any timeless look into a new modern twist.

It’s surprising to some, but it is the minor adjustments that reinvent a look. If you are in a muddle for evening wear, grab a tunic top that you usually pair with boots and leggings. Reinvent this casual

piece by slipping on a pair of coloured slacks and a pair of killer high pumps. Pull your hair back, throw on some bangles and earrings, and accentuate the frame with a skinny metallic belt.

When transforming one look from casual day wear to evening wear, focus on minor details. Notice that staples of the night scene like sequins, metallics, and patent fabrics are more exaggerated than those worn in the daylight.

If you need an appropriate look for the o#ce, but are going to a formal event right after work, wear that dress to work! Simply throw on a neutral coloured cardigan, a pair of dark slacks, and simple accessories such as a pair of pearl earrings, and a plain headband.

After work, take your hair out of that loose ponytail and let it down, or pull it up in a dramatic pouf. Remove the slacks and cardigan, switch the work flats for sexy heals, and frost yourself in a few dazzling wonders. If you are one not afraid of attention, smack on some deep red lipstick for a full figure metamorphosis.

!e reinvention of an outfit does not depend on entirely di"erent wardrobe pieces. !ink of it as the sketch of an image which everyone interprets di"erently and originally. One plain short sleeve dress can take on numerous modes, whether it be mod, vintage, classic, or punk; it is the foundation upon which a look comes together to evoke a particular style.

All of these ideas may be too overwhelming, but do not forget to focus on the particularities. Glamour can fit in a bag, ready for use at any time no matter how short notice the party invite is. !e glamour bag consists of five essentials: red lipstick, a black eyeliner/ mascara combo, fabulous high heels ( the higher the better), a vintage shrug ( think of seventies faux fur or crochet; find one second-hand!), and lastly, a metallic clutch.

Now, no one has an excuse for being unable to treat themselves to a night of shining style, no matter what the financial situation. We have all been there, are currently there, or will soon be, but these quick tricks are for anyone’s use. Everyone appreciates being knowledgeable of shortcuts in some aspects of life.

Recipe for Reinvention

Internet PhotoReinvent your wardrobe with a convertible dress.

F PAGE 14 • THE ARGOSY • FEATURES • NOVEMBER 20, 2008

Geoffrey CampbellArgosy Contributor

I was born in Canada, but lived most of my life in the United States in a Chicago suburb. After years in the U.S., I automatically became an American and have since had dual citizenship. But until a few weeks ago, I was pretty averse to admitting I’m also an American.

Whenever I admitted to it (or a friend outed me to a stranger), the automatic response has been an almost universal “eww,” followed by America-bashing, often related to President Bush. I think a lot of Canadians mistakenly believe most Americans support the policies of the U.S. government during the past eight years, but with Bush holding the record for highest disapproval rating in decades, I think there needs to be a distinction made between actions of the Bush administration and the views of most Americans.

I was ten years old when the Bush took o!ce, and since I was old enough to care, I’ve been opposed to the actions of the current government. I joined the American Civil Liberties Union and wrote to my Senators. I watched the news almost every day, watched the U.S. military drop thousands of bombs in the days of “Shock and Awe” in the Iraq War, and was angry to have to go to alternative media to see what happened when all of those bombs hit their targets.

I closely followed the 2004 election,

and when I saw Barack Obama speak at the Democratic National Committee Convention in 2004, I was excited. For four years before I could vote, I was grateful to have him as one of my Illinois Senators. I was even more glad when Obama decided to run in the presidential election.

I watched almost every debate. When I saw the presidential primary returns, and Obama won Iowa, which is ethnically one of the whitest states in the country, I was optimistic about the future of the country for the first time in years.

I had never thought about getting involved in an election before, but on a cold day in January, I took a train into his Chicago headquarters to call complete strangers to ask them to vote for Barack Obama. At the end of the day I had left more messages than I can remember, been yelled at, and hung up on, but I felt proud that I had done something.

I donated what I could, saw that he was behind in the polls, and donated again. I found out that he was going to speak in Wisconsin, so I spent my entire day in a car, in the cold, and then in a line to be shoved into a crowd to barely be able to see him speak for forty minutes.

I had two hours of sleep that night, but it was more than worth it.

I walked through the cold and the snow to vote early for him in the primaries. When I decided to come Mount Allison, I knew I needed to be sure I got an absentee ballot, and sending in my voter registration was

one of the first things I did here. When people asked me if I was going to vote, I asked if they were joking.

On election night, I saw more people huddled around one television watching American election results than I had ever talked to in my entire time here about Canadian politics. I gladly stayed up all night to see him become elected the President of the United States.

I was exhausted and behind in my work, but, more importantly, for the first time in years, I was optimistic about the future of the United States and its role in the world.

After the election, most people I knew were relieved, but held a “took them long enough” type of attitude towards the outcome. Some were even annoyed at the amount of coverage of the election and thought it wasn’t very important who was in the White House. "ey have no idea how much work was done by hundreds of thousands of people to get him elected, and how much of an impact President Obama will have on the world.

Just the morning after, there were already complaints and suggestions that he was not going to be able to accomplish what he set out to do. It’s easy as an outsider to be cynical about the chances of him accomplishing most of his goals.

Obviously he’ll make mistakes, and face roadblocks. Guantanamo will not be closed overnight and all the troops will not be home by the summer, but I for one am proud of what happened and am optimistic about what is to come.

Obama and I: An American-Canadian’s perspective

Rebecca DixonArgosy Correspondent

“While the Democratic Party has won a great victory tonight, we do so with a measure of humility and determination to heal the divides that have held back our progress,” said President elect Barack Hussein Obama in his victory speech in Chicago on election night 2008.

A huge victory it was indeed, with over 120 million voters mailing in ballots or standing in long lines, doing everything they could to tick o# that box. "e BBC reports 66,361,433 of those votes going to the Democrats, or 52.7 per cent of the popular vote.

American voters actually cast ballots for the electors of the Electoral College, who then vote for the President. Each state has the same number of electors as the sum of its number of senators (which is always two), and the number of its representatives (as determined by its population). Obama won 365 Electoral College votes, needing only 270 for victory.

While the typically Democrat states of New England continued in their strong support for the party, they also gathered in eight of the 11 swing states, including Florida, New Mexico, and Nevada. Some very surprising gains were Virginia and Colorado, which have not voted for a Democrat president since 1964.

Pennsylvania and Ohio were also picked up by the Democrats, states that would have been crucial to a Republican victory. When trying to determine the reasons for Democrat success in these states, many point to

Obama’s greater campaign spending versus McCain’s limited budget. As one example, the Democrats were able to expand their number of o!ces and campaign sta# in Ohio, reaching 18 counties. When compared to the 2004 Democrat candidate John Kerry, who only traveled to nine counties, the potential a#ects of this are obvious.

With 55 seats in the Senate versus the Republican’s 40, and 255 seats in the House of Representatives against a Republican 174, the Democrats clearly have the power in Congress, although this falls short of their ideal forecasts. Still, the numbers have increased considerably from the 2004 elections, when Democrats held 44 Senate seats and 212 House seats.

A key reason behind the Democrat victory was Obama’s ability to attract the support of specific groups of voters. "e majority of men voted for Obama, which has not been the case since the Clinton years. Larry Sabato, professor at the University of Virginia also points to the strong support of female voters as being a crucial factor; 56 per cent of women voted for Obama, an increase from the 51 per cent who voted for Democrat John Kerry in 2004. "is gain occurred despite a Republican female Vice Presidential candidate, Sarah Palin. In fact, 60 per cent of those surveyed in exit polls considered Palin unsuitable for the role of vice president.

"e Democrats received significant support from young people, non-white voters, and new voters. Of voters under 30 years of age, 66 per cent voted Democrat. "e Democrats also had the majority of voters in every age range below the 65+ category, signaling a gain of middle-aged voters. 68 per

cent of new voters went Democrat, to 31 per cent for the Republicans.

"ough the appropriateness of the use and abuse of the issue of race in this election is debatable, there is no doubt it has an impact on voters’ opinions. As may have been expected, Obama won 95 per cent of black votes throughout the country, but also made gains in the Hispanic community, winning 66 per cent. While McCain still held the lead with white voters, the gap between Democrats and Republicans shrunk compared to the 2004 elections.

However, it is the economy that seems to have been a key issue for voters, 62 per cent of whom stated it as their primary concern. "ose who were the most deeply worried about economic conditions were stronger backers for Obama, many blaming the Republicans for the current situation.

"e Democrats’ main success, however, seems to have stemmed from the rush of enthusiasm supporters felt for Barack Obama. "e Republicans just could not seem to muster the same feeling for McCain. One way that the Democrats managed to connect to their supporters was by putting a great amount of e#ort put into personal contact. Twice as many Obama supporters were personally contacted by campaigners than McCain supporters.

Finally, the composed confidence of Barak Obama has won over the hearts of many. Headlines hail him as “the epoch-changer,” and the hopes of people, both in the United States and around the world, are that he will bring change. "ey see this as the opportunity for America to improve its international reputation and renew the pursuit of its own dreams and ideals.

Democrats sweep presidential race and houses of congress

An early Obama rally in Illinois, attended by Geoffrey Campbell.

Popular vote (top), as compared with Electoral vote results (bottom, and map to the right). All states have been projected to a candidate, with the exception of Missouri, coloured Gray on the map, which has yet to be projected. Green represents votes for all other presidential candidates.

Houses of Congress

House of Representatives

Senate*Note: There are two independents in the senate, who both caucus with Democrats

Geo!rey Campbell

Darren Mercer

FNOVEMBER 20, 2008 • FEATURES • THE ARGOSY • PAGE 15

Jennifer MusgraveArgosy Correspondent

It may seem a strange question for a more conservative audience, however, there are those who truly want to know. What exactly do the Republican Party and John McCain have to o!er that would convince nearly half of American voters to choose him?

McCain was said to have run a fairly poor campaign, but despite that, many Americans found his policies appealing. One of these was his support of American innovation, one of his platforms with the most popular support.

McCain said he would help improve research and development and home-grown technologies within America by lowering of capital gains taxes. As well, by educating the people for the workforce and employing properly skilled workers where needed, he planned to help America remain competitive in this “age of innovation.”

"is declaration is very bold, progressive, and certainly would hold a lot of value for people of all ages. However, that is just the tip of the iceberg. McCain also stated that he believed in a global market place full of open and fair trade.

"ough he is of an older generation, McCain made the internet an issue. He proposed that every American should

have access to high speed internet and proclaimed that the internet should be free of government regulation in order to preserve consumer freedom.

Another important aspect of McCain’s campaign was his promise to protect inventors’ intellectual property rights by looking at resolving some of the challenges with the current patent policies and even protecting private industries from piracy.

In short, McCain recognizes the rise of the “creative class” that has steadily been receiving more attention over the past several years.

As for the Republican platform in general, there are a lot of concerns and policies existing which have a stronger priority in the minds of some Americans. It supports government reform, tax cuts, business’ and the economy, fiscal responsibility, personal accountability, law and order, homeland security, anti-terrorism, and having a strong border and military strength. It is common to see moral issues and the idea of preserving “American values” as central to the Republican campaign.

"e Republican Party also promised to address the issues of climate change, fostering independent sources of energy, improving the quality and lowering the costs of health care, and providing proper education for Americans.

When looking at these promises, the average American may feel inclined toward supporting this party,

as fiscal responsibility and more tax cuts translates into them having to pay less to the government. As well, the party promises to address many of the issues that are immediately on the people’s minds such as climate change, health care, and education. "e priority these issues will take once the party is in power, however, is another matter entirely.

"e Republican Party also appeals for rich, upper class Americans, as its platform supports lower taxes, and has a strong pro-business tenets.

As well, there tend to be strong family and personal allegiances to parties in the United States. Some voters, while finding some aspects of the Democratic Party appealing, may simply vote Republican because they and their family have “always been Republican.”

"is is not simply a Republican trend, there are also those die-hard Democrats, even here in Canada we see similar allegiances with Liberals and Conservatives. For these people, the idea of simply switching parties is a wild and brash thing to do, such that they would never be caught doing so themselves.

Finally, it’s important to note that many Republican voters believed Obama to be too young and inexperienced to lead properly, instead deciding to cast their vote for McCain, a veteran senator.

Really, why do people vote Republican?

Sasha Van KatwykArgosy Staff

Two weeks following the election of Barak Obama and his Democratic Party making strong gains in both the Senate and House of Representatives, the Republicans are now surveying the damages and casualties over the States-wide battleground.

In the Senate, the Republicans lost representation in nine states, with three still undecided, including New Hampshire, Virginia, and North Carolina. "e House of Representatives didn’t lose quite as much ground proportionally speaking, with 24 of the 375 seats available leaving the Republicans with 175 seats in the House. And, of course, losing the biggest house of them all, the White House, was certainly a harsh blow.

Now, Republican Party leaders are insisting on reinflating the party’s breath of support. As political commentators and the public alike could see, in the last few weeks the spectrum of Americans being targeted by the party was getting very small and more extremely right-wing than many moderates and undecideds could go for.

“For the Congressional seats, we knew we’d take a hit,” said Tom Cole, head of the Republican Congressional Committee, “the Bush stigma was going to hurt us in those runnings. Where we seemed to have failed is in the presentation of our presidential candidates.”

Indeed, many were disappointed with the Republican Presidential candidacy. While in the primaries, John McCain came across as a strong candidate that could potentially be a insurmountable barrier to the then still divided Democrats, the changes to his platform once the campaign began disappointed many supporters.

As "e Economist exclaimed, “Where’s our old John McCain?”

"e John McCain that ran for president was not the McCain that was respected and known worldwide as a realist, firm-headed politician with a somewhat bad temper that may have got him in occasional trouble diplomatically, but gave him the American cowboy stereotype that many enjoyed.

"e John McCain that ran was docile, stuttered in front of liberals, and looked, sounded, and acted like an old white guy.

As one man was quoted on CNN, “He looks weak; he doesn’t look presidential…the John McCain I knew was strong and decisive, so I don’t know what he’s trying to do in this election now.”

"e John McCain many people knew and respected would have vetted his running mate too.

Which brings us to Sarah Palin, the candidate described by Jon Stewart of "e Daily Show as “the hot hockey mom moose killer who watches over Russia with a hick-charming wit and a hunting rifle while flawlessly applying her non-bulldog approved lipstick.”

Governor Sarah Palin, in the eyes

of many, became a wall between the Republican party and the centrist voters. "ere’s no denying she brought energy and excitement to her rallies; calling Obama a godless terrorist socialist may get the diehards going, but it didn’t seem a great strategy for attracting the other 60 per cent of America.

In fact, many people voting, as well as abroad, were quite vocal in describing Sarah Palin as an example of the extreme right that pushed them the other way out of fear.

Certainly fear played a role in this election; American journalists spoke widely of the Bradley e!ect, (the idea that voters will tell opinion polls that they will vote for a black candidate, but at the time of voting, cast a ballot for a white candidate) as well as how many were voting for McCain because they were scared of Obama’s liberal politics.

"e McCain/Palin campaign certainly fueled and took advantage of that fear and—some would go so far to say—racism. Many also showed up at the polls being interviewed saying that they feared more years of Bush policies, of extreme rightist views that would push the U.S. backwards. Some were just terrified by the fact that SNL’s Tina Fey was teasingly impersonating Sarah Palin, and using Palin’s actual words in her skits.

"e Republicans lost because they unwisely chose to pander to the too far right. If America didn’t say on election night that they wanted change, they at least said “We’re more terrified of you guys than we are of Obama.”

Why the Republicans lost, and they know it

Sarah Bell-EtkinArgosy Correspondent

In the American election system, ‘swing states’ are states that are key in both parties’ presidential campaigns, because neither party has a clear hold over the state. "ey are also sometimes referred to as the battleground states, or the ‘purple’ states, a mix of democratic blue and republican red. A swing state is designated as such from early public opinion polls, where the race is too tight to call.

Much of the campaigning for both Democrat and Republican presidential candidates is focused on these few swing states. It is essentially useless for either party to spend its time and resources campaigning in the states where, barring some unforeseen crisis, they have either an obvious lead in the voters’ opinions, or are so far behind that there is no hope of gaining a victory.

In this November’s election, the majority of the six swing states were found on the eastern half of the country. "ese were Indiana, Ohio, and Missouri; they were joined by coastal states North Carolina and Florida, and the western exception, Nevada.

In the 2004 election, all six of the aforementioned states voted for Republican presidential candidate George W. Bush, edging him to his victory over Democrat John Kerry by 6.3 per cent. However, only three of this year’s swings were also undecided in 2004 – Florida, Ohio and Nevada.

Republican tactics to woo the eastern purple states (Florida, Ohio, Missouri, and North Carolina) have involved robotic telephone calls portraying Democratic candidate Barack Obama as “an extremist who has befriended

terrorists and Hollywood celebrities.” One robocall has been reported as

saying: “You need to know that Barack Obama has worked closely with [1960s] domestic terrorist Bill Ayers, whose organization bombed the US Capitol, the Pentagon, a judge’s home, and killed Americans. And Democrats will enact an extreme leftist agenda if they take control of Washington.”

Obama’s o#cial stand, however, criticized the “despicable acts” for which Ayers’ radical group, the Weather Underground, was responsible.

Other scare tactics created by Republican supporters have been reported by Jewish community members, including opinion phone calls that ask them whether their vote would still go to Obama if they knew that he was supported by Hamas, an anti-Israeli militant group from Palestine.

Democrat tactics focused more on rallying and strengthening the support of the states’ already Democrat voters via the Internet.

In the election’s final critical hours, results had come in from all the states, with the exception of Missouri, and all five other swing states voted Democrat, changing the three historical Red states to Blue ones and contributing to Senator Obama’s eventual win.

Missouri’s o#cial results have still not been released; uno#cial polling data tell the story of an extraordinarily tight race. According to Missouri Secretary of State Robin Carnahan’s website, the Republicans, led by Senator John McCain, won with state by less than five thousand votes over the Democrats. 1.3 per cent of Missouri’s votes went to independent candidates Bob Barr, Ralph Nader, and Chuck Baldwin, leaving a margin of only 0.1 per cent between the two major candidates.

Swing States: states that actually mattered

Houses of Congress

House of Representatives

Democratic Party

255

55*

Republican Party

175

40

Undecided

5

3*Note: There are two independents in the senate, who both caucus with Democrats

Wikipedia

F PAGE 16 • THE ARGOSY • FEATURES • NOVEMBER 20, 2008

[on AIDS] Because it is black people in Africa, and because within our own society it is intravenous drug users, men who have sex with men, people in prisons,

aboriginal women who have been so acutely affected, they are for too many people just out of sight and mind, or

people who are stigmatized, criminalized and deemed to be reaping their just desserts.

Zoe WilliamsArgosy Staff

“Oxfam works with people around the world who are doing really courageous and creative work confronting privilege and power, and trying to change relationships so that power is shared more equally within families, within communities, within nations and globally.”

!is, according to Robert Fox, the Executive Director of Oxfam Canada, is the most important aspect of the organization’s development work. Fox visited Mount Allison recently to deliver a talk entitled “Beyond Charity: How Active Global Citizens Are Changing the World.” !e talk emphasized the fundamental role of women and women’s empowerment in successful development, and the importance of active and engaged global citizenship.

!e Argosy sat down with Fox earlier in the day to discuss these issues and others related to development. Oxfam is an international non-governmental organization (NGO) whose mission statement is to build “lasting solutions to global poverty and injustice.”

positions of power and bring their agendas and concerns to the table that we can have real substantive change.”

It can be di"cult to promote women’s empowerment when privileged members of the community are objecting, and this is an issue that requires great sensitivity on the part of the NGO.

It is important, Fox said, that “as an organization from away we don’t arrive to tell them their culture is wrong and we are here to change their culture. Rather there are many people living within that culture who, for their own reasons, reject that culture, who have a di#erent vision of human rights and how those rights are expressed.”

It is these people, often women or those who are otherwise marginalized within their communities, with whom Oxfam aims to work. Fox cited women’s labour groups working in factories in Latin America, and women working to empower other women and girls in Zimbabwe, as examples of these groups.

Di#ering degrees of power and privilege between nations contribute to the problem of the HIV-AIDS crisis.

“We have been completely negligent,” said Fox, with respect to the

for people to know about the current global food crisis, Fox immediately replied that “It is huge, and it is deep and it is urgent.” Fox went on to cite policies originating in developed countries, such as those promoting ethanol production from corn (instead of using the corn for food) and agricultural subsidies that worsen crisis.

“!ere is nothing you can produce more cheaply than a chicken.” Fox said. “A chicken basically will eat cha#, bugs, stones. But women in Ghana are finding their prices are being undercut by chickens that are being fattened and frozen in Alabama and shipped to Africa.”

!is is one example of what Fox called the “lunacy” inherent to the current neoliberal development model, in which developing countries are forced to accept cheap food dumped in their markets by Northern farmers who have over-produced.

“In the mania for free trade we are undermining the capacity of nations in the south to develop,” he said.

Often, development work is criticized for ignoring these types of structural issues and instead focusing on charity. When asked whether he feels this is a fair assessment, Fox agreed that this is “a pretty fair criticism of a lot of development work.”

Fox went on to clarify that Oxfam is a charity organization, “But our work isn’t about charity, it’s about human rights. And it is only when we understand our work from a rights framework that we are going to address the privilege and the prejudice and the imbalances of power that create and sustain poverty. Poverty is in someone’s interest, or it wouldn’t continue to persist.”

Fox emphasized solidarity over a charitable or patronizing attitude towards the developing world. How can Canadians express their solidarity?

“By being active citizens. By challenging people’s comfort and complacency, by challenging power and privilege, and raising people’s awareness and commitment to living in a country and a world where we have social justice and economic justice and climate justice and gender justice, the sort of world most of us aspire to live in.”

How active global citizensare changing the world

Robert Fox, Executive Director of Oxfam Canada, addresses a group of students.

Sasha Van KatwykArgosy Staff

Twelve years ago, a band of machete and small arms wielding Hutu militias ended the lives of 800,000 Tutsi and Tutsi sympathizers in the small nation of Rwanda in only 100 days. During the events, the rest of the world took no substantial action. However, after the carnage, UN o"cials spoke out about the atrocities that took place and said “never again.”

“Never again, we told one another, would the world look on at the atrocities of man and do nothing,” Former UN Secretary General Kofi Annan said recently, “and today a war is unfolding in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DR Congo) birthed from the very ashes of Rwanda, and twelve years on we’ve already lost our will.”

Ever since the end of the Rwandan civil war and genocide, Hutu militia members that took part in the 1994 genocide have been seeking refuge in the eastern regions of the DR Congo bordering Rwanda. From 1998 to 2003 the DR Congo was in civil war after Rwandan militia forces—justifying their actions partially because of implications that the Congo government was supporting Hutu genocidaires—charged across the entire country to install a new leader, leaving hundreds of thousands dead in the ensuing conflict.

In recent months war has once again come to the DR Congo, this time due to the actions of General Laurent Nkunda who has had his rebel forces take over key establishments in the easternmost province of the country.

General Nkunda, former Tutsi general in the DR Congo forces, and known to have relationships with key military members in Rwanda, has escalated the region’s conflicts under the mandate of removing those supporting and sympathetic to the Hutu genocidaries’ cause. He has gone as far as saying more recently that this may include the current DR Congo government and has threatened to bring his army to Kinshasa, the capital, clear on the other side of a country the size of Western Europe.

While there are skeptics that question whether Nkunda is indeed capable of making the journey through the thick jungle of a country were roads are severely lacking, no one is questioning the seriousness of his actions. !e most recent UN reports describe more than 250,000 people being displaced—over 100,000 of which cannot be reached by humanitarian organizations—and a suspected tens of thousands killed, though hard numbers have become di"cult to accumulate

as the span of war fronts multiply. !e United Nations Peacekeeping

forces (MONUC), installed in 1999 as a force to stand between the two battle fronts and have since been attempting to quell the violence, have reported di"culty in knowing where to stand, as Congolese civilians have begun running not only from Nkunda’s forces, but from the DR Congo government forces as well.

Reports of government troops (FARDC) raping and looting have been coming in daily. As Nkunda’s forces set their eyes on larger cities, rebel militia factions become formidable opponents, and Angola threatens to involve itself, MONCU o"cers have been desperately asking for more troops.

!ese calls for help have fallen on deaf ears. United Nations o"cials have asked for the Security Council to approve another 3,000 troops to the area, but even if approved, it will take months to raise and supply the force. !e European Union has a battle ready contingent of 1,500 that can be deployed in a matter of hours that the UN o"cials asked to get involved, the EU wasn’t interested.

“At its heart the Rwandan story is the story of the failure of humanity to heed a call for help from an endangered people.” Canadian Lieutenant-General Romeo Dallaire who headed the UN mission in Rwanda during the 1994 genocide said, “While most nations agreed that something should be done they all had an excuses why they should not be the ones to do it. As a result, the UN was denied the political will and material means to prevent the tragedy.”

It is certainly not di"cult to draw the parallels between the two conflicts and, as many are now pointing out, it certainly seems less has changed than many had hoped. “Never again” has been proven wrong.

!is is certainly not a conflict that will end on its own. Nkunda seems more than motivated and able enough to achieve at least his most short-term goals if not, in fact, turn the entire country’s government on its ear. !e opening of multiple fronts in the easternmost province of the DR Congo as well as the potential for the war’s escalation to include the neighbouring countries that make up the majority of sub-Saharan Africa means the potential for unremitting chaos for the entire continental region.

!e conflict of DR Congo is sure to escalate, involving the whole DR Congo, if not breaking multiple borders, and those who are already su#ering the most as a result are the citizens. “Never again,” we said, we’d see atrocities such as these and simply look on or wait for the next news story. will be inclined to do so themselves.”

Events of the 1994 Rwandan genocideare echoed in the DR Congo

!e haunting of a region

Zoe Williams

Oxfam Canada executive director visits Mount Allison

A displaced woman following an amputation surgery in the DR Congo.

doctorswithoutborders.org

“

”It is unequal power relations

– not only between women and men, but among nations – that are at the crux of many of the barriers to development discussed by Fox, including the HIV-AIDS pandemic and the global food crisis.

Gender relations are central to Oxfam’s work because, as the NGO has concluded, “[…] until women have more power, we aren’t going to be able to make the sorts of changes we need to make to end poverty and discrimination. And the reverse is also the case. It is by having women assume

developed world’s response to the crisis.“!ere is no question that if HIV

had the prevalence in North America or in Europe, the response would be completely di#erent. But because it is black people in Africa, and because within our own society it is intravenous drug users, men who have sex with men, people in prisons, aboriginal women who have been so acutely a#ected, they are for too many people just out of sight and mind, or people who are stigmatized, criminalized and deemed to be reaping their just desserts.”

When asked what is most important

ARTS & LITERATURE

“We’re more interpreters instead of dancers,” explains one of the performers after the Performing Arts Series’ latest show, which took place at Con Hall on November 7th.

Mocean Dance, a company founded in 2001, tours across the country every year, performing pieces by di!erent North American choreographers.

"e group likes to collaborate with choreographers that use “physicality in their work,” says Susie Burpee, who herself choreographed the second piece of the performance. She adds: “We like to be expressive and emotive.”

"e two pieces, 5 Breaths and Rescue Left Her to Her Plight, certainly displayed these characteristics. 5 Breaths began with a single dancer, sitting on a chair, talking. It was the beginning of a monologue that was continued throughout the piece by the various dancers, in which events from normal life were timed down to exact seconds. "is idea evolved into the timing of less mundane moments, such as the time Hurricane Katrina spent over land, or the time it takes someone to die. "e audience was left with the question “how long is a breath?”

Set to Finnish accordion music by Kimmo Pohjonen, the concept of time was illustrated in a regularity of movements reminiscent of a clock, while still being elegant. Precision, obsession, and the resultant stress were also concepts that came to mind. "e audience was struck by the repetition of intricate hand movements that were later revealed to come from a traditional Indian dance style, one much favoured by choreographer Roger Sinha.

An emotional spin with Mocean Dance

Rebecca DixonRescue Left Her to Her Plight, with

music from American indie band "e Rachels, did not have a linear story, but allowed each dancer to share a unique aspect of the general themes. As its title suggests, rescue was the dominant of these, but a complex tension was created between the group struggling to help one another and consistently finding their e!orts futile. Each dancer had a solo, going through crises of drowning, being unaware of those attempting to help, and blindness – each one clearly depicting the grief and desperation of the individual.

More frantic than the first part of the performance, but also more intense, Rescue Left Her to Her Plight had the dancers truly working together, in tetrads or duets. "eir bodies intertwined and spun across the stage as they gasped and shook, embraced each other and broke from the group.

"e performance was well put together with excellent lighting and e!ects. Unfortunately the sound quality of the recordings was not the best and there were awkward transitions with the music in both pieces. "e dancers would continue dancing, but there would be a short silence until the new piece gradually came on. While this may have been an artistic decision, the gaps seemed particularly messy since the dance continued.

Mocean Dance spent a portion of its time in Sackville holding workshops for both new and experienced dancers at local elementary schools. "ey also conducted one for the dance society here on campus. "ey described these as “extremely rewarding,” and the fact that they “really enjoyed Sackville” can give us hope for future wonderful performances.

A review of Mount Allison’s third Performing Arts show

Argosy Correspondent

Mocean Dance, a dance company out of Halifax was brought to Mount Allison as part of the Cultural Capitals initiative.

Mocean Dance

Doubt withered him.Words fell like stones from his

mouth.

He made a xylophone from a ribcage.Prayed for rain.

His hair remained curly.His eyes were still blue.

"e sounds of a bee’s wings echoedfrom the glass sky.

"e drunk he danced to was memory,the tight skin stained with mistakes.

-“D,4/4”, MacKenzie For anyone with an interest in poetry, here is a book worth the read. John MacKenzie’s Letters I Didn’t Write immediately grabs the reader with its conciseness and its poignancy. MacKenzie seems to derive much of his creative power from his solid use of peculiar yet striking similes, a strong sense of rhythm (most noticeably in his dedicatory “Hank” poems at the beginning of the collection), as well as his use of repetition and consistency of tone.

MacKenzie was born in P.E.I., and after years of writing poetry and traveling across the nation he has settled down in Charlottetown, which is his home base for writing and publishing poetry. Writing since he was 19 years old, and crediting his intuitive grasp of verse and rhythm to his devote Christian upbringing with the King James Bible, MacKenzie has created a unique poetic persona which is all his own. However troublesome the idea of reading a conservatively educated poet may seem to a largely liberal student body, don’t let your preconceptions taint your interest in this talented Canadian poet. From what I have read there is no evangelical motive to his verse and, although his poetry is very inward-looking, there appear to be few or no religious projections. Instead MacKenzie is exploring a much more deeply-rooted human anxiety.

"e title alone speaks to something I think we all share. Letters I Didn’t Write focuses on plans unfulfilled, anxieties that lie fixed in the past,

and, at the heart of the collection, the tragedy of a life cut short in the middle of its creative youth. MacKenzie draws inspiration from the Spanish poet/matador Federico Garcia Lorca who died an untimely death from fatal injury in his last bullfight.

MacKenzie’s collection is also influenced by the tumultuous life and mysterious death of singer/songwriter and country music legend Hank Williams. Williams, at 29 years old, having won several prestigious music awards, achieved countless chart-topping singles, and after having defeated a long addiction to alcohol, died in the back of a limousine on the way to a performance. Although background knowledge of the lives of these people is not necessary for the enjoyment of MacKenzie’s poetry, it certainly allows the reader to catch the many allusions MacKenzie includes in his “Hank” poems, which evokes certain emotions, images, or tones important in interpreting the deeper meanings within the verse.

When asked about his thoughts on Canadian Literature and its creators, MacKenzie writes, “I suppose my only complaint about “Canlit-makers” would be – and this is a gross generalization – that the ongoing arguments between writers about regionalism, provincialism etc, ignore the fact that an inward-looking literature – by which I mean something which can be described as “Canlit” and held up as a goal to be striven towards – is in itself a regional and provincial literature. Limiting oneself as a writer or as a reader to what is produced in one’s own country is, in my opinion,

Saving paper and postageA review of John MacKenzie’s Letters I Didn’t WriteJustin KerrArgosy Correspondent

stupid, arrogant, cowardly, and, worst of all, counter-productive to writing […]”.

From this perspective on Canadian Literature, one can see that MacKenzie is striving to write something that resonates beyond Canada, and is looking for a deeper, and more global truth. I’m not sure what the final conclusion is in this collection, or if indeed the poetry actually goes beyond reflection, but I will say that MacKenzie does hold merit in the field of poetry. He has set his goals high and strives for deep meaning in his writing. His variety of imagery and simile present the reader with a familiar world and re-creates it in a beautiful way. He evokes the youthful spirits of life cut short and celebrates their colorful legacies with rhythmic verse and a dark, mournful tone.

Regret in things lost, forgotten, or simply put aside is something we have all experienced, it is something we are constantly re-living in our minds; we frequently find ourselves wishing for a chance to do something over again. MacKenzie calls on us to realize that this is not something isolated in ourselves, and that it is something we are each still able to change. After all, the collection itself is a testament that, although there may be things you have left undone; papers you didn’t write, things you didn’t say; there is yet time to reanimate these hopes and goals and see them through to the end.

If MacKenzie’s other published works Sledgehammer and Shaken by Physics are anything like Letters I Didn’t Write, they will not let you down. It’s Can Lit. Check it out!

John MacKenzie, a P.E.I. native, is famous for poetry that is a mix of science and myth.

On November 14, Dr. Wanda Campbell gave a poetry reading at the Owens entitled “Looking for Lucy”.

Poetry by Scribbles“At the end of a dead end”"e steely gape mouthed howl-of the green iron giant over there,standing in the flat windy plain,spanning ‘cross gentle sloped terrain,of mud, floating ice and frigid flow-deafens my ears.Atop it sits of rough hewn stone,carried from some distant pit,with feathered sentinels still, alone,‘top iron ramparts, rust and rivet.

It echoes the screaming path of cars,creating a barrier- or border –o’er,these seemingly dry and barren lands.Oh highway that’s to never cease,Oh border ‘twixt man and beast!“Keep clear you friendly mallard!Keep clear you careful heron,keep clear!”

Jessica Emin

writersfest.bc

A PAGE 18 • THE ARGOSY • ARTS & LITERATURE• NOVEMBER 20, 2008

&L

“Everyone was gonna win it but me,” explained a slightly shaken Joseph Boyden. Despite some tough competition, Boyden took this year’s prestigious $50,000 Giller Prize for his novel !rough Black Spruce along with the most generous cash prize yet in the Giller’s history – $50,000 going to the first-place winner and $5,000 for each runner-up. !e contest was presided over by a panel of four judges,

including literary legend Margaret Atwood, Liberal MP Bob Rae, and Irish writer/critic Colm Toibin.

A total of 95 books from 35 di"erent publishers were submitted this year, with the Giller Prize representing the crème de la crème of the Canadian literary scene. Surprisingly, this year’s list of finalists for the nation’s highest award for fiction was full of relatively fresh faces, making the competition extremely hard to predict. Boyden’s fellow short-listers included Rawi Hage for Cockroach, Mary Swan for !e

!rough Black Spruce takes the top prizeJoseph Boyden took home the prestigious Giller award on November 1 during Toronto galaKelly O’ConnorArgosy Correspondent

Boys in the Trees, Anthony De Sa for Barnacle Love and Marina Endicott for Good to a Fault. Despite the diversity of authors, the Giller does seem to follow some predictable patterns, as seen by a brief examination of its past winners; usually, the award goes to an Ontario-based male author (either by birth or residency). In the 15 years of the Giller, only five women have taken home the first-place cheques, and only two winners have bucked the Ontario tradition (Montreal’s Mordecai Richler in 1997 and Winnipeg’s David Bergen in 2005).

Boyden, who has a mixed heritage of Métis, Scottish and Irish roots, was raised in the Toronto suburb of Willowdale. He now splits his time between Northern Ontario and New Orleans, where he and his wife teach English and creative writing at the University of New Orleans. Boyden’s Giller odyssey actually began three years ago, with his debut book !ree Day Road. Despite his novel being widely predicted as a shoo-in, the Giller went to another author that year. Ironically, Boyden gets the last laugh, as !rough Black Spruce is a sequel to !ree Day Road. Boyden claims he harbours no ill-will for the past snub, and describes this year’s panel as “people who know how to think for themselves.”

Somewhat analogous to his own life,

Boyden’s novel jumps between the wilds of Northern Ontario and the frenetic world of downtown Manhattan. !e story is told by an alternating pair of narrators: one is Will Bird, a Cree bush pilot (and grandson of Xavier Bird from !ree Day Road) who is in a coma

in a Moose Factory hospital following a brutal beating by drug dealers. !e other narrator is Will’s niece Annie, who is searching for her missing sister Suzanne in the drug-fueled world of high-fashion New York. While Will does battle with his personal demons of revenge, loss, and memory, Annie retraces the steps of her beautiful sister from the depths of aboriginal poverty under the Gardner Expressway to glitzy downtown New York. By exploring the sharp urban-rural divide that characterizes much of aboriginal culture today, Boyden delves into the contradictions which are destroying the First Nations of Canada. At one point in the novel, Annie observes that her fellow Cree have “gone from living on the land ... hunting, trapping, trading in order to survive, to living in

...Boyden...describes this year’s panel as ‘people who know how to think for themselves’

Joseph Boyden has been nominated for the Giller before with his eariler novel Three Day Road. Through Black Spruce is a sequel to Three Day Road.

Globe and Mail

J.E.A. CRAKE FOUNDATION ARTS INTERNSHIPS: Several internships for the winter semester are available for projects involving collaboration with faculty and sta" in Fine Arts, Music, and Drama. Students involved in these areas are invited to submit applications. Internships carry a stipend of $500, payable in two installments; they can be awarded for curricular or extracurricular projects,

and they can be proposed by either students or faculty/sta". Deadline for applications is January 16, 2009. For more information, look for the posters around campus or contact Dr. Peter Brown in the Department of English Literatures.

(pbrown@mta.ca)

!ursday PaintersWatermedia instruction by Joan Gregory and constructive Critiques. New participants of an ability level are welcome.

Every !ursday, 1:30 - 4:00 pm$10 per session, first visit is free

Please contact margaret Myles (902)667-8790 or Laurell Hamilton (902)251-2619.

Mt. A Department of Music, Faculty RecitalStephen Runge on piano. Works by Beethoven, Schumann and Tsontakis Ghost Variations.

November 21, 8:00 pmBrunton Auditorium

For more information contact (506)364-2374 or music@mta.ca

Christmas at Home ConcertFeaturing Ivan and Vivian Hicks. !is concert is in support of the Sackville Christmas Cheer program.

November 22, 7:00 pmSackville United Church

$10 purchased at Jean Coutu or $12 at the door

Canadian Music Centre Atlantic Fundraising ConcertPerformances by: Copper Ferreira, Bob Bauer, Wesley Ferrerira, Alan Klaus, Evan Mounce, Sarah McKim, Jackie

Logan, Landon Braverman, Angelina Davey, and !e Mount Allison Music Ensemble featuring Jonny Smith, Evan Phinney and Derlis Gonzalez.

Music by: Michael Parker, Harry Freedman, James G. Code, Denis Bedard, Jean Coulthard, Violet Archer, Gladys Davenport, Jordan Nobles, and John Beckwith.

November 22, 8:00 pmBrunton Auditorium

Mt. A Collegium MusicumStudents of the Department of Music

November 26, 4:00 pmBrunton Auditorium

Tintamarre !eatre: “Argument”“Argument” is a bilingual comedy about family, friendship, and conflicting lifestyles. Written and directed by Alex

Fancy.November 26-27, 8:00 pm

Windsor !eatre$10, $5 for students and seniors

A.R.T.S. H.A.P.S.

The Art Gallery of Ontario has recently re-opened, redesigned by Frank Gehry.

AGO

“”

clapboard houses and pushing squeaky grocery carts up and down aisles filled with overpriced and unhealthy food;” in other words, as Annie puts it, they have become “civilized.”

“We always hear about the diabetes and the suicide rates among Canada’s Native peoples,” explained Boyden. “But there is such a beauty in them - and in the land. I wanted to get that across to people in this book.” Winning the Giller Prize meant “that I am allowed to continue writing and I will always write about the First Nations of Canada and I will always celebrate and be behind the First Nations of Canada.” Boyden also suggested some of his prize money would be used to fund “a fellowship for young students in Moose Factory and the Georgian Bay area, native students, to help them get into university.”

In the meantime, Boyden is anticipating “a quiet winter and some hard work” back in New Orleans, working on the final installment of the !ree Day Road trilogy, a novel about the arrival of the Jesuits in the 17th century in modern day Ontario, a dual biography of Louis Riel and Gabriel Dumont, as well as a few screenplays. !rough Black Spruce will be published in Europe and the United States next March.

ANOVEMBER 20, 2008 • ARTS & LITERATURE • THE ARGOSY • PAGE 19

&L

To any that have glanced at the papers and news programs of late, the economic crisis the world seems to heading towards is no secret. While some countries – Canada included are still managing well, others such as the United States are quicker to panic. Various markets have been a!ected of late including the art realm – surprisingly the Canadian art market has taken a turn for the better. Canadian paintings – some by the notable figures Emily Carr and Tom "omson – have been marked for sale at surprisingly unexpectedly high prices.

"e Canadian branch of the prestigious auction house Sotheby’s has released optimistic prices for their upcoming auction on Canadian artwork. Representatives from the auction house have commented that they realize the auction will undoubtedly be a!ected the financial situation of the country. However, there has been a gradual but noticeable

rise in interest in Canadian art. Art dealers aren’t sure whether the interest lies in an overall turn towards Canadian work or if it has something to do with the political and cultural climate the country has recently encountered.

"e group of Canadian artwork for the upcoming Sotheby’s auction shows a great range of work. "e collection includes works by Emily Carr (Skidegate, 1912), Lawren Harris

As finances go down, the art market goes up?Canadian auction houses estimate Canadian work will rise in prices despite troubled economy

(Northern Painting 25, Northern Island II), and Tom "omson (Fall Woods, Algonquin Park, 1914). "ere are also several more contemporary pieces. Estimated selling prices range form $200,000 to $1.2 million.

Rob Cowley, the VP of Joyner Waddington’s Canadian Fine Art, commented on the appeal of Canadian art saying that it holds incredible

...the appeal of Canadian art saying that it holds incredible appeal to collectors through emotional connection and rarity...

appeal to collectors through emotional connection and rarity.

When looking at the state of US and overseas markets, Canada definitely has the optimistic upper hand. A recent auction of Russian art at the US Sotheby’s brought a sadly lacklustre response from buyers. Most paintings did not sell for their asking price; most fell below. While an auction selling works that included Degas and Munch brought in high prices – it also brought many unsold items.

"e US art market has been said to reflect not only its own financial situation but also overseas. More and more collectors both personal and corporate are feeling the weight of the financial struggle. While in the past galleries and buyers have placed bidders in auctions to facilitate biding wars to drive prices higher – a tradition method used to drive up the worth of other works by the same artist – it seems the wars have died down.

If the collectors and buyers have been right, Canada may yet be shielded from the economy’s harsh e!ect on the art realm. While the country has only had a taste of the crisis other

countries now face, markets such as art and design could feel the e!ects sooner than later. "e first things to go in economic crises are usually the luxury items. "e true appeal of

Julie StephensonArgosy Staff

Lawren Harris’s Northern Painting 25. Northern Island II is estimated to sell for between $1 to $1.5 million at the upcoming auction.

CBC

!e only place you’ll findFidel is on the back coverFormer Cuban leader absent from new book release

Vivi ReichArgosy Staff

On November 12, Cuban leaders gathered to celebrate the release of a book titled Peace in Colombia by the country’s rarely-seen former leader Fidel Castro. It relates the story of Cuba’s involvement in Colombia’s peace process and also describes Castro’s memories of Colombia from his 82 years of life. "e communist Cuban newspaper “Granma” described the book as the result of “400 hours of intensive work.” "e kicker is – Castro did not show up to his own book release, which is odd in and of itself, but not surprising since the leader has not been seen in public since July 2006. In the absence of Castro’s public comments on the book, the Cuban News Agency reports that Abel Prieto, the Cuban Minister of Culture, claims, “It is an essential reference for intellectuals and people in social movements in Latin America and other regions.” It “sets the record straight” on Cuba’s involvement in

Colombia, an e!ort to “bring peace” to the country. Jose Arbesu, deputy chief of International Relations at the Central Committee of Cuba’s Communist Party commented that Cuba’s e!orts to create a fair peace agreement in Colombia have been hidden up until this point. Arbesu was also allegedly a witness of the facts in the story. "e Cuban News Agency writes, “[Arbesu] stressed that Cuba never sent weapons to Colombia and did not gave anyfinancial assistance to any Colombian organization.” Cuba continues to deny claims that Castro is su!ering from terminal cancer. It was reported that on December 24, 2006, a Spanish surgeon was flown to the island by the Cuban government to allegedy operate on Castro. It was reported thereafter that Castro is not su!ering from cancer, but mere intestinal problems. "e truth remains that Castro has not been seen in public since 2006, and Cuban citizens are aware that he is seriously ill, whether or not it is cancer, and are worried about a future without their revolutionary leader.

Fidel’s book focuses on his involvement with Colombia during the span of his life.

tabletennis.com When you live in the Mount Allison bubble, it’s sometimes easy to forget that there are accomplished artists practicing in the wider Sackville community. Until December 14 at the Owens, you can see a sampling of some of the art being created by people in the Tantramar region. "e Sackville Art Association’s Annual Members’ Exhibition opened on Sunday to an impressive turnout, despite gale force winds as November established itself in true Sackville style.

"e Sackville Art Association has been around for quite some time now; in two years they will celebrate

their 75th anniversary. Many of the members, including this year’s featured artists, attend "ursday painting classes with instructor Joan Gregory. "e "ursday painting group began in the early nineties as a group of six

Home-grown work2008 Sackville Art Association Annual Members’ Exhibition

The Sackville Artists’ Association welcomes artists from surrounding areas.

Julie CruikshankArgosy Staff

ladies with a desire to paint, and has grown tremendously since then, with watercolour classes being held at the Tantramar Veterans Memorial Civic Centre.

"is year the exhibition had two featured artists: sisters Anne Crowell and Shirley Barnes of Amherst, N.S. Both work primarily with watercolour, and produce mainly landscape works of maritime vistas. Barnes’ body of work showcases a variety of fall-colour landscapes and several larger floral works. Her focus is primarily on colour, and her use of watercolour as a medium achieves a good balance between controlled, painterly marks and allowing the medium to speak for itself.

Her sister, Crowell, also works in watercolour. Her subject matter is also landscape, but includes buildings and farms, and even some portraiture. Her paintings feature an interesting use of negative space, and she is not afraid to allow the paint to take its own direction within the work.

"e majority of the pieces in the exhibition are watercolour landscape works of locations in the Tantramar and maritime regions, however artists Joan Blakney and Alicia MacIntyre

Jessica Emin

Jessica EminJessica EminJessica Emin

...an interesting use of negative space...to allow the paint to take its own direction within the work...

“”

have contributed some fibre-based work. A number of photographs are also included in the exhibit, as are some interesting ceramic pieces by artist Indu Varma.

"e Sackville Art Association’s Annual Member’s Exhibition is a good opportunity to see some of the work being done by local artists in the Sackville community, and to experience some art that truly celebrates the region.

The exhibition includes several local artists including a pair of sisters.

“”

Canadian work remains to be seen as the Sotheby’s auction takes place on November 24.

HUMOUR

Chemistry

Making fun of science since 2008

Arts vs. Science by “the Enigmatic Doctor Thantos”

H ow t o S p o t a S c i e n c e S t u d e n tWor d s : T h e H um o u r E d i t o r s

P i c t u r e s : Ta n i t h Wa l l e b e c kMath

Bio

log

y

The worst

pool

opponent

EVAR!

Physics

Calculates

the

probability

of

getting laid

Loudest

advocate on

campus for

mould

preservation

Never wants

to skip a lab...

because

it’s

a meth

lab!

Can’t we have one meeting that doesn’t end with us digging up a corpse?

HNOVEMBER 20, 2008 • HUMOUR • THE ARGOSY • PAGE 21

Serious¹ Answers to Serious² Questions

Hey Mount A! Do you have a serious² question and a burning desire to have it answered by real* Ar-gosy editors**? Drop your question in the folder on the Argosy’s door or send it to argosy@mta.ca, and get real†, honest‡ answers! We’re to help youº! “How was the universe created?”

Noah: Some people would try to give you some crazy explanation

“intelligent” enough. We shouldn’t worry about these crazy questions, after all, will knowing how the universe was created help you at that party on Friday night? Probably not. Unless the girl (or guy!) is into that kind of thing. In which case, I recommend that you casually drop that you happen to have your own particle accelerator and that you would like to smash some protons together later, if they are interested. And if that doesn’t work, wave something shiny in front of their face and then quickly hide it. Most science students are easily distracted by shiny things, like a quarter for instance and will be entertained for hours. Trust me, you’ll thank me later.

Stuart: Well, in the beginning, there was nothing. Then it exploded. After this initial event, the next 10^-35 seconds saw a very hot, very pressurized, very en-

-

it’s simple enough to understand: [Oh I’m hella deleting this. Can we get Stuart to write something shorter? Seriously. What the hell is he talking about? -Editor] And that’s that! Remarkably simple, eh? As I’m sure you noticed, the two lem-mas I had to introduce can, with some obvious manipulations, also be applied to physical chemistry and social psychology (for the transmutation of lead into gold and the aquisition of true inner peace, respectively).

¹Not serious at all²I guess they could be serious* ”Real” is such a harsh word; think “caricatures of”** Well, sort of† Seriously, they aren’t real, come on now have you even read them?‡ Hey they might be honest, nobody’s stopping ‘emº Please don’t really take our advice...We won’t be held responsible if you do, though.

Horoscopes : The Science Edition!!!By Madam Starbeam - what what???

ARIES (March 21-April 20) — Hey Aries (or ramus uptheassum), I know my Calculus. It says You+Me=Us. Sexay times later?

TAURUS (April 21-May 21) — Taurus, or stuborrnus bulltesticulus can be found in the wild licking their balls and groping inanimate objects. Has it been a hard week?

GEMINI (May 22-June 21) — Gemini, or greedybastardthatstealsmyshittus can be found dancing on tables or jerking off barstaff at Club L. Moral of this story? Don’t go to Club L.

CANCER (June 22-July 22) — Cancer, or crabulusmaximus may be foundskulking in a corner of the library, praying one of their profs“forgets” that the assignment is due tomorrow. Response? Drop out of school. Do it now. Save us all a lot of time and grief. LEO (July 23-August 23) — Leo, or leonidus, I’m only going to tellyou this once. Back the fuck up.

VIRGO (August 24-September 22) — Virgo, or virginus hemotobinae enjoys long walks on the beach, moonlit nights, and piña coladas.Call 1-800-Hott-Sex now to chat for 15 free minutes!!!!!!

LIBRA (September 23-October 23) — Libra, or frigid bitch, is a hooker and is no use to anyone at all. Yeah, I said it. SCORPIO (October 24-November 22) — Scorpio, or sexaytimae cockringusand I are going to learn some anatomy...OH YEAH. SAGITTARIUS (November 23-December 21) — Saggittarius, or saggie, can be found in many places, doing multiple things. Such is the nature of the natural world.

CAPRICORN (December 22-January 20) — Capricorn, or capulus montegu-ouscan be found in the dictionary under “a plague on both your houses.” Get it? If you’re an Arts student you should.

AQUARIUS (January 21-February 18) — Get a fuckin’ job.

PISCES (February 19-March 20) — Pisces, ordamnheatheryourelookinggoodtodaydidyoudosomethingnewwithyourhairc-auseitlooksreallyshinyandprettyandyoushouldtotallygivemesomeadviceonwhattowearthisweekedus, good luck with everything.

Q & A - “News That Sounds Like a Joke”By: Mutton

Q: What has the world come to, A?“In an attempt to find out if octopuses are right- or left-handed, er, tentacled, scientists from the Sea Life Center in England, have provided 25 of the beasts with colorful Rubik’s Cubes to play with in the centre’s aquariums across Europe [Daily Mail (London), 07-03-08].”A: I don’t have the answers to everything you know. But if I were to comment I’d say that our tax dollars are going down the drain, into the sewer, onto watertreatment facilities, and finally cropping up in the world’s oceans.Q: Whadoyoumean?A: Since everyone in the 80s HAD to have their own Rubix Cube, we’re now fac-ing a surplus. As of 2005, over 300,000,000 of these toys had been sold! Way to go 80s child! Didn’t they teach you “sharing equals sustainability” at school? This is so typical — every time we have too much of something it ends up in thesea. First, garbage, now Rubix Cubes!Q: What next?! Can you say e-x-c-e-s-s-i-v-e?A: Don’t patronize me. Not now...AND I don’t even want to think about the toxic plasticizers or carbon that went into producing 300,000,000+ of them. Heavens! If the government took the “climate crisis” seriously they would not condone the proliferation of Rubix Cubes.Q: I mean, I agree? Isn’t it enough that we know that polar bears are left hand-ed?! What do they expect to be able to do with the data? Write trivia cards?A: Well, “[they] hope the study will help the overall well-being of octopuses. [Oc-topi] are very susceptible to stress so if they do have a favourite side to be fed on, it could reduce risk to them.” It is all rather trivial though; the Rubix Cube could be replaced with a myriad of objects that’would not seem counterproductive since the animals aren’t expected to solve the puzzles.Q: How will they keep track of their preferences, if one in fact exists?A: It says, “A diagram of an octopus will sit alongside the tanks with the arms on the right labelled R1, R2, R3 and R4 from front to back. The left arms will be numbered in the same way but with an L instead of an R.”Q: Ah, so Artoodeeto (R2-D2) was right hand dominant?

Moral: (1) Rubix Cubes are responsible for climate change. Curb yourconsumption. (2) Leave the name calling on the playground. Stop referring to octopi as “beasts”. Wouldn’t that upset you too?

Want to be famous, be known all across

campus. BE POPULAR? Well then draw us

a comic, submit a funny text or Photoshop

something. If we use it you’ll get credit and

be cool.

ARGOSY@MTA.CA

Why did HAN SOLO say he made the Kessel Run in 12

Parsecs when this is a unit of distance? First person with right answer wins

something. ARGOSY@MTA.CA SUBJECT:HUMOUR

Cameron Milner

SAC Student Administrative Council Page

WHO ARE THESE PEOPLE?(your student senators)

Joni Fleck AndrewsMount Allison SACArts Senator

Hey folks, I’m Joni and I’m one of the Arts Senators this year. I’m a fourth year student studying Philosophy, Environmental Studies and Commerce. I enjoy exploring the great outdoors, sports, music, art and education. The departments that I’m responsible for include: Philosophy, Fine Arts, Classics, History, Drama, Canadian Studies and American Studies. If you have any questions, concerns or ideas that you would like to share about any of these departments, academics in general or the SAC give me a shout! I look forward to hearing from you. Cheers!

Anna MacKinnonMount Allison SACArts Senator

Hey! I’m representing all you fabulous people in Arts! But no matter what program you’re in, feel free to stop me on campus and let me know any of your concerns, questions, or ideas... We’ll getter done for you!

Justin OakeMount Allison SACScience Senator

Heyyy Mount A! My name’s Justin Oake and I’m one of your Science Senators for the year! I’m a third year Bio student pursuing an honours and I hail from that beloved beautiful rock, Newfoundland. I’m also a crazed Habs fan and a huge fan of Seinfeld and The Office If any of you have any concerns or questions please feel free to contact me anytime. If you wanna stop me for a chat if you see me around, that’d be great! And remember, I’m not only here for science students, but for all students at Mount A as well!

Gillian FraserMount Allison SACSocial Science Senator

HEYO! I’m Gillian Fraser. I’m in my fourth and final year, working towards a B.Comm. I’m from Calgary, Alberta and love Mt A with all my heart. I’m super excited to a part of the SAC again this year and can’t wait to hear from you

Erik JohnsonMount Allison SACSocial Science Senator

What’s up friends? I’m a fourth year honors Economics student here at Mt.A. In my spare time I play ultimate frisbee and go to model UN conferences. I have been known to cook (exceptionally well might I add), read books, and generally appear to be a little bit too excited. I am also one of two exceptional social science senators (although there are six terrific student senators in all). It’s our job to ensure that students have a fair and meaningful say in the academic affairs and academic future of this university. I am also charged with the task of helping to resolve student academic issues arising from courses, about professors, or anything else academic related in the fields of Political Science, Economics, International Relations, and Sociology.

A student senator is an integral part of Mount Allison University’s Student Administrative Council. What are their duties?

As a SAC Senator, they are required to meet regularly with student representatives on departmental committees; sit on two Senate Committees and sit on the SAC Academic Affairs Committee. It is also their responsibility to provide timely reports to the SAC on the policies and decisions of the Senate and be responsible for accurate and regular communication of SAC policies and decisions to the Senate. The most important is that they be aware of the specific issues that are important to students, that may include but are not limited too: Senate, Academic Judicial, Academic Appeals, Admissions, Research, and Degree programs. Their term in office is from the first of June to May 31. There are three series of senators. Two that represent each of the faculty. There are two Social Science Senators, two Science Senators, and two Arts Senators. The senators are elected to help you with your academic concerns. They are a valuable resource that the student body should take advantage of.

SocialScience Senators

Arts Senators

ScienceSenators

Nathan WalkerMount Allison SACScience Senator

Be sure to check out the website, sac.mta.ca,or stop by

for more information.

Pridham’s studio are the official photographers for the grad class of 2009. Call now for your appointment which will ensure your photo is included in the Yearbook and the department composites.

Pridham’s Studio 12 York Street 536-0401

Katie Eddy is this month’s Allisonian of the Month. She is the organizer of SMILE and also contributes greatly to the Mount Allison Community through her participation in other events and

organizations. Her en-thusiasm, approachabil-ity and fun loving spirit make her an excellent recipient of this month’s award.

Congratulations Katie!

Allisonian of the Month

SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY

I earned my undergraduate degree.

Now, I want arewarding career*

*not just a job

business.humber.ca

In less than one year, Humberpostgraduate programs will helpyou launch your career in:

Building on your university degree,Humber’s postgraduate programs offer aconcentrated curriculum, career-focusedcourses and practical field placements.You’ll gain the real-world experience andskills that employers value most.

Get the career you want – apply now.

!anks to a bone marrow transplant, a 42 year old American patient has been declared ‘functionally cured’ of a decade-old infection of HIV. Since the procedure 20 months ago, the patient’s organs and blood have been clear of both the HIV virus as well as the leukemia he had been su"ering from.

Identified only as an American living in Berlin, German researchers acknowledge this patient’s case is an extremely rare one. Professor Rodolf Tauber from the Berlin-based Charite clinic explained the cautious optimism surrounding the surprise cure: “!is is an interesting case for research. But to promise to millions of people infected with HIV that there is hope of a cure would not be right.” Professor Andrew Sewell, from the Department of Medical Biochemistry and Immunology at the University of Cardi", highlighted that “the problem is most people with HIV live in sub-Saharan Africa and this is hugely expensive, you have to find a matched donor, and it’s a pretty severe and painful operation. So it’s going to be an option for very few people.” Paul Ward, deputy chief executive of the leading HIV and sexual health charity Terrence Higgins Trust, elaborates on these reservations: “!is case gives us something to explore in future studies but it’s certainly not a quick fix as gene therapy is complex and expensive. With no cure in sight, prevention

should be our number one priority.”!e success of the operation hinges

on being able to find a compatible bone marrow donor with a rare, inherited genetic mutation which prevents HIV from attaching to and destroying the immune system’s white cells. Alleles for the mutation must be inherited from both parents.

Estimates place only about one in 1 000 Europeans and Americans with this HIV resistance, which was discovered in the late 1990s. !e mutation e"ectively locks out the HIV virus by modifying the shape of the protein ‘door handle’ (called CCR5) which would normally allow the virus to enter the cell. When the American patient received a bone marrow transplant to treat his leukemia, doctors chose marrow from a patient with the CCR5 mutation. As the patient’s blood was slowly regenerated, it was produced with the

CCR5 mutation which e"ectively shut out the HIV virus.

Given the di#culty of repeating this treatment on any meaningful large scale, researchers are continuing their search for other HIV treatments. A recent study coming out of San Diego based company Sangamo has shown promising results with zinc-finger proteins in mice. !ese proteins act as molecular scissors, e"ectively ruining the CCR5 ‘door handles’ of white cells.

Another team of researchers at the California Institute of Technology are following the same line of thought by using small interfering RNAs (siRNAs) to disrupt the construction of the CCR5 protein.

Ironically, there is concern that these potential treatments could spur the development of even more resistant HIV strains. A second ‘door handle’, known as CXCR4, is sometimes used by HIV to bypass the CCR5 protein to enter the cell. Edward Berger, discoverer of the CCR5-HIV connection, explains the challenge: “!ere’s always a concern that if you block CCR5, you favour virus evolution.”

Although humans are able to do without the CCR5 protein, experiments have shown that mice lacking the CXCR4 protein often die as embryos. It is not yet known if humans also depend on the CXCR4 protein for survival.

Geek Chic of the Week

From the sysadmin’s Tokyoflash watch, looking like a prop from Back To !e Future, to the movie aficionado’s o#cial Swatch Bond Villian watch, proudly wearing Dr No’s o#cial timepiece on his wrist, geeks do love their watches. Perhaps more importantly, geeks love their strange watches. !at said, the “Cycle Life” watch, which provides not only a 24-hour readout of the time, but also which sedentary activity you’re probably engaged in, might hit a little too close to home.

http://www.yankodesign.com/2008/11/14/welcome-to-the-glamourous-life-of-a-full-time-professional-designer-watch-yourself/

November 20, 2008:“Cycle Life” Watch

Kelly O’ConnorArgosy Staff

Bone marrow transplant leads to functional cure for HIV

HIV cells interact with cell-surface receptors and molecules such as CCR5 and CXCR4 to attach themselves and gain entry to white cells.

Internet users can look forward to a decrease in their received amounts of spam, thanks to a webhosting provider that had its connection terminated by its Internet Service Provider on November 12. McColo was shut down after several reports, made by the security research arms of famed anti-virus providers McAfee and TrendMicro, claimed that its users were sending a significant amount of spam.

McColo Corp., located in San Jose, California, was an American web hosting and colocation service, meaning that it provided both the hardware and the internet connection for customers’ websites and Web services, and allowed them to plug their own systems into one of the company’s data centres. According to the Washington Post, aggregate estimates at the levels of spam tra#c flowing through McColo servers place it at about 70 per cent of the world’s total, making a significant decrease likely. !is flies in the face of continued claims over the last decade by the American internet security industry, which point to Russia as the physical source of much of the world’s spam.

!e provider’s services were used by groups with a wide array of ties to the hacking/spamming community, as well as organized crime, primarily overseas. According to London Times figures, the fact that only one out of every 12.5 million spam messages receives a reply doesn’t significantly impact profit. Before McColo’s demise, estimates put the number of spam messages sent daily as high as 100 billion. !is figure is about 90 per cent of all email sent daily.

It has been known for several years that the majority of the world’s spam is sent by a relatively tight-knit group of spammers, numbering around 200 in six main organizations. Instead of making significant investments in infrastructure to send spam directly through personally-owned systems, like the ones that sat in McColo, ‘botnets’ are commonly employed. !rough this strategy, spammers take control of systems employed by

Windows users across the world that are inexperienced in the finer points of properly protecting an Internet-connected system, and direct their computers to send email en masse. UNIX-based systems, such as Linux and Mac OS, are immune to all known attacks. If a botnet is large enough, there is virtually no limit to the sheer volume of spam that can be sent out from hundreds of thousands of remotely-controlled distribution points, or ‘bots,’ often without their owner’s knowledge. Americans can be charged under new anti-spam laws if their systems are part of a botnet, and if their Internet provider places a cap on the amount of bandwidth they use, they can face hefty bills for spamming their way past it. !e servers that sat in McColo’s data centre served only to co-ordinate the vast botnets, so once the plugs were pulled, the entire network crumbled.

As McColo is only a hosting provider – much in the same way as Canadian phone companies provide us with phone lines without tapping them or telling us what we may talk about – it only provides access to the internet, and does not directly control what its customers do. However, the US Digital Millennium Copyright Act has some of the broadest Internet provider liability laws that do exist. McColo may face charges if its users were found to have disseminated either child pornography or “infringing material” – that is, pirated software, films or music. A TrendMicro report fingered the company’s customers as distributors of child pornography, but the company cannot be found liable unless they know about the material and neglect to take measures to remove it.

Perhaps most importantly, can we look forward to a permanent 70 per cent decrease in spam? Probably not – spammers are an infinitely adaptable bunch. Five days after McColo’s demise, Rustock, a Russian organization that had McColo-connected servers, moved its control servers to a Russian provider, as ITWorld reports. “!is is a temporary reprieve,” the London Times quoted Nihesh Bandari of IronPort as saying. “We should enjoy it while we can.”

Tom LlewellinArgosy Staff

Spam subsidence

http://www.hivandhepatitis.com/

http://www.yankodesign.com/

SPORTS & FITNESS

Seven of Mount Allison’s fall athletes were recently named AUS all-stars for their outstanding individual performances this season. Five Football Mounties were awarded with all-conference status, while quarterback Kelly Hughes won the AUS Conference MVP and nominated for the Hec Creighton award for the nation’s Most Valuable Player. In additional, Soccer Mountie Curtis Michaelis was awarded the AUS’ Student-Athlete Community Service Award, while Ian Kelly was chosen as a first-team striker.

Hughes led the AUS in virtually every passing statistic for the second year in a row, passing for 1870 yards and 11 touchdowns, while completing a conference-best 54.6 per cent of his passes. He also finished second in league rushing with 616 yards on 89 carries, also scoring a pair of touchdowns on the ground. He becomes the first Mountie quarterback to win conference MVP, and the first Mountie to win it since running back Eric Lapointe in 1998. Hughes was also named the AUS all-star quarterback, becoming only the second quarterback this century to be

an all-star not from Saint Mary’s.Hughes’s main partner-in-crime,

Gary Ross, was a shoo-in for all-star this season. Ross has now been named all-star receiver, returner, and Special Teams Player of the Year for the AUS all three years he has been in the league. In 2008 he caught a team record 47 passes, totaling 675 yards, and a pair of touchdowns. Not only did he lead the AUS in receptions and receiving yards, but he also led the AUS with 488 punt return yards, including a 92-yard touchdown return. !e defending CIS Special Teams Player of the Year led the AUS in all-purpose yards with 1601, nearly 700 more than the next player.

Receiver Adam Molnar gets his first all-star nomination in his second season with the Mounties. He finished third in the AUS in receptions with 30 and receiving yards with 452. !e

son of former CFL-er Steve Molnar used his precise route-running and great hands to earn this nomination, and this will certainly not be his last all-star season.

Defensively, the Mounties had a pair of all-stars. Defensive lineman Scott She"er is an all-star for the second year in a row, while free safety Callan Exeter gets his first nomination in his sophomore season.

She"er led all AUS defensive linemen with 34.5 tackles, and also had 8.5 tackles for a loss and added five pass knockdowns. She"er spent most of the season rotating between defensive tackle and defensive end, and his injury in the first quarter of the AUS semi-final against St. FX really sealed the Mounties’ fate.

Exeter had a superb season, leading the country with 77.5 tackles in eight games, a total that would have places

him sixth in the CFL’s 18-game regular season. He set an AUS single-game record with 16 tackles in week three, and also had games of 14 and 12.5 tackles. His season total smashed the AUS record, and in only two seasons has already moved into the AUS top 20 in all-time tackles, with 107.5. He also had what may be the hit of the season in the CIS, in week two against Sherbrooke.

Michaelis was chosen for the Community Service Award for his outstanding soccer skills as well as his academic excellence and involvement within the community. A two-time All-Academic Canadian, Curtis is a fourth year Dean’s List student majoring in sociology and geography. In addition to his academics, he has diverse interests and generously donates his time to a number of events around campus and in the greater

community. An avid performer, Michaelis has volunteered with many groups such as, Relay for Life, Society of All Nations, Eco-Action/Music as a Cure, Free the Children, and Mount Allison’s Conduct Becoming project.

For the second straight year, Kelly was named an AUS all-star, being named a first-team striker for the 2008 season. ‘Captain Intensity’ led an improved Mountie squad with his four goals and inspired play to several wins over conference rivals. Kelly is a former two-time !ree Oaks High School MVP, as well as the 2004-2005 Mt. A Rookie of the Year. He is a fifth year Commerce student with an honours major in economics. With files from Sue Seaborn.

Seven Mounties receive AUS all-star recognitionKelly Hughes up for Hec Creighton Award

Wray Perkin and Noah KowalskiArgosy Staff

Sue Seaborn

Sue SeabornSue Seaborn

Sue SeabornAbove: Mitchell Peters swims hard on Saturday. Peters led the Mounties with three first place finishes as they took third place.

Below: Mountie swimmer Marisa Smith comes up for air. Smith had two first place finishes to power to the Lady Monties to third place.

Below: Katie Tobin fights for the puck against SMU.

Above: Caila Henderson rises up for a spike against MSVU.Sue Seaborn

S&F

!e Mount Allison Basketball Mounties split a pair of home games with Holland College this past weekend in Sackville.

!e women’s team kicked o" the doubleheader with a 55-43 victory over the Hurricanes in a game which saw a total of 35 fouls and a pair of technical fouls.

Shannon Parlee led the Mounties with ten points and seven rebounds. Danielle Trenholm and Kristen Atkins each added eight points, while rookie Marlon Smith scored seven.

Kirsten Walker scored 11 points for the visitors, while Katie McCormack had ten. !e Hurricanes committed 39 turnovers in the game to the Mounties’ 27. Holland College also went only nine-of-20 from the free throw line, while the Mounties were 17-for-27.

In the men’s match, Holland College was able to withstand a furious comeback by the Mounties to emerge victorious by a score of 77-71. Holland College was an impressive 52 per cent from beyond the three-point line, while the Mounties shot only 18 per cent from the same distance.

Josh Graham and Je" Sadler each scored 13 points for the Mounties,

Stephen Bohan scored 12, and Kent Matheson scored 11. Graham was also a perfect five-for-five from the free throw line.

Aaron Brown led the Hurricanes with 15 points, while Matt McKenna scored 14, including four three pointers.

!e Mounties were unable to take

advantage of Holland College’s 35 turnovers in the game, and made only 47 per cent of their free throws.

!e Mounties next play Saturday at King’s College, and then host Atlantic Baptist University the following Wednesday. Game time on Nov. 26 is 6 pm for the women, and 8 pm for the men.

Mounties split basketball gamesWomen win, men lose at homeWray PerkinArgosy Staff

!e Mount Allison Mounties Football squad has begun their o"-season training in preparation for the 2009 season.

One group of players, however, has also begun reaching out to the greater community. Organized by fourth-year linebacker Mike Glover, a group of six Mounties recently visited Salem Elementary School in Sackville and shared their personal experiences with bullying in an attempt to cut down on the amount of bullying at school.

“We did it as part of the Players’ Club initiative to have an impact in the community surrounding us,” said

Glover. “It really was just a group of guys who have been influenced by bullying in one way or another, and because of it have the passion to help others with bullying.”

!e group of players who shared their stories with students from Kindergarten through Grade four were Glover, fifth-year defensive tackle Andrew Blencowe, third-year quarterback Jake Maxwell, third-year receiver Scott Brady, second-year receiver Dylan Leblanc, and freshman defensive lineman Tyler Doak.

!e players shared their stories and then took some questions from the students and teachers.

Glover says the group is already looking at going to speak at more schools in the area.

Heroes in the hallwayFootball players visit Salem Elementary

Wray PerkinArgosy Staff

Canada’s biggest annual sporting event is coming up this Sunday, and this year it promises to be exciting and emotional battle. Montreal’s QB Anthony Calvillo may be playing his final game, leading the only competitive team in the Eastern Division. Calgary’s Henry Burris, who is nominated for Most Outstanding Player in the West (as Calvillo is in the

East) is looking to finally lead a team to victory in the Grey Cup. Montreal’s home field advantage could prove influential as Olympic Stadium is expecting over 60,000 spectators. !is will be the first time Montreal has had home-field advantage in the Grey Cup since 1979.

Look for big production from Montreal’s o"ensive squad to be a determining factor in the game. Runningback Avon Cobourne needs to play well on the rebound from an ankle injury, and receivers Cahoon,

Richardson, and Watkins need to be consistent. Aditionallly Calvillo must utilize them all to keep Calgary’s defence at bay. On Calgary’s side of the ball, consistency from Henry Burris is crucial to their success. Jo"rey Reynolds needs to find his stride while running the ball, and Ken-Yon Rambo needs to light up the field with some spectacular catches to silence the Montreal crowd.

Bottom line: expect a great game from a great football league.

Grey Cup previewBattle of the mega-QBsMartin WightmanArgosy Correspondent

Sue Seaborn Sue Seaborn

Wray Perkin

www.usask.ca

Above: Kevin Monaghan drives to the basket against Holland College Above: Jennifer Robinson avoids a Holland College player.

S&F

Six-foot quarterback Kelly Hughes has won Mountie Athlete of the Month honours for his outstanding play throughout October. Hughes led his team to the AUS playo!s breaking school and conference passing records along the way. Leading the league in most of the passing categories, Hughes was recently selected as the AUS conference’s MVP and currently is a strong nominee for the nation’s most outstanding player award — the Hec Crighton Trophy.

A former Burlington Braves quarterback,

Hughes is also a past two-time Braves’MVP and All-Canadian high school player who attended St. Augustine Secondary School, in Brampton, ON. Coached by previous Mountie all-star Jason Kana, and Craig Davoran, Hughes was an all-conference player in the Ontario Junior Football League before coming to the Atlantic University Sport conference as one of the top Mounties’ recruits. Last season he was the Mounties’ O!ensive MVP and is currently enrolled in third-year Commerce at Mount Allison.

Male Athlete of the Month

Kelly Hughes

Female Athlete of the Month

Rebecca SutherlandHalifax resident Rebecca Sutherland has won female Mountie Athlete of the Month honours for her steady and gritty play in over 440 minutes of grueling AUS soccer action this past October. In a 2-2 tie with Moncton on Oct. 15, Sutherland was responsible for creating several of her team’s scoring opportunities, and two days later, in a hard fought 3-1 loss to SMU, where she scored the Mounties’ lone goal. On the following day, Oct. 18, Sutherland notched the only goal against Moncton in a di"cult and heart breaking 2-1 loss for the Mounties. In the last two games of the season against UPEI (3-1 loss) and UNB (1-1), she created several scoring opportunities allowing the Mounties to remain threatening o!ensively throughout both games.Sutherland has captained the Mounties for

the past two seasons and remains a quiet but exemplary leader on and o! the field. Coach Sheri Gallant pleased with the play of her wing forward says, “Becca’s strong performance on the field this past month has been a key in the Mounties’ o!ense. She has lead our team with determination, intensity, and pride and she will be greatly missed next year by all on the team.”

A 2006 Mount Allison Soccer Rookie of the Year, Sutherland is a former star from Halifax West High School coached by Roy Snook, and a member of the Halifax City Soccer team mentored by Martin Shannon.

In fourth-year Arts, majoring in French and Canadian Studies, Sutherland hopes to pursue a teaching career.

Athlete of the Week Nov. 3 - Nov. 10

Forward Jenna Briggs of the women’s hockey team has been honoured as Mount Allison’s Athlete of the Week for her play in the Mounties’ two games over the past week against UPEI (4-3 OT loss) and SMU (3-2 win). #e SMU victory marked the Mounties’ first win over the Huskies since the league started in 2003.

In the Mounties’ game against UPEI, Briggs scored two goals, including the one that tied the game at the end of regulation time, and in the second contest she scored twice more and received Player of the Game honours.

A former Grade 12 hockey star from Trinity

College School in Port Hope, ON, Briggs also previously played with the Dartmouth Whalers and Team Nova Scotia. A resident of Dartmouth, NS, Briggs has had a successful career Mount Allison winning Rookie of the Year honours in her first season (2006-07), and qualifying for an Alumni Athletic-Academic Achievement Award this year. She is currently at Mount Allison taking third-year Commerce, and hopes to pursue a career in law.

Other Athlete of the Week nominees were: Laurel Carlton (volleyball), and Stephen Bohan (basketball).

Jenna Briggs

Athlete of the Week Nov. 10 - Nov. 17

First-year power hitter Caila Henderson of the women’s volleyball team has been honoured as Mount Allison’s Athlete of the Week for her play in the Mounties’ two home victories over King’s College (3-0) and Mount Saint Vincent University (3-1).

In the Mounties’ games over King’s, Henderson tallied up eight kills, four service aces, and four digs, and in the tighter match against MSVU, she led the Mounties with 14 kills, one service ace, and 11 digs. Her swift attack and strength on defense were key components to the team’s important victory over the always-tough Mystics. In the MSVU match Henderson was selected as the Player of the Game.

A former Athlete of the Year from South Colchester Academy (SCA), in Brookfield, NS, Henderson also previously played provincial championship volleyball with the Central Nova Team from 2004-08. A past 2007 MVP with the SCA volleyball squad, and coached by former Mountie Teri Kennedy, Henderson made a

big impact in many ways while attending high school. She won Rookie of the Year honours (2005), the Sportsmanship Award (2006), Athlete of the Year (2008), and was selected as Valedictorian for her class in 2008.

A resident of Brookfield, NS, Henderson has already made a positive di!erence with the Volleyball Mounties. Despite her first-year status, her steady and dynamic play as a power hitter has contributed greatly to the Mounties’ success this year. A multi-sport athlete, Henderson was also a member of this year’s ACAA championship cross-country team at Mount Allison.

She is currently at Mount Allison taking first-year science, and hopes to pursue a career in medicine or conservatory research.

Other Athlete of the Week nominees were: Danielle Trenholm (basketball), Je! Sadler (basketball), Meghan Corley-Byrne (hockey), and Mitchell Peters (swimming).

Caila HendersonSue Seaborn

Sue Seaborn

Sue SeabornSue Seaborn

S&FUpcoming Mountie Sports

Friday, Nov. 21

Saturday, Nov. 22

Sunday, Nov. 23

Badminton @ USA Tournament; 7:00 PMVolleyball @ UNBSJ; 8:00 PM

Badminton @ USA Tournament; 9:00 AMVolleyball @ UNBSJ; 1:00 PMSwimming @ DAL meet; 11:00 AM/6:00 PMHockey vs. STU; 2:30 PMWomen’s Basketball @ UKC; 2:00 PMMen’s Basketball @ UKC; 4:00 PM

Swimming @ DAL meet; 10:00 AM/4:00 PMHockey vs. UdeM; 2:30 PM

COME OUT AND CHEER

Josh Graham floats towards the basket.

Sue Seaborn

Write for Sports.Interview Cute AthletesHave Athletic Babies.Rule the World.Be eternally happy.

Argosy Funders’ Meeting Thursday November 27th 6:30 in the Argosy Office