volume 63 - The Uniter

Transcription

2008/12/ 04
I SSUE
15
VOLUME 63
December 4, 2008
02
The Uniter
contact: [email protected]
News
News
Top five films that
make even nonsmokers want
to light up
University
rhetoric bound in
individualism
and excess
Can you actually
live without
a credit card?
page 4
page 12
arts & culture 
page 8
news  comments  News
Does digital
music mean
the end for local
record labels?
page 19
arts & culture 
UNITER STAFF
City’s biggest vice makes U-turn
Business Manager
James D. Patterson
mark reimer
Economy and rapid
transit both factors
in Winnipeg’s car
culture slowdown
Managing Editor
Stacy Cardigan Smith
» [email protected]
PRODUCTION MANAGER
Melody Morrissette
Copy and style editor
Ashley Holmes [email protected]
»
Photo Editor
Mark Reimer
News assignment editor
Toban Dyck
[email protected]
»
News production editor
Ksenia Prints [email protected]
Dan Huyghebaert
»
Beat reporter
“The car is not
something that is not going to go away.”
W innipeg’s car culture may
be in decline thanks to the
global economic crisis and
the recent southwest rapid transit corridor
announcement.
For Michael Dudley of the University of
Winnipeg’s Institute of Urban Studies, the
city’s car culture is inextricably linked to
rapid transit.
“The car culture in this city is an impact
of no rapid transit,” Dudley said. As a result,
Dudley said Winnipeggers got used to driving cars everywhere.
“The culture of ordinary people and city
hall is geared towards cars,” he said.
Jenny Gerbasi, Fort Rouge/East Fort
Garry city councillor, agrees.
“The city is developed with cars in mind
instead of people,” she said, noting that the
city’s approval of big box stores forces people
to drive from one store to another.
Curt Hull, treasurer for Bike to the Future,
a cycling advocacy group, believes Winnipeg
has few alternatives to cars.
“The sidewalks are plowed last in the winter,” Hull said. “That’s when it’s time to get
those snowshoes out.”
But Dudley sees the connection between
Arts and culture editor
Aaron Epp [email protected]
»
Comments Editor
Devin Morrow [email protected]
»
Sports & fitness editor
Jo Villaverde
–Claudine Gervais, Going Places
Listings co-ordinator
Curran Faris [email protected]
»
Beat reporter
Dan Huyghebaert
youth and cars changing due to the economic crisis.
“Young people aren’t assuming that they’re
going to own a car,” he said, citing the difficulties of getting a loan.
Hull said the idea of a car as a symbol of
identity for young people is also changing.
“There’s a difference in what kind of cars
turn heads. Before it was the muscle cars,
and now it’s the innovative eco car,” he said.
CAA Manitoba recently published an article in their magazine, Going Places, asking
“Are cars still cool?”
“The car is not something that is not
going to go away,” said Claudine Gervais,
editor of Going Places.
Gervais said the automobile industry is
looking to bridge the gap between the public’s social concerns and its dependence on
cars, with massive changes coming to the in-
Mode of daily transport to work:
dustry in the next 10 to 20 years.
“The current economic situation will
change car culture,” Dudley said.
Hull said the city has to provide infrastructure for people to choose other means
of transportation.
Dudley said the city’s transit system
does not serve those who do not own cars
properly, holding the economy back in the
process.
“If people can’t get to work in a quick and
comfortable manner, it will mean a lower
quality of life,” he said.
“Winnipeg will change with rapid
transit.”
In 2006, Statistics Canada released figures
that show that even if people lived within
five kilometers of their work, 57 per cent will
still drive their car.
Hung up on cars
City
Total number of
commuters
Driver
Passenger
Transit
Walk
Bicycle
Other
Winnipeg
302,090
70.0 %
8.4 %
3.2 %
6.1 %
1.4 %
0.9 %
Toronto
2,248,055
65.2 %
6.3 %
22.4 %
4.6 %
0.8 %
0.7 %
Quebec
325 ,005
76.0 %
5.2 %
9.8 %
7.0 %
1.3 %
0.7 %
Daily commuting in Winnipeg:
Number of commuters: 302,090
Commute less than five km: 41.1 per cent
Five to 14.9 km: 49.9 per cent
15 to 24.9 km: 4.7 per cent
25 km or more: 4.3 per cent
Source: Statistics Canada
Beat reporter
Joe Kornelsen
Beat reporter
Sandy Klowak
Beat reporter
Andrew McMonagle
CONTRIBUTORS: Renee Lilley, Alex Garcia, Brendan
Olynik, Craig Heinrich, Rachelle Friesen, Mimi Orr,
Will Dumont, Andrew Tod, J. Williamez, Timothy Penner,
Holly Rose, Thomas Epp, Katie Dangerfield, Emily Wessel,
Melly Ozubko, Kenton Smith, Bucky Driedger,
Meghan Tooley, Jonathan Dyck, Andre Crate,
Matt Prepost, Peer Support, Courtney Schwegel,
Madeline Coleman, Kalen Qually, Sagan Morrow,
Natasha Tersigni, Tom Asselin, Marko Bilandzjia,
Josh Boulding, Kevin Chaves, Scott Christiansen,
Mike Collins, Adam Peleshaty, Brad Pennington,
Ryan Janz, Cory Falvo.
The Uniter is the official student newspaper of the University of Winnipeg and
is published by Mouseland Press Inc. Mouseland Press Inc. is a membership
based organization in which students and community members are invited
to participate. For more information on how to become a member go to www.
uniter.ca, or call the office at 786-9790. The Uniter is a member of the Canadian
University Press and Campus Plus Media Services.
SUBMISSION OF ARTICLES, LETTERS, GRAPHICS AND PHOTOS ARE WELCOME.
Articles must be submitted in text (.rtf) or Microsoft Word (.doc) format to
[email protected], or the relevant section editor. Deadline for submissions is
6:00 p.m. Thursday, one week before publication. Deadline for advertisements
is noon Friday, six days prior to publication. The Uniter reserves the right to
refuse to print submitted material. The Uniter will not print submissions that
are homophobic, misogynistic, racist, or libellous. We also reserve the right to
edit for length and/or style.
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CONTACT US
General Inquiries: 204.786.9790
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Fax: 204.783.7080
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»
by Sandy Klowak
Q: What is your guilty pleasure during the holidays?
Wendy Suddaby
H&R Block employee
“Home-made Nuts and Bolts
(mixed cereal snack). It’s
something we treat ourselves
to, and wassail (hot spiced
punch).”
Christine Boss,
U of W Collegiate, Grade 12
“Getting presents, and I feel
guilty because it’s a consumer
holiday... I get all excited but
the real meaning of Christmas
has gone out the window. And
Eggnog.”
Ian Weedmark
third year, business
“If I’m going out with friends
we usually indulge in coffees...
I think just indulging yourself
makes it that much more
special.”
Kyle Klym
second year, pre-med
“Eating out a little more than
I should. I go out a lot. ...
Holidays I usually go out
every second night.”
Laura Sexsmith
second year, biology
“During the holidays I just do
nothing all day long. ... Going
on Facebook is so bad right
now when you should be
studying!”
Lloyd Axworthy
U of W president and vicechancellor
“Smoking cigars on my back
porch at Victoria Beach, with
a little scotch. But that’s
not a vice, it’s for medicinal
purposes!”
LOCATION
Room ORM14
University of Winnipeg
515 Portage Avenue
Winnipeg, Manitoba R3B 2E9
Mouseland Press Board of Directors:
David EisBrenner (chair), Mary Agnes Welch,
Rob Nay, Nick Tanchuk, Brian Gagnon, Devin King, Meg
McGimpsey, Ben Zorn, Kelly Ross (UWSA), Scott Nosaty
For inquiries e-mail: [email protected]
Cover Image
Photographs by
Mark Reimer
News Assignment Editor: Toban Dyck
Phone: 786-9497
Fax: 783-7080
The Uniter
News
But mom, I saw it on TV!
Compiled by Brendan Olynik
Israeli PM urged to
step down, again
Renee Lilley
Volunteer staff
M
robert huynh
someone on TV did it... However, TV depicts
that sex equals attention, and attention is what
drives people,” she said.
Greenhill feels the value of motherhood
is not recognized in the neo-liberal Canadian
society.
“The job of being a mother is ideologically
glorified, yet economically debased… in a patriarchal society,” she said.
Others think the study’s value lies in showing
that media is no place for sexual education.
Sarah Martens, youth health educator for
Teen Talk, the teen education program at Klinic
Community Health Centre, believes the media
downplays the repercussions that come with
sexual activity.
“Nobody talks about the real life issues on
TV. There is no discussion about permission,
STIs (sexually transmitted infections), pregnancy options or birth control.”
She notes these are damaging messages to
teens.
“If the media can spice
up sex, surely there’s
someone out there who
can spice up awareness.”
-Lindsay Reuben, mother
Manitoba has historically had higher rates of
teen pregnancy. According to Statistics Canada,
in 2003 the rate of teen pregnancy for 15 to 19
year olds in the province was 53.4 per 1,000 girls,
higher than the national average of 32.1.
Reuben agrees there is not enough information on sexual health available in mainstream
media. As a mother, she recognizes that you
cannot force kids to learn, especially in a classroom, which would make TV a more inviting
medium than a gym teacher.
“If the media can spice up sex, surely there’s
someone out there who can spice up awareness,” Reuben said.
Let’s
talk
about
sex,
baby
Wrapping our heads around sex and porn addictions
Alex Garcia
Volunteer staff
P
ornography may be considered a vice by
some, but experts claim it just might be a
good way to get rid of those pesky urges.
3
International
News Briefs
New research finds
media affects teen
pregnancy rates;
the problem is
education, experts say
aybe keeping kids at home in front
of the television instead of out on
the town isn’t such a good idea. A
recent American study found that teens who
watch TV with sexual content were twice as
likely to become pregnant than those with more
modest preferences.
The study surveyed 2,003 male and female
teens aged 13 to 17 on their TV show preferences. After a three-year follow up, 58 girls had
become pregnant and 33 boys had gotten a girl
pregnant.
Some of the shows teens were asked about
included Sex and the City, Friends, and That ‘70s
Show.
Not everybody agrees that teen pregnancy
is a new vice. Pauline Greenhill, University of
Winnipeg women’s and gender studies professor, noted that some research includes particularly leading questions geared towards getting
certain answers.
“Unless there’s something about biology I
don’t understand, there is no correlation between TV watching and teen pregnancy,” she
said.
But those who have experienced teen pregnancy feel otherwise. Lindsay Reuben is a
19-year-old who is currently six months pregnant, with a 21-month-old daughter at home.
She believes media sends out the wrong messages about sex and pregnancy.
“Personally I didn’t have my baby because
December 4, 2008
But as with everything, moderation is key.
Todd Kendall, a former professor at Clemson
University in South Carolina, published a study
in 2007 claiming there was a direct comparison
between the spread of Internet pornography
and the decline of sexual attacks in America.
According to his research, the availability of
pornography relieves people of potential urges
and takes away their desire to commit sexual
acts prohibited by society.
This does not necessarily mean that the use
of pornography can always have encouraging results, claims Rod Minaker, a Winnipegbased therapist with Carolyn O. Bergen and
Associates Counselling and Consulting.
“Pornography is a representation of unfulfilled desires and a way for people to live out
sexual fantasies that they may not be able to
otherwise,” Minaker said. “The addictive use of
pornography tends to be a symptom of a deeper
problem, one that has to do with connection,
or lack thereof, with the person using and their
partner.”
Katie Haig-Anderson, co-ordinator for the
University of Winnipeg’s Womyn’s Centre,
disagrees.
Correction:
In the Nov. 27 edition of The Uniter, we
incorrectly referred to the Security
and Prosperity Partnership and the
organization Citizens Concerned about
Deep Integration. We regret the error.
“The addictive use of
pornography tends to be a symptom of a deeper problem.”
–Rod Minaker, Carolyn O. Bergen and Associates
Counselling and Consulting
“As for consumption of porn, if the people in
the relationship are comfortable with watching
porn and open with each other about it, I think
it can be healthy and even beneficial. This goes
for people in sexual relationships and also single
people,” she said.
Just as pornography can become a contentious issue, so can excessive sex.
Minaker condemns nymphomania along
with the consumption of porn as a process addiction; something that is not necessarily consumed by the body but still requires engagement
of some sort, similar to gambling.
“Nymphomaniacs, along with those who
consume excessive amounts of pornography, are
merely getting a quick fix for their problem. It
gives them an immediate sense of soothing or
satisfaction while sidestepping the root problem
of inability to communicate emotions and feelings in a relationship,” he wrote.
Whatever the magic combination of sex and
porn is, it’s fairly accurate to say that people will
have a hell of a time figuring it out.
JERUSALEM, Israel – Israel’s Prime
Minister, Ehud Olmert, is confronted
once again with the recommendation
to resign his position.
This comes recently after justice
ministry’s
announcement
that
the Israeli attorney general, Meni
Mazuz, had told Olmert that he was
considering bringing corruption
charges against him.
According to The Guardian, Olmert
is accused of double-billing various
establishments while he was mayor
of Jerusalem and later the industry
minister. There were reports that
Olmert had spent money collected
from Israeli organizations on personal
indulgences, such as family trips.
Olmert rejects the allegations.
Labour leaders demand
more money in Zimbabwe
HARARE, Zimbabwe – Zimbabwean
labour leaders are advising citizens to
demand more money from the banks.
The miniscule daily cash withdrawal
limits from Zimbabwean banks make it
difficult for many to obtain the funds
needed to pay for necessities such as
medication and food.
The Associated Press reported that
Zimbabwe has a hyperinflation of
231 million per cent. The daily bank
withdrawal limit of $500,000 Zimbabwe
dollars cannot even buy a quarter loaf
of bread.
In addition, a cholera outbreak has
required many to wait in bank lines for
days before collecting enough of their
own money for basic medication.
The United Nations warns that five
million Zimbabweans imminently face
starvation.
Indonesian tribe untouched
by global economic crisis
GAJEBOH, Indonesia – Reuters
recently examined one group that
remains unaffected by the global
financial crisis: the Baduy tribe in
Southeast Asia.
Numbering 5,000 to 8,000 people,
the Baduy people live a peaceful
existence in the hills of western Java
and are considered an anomaly when
located just 120 km from the busy city
of Jakarta.
The Baduy refuse to adopt any
modern ideals, considering school,
glass, transportation, footwear and
nails taboo.
Although seemingly primitive,
experts describe their farming
techniques as well developed for their
locale.
Iraq agrees on deal
to end U.S. role
BAGHDAD, Iraq – The three year old
Iraqi Parliament recently voted 149 to
35 in favor of a security agreement
that would end America’s role in the
war by 2011.
The New York Times reported this
decision drew very little violent
outbursts, in comparison to when Iraq’s
constitution was drafted in 2005.
American forces are expected to
withdraw from cities and towns by
June 30, 2009, whereas complete
removal from the country would
commence at the end of 2011.
The agreement also grants Iraq
sizable authority over American force
operations in the country until then.
Iran told to leave women
activists alone
GENEVA – Human rights investigators
for the United Nations have urged Iran
to end its crackdown on those seeking
gender equality.
Both women and men involved in
a movement to collect one million
signatures as a demand for full
equality amongst the sexes have been
especially targeted, reported Reuters.
Peaceful demonstrators have been
harassed and persecuted for nonviolent activities.
Many activists have been detained
since the campaign launched in 2006,
demanding changes to laws denying
women equal rights in particular issues
such as child custody and divorce.
Iran denies it discriminates against
women. The country bases itself on
Islamic Sharia law.
December 4, 2008
04
The Uniter
News
Living your life on borrowed funds
mark reimer
Credit cards allow
easy money,
bring great debt
Joe Kornelsen
Beat reporter
C
redit cards are an ever more common
means of payment in everyday transactions, but it is easy to let spending
on credit get out of hand.
Scott Brandt knows the dangers of spending too much borrowed money. When he
and his girlfriend were strapped for cash, he
started swiping the card for his purchases.
“I ended up paying for a lot of stuff, add a
road trip to that and I ended up in over my
head,” he said.
Brandt’s debt jumped to over $3,000 dollars. Working at a photocopier repair shop,
he figures it’s an amount that will take him
about half a year to pay down.
Scott Brandt thinks easy access to credit cards has
contributed to his inflating $3,000 debt.
In 2003, almost half of all credit cards
circulated in Canada, 22.2 million, carried
a balance owing. Brandt can even consider
himself lucky: the average Canadian household in 2004 owed $69,450.00 through personal loans, lines of credit and mortgage
debt.
Brandt said he made the choice to spend
as much as he did, but he also believes that
credit card companies push a person to
spend beyond their limits.
Felix Gonzalez, a financial service manager
at the Bank of Montreal, thinks otherwise.
“I wouldn’t put the blame on the credit
card,” he said.
Gonzalez believes it is important for people to have a credit card because it is the easiest way to build credit.
He said students should be especially
careful of spending too much because they
usually have a low income.
For some things like purchasing online
credit cards are necessary, but people will use
them to buy almost anything.
Silas Chipelski, a manager at Olympia
Cycle and Ski, said that most people use
credit cards when they come into his store.
Without credit cards, “there is no way we
would make even half the sales that we do,”
he said.
But since concerns emerged over an impending recession, Chipelski said that there
was less credit card use.
Brandt, on the other hand, has seen the
opposite.
“They raised my limit again after (the)
credit issue.”
Gonzales said that it is important to be
educated about the pros and cons of having
Also said…
Q: What do you think of credit cards?
“It’s a necessity to use a credit card
and I think that’s totally wrong—I think
it’s gone too far.”
- Silas Chipelski, Olympia Cycle and Ski manager
“Our society is built on the credit system… Educate yourself on what you
can gain from having a credit card.”
- Felix Gonzalez, Bank of Montreal financial
service manager
“If you don’t pace yourself you will
overspend. You have to make sure
only a fraction of what you make ends
up on your credit card.”
- Scott Brandt, credit card holder
a credit card and to get one early in life.
“A credit card can empower you, but it all
depends on how you use it,” Gonzalez said.
The joy of free stuff: not just for Winnipeggers
Internet downloading a
huge trend that might
lead to addiction
Joe Kornelsen
Beat reporter
CORY FALVO
T
he proliferation of the Internet has made the computer a beast for downloading movies, music and a
plethora of other enjoyable time-wasters, at the expense of social lives and work productivity.
Jason Harder, a student at the University of Manitoba,
said there are plenty of things he spends his time downloading: movies, music, games and other software. If he thinks of
it, he downloads it.
“Sometimes I go a bit overboard with video game playing
or movie watching and it will detract from my homework
time,” he said.
Harder said that spending his time watching videos or
listening to music that he has downloaded is just like any
other pastime.
The popularization of downloading and streaming has led
to regulation of how people use the Internet in the workplace. Many workplaces regulate downloads and ban sites
like YouTube.
“You don’t want staff downloading when they should
be doing the work they are paid to do,” said Brian Smiley,
the media relations coordinator with Manitoba Public
Insurance.
The public corporation tries to prevent people from
downloading stuff at work because it puts a strain on the
network and it hurts productivity.
Craig Ward, a student at Red River College, most often
downloads music. But downloading music doesn’t take up
as much time as some other downloading options.
“YouTube is a big time-waster,” he said.
Ward said that although he does spend quite a bit of time
watching one minute videos on the video streaming website,
he still has a social life and gets his homework done.
The download craze largely began with the significant
growth in broadband Internet and the file-sharing program,
Napster. When Napster was forced to begin charging users
for downloads in 2001, people splintered off to a number of
free options to download any kind of media.
Today people most commonly download full albums as
torrent files or stream videos off of YouTube.
Joel Novek, a professor in the sociology department at the
University of Winnipeg, said that although a majority will
make use of the Internet responsibly, some people can get
sucked into the all the media available online.
“It can be an addiction for some people,” he said.
Both Ward and Smiley believe that there is potential for
addiction when it comes to spending time downloading, especially when it comes to stream video.
“I could see someone wasting three hours of their day,
every day and wasting their time,” Ward said.
The numbers
Canadians who use the Internet
for downloading or watching video:
2005: 12 per cent
2007: 20 per cent
Canadians who use the Internet
for downloading music (free or paid):
2005: 37 per cent
2007: 45 per cent
Source: Statistics Canada
Marijuana use debated
Craig Heinrich
Volunteer staff
D
rugs are bad. This consensus has
driven the questionable War on
Drugs in the United States, the
criminalization of anything with the word
“hallucinatory” in the description and the
mantra repeated by at least three generations
of parents in North America.
But of all the red-lighted substances in the
legal gamut, the most controversial drug by
a mile is marijuana.
Is marijuana a vice, or is it just “a lot of
fun,” in the words of occasional user Derrick
King?
“You don’t need it in essence,” said King.
“You can be aware that you want a toke, but
you can ignore it; it doesn’t reach the point
of addiction.”
Marijuana, cannabis, pot, green, dope,
grass, etc., is a naturally-growing plant that
when smoked, produces distortions in sensory input, memory and motor-related activities, according to an informational package
released by the Addictions Foundation of
Manitoba.
“Under the influence, you are less competent to do tasks that require more attention or organization,” said Bruce Bolster, a
professor of psychology at the University of
Winnipeg. “Memory and understanding of
facts are impaired or distorted.”
Marijuana culture is active and kicking
in Winnipeg, said Kevin Trosky, owner of
The Urban Bakery, an urban design store
that sells smoking paraphernalia on Portage
Avenue.
“I think the culture is more alive today
than it has ever been... It’s becoming more
acknowledged and accepted by the masses,”
he said.
According to a poll by Health Canada,
cannabis use among young people is at the
highest levels it has been in 25 years. The survey found that 34 per cent of people aged 12
to 19 have used the drug more than once,
and 67 per cent had smoked cannabis before
they were 15.
But experts say students are better off
reaching for the bottle due to prevention
laws.
mark reimer
Is the leafy green a
vice, a dangerous drug
or a casual pastime?
“Smoking marijuana is not as good as
drinking, mainly because of the infrastructure set up around the two drugs,” said
Harinder Aujila, a professor of psychology at
the U of W.
“For instance, though we have bars and
places for people to drink, there are also programs aimed to prevent drunk driving and
advising against heavy drinking. There is
nothing of the sort for cannabis.”
Aujila said that in general, cannabis is no
lighter drug than anything else.
“All drugs are harmful. They hijack the reward system in the brain, so you’re getting
positive feedback from something that may
not be very good for you.”
However, Bolster said our mind might
just be hard-wired for marijuana use.
“An interesting tidbit you can take away is
Words from the public
If only university students ruled the world...
“It’s fun to do it. That’s why people think
they are addicted, ’cause they feel better
while high. It’s not a vice ’cause I said so,”
-Chava Rosenblit, first year, University of Manitoba
“The rehab for marijuana is two weeks. It’s
ridiculous. Who gets addicted to marijuana, honestly?”
-Lisa Brown, first year, University of Winnipeg
that there are specific receptors in the brain
for the chemicals within cannabis.”
The effects are therefore “not irreversible,”
he said.
As for marijuana’s vice status, Trosky is on
the fence.
“I think almost everything we enjoy can
be a vice... That said, I could go an entire
week without smoking, but I would have a
rough day if I missed my morning coffee.”
While marijuana sales and use are illegal in
Canada, paraphernalia and cannabis growth
stores are littered throughout Winnipeg; The
Urban Bakery is located at 398 Portage.
Phone: 786-9497
Fax: 783-7080
Toys with gendered and
political undertones
not hard find
Beat reporter
The panel
Samantha Arnold, politics professor with expertise in gender studies and mother
to an eight-year-old girl.
Jamie Dyck, music teacher for nursery to Grade 6 students.
Jason Jackson, parent to a 12-year-old girl.
Elias Penner, eight-year-old boy.
Jenae Berard, seven-year-old girl.
News production editor
All prices and toys are per Toys’R’Us.
Sandy Klowak
W hen many a newspaper releases
its best toys for 2008 and frantic parents are running around
looking for the next Tickle Me Elmo, it sometimes seems like a toy store in December is
anything but a fairytale. In fact, many toys
might be considered offensive for gendered
and political reasons.
The Uniter rounded up a panel of five Toy
Experts and three particularly interesting
toys for a frank discussion on the politics behind the plastic.
Monopoly Boutique Edition,
Hasbro, $34.99
Lake Winnipeg in deep trouble
A recent study found that draining water
for farmland may be extremely detrimental to
Lake Winnipeg.
The report, by conservation group Ducks
Unlimited Canada, focused on Broughton’s
Creek, a marsh in southwestern Manitoba, and
claimed that draining the wetland would be
equivalent to dumping 10 semi-trailer loads of
agricultural fertilizer into the lake.
Lead researcher Pascal Badiou told the
Winnipeg Free Press that if the drainage
continues, all money invested in reducing
nutrient loads like phosphorus into Lake
Winnipeg will be wasted.
MONOPOLY BOUTIQUE EDITION
Samantha Arnold: “I don’t find this particularly offensive.” It promotes consumerism, “but
let’s face it, what doesn’t?” she said.
“Whether it’s genetic or conditioning I don’t
know, but little girls do like pink.”
Jason Jackson: “You’re kidding, they really
made something like that?”
Jackson said he would not buy it for his
daughter as “we already have a couple of versions of Monopoly.”
Elias Penner: “I’d be half OK with it, half
not.”
City acknowledges public art
Yasmin and Her Mom –
Bratz World Families, MGA
Entertainment, $19.99
IRON SHIEK
Samantha Arnold: “I think that your average
boy isn’t going to appreciate the context of this.”
There is nothing inherently troublesome about
the toy itself, she said. Though portraying an
idealized male body type, the toy supports organized sport, a healthy option for kids.
Jamie Dyck: “I was a little bit disturbed [by
this]… the fact he’s a villain character, and with
the way things are in the Middle East, I’m surprised WWE would put out something like that.”
Elias Penner: “I’m just into watching wrestling. I’m not really into the figures,” he said.
Penner prefers power toys like all-terrain vehicles and building sets like Lego and K’nex.
BRATZ
Samantha Arnold: “I find these appalling,”
she said. “I guess the only redeeming thing
about them is that they’re multicultural.”
Arnold believes the Bratz are overtly sexualized. “These are seeming to suggest what little
girls should look like and I think that’s a dangerous message… This is encouraging our little girls
to grow up too fast.”
“We’ve got this mom whose function is to
take her daughter out shopping...”
“I think they’re gross,” Arnold said.
Jamie Dyck: “I’m always put off by the Bratz
dolls.”
Jason Jackson: “I would buy those for Tiffany
(his daughter) because she liked those before.”
Elias Penner: “I think it would be something
that girls would like,” he said. “They have real
stuff in the packages sometimes, like real hair
colour.”
When asked if he would enjoy such a toy,
Penner said he might.
“I just wouldn’t want people to know that I
had it.”
Jenae Berard: “They’re better looking than
everything,” she said, comparing Bratz dolls to
other toys.
Bratz are one of Berard’s favourites and she
appreciates the accessories often included.
“Some Bratz, you could change colour in their
hair,” she pointed out.
I
f you love your
rum and eggnog
at Christmas time,
you’re not the only one.
A 2004 study found
Canadians increased their
alcohol consumption by
almost 35 per cent during
the December holiday
season, placing it third
among G7 countries.
The British think tank
Policy Exchange conducted the study, with
the United Kingdom finishing first with an increase of 40 per cent.
The problem in the
ryan janz
Beat reporter
Funding to public art has been resurrected
this year after a proposal by city council to
reduce funds by 80 per cent was beaten last
week.
Carol Phillips, the executive director of the
Winnipeg Arts Council, told the Winnipeg Free
Press that the council had to put many projects
on hold due to the expected reduction.
The proposal to cut funding was ruled out
by Councillor Justin Swandel, the Finance
Committee chairman.
The city will pay $500,000 to produce new
developments at various sites around the
city.
Premier looks to political
funding for cuts
The province is looking to change a law
that costs taxpayers nearly $500,000 a year.
Following in the footsteps of the federal
government, Manitoba Premier Gary Doer
announced that a law granting political
parties $1.25 per vote received, would be
a poor way to handle finances under the
current economy.
CBC reported that Doer stated the province
has other priorities at the moment.
The premier has not gone into detail about
the changes, saying that “everything is on the
table.”
Time to hang up, drivers
You and me and the bottle
UK is severe enough to
warrant a study blaming
Christmas binge drinking for a record number of abortions during
January 2005.
“Binge drinking is
having four or five drinks
during a social event,”
said Diana Soroka, communications
manager
with the Manitoba Liquor
Control
Commission
(MLCC). “Christmas is
the busiest time of year
for us.”
Soroka said Manitoba’s
December liquor sales
account for 15 per cent
of the yearly total, while
the week leading up to
Christmas accounts for 6
per cent.
Crème liqueurs are
particularly big sellers
during the holidays, in
addition to the current
trends of martinis and
higher end liquor and
beer.
While December sees
a drop for people who
enroll in alcohol programs at the Addictions
Foundation of Manitoba
(AFM), January is a dif-
Local
Compiled by Craig Heinrich
Iron Sheik – Unmatched
Fury 8, World Wrestling
Entertainment, $19.99
Jenae Berard: “I like the SpongeBob one
too!” She was fairly indifferent regarding the
pink packaging
05
News Briefs
Ksenia Prints
Dan Huyghebaert
December 4, 2008
News
Kids’ games provide plenty of politics
Holiday
binge
drinking
increases
rehab
enrolment,
abortions
The Uniter
Getting those late directions might get a lot
harder: if passed, new provincial legislation
will ban drivers from talking on cell phones
while behind the wheel.
If the law is passed, drivers will face a $190
fine for using a cell phone while driving,
reported CBC.
Drivers will still be allowed to make phone
calls using hands-free communication
devices. Texting will no longer be possible.
A government press release stated that a
Manitoba Medical Association survey from
2007 found 75 per cent of Manitobans would
support such a ban.
Further proposed laws will forbid smoking
with a child under 16 in the vehicle and ban
non-biodegradable single use plastic bags.
Renewal projects to get
support from taxes
ferent story.
“There is a noticeable dip in December,
but quite the increase
for January,” said Jackie
Lemaire, program evaluator at AFM.
Although
Lemaire
said she is surprised that
December is as slow as it
is, she believes that people are far too busy during the holidays.
“Then January hits
and it is ‘Oh oh, I am in
trouble,’” Lemaire said.
“January is the time of
change.”
Soroka said that the
MLCC has their year
round Be Undrunk
campaign warning the
public about the consequences of binge drinking and urging everyone
to drink responsibly and
in moderation.
King’s Head Pub
owner Jay Khanuja said
he does not see an increase in sales of alcohol
because of the Christmas
holidays.
“Any increase is usu-
ally because exams are
over and students want
to booze it up,” Khanuja
said.
Food sales do increase
at his pub for Christmas
parties, along with the
sale of cocktails. Yet the
pub isn’t doing anything
special.
“We don’t have any
special Christmas cocktails,” Khanuja said.
The province is bringing back legislations
that will see a portion of property taxes
in select areas reinvested in community
development.
A press release stated the priorities for
this initiative include the development of
Winnipeg’s inland port, an improved rapid
transit system, and additional affordable
housing in the city’s core areas.
The legislation will use what is called tax
increment financing, a tool that will keep
community funding within the community
instead of having it taxed and sent to the
government.
Through the initiatives, any incremental tax
increases in an area deemed as a community
revitalization property will be invested back
into local development.
Tax increment funding is used in the United
States to support revitalization and renewal
projects.
December 4, 2008
06
The Uniter
Campus News
Campus
News Briefs
Compiled by Toban Dyck
Keeping our eyes on the prize
The University of Winnipeg’s Centre for
Sustainable Transportation (CST) has been
awarded the excellence in sustainability
award.
This award acknowledges CST’s active
record in promoting sustainability practices
and principles.
Among the centre’s notable contributions
is defining what sustainable transportation
means, which has been internationally
recognized, stated a university press release.
CST is a non-profit organization at the U
of W that creates and encourages long-term
sustainable transportation practices.
Their work aims to connect business,
academic and public interests with local and
global transportation initiatives.
Giving the Axe to 60 years
of human rights
University of Winnipeg president Lloyd
Axworthy will give the keynote address at a
human rights conference celebrating the 60th
anniversary of the United Nations Universal
Declaration of Human Rights.
The conference will be hosted all day at the
Fort Garry Hotel on Dec. 10 by the Manitoba
Human Rights Commission, the Canadian
Human Rights Commission and the Manitoba
Association for Rights and Liberties.
Though tickets to the conference are pricey,
the interesting workshops and speakers are
sure to make for an enlightening time.
The conference costs $175, including an
awards dinner. For more information visit
www.manitoba.ca/hrc.
No luck for First Nations university
Black hole celebrity takes
post in Waterloo
The University of Waterloo is boasting
a famous new addition to its physics
department.
You may have heard of him: his name
is Stephen Hawking and he will be the
university’s distinguished research chair at
the premier institute for theoretical physics.
Hawking earned his place in history through
his work on black holes and the nitty-gritty of
time.
Having a celebrity like Hawking at the
University of Waterloo will boost its notoriety
and bring many visiting researchers and
scientists to the university, according to
Maclean’s On Campus.
It’s reported that Hawking will be visiting
the campus often.
Makes sense, so who’s next?
The University of British Columbia’s faculty
of land and food systems has gone paperless.
Not using paper has saved the three-person
office approximately $10,000 and many trees.
Also, with no more forms to fill out or
numbers to grab while you wait in line, the
paperless shift has allowed for more personto-person contact, which has been viewed as
a good thing.
Other offices are peeking in to see what the
buzz is about, reported University Affairs.
Deadly texts
Experts say text
messaging can
be useful in some
circumstances, but not
while driving
Andrew McMonagle
Beat reporter
C
ell phone text messaging is easy, convenient, and possibly deadly to you
and language.
The Government of Manitoba is considering legislation that would make text
messaging, as well as all hand-held phone
operations, illegal while operating a vehicle.
Some people believe we would be better
off if all text messaging, commonly known
as ‘texting,’ was banned.
“I’m not a fan of texting,” said Danny
Van Lancker, a student at the University
of Manitoba. “It’s in the same lines as email that’s killing our language and social
interaction.”
Van Lancker said these impersonal methods of communication are the reason people
have trouble looking you in the eye or shaking your hand.
Not everyone agrees. Randy Kobes, as-
sociate dean of science at the University of
Winnipeg, sees other, more positive uses for
text messaging, such as in research.
“We’re looking at it to run experiments,”
Kobes said. “With a combination of GPS, it
can be used as a scientific tool.”
Many still fear spoken language will suffer as a result of increased texting. Space
limitations in cell phone texting have forced
an abbreviated form of English to emerge,
sometimes known as text-speak.
Some people fear that text-speak will degrade the user’s spoken language abilities.
In 2006, USA Today reported that New
Zealand high schools were allowing students
to write their exams in text-speak. The story
reported the country’s education officials
would accept an answer using text-speak abbreviations as long as it still demonstrated an
understanding of the material.
This reportedly split students and teachers on the issue of whether text-speak would
degrade the English language.
Zbigniew Izydorczyk, English professor
at the U of W, doesn’t hold the same fears.
“It won’t have many implications for spoken English,” he said. “English is the language we speak. It can be written down in
different alphabets.”
Izydorczyk also notes that since English is
the new language of business, it is too vast to
be affected by text-speak.
Jila Ghomeshi, professor of linguistics at
the U of M, agrees and sees text-speak as just
The art of avoidance
Procrastination: a
student’s back-stabbing
best friend
Sandy Klowak
Beat reporter
T
he term is ending, essay deadlines
creep nearer and exams loom in the
days ahead. Still, you find yourself
obsessively cleaning your room and honing
your computer solitaire skills late into the
night.
Though study habits vary from person to
person, at this time of year many students
indulge in the art of procrastination.
Though difficult to pinpoint one reason for this phenomenon, Scott McLeod
Arnould, co-co-ordinator of Peer Support,
the University of Winnipeg’s on-campus
student resource centre, said it’s often
about making the easy choice in the face
of stress.
“What causes stress for anyone is… a
certain situation we don’t feel capable of
taking on,” he said. “It’s a lot easier to say
‘I’m going to watch a movie’ than ‘I’m
going to study.’”
“I think anyone can kind of feel paralyzed by a workload,” said Sidney Klassen,
education major at the U of W.
“I’ll sit down to study but just get distracted easily,” he said.
However, this attitude can have academic consequences.
“Last minute work often does show,”
said professor Matt Gibbs of the U of W
classics department.
“Although, having been a student, I left
things to the last minute,” he admits.
Gibbs feels that positive study habits
are formed in high school and it can take
a while to adjust to a university workload. Still, he’s quite impressed with his
students at the U of W, he said.
Students aren’t encouraged by it.
“I don’t think I ever study enough,”
said Saubia Mian, a third year biochemistry student.
Taking short breaks that include physical activity help her remain focused during long study sessions.
McLeod Arnould agreed that breaks are
key to productive studying.
Taking a fresh look on a frighteningly
heavy workload may also help ease stress.
“If you break it up into a bunch of smaller
goals it makes each piece seem more manageable,” he said.
McLeod Arnould also suggests eating
well and getting a good sleep during crunch
time. In the long run, you’re better off sleeping than studying come 2 a.m., he said.
Still, despite good intentions, Mian sometimes resorts to all-nighters, coffee and energy drinks to get her work done in time.
“I try to space things out but things go to
the last minute, usually.”
“University life is generally all about balance,” Gibbs said. “You work hard, you play
hard.”
But for Mian, a full course load doesn’t
leave much time for play.
The reach of text
More than three-quarters
(77 per cent) of wireless subscribers
in the United States subscribe to or
purchase text-messaging capabilities.
Text messaging has vastly overtaken
phone calls as the popular form of
communication over cell phones
in the U.S.
In the second quarter of 2008:
Age Group Calls Texts
12 & under: 137,428
13 to 17: 231,1742
18 to 24: 265,790
25 to 34: 239,331
35 to 44: 223,236
45 to 54: 193,128
55 to 64: 145,38
65 & over: 99,14
Source: Nielsen Telecom Practice Group
a novelty of the language.
“The differences between our (English)
written system and spoken are arbitrary,”
she said.
Both Izydorczyk and Ghomeshi acknowledge the written version of English includes
aspects that haven’t been relevant for hundreds of years, such as the silent e.
A disconnect between written and spoken language already exists, and shouldn’t be
greatly affected by texting.
Texting is becoming so popular that companies
like Telus and Bell Canada have begun charging for incoming text messages.
Chinta Puxley
The Canadian Association of University
Teachers (CAUT) has decided to censure the
First Nations University of Canada.
After a year of questionable governance in
2005, the Saskatchewan university came up
with a plan to heal its internal wounds.
The recommendations listed in their plan
were never implemented. As a result, CAUT
university educators will be told to turn
down speaking engagements, job offers and
conferences from the university, reported
Maclean’s On Campus.
Censure is never a promising thing for a
university to have to endure. The slap on
the wrist will be retraced as soon as the
recommendations mentioned in their 2005
proposal are implemented.
Campus News
Professor Matt Gibbs warns all procrastinators that
“last minute work often does show,” but thinks U
of W students aren’t doing so badly.
“You don’t really have a life when you’re
taking five courses,” she said.
For those stressed, Peer Support provides resources, referrals or simply someone to talk to
during a rough patch. Drop by room ORM13
or call Peer Support at 786-9867.
Phone: 786-9497
Fax: 783-7080
The Uniter
December 4, 2008
Letters
07
Letters
Re: “To Warcraft or not to Warcraft?”
The pieces by Dan Pamintuan and Marko
Bilandzija (Nov. 13 edition) barely scratch the
surface of the impact of World of Warcraft
(WoW) in today’s society.
I was a WoW player, on and off, for over
three and a half years; I could easily replaced
“player” with “user.”
The game can provide the total time spent
logged in on one character, listed in days,
hours, minutes and seconds.
I logged more than 100 days on a single
character and more than 130 days just spent
in game (not a lot compared to others).
When I think back, those days are almost a
complete loss.
Sure, I made some friends online. I also
received a grade of F along the way, not to
mention removing myself from life for days
at a time. If I had spent even a fifth of the
time on something else I would very good
it now.
It was first reported that China had opened
clinics for people with gaming addictions a
few years ago. The Smith and Jones Clinic in
Amsterdam opened in 2006 as the first clinic
to help those with video gaming addictions.
While video game addictions have been
reviewed and concluded that not enough research had been done to include them in the
Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental
Disorders (DSM), research done at Stanford
has since shown that gamers show symptoms
similar to gambling addicts.
I am not writing this to say that video
games are evil or need to be burned. However,
I do believe that addiction to video games is
as serious as addiction to gambling or alcohol and should be handled with the same respect. Those trying (or forced) to drop their
gaming habit often suffer similar withdrawal
symptoms, such as rapid mood swings, depression and antisocial behaviours.
I think that the answer of whether video
games are a safe past-time or not, has the
same answer that could be given for anything: Moderation or not at all.
Josh Boulding
On Nov. 12, Ovide Mercredi, former national chief of the Assembly of First Nations
and current chief of Grand Rapids, spoke at
the University of Winnipeg as part of the
Aboriginal Governance Occasional Lecture
Series. While talking about the various designations that have been imposed upon
First Nations people, he said “Indian is not
too popular these days.” Ovide had no idea
how important these six simple words were
to me. I am deeply offended by the term
Indian, but among U of W First Nations
students, only a handful share the belief that
Indian is derogatory when used to identify
our people. Although we are few at the U
of W, I am grateful to Ovide for letting us
know that we are not alone in the world.
Thank you Ovide. And thank you northern
First Nations youth for making your leaders
aware of the importance of our true ancestral
identities. Now if only the leaders of southern First Nation communities were to recognize the truth…
Clifton Starr
Re: “Nowhere to live”
The Womyn’s Centre Collective at the
University of Winnipeg has recently sent
a letter to a women’s centre in Nahr El
Bared, a Palestinian camp in Lebanon, with
hopes of forming a friendship and building solidarity with this group of women.
The connection was made through Rachel
Reimer-Vandenberg, a U of W student who
did a practicum in Lebanon and worked
first-hand with the Nahr El Bared women’s
group (“Nowhere to live,” Nov. 27 edition).
Although the U of W Womyn’s Centre ac-
knowledges that there are differences between women’s issues here in Winnipeg and
those in war-torn countries, we feel that
there are some struggles we share, and that
by forming connections with women across
the world there is much to be learned from
each other. By sharing stories and forming
bonds we can empower each other and together work towards a future without domination or oppression.
If you would like to get involved with
this project or learn more about it, contact
the Womyn’s Centre by phone at 204-7869788, or by e-mail at womynsctr@theuwsa.
ca. Womyn and trans folks are also welcome
to drop by the centre, which is located in the
Bulman Centre near the UWSA offices.
Nicole Lahaie, on behalf of the University
of Winnipeg Womyn’s Centre Collective
The bully has now become the bullied.
Stephen Harper and Jim Flaherty’s unprovoked and cynical attempt to use the economic situation as an excuse to beat up on
labour rights, democracy and the other political parties, has created the wherewithal
for the opposition parties to work together.
The three elected opposition parties know
that they need not worry about causing another unwanted election -- the Governor
General has the option of handing the reigns
of Government over to a coalition of the opposition parties, as Lord Byng did in 1926.
Given that Canadians are in no mood for
yet another election, and that we went to
the polls less than two months ago, it is difficult to see how Michaelle Jean could not
give the opposition the chance to govern.
Harper’s arrogance has become the curiosity that hangs the cat (cue to a sigh of relief
among the 60 plus per cent of voters that
cast their ballot for somebody other than the
Conservatives).
Public election financing is literally peanuts in comparison to the entirety of the
federal budget. It also helps to foster a thriving democracy, because it ensures that political parties are more than lobbyist groups
for Canada’s wealthiest. Meanwhile here in
Manitoba, Premier Gary Doer seems to be
following the Conservatives lead when he let
it slip that he is also considering scrapping
the public election financing that his government recently introduced. The NDP have always fancied themselves as ‘the defenders of
the little guy.’ But the little guy votes with
a ballot rather than a chequebook. Perhaps
Gary Doer and the NDP should consider all Manitobans before they bow into
Conservative pressure, lest they follow the
path of the faltering Harper Government.
James R. Beddome, Leader of the Green
Party of Manitoba
Re: “The Tory tune out”
Your article did a superb job at capturing the absolute idiocy of the left in this
country (“The Tory tune out,” Nov. 27 edition). When left-wing protesters picket
the Conservative policy convention on the
grounds that Stephen Harper is somehow
the George W. Bush of the North based on
his cuts to arts funding and support for the
War in Afghanistan, their message immediately becomes discredited on the grounds
that it is merely based on scare-tactics, not
logic.
They discredit their message even further by having a member of the Aboriginal
Peoples’ Commission of the Communist
Party of Canada speak at their protest. No
moderate Canadian voter takes Communist
ideas seriously. What is most appalling, however, was their decision to include Joshua
Key, the Iraqi-war deserter, to speak at their
event. This man made the decision to go
abandon his country in times of war, and
now the left is suggesting we should open
up our doors to irresponsible people at the
taxpayers’ expense. Give me a break!
Their criticism of NAFTA and the
Security and Prosperity Partnership is
also fair game. The Canadian left has constantly used these as their argument for the
so-called North American Union (and to
a larger extent, the so-called New World
Order). Protesting based on misinformed
opinion does not advance their cause, it
sets it back. And while NAFTA isn’t really
free-trade (it’s government-managed trade),
it’s at least a step up from protectionism,
which is exactly what they are trying to promote. Protectionism does not create jobs, it
kills jobs, and we have the Great Depression
to prove this.
I was relieved to find out there were only
70 people protesting at this event. I’ve realized a good majority of Canadians do not
think this way, because the left-wing radical manifests itself in all walks of life, and
Canadians see that. Sensible-thinking
Canadians do not read The Shock Doctrine
or Adbusters magazine. They see the feminist
radical in Gloria Steinem, the aboriginal radical in Phil Fontaine, the homosexual radical
in Rosie O’Donnell, and especially the conspiracy theory radical in UMSU president
Jonny Soptotiuk. Soptoiuk is where my concern lies. Our parents may shrug these leaders of such radical movements off, but it is
the youth of today who just might see them
as heroes. The fact that Mr. Soptoiuk is their
president only backs that statement up. I fear
for the youth of today, for we are indeed the
stupid generation our parents feared they’d
unleash. Fortunately, we have many rational
thinkers. And like Richard Nixon so proudly
put it, they are not the shouters or the protestors. They are the great silent majority.
Their conspiracy is not real. They only
invent it to justify their policy of affirmative action, political correctness in defining
marriage, minimum wage, progressive taxation, excessive spending on social programs
we don’t need, opposing the death penalty,
universal health care, gun control, social security, employment insurance, isolationist
foreign policy, and so on. And the sad truth
is this: it is our society. But it is not a good
society, and no amount of left-wing fearmongering can ever compensate for their record of dismal failure. We could be so much
more as a nation if we somehow managed to
rid ourselves of this culture of fear.
Zach Samborski
As a co-organizer and speaker at the
Conservative Party Convention protest reported on in The Uniter’s grotesquely slanted
(in favour of the Conservatives) article “The
Tory Tune Out,” (Nov. 27 edition) I would
Got somethIng
to say?
E-mail [email protected]
like to take this opportunity to set the record straight about what we did and why we
chose this approach.
The action was organized by an adhoc body calling itself “The Real Majority
Agenda Coalition.” Its purpose was to stress
the policy choices embraced by a majority
of Canadians as expressed by polls and voter
choices in the previous election, as well as to
remind the government that theirs is a minority mandate.
Erected alongside the staircase on which
the speakers stood was a giant banner, a
Christmas “wish-list” so to speak, containing about a dozen policy demands which
were being neglected by the Conservatives.
These included more respectful dealings with
our Aboriginal peoples, better funding for
post-secondary education, a withdrawal of
Canadian troops from Afghanistan, support
for US war resisters, support for the public’s
post office and protection of Canada’s national sovereignty.
As the speaker on this last issue who was
specifically named in your article, I would
like to hereby correct the paper’s most offensive distortion of the facts.
The Security and Prosperity Partnership
it is not “mythical!” Government websites
both in Canada and the United States verify
the existence of the SPP.
The name of my organization is the
Citizens Concerned about Deep Integration.
Our official website, wakeupwinnipeg.ca,
contains a thorough breakdown of the group
and the concerns we raise.
Michael Welch
Citizens Concerned about Deep
Integration
Editor’s note: Although “mythical” was a
poor choice to describe the SPP, the writer
wasn’t using the term literally.
Having read Alex Garcia’s poor excuse for
a news article: “The Tory Tune Out” (Nov.
27 edition) I can only say that it reads like
an editorial and therefore, belongs in the
Comments section. If not, then it should
have been sent back for a rewrite if it is to
pass for news.
David Tymoshchuk, Young Communist
League
December 4, 2008
08
The Uniter
Comments
Comments
Parallel shames: Canada and Israel
Oppression exists
at home, too
Rachelle Friesen
Volunteer
I
have just returned from a year living in the West Bank,
also known as Palestine. During my time there my house
was rattled by the sound and quake of Israeli bombs,
I choked when my neighbourhood was tear-gassed and I
watched the following day’s funeral processions. I sat with
Palestinian friends as they told me stories of arrests, searches
of their homes, being used as human shields and their
14-year-old sons being killed and even tortured in prison.
I waited with anticipation as my friends (Palestinian
Christians) applied for permits to enter East Jerusalem to
celebrate Easter, only to be rejected. I waited for hours at
checkpoints with Palestinians while soldiers joked with each
other, interrogating Palestinians, only to be released after the
long wait to continue our journey through the West Bank.
I was subjected to sexual harassment at these checkpoints as
were my Palestinian friends.
I saw the wall snaking through the West Bank, confiscating land, dividing communities and shattering hopes. I saw
mass unemployment as a result of frequent closures. I witnessed environmental destruction because Israeli factories’
pollution was too terrible to operate within Israel itself so
they were built in the West Bank instead. I witnessed radical settlers steal land and maintain water in their swimming
pools while my water tanks ran dry for days. I looked in
shock at the Palestinian history of diminishing land, from
48 per cent, to 22 per cent, to 12 per cent of their historic
territory.
Within Israel I witnessed Palestinian-Israelis being racially
profiled by police and security forces. I heard of stereotyped
jokes, discrepancy in government spending in providing services to Arab communities, and racial violence perpetuated
onto Arabs by Israeli youth.
During my time in the West Bank I witnessed one nation
trying to destroy and suppress another’s desire for freedom
and dignity, while taking all other arable land.
Yet, while I start pointing the finger at Israel, I cannot help
but feel slightly uncomfortable. Although clichés should be
avoided, the phrase, “When you point one finger at someone you have three pointing at yourself,” lingers in my mind.
After all, am I not a fourth generation settler? The policies of
divide and conquer are not foreign to my ancestors’ past and
unfortunately not foreign to our current living conditions
either. The history I learnt in school was one of the triumphs
and adventurers of colonization. We did not learn about the
gradual stealing of land, the permit system on reserves and
the suppression of another nation. I realize that for every reason I become angry with the state of Israel, I should be angry
with myself.
Have I not witnessed, in Osborne Village, racial profiling
propagated by the police system? Have I not heard stories of
police brutality? Have I not listened to a racial joke that perpetuates stereotypes of aboriginal people and done nothing
to hold these “comedians” accountable?
I listen in shock that the Israeli public does not know what
is happening in the West Bank, yet how much do I know
about life on reservations?
If one wants to work for peace and justice for people,
then it must be for all people. The continued oppression of
During my time in the West
Bank I witnessed one nation
trying to destroy and suppress
another’s desire for freedom and dignity.
I listen in shock that the Israeli
public does not know what is
happening in the West Bank, yet
how much do I know about life
on [Aboriginal] reservations
the Palestinian people needs to be stopped at the same time
the continued oppression of aboriginal people needs to be
stopped. Israelis and Canadians alike must be held accountable, and be aware of a different history. Similar to demands
made by world leaders to Palestinians, Israelis and Canadians
should denounce all forms of violence, follow through on
past signed agreements and declare the right for the nations
we are suppressing to exist. We need to end all cycles of oppression and learn how to become allies.
After all, I am now living in a Canada also known as Turtle
Island.
Rachelle Friesen just returned from an internship at Wi’amPalestinian Conflict Resolution in Bethlehem. She recently
graduated from CMU with a four-year degree in political studies. She studied briefly at the U of W.
Taking whatever we can
Congolese war
about resources,
not ‘tribalism’
Andrew Tod
Volunteer staff
T
he Holiday Season is upon us again,
and with it, the long march of consumerism and greed that annually
marks the month of December. Malls become choked and credit cards debt-ridden,
all in an attempt to not seem like a cheap
bastard come whatever holiday it is you
celebrate.
Now, I know what you’re thinking. Not
another preachy diatribe against the horrors
of Wal-Mart or the environmental impact
of plastic wrapping! No, informed reader, I
spare you the tedious affair of paraphrasing
the latest edition of Adbusters.
Instead, I’d like to let you know about a
naturally occurring mineral that allows us
to have all those shiny cell-phones and laptops we university kids so desire. In fact, I
am guessing that some of you may even be
asking for some of these items for a holiday
present.
This mineral is colloquially called coltan,
and technically known as columbite-tantalite. When this mineral is refined, it can be
used as a heat resistant powder that holds a
significant electrical charge, which makes it
indispensable in the manufacturing of small
electronic devices, like laptops, cell-phones,
DVD players, etc.
Over 80 per cent of all the world’s deposits
of this mineral are located in the Democratic
Republic of Congo (DRC). Yes, that very
country that was on the news so much in
the past month due to the resumption once
again of widespread violence stemming
from rebel leader Laurent Nkunda, a hapless national military, an ineffective group of
17,000 U.N. “peacekeepers” and a decimated
civilian population which for years has been
subjected to cycles of horrific violence which
have claimed over five million lives.
The common news wire story about why
The real reason why
this war is being fought
again is over the control
of the Congo’s resources
such as coltan which,
far from staying within
Africa, are subsequently
shipped off by rebel and
government forces
violence has once again broken out in the
eastern part of the DRC frames it as being
connected with the Rwandan genocide of
1994, as the Rwandan Government is fighting a proxy war through Nkunda and his
forces against the perpetrators of the genocide who have been living in the Congo ever
since. From this perspective, it would seem
that another African country is descending
into those ancient “tribal wars” we so often
hear about.
What these stories fail to mention is just
how rich in natural minerals the DRC is,
particularly in coltan. The real reason why
this war is being fought again is over the
control of the Congo’s resources such as coltan which, far from staying within Africa,
are subsequently shipped off by rebel and
government forces through chains of shadowy middle-men to be used by major corporations in the manufacturing of our
cell-phones and our computers, and many
of the other electronic devices we ask for or
buy as presents.
The perpetuation of mass violence in the
DRC, which in lives lost ranks with some of
the deadliest conflicts of all time, lies not in
tribalism, and not in any sort of unexplainable mass violence that we should ignore.
Rather, the suffering and death of so many
millions of Congolese can be placed squarely
on human greed – of the consumers, corporations, rebel groups, and politicians who
continue, whether they are aware of it or
not, to fuel this conflict.
Andrew Tod is a University of Winnipeg
student.
Comments Editor: Devin Morrow
Phone: 786-9497
Fax: 783-7080
The Uniter
December 4, 2008
Comments
09
Art as a catalyst
Colombian graffiti
has political punch
Mimi Orr
Volunteer
C
olombia has the second largest number of internally displaced persons in
the world, second to Sudan. Most of
the displacement of late is directly related to
the government’s desire to capitalize on the
abundant natural resources in the country.
For years the government and corporations
have been extracting resources from the land
and in the process displacing, killing and
torturing civilians in order to have access
to these resources. With over three million
people homeless internally due to the politics (including guerrilla forces, paramilitaries
and military alike), you can bet damn well
that a lot of people have something to say.
Thus, there are connections between art
(specifically graffiti) and politics. Anyone can
pick up a can of spray paint and write their
concerns for the well being of a society or
community. The difficulty here is that there
is no way to safely verbalize these concerns
or opinions. As a tourist, I was instructed to
be extremely careful regarding what I talked
about and who I talked with. My companion at one point asked what “paracos”
meant. She was instantly silenced, despite
the perceived safety of speaking English in
a taxi. The truth is, everyone is scared and
watching their back and no one is comfortable speaking in public about these political
issues. Graffiti, while traveling, became my
teacher, my education and my connection to
the voice of a people who have been silenced
almost everywhere else.
The walls of Bogotá were coated in colour.
My eyes were drawn first to the colourful images of monsters, women and creative drawings of images and only later to the quotes
and phrases of the people: guerrilla tags, stencils of communist leaders, IRA persona and
random phrases speaking out against war in
Graffiti, while traveling,
became my teacher,
my education and my
connection to the voice
of a people who have
been silenced almost
everywhere else
Graffiti in the cities of Columbia.
photographs by mimi orr
general. The power of graffiti is that it is accessible to nearly everyone. It is a tool for the
poor and it has become a tool of the community. In large cities, the idea of community (particularly in Canada) is far-fetched
and hard to navigate. Many people are unsure of their neighbours and are more likely
to check their Facebook page than the door
when it knocks. In South America, the idea
of community is idealized and recognized as
an important tool for political reform and
resistance. So, how do people of similar political perspectives come together to change
the face of policy? Art.
When you walk down the street and are
confronted with an image or message that
holds similar values to your own beliefs – beliefs that you have been unable to speak of
publicly – it can create hope. Despite the anonymity of graffiti artists, simply putting out
a question or making a statement can create
a connection between people and their community and it can educate.
You don’t need to go to Colombia or South
America to learn, however. Look out your
window to your back lane or your local inner
city bus shack. While we may not have an
active gun-toting war happening in Canada,
you are likely to see something along the
lines of, “No justice on stolen land.” If this
isn’t accurate to the political situation in our
country right now, I don’t know what is.
Mimi Orr is a youth care worker and musician who resides in Winnipeg.
Despite the anonymity
of graffiti artists,
putting out a question
or making a statement
can create a connection
between people and
their community
December 4, 2008
10
The Uniter
Comments
Facebook:
Helping you keep track
of hundreds of friends
since 2006
VS.
VS.
FOR
YES: Following old friends and/or the
girl who rejected you in high school
Will Dumont
Volunteer staff
I
t goes by many names: “Crackbook,”
“Facestalker” (I may have made that one
up), and even, “The reason my paper
isn’t done.” But is the revolutionary social
networking website known as Facebook
really an enemy of the modern day North
American, or is it in fact one step closer to
our ultimate goal of becoming computers?
To those who know me, it is no secret that
I plan to live for eternity – possibly as some
kind of cyborg or clone replicate. This is the
only possible way I can ensure my legacy
lives on throughout the history of humanity, my will being carried out by future generations of puny humans for eons to come.
That is, unless, a certain Internet website
preserves this information for me.
Most people see Facebook as an addictive
time waster, a place for them to send out
electronic invitations to friends for a night
out at the bar when a phone call used to suffice, or even just a place to see what that girl
who rejected you in high school is doing
now without her ever knowing. Facebook
is so much more than this though, and as
your future Emperor, I implore you to add
me to your friends list, before the new “enemies list” application I’m working on comes
out, because by then it will be too late for
most of you.
Those who are fortunate enough to be on
my friends list will reap the benefits of knowing my likes and dislikes, allowing them to
serve me all the better, and will be privy to
my employment history, which will only aid
future scribes when writing my many, many
bibliographies. Loyal worshippers will also
be able to shower me with electronic gifts,
which I am saving so I can enjoy them prop-
erly once I have an electronic brain with
which to interact with the electric guitar picture my friend Ben sent me once to let me
know that I “rock.”
I guess what I’m saying is that if you want
to get anywhere in terms of social networking these days, you need something like
Facebook. It lets you stay in touch with
friends and family all across the globe, and
even lets you reconnect with old friends you
may have lost touch with. Sure there’s a dark
side to Facebook with the whole online stalking issue, but that’s ignoring the fact that
online stalkers were alive and well on the
Net before Facebook or even MySpace were
thought up by their respective creators.
At the very least, with Facebook you can
definitively see who’s stalking you and take
steps to avoid them. As for the addictive
aspects of Facebook, looking at what my
friends are up to on their profiles and leaving annoying comments on their walls is my
right as a Canadian citizen, and if I can’t use
the Internet to annoy friends then maybe
I’m missing the point of having the Internet
and friends.
Will Dumont is a University of Winnipeg student. He blogs at dumontnation.blogspot.com,
but you can find out the details when you add
him on Facebook.
Online stalkers were
alive and well on the
Net before Facebook
or even MySpace were
thought up.
What do YOU think
Are video games a safe pastime, or should
we watch the clock and limit our gaming?
Send your comments to [email protected].
AGAINST
NO: I don’t know you. So I don’t need
to see your online life
Andrew McMonagle
Beat reporter
Y
ou know what I love about Facebook?
Forget for a moment that I’m supposed to be writing against it.
I love how it allows me to feel social when
I haven’t left the apartment in three weeks.
Not be social, but feel it.
I love how reading people’s status updates
feels like watching a car accident. I happily
indulge in a good look for a few moments,
but after a minute I begin to feel like a pervy
voyeur.
Speaking of pervy, I love that Facebook
makes stalking SO much easier. I mean, who
needs to hide in the bushes anymore when
people are pretty well throwing you ample
pictures of their ample endowments, for
free. There’s a policy of no nudity – true –
but there’s a lot a young person can do when
they’re locked in their bathroom after having
their second beer and are steamed at their
parents for saying they dress like a whore.
“I’ll show them whore!” Click. Post. Stalk.
Ew.
Maybe Facebook should change its name
to accommodate the stalking subculture to
Stalkbook. At least it’s not as creepy as the
other option, Facestalk.
As you can tell, the reasons why I love
Facebook are also the reasons why I hate it.
Facebook makes it easy to have intimate
access into the lives of people that I’ve never
met. If you’re a friend of a friend and have an
open profile, I can go in and dine at the buffet of your personal facts, possibly including
your telephone number.
At the very least, I can check out pictures
of you that you may not have wanted taken
in the first place. Party pics posted and tagged
by friends of you vomiting into somebody’s
shoe are being looked at by strangers, parents and current and future employers alike.
Those cherished memories of your graduation? I just spat on them by writing something lewd about the visible erect nipple
without even knowing you. Thanks for
sharing.
Not that I’m the type of person to actually
do that, but I certainly have the opportunity
available to me.
Friends according to the book
The worst part about Facebook is how
it forces me to define my friendships. The
awkwardness of having somebody sending
me a “friend request” when I am not/don’t
want to be friends with them is choking.
If I choose to ignore the request, that person is left in limbo never knowing if I got
the request or what I’m thinking. Is this better than just telling them the request was rejected? And what happens when I have a slip
in judgment and do add that person? They
will stay on my friends list, have access to my
life and annoy me with their inanity. When
I finally clear house and delete the people I
never talk to from my list, some of them are
likely to feel grievously offended.
If only we had agreed to remain strangers at that party, none of this would have
happened.
Applications of boredom
One way that Facebook sucks your life
away is through the near-infinite number of applications you can install on your
page. How is signing up to play “Zombies
vs. Pirates vs. Lesbian Werewolves” going to
help me foster my social connections?
Facebook makes it OK to be bored. It’s
a professional distraction. In any classroom
on university campus, there is at least one
laptop being used during lecture. And on
that laptop is Facebook. Go into the computer labs. Half the screens will be showing
Facebook. There may very well be an essay
being written, but Facebook will always be
in the background.
Sorry if I’m blowing your cover here. My
bad.
Andrew McMonagle is a University of
Winnipeg student and a Uniter beat reporter.
Don’t be offended if he rejects your Facebook
invite.
Party pics posted and
tagged by friends of
you vomiting into
somebody’s shoe are
being looked at by
strangers, parents and
current and future
employers alike
The Uniter
December 4, 2008
Comments
Vice-ridden holidays: perfect for special issue
Though frequently fun,
watch for unhealthy
behaviour
Managing editor
W
elcome to The Uniter’s special
issue on vices. Just in time for
the holidays – one of the most
unhealthy and mentally unstable times of
the year for many – we’ve amassed a collection of articles examining some of society’s
favourite immoral behaviours.
In these pages we take a look at some of
our more traditional vices, like drinking,
smoking, gambling and sexing, but also at
some of our contemporary obsessions, such
as downloading content from the Internet,
Facebooking, texting and even the ultrarelevant-given-the-current-recession vice of
racking up credit card and other debt.
Although vices have many negative connotations, they can also make life fun and
For the same reason
that an editor can’t
publish every piece of
tripe they receive, not
everything published on
the Internet deserves
an audience
exhilarating, and this is largely how we’ve
treated them in this special issue. That said,
addiction is a serious problem and we at
The Uniter urge anyone faced with a problem to seek help. Addictions Foundation of
Manitoba can be reached toll free at 1-866638-2561.
When watching
crosses the line
Humans are curious. We like to watch and
in many ways it is our responsibility to do so
– in this way we can hold others to account
for their actions. Rhetoricians Diana George
and Diane Shoos write that bearing witness
is “an inherently political act that brings an
event to the public for scrutiny.”
However, the line between bearing witness and voyeurism is easily crossed. George
and Shoos further write that the term voyeur “denotes seeing or watching that evokes
gratification or pleasure of some sort…voyeurism suggests a shift in power from the
person or event being seen to the observer
of that event.”
In a world where events are increasingly
available in video form online, we have the
responsibility to know where to draw the
line. People want an audience, and thanks to
the Internet, it isn’t hard to find one.
On Wednesday, Nov. 19, 19-year-old
Pembroke Pines, Fla. resident Abraham
Biggs killed himself via drug overdose while
people watched on the Internet forum
Justin.tv.
According to the Globe and Mail, approximately 180 people watched while Biggs
killed himself with a combination of opiates
and benzodiazepine.
Although some people urged the site’s
moderator to call the police, others encouraged Biggs to do it.
The streaming video ends with Biggs lying
on his bed in front of the camera as police
break down his bedroom door and cover up
the web cam. The video has since been removed from the Internet.
Some worry that those who seek an online audience are more likely to go through
with their suicides and that there is a general
lack of control over what can be broadcast.
Many will argue that people are responsible for their own actions and if they want
to kill themselves that’s their choice.
But it is also our responsibility to moderate ourselves. For the same reason that an
editor can’t publish every piece of tripe they
receive, not everything published on the
Internet deserves an audience. Biggs needed
help, not someone egging him on.
However misguided, Biggs was probably
looking to express his power and control in
the strongest and most decisive way he could
fathom in his unstable mental state – by taking his own life.
However, by broadcasting his suicide for
a bunch of strangers, Biggs actually did the
exact opposite, he gave the power – however debatable that power was – over to the
viewer.
Those who watched Biggs commit suicide
were not doing him a service; they were not
bearing witness but acting as voyeurs.
The more the merrier
University advertising
aimed at individuals
and excess
Aaron Epp
Arts & Culture editor
“W
elcome to mayday.”
With those words, Tim
Stade, singer for local hard
rock quintet Coda, greeted the audience at
the band’s CD release party at The Zoo last
Friday. When I interviewed the band for an
article that appeared in The Uniter last week,
Stade explained why he chose the internationally-used distress signal as the basis for
one of the band’s songs.
“The entire album is a metaphor for
drowning. This is our life, and we’re drowning. It’s mayday,” he said. “North Americans
have it good, but we’re just barely surviving,
we’re just barely cutting it.”
He went on to explain that we do the
things we do because society tells us to do
them. We think we’re free, but really we’re
just following the dominant script, being
led like sheep to what will ultimately be our
demise.
“We settle for what we have because we’re
told we can’t do any better,” he said.
He didn’t mean that we’re entitled to more
in terms of material possessions. Rather, he
suggested that North American excess is exactly the problem.
Of course, Stade is right and we all know
it. With the environment and the economy
in the state they’re in, we know that we are
not going to have the same standard of living our parents had. We know that as North
Americans we’re going to have to reevaluate
our over-consumptive, individualistic ways
if we’re going to survive.
That’s why I’m almost angry when I get
on the bus and see advertisements for the
University of Manitoba and the University
of Winnipeg. If you haven’t seen them yet,
the U of M’s new marketing campaign is,
“U of More – More courses, more options,
more futures,” and the U of W’s is, “You of
W – Where you matter most.”
Given the state of the world today, it’s
problematic that our universities are using
language that is bound in excess (in the case
of the U of M) and individualism (in the
case of the U of W) to promote themselves.
It’s problematic that
our universities are
using language that
is bound in excess
and individualism to
promote themselves
Granted, the U of M is not promoting
more cars, more money, more food, etc.
They are promoting more scholarships and
bursaries, more faculty expertise, more opportunities for careers and “more futures to
explore” (as the U of M website says).
Still, the “more” language is troubling. If
universities are supposed to train us how to
think and engage in world issues, why aren’t
they being more inventive in the language
they use to promote themselves, as opposed
to being tied to the modern thinking that is
at the root of a lot of the problems our world
is currently faced with?
Why would I want to go to a university
where I matter most? Personally, I’d like to
go to a university that’s a little more community-minded, a little more focused on
learning and thinking and solving problems
together. Because as flaky as it might sound,
working together is the only way we’re ever
going to get out of the messes we’re in.
For those of you who share Stade’s view
that we as North Americans are in a mayday
situation, there is comfort in knowing that
the distress is over if we want it to be. But
the places that are supposed to teach us how
to think for ourselves and engage in world
issues need to stop using language that reinforces the dominant script.
We all do.
Aaron Epp graduated from the Canadian
Mennonite University in 2007.
11
Good
& Evil
with J.Williamez
Vices are like
hobbies, just way
more fun
A little bird told me recently that this week’s
issue of The Uniter is all about vices. OK, OK; it
wasn’t a little bird, it was my editor, Devin. And
though British misogynists might actually call
her a “little bird” (which means “short chick” in
British), I certainly did not mean it in this sense
either. I guess in retrospect, I shouldn’t even
have said it. Great, now she’s probably going to
put pimples and an eye-patch on my picture for
the column.
Anyway, I’d like to talk to you all about vices
in general and then more specifically about my
vice.
Vices are wonderful ways to pass the time,
similar in many ways to hobbies. The main
difference between vices and hobbies however,
lies in the fact that vices are way more fun,
and that we all pretend not to like them, while
secretly doing the shit out of them.
Biblically speaking, there
are Seven Deadly Vices,
or Sins: Pride, Greed,
Wrath, Lust, Mittens, Envy,
Gluttony and Sloth
Biblically speaking, there are Seven Deadly
Vices, or Sins: Pride, Greed, Wrath, Lust, Mittens,
Envy, Gluttony and Sloth. Is that seven or eight?
Maybe there were eight. These vices were sent
down to Earth from God, when He created
the movie Se7en, starring Brad Pitt, Edward
Norton, and God Himself as Kevin Spacey, as the
murderer guy. Many people, after having seen
the film, were not only thankful that they finally
knew what they weren’t allowed to do, but also
couldn’t believe how well God had played Kevin
Spacey.
Nowadays we have found tons of great ways
to turn these vices into hours and hours of fun.
There are so many vices to choose from that it
can be a little overwhelming at first. Here’s a list
of some of my favourites: murder, sex with food,
drugs, golfing, spanking other people’s children
for no reason, drugs, poking old people, putting
sweaters on dogs, tap-dancing, trying on slacks
at the mall with no intentions of purchasing
them, drugs, slapping fish in the mouth, pooping
on city buses and blaming others, making lists of
vices that go on for way too long and, of course,
eating hair.
There is one vice however, which has a stronger
grip on me than any of the others (get it? Grip?).
No, it’s not making puns (though I definitely
should have put that one in my list). My vice is
this: I love to come in handy.
I know what you’re thinking: “Oh, J. Williamez,
don’t be such a silly-puss. Who doesn’t like to
come in handy?” Well I like to come in handy a
lot. And not just in the privacy of my own home
either. I like to come in handy in lots of different
situations – in cabs, on overseas flights, at
dinner parties, etc. You name the place, and I’ve
probably come in handy there at least a couple of
times. I’m not hurting anyone, and I’m not asking
anyone else to come in handy with me, so I’m
not even sure why this is even considered a vice,
but it is. The Catholic Church for example, sees
coming in handy as a wasteful sin.
Well I disagree. I think, by coming in handy, I’m
helping to reduce starvation and over population,
so I’m going to keep coming in handy as much
as I can, and when I get tired, I’ll use the other
handy.
J. Williamez is a local musician. If you
want to know more about how he spends
his spare time, go see for yourself Monday
nights at Shannon’s Irish Pub.
December 4, 2008
12
The Uniter
Arts & CULTURE
Culture
ARTS
Arts & Culture
Up in smoke
A film connoisseur
talks about five
movies that make
smoking look cool
Timothy Penner
Volunteer
F
The Darjeeling Limited (2007)
All of Wes Anderson’s films seem to take
place in some world just a little left of centre;
a place where the rules of our society (like
smoking indoors) just don’t seem that important. This film sees the three main characters
(complete with Marlboros in their mouths)
getting chastised for smoking, which gives
them an air of glib rebellion. And as everyone knows: Rebellion=Cool.
Good Night, and Good Luck (2005)
Set in the CBS newsroom of the 1950s,
this story of Edward R. Murrow and his battle against communist-hunting demagogue
Joseph McCarthy is unapologetic about por-
Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas (1998)
The key to making smoking look cool
is cultivating an iconic image. Few images
from the cinema of the 1990s are more iconic
than the wide-angled photo of Hunter S.
Thompson, as played by Johnny Depp, his
head covered with a white fisherman’s cap,
a pair of oversized aviator glasses shading his
eyes and, of course, that cigarette at the end
of a long holder protruding from his mouth.
Pure style.
melody morrissette
rom the earliest days of cinema, the
camera has had a fascination with the
lilting, wispy image of tobacco smoke
and with the movies stars who hold the
cigarettes. The following is a celebration of
the films that bring on the biggest nicotine
cravings.
traying the copious tobacco consumption of
its subjects.
It doesn’t hurt the plight of Big Tobacco
that the pitch-perfect cinematography captures the circling wisps of smoke as they rise
from the cigars, pipes and cigarettes of nearly
everyone on screen and makes it so stylishlooking that even non-smokers get cravings.
Coffee and Cigarettes (2003)
Q. In what movie will you find Roberto
Benigni, Tom Waits, The White Stripes and
Bill Murray? A. Jim Jarmusch’s Coffee and
Cigarettes. This film, shot over the course of
15 years, consists of 11 clever comic vignettes
involving a series of recognizable personalities smoking cigarettes and discussing everything from alternative medicine to Nikoli
Tesla.
There is a casualness to the smoking in this
film that reflects a time before smoking was
banned in most restaurants and cafes, which
makes the cavalier openness of such a now-
mark reimer
The Uniter Fashion Streeter is an ongoing documentation of creative fashion in Winnipeg inspired by the Helsinki fashion blog
www.hel-looks.com. Each week will feature a new look from our city’s streets and bars in an attempt to encourage individual
expression and celebrate that you are really, really good looking.
Paul
“An elegant outlaw.”
taboo action all the more enticing. Plus, the
street-cred of the actors involved proves that
all the cool kids are doing it.
Casablanca (1942)
It’s hard to even see most of the actors in
this venerable classic through the thick haze
of smoke wafting about every shot. But its
star, Humphrey Bogart, shines through, his
face constantly adorned with a dangling
cigarette.
Throughout the ‘40s and ‘50s, and even
after his death, Bogie personified what it
meant to be a cool smoker; hell, this list could
contain only his movies and still be surprisingly thorough. But back to Casablanca:
from the first time Bogart shows up on
screen to his iconic walk off into the mist, he
is rarely seen without a halo of smoke drifting around his brooding face.
Perhaps that’s why he died of throat cancer at age 57.
Timothy Penner is a graduate student
in English and film at the University of
Manitoba.
Arts Editor: Aaron Epp
Phone: 786-9497
Fax: 783-7080
The Uniter
December 4, 2008
Arts & Culture
Gifts that give twice
If you’re going
to shop this
holiday season,
make it count
Holly Rose
Volunteer staff
I
Above: A jungle-themed mobile is the
perfect gift for a newborn or new
parent.
Left: Ten Thousand Villages offers a few
different instruments, including these
percussive shakers.
Below: Hand-carved wood elephants
and cats are some of the items you can
find at Ten Thousand Villages.
photos by mark reimer
n a world of consumerism, it’s
nice to give a gift that gives
twice, one that simultaneously
expresses how you feel about a
friend or family member and benefits charity. This writer has always
been a huge fan of philanthropic
gifts, and from an economic view,
there is really no other way to give
a gift you can literally write off
around tax time.
When you choose a holiday
gift that benefits charity, you multiply the impact of your choice.
Everyone benefits: you, the person
who receives the gift and the charity that receives support.
UNICEF Gifts of Magic These
gifts allow you to give life-changing support to children all over the
world – from first aid kits to exercise books for entire classrooms
– while giving deeper meaning to
the holiday season for the people
you love with gifts in their names.
Prices start at $10.00
You can purchase Gifts of
Magic by visiting www.unicefgiftsofmagic.ca or calling 1-888-7770380.
UNICEF will also be selling their UNICEF Cards and
Gifts at Kildonan Place Shopping
Centre until Dec. 24, with all proceeds going towards their charitable causes. The gifts included in
UNICEF Cards and Gifts are a variety of card boxes, most of which
have been created by Canadian
artists, as well as everything from
scarves and mittens to children’s
toys and day planners.
Handmade Help The artists that donate their work to
Handmade Help also donate the
13
proceeds to cancer research. Artists
that submit to this cause have all
been impacted by cancer in some
way and use all sorts of mediums
for their work, creating quite a
variety.
You can find them by visiting
www.tinyurl.com/handmadehelp.
Pearls4Girls This jewelry company supports girls orphaned by
HIV/AIDS in Lesotho, South
Africa, where the incidence of
HIV/AIDS is the third highest
in the world. If you order the signature “Pearls for Girls” bracelet
($27), necklace ($12) or earrings
($20), all profits received go directly to Help Lesotho leadership
programs.
You can order these items online at www.pearls4girls.org.
Leaping Lizards This site has
a number of really gorgeous holiday ornaments and 100 per cent of
the sale price goes towards Living
Water International, an organization dedicated to providing clean
water to countries that desperately
need it.
Order online at www.tinyurl.
com/leapinglizards.
Ten Thousand Villages Ten
Thousand Villages is a non-profit
fair trade organization designed to
benefit artisans, not to maximize
profits. They market products
from handicraft and agricultural
organizations based in low-income
countries, providing consumers with products that have been
fairly purchased from sustainable
sources. They provide a number
of gift options to customers, so
you’re bound to find something
that works for you.
The stories have everything
from Christmas ornaments and
body care lines, to home furnishings and musical interments. They
also sell different types of food,
jewelry, children’s toys and a variety of other unique goods from
around the world.
You can visit them online
at
www.tenthousandvillages.
ca or visit their main location in
Winnipeg at 134 Plaza Drive.
December 4, 2008
14
The Uniter
Arts & Culture
CD REVIEWS
PAUL BERGMAN
Crow Scarecrow
Independent
Altona’s Paul Bergman disguises his quick wit and poetic
songwriting merely as good ol’
Stream “In the Rhubarb Now”
folk music, but his songs show a
by Paul Bergman at www.uniter.ca.
depth beyond his 25 years. Crow
Scarecrow, Bergman’s fourth
album, includes songs about life, beauty, livin’ on the farm
and where earthly bodies end up – in the ground. (It’s no
wonder, then, that his backing band is called The Decomposers.) Bergman shows his range on the disc: tracks like the
light “Butterfly” walk the listener through summer meadows,
while “In the Rhubarb Now” explores the dark lives of some
small town folk. The album’s only shortcoming is the order
of the songs – some unfortunately-placed tracks leave the
listener hanging, hindering the overall flow. Still, Bergman’s
writing and musicianship continue to evolve into mature
sounds that are pleasing to the ear.
—Thomas Epp
DRAGONFORCE
Ultra Beatdown
Roadrunner Records
Ultra Beatdown is right – 1,000
blast beats per minute, Nintendo riffs and epic vocals all
can be found on DragonForce’s
fourth full-length album. I’ve
always been a fan of terrifyingly fast power metal, yet DragonForce has always seemed
a tad over-the-top and borderline parody. That said, they’re
good at what they do. It’s possible that songs on this album,
such as “Heroes of Our Time,” will appear on upcoming
versions of Guitar Hero. After all, spastic guitar hits off their
previous album, Inhuman Rampage, were used in Guitar
Hero III, earning DragonForce publicity and creating a buzz
for their new album. If you’re into Children of Bodom or In
Flames, then this album will definitely meet your power
metal needs. See them at the Burton Cummings Theatre on
Saturday, Dec. 13.
—Katie Dangerfield
BRIGHTBLACK MORNING
LIGHT
Motion to Rejoin
Matador Records
Woozy, dreamy, slow moving
– all are apt descriptions of
Motion to Rejoin. Every track
is coated in warm Rhodes
keyboards, vibraphones and
breathy, reverb-drenched vocals while smoky horns rise and
fall over subtle percussion. This record is so unobtrusive
and mellow, it’s like that hippie couple that live down the
hall from you: you don’t see them very often, but when you
pass them in the hall they’re dressed 100 times better than
you are, smell like pot and saffron, and invite you over for
homemade wine. How can you not like them?
—Curran Faris
SERENA RYDER
Is It O.K.
EMI
Serena Ryder’s latest release,
Is It O.K., plays like a poetic
diary: personal and honest
the whole way through. The
25-year-old tackles a range
of emotions, from vulnerability and identity confusion
(notably on the title track), to raw desperation on “What I
Wanna Know” and “All for Love.” Expertly layering instruments to support her moody vocals on tracks like “Blown
Like the Wind at Night,” Ryder constructs a clear, consistent
and charismatic personality for fans in all songs on this, her
third album. Standouts include the gritty rocker (and single)
“Little Bit of Red” and the sweetly nostalgic album closer
“Dark as the Black.” Infectious and toe-tap inducing, Is It O.K.
would sound excellent in a low-key coffee shop or live in a
stadium.
—Emily Wessel
“Is new music a vice?” local jazz guitarist
Keith Price ponders this question on
page 15. We here at The Uniter aren’t sure
whether it is or not, but we’re definitely
guilty of listening to our fair share of it.
Here are a handful of reviews of some of
the things we’ve been listening to, so you’ll
know what to put on your holiday wish list
and what to leave off.
THE DUHKS
Fast Paced World
Sugar Hill Records
Winnipeg’s mighty Duhks are
back with Fast Paced World, their
first CD with vocalist Sarah Dugas
Stream “Fast Paced World”
and drummer Christian Dugas
by The Duhks at www.uniter.ca.
(who replaced Jessee Havey and
Scott Senior, respectively). The
12-track follow-up to 2006’s Migrations is perhaps the band’s
most varied release to date: there are traditional roots
songs like the medley “New Rigged Ship,” upbeat, Celticflavoured original instrumentals like “Ship High in Transit,”
world music-inspired pop tunes like “Mighty Storm” and the
title track, as well as straight-forward pop songs like the
standout track, a cover of Dan Frechette’s “You Don’t See
It.” With great songwriting, tight musicianship and soulful
vocals, Fast Paced World is sure to take The Duhks to new
heights. See them at The Park Theatre on Friday, Jan. 9 and
Saturday, Jan. 10.
—Aaron Epp
VARIOUS ARTISTS
We Wish You a Metal Xmas and
a Headbanging New Year
Armoury
This is terrible. You know those
tribute albums you stumble
upon in the CD store and you
think: A tribute to Led Zeppelin? Why have I never heard of
this? Then you realize the performances are by a “supergroup” made up of like, the bass player from Whitesnake,
the drummer from Poison and some guitarist who was in
KISS for three years? We Wish You a Metal Xmas… is kinda
like that. Granted, they did get some A-list metal musicians:
Lemmy Kilmister, Billy Gibbons and Dave Grohl show up to
perform “Run Rudolph Run,” for example. It’s not enough
to save this 12-track disc from the land of cheese, though.
Headbangers would be better off logging on to iTunes and
purchasing Austrian Death Machine’s excellent thrash metal
rendition of “Jingle Bells.” That three-minute Christmas
miracle is better than everything you’ll find on this disc.
—Aaron Epp
RAE SPOON
Superioryouareinferior
Washboard Records
Superioryouareinferior is prairie-born Rae Spoon’s fourth
solo disc. Eleven tracks chart
a melancholy journey across
an overcast Canada. Lyrically,
Spoon’s imagery is haunting and telling of the loneliness only the TransCanada can
bring. The music changes beats and tempos, mixing in some
interesting background noises, but is generally centred on
solo guitar. According to his website, Spoon is “one of the
world’s only transgender country singers.” Though he uses
the masculine pronoun, his voice is in the higher registers,
that of a plaintive female country singer. Unfortunately it
often gets a little too trembley, often quavering off-key into
wince-inducing territory.
—Melly Ozubko
EVIL SURVIVES
Metal Vengeance
War on Music
Three reasons to dig this record,
whether you like metal or not:
1. The quality of musicianship.
Stream “Evil Will Survive” by
Even if the aggressiveness of
Evil Survives at www.uniter.ca.
metal turns you off, one can still
admire the genuine chops of
its best practitioners. And like the best metal bands, these
suckers can play. 2. It’s not that heavy. You can hear the
echoes of Zeppelin, not to mention Halford and Dickinson.
Which may mean nothing to metal neophytes, of course,
so let me put it this way - I’m saying you’ll probably like
it. Meanwhile, metal fans should have fun dissecting the
various influences at work. 3. The epicness. OK, maybe it
achieves mere pseudo-epicness, but there’s still an impressive scope at work. It’s in this regard that the symphonically
inclined should be able to appreciate classical music’s influence on the genre. (Air guitar solo.)
—Kenton Smith
SEBASTIEN GRAINGER
& THE MOUNTAINS
Sebastien Grainger & The
Mountains
Saddle Creek
This record should’ve started
at track nine. Not to say that
the first chunk is terrible. Full
of driving downstrokes, dirty
synths and straight-forward drumbeats, energy abounds. But
these attempts at indie-pop/rock hits from one-half of Death
From Above 1979 seem contrived, unoriginal and frankly,
not all that catchy. The last four tracks feel more genuine, though. The raw production lends itself more to this
emotion-tapped brand of tune. A passionate stop-start rock
out, a sexy falsetto-sung piano romp and finally the quest
for a catchy chorus comes with “Meet New Friends.” Overall,
the vocals, soaked in grungy effects, bring Sam Roberts’
croon to mind. The music falls somewhere between The Killers playing in a punk-rock washroom, a sentimental Queens
of the Stone Age and a less-catchy, more-guitary MGMT. See
them at the Burton Cummings Theatre on Monday, Dec. 15.
—Bucky Driedger
SYLVIE
Trees and Fences Are Our Only
Shade
Smallman Records
I first heard Sylvie when they
opened for Minus The Bear last
spring and after their set I had
a luke-warm response to them.
Maybe it was because I wasn’t
familiar with their records beforehand, or maybe I was too
ecstatic to see MTB, but their angular, quirky, punk-infused
rock just didn’t grab me right away. The first track off their
new record, however, grabbed me immediately. Sylvie have
pushed their sound into decidedly more poppy waters on
Trees and Fences Are Our Only Shade, while still maintaining
their effects-laden jangly post-punk sound. The choruses on
“Please Make It Home” and “Breakout for Summer” will be
stuck in your ears for weeks and the vocal arrangements on
this record are simply wonderful.
—Curran Faris
LADYHAWKE
Ladyhawke
Modular Recordings
After years of playing with one
band to the next, New Zealand
native Pip Brown – a.k.a.
Ladyhawke – has finally gone
solo. It’s surprising that this is
her debut album, considering
the maturity and depth of her electro-pop sound and lyrics.
Evidence: her single, “Paris is Burning,” is packed with romantic hipster nostalgia, tales of “kids in the street drinking wine,
on the sidewalk.” (The lyrics were, after all, written during her
first trip to Paris.) Brown’s sound is a wicked mash-up of the
top friends on her MySpace page: Stevie Nicks, Blondie and
The Teenagers. Citing everything from ‘80s skate videos to
depression as influences, it’s no wonder that each song tells
a completely different story. In stores this Tuesday, Dec. 9.
—Meghan Tooley
The Uniter
December 4, 2008
Arts & Culture
The Price is right
Local jazz guitarist
taps into the
frequencies for
good jazz
Arts Briefs
Compiled by Jonathan Dyck
“I’m a total junkie for
new music. I don’t know
if that’s an interesting
vice. Is it a vice? Shit, I quit smoking.
What’s left?”
-Keith Price, musician
Kenton Smith
Volunteer staff
Dan Harper
W
ith 77 gigabytes of tunes on his
computer, Winnipeg jazz guitarist Keith Price says that if he has a
vice, it’s his music collection for sure.
“I’m a total junkie for new music,” he said
over coffee recently. “I don’t know if that’s
an interesting vice. Is it a vice? Shit, I quit
smoking….What’s left?”
Indeed, Price’s broad musical tastes may
in fact be more of a virtue when it comes to
his job. For when it comes to drawing inspiration, his horizons are anything but narrow: his MySpace page lists a diverse array of
influences, from Miles Davis to Radiohead;
from Pat Metheny to A Tribe Called Quest.
Price said that while he’s becoming ever
more aware of the history and “language” of
jazz, he’s also opened up considerably since
being a teenage “jazz purist.” Over the last
year or so, since beginning to compose more
regularly, he’s been merging sounds and developing his own distinct style.
His creative activity has got him thinking,
too – thinking that he’d like to find an alter-
A rare busking set by jazz guitarist Keith Price. It
probably would have gone better for him if he had
brought something for people to throw money into.
native label to “jazz.” That’s because the particular connotations of the word can erect
barriers in people’s minds, keeping them
from engaging with the actual music.
In reality, Price said, there is great diversity
within the genre. And for that matter, there
have always been jazz musicians “who’ve
looked for something more.”
“We all need to evolve. Not that all change
is good, but some change is necessary.”
Besides, jazz isn’t so much a genre as a way
of playing. Other musical styles lend themselves more easily to a jazz interpretation
than people might think – and, sometimes,
95.9 FM CKUW Campus/Community
Radio Top 10 CD – Albums
November 19 - 25, 2008
! = Local content * = Canadian Content
“more than I think,” Price said.
Every tune, he explained, will have its
“seed;” it’s sometimes just a matter of employing different chords to produce a new
sound. Just check out his MySpace-posted
performance of Radiohead’s “Knives Out.”
That’s one Price is proud of. As he explains, he and the band hadn’t worked out
how to end the number before going onstage, and so it “just happened.”
“And next time it’ll be something altogether different,” he said with a grin.
In the words of one of his mentors, jazz is
“spontaneous composition.” That, Price said,
is really the essence of jazz performance: the
musicians share the same foundation, but
they build upon it within the moment, and
within the specificity of time and place.
“Your solo isn’t just from you – it can’t be,”
he explained.
Rather, it comes from being attuned to the
totality of one’s surrounding environment:
the ambience of the room, the mood of the
audience, the colour of the walls, the temperature, the weather. No two performances
are alike. You can’t control what happens in
the moment, but you can control how you
respond to it. Hence, you’d better be ready
for anything.
And it helps to be cool.
“It’s a beautiful thing, not being too controlling,” Price said, smiling.
LWTWArtistRecordingLabel
12
1
!Venetian Snares
9
2
*Tagaq
Detrimentalist
1
3
*Mother Mother
4
4
*Carlos del Junco 3
5
Collard Greens & Gravy
7
6
TV On The Radio
16
7
!Julie Biggs 6
8
*Jeff Healey
13
9
!G.R.O.S.S. Incoming Transmission
5
10 !Novillero A Little Tradition
Blood Auk
Oh My
Last Gang
Northern Blue
Devil in the Woodpile Black Market Music
Dear Science
Touch & Go
Passions
Jerico Beach
Steady Movin’
Planet Mu
Mess of Blues
Independent
Stony Plain
A1
See Price perform two sets with
The Curtis Nowosad/Keith Price Quintet
Sunday, Jan. 11, 2009 at The Park Theatre
Tickets are available from
Jazz Winnipeg (007-100 Arthur Street) and
The Park Theatre (698 Osborne Street)
Cost: $13 advance, $15 at the door
Price also performs every Wednesday at
Le Garage Cafe (166 Provencher Boulevard)
and plans to release his debut EP in the spring
Visit www.myspace.com/keefprice
Mint
BOOK REVIEW
Andre Crate
Volunteer
T
THE IDLER’S GLOSSARY
Written by Joshua Glenn
and Mark Kingwell
Designed and Illustrated by Seth
Biblioasis, 2008
132 pages
$12.95
he Idler’s Glossary may look like a
small, unassuming book, but once
you begin to read the humourous
social and philosophical aspects to the vice
that is idleness, it’ll make your eyes bulge (in
a good way).
In the introduction, University of Toronto
philosophy professor Mark Kingwell dives
right into the philosophical and social aspects of idling as well as the terminology. He
argues that idlers, time wasters and dreamers have been misunderstood and misrepresented over the years. With many quotes
from Aristotle to Nietzsche, it’s easy to see
that Kingwell spent a good amount of time
and effort on it, which is a little ironic due
to the fact the Kingwell appears to be on the
side of people who choose to be ‘do nothings’ and idlers.
Joshua Glenn, who has written for The
Boston Globe and The London Observer, fares
just as well with the glossary itself. Funny
and entertaining, it’s far from those seen at
the back of most books. Glenn’s glossary
15
gives you the run down on terms we have
all used to describe wanderers, dreamers and
idlers.
There are two terms I found to be quite
clever. The first term was “Half-Assed” - always a clever way to describe anyone’s work
ethic or the quality of a situation. Using the
term “Half-Assed” is just a polite way of telling someone that they are not doing something up to par.
The second term I found to be clever was
the term “Working Girl,” because there are
so many other terms that Glenn could have
used to describe one of the oldest professions in the world. Let’s face it, the working girl who stands around all day and night
waiting for people to come to her really sets
the standard for idling. And, the last time I
checked, sex wasn’t that much work, unless
you are one of the people that are waiting for
the other one to do all the work. Then, sir or
madame, there may be a spot for you beside
that working girl and his or her idling ways.
As a whole I would encourage anyone,
even the “do nothing” people, to pick up this
book. Even if you don’t end up asking yourself “to work, or not to work?” you will enjoy
this amusing, intellectual piece of literature.
IKEA HITS THE PAVEMENT
What is Ikea up to these days? Well, besides
giving deal-starved Winnipeggers something
to gossip about, the uber-trendy Swedish
store is teaming up with independent record
label Matador and imeem, a social networking
website, to present a $500 shopping spree
contest to celebrate the reissue of Pavement’s
1997 album, Brighten The Corners. The album
happens to feature a fairly kick-ass song
called “Date w/ Ikea.”
The contest winner will be joined by a
member of Pavement and will receive a free
“Swedish Meatball lunch,” Stereogum.com
reported last week. All you need to do is
submit a photo of your lodgings and a short
essay that explains why you deserve to win (if
the photo isn’t convincing enough already).
As a band that was celebrated for its
independence and extreme sarcasm, I can’t
help wondering if maybe the guys from
Pavement have taken one of their jokes a
little too far.
IS BAD LITERARY SEX BETTER
THAN NO LITERARY SEX?
According to CBC.ca, this year’s winner for
Britain’s annual “Bad Sex in Fiction Prize” is
Rachel Johnson, whose scene was singled out
for its “mixture of cliché and euphemism.”
In her novel, Shire Hell, Johnson compares
her protagonist’s tongue to “a cat lapping
up a dish of cream so as not to miss a single
drop.”
Animal metaphors continue to plague
the novel’s sex scenes, at points employing
the imagery of a moth, which (I’m only
speculating) probably hovers too close to
a light bulb. Alongside Johnson, American
novelist John Updike received the lifetime
achievement award after having made the
shortlist four times in the prize’s 16-year
history.
R.I.P., COMPACT DISCS
It’s not like we didn’t see it coming. NYTimes.
com reported that, for the first time ever, a
major label has seen its compact disc sales
surpassed by digital music revenues. Atlantic
Records, a unit of Warner Music Group, now
depends on downloads from iTunes and ring
tones for over half of its music sales in the
United States.
“While digital delivery is becoming a bigger
slice of the pie,” NYTimes.com commented,
“the overall pie is shrinking fast.”
Forrester Research estimates that music
sales in the US will shrink from $10.1 billion
this year, to $9.2 billion in 2013. Compare
that with the $14.6 billion the music industry
was generating in 1999 and it’s no wonder
they’ve resorted to suing high school kids for
downloading music.
DR. PEPPER DEMOCRACY
You may remember hearing that Dr. Pepper
promised every person in America a free can
of their nutritious cherry-flavoured beverage
if Guns N’ Roses released their long-awaited
Chinese Democracy album this year. Well,
according to Rollingstone.com, Axl and Co. are
threatening to sue “over what the band calls a
complete fiasco of a publicity stunt.”
Dr. Pepper’s website, through which
Americans were able to order their free
can, apparently crashed the day the album
was released. In a letter written by GNR’s
lawyer, Dr. Pepper was accused of defrauding
consumers and, “in the eyes of vocal fans,
ruined the day of Chinese Democracy’s
release.” The letter continues, “As we all know,
Dr. Pepper created an expansive and highlypublicized advertising campaign based solely
on the exploitation of my clients’ legendary
reputation.”
Yeah, and what about Americans living
overseas, or Americans without Internet
access? How are they going to get their
free can? Come on Dr. Pepper, get with the
program.
December 4, 2008
16
The Uniter
Arts & Culture
Magazine that examines
vagina culture probably not
on grandma’s must-read list
Managing editor
M
enstruation.
Men
and women alike
cringe, or maybe
just giggle, when
thinking of it.
But
for
Jo
Snyder and Sarah
Michaelson, periods, and the vaginas from which
these
monthly
presents from god
ooze, are not only
discussion-worthy, but magazineworthy.
“We like being a little dirty. We talk very frankly
about sex and we found that a lot of our friends did
too,” Snyder said during a recent phone interview
from her new home in Vancouver.
Snyder and Michaelson launch the second edition
of their vajournal, 1234V, on Dec. 27 at The Albert.
“This one we’re actually calling a periodical because
it’s the bleeder issue,” Snyder explained.
As you might have guessed, this edition is all about
periods. Getting it for the first time is of course the
topic of some of the pieces, but that’s not where it
ends.
“It’s not just about tampons and maxi pads. There’s
a lot of eating out in this one,” Snyder said.
For example, men write about what it’s like to earn
their “red wings.”
“You can’t accidentally earn your red wings,”
Snyder explained.
The ‘zine features works from about 10 authors
hailing from all across Canada. Both Snyder and
Michaelson encouraged authors to not write under
pseudonyms, hoping for pieces that are honest and
truthful.
Although many stories might cause readers to
cringe, that is not necessarily the editors’ goal, nor
did they aim to produce something that is overly
politicized.
“It’s not our intention to make a big statement
about feminism, we just want stories…the same way
you’d tell your friend a dirty story if you were hammered in the bar.”
Both Snyder and Michaelson have plenty of publishing experience. Snyder, 31, is currently taking her
masters of publishing at Simon Fraser University in
B.C. and Michaelson, 27, is a producer at CBC. The
two met at the University of Winnipeg when Snyder
was managing editor of The Uniter and Michaelson
was working at Stylus.
“We’re very crass and vulgar girls. I wouldn’t say
that we’re more brave than other people,” Snyder
said.
Whereas the first issue – which, fittingly, was all
about firsts – was graced with a vagina on the cover,
this edition features possibly less-imposing cherries.
Nonetheless, 1234V might not make the best gift
for grandma.
“It’s not not dirty.”
Get your fill of cliterature at The Royal Albert on
Saturday, Dec. 27. There will be a reading from the
1234V, and copies are available for $5. Musicians include DJ Mama Cutsworth (Michaelson’s alter ego),
DJ Hunnicut (who will play a special vagina-themed
set), DJ Mizz Brown and The Gorgon. There will
also be a clothing and craft sale by Cordially Yours.
Tickets are $6 at the door.
When sex is like fast food
Once a taboo topic,
pornography has
gone mainstream
Darren Michaels
Not what you
learned about
in sex. ed.
Matt Preprost
Volunteer staff
W
hen it comes to magazines,
Dominion News has something for everyone – porn
lovers included. After catching up on the
latest issue of the Wall Street Journal, pay
a dollar and you can access the extensive
display of movies and issues of Playboy
dating back to at least 1995. The store is
just one of many in the city that offer access to porn for curious customers.
“It’s distressing that we celebrate sex in
a fashion that’s commercial,” said Bonnie
Dowling, an employee of an Osborne
Village video store that rents porn.
As an art history student at the
University of Winnipeg, Dowling said
that sex has been the catalyst for brilliant
art. However, she’s concerned that sex is
quickly becoming a commodity.
“It’s being turned into something
gross, diminishing all sense of reality,”
she said. “It’s inhuman.”
Still, statistics show that our interest
in sex is on the rise. A recent campaign
from Good magazine showed a nude
model adorned with stats written on her
body: Sex is the most searched word on
the Internet. Every second, $89 is spent
on Internet porn. The video is stunning
proof that porn has become an increasingly sought after form of entertainment
in the 21st century.
Porn is even creeping into regular entertainment. Case in point: Kevin Smith’s
new movie, Zack and Miri Make a Porno,
and the myriad of men’s magazines like
Maxim, Stuff and FHM, all of which
slowly push the envelope of acceptable
sexual innuendo and imagery.
Lana Young, manager at Discreet
Boutique, explained that this is turning
many people on to porn, inspiring them
to incorporate it into their lives.
“Shows like the Sunday Night Sex Show
and Sex and the City have broken some
of the taboo attitudes about sex,” Young
said. “Previously men were the majority
Seth Rogen and Elizabeth Banks star in Zack and Miri Make a Porno, a Kevin Smith film about two
friends who make an adult film so they can make money.
of the consumers, but now couples are
viewing it together. People are becoming
more comfortable with their sex lives.”
Carmen Haywood, general manager
for 20 Source Adult stores across Canada,
agreed, also crediting the increased emphasis on sexual education in school.
“As people become more educated
about sex, they are becoming more experimental and turning to porn to add
that little kicker to their love life and
learn how to perform sexual acts better.”
Haywood sees the move as a positive
sign.
“Porn provides a safer, more fun alternative to previous practices,” Haywood
said. “They buy toys, magazines or videos instead of turning to escorts or prostitutes. People used to see porn as dirty
and gross. Now they see that we’re actually clean cut and professional.”
She added that while there will always
be a group of people whose anti-porn
views will never change, the industry will
always exist in some form in society.
“Porn will continue to exist because of
human curiosity,” Haywood said.
While Brandon Piety, operations manager for XXXChurch, is an advocate for a
life without porn, he doesn’t fault human
curiosity.
“Sex is powerful and we’re a sexual
people,” Piety said.
The XXXChurch is an anti-porn advocacy group based in Las Vegas. Formed
in 2001, the group attends porn conventions and brings their debates with porn
As a culture so
advanced, we’re
obsessed with
looking at the
computer screen and
masturbating. What’s
up with that?”
-Brandon Piety, XXXChurch
star Ron Jeremy to university campuses
across the U.S..
“We raise awareness and start conversations about the impacts of porn,” Piety
said. “There are people who love porn
but there are those who hate it because
it’s destroyed their relationship or their
marriage. We’re able to help those who
want porn out of their lives because of
their family or because they don’t want to
be known for starring in a movie.”
Piety added that the XXXChurch does
not set out to demonize those who produce porn.
“People who make porn aren’t bad
people, but it’s fast food sex,” Piety explained. “It’s not good for you and leaves
you hanging every time wanting more.
As a culture so advanced, we’re obsessed
with looking at the computer screen and
masturbating. What’s up with that?”
Betty and Johnny
Peer Support answers
your questions
about sexual health
PEER SUPPORT
Q: What can cause a period to start
unexpectedly even if you are on the pill
and never miss?
A: Females who are new to the use of
birth control pills often experience vaginal spotting or bleeding halfway through
their cycle. This is a common side effect
and usually will stop within the first three
months. However, if light bleeding persists for more than seven days and more
heavy bleeding occurs for more than
three days, this may be an indication that
the particular type or dose of pill may not
be functioning correctly. The oral contraceptive may also not be functioning correctly if the spotting or bleeding persists
for more than four months.
If these circumstances occur, you
should see the physician who prescribed
the birth control pill to discuss changing brands or concentrations. Vaginal
bleeding can also be an indicator for
other health issues such as ectopic pregnancy, endometrial cancer, cervical cancer, vaginitis, cervicitis, yeast infection,
or sexually transmitted infections such as
Chlamydia.
If any bleeding persists and begins
when you have been on the birth control
pill already for a long time, you should
contact your medical professional to investigate the causes.
Q: How can you catch herpes?
A: Genital herpes (Herpes simplex virus) is spread through skin-toskin contact with the area of infection.
This includes vaginal sex, anal sex, oral
sex (mouth to genitals and genitals to
mouth), touching the infected area and
then touching yourself in vulnerable areas
(vagina, mouth, penis, anus) right after.
In rare cases a mother may also pass the
virus onto her child during childbirth.
The risk of transmission of herpes can
be decreased by using condoms, limiting
skin to skin contact with an infected area
(mouth, penis, anus, vagina), using dental dams during oral sex and refraining
from having sex with a visibly infected
person (although the virus can still be
passed if there are no visible sores).
Betty and Johnny is a U of W campus
wide anonymous question-and-answer
program run by Peer Support. Questions
posted on posters in bathrooms or on the
live journal site (http://bettyandjohnny.
livejournal.com) are researched, answered,
and verified by professionals before being
posted again in both places.
Peer Support is a student-run support
group for students that provides a safe and
confidential environment to discuss concerns and referral information for other
organizations. Visit them in the Bulman
Centre, e-mail uofwpeersupport@gmail.
com or call 786-9867.
Arts Editor: Aaron Epp
Phone: 786-9497
Fax: 783-7080
The Uniter
December 4, 2008
Arts & Culture
17
A hot commodity
mark reimer
From double doubles
to Peppermint Mocha
Twists, Winnipeggers
love their caffeine
Courtney Schwegel
-Andrea Petruic, manager, The Fyxx
Volunteer staff
A
t 8 a.m. on a chilly Wednesday morning, Starbucks in Portage Place Mall
is already bustling. About 10 people
stand, unspeaking in line, anxiously anticipating their morning cup of joe.
Cristy Simard, a faithful Starbucks coffee
drinker, breaks into a smile as she reaches for
her decadent-looking Peppermint Mocha
Twist. What happens if she doesn’t get her
morning Starbucks fix?
“I’m a bit cranky, I won’t lie,” she said.
Over at Tim Hortons, it was the same
thing. Over 20 people stand single-file for
their coffee.
Andrea Petruic, manager of The Fyxx
on Broadway, is more than familiar with
the morning coffee rush that brings in the
regulars.
“They kind of come in like zombies and
go out with their coffee and then don’t have
to say anything,” she said. Once people get
their coffee, they couldn’t be more content.
According to Manitoba Book of Everything,
Manitoba is home to 63 Tim Hortons, 19
Starbucks and a number of Second Cups,
as well as countless more independently
“For society [as a]
whole I don’t think
[drinking coffee]
is a bad thing…I
think it increases
productiveness.”
owned cafes. Such an astronomical number
of coffee-selling outlets begs the question:
why is there such a huge craze around coffee culture?
“People just see it as an awakening drink,”
said Soma Café shift supervisor Vassan
Aruljothi. He explained that coffee fits nicely
into most social situations, from business
meetings to dates, and even interviews.
“It has so many purposes.”
This explains why coffee is such a hot
commodity. Petruic said that on average,
The Fyxx on Broadway sells 240 cups of coffee a day. Soma reported similar numbers,
with an average around 200 cups of coffee
a day. In both cafés, despite the number of
fancy specialty drinks, regular coffee is the
most popular beverage.
According to CanadianVending.com,
coffee consumption in North America continues to rise. Forty-seven percent of adults
between ages 25 and 39 are coffee drinkers.
Specialty coffee, like Simard’s Peppermint
Mocha Twist, accounts for 19 per cent of
total consumption for adults between the
ages of 25 and 59.
One would think that surely this massive
consumption of coffee would have adverse
implications for one’s health, but in fact, in
terms of coffee posing a health risk, much research shows that this isn’t the case. Canada’s
Food Guide to Health Eating claims that
consuming moderate amounts coffee is not
linked to hypertension or heart disease.
In fact, coffee may actually have some
health benefits. The Coffee Association of
Canada claims that coffee can boost memory and help ward off colds.
Petruic sees coffee consumption as having
positive effects.
“For society [as a] whole I don’t think
[drinking coffee] is a bad thing…I think it
increases productiveness,” she said.
Aruljothi seemed to agree with this, especially around exam time. In an average day
he drinks around two or three cups of coffee,
but while studying for exams, he can up his
intake to about eight shots of espresso, which
is very strong, pressure brewed coffee.
So perhaps there isn’t a big mystery behind culture’s coffee craze. Both Aruljothi
and Petruic said that it simply comes down
to the deeply satisfying taste that coffee has
to offer, and of course, that nice little jolt of
caffeine.
In such a complex society, coffee seems to
be one of the few simple pleasures that can
light up the day for millions of people.
Girl Talk actually likes the music he samples
Gregg Gillis fuses
pop, hip-hop and ‘90s
grunge for a living
Madeline Coleman
The Link (Concordia University)
M
ONTREAL (CUP) – Former biomedical engineer Gregg Gillis,
whose Jazz Fest ’07 show has become the stuff of YouTube legend, never
thought he’d give up his day job for music.
Since releasing his 2006’s Night Ripper,
Girl Talk (Gillis’ stage name) has been raking in critical acclaim.
Every Girl Talk song is a frenetic pop
Featuring hundreds of samples, Feed the Animals
by Girl Talk has earned rave reviews from both
music fans and critics.
music tapestry, weaving samples from artists
as disparate as GZA, Nirvana, and Dexy’s
Midnight Runners into music that practically drags you onto the dance floor
Gillis cemented his rep with this year’s
Feed the Animals. Haven’t heard it? No worries – it’s offered up on the Girl Talk website
for the gorgeous price of “pay as you can.”
If you decide to download gratis, be prepared to answer for your thrift. You’ll be
faced with a poll asking why, with possible
answers ranging from: “I might donate later”
to “I do not like Girl Talk.”
“There was seriously a large chunk of people who said, ‘I do not like Girl Talk,’ which I
thought was great,” said Gillis, on the phone
from Nashville.
He professed not to be a big downloader
himself, something that is hard to believe
considering the huge breadth of samples
woven into Feed the Animals.
The great thing about Girl Talk is Gillis’
sincere appreciation of everything pop.
Gillis overcomes many media pundits’ assumptions about recent generations’ irony
obsession by disagreeing with the idea that
“any music is more credible than any other.”
Is it possible for the hip and discerning to
openly enjoy Top 40 offerings alongside the
so-called cooler genres of old school hip-hop
and early ‘90s grunge?
If Gillis has anything to do with it,
absolutely.
“I think that’s the guilty pleasure system,”
he said of the perceived inability to enjoy
mainstream music sans irony. “That’s not really the level I’m at.”
The discernable Avril Lavigne and
Eminem samples in Girl Talk’s musical alchemy mean one thing – Gillis actually likes
their music.
He reasoned that he won’t spend time
sampling songs he’s not into because there
are so many songs he could have chosen.
His sincerity was exemplified when asked
what pop music he’s been into lately.
He cited the new Busta Rhymes song,
Britney Spears’ “Womanizer,” and Beyonce’s
new song, “Single Ladies,” which he called
“phenomenal.”
Haven’t heard it? No
worries – it’s offered up
on the Girl Talk website
for the gorgeous price
of “pay as you can”
We’re looking
for dedicated
volunteers to
write for arts
& CULTUre
E-mail [email protected]
to sign up
(You don’t have to be a student
to write for the paper)
December 4, 2008
18
The Uniter
Arts & Culture
The seven deadly sins
The capital vices
may be deadly,
but why not
indulge in them
this holiday
season?
Aaron Epp
Arts & Culture editor
A t a time of year when children concentrate on being
nice for fear of ending up
on Santa’s naughty list, why not
look at the capital vices?
The capital vices, also known
as the seven deadly sins, are lust,
gluttony, greed, sloth, wrath, envy
and pride. Originally used in early
Christian teachings to educate followers about humankind’s tendency to sin, they’ve worked their
way into all aspects of culture over
the years: from Edmund Spenser’s
1590 epic allegorical poem The
Faerie Queene, to David Fincher’s
1995 film Se7en, about two police
officers investigating a series of ritualistic murders.
If you’re currently guilty of committing one of these sins and aren’t
quite ready to repent, fear not: the
holiday season in Winnipeg offers a
variety of ways you can indulge in
your capital vice of choice.
LUST
Lust, or lechery, usually involves
obsessive or excessive thoughts or
desires of a sexual nature.
If you’re looking to take the per-
son you lust after out on a date,
why not try something different
like a nice sleigh ride or trip down
the toboggan hill? Unique activities
drive up dopamine in the brain and
can stimulate romance. You can
end the evening with hot chocolate
(perhaps with a splash of Baileys
Irish Cream) or apple cider.
If you’re further along in your relationship and bringing the person
you lust after home for the holidays for the first time to meet your
family, WhatIsChemistry.com has
some tips for you (courtesy of relationship expert Dr. Helen Fisher),
such as: Holding hands with your
date can affect oxytocin levels in
the brain and increase feelings of
trust and attachment.
Read the rest at www.tinyurl.
com/6r89sp.
GLUTTONY
Gluttony is the over-indulgence
and over-consumption of anything to the point of waste – usually, food. The term is derived from
the Latin word gluttire, meaning to
gulp down or swallow.
What better time of year to excuse one’s gluttony than the excessive North American holiday
season? If your mom and grandmother aren’t keeping you sated,
why not try some recipes of your
own? Christmas-Cookies.com offers hundreds of recipes, from chocolate peanut butter cup cookies to
Scotch shortbread. Meanwhile, visiting www.tinyurl.com/yef3ob will
show you how to make your very
own gingerbread house and www.
wikihow.com/make-eggnog reveals
the secret to making homemade
eggnog. Your party will be a hit.
GREED
Greed, avarice, covetousness
– just like lust and gluttony, it’s a
sin of excess. In particular, many
people think of the acquisition of
wealth when they think of greed.
During the holidays, many
people acquire more wealth in the
form of presents. Should you feel
inclined to spread the wealth and
give some presents yourself, you
can always head to your local mall.
Or, you can check out the All of
the Above member’s show at Martha
Street Studio (11 Martha Street).
The show opens Thursday, Dec. 11
from 5 to 8 p.m. with another open
house and art sale Saturday, Dec. 13
from 12 to 5 p.m. The exhibition,
which is on until Dec. 30, will feature the work produced by studio
members and staff, and promises
something for everyone.
If you don’t find anything there
that’s suitable for the person you’re
buying for, you can always try
making your own gift. Visit www.
buynothingchristmas.org/alternatives for a long list of things you
can try.
SLOTH
While some would argue that
sloth is the failure to utilize one’s
talents and gifts, most people today
define sloth as just a sin of indifference or laziness.
If you’re feeling lazy, why not
watch a movie? There are a variety
of options at SilverCity, including
Four Christmases – in which a couple played by Vince Vaughn and
Reece Witherspoon are forced to
spend their Christmas with family
after their tropical vacation is cancelled – and less seasonal fare as
well.
At Cinematheque there’s the
newly restored 35mm print of The
Exiles, a 1961 film about a group
of Native Americans who left their
reservations in favour of the glitz of
a ‘50s Los Angeles neighbourhood
called Bunker Hill (Dec. 10 and 11
at 7 p.m.). Then, from Dec. 19 to 21
and 26 to 28, there’s Saving Luna,
a 2007 documentary about a lone
young orca, nicknamed Luna, who
was separated from his pod while
only a calf.
Or if you’re feeling really lazy,
you can just stay in and watch
a Christmas classic like It’s a
Wonderful Life, Love Actually or The
Muppet Christmas Carol.
WRATH
Also known as anger, wrath can
be described as inordinate and
uncontrolled feelings of hatred.
As we’ve all heard before, music
can soothe the savage breast (or
beast, depending on who you ask).
Instead of indulging that anger,
why not curb it with music?
After 10 years in Winnipeg’s jazz,
Latin and pop music scenes, multiinstrumentalist Jeff Presslaff releases
his debut CD, Red Goddess, at The
Park Theatre on Thursday, Dec. 11.
That weekend (Friday, Dec. 12
and Saturday, Dec. 13), local poprock quartet Quinzy will play its
annual Quinzmas concert at the
same venue with guests House of
Doc. (Get your tickets fast – Santa
Claus and Fred Penner have been
known to show up.)
On Saturday, Dec. 20, The
Waking Eyes return home for a
concert to celebrate the release of
their third CD, Holding On To
Whatever It Is. But if that’s not your
thing, Absent Sound presents the
13th ElementSircus winter solstice
celebration at the Graffiti Gallery
that same night.
JP Hoe hosts his “JP Hoe Hoe
Hoe Holiday Show” at The Park
on Sunday, Dec. 21 with members of the Winnipeg Symphony
Orchestra, and funk kings Moses
Mayes play The Pyramid on Dec.
27.
ENVY
Envy can be characterized by
an insatiable desire where the sinner resents another person who has
something they perceive themselves
as lacking, and, in some cases, wish
the other person to be deprived of
it.
Many students don’t have a lot
of money and may find themselves
envying the amount of disposable
income their peers have. You don’t
need money for every holiday activity, though. Sledding, skating,
snowshoeing and cross-country skiing are all options, and if you don’t
have the equipment, you can borrow it from someone who does.
Another option is to gather a
group of friends together and go
caroling. Pretty soon those you
envy will be envying you when they
catch a glimpse of how much fun
you’re having.
PRIDE
Also known as hubris and vanity,
pride is considered the original and
most serious of the seven deadly
sins, and indeed the ultimate source
from which the others arise.
One thing Winnipeggers can
take pride in is the city’s arts and
culture scene. On any given weekend there are innumerable things to
do. All the best as you explore them
for yourself this holiday season.
The Uniter
December 4, 2008
Arts & Culture
Facing the music
Three local record
labels talk about
how they’re
affected by digital
music sales
Curran Faris
MPFree?
Local musicians weigh in on giving music away for free
Curran Faris
The Uniter asked six Winnipeg musicians,
“How do you feel about giving your music away
for free online?”
This is what they had to say:
melody morrissette
D
ownloaded music. MP3s.
BitTorrents. Napster – each
phrase is as tired and old as
that Discman you got for Christmas
five years ago. Since the iPod revolution, music has become a digital medium in many ways.
With massive bands like Radiohead
releasing albums digitally without a
record label, it’s no wonder some are
screaming the album is dead. As 2008
comes to a close, though, local musicians and record labels aren’t re-typing
their resumes just yet.
In October of 2007, Radiohead offered their latest album In Rainbows for
download on their website months before the physical album was released.
The band also gave fans the option to
pay what they wanted. According to an
October 2008 article on Pitchforkmedia.
com, In Rainbows has sold over three
million copies, 1.75 million of which
were physical CDs. Radiohead’s downloading experiment seems to have
breathed new life into the CD.
Rob Krause, co-owner of Winnipegbased Smallman Records, said that while
some of the label’s bigger-selling bands,
such as Comeback Kid, have dropped
in sales in the U.S., physical sales have
been relatively consistent in Canada.
The type of music fan Smallman sells
to is more likely to buy a physical CD
than download their songs from the
web.
“With the bands we work with primarily, you get a lot of grassroots sales,”
Krause said. “You’re actually dealing
with music fans who are interactive
with bands.”
Contrary to the growing sentiment that the physical record is dead,
Krause has seen just the opposite. He
said downloadable music has complemented CD sales. Generally, the label
hopes to sell 1,000 to 5,000 copies of
each of its releases.
“We’re still seeing that happening:
the majority of [sales], 95 per cent of
that, will be physical copies,” he said.
Krause added that accessibility of
MP3 sites such as iTunes, eMusic and
Rhapsody, as well as file sharing sites,
has worked in Smallman’s favour. With
poor distribution in the U.S., digital
downloads provide fans with greater access to the music.
“We’re actually seeing sales to demographics and geographical bases that we
wouldn’t have gotten before.”
Art MacIntyre, president of Transistor
66 Record Company, said that he has
seriously cut back on manufacturing
CDs and is beginning to focus on digital distribution, promotion, licensing
and touring. The production of physical CDs is left to the bands. MacIntyre
said this was a matter of economics.
“Now that we have 22 bands signed,
there’s no way we can afford to work
with all of them on the manufacturing
side,” he said.
Hoping to inspire consumers to actually buy their products, Transistor
66 manufactures limited runs of vinyl
releases, such as the Hot Live Guys/
C’mon split 7” record. MacIntyre said
he invests in vinyl because he believes
they will have a longer shelf life than
CDs.
“If it’s something different, [people]
might actually think about buying it instead of stealing it.”
19
As more music becomes distributed
digitally, the argument could be made
that a band doesn’t really need a label
to get their music heard anymore. In
many ways, as illustrated by Radiohead,
the accessibility of digital music has fostered the golden age of D.I.Y.
Following Radiohead’s example is
Winnipeg hip-hop veteran Pip Skid,
who started Marathon of Dope, a onestop, pay-what-you-want website offering releases by himself and fellow rappers
The Gumshoe Strut and Birdapres. Pip
Skid said that the website is both an
alternative to CDs and an experiment
in allowing the listener to decide how
much music is worth.
“I’ve always been of the opinion that
if you wanna hear the music, than just
tape it or burn it or whatever. And I
know that people that make good music
should get some money…but fuck it,
I’d rather people just enjoy it,” he said
by e-mail.
No matter what the case, artists and
labels at the independent level are still
making music for music lovers. As long
as that happens, the album will live another day.
“That’s a hard question. It’s hard to see myself getting into music to make money at this point – what’s
more important is that people hear it and that’s
exactly what is so exciting about digital music. But
I don’t think Hot Live Guys could afford to give our
music away for free.”
-Julian Bargen, Hot Live Guys
“I still appreciate the physical album. But to give
away your whole record? How are you going to
make money? If you’re doing music as a hobby
that’s fine, but if you’re doing it as business you
need to get paid.”
-Katie Murphy, Winnipeg singer-songwriter
“It’s hardly a factor for a band in its infant stages
like us. At this point it’s all about being heard at any
cost and we never got into this for money in the
first place.”
-Jared Weiss, Port Amoral
“Depending on where the act is in their career, it
can be a great idea. If you can make tons of fans by
giving away MP3s to people who wouldn’t buy them
anyway, but who are willing to buy concert tickets
and merch, you’ve tapped into a crowd of people
who would’ve never heard of you otherwise.”
-Bekki Friesen, Domenica
“We incurred absolutely no costs to record [our]
album [Mayday]. We made it in my basement. If
you’re not paying to make it, you shouldn’t make
people pay to hear it.”
-Timothy Dymond, The Honeybuckets
“I don’t believe in property, most fundamentally, so
I do believe that everything constructed, everything
that human energy and creativity is put into is ultimately premised on the collective… I think everything should be circulated and distributed for free.”
-Charley Justice, Evil Survives
December 4, 2008
20
The Uniter
Arts & Culture
LISTINGS
CONCERTS
VIRTUOSI CONCERT SERIES Baroque Masters II: The WSO Baroque Chamber Players, Dec. 6 at 8 p.m. and Dec. 7 at 2 p.m.
Both concerts will be held in Eckhardt-Grammate Hall in the
University of Winnipeg and tickets are $29 for adults, $27 for
seniors and $10 for students.
THE BLACK DAHLIA MURDER with Soilent Green and Misery
Index, Dec. 12 at The Royal Albert. Tickets are $17.50 from
Tickemaster and the show starts at 9 p.m.
ANDREA LINDSAY with Marie Josee-Clement, Dec. 5 at Salle
Pauline-Boutal Hall in the Franco Manitoban Cultural Centre
(CCFM). Tickets are $18 in advance from the CCFM front desk,
233-8972. The show starts at 8 p.m.
JP HOE HOE HOE HOLIDAY SHOW Dec. 21 at The Park Theatre.
Tickets are $15 in advance and $20 at the door. Advance
tickets are available from McNally Robinson, Into The Music,
Music Trader and The Park Theatre.
QUINZMAS with Quinzy and House of Doc, Dec. 12 and 13 at
The Park Theatre. Tickets are $12 and available from WECC,
Ticketmaster and The Park Theatre.
ELITIST MISGIVINGS Syphilitic Mermaid Magazine presents an
art show from artists across Canada and music by DJ Matthew “Matthew Poirer” Poirer and Kram Ran, Dec. 18 at Suite
24, 161 Langside. Entrance is through the back stairs. The show
runs from 6:30 to 11 p.m.
GLUE Modern Problems, Mind Control and Losing Streak.
Friday, Dec. 12 at the University of Winnipeg in the Bulman
Centre. The first hardcore show in the Bulman in years. Tickets are $6, doors at 7 p.m.
students with a valid High School ID receive 50 per cent off.
Tickets are available from the MTC box office, 942-6537, 1-877446-4600 and www.mtc.mc.ca.
GALLERIES
aceartinc 2nd Floor, 290 McDermot. Winter Warmer art sale
on until Dec. 12.
FORUM ART INSTITUE 120 Eugenie. Affordable Art Auction
featuring art from Manitoban artists. Also available will be
50 small paintings for $50 each and 25 watercolour paintings
for $25 each. The auction runs from Dec. 5 to Dec. 7. For gallery hours and more information call 253-1069 or visit www.
forumartinstitute.ca.
PIANO NOBLE GALLERY 555 Main. Land: Perspectives of a
Ground Squirrel, recent paintings by Winnipeg artist Kelly
Ruth. The exhibit is open until Dec. 13.
GALLERY 1C03 University of Winnipeg. Interval, new works by
Berlin-based artist Rodney LaTourelle. Interval is open until
Dec. 6.
WINNIPEG ART GALLERY 300 Memorial. Sheila Spence: Pictures
of Me, exhibition of Winnipeg artist Sheila Spence’s exploration of portraiture, open until Feb. 15. Spence will be present
for an artist talk Feb. 7 at 7 p.m. Also continuing is Saga: The
Journey of Arno Rafael Minkkinen, Photographs 1970-2005 is
open until Feb.13. The artist will be at the WAG Jan. 15 for an
artist talk and book signing.
VIDEO POOL MEDIA ARTS CENTRE Video Pool presents Christopher Flower’s Thinking Inside The Box exhibition at aceartinc,
290 McDermot. The exhibition is open until Dec. 12.
and refreshments. All are welcome. For more information
contact 667-9960.
INTO THE FUTURE The Manitoba Human Rights Commission and the Canadian Human Rights Commission and the
Manitoba Association for Rights and Liberties are hosting a
Human Rights Conference Celebrating the 60th Anniversary
of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights Dec. 10 at the
Fort Garry Hotel. Dr. Lloyd Axworthy will make the opening
keynote address. Tickets are $125 and include dinner. For
more information visit www.manitoba.ca/hrc or www.plannerplus.ca.marl.
JEWISH BOOK FAIR The Rady Jewish Community Centre (JCC)
holding a book fair from Dec. 7 to Dec. 14 at The Rady JCC, 123
Doncaster Street. The fair features a large selection of Jewish
books and gifts, as well as readings from renowned authors.
Hours for the book fair are: Sundays, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., Mondays through Thursdays, 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. and Fridays 10 a.m.
to 3 p.m. For more information visit www.radyjcc.com.
SAVING CIRCLE A series of workshops geared towards helping participants save money will begin on Dec. 5, 10 a.m. at
104-210 Ellen Street. Participants must be able to attend 10
money management sessions and be willing to save between
$5 and $65 a month for 4 to 6 months. For more information
contact 477-1123.
LAW WORKSHOP The Fort Garry Women’s Resource Centre
presents a four-part Workshop Series for Wise Women who
are experiencing legal issues and concerns. Workshops will
support women with basic legal information and resources
and are as follows: Dec. 9: Basic Estate Planning; Dec. 16: Other
ways women can protect themselves regarding age discrimination, financial concerns, small claims, etc. Workshops will
be held from 1 to 3 p.m. at the Outreach Centre 104-3100 Pembina Hwy Buzz Code 1003. Space is limited. Pre-registration is
MUSIC
POP, ROCK & INDIE
ACADEMY FOOD DRINKS MUSIC 437 Stradbrook. Dec. 4: Giv’r;
Dec. 5: MARIA Showcase; Dec. 6: J. Williamez CD Release Party;
Dec. 7: Rock Band with J. Williamez; Dec. 8: Blues jam with Tim
Butler; Dec. 9: Open Mic with Michael Peters and Mattew De
Zote; Dec. 10: Samba Jazz with Marco Castillo. Dec. 12: After All
These Years, Guys With Wives; Dec. 14: Rock Band with J. Williamez; Dec. 15: Blues jam with Tim Butler; Dec. 17: Greg Lowe
Quartet; Dec. 18: Johnny Riverboat; Dec. 19: The Haste, Use
Every Part of the Deer; Dec. 21: Rock Band with J. Wiilamez;
Dec. 22: Blues Jam with Tim Butler; Dec. 23: Euphorium; Dec.
25: Merry Christmas; Dec. 26: The New Meanies.
LO PUB 330 Kennedy. Dec. 5: The Liptonians.
PYRAMID CABARET 176 Fort. Dec. 5: Civil Disobedients, Amid
Valhalla, Coda, The Downfall; Dec. 12: Grapevinyl Records
party; Dec. 19: Lucid; Dec. 27: Moses Mayes; Jan. 9: Lights.
COUNTRY, FOLK & JAZZ
GORDIE’S COFFEE HOUSE 127 Coburg. Dec. 4: Riff Vandals; Dec.
11: Angeline Patenaude.
MCNALLY ROBINSON GRANT PARK Dec. 5: Manitoba Classical
Guitar Duo; Dec. 6: Bob Watts Trio; Dec. 12: Darcia Senft, James
Hickerson; Dec. 13: A Taste of New Orleans; Dec. 19: Manitoba
Classical Guitar Duo; Dec. 20: Sue & Dwight; Dec. 27: Manitoba
Classical Guitar Duo.
MCNALLY ROBINSON POLO PARK Dec. 5: Sheer Joy; Dec. 6:
Amber Epp and Rodrigo Munoz; Dec. 12; Marco Castillo; Dec.
20: A Taste of New Orleans; Dec. 27: Katelyn Dawn.
DANCE & HIP HOP
HIFI CLUB 108 Osborne.
OZZY’S 160 Osborne. Wednesdays: Soho Trash DJs: Punk, Glam,
New Wave, Power Pop; Thursdays: Readymix Dance Party:
Indie-Dance, Electro, Brit-Pop, New Wave, Mash-Ups, ‘80s/’90s,
and more; Saturdays: Modernized.
PUNK & METAL
THE ROYAL ALBERT 91 Albert. Dec. 6: Forbidden Dimension,
The Angry Dragons; Dec. 12: The Black Dahlia Murder, Soilent
Green, Misery Index; Dec. 19: Hide Your Daughters, Hot Live
Guys, Velodrome.
THE ZOO 160 Osborne. Dec. 4: The Village Rock Ensemble;
Dec. 5-6: Derek Miller; Dec. 11: Crazy Maiden Rock Shop, The
Wayouts; Dec. 12: Hearsemen; Dec. 13: Nailbrick, Quagmire,
Krotch Rawket; Dec 18-19: Crazy Maiden Rock Shop, SubCity
Dwellers, Faux Mojo, 5 and 10; Dec. 20: Bladelazer; Dec. 27: 500
pd. Furnace; Dec. 31: Dreadnaut.
COMEDY
CROSSEYED RASCALS Dec. 7, at Prairie Theatre Exchange. 3 and
7:30 p.m. Tickets are free with donation of a non-perishable
food item at the door, but should be booked in advance to a
maximum of four per person. Advance tickets are available
at Hull’s Family Bookstore or by contacting rascaltickets@
gmail.com.
THEATRE & DANCE
MEDEA The Manitoba Theatre Centre presents Medea, freely
adapted by Robinson Jeffers from the play Euripides. Medea
will play from Nov. 20 until Dec. 13 at the John Hirsch Theatre
at the MTC Mainstage. Tickets range from $21 to $61 and
BILL RICHARDSON Signing of Old Father William’s Well-Ordered
Universe: A Generally Reliable Compendium of Facts, Figures
and Formulae, Specifically Intended for the Bathroom-Bound
(and Those Who Love Them), Dec. 4, 7 p.m at McNally Robinson
Polo Park.
ROSWITHA SCHARF-DESSUREAULT Signing of Roswitha: A Life’s
Journey, Dec. 7, 1 p.m. at McNally Robinson Polo Park.
MYRNA GUYMER Signing of The Canadian Shield Alphabet,
Dec. 14, 2 p.m. at McNally Robinson Polo Park.
GEORGE LEGER Signing of The Keepers of Mon, Dec. 18, 5 p.m.
at McNally Robinson Polo Park.
RUSS GOURLUCK Signing of Picturing Manitoba: Legacies of
the Winnipeg Tribune, Dec. 20, 2 p.m. at McNally Robinson
Polo Park.
SHARING CRAFT Dec. 4, 7 p.m. at McNally Robinson Grant
Park.
COLLEEN BALDWIN Launch of Tell Me a Story About Pets 2, Dec.
4, 8 p.m. at McNally Robinson Grant Park.
WANDA KOOP Launch of Green Zone, Dec. 8, 8 p.m. at McNally
Robinson Grant Park.
ROSWITHA SCHARF-DESSUREAULT Signing of Roswitha: A Life’s
Journey, Dec. 11, 6 p.m. at McNally Robinson Grant Park.
JENNIFER LABELLA Signing of a Polar Bear Night of Stars and
Light, Dec. 13, 2 p.m. at McNally Robinson Grant Park.
RUSS GOURLUCK Signing of Picturing Manitoba: Legacies of
the Winnipeg Tribune, Dec. 14, 2 p.m. at McNally Robinson
Grant Park.
DARIA SALAMON Signing of The Prairie Bridesmaid, Dec. 20, 2
p.m. at McNally Robinson Grant Park.
FILM
£ The Uniter’s Top 5 events •
by curran faris
CANNES COMMERCIAL AWARDS The 2008 Cannes Commercial
Award winners are being shown at the Winnipeg Art Gallery.
Tickets are $7 for gallery members, $8 for students and seniors, $9 for adults, $6 for children and are available from the
WAG and Ticketmaster. Screen times are 7 and 9 p.m.
 QUINZMAS with Quinzy and House of Doc, Dec. 12 and 13 at The Park
Theatre. Do not miss Quinzmas; it is one of the best concerts you see all year.
Tickets are $12 and available from WECC, Ticketmaster and The Park Theatre and
the show starts at 8 p.m.
CINEMATHEQUE 100 Arthur. Dec. 5: Kamouraska (7 p.m.); Dec.
6: The Three Madeleines (1 p.m.), Waitresses Wanted (7 p.m.);
Dec. 7: 32 Short Films About Glenn Gould (7 p.m.); Dec. 10: The
Exiles (7 p.m.), Notes From the Underground: Ann Arbour Film
Festival (9 p.m.); Dec. 11: The Exiles (7 p.m.), Patti Smith: Dream
of Life (9 p.m.).
 THE BLACK DAHLIA MURDER with Soilent Green, Misery Index, Dec. 12 at
The Royal Albert. Nothing goes together like egg nog and death metal. Tickets
are $17.50 from Ticketmaster and the show starts at 9 p.m.
 JP HOE HOE HOE HOLIDAY SHOW Dec. 21 at The Park Theatre. Tickets are
$15 in advance and $20 at the door. Advance tickets are available from McNally
Robinson, Into The Music, Music Trader and The Park Theatre.
 HIDE YOUR DAUGTHERS with Hot Live Guys and Velodrome, Dec. 19 at
The Royal Albert. Winnipeg’s noise rockers return after a year-long hiatus with a
new line-up. Tickets available at the door and the show starts at 10 p.m.
 TOM WAITS BIRTHDAY PARTY Dec. 9 at Times Change(d). Celebrate the life
and music of one of the world’s most important songwriters with local musicians
performing some of Waits’ material. Admission is paid at the door.
THE REGAL BEAGLE 331 Smith. Thursdays: Shandra and Jason.
TIMES CHANGE(d) HIGH & LONESOME CLUB Main & St. Mary.
Dec. 4: Twilight Hotel; Dec. 5: Oh My Darling EP Release; Dec.
6: Flash Lightnin’; Dec. 9: Tom Waits Birthday Party; Dec. 12:
Twerps, Wind-ups; Dec. 13: Romi Mayes; Dec. 18: Songswap; Dec
19-20: Corin Raymond, Andrew Neville and The Poor Choices;
Dec. 26: Little Miss Higgins, Big Dave Mclean; Dec. 27: Little
Miss Higgins, The Perpetrators.
Listings Co-ordinator: Curran Faris
Phone: 786-9497
Fax: 783-7080
Concert? Art show? Volunteer opportunity? Community event? Want to see your event in The Uniter?
E-mail your listing to [email protected]. The deadline for all listings is Wednesday. The Uniter is published every
Thursday, so send your listings 8 days prior to the issue you want your listing to appear in. It’s free. It’s easy.
WAYNE ARTHUR GALLERY 186 Provencher. Every Story Has a
Picture, annual group show featuring works from over 50
artists, open until Dec. 31.
WOODLANDS GALLERY 535 Academy. Holiday Miniatures Exhibition, Nov. 27 to Dec. 20, featuring miniature small paintings
by several gallery artists as well as other affordable treasures
including hand blown glass ornaments, vases, bowls, hand
made jewelry and decorative ceramic works. There will be an
open house for this event on Dec. 6 from noon to 4 p.m.
GRAFFITI GALLERY 109 Higgins. Wal-Art, featuring works from
a variety of local artists. The exhibit is on display until Dec.
10.
PLATFORM CENTRE FOR PHOTOGRAPHIC + DIGITAL ARTS 121-100
Arthur. Deaths/Memorials/Births, newspaper obituary-based
exhibit by Erika DeFreitas. This exhibit is open until Dec. 13.
URBAN SHAMAN GALLERY 203-290 McDermot. Revelations,
an exhibition featuring new paintings by Canadian artist
Ron Noganosh. The exhibit will be open until Nov 29. Afraid
of What I Could Become, multimedia installation by James
Nicholas which explores genocide within Aboriginal communities, open until Dec. 19. The gallery will be hosting its annual
members show and sale, Dec. 5 to Dec. 20.
required by calling 477-1123.
HEARTS OF GLASS Hearts of Glass create wearable art crafted
from molten glass. Hearts of Glass will be showing their
latest works at the Winnipeg Folk Fest craft sale at the Folk
Exchange, #103-311 Bannatyne at Albert, from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m.
Hearts of Glass will also be on display at the Holidaze Craft
Sale, Dec. 12 from 5 to 12 p.m. and Dec. 13-14 from 10 a.m. to 6
p.m. at the Edge Gallery, 611 Main Street.
LITERARY
MARGARET MCWILLIAMS BOOK AWARDS The Manitoba Historical Society is looking for nominations for the Margaret McWilliams Award, which recognizes outstanding works about
Manitoba’s history. The deadline for submissions is Dec. 17.
BOOK AWARDS Entries are now being sought for the Manitoba
Book Awards. Potential books must have been published Jan.
1 and Dec.1, 2008. The deadline for submissions is Dec. 12. For
more information, visit www.manitobabookawards.com.
ON CAMPUS
STUDENTS AGAINST SEXIST VIOLENCE The University of Winnipeg Womyn’s Centre presents Students Working Against
Sexist Violence, an event honouring the National Day of
Remembrance and Action on Violence Against Women. The
event takes place on with a die-in on Dec. 5 at 3 p.m. at the
University of Winnipeg Atrium. Speakers will follow at 3:45.
CHRISTMAS HAMPER Peer Support is organizing a food
hamper for the Christmas Cheer Board. Please drop off your
non-perishable food items at the Peer Support office, ORM13.
JACK SUBMISSIONS University of Winnipeg’s new Journal of
the Arts through Combined Knowledge (JACK) is now accepting submissions. JACK is an online undergraduate research
journal for students in the Faculty of Arts at The University
of Winnipeg. JACK is looking for submissions of scholarly
research essays and critical reviews. Revise and expand upon
your course work and previously graded material. Attention
and dedication to professors’ suggestions and one’s own interest can lead to the clarity of expression that JACK requires.
JACK’s submission deadline is January 16th, 2009. Email JACK
your submissions at [email protected]. Visit JACK’s website
for submission guidelines: http://jack.uwinnipeg.ca.
VOLUNTEER
OPPORTUNITIES
FORT GARRY WOMEN’S RESOURCE CENTRE The Fort Garry
Women’s Resource Centre (FGWRC) is looking for volunteers
to sit on the Board of Directors and to work as Community
Volunteers. For more information, contact [email protected].
UWSA FOODBANK The UWSA’s Foodbank program is looking
for volunteers to help hand out hampers to downtown community members and students who are in need every Friday
from 1 to 5 p.m. For more information contact Ben or Jamie at
[email protected].
COMMUNITY EVENTS
CALL FOR NOMINATIONS The 2009 YMCA of Winnipeg Women of
Distinction Awards are now accepting nominations. Nominations apply to a diversity of women of all ages from the Winnipeg area. Nominations will be accepted until Feb. 2, 2009,
and the awards ceremony is May 6. For more information and
a list of the 10 award categories, visit www.ywinnipeg.ca.
COLLAGE WORKSHOP The Fort Garry Women’s Resource Centre presents Exploring Our Inner Selves: Using Collage as a
Gateway into the Self a creative hands-on workshop towards
holistic living. Workshop supplies provided. Thursday, Dec.
11, 2008 6:00-8:00 pm at 1150-A Waverley Street. Space is
limited-Pre registration is required to this women only event
by calling 477-1123.
GRAFFITI GALLERY The Graffiti Gallery is holding its annual
General Meeting Dec. 10 at 5 p.m. and will feature live music
Take in the JP Hoe Hoe Hoe Holiday Show, Dec. 21 at The Park Theatre.
Listings Co-ordinator: Curran Faris
Phone: 786-9497
Fax: 783-7080
AWARDS & FINANCIAL AID
UNIVERSITY OF WINNIPEG
WEC B.ED. Program
Bursaries for Aboriginal Students
Winifred Gamble Bursary
This bursary is awarded to an aboriginal student
who has completed 30 credit hours and is registered
currently in the second year of the B.Ed. program at
the Winnipeg Education Centre. Value: $600.00
Grace Thomson Memorial Bursary
This bursary will be awarded to an aboriginal woman
who is registered currently in any year of the B. Ed.
Program at the Winnipeg Education Centre. Value:
$800.00
Applications are available at the Winnipeg Education
Centre from Kirk Dowson, or online at The University
of Winnipeg Awards website.
Deadline : Dec. 12
Internal Awards
University of Winnipeg International
Student Bursary
International students who are attending the
University of Winnipeg and who have financial need
may apply for bursary assistance. The value of the
award is for up to $2500 per term up to a maximum
of $5000 over the May to March academic year. New
international students will be given first priority for
this bursary.
To be eligible, a student must: be an international
student attending the University of Winnipeg on a
Student Authorization; have documented financial
need; be registered on a full-time basis: minimum 60
percent course load and/or 18 credit hours for the
Fall/Winter academic year or nine credit hours for
a single term; be pursuing a University of Winnipeg
degree program; show satisfactory academic progress:
successfully complete at least a 60 percent course
load; maintain satisfactory academic standing:
maintain Regular Status or a “C” average (2.00 Grade
Point Average).
Interested students should complete the Application
and the Financial Need Assessment Form, available on
the Awards & Financial Aid website, and at the Awards
& Financial Aid Office or the International Office.
Deadline: Dec. 23, 2008
University of Winnipeg General
Bursary
General Bursary applications are available for
download from the Awards & Financial Aid website,
or can be picked up at the Awards Office located in
Student Services or at Student Central in Centennial
Hall.
To be eligible for this bursary, you must be able to
prove financial need and be making satisfactory
academic progress (i.e. maintaining a “C” average).
Deadline: January 30, 2009
Graduate and Professional Studies
Application Expenses Bursary
The purpose of this bursary fund is to provide some
assistance to students with respect to the high costs
associated with applying to Graduate and Professional
Schools. Expenses for a maximum of three programs
will be considered per year.
To be eligible applicants must satisfy the following
criteria: have a minimum award point average of 3.55
in the previous academic year; be registered in the
final year of an honours or four-year degree program
in arts or science, or in the final year of the Integrated
B.Ed. program; have documented financial need.
Students may apply any time during the Fall/Winter
academic year, provided that funding is available
for this bursary. Applications will be evaluated on a
first-come, first serve basis. Both full time and part
time students may apply.
Applications can be downloaded from the Awards &
Financial Aid Website or are available at the Awards
Office in Graham Hall and will be accepted beginning
Oct. 15.
Concert? Art show? Volunteer opportunity? Community event? Want to see your event in The Uniter?
E-mail your listing to [email protected]. The deadline for all listings is Wednesday. The Uniter is published every
Thursday, so send your listings 8 days prior to the issue you want your listing to appear in. It’s free. It’s easy.
AUCC Awards
The Association of Universities and Colleges of
Canada provides 150 scholarship programs on behalf
of the federal government, domestic and foreign
agencies, and private sector companies. Check out
website http://www.aucc.ca/ Look under the heading
Scholarships and Internships for Canadian Students.
The International Scholarship
Program 2008 Competition
Commonwealth Scholarship Plan: awards available
to Canadians for graduate study in Commonwealth
Countries.
Established in 1960, the Commonwealth Scholarship
Plan, was designed by Commonwealth governments
to enable students of high intellectual promise to
pursue studies in Commonwealth countries other
than their own, so that on their return they could
make a distinctive contribution in their own countries
while fostering mutual understanding within the
Commonwealth.
The Commonwealth countries listed below offer
scholarships to Canadian citizens and in certain
cases to permanent residents of Canada for graduate
studies (Masters or Ph.D.) or, in some countries, for
research toward a Canadian graduate degree.
New Zealand - http://www.scholarships.gc.ca/csp/
CWCadNZL-en.html Deadline: Dec. 15, 2008
United Kingdom - http://www.scholarships.gc.ca/csp/
UKUpdateMessage.pdf Deadline: Dec. 1, 2008
More information and applications are at http://www.
scholarships.gc.ca/csp/CWCAD1-en.html
Soroptimists: Women’s Opportunity
Awards
The Women’s Opportunity Awards program is
Soroptimist’s major project. Through the program,
clubs in 19 countries and territories assist women
who provide the primary source of financial support
for their families by giving them the resources
they need to improve their education, skills, and
employment prospects. Each year, more the $1 million
is disbursed through cash awards at various levels of
the organization.
To be eligible you must: be a female head
of household (single or married with the
primary responsibility of supporting yourself and your
dependents); be attending an undergraduate degree
program or a vocational/skills training program; have
financial need.
As many of the recipients of this award have overcome
enormous obstacles including poverty, domestic
violence, and drug and alcohol abuse, recipients may
use the award to offset any costs associated with
their efforts to attain higher education, such as books,
childcare and transportation.
For more information and application: http://www.
soroptimist.org/awards/awards.htm
Applications should be sent to: Heather
Menzies,1204-One Evergreen, Winnipeg, MB, R3L 0E9
phone: 475-2526.
Deadline: Dec. 15, 2008
Trudeau Foundation Doctoral
Scholarships
Up to 15 Trudeau Scholarships are awarded each year
to support doctoral candidates pursuing research of
compelling present-day concern, touching upon one
or more of the four themes of the Foundation. Each
scholarship is valued at $40,000 per year for three
years, plus an additional $20,000 annually to support
research-related travel.
Trudeau Scholars are selected through a process that
involves nomination by a university, an application
supported by references and transcripts, internal and
external review and selection panels, an interview and
the formal approval of the Board of Directors.
Students can find more information about this award
at www.trudeaufoundation.ca.
2009 Talbots Women’s Scholarship
Fund
Solutions to puzzles in next issue.
December 4, 2008
LISTINGS
21
The Awards and Financial Aid staff of the University of Winnipeg provides our student body with current information on award opportunities. This information is updated weekly.
Awards Offered by
External Agencies and
Organizations
Crossword Puzzle #15
The Uniter
In keeping with its long-standing tradition of serving
the community, the Talbots Charitable Foundation
is proud to offer a unique scholarship program for
women pursuing a university degree later in life.
Each year, the fund awards $120,000 in scholarships
to women who earned their high school diploma or
GED at least 10 years ago, and who are now seeking a
university degree.
Up to 66 scholarships will be awarded. Six women
will each be awarded $10,000 scholarships, and 60
women will each be awarded $1,000 scholarships.
Only applicants seeking a bachelor’s degree from a
four-year university are eligible to receive a $10,000
award. Awards are one-time only, non-renewable and
for undergraduate study only.
To be eligible, applicants to the Talbots Women’s
Scholarship Fund must: be women currently residing
in the United States or Canada; be women who earned
a high school diploma or their GED on or before
September 1999; be enrolled or planning to enroll in
a full- or part-time undergraduate course of study at
an accredited two- or four-year college, university
or vocational-technical school; be attending the full
2009-10 academic year and receiving a degree no
earlier than May 2010; have at least two semesters
(24 credit hours or more) remaining to complete
an undergraduate* degree as of the beginning of
the 2009 fall academic term. *Students who have
previously earned a bachelor’s degree are not eligible
to apply.
Please see the website for award guidelines and
application: https://www.scholarshipamerica.org/
talbotswomen/instructions.php
Or contact directly:
Email: [email protected]
Phone: 1-507-931-1682
Deadline: The application must be submitted
electronically by 11:59 p.m., January 2, 2009.
The Soroptimist Foundation of Canada:
Canadian Graduate Women Students
The Soroptimist Foundation of Canada annually offers
several $7,500 grants to female graduate students
in Canada to assist them with completing university
studies that will in turn qualify them for careers that
will improve the quality of women’s lives. Examples
of the Soroptimits’ work include: providing services,
legal counselling and assistance; counselling mature
women entering or re-entering the labour market;
counselling women in crisis; counselling and training
women for non-traditional employment, and for
positions in women’s centres.
Applications are available online at http://www.
soroptimistfoundation.ca/application.html
Deadline: Jan. 31, 2009
Export Development Canada
Export Development Canada (EDC) is a Crown
corporation with a mandate to develop Canada’s
capacity to engage in international trade. We’ve been
helping Canadian exporters and investors succeed in
global markets for more than 60 years by providing
trade finance and risk management services, as well
as sharing our foreign market expertise.
Through our Education and Youth Employment
Strategy, EDC helps build the capacity of the
next generation of business leaders by awarding
scholarships to students with a demonstrated interest
in international business.
EDC is offering a $3,000 scholarship awarded in
the spring 2009 and, pending eligibility, a potential
opportunity to apply for a four-month work term with
mentoring from leading industry experts at EDC, worth
approximately $10,000. Work terms will be available
for summer 2009.
To be eligible, you must be: A Canadian Citizen or
Permanent Resident of Canada; currently enrolled
in full-time studies at a Canadian university, in
second, third or fourth year of an undergraduate
program; enrolled in studies in international business,
economics, or combined business with sustainable
management or environmental studies; returning to
full-time undergraduate studies in the 2009-2010
academic year and have an excellent academic record.
Applications are at http://www.edc.ca/english/
student_scholarships.htm?cid=red1524 and must be
submitted online and received by Jan. 26, 2009
(23:59:59 EST) .
Provide supplementary documents by mail. All documents must be received by Jan. 26, 2009 (23:59:59
EST) . Faxes and e-mails are not accepted.
All documents must be sent to: Maurice Lelièvre,
Canadian Bureau for International Education, 220
Laurier West, Suite 1550, Ottawa, Ontario, K1P 5Z9.
DataTel Scholars Foundation
Scholarship
For outstanding students currently attending an
eligible Datatel client institution. The Datatel Scholars
Foundation Scholarship is open to full-time and
part-time students (taking at least six credit hours),
as well as undergraduate and graduate students in
any major.
Scholarship award amounts range from $1,000
to $2,400. For more information and application
please visit the Datatel website at https://www.
datatelscholars.org.
Applications must be submitted online and are
available from Sept. 1, 2008 to Jan. 30, 2009, 5
p.m. EST.
Toyota Earth Day Scholarship
Program
Toyota Canada Inc. and Earth Day Canada established
the Toyota Earth Day Scholarship Program to help
cultivate and nurture environmental leadership in
young Canadians. The Toyota Earth Day Scholarship
Program encourages and rewards graduating
Canadian high school students who have distinguished
themselves through environmental community
service, extracurricular and volunteer activities, and
academic excellence.
The Toyota Earth Day Scholarship Program grants
three awards of $5000 each annually to students from
Western Canada, Northwest Territories, and Nunavut,
to be applied directly towards tuition, books, room
and board (where applicable) or other educational
expenses for the first year of post-secondary full-time
studies in Canada.
To be eligible you must: Be currently in your graduating year or graduated in the last two years from a
Canadian high school or Québec Cégep; be entering,
for the 2008-2009 academic year, your first year of
full-time studies at an accredited Canadian college
or university; be a Canadian citizen or Permanent
Resident (landed immigrant); have demonstrated
outstanding environmental commitment, community
service and leadership during the course of their
studies; ,aintain a high level of academic achievement;
not be an employee or immediate family member of
an employee of Toyota Canada Inc. and its Dealers,
Earth Day Canada or Panasonic Canada Inc; fulfill the
requirements of the application package.
Visit this website for more information and application: http://www.earthday.ca/scholarship/about.php
Deadline : January 31, 2009
The Soroptomist Foundation of
Canada: Canadian Graduate Women
Students
The Soroptimist Foundation of Canada annually offers
several $7,500 grants to female graduate students in
Canada to assist them with university studies which
will qualify them for careers which will improve the
quality of women’s lives. Examples include but are
not limited to: providing services, providing legal
counselling and assistance, counselling mature
women entering or re-entering the labour market,
counselling women in crisis, counselling and training
women for non-traditional employment, and positions
in women’s centres.
Applications are available online at http://www.
soroptimistfoundation.ca/application.html
The Canadian Hard of Hearing Association Scholarship Program 2009
The mandate of CHHA is to encourage awareness of
hearing loss and to advocate self-help for hard of
hearing or deafened people. Its aim is to achieve
full hearing accessibility in Canadian society. The
Canadian Hard of Hearing Association Foundation
(CHHAF) was established to create a perpetual
financial legacy to support the activities of CHHA,
and create specific initiatives for hard of hearing or
deafened persons in Canada.
The purpose of the Scholarship Program is to offer
financial assistance and recognition to hard of
hearing and deafened students registered in a full
time program at a recognized Canadian college or
university, in any area of study, with the ultimate
goal of obtaining a diploma or degree. This year three
awards of $1,000 each will be granted and presented
at the Canadian Hard of Hearing Association Annual
Awards ceremony to be held at the CHHA Conference
in May 2009.
Please see the website for more information and to
download an application: http://www.chha.ca/chha/
scholarships-index.php
Please mail your completed application to: Canadian
Hard of Hearing Association Scholarship Program, 2415
Holly Lane, Suite 205, Ottawa, ON K1V 7P2
Voice: (613) 526-1584 Toll Free: 800-263-8068 Fax:
(613) 526-4718
TTY: (613) 526-2692 e-mail: [email protected]
All applications must be received by Feb 1, 2009.
Late, unsigned or incomplete applications will not
be considered nor will applications be accepted by
e-mail or fax
Work Study Program
The University of Winnipeg Work Study Program
is designed to provide supplementary financial
assistance through part-time campus employment
to students who are recipients of aid through the
Manitoba Student Financial Assistance Program
(Canada Student Loan and Manitoba Student Loan)
or through another province’s student aid program.
This employment income can be used to supplement
your student loan and to reduce your debt load, as
follows: you may obtain $50.00 per week ($50.00 X 33
weeks = $1650.00) in part-time earnings, without your
Canada Student Loan assistance being affected. Eighty
percent of any income you obtain above $1650.00
will be deducted from your loan assistance in order
to reduce your debt. (If you have borrowed from a
student line-of-credit program directly through a
bank, you also may apply for the Work Study Program).
To be eligible for the Work Study Program, you must:
be registered in a degree program at the University
of Winnipeg in the 2008/2009 academic year on a
full-time basis as defined by the Manitoba Student
Assistance Program (18 credit hour minimum); have
completed successfully 30 credit hours; be on Regular
Status at the University of Winnipeg; receive a government student loan of at least $1000 for 2008/2009
as a result of the financial need assessment done by
the Manitoba Student Financial Assistance Program
or another province’s student aid office or obtain
a student line-of-credit or student bank loan for
2008/2009 of at least $1000
Information and applications are online at http://
www.uwinnipeg.ca/index/services-awards or pick up
an application at the Awards & Financial Aid Office
located in Graham Hall.
Deadline for application: Oct. 20, 2008
Manitoba Student Aid
Program
Manitoba Student Aid Information
Application:
A Notice of Assistance will be sent to you
approximately two weeks after you file an on-line
application. It will indicate your assessment of
financial need and the amount of assistance you
are eligible to receive. There may be a may be a
request for (an) authorized signature(s) from you
and, possibly, your parents and/or spouse, as well as
additional documentation, attached to the Notice of
Assistance. This documentation must be submitted to
MSAP before your loan document will be processed.
Paper applications also will be available in the Awards
& Financial Aid Office in early June for the Fall/Winter
Terms and March for the Spring Term. A Notice of
Assistance will be sent to you approximately five
weeks after you file a paper application. If you submit
an incomplete application, or fail to supply supporting
documentation, there may be delays in the processing
of your application for student financial assistance.
You may check the status of your application at
any time on the MySAO section of www.studentaid.
gov.mb.ca.
Application Deadline Dates:
Manitoba Student Aid will accept applications until
mid-February, or two months before the end of the
academic year. However, if you wish to have your loan
application assessed and your financial assistance in
place in time for the beginning of classes, you should
apply by the following dates:
Fall/Winter academic year or Fall Term only: On-line
applications by Aug. 11, 2008, paper applications by
July 28, 2008. Winter Term only: On-line applications
by Dec. 5, 2008, paper applications by Nov. 17, 2008.
Disbursement Process for Your Canada/Manitoba
Student Loan:
Before a student loan document will be issued to
you, you must have submitted all the documentation
requested by the Manitoba Student Aid Program
to the MSAP Office, and you must be registered in
the minimum course load required for student loan
eligibility.
Several weeks before classes began, Manitoba Student
Aid printed loan documents for students whose MSAP
documentation and university course registration
were in order, and have sent the documents to
the addresses provided by students on their MSAP
applications. The loan document you receive will have
been electronically approved by the University of
Winnipeg Awards & Financial Aid Office. It will indicate
the fees you owe to the University of Winnipeg which
are to be deducted from the loan.
If the document is a Canada Student Loan document,
you may then take it to an approved Canada Post
outlet for forwarding to the National Student Loan
Centre. If the document is a Manitoba Student Loan
document, you can then forward it to the MSAP Loan
Administration Department. You should be prepared
to present proof of identification in order to validate
your loan documents.
Identification Requirements for your Canada Student
Loan document have been updated. You will now need
to present two forms of identification to validate your
identity: a valid photo identification (driver’s license,
health insurance card-with photo, passport, or citizenship card) and your social insurance card or most
Government of Canada official documents containing
your Social Insurance Number (i.e. will accept a Notice
of Assessment from Revenue Canada but not a T4 or
T5 slip). Manitoba Student Loan documents can be
validated by providing a copy of your identification
with both your name and current signature (example,
driver’s license, passport, banking card).
The National Student Loan Centre or the MSAP Loan
Administration Department will process the document,
transferring the fee payment portion of the loan
directly to the university and depositing any balance
into your account. Provide your personal bank account
information (either a void cheque, or your bank
account, transit number, and bank name and address).
Further instructions on these processes will be
included with the loan document package.
DID YOU KNOW You can check the status of your student aid application, find out what documentation is
still outstanding, update your address information and
much more on line? Go to www.manitobastudentaid.ca
Link to MySAO to log into your existing account.
DID YOU KNOW If you are a student who has had
past Government Student Loans and are currently
a full-time student but do not have a student loan
this year, please fill out a Schedule 2 document to
remain in non-payment status. Please come to Student
Services in Graham Hall, where front counter staff can
help you with this form.
DID YOU KNOW That Manitoba Student Aid staff can
be on campus on Fridays from 1 to 4 p.m. To meet with
them, you need to set up an appointment time. Come
to student services and book an appointment, or
phone 786-9458 or 786-9984.
Other Award Websites:
Canada Student Loan program and other important
information on finances and budgeting www.
canlearn.ca
Manitoba Student Aid Program www.manitobastudentaid.ca
Surfing for dollars? Try these two websites:
www.studentawards.com
www.scholarshipscanada.com
Please contact the awards office for information
regarding external awards.
Last week’s puzzle solution (#11)
Across
1- Bedouin
5- Summary
10- Nephrite
14- Deride
15- Eat away
16- Up and ___!
17- Church principles
20- Confine
21- System of social
perfection
22- Like
23- Air bubble
24- Place side by
side
28- Burn the
midnight oil,
studying
29- Hanoi holiday
32- Feudal vassal
33- “___ Brockovich”
34- Sea-going eagle
35- Empiricism
38- Hollow cylinder
39- Thick cord
40- Exhaust
41- Yo!
42- Routine
43- Fix beforehand
44- Nota ___
45- ___-pitch softball
46- Nut
49- Almond-flavored
liqueur
54- Typical instance
56- Thick slice
57- Stradivari’s
teacher
58- Chip in
59- Leander’s love
60- Ventured
61- Golf pegs,
northern English
river
Down
1- Antiquing
agent
2- Starchy food
grain
3- Rudiments
4- Waist band
5- Recoil
6- Writer Jong
7- Layer of paint
8- Spots
9- Peevish
10- Son of Isaac
11- Take ___ from
me
12- Lucie’s father
13- Austen novel
18- Rubber
19- News bit
23- Salt water
24- First letter of the
Hebrew alphabet
25- Sprite
26- Energetic
27- Gothic-type arch
28- Classy pancake
29- Attempts
30- Come afterward
31- Entice
33- Chew the
scenery
34- Otherwise
36- Unbreakable
37- Roman goddess
of the dawn
42- Harvest
43- Tranquil
44- Inept person
45- Strike hard
46- Interlock
47- Wheel shaft
48- Become closer to
49- A long way off
50- Coup d’___
51- Fork feature
52- Carry
53- Change for a five
55- ___ little teapot...
Sudoku Puzzle #12 Puzzle level: intermediate
Sudoku provided by krazydad.com
Last week’s puzzle solution (#14)
crossword provided by bestcrosswords.com
December 4, 2008
22
The Uniter
Sports & Fitness
Sports & Fitness
Wesmen
coach profile
Whatever it takes to win
Athletes’ pre-game
rituals and superstitions
Sports editor
A s the saying goes, athletes are creatures
of habit. Whether it’s putting on the
left shoe before the right every time
or wearing the same smelly shirt during every
practice and every game, there is always something that athletes do that is just weird.
I know when I played football and was playing an away game I would grab some grass from
my home field and sprinkle it on the field of
the team we were playing against. Now that I
think back about it, it seems really weird, but I
decided to do some research and find the best
of examples of some of the weirdest rituals that
athletes seem to do.
Let’s start with some Canadian content with
mixed martial artist, Georges “Rush” St. Pierre,
and his way of exciting himself before a fight.
As he is getting ready to beat the snot out of his
opponent, he can be seen twisting his own nipples to get himself psyched up. Well, he is the
Welterweight Champion of the UFC so maybe
he’s on to something as everyone in his fight
camp started doing the same thing
kelly morton
Jo Villaverde
Diane Scott
Brad Pennington
volunteer staff
CORY FALVO
Back in 1976, there was a rookie that drew
crowds with his weird antics. MLB pitcher Mark
“The Bird” Fidrych used to talk to his baseballs
after every pitch. Apparently, they talked back
because in that season he had 19 wins and lead
the league with a 2.34 earned run average.
Talking to inanimate objects seemed to be
a popular thing as Montreal Canadiens goalie
Patrick Roy used to do the same thing. Roy
used to talk to the goal posts. I’m not sure what
about, but they seemed to answer back as he
still holds the NHL record for career wins with
551.
For some athletes, their superstitions weren’t
quite as simple and were very time consuming.
For example, MLB pitcher Turk Wendell would
brush his teeth between every single inning. For
11 long seasons, during every break, he would
rush to the dugout so that he could make his
pearly whites extra shiny.
Wendell wasn’t the only one that spent his
break on a ritual. NHL goalie Roger Crozier
would have to change clothes between every
period. Twice per game he would have to take
off all of his goalie equipment, put on clean
clothes, then put all of goalie equipment back
on. It seems like that was more stressful than
actually playing the game.
The rituals don’t stop at athletes. Fans also
have their own neuroses. On the CBSSports.
com Message Boards, search for weird game rituals and you will find a list of wacky supersti-
tions fans have as they try to help their favourite
team win. Some fans rub pictures of athletes for
good luck and have to wear the same clothes
while watching every game.
MMA is taking over the world
Our love of violence
Kevin Chaves
Volunteer staff
CORY FALVO
J
ust like when the ancient Romans waited for
their gladiators at the Coliseum, we today,
as mixed martial arts fans, wait in anticipation for our gladiators to enter the octagon. No
matter the organization, whether it’s watching
the Ultimate Fighting Championships (UFC),
Affliction, Strikeforce, or even our own Cage
Wars here in Winnipeg, the goal is obvious: we
want to see two people beat the hell out of each
other.
This sport is drawing crowds in the millions
every single event, but its popularity is making
critics claim that it is too brutal. Well, there is a
simple solution to those whiners: get educated
on the sport or don’t watch it.
Mixed martial arts (MMA) is not human
cockfighting or an illegal prize fighting competition. It is a sanctioned form of combat art that
can be stopped at any time by either opponent
or the referee. Both fighters wear gloves to protect the hands, but more to help the face not
take serious blows.
The MMA sport has come a long way from
the “no hold barred” matches of the past. Fifteen
years ago it was an open tournament style with
no weight classes or many rules. Today, it’s two
combatants that have identical body frames but
different skills that make for better, more entertaining fights.
MMA fighters are incredible athletes. These
athletes have a serious boxing, muay-thai, jiujitsu, wrestling, kickboxing or karate background. Often, MMA fighters specialize in at
least two fighting styles when they enter the
cage.
There are only two things on a fighter’s mind
before they enter the octagon; knocking out the
opponent or submitting him. People pay good
money to witness a gory, standing brawl with
two dudes trying to knock each other out.
If these warriors are not trading blows, the
ground game can be a treat to watch. There is
no question that the bloody battles get more attention but we really enjoy watching choke attempts and submissions when the fight hits the
ground.
At times it can be boring to any uneducated
MMA fan but this technical chess game takes
years to learn. Those who hate the ground game
seem to love it after an opponent’s face turns
purple from a chokehold.
As much as we like blood, we also like seeing people being put into weird, odd, squeamish, mind-boggling pretzel-like shapes with
bones about to burst. Face it: when a situation
like this comes on the TV, you don’t change the
channel.
We humans may not all openly admit it but
we love all the blood and violence in the octagon. The sport itself is not at all brutal, it just
looks that way. It’s the fans of the sport that
might be.
Name: Diane Scott
Team: Wesmen women’s
volleyball
Position: Head coach
How long have been involved with the sport of
volleyball? “My first memories of volleyball were in
elementary school, but I
really got interested in volley during my Grade 11 and
12 years.”
Most memorable
moment(s) in volleyball:
“I have many great moments and some of those
would be winning championships, both here locally
with the university and
over in Europe. For me the
best moments are the people I’ve met along the way.
Walking the Great Wall of
China, freezing my ears at
Red Square, and having a
silver medal presented to
me by Fidel Castro.”
Who’s your favorite
player on the team? “They
all touch me differently.”
Favourite colour: “I have
three; red, white, and
black.”
If you could coach a different sport, what would
it be? “I’ve always liked the
sport of hockey.”
Favorite food/meal: “I like
a good steak. I’m definitely
a carnivore; I need my red
meat.”
Who would you like to
have dinner with? “Alex
Krahn, I heard her mother
is a great cook.”
Pet peeves: “Messes, disorganization, chaos, etc.”
BOOK REVIEW
Don Cherry’s
Hockey Stories
and Stuff is more
Coach’s Corner
than you can
handle
DON CHERRY’S HOCKEY
STORIES AND STUFF
Written by Don Cherry
and Al Strachan
Doubleday Canada, 2008
240 pages
$29.95
Kalen Qually
Volunteer
F
ighting belongs in hockey.
In the book, Don Cherry’s
Hockey Stories and Stuff, Don
Cherry’s stance on fighting is obvious and adamant. He even goes
so far as to use an animal kingdom
analogy to rationalize his support
of fighting in hockey.
“I compare it to a forest,” says
Cherry, “And in this forest, everyone gets along. You’ve got the tiger,
you’ve got the deer, you’ve got the
hyenas.”
What isn’t explained by this
logic, Cherry’s history helps to
clear up. Whether Cherry is recalling stories about playing junior
hockey for the Barrie Flyers, playing minor league hockey for the
Rochester Americans, or coaching
the Boston Bruins, there is a consistent theme of rough and fightfilled hockey.
Don Cherry’s Hockey Stories and
Stuff is not written as an autobiography, rather as one Don Cherrytold hockey story after another, but
it certainly functions as an autobiography. Cherry digs deep into his
playing, coaching and television
career to regale the reader with
stories that are either memorable,
funny, or significant.
The book is truly Don Cherry
uncensored. For any true hockey
fan, it is an essential read. It’s a
dose of hockey history told from a
man who played an important part
in it. For anyone else, it’s an eyeopening and honest perspective of
a Canadian icon.
Before starting Cherry’s book,
the reader should know to leave
their grammatical conscience at the
door. Cherry expresses a limitless
poetic license by printing words
like ‘kerphlooey’ and ‘schmozzle,’
as well as including every sentence
fragment and double-negative in
Cherry’s flawed vocabulary.
Along with the often schizophrenic order of his stories (at one
point Cherry jumps from a story
about his first on-air experience
with Ron MacLean and backtracks
to a minor-league fight story about
almost getting his thumb bitten
off), the book basically reads like
221-pages of Coach’s Corner. Cherry
is rarely organized or calculated in
his rants and seemingly neither is
his book.
There are moments in the book
that are signature Don Cherry, like
his spanning theories on morality
in hockey. Speaking about fighting
in hockey Cherry says, “Anybody
worth his salt will never beat up a
kid that can’t fight.”
With pride, Cherry recounts the
long list of comparatives the media
has used on him over the years.
“I was a Neanderthal,” Cherry recalls. “I was a clown. A know-nothing. I was a pinhead. Barbarian.
Troglodyte. And a misogynist.”
The final one, to which Cherry
originally replied, “What the heck
is that? Does she think I massage
people?”
Sports & Fitness Editor: Jo Villaverde
Phone: 786-9497
Fax: 783-7080
Sagan Morrow
Volunteer staff
Too fat? Too skinny?
Too much: Realities
of eating disorders
lmost 50 per cent of adult
Canadians are overweight. A
quarter of these are categorized
as obese. One quarter of young girls in
Ontario admitted to having eating disorders, and nearly 10 per cent of women
battle anorexia or bulimia. A study conducted by Health Canada showed that
50 per cent of high school girls are dieting or uncomfortable with their weight.
There is no question about it, our eating habits are out of control.
It is estimated that every day, we
make about 200 choices regarding food.
When most of that food is chemicallyladen processed packages that line the
shelves at the grocery store and another
large proportion is from the fast food
joints located at every street corner, it is
no wonder that the obsession we have
with food has hit an all-time high.
Let’s face it, food tastes good.
W
elcome back to NFL
Picks! This year we
are doing things
slightly differently. You will
be treated to the insight
of several analysts (from
the amateur to the elite)
each week. Keep track of
the players by watching
the scores! Loser buys the
wings!
The cast:
Tom Asselin Tom is the
veteran. Crusty, grumpy... well,
maybe just grumpy… He needs
to rely on his experience to
fend off the newcomers.
Marko Bilandzjia Marko
is one of the new guys. Will
the rookie come through in his
predictions?
Josh Boulding With only
mediocre NFL experience, does
he stand a chance against the
veterans?
Kevin Chaves As a hockey
fan sticking his nose into
America’s league, only time
will tell if Kevin Chaves can
make the plays on this season’s
outcomes.
Scott Christiansen
Scott is an experienced
contributor to the section but
new to the Picks.
Mike Collins Mike
is another experienced
contributor.
Adam Peleshaty Another
newcomer to the section, Adam
will try to take an underdog
win.
Brad Pennington Brad
knows basketball. Will that help
picking the pigskin winners?
Jo Villaverde Jo,
the contender, was in the
running last year. His football
experience may just land him
on top this season.
December 4, 2008
Sports & Fitness
Living well
A The Uniter
Holidays revolve around what we eat
and social occasions are really just excuses to pig out. But this is causing us
to over-indulge far past a healthy capacity to do so and it’s showing on our
waistlines.
The weight gain would not be such
an issue if we were gaining muscle and
choosing healthy foods. However this is
not the case. Most of what we gain is
unnecessary fat, a direct result of poor
eating habits. We shove aside whole,
natural food and instead stuff ourselves
with questionable ingredients. It is taking a serious toll on our bodies.
As a culture we have grown to fear
the obesity epidemic. Does this mean
we are becoming healthier? No. Instead,
we veer towards the other equally detrimental extreme, eating disorders.
Everyone seems to feel the pressure
to adhere to whatever fad diet plan
will make us thinner. Unfortunately
it doesn’t stop at just losing the extra
weight that we are carrying around.
Instead, the urgency to become the
societal ideal (read: skinny) is great
enough to cause such extreme measures
as engaging in disordered eating.
Eating disorders are prevalent among
all age groups. Alarmingly, even girls in
elementary schools are beginning to
NFL
PICKS
WAS @ BAL
Jo says:
Raise your hands if you thought Baltimore Ravens QB Joe Flacco
would be this good? No hands up? OK, I thought so. This kid
has been phenomenal and after a huge 34-3 win over the lowly
Cincinnati Bengals, he seems to have found a connection with
WR Mark Clayton. That kind of connection between a quarterback
and a wide receiver could be dangerous. See: Manning and
Harrison or Brady and Moss. The Redkins are pretty good but
expect the Ravens to carry on some momentum into this game
and win big by 20 or more points.
Brad says: WAS
Mike says: WAS
Jo says: BAL
Josh says: BAL
Tom says: BAL
ATL @ NO
Brad says: A good old NFC match-up. So who will win this game?
Both these teams are somewhat similar. The Falcons are better
rushers, and the Saints are better passers making this not an
easy decision. Atlanta has allowed fice points less per game
than New Orleans but the Saints are scoring more than the
Falcons. Time to flip a coin. Heads and I’m going with the Atlanta
Falcons. Tails and I’m going with the New Orleans Saints. The
coin shows heads, so I’m picking the Falcons to win.
Brad says: ATL
Mike says: ATL
Jo says: NO
Josh says: ATL
Tom says: ATL
DAL @ PIT
Tom says: This one looks to be a dandy with both teams coming
off impressive wins at home. The Cowboys appear to have found
their groove since Tony Romo’s return, which has led to three
straight wins. Romo was exceptional against the toothless
Seahawks throwing for over three hundred yards and three
touchdowns. Pittsburgh’s defence is arguably the league’s best
and is the main reason they’re sporting a 9-3 record heading
into this matchup. This game will come down to which Ben
Roethlisberger shows up. He’s been hot and cold all year but is
at his best when he doesn’t try to win the game himself. If he
can effectively spread the ball around to his playmakers and
23
COMPILED BY Jo villaverde
Alarmingly, even girls
in elementary schools
are beginning to
partake in disordered
eating patterns
partake in disordered eating patterns.
The love of and obsession with food has
led us all to lose control.
The drive to be healthy is paradoxically so much affected by our obsession
with food that a new eating disorder has
recently been identified. Orthorexia, the
unhealthy obsession with healthy foods,
is just as dangerous as any other eating
disorder. It can be difficult to recognize,
but it is on the rise nonetheless.
Our obsession with food, whether
we eat too much or too little, is problematic to us all. The preoccupation
we have with it affects our entire way
of life - we need to stop obsessing and
start living once again.
University of Winnipeg student Sagan
Morrow writes a health and wellness
blog. Check it out at http://livinghealthyintherealworld.blogspot.com.
W = 2, L = 0, T = 1
Tom Asselin Marko Bilandzjia Josh Boulding Kevin Chaves Scott Christiansen Mike Collins Adam Peleshaty Brad Pennington Jo Villaverde Why sports and politics don’t mix
The Peru soccer team has been banned
from international play for a indefinite
amount of time.
Yahoo! Sports reported that FIFA president
Sepp Blatter told Peru they had to end a longrunning feud between football federation
(FPF) and the Peruvian government by last
Monday. They did not and now they face an
immediate ban from international play.
According to BBC Sport, the dispute
began when Peruvian President Alan Garcia
refused to recognize the election of Manuel
Burga as the president of the FPF.
Whatever happened to just playing ball?
This could only end in laughter
According to News.msn.com, the NBA and
the Harlem Globetrotters are going to work
together on planning the hoop comedians
worldwide basketball tour.
“We believe our unique brand of basketball
showmanship, paired with the expertise and
infrastructure of the NBA’s global operation,
is an unbeatable combination for both
organizations and for basketball all over the
world,” said Globetrotters chief executive
Kurt Schneider.
Just imagine if the Globetrotters played
in the NBA. The Boston Celtics could never
handle the superstar power of “Stormin’
Norman” and “Flight Time Lang.”
Talk about a rout
34-31-0 = 68
41-24-0 = 82
48-17-0 = 96
43-22-0 = 86
46-19-0 = 92
41-24-0 = 82
40-25-0 = 80
43-22-0 = 86
41-24-0 = 82
out of the hands of Tony Romo, the Steelers will take this in a
walk. Pittsburgh 27, Dallas 17.
Brad says: PIT
Mike says: DAL
Jo says: DAL
Josh says: PIT
Tom says: PIT
OAK @ SD
Josh says: San Diego has been one of the biggest disappointments
of this season. It just goes to show how good a team can be on
paper, yet still not come to play on the field. However, Oakland’s
offence is mediocre at best offense. They gave up two turnovers
last week against Kansas City and could only convert on 3-of13 third downs. As long as the Chargers can forget about their
penalty issues from the past few weeks, they should have little
trouble getting past the Raiders, especially at home.
Brad says: SD
Mike says: SD
Jo says: SD
Josh says: SD
Tom says: SD
PHI @ NYG
Mike says: The Giants were the one of the hottest teams in the
league, prior to Plaxico Burress getting shot in the leg. Also,
their running back Brandon Jacobs is injured; he might play, but
he won’t be at the top of his game. Philly’s only starting to heat
up, and McNabb has remembered how to throw a football. The
game should be incredibly close, but in spite of everything, I still
gotta go with my gut; Giants win by a field goal or less.
Brad says: NYG
Mike says: NYG
Jo says: NYG
Josh says: PHI
Tom says: NYG
Last Week’s Games:
TEN 47, DET 10
SEA 9, DAL 34
MIA 16, STL 12
PIT 33, NE 10
KC 20, OAK 13
ESPN.com reported that in a football game
between two Florida high schools, Estero
High lost to Naples High 91-0. That means
Naples scored, on average, a touchdown
every three and a half minutes.
“I didn’t even know 91 was a multiple of
seven,” said Estero defensive line coach Pat
Hayes.
At half-time the score was 70-0 so at least
Estero held Naples to only 21 points in the
second half.
Tennis champion passes away
Carole Caldwell Graebner, former doubles
champion of the 1965 U.S. Championships
and 1966 Australian Championships (now
known as the U.S. Open and the Australian
Open), died at the age of 65.
According to SI.com, Graebner was
suffering from a battle with cancer until she
died last Wednesday in New York.
Graebner, and her partner Nancy Richey,
were the top-ranked doubles team in
1963 and also won the U.S. Clay Court
Championships in 1965 and 1966.
In case you weren’t sick about
hearing about Barry Bonds
Three perjury charges have been
dropped on Barry Bonds so now he only
faces 10 perjury counts against him and an
obstruction justice charge for testimony in
2003 where he denied in front of a grand
jury that he knowingly took performance
enhancing drugs.
According to USA Today, the baseball
slugger pleaded not guilty to all of his
charges and is set to face a trial in March.
“This is not a victory for the government
or a victory for Bonds,” said Carl Tobias, a
professor at the University of Richmond
(Va.) Law School.
“Yes, he got out of some of the counts, but
there’s still plenty left to proceed to trial.
This may help him if he was going to take
a plea, but there’s been no indication he’s
going to do that.”
In other news, Barry Bonds still hasn’t
signed a contract for a new MLB team. I
wonder why?
December 4, 2008
24
The Uniter
Sports & Fitness
Top five vices
in professional
sports
There’s more to sports
than just sports
Natasha Tersigni
Volunteer staff
W
hen you are at the top
of your sporting career,
winning is not always
your biggest battle. Below are some
common demons professional athletes face during their career. Or
rather, how professional athletes
are little demons themselves.
5) Show boating
The fans aren’t the only ones
noticing how ridiculous and outrageous athletic antics are getting,
the leagues are noticing too, and
they’re fighting back. Randy Moss
was fined $10,000 from the NFL
after he pretended to moon the
Green Bay Packer fans during a
playoff game in 2005.
4) Whining to the media
Apparently the best way to burn
off some steam at the end of a
tough game is to find a news camera and turn on the water works.
Just ask Terrell Owens, the wide
receiver for the Dallas Cowboys,
because he has got this down pat.
These athletes get paid a ridiculous amount of money and people
do not want to watch professional
athletes cry or complain on the
evening news - that is what therapists’ couches are for.
3) Invading corporate
America (endorsements)
Without the latest Guitar Hero
World Tour commercial the world
wouldn’t have known that Alex
Rodriguez, Tony Hawk, Kobe
Bryant, and Michael Phelps like to
dance around in their pink shirts
and underwear. Hey, maybe they
were not in it for the money, maybe
they just really believe in the products in which they endorse.
2) Pumping the ‘roids
A chemical substance that promises increased muscle strength is
a miracle drug for athletes whose
livelihoods depend on how many
goals they can score. Though illegal, many athletes feel the need to
turn to steroids to give them that
extra edge over their competitors.
In reality steroids have hurt more
careers than they have helped.
Due to Barry Bonds’ infamous
use of steroids, the outfielder remained unsigned in Major League
Baseball for the 2008 season, and
so far only has offers from minor
league teams. The use of steroids
not only tarnished Bonds’ name,
but left baseball fans speculating
which other players are also taking
steroids.
1) Demanding higher
salaries
Money. It’s the foundation of
professional sports. Sure, playing
a game is hard work, but profes-
sional athletes these days are reaping enormous financial rewards.
Professional sports are not the only
profession whose workers demand
higher salaries - look at the music
and movie industry. But when
children see their idols demanding money for a game, it certainly
takes the fun out of sports.
Before David Beckham agreed
to grace the Los Angeles Galaxy
with his presence, he made sure
he was guaranteed $5.5 million.
Beckham and many other professional athletes make more money
in one year than most people do in
an entire lifetime.

volume 63 - The Uniter

Transcription

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