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Your campus and ‘Hollywood north’ THE UBYSSEY

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Greeks splash for charity

Page 3 March 3, 2009 | www.ubyssey.ca losing bits of our thumbs since 1918 | volume xc, number 41 UBC’s official student newspaper is published Tuesdays and Fridays

Liquor licences banned by Samantha Jung Senior News Writer In preparation for this year’s AMS Block Party, UBC RCMP has put out a notice banning all other liquorserving events on campus from April 7–9. There are conflicting statements regarding the issue of special occasion licences (SOLs) in the past. RCMP Staff Sgt. Wendland says that the RCMP has enforced similar bans close to the dates of Block Party and the now-dead Arts County Fair (ACF) every year, and that the ban is due to the massive amounts of resources needed to police the events, most of which fall around April 8 this year. “We have to bring in 35 outside [officers] to safely police this area for the Block Party,” Wendland said. “This comes at a price tag of $35,000, which we have to cover through our policing budget, and the organizers do not have to pay. We do not have the resources to cover off everyone’s last minute urge to have a large party around the last day of classes, hence why Arts County Fair and now Block

Party was created. It is a safe guard for everyone that wants to attend and for the community that we police.” Jeremy McElroy, on behalf of the Radical Beer Faction (RBF), the pro-party AMS club on campus said that the club fully agrees with the ban on SOLs. “While it might seem to be a little excessive to outright ban licences before and after, you have to realize that the campus RCMP are not just babysitters for drunks, they do have real police work to do,” McElroy said. “And when it takes weeks of planning and preparation on their behalf to help keep our Block Party safe, the RBF is more than happy to give them a break the day before and the day after.” However, other RBF sources have said this is the first year that the three-day ban has been imposed. Typically, an SOL request must be submitted ten days prior to the event in question. The applicants must include details on the amount of alcohol at the event, the time, place and number of people attending. U

AMS execs go ‘on strike’ by Samantha Jung Senior News Writer

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Phi Gamma Delta flips their boy high into the air at Delta Gamma’s Anchorsplash. The UBC Greeks kicked off Greek Week at UBC with the annual event put on for the Canadian National Institute for the Blind (CNIB). The event consisted of two parts with a survivor theme. First, a strictly competitive section in which each team competed in swimming events, including raft relays, collect the artifacts, and individual swim. The second part of the night was an in-water, synchronized skit put on by each Greek society. The Delta Gamma sorority estimates that it made over $2000. kellan higgins photo/the ubyssey

Newly elected AMS president Blake Frederick, along with other incoming and outgoing AMS executives, is participating in a hunger strike to push the government for a national housing plan. The group includes former president Michael Duncan and outgoing VP Administration Tristan Markle, as well as Ale Coates, vice-chair of the Student Administrative Commission. The students are only drinking juice and water. The strike is part of the 2010 Homelessness Hunger Strike Relay. Am Johal, a board member for the Impact on Community Coalition, an independent watchdog organization for the 2010 Olympics started the strike at the beginning of this year. Other participants include UBC professor Michael Byers, Megaphone Magazine and David Eby, executive director of BC Civil Liberties. Frederick said participating in the strike is a personal descision, not an AMS initiative.

The strike is to “shame the government into acting” on the problem of homelessness. When the 2010 Olympics were announced in 2002, there were promises made to reduce homelessness in Vancouver. However, those commitments have not been met. “I’m personally embarrassed to be living in a country with such high levels of homelessness,” Frederick said. He and Duncan hope that this will prompt other student unions across the Lower Mainland to take up the hunger strike. Johal said that the strikers intend to make it into a trend across the country. The significance of UBC student action is that they’re “trying to build a broader public support,” Johal said. “The issue of affordability is not only of the Downtown Eastside, but of people who are working full time and carrying student loans,” he said. “The hunger strike is a symbolic gesture of resistance to raise awareness. This is a health and human rights issue.” U —with files from Katarina Grgic

ANGRY, ASIAN AND MALE

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Index Events News Culture Sports Perspectives Letters Editorial Streeters Letter-poem Poem Crossword Sudoku

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Events Ongoing Action—Camera: Beijing Performance Photography • Examines the trajectory from the discreet underground performance art community centered in Beijing’s “East Village” in the early 1990s, to a current internationally recognized practice. • January 16, 2009 10:00am–Monday, April 20, 2009 11:00am. For further information please contact Naomi Sawada at naomi. [email protected], tel: (604) 8223640, or fax: (604) 822-6689, or take a look at belkinartgallery. com/_email/_main_belkin/Action_Camera • UBC Greek Week • The Panhellenic Council and the InterFraternity Council are putting on a week long event for Greeks and UBC students alike. Events include, Delta Gamma Anchor Splash, Greek Letter Check & Guest Speaker, Staff Appreciation & Greek Jepoardy, Greek BBQ Fundraiser, Greek Olympics, Can-Struction & Greek Olympic Finals, Awards Presentation Ceremony will take place at Pride of Order of Omega. If you’ve ever wondering what the Greeks are all about come out and check out this events. • March 1–7, events all over campus. For more information check out the “UBC GREEK WEEK 2009!” Facebook group •

March 3 The Annual TEC Young Entrepreneurs Dinner • This is a networking and informational event where students, entrepreneurs, investors and top company executives share insights and exchange thoughts on current and existing ventures. • Tuesday March 3, 2009, 5:30pm–9pm, Renaissance Vancouver Hotel

march 3, 2009

If you have an event, e-mail us at [email protected] Harbourside, cost $20 (includes a full meal), Attire: Business Formal, for more information visit www.tecubc.com •

March 4 Milk • Check out Sean Penn’s academy-award winning portrayal of gay rights activist and politician Harvey Milk. By winning a seat in the San Franciso Board of Supervisors in 1977 Harvey Milk became the first openly gay man to be elected to public office in the USA. This biopic traces Harvey Milk’s career from his 40th birthday until his death. • March 4pm–8pm, 9:30pm–11:00pm, Location: Norm Theatre, Cost: $4 general admission, $2 members • Fair Trade Panel Discussion • What are the on-the-ground results of buying Fair Trade products? What might be the long-term effects of an increasing Fair Trade market? Sales of Fair Trade Certified products have been increasingly dramatically in recent years. This trend promises to ensure a fair and stable standard of living for producers, while also holding potential for cooperatives and corporations getting involved in the Fair Trade movement. The panel will explore the results of Fair Trade for all those involved, and where the movement might go in the future. • March 4 at 4pm in Norm Theatre, Hosted by Engineers without Borders, free • Happy-Go-Lucky • This British comedy film tells the story of Pauline Cross, a cheerful and optimistic teacher living and working in North London. Pauline, or “Poppy” as she is nicknamed, catches the attention of two different men, a social worker and a driving instructor, and complications ensue • Wednesday March 4, 6–8, 7pm–9pm. Location: Norm Theatre. Cost: $4 general admission, $2 members •

March 5 “Faith Without Fear” • Celebrate International Women’s Day with a screening of “Faith Without Fear” a documentary by the Canadian journalist and human rights activist Irshad Manji. The film will be introduced by the former Lieutenant-Governor of British Columbia, Iona Campagnolo. • March 5 at 7pm. Vancouver Planetarium Theatre. Admission for students is $8. Please RSVP by leaving a voicemail at 604-781-3151. • Fair Trade Breakfast • It’s back! You know the drill - Fair Trade Banana-Chocolate Chip pancakes, 3 for $2. Bring your own plate and cutlery. • March 5 at 8am in Kaiser Foyer, Hosted by Engineers without Borders •

Winners of the 2009 Ubyssey Literary Competition

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THE UBYSSEY March 3rd, 2009 volume xc, no 41

Editorial Board coordinating editor Kellan Higgins : [email protected]

news editors 1ST PLACE winning a prize of $75 is “The Way Back” by Jill Von

Sprecken. This story was not in the print version of our paper, but you can read it online at a later date. 2ND PLACE winning a prize of $50 is “Overtures” by Taylor Basso. 3RD PLACE winning a prize of $25 is “Twenty-seven years, Thirtysix Days” by Arielle Indiana Furneaux. HONOURABLE MENTION goes to Nafiza Azad for “Paranthas and Promenades.” Please contact Celestian Rince at [email protected] to claim your prize. The judges of the 2009 Ubyssey Literary Competition: GISELE BAXTER Originally from Nova Scotia, Gisele Baxter did her

BA at Mount Saint Vincent and her MA and PhD at Dalhousie. She did postdoctoral research at East Anglia (UK) and McGill, and has taught sessionally at UBC since 1997. Her areas of interest include popular culture, the gothic influence, children’s literature, and near-future dystopias. She writes fiction in her spare time. MICHELLE MILLER Born and raised in Ontario, Michelle is trying to get used to life on the west coast, which is easy in the sun and impossible in the rain. Michelle Miller is a queer-feminist writer of fiction, non-fiction and poetry. Michelle attends the MFA program in Creative Writing at UBC and is currently the fiction editor for PRISM international. Imagine Your Arts Major: What Can I Do with My Major? • Wondering what you are going to do with your BA? Come to this workshop and learn about the career possibilities open to you and the influence your choice of major has on your career prospects. Explore insider information for different career choices, from the day-to-day tasks of a certain job to advice on getting entry level positions, and what associations or organizations you should join. • March 5 at 12–1pm, location: Irving K Barber, Lillooet Room, register online at secure.students.ubc.ca/ workshops/careers.cfm • Imagine Your Arts Major Go Global: Taking Your Major Global • Imagine waking up for class in Australia or Denmark, or going on a volunteer placement to Africa a co-op placement in Singapore. Come to this session to learn about Go Global opportunities and how you can participate. • March 5, 5pm– 6pm. Location: Irving K. Barber, Lillooet Room, register online at secure.students.ubc.ca/workshops/careers.cfm • Verdi: Falstaff • The UBC School of Music presents Verdi: Falstaff. Featuring the UBC Opera Ensemble and the UBC Symphony Orchestra. In Italian with English subtitles. • Wed, March 5–Sat, March 7, 8pm–11pm, Sun, March 8, 3pm–6pm, Location: Chan Centre. Cost: $15 for students, $25 for adults. Tickets

available at the Chan Centre and through Ticketmaster • Movie Night • Screening of fair trade film “Black Gold” at 7pm in Wood 5. Drinks and discussion to follow at Mahoney and Sons. • March 5, 7pm in Wood 5, Hosted by Engineers Without Borders •

March 6 Imagine Your Arts Major Go Global: Taking Your Major Global • Imagine waking up for class in Australia or Denmark, or going on a volunteer placement to Africa or a co-op placement in Singapore. Come to this session to learn about Go Global opportunities and how you can participate. • March 6, 12pm–1pm. Location: Irving K Barber, Lillooet Room, register online at secure. students.ubc.ca/workshops/ careers.cfm •

Stephanie Findlay & Justin McElroy : [email protected]

culture editor

Trevor Melanson : [email protected]

sports editor

Shun Endo : [email protected]

features & perspectives editor Joe Rayment : [email protected]

photo editor

Goh Iromoto : [email protected]

production manager

Paul Bucci : [email protected]

copy editor

Celestian Rince : [email protected]

volunteer coordinator

Kalyeena Makortoff : [email protected]

webmaster

Adam Leggett : [email protected]

multimedia editor

Tara Martellaro : [email protected]

Editorial Office Room 24, Student Union Building 6138 Student Union Boulevard Vancouver, BC V6T 1Z1 tel: 604-822-2301 fax: 604-822-9279 web: www.ubyssey.ca e-mail: [email protected]

Business Office Room 23, Student Union Building advertising: 604-822-1654 business office: 604-822-6681 fax: 604-822-1658 e-mail: [email protected] business manager : Fernie Pereira ad traffic : Sabrina Marchand ad design : Gerald Deo

Legal The Ubyssey is the official student newspaper of the University of British Columbia. It is published every Tuesday and Friday by The Ubyssey Publications Society. We are an autonomous, democratically run student organization, and all students are encouraged to participate. Editorials are chosen and written by the Ubyssey staff. They are the expressed opinion of the staff, and do not necessarily reflect the views of The Ubyssey Publications Society or the University of British Columbia. All editorial content appearing in The Ubyssey is the property of The Ubyssey Publications Society. Stories, opinions, photographs and artwork contained herein cannot be reproduced without the expressed, written permission of The Ubyssey Publications Society. The Ubyssey is a founding member of Canadian University Press (CUP) and adheres to CUP’s guiding principles. Letters to the editor must be under 300 words. Please include your phone number, student number and signature (not for publication) as well as your year and faculty with all submissions. ID will be checked when submissions are dropped off at the editorial office of The Ubyssey; otherwise verification will be done by phone. “Perspectives” are opinion pieces over 300 words but under 750 words and are run according to space. “Freestyles” are opinion pieces written by Ubyssey staff members. Priority will be given to letters and perspectives over freestyles unless the latter is time sensitive. Opinion pieces will not be run until the identity of the writer has been verified. The Ubyssey reserves the right to edit submissions for length and clarity. All letters must be received by 12 noon the day before intended publication. Letters received after this point will be published in the following issue unless there is an urgent time restriction or other matter deemed relevant by the Ubyssey staff. It is agreed by all persons placing display or classified advertising that if the Ubyssey Publications Society fails to publish an advertisement or if an error in the ad occurs the liability of the UPS will not be greater than the price paid for the ad. The UPS shall not be responsible for slight changes or typographical errors that do not lessen the value or the impact of the ad.

Contributors Kellan Higgins realized the Ubyssey’s office was causing him to be Vitamin D deprived regardless of how much Vitamin Water he drinks because of the lack of sunlight in the office. He convinced Samantha Jung, Ian Turner, and Shawn Li to round up a mass mob of squirrels to build a new Ubyssey greenhouse on the grassy knoll. Zoe Siegel and Alicia Woodside scrounged around for scrap building materials (to keep costs low) while Trevor Melanson and Goh Iromoto cleared the land for Trevor Record to lay the foundation with the help of Keegan Bursaw and Sulman Umar. To keep the protesting students from disrupting the construction, Hereward Langley, Crystal Tai, Jorge Amigo, Teegan (please tell us your last name), and Henry Lebard used their super ninja skills and tazers to guard the site. Belinda Li consulted on the project to make sure the building was as sustainable as possible. While shopping for plants for the office, she ran into Kathy Yan Li and Katarina Grgic, who were looking for a present for Justin McElroy. Just then, Stephanie Findlay passed by and broke the news that Gerald Deo made fabulous brownies and Paul Bucci ate all of them. Back at the construction site, Celestian Rince and Shun Endo supervised puppies as they installed the final glass panes while Kalyeena Makortoff and Adam Leggett recruited kittens to pack up the old office. Llamas ssssfollowed Tara Martellaro’s commands to move everything to the new greenhouse. Kyrstin Bain then organized a sweet greenhouse warming party with Bengal tigers as honourary guests.

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Hollywood North on campus UBC trusted home of Wolverine, Battlestar Galactica, Smallville by Sophie Raider News Writer We may have appeared ostensibly to bristle at the encroachment of our campus by (presumably) snobbish Hollywood production crews—geez, they are so in the way. Totally made me late to class. But really, whenever possible, we exploited the event. We boasted to our friends at other universities, crowded the barricades hoping to catch glimpses of Hugh Jackman, snapped pictures to post on Facebook and perhaps even showed up outside Buchanan Tower at 2am, stirred by vague rumors that they would be filming an explosion scene. The affairs of the X-Men Origins: Wolverine shoot on East Mall late last month were certainly something to talk about. Then again, at UBC we are not unaccustomed to seeing film crews and sets around campus. Last year there were 46 separate productions shot on university grounds. Considering that British Columbia typically hosts over 200 major film and television productions (excluding commercials) in a year, UBC commands nearly 15 per cent of film shoots. Our campus is a hot venue. “UBC has always been a very valuable asset,” affirmed Susan Croome, British Columbia film commissioner. The Film Commission, which in 2008 celebrated its 30th year showcasing our province as a motion picture production destination, often recommends UBC to international filmmakers. Croome praised the campus as unique and cited a history of valuable experiences that drives foreign producers to return. In regards to Wolverine she crooned, “We felt very happy to have Hugh Jackman back here.” Every other X-Men movie featuring Jackman has filmed scenes in BC; and all but the first have shot at UBC. Producers keen to film on our campus inquire with UBC Business Development, which charges location fees of $2500 per shoot day and $1250 per prep or wrap day, as well as various operating fees. In 2008 commercial film production at UBC brought in more than $200,000 in location fees alone. A portion of these revenues serves to sustain UBC’s own film program. The departments of Film Studies and Film Production divide the funds to purchase films to screen, projectors, equipment, supplies, and services. “The majority of the funding for our equipment comes from these location rental revenues,” said Sharon McGowan, associate head of Film Production. “Without them we would not be able to do many of the things we do.”

American films comprise roughly three-quarters of BC production. As of yet, the languishing economy has not seen a decline in the business.

McGowan stressed that while a UBC student pays the same tuition for a philosophy lecture course as for a film production class, the costs to provide the film course are significantly higher. The livelihood of UBC’s film program depends on campus commercial production. As bonus, it is blessed by the networking opportunities that these productions beget. “The producer of The Matrix, Erwin Stoff, was here last year with The Day the Earth Stood Still, she explained. “He came into a class to speak to Creative Writing and Film students—he contacted me to offer to do this—and he talked about how nice it was to meet the students and get to know people from the campus.” Once or twice per term, granting schedules and conditions coincide, film students are allowed to visit a set. McGowan claimed that these firsthand observations have been great successes. In addition to The Day the Earth Stood Still, productions shot on-campus last year included the upcoming comedy, The Tooth Fairy, featuring Dwayne (the Rock) Johnson and Ashley Judd, as well as Harper’s Island, the new CBS horror series airing April 9. Arlene Chan, marketing manager of UBC Business Development, processes all campus production requests. They range from the scantly-budgeted student feature to the multi-billion dollar blockbuster hopeful (student films have their fees waived). Chan approves those that are deemed to be without adverse effect to the university or its reputation and minimally disruptive to university life. Her office notifies departments affected, which also receive a slice of the revenues. Those curious about upcoming productions can look to the Business Development website which, Chan insisted, will soon be up-to-date. And what of the economic crisis? American films and television comprise roughly threequarters of BC production. As of yet, the languishing economy has not seen a decline in the business. “We’re very fortunate,” Croome said. “We’re actually seeing a lot of interest for film production in 2009.” Vancouver’s production industry ranks third-largest in North America and has expanded rapidly to meet pre- and postproduction needs. As with the choice of UBC for the Wolverine re-shoot, Croome reasoned, “During uncertain times producers want to go to a tried and true location.” Chan alluded to other major productions scheduled to film at UBC this spring. However, she declined to offer specifics, citing years past when the paparazzi have materialized on campus, disturbing the peace of producers and students alike. For now, we can be grateful that Wolverine does not premiere until after final exams, that is, May 1. Afterward we can indulge in that action-thriller-fantasy that only Hollywood (and the cold, dark cement façade of Buchanan Tower) can produce. U

A SELECTION OF FILMS AT UBC:

1987

The Stepfather Terry O’Quinn

2001

Antitrust Ryan Phillippe, Rachael Leigh Cook

2004

The Butterfly Effect Ashton Kutcher, Amy Smart

TELEVISION SHOWS: Battlestar Galactica (2004 to 2008)

2007

88 Minutes Al Pacino

2008

Passengers Anne Hathaway, Patrick Wilson

2009 (IN POST PRODUCTION, TO BE RELEASED IN MAY) X-Men Origins: Wolverine Hugh Jackman, Ryan Reynolds

UPCOMING MOVIES ON CAMPUS: MARCH 4-5 7am–10pm Chan Centre for the Performing Arts

MARCH 6 7am–10pm Chan Centre for the Performing Arts 7am–10pm Liu Institute for Global Issues Production will prepare the Chan Centre from 7am–7pm, March 2–3, with wrap Mar 9–10.

WHO DO I CONTACT? Contact the Film Industry Liaison Officer, at 604-837-1951 or the Marketing Manager, UBC Business Development at 604-822-6555. goh irohmoto photo illustration/the ubyssey

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A Speakeasy representative providing information in their office in the SUB basement. shawn li photo/the ubyssey

AMS service fights counselling stigma

Students are not taking advantage of Speakeasy counselling by Ian Turner News Staff Speakeasy, an AMS service that provides information, peer counselling and crisis support to the UBC students and community is not being taken advantage of by UBC students, despite the service being free. The heads of the organization believe it is indicative of a stigma against counselling existing on campus. Nick Nagy, one of the two coheads of Speakeasy is on the frontline fighting the stigma. He offered two reasons for why this stigma exists.“It’s more a stigma against not being able to control one’s emotions by themselves. In Western society specifically we view having emotions as a weak thing,” he said.

No one wants to seem weak or need help. —Nick Nagy, Speakeasy co-head

“The stigma is not against counsellors, it’s against the people who actually have to go there or syaing they need to go. No one wants to seem weak or need help.” Additionally, Nagy said, “There still is a large stigma against the concept of someone having a mental illness.” Fatou Wurie, the other Speakeasy co-head, spoke about the service’s initiatives. Currently they are taking the traditional route of posters, classroom talks, and word of mouth. She added that breaking this barrier is difficult because the “stigma depends on your background, on your religious beliefs—it depends on how you just perceive life.” “We try to make sure our volunteers are exposed to issues of diversity, types of sexuality, religions and cultures so that they are not coming in blinded and think all have the same mentality or approach towards counseling.” Speakeasy is composed of approximately 80 volunteers, and the two co-heads on a salary. The organization previously operated

an information booth in the SUB’s main concourse. Wurie noted that the service was not clear to people to associate the information desk that exists downstairs in the SUB with the one in the main concourse. “That is a problem at Speakeasy we are constantly running into,” she admitted. Efforts are underway to link the information booth more tightly with Speakeasy’s goal: providing peer-support services. Peer-support service, as volunteer Mark McLean put it, is to “listen to what the student’s problems are,” and that “we try and help them figure out what they should do” without offering any advice. “I think if more people were aware of peer-support there would not be as much of a stigma because frankly it is just people coming into talk,” he said. Nagy added that “As more people become aware of the importance of maintaining good mental health the stigma will slowly wear away.” U

EUS campaigns to raise fair trade awareness Attempt to change student behavior during week-long event by Zoe Siegel News Staff

Go to www.ubyssey.ca to get all of your campus news.

How much coffee do you drink? To most university students a cup of java is part of the usual morning routine. Less thought about are the impacts their coffee habit has on developing countries. Engineers Without Borders (EWB) is hosting the week-long event Coffee To End Poverty to raise awareness of fair trade and to encourage students to be more aware of the products they buy. “There are lots of myths about fair trade out there and we are trying to break down the stereotypes,” said Sara Mohammad Pour, EWB director of outreach. Fair trade products guarantee fair prices and safe working conditions for the farmers. Coffee is a well known fair trade product, but there is also cocoa, sugar, tea, flowers and many others. Certified Fair Trade Products are marked with the black-and-white Transfair Canada Logo. Products

with this logo have been purchased under completely fair trade conditions. “It’s about choice, we want to make students aware of their choices,” stated Annelies Tjebbes, director of communications. The week began with outreach events at coffee shops on campus, including Salt Spring Coffee, the Boulevard, AMS food service restaurants and at Place Vanier and Totem Park residences. According to Tjebbes, “there is attitude and behavior change. UBC has assisted with the behavior change of the students by selling all fair trade coffee, but many students are unaware that that is what they are drinking. It’s about taking ownership over actions because they realize fair trade is making a difference.” On Wednesday there will be a fair trade panel in the Norm Theatre and many experts who have first hand experience working with fair trade

organizations will present their views and opinions about fair trade. Thursday there will be a pancake breakfast where fair trade chocolate chip banana pancakes and coffee will be served. During the evening they will show Black Gold, a film about impoverished Ethiopian coffee, focusing on one man’s fight for a fair price. This is the third year that EWB has run Coffee To End Poverty, but the first year they have put on events like the speaker panel and the film. The week will conclude with EWB Day on Saturday where EWB members will go out to local grocery stores including Safeway, Stongs and IGA Marketplace and hand out flyers promoting fair trade. EWB Day is a nationwide event so all other EWB chapters will be doing the same thing across Canada. “This year there will be something for everyone,” said Justine Clift, EWB Fair Trade Project organizer. U

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Online identity destroys job opportunities Once upon a time you could leave your past behind, not anymore by Ian Turner News Staff Digital Tattoo, a UBC awareness campaign, is striving to educate students about their online identity and the impact it will have on future careers. “People have often done youthful indiscretions that they have had to live down and the Internet is just a new place that these could be recorded,” said Sheryl Adams, an administrator at Digital Tattoo. “Your youthful indiscretion can be emailed around the world in a nanosecond. In the olden days you could leave your past behind, not so much any more.” “Students’ online identity can impact a student’s job search both positively and negatively. And we feel that a lot of students do not understand how employers can use social networking in the hiring process,” said Carol Naylor, manager at UBC Career Education. At career conferences Naylor has learned that many recruiters are actively looking online for applicant information. She defined an online identity

We feel that a lot of students do not understand how employers can use social networking in the hiring process. —Carol Naylor, manager at UBC Career Education

as what your online activity says about you as a person. “People will make assumptions about you based on the impressions you leave,” she said later. Digital Tattoo routinely holds booths at on-campus events that have high attendance rates, Imagine Day being an example. Career Services does not have an official stance regarding students’ online activity. Both Adams and Naylor stated that students are largely unaware of their own ability to control their public image on the web, an example being Facebook’s privacy settings. Naylor expanded upon this point saying many students did not know that their own photos could be accessed by employers through others’ Facebook accounts. Liana Popa, Digital Tattoo’s coordinator, said that Facebook is but one way to excavate an individual’s online identity. She cited Xobni, an outlook application, that locates the sender’s online social networking accounts and shows the account’s display photo(s) alongside the email, which may include a resumé. Coupled with students’ ignorance about their online identities is a belief that damaging online information can be removed from the web. Naylor dismissed that notion, saying that once anything has been posted on the web it is likely to be etched on the Internet. Adams seconded this saying it would be “a wise person” who let that general rule guide their actions. When asked what students should post online, Adams said, “Is it something you want you mom to see? Because your mom will probably be able to see it soon.” U

goh iromoto photo illustration/the ubyssey

Surviving the recession Columnist Alicia Woodside gives you the downlow on how to job-search during hard economic times

Recession-proof job-search strategies by Alicia Woodside News Writer Uneasy about the economy and how it may affect your job prospects? The following article serves as a useful compass, outlining advice in how to find the best job in today’s economy, from the viewpoint of a successful job-seeking student, and that of experienced director of UBC Career Services, Howie Outerbridge. Top five job-search strategies: 1. Stay on top of trends: Clearly, some sectors are affected more severely than others. Howie advises to really look into the larger trends to determine the best areas for future work opportunities. It’s as straightforward as reading the newspaper on a regular basis. He advises the Working section of The Vancouver Sun, which “is basically a snapshot of everything going on in BC and Canada.” It is readily available online. While students may find fewer opportunities this year in oil and gas, investment banking, or working with the big auto producers, they can direct their sights to numerous emerging opportunities. Simply glancing at the proposed federal budget gives students ideas for opportunities in several areas,

such as construction and infrastructure, or home renovations businesses. Students can also anticipate many opportunities in BC’s service industry during the lead-up to the Olympic Games. In other trends, Howie predicts Obama’s lead in developing green energies to provide a future surge in opportunities worth exploring for students. The large aging population translates to opportunities in the health care sector, as well as in the provision of medical and health-related products and services. In addition, it means unprecedented levels of attrition for the government as the aging workforce begins to accelerate. Branches such as the Public Service Commission and Canadian Security Intelligence Service are expecting huge staffing needs. Government related postings on Career Services’ job board experienced a jump of 28 per cent between November 2007 and November 2008, while all other sectors experienced little change, or a decline. Howie advises reading the ‘Working’ section of the Saturday Vancouver Sun for a great place to start generating ideas 2. Self Initiate! It’s often repeated that over 80 per cent of jobs aren’t even advertised. As a result, job search attempts that

consist only of applying to postings can severely limit success. It can be difficult, even impossible, to convey your skills and personality on paper alone. The best jobs are found by networking. When an employer meets a potential hire in-person and outside of a typical hiring environment, they will be able to assess things that cannot come across on paper, such as enthusiasm, attitude, and interpersonal skills. Great ways to create these opportunities are through cold-calling companies you’d like to work for and setting up informational meetings. Don’t be shy, the worst they can say is, “No thank-you.” Other great tactics are to use well-connected faculty and UBC staff. Pay a visit to a professor from your field, or to a staff member from Career Services, as employers are frequently contacting UBC in search of a qualified candidate they can recommend. In addition, these knowledgeable sources can direct you to the best places to seek opportunities. If job boards do see a decrease in postings this year, the increased competition is reason enough to seek more creative job search strategies. 3. Create a network team: If you were to agree to share contacts with a few of your trusted friends and classmates, you

would far sooner come across the ideal work opportunity, or the contact to make that job a reality. As a result of sharing networks and actively communicating opportunities to one another, these trusted contacts act as teammates in your job search, always on the lookout for something or someone that may be helpful to you. The beauty of this strategy is that your teammates know you well and care for your success, so they can pass on ideal opportunities. Build your aggregate network attending events and building relationships with people you feel you can learn from. 4. Use those resources: Did you know that there are six career fairs happening in term two, or that UBC Career Services has a fantastic, loaded job board online? What about the Work Study program, or the one-onone peer support program that is being introduced by Career Services to help students more personally in their career preparation? In the event of fewer jobs being available this spring, your chances of success come down to the number of opportunities you apply to, as well as the quality of your cover letter, resumé, and interviewing skills. The peer career support will provide much-

needed one-on-one guidance on all aspects of the career search. Career Services will also be expanding its Work Study opportunities to the summer, which offer part-time work for students at rates of $15-$20 per hour in their field of interest. Sign up for a bi-weekly update about all Career Services resources on their Facebook group. 5. Be flexible! It’s evident that some areas are adversely affected by the economy, and it may be that your dream job is one of those areas. A common message from career experts is to be more flexible in times of economic uncertainty. If the job you land this spring isn’t the ideal one you envisioned, ensure your future success by getting the most you possibly can from the job. There are always transferable skills to be developed that can aid you in your ideal career down the road. Linda Gully, director of the Business Career Centre at the Sauder School of Business, states that “students can normally choose their industry, their position, or the company.” Her message is to be thankful for an opportunity that satisfies goals in one of these three dimensions, and not to expect to land a job right away with all three perfect circumstances. U

CVitaminWater: The hipper, sexier broccoli Culture

Editor: Trevor Melanson | E-mail: [email protected]

by Arielle Indiana Furneaux Culture Writer

VITAMINWATER >>120 CALORIES

>>39 GRAMS OF SUGAR

COCA COLA >>140 CALORIES

>>39 GRAMS OF SUGAR

Playing the time machine game can be an instructive exercise. Pick one object from our society, and predict what archaeologists from the future would conclude about our culture based on that artifact. The future archaeologist would have good reason to conclude that UBC students, circa 2009, were terribly malnourished. Maybe food had lost its nutritional value after some agricultural disaster. Perhaps the digestive tract had warped to prohibit digestion of solids. In any case, the prevalence of VitaminWater would suggest that something big had happened to upset our relationship with food. VitaminWater dispensers have sprung up far and wide on UBC’s campus, beckoning the uninitiated with candy-coloured bottles and the beguiling suggestion: “Try it.” Flavours are tailored to meet specific bodily needs, bearing succinct names like “Defense” and “Revive.” VitaminWater’s cachet has been cemented by a nod on Gossip Girl, where an anxious teen requests a bottle of “Focus” to help get her through a party. Clever. UBC students are embracing the trend. Law student Xiaodi Jin told me he gravitated to the drink “because it looked healthy, efficient and clean.” Coca-Cola is obviously doing something right, having bought VitaminWater-creator Glaceau in 2007. It’s no secret that advertisers capitalize on inventing new problems for us to treat. My eyelashes aren’t thick enough, so I should buy some volumizing mascara. Your manhood isn’t big enough, so you should order yourself a bigger one.

These branded deficiencies are particularly insidious when they pertain to our health. We can usually talk ourselves out of the idea that un-enhanced eyelashes are the end of the world. Claims about health can be harder to shake off. For one, they seem more serious. Also, we may not have the scientific know-how to assess them critically. Michael Pollan, author of In Defense of Food, bemoans the growing trend of treating food as combinations of nutrients as opposed to nourishing meals. Instead of buying a tub of yogurt, consumers buy health products like Yoplait Source, whose cartons trill about “8 essentials” like bacterial cultures and vitamin A. Yogurt of the bygone era was certainly nutritious, but wasn’t presented as a health elixir. Consumers now scoop up cereals, orange juice and milk fortified with vitamins. The same trend has permeated the most basic sustenance we can give our bodies: water. Instead of relying on water as an intuitive form of hydration, we have boosted the meager liquid’s prestige with the addition of minerals, vitamins and flavours. VitaminWater does contain its fair share of vitamins. My bottle of “Defense” (bought for research purposes, I assure you) contains vitamin B3, pantothenic acid, vitamin B6, vitamin C, zinc and vitamin B12. These vitamins and minerals are tellingly referred to as “medicinal ingredients,” reinforcing Michael Pollan’s “food-as-nutrients” lament. And the amount of vitamins isn’t negligible, either. “Defense” contains 1.5 micrograms of vitamin B12. For comparison: one large fast food taco contains 1.6 micrograms. The daily recommended intake is 6.0 micrograms.

March 3, 2009 | Page 6

Although the drink contains a substantial amount of vitamins, its high sugar content may overwhelm any health benefits. Each bottle contains 39 grams of sugar (roughly two tablespoons), and 125 calories—just shy of the 140 in a can of Coca Cola. Of course, each bottle officially contains three servings. But really, who drinks just a third of a bottle of water? You might suggest that the presence of vitamins outweighs the sugar content of VitaminWater. Certainly, a vitamindeficient third world denizen would benefit from the infusion of vitamins in a bottle of VitaminWater. But North Americans generally aren’t suffering from scurvy or beriberi. According to Scienceline, the only vitamin of which Americans consume less than half their recommended daily amount is Vitamin E, which happens to be fat-soluble. In other words, in order to properly absorb the Vitamin E in a bottle of VitaminWater, you would have to time your drink to coincide with a meal. Furthermore, Vitamin E is only found in four of VitaminWater’s thirteen varieties. After their discovery in 1919 by biochemist Casimir Funk, vitamins became a big hit with the middle class. Amusingly, these were the very people who didn’t need them. The upper crust could afford enough nutrition to avoid deficiency diseases like scurvy. Little has changed in nearly a century. VitaminWater plays right to the Kitsilano mindset. Here is a group of wealthy, trendy people eager to jump on the latest health bandwagon. If you can afford a $2.25 bottle of cunning marketing and sugar, you probably don’t need those incidental vitamins. U

Hot Hot Heat for a drunk drunk Pit by Trevor Record Culture Staff I thought that Hot Hot Heat was pretty popular at some point, but I guess things have gone downhill for them. Last Thursday they played a free concert at the Pit. They were promoting Corona beer, which was still not the cheapest beverage available at the bar, but all it takes is a few people deciding to buy that stuff for the rest of their lives for it to be worthwhile to the company’s marketing team. The Pit, which had been painted up like a tropical trollop, had reasonably high attendance, but considering there was a free concert going on you might have expected a moderate lineup. Once the doors opened at 8pm, everyone that wanted to get in did, which places the show behind Pit Night for attendance. All this seems to contradict their MySpace page, which claims two sold-out shows at the Commodore in April (ah, but there they are opening for Bloc Party). Maybe it was a carefully

calculated move on the part of the Corona marketing team to make sure we were all getting sort of sauced, but the show didn’t start until a few hours after doors had opened. The openers were Vancouver’s Bend Sinister; I questioned if they named themselves after the Fall album or the Nabokov novel it took its name from. Despite their namesake, they didn’t do anything too musically crazy, playing basically solid rock music (with a few exceptions). They started things off with a terrible cover of “A Day in the Life,” and finished with a passable cover of Journey’s “Don’t Stop Believing,” which many of the partially-inebriated crowd were disposed to scream along with. In between they sounded sort of prog-rockish, and at moments like Queen. Hot Hot Heat got started even later, but the crowd’s reaction was explosive. Although I hate to admit it, things did indeed get fairly hot. About half of the dance floor was either dancing or trying desperately not to get

Hot Hot Heat had nearly everyone on the dance floor dancing—or falling over. hereward longley photo/the ubyssey

knocked onto their asses. For a while, we were getting into punk concert territory. Hot Hot Heat played an hour set, consisting of many of their earlier songs. They followed up with a single encore. Then Pit security

kicked all of our sorry asses out. Maybe it was just the beer, but the show was good. The last time I saw Hot Hot Heat play (at the Croatian Cultural Centre back in 2003), the Walkmen and

the Organ opened for them, both of whom played a better set. I guess they’ve gone from being a sort of crummy breakout band, to being a competent, established band whose popularity is waning. Damn, I feel old. U

march 3, 2009

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culture | 7

To some, it seems it’s always white guys with Asian girls rather than otherwise. shawn li photo illustration/the ubyssey

Angry Asian man Dealing with persecution and acquiring confidence by Crystal Tai Culture Writer A week ago, I sat down with selfdescribed “former Angry Asian Man” Mark Lee. For those of you non-angry Asians and nonAsians alike, “angry Asian man” is a term that’s been coined for Asian men who feel subjugated and invisible within Western society. Feelings of neglect may arise from their perceived lack of political visibility, media exposure and Asian role models. There are also the stereotypes that have accompanied Asians in North America. Mark Lee is a fourth-generation Chinese-Canadian, speaks English at home with his mom and dad, and grew up in the Vancouver suburbs where he watched hockey and G.I. Joe. For Mark, the bulk of his angst started when he realized society looked upon Asian men as sexless computer programmers, possessing little machismo and zero social skills. Mark’s reality didn’t help his outlook

They harbour misogyny, blaming Asian women for leaving ‘us’ for white men, but really, it’s just the anger of getting no women! —Mark Lee

on Asian men either: “I had low self-esteem, I was chubby and I always put women on a pedestal.” Dating always seemed very one sided for Mark. It was always a white guy and an Asian girl, he said. But rarely would one see a white girl with an Asian guy. Mark became curious and started poking around online to see if there were any correlations or theories behind his observations. “It was winter break, I was 17, reading stuff online,” he said. He found Asian-American social awareness websites such as Asian Nation and Angry Asian Man. “That’s when it all started to make sense. I wouldn’t have attributed [all the setbacks I felt that Asian men had] to race before,” he said. “I didn’t realize other people had the same theories.” Ultimately, it was anti-Asian racism that “really got to” Mark. “I read about some incidents on the campus at Stanford University,” he said. There had been racist graffiti on the Ivy League campus, “racist graffiti that was very misogynistic about Asian women,” he said. “I’m not sure if these ideas might have been acted upon, but they were combined with [notions] of raping Asian women.” Such racism existing in a so-called “PC” creamof-the-crop intellectual facility enraged Mark. Online was also where Mark learned about the origins of the stereotype of the sexless Asian man. Some of these notions are based from historical misconceptions he said. “In a frontier country, such as Canada, there were few women,” he said. “Chinese workers were presented with very little opportunity to do regular work. A few that were lucky became merchants, others did what they could,” Mark said, referring to the domestic labour

that Chinese-Canadians took on. “They didn’t have a lot of options,” so many of them did domestic labour, while others opened shop within the industry such as laundromats, Chinese restaurants, tailor shops and the like. “I think racial dynamics [are indicative] of the different threats different groups represent to the [mainstream] society,” Mark said. “Different people are blamed for different issues.” Historically, AsianCanadians have presented an economic threat. “Do they fear that we’re smarter? That we’ll take over?” All in all, Mark attributes the stereotypes to historical fact, as well as many of the misconceptions that have perpetually plagued Asians in the West. But the worst part of it, according to Mark, is the role of the Angry Asian Man himself. Despite the fact that they are affected by Western stereotypes, these angry Asian men also tend to bring it upon themselves. “They harbour misogyny, blaming Asian women for leaving ‘us’ for white men,” said Mark. “But really, it’s just the anger of getting no women!” He plans to put the spotlight on the Asian male community in his upcoming workshop, “Asian Man, Take a Stand! Reframing the Angry Asian Man Experience.” He says it will be a group experience where Asians and non-Asians alike can chat together about social stigmas surrounding Asian men. Mark’s workshop happens on March 5, 1–2:30pm in room 214, SUB building. U The workshop is one of many, which will take place at the Asian Canadian Cultural Organization’s annual Unconference, March 5 and 6. For more information check out www. ubcacco.com or look up ACCO on Facebook.

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CULTURE MEETINGS: WEDNESDAYS @ 4PM GENERAL MEETINGS: WEDNESDAYS @ NOON COME, LEARN, JOIN, PARTICIPATE WWW.UBYSSEY.CA

Rocking out with a guitar—and star power. goh iromoto photo/the ubyssey

Guitar heroes

Video game introduces kids to musical legends by Jorge Amigo Culture Writer Like many of my generation, I used to be a video game addict. From Mario to Contra, from Final Fantasy to Grand Theft Auto, my addiction touched every genre and console. However, people change and I stopped gaming about four years ago. This meant that I was left completely untouched by the wave of Guitar Hero madness that has swept over the world—until now. Two week ago, I volunteered to give a guitar lesson to innercity kids from an Eastside elementary school in Vancouver. I spent about two days preparing for the lesson, thinking of simple chord progressions to teach them, or easy riffs to keep them entertained. Memories of my first guitar lessons flashed through my mind and I thought about teaching them an easy Beatles song to get them excited about learning a full song in a single class (“Obla di obla da” was obviously the first choice). But one thing I never thought about was studying the songs from Guitar Hero 3: Legends of Rock. As I walked into the class and introduced myself to the group of fifth graders, I tried to begin a conversation about their taste in music. A teacher

has to find some common cultural referents, so I tried namedropping some bands, to no avail. The kids stared back at me as if I were speaking in tongues. I namedropped some more, even began to play the intro of “Wish You Were Here,” but the result was the same. I stopped and realized that I was staring down into a deep and authentic generational gap. Then a hand shot up in the air. It was a twelve year old with an awesome mohawk that made me, with my knit scarf, look like a Backstreet Boy. He looked me in the eyes and delivered the magic words: “Dude, don’t you know any songs from the new Guitar Hero?” Suddenly, the whole class was talking about the songs, and of the levels, and if Slash was the hardest to beat, or if Jimi Hendrix was faster. I was taken by surprise, shocked. It suddenly dawned on me that the musical tastes of a whole new generation are being shaped by the playlists from Guitar Hero. Elementary kids everywhere are connecting with long-gone music legends through the coloured buttons of their plastic guitars. This, more than anything, more than its record breaking sales, is the true success of the game. And, of course, as the lesson proceeded, I did not mention the Beatles song. U

Sports SCalgary outlasts UBC in thriller Editor: Shun Endo | E-mail: [email protected]

March 3, 2009 | Page 9

T-Birds lose in heartbreaker, but still make CIS Championships

LEFT Josh

Whyte leaps for a layup during the Canada West Finals. keegan bursaw photo/the ubyssey. RIGHT Fans cheer on the players while enjoying beer. BELOW Crazy P cheers. goh iromoto photos/the ubyssey

by Henry Lebard Sports Staff The UBC men’s basketball team had two things standing between them and a third straight Canada West Championship: a Friday night game against the Brandon University Bobcats, and a Saturday night matchup with the University of Calgary Dinos. The TBirds needed to win on successive nights at War Memorial Gym, but fell short in the gold medal game against Calgary 80–76 after breezing through Brandon 92–71. Brandon did not prove to be much competition for the home squad as UBC set out to an early 21 point halftime lead, which they would not relinquish despite 29 points from Bobcats first-team conference all-star guard Dany Charlery. The Bobcats made just 27.3 per cent of their shots from the field in the first half compared to the T-Birds’ 58.8 per cent. Thunderbird guard Chris Dyck, in his fifth year, led the team with 24 points (18 coming in the first half) and eight assists. Starting guard Josh Whyte played just 15 minutes for UBC due to early foul trouble and scored only two points, but 18 points off the bench from Brent Malish allowed head coach Kevin Hanson to rest Whyte for the following night versus Calgary.

The guys put so much effort and energy into it. We did run out of gas a little bit late in the fourth there when we needed it but these types of games are great to go through. —Thunderbirds Head Coach Kevin Hanson

“He would be a starter on most teams in the conference, and he is the best sixth man I have ever had,” said Hanson about Malish. “When he comes in he can really score because he is good inside and outside, and he is a very tough match-up for everybody.” Without Whyte running the point guard position for the Birds, Dyck, a transfer from the University of Manitoba, took his place. “We ended up playing Chris at point guard a bit in the first half just to make sure the ball was in his hands,” said Hanson. “In the second half they did a good job defensively, but we also didn’t find him in our offence. But other guys started scoring, and when you can put up 92 points there’s not much wrong with your offence.” Before UBC’s dismantling of Brandon, Calgary did much the same to the Trinity Western University Spartans, who won the Bronze medal game Saturday against Brandon. Calgary beat TWU 96–65 with 57 of their 96 points coming from Robbie Sihota and Henry Bekkering, which worried Hanson Friday night when he learned who his team’s opponents would be the following night. “That was one of the best games I’ve seen Calgary play in a long time,” said Hanson of Calgary’s dominating performance over TWU. “They have size, they have athletes, they have shooters and they will probably want a little bit of revenge for what happened last year at their place, so I think it’s going to be a great basketball game and both teams are going to be really well prepared.” In Saturday’s game, the T-Birds allowed the Dinos to get off to a quick first quarter lead after a dunk by Dino forward Dominyc Coward on a fast break as the first quarter expired. The Calgary

bench was pumped up after the buzzer-beating play and took their momentum into the second quarter. Starting guard Blain Labranche fell awkwardly in the first quarter injuring his left foot, and did not return. UBC surrendered 12 unanswered points to Calgary in the second quarter to allow them to jump out to a 36–20 lead that would turn into a 48–32 Dino lead by halftime. “They came out more like men and we came out more like boys,” Hanson said of his team’s poor play to open the game. Down by 12 points to start the fourth quarter, Hanson brought in, for the first time in the game, speedy first-year guard Akeem Pierre to help his team play a highpressure, full court defence in order to try and create turnovers. It paid dividends, as the T-Birds managed a 17–4 run to tie the game with 3:54 left to play after being down by as many as 21. It was thanks in part to a series of three-pointers by Whyte, Dyck, and Malish. From that moment on to the 1:33 mark, the teams held each other scoreless. That was until

Sihota (15 points, 11 rebounds) drained a clutch jumper from the elbow to put his team up 76-74 thanks to a vital offensive rebound by teammate Henry Bekkering (22 points) who assisted the play, and whose brother and teammate Ross Bekkering had 17 points and 14 rebounds. With a 77-74 lead and 40 seconds remaining, Whyte (21 points, 5 rebounds, 5 assists) stole the ball at mid-court from Dino guard Andy Rachon and finished the play with two points to cut the Calgary lead to one. But on the Dinos’ next possession, Sihota struck again. With the shot clock winding down, he obtained the ball at the top of the key and nailed a fading three-pointer to put his team up 80–76 for good. “I kept telling the guys ‘We don’t have to just hold on. Keep going and playing hard,’ but I think our guys did tighten up a little bit,” said Calgary coach Dan Vanhooren. “Our expectation wasn’t to come in here and get out to the kind of lead we did. We expected it to be quite a battle and UBC is a great basketball team. We knew they were going to come back. We had that lead way too early and we

froze up a bit on offence down the stretch. But it was nice to see us loosen up and have Robbie hit that big shot at the end.” It wasn’t all negatives for the Birds, though, as the hard-fought battle allowed them to prove to themselves that they could mount furious comebacks in nervy situations. They failed from the freethrow line however, making just 12 of 25 foul shots, which could have made the difference between victory and defeat. “It’s a great time to be playing our best basketball,” said Vanhooren. “Our turnovers are down and we are passing the ball well and shooting well. When we are doing that, we are a really tough basketball team, and we proved that tonight. UBC is a great team and they deserve to be ranked number two, if not number one, in the nation, and they are going to be a heck of a team to deal with at nationals.” “I thought we made a great comeback,” said Hanson who, after the game, was awarded the Canada West Coach of the Year Award. “The guys put so much effort and energy into it. We did run out of gas a little bit late in the fourth there when we needed it but these types of games are great to go through. To show our guys that we are able to come back in a game like that was important.” UBC and Calgary will be the only two teams to represent Canada West in the national championships, which begin March 13 at Carleton University. Dyck, one of three T-Birds captains, finished the game with 23 points, six rebounds and four assists and is more than ready for the challenge of the national championships. “Taking a loss like this, we’re going to work hard and just get back at it,” said Dyck. “We’re going to be hungrier than ever.” U

10 | sports

Agenda : Wednesday, March 4 1. Women’s Supplement 2. Colours Supplement 3. Staff restructuring vote 4. Kate’s fundraiser 5. Motivational staff meeting date 6. Mary Lynn seminar 7. Discuss where 6 went 8. Mary Lynn seminar 9. Ubyssey board election update

the ubyssey | www.ubyssey.ca

march 3, 2009

Back 2 Back!

• Note: The meeting will start precisely at 12:05. Be there.

The women’s volleyball team competed in the CIS championships this past weekend and won their second consecutive crown in Fredericton, New Brunswick. Although finishing third in the Canada West regular season, the Birds bounced back to claim the Canada West championship and went on to beat Calgary at the CIS Championship finals. With pressure on their back and playing far away from home, the Birds were initially not the top favourite in the tournament as they were seeded second after Montreal. The Calgary Dinos had the momentum going into the final by beating Montreal in the semifinals, but fell short in front of the defending champions. The final was a hard fought match with a score of 25-20, 22-25, 29-27, 20-25, 15-9. The Birds have now established their position after suffering a 30-year drought prior to the crown they achieved last year. photo courtesy of chris burgland

Canada dominant in sledge hockey

The Sledge Hockey Cup was held from Feburary 24–March 1 in the Thunderbird Arena at UBC. Team Canada prevailed 2–1 in a shootout against the US in the finals. jon horn photos/the ubyssey

march 3, 2009

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Opinion

If you’d like to submit a letter, please contact [email protected]

Letters

IN RESPONSE TO SPHR’S ‘ISRAEL APARTHEID WEEK’: One has to wonder what is going through the minds of the UBC Solidarity for Palestinian Human Rights’ (SPHR) executives as they prepare to unveil another inflammatory “Israel Apartheid Week” from Mar. 2–6 2009 on our beautiful campus. Is the sole goal of SPHR to blatantly offend and infuriate Israel’s supporters at UBC, Jewish and non-Jewish alike, by using cheap propaganda tactics in an attempt to equate democratic Israel with a formerly repressive and outdated South African system? One need only ask one of Israel’s estimated 127,000 citizens of Ethiopian extraction such as my friend and former Israel Defence Forces comrade-in-arms Mekonen Gevermadhin to dispel this vicious lie of discrimination existing in Israel any more than in other democratic countries. I am puzzled as to why SPHR would dedicate a week of their time to Israel-bashing, when they could gain so much more support for their cause (yes, even among members of UBC’s Israel Awareness Club) by portraying a moderate, peace-focused, message. It certainly would not hurt SPHR’s image if they were to attempt to transmit more positive aspects of Arab culture to the larger campus community instead of constantly

railing against Israel. I understand that many UBC students find it challenging to accept the representation of Arabs as peace-loving people when images of PLO hijackings, Hamas suicide bombings, Hezbollah rocket attacks, and above all the 9/11 Saudi terrorist attacks that brought down the twin towers in New York, remain fresh in their minds. But, why not give it a try? Why continue to stoke the flames of the fire? I believe strongly that a week hosted by SPHR dedicated to Jewish-Arab co-existence in the Middle East would have a far greater effect on this campus than the continued vilification and demonization of the JewishZionist homeland which I wholeheartedly support. U —Freeman Poritz History Honours 4 UBC Israel Awareness Club Treasurer 2008-2009 Freeman Poritz served as an infantry soldier and in the foreign relations bureau of the Israel Defence Forces from 2004–2007 If you wish to to submit a letter it must be no longer than 350 words. Your identity will be confirmed by phone or by ID from the office. People may email us at [email protected]

“You...write...letter.”

—last words of former letters editor

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March 3, 2009 | Page 12

Perspectives

Editor: Joe Rayment

Africa Awareness unites diverse cultures THE AFRICA AWARENESS INITIATIVE’S RESPONSE TO “CANADIAN LIFESTYLE IS NOT FOR EVERYONE”

Canada is a multicultural country that has embraced the peoples of many nations. The diversity of cultures within most Canadian cities is one of the most colourful in the world. However, when many cultures come together the hardest part is finding the balance between embracing their newfound global solidarity and remaining in-tune with their customs. The Africa Awareness Initiative (AAI) at UBC is one of the many clubs that focus on bridging the gap between two unique ways of life. Students at UBC have found in the Africa Awareness Initiative a place that facilitates intelligent discussion and understanding of the relationship between African culture and their own cultures. The continued dedication of AAI to increasing the positive perception of Africa’s cultural, economic and political state among other things has largely led to the implementation of

the African studies minor and will hopefully be a key factor in the establishment of the African studies major. It was on this basis that the executive members of the Africa Awareness initiative agreed to an interview by a Ubyssey writer in the hopes of highlighting their goals and the plight of the African student at UBC. However, upon release, the article did not convey what was meant during the interview and consequently a lot of misconceptions have been formed about the focus of the Africa Awareness Initiative, its members and the continent as a whole. We hope to dispel those now. The AAI team and its members respect the position of The Ubyssey and have faith in the integrity of the writer. We, however, dispute the idea that the club believes that “Canadian lifestyle is not for everyone.” One of the main aims of the club is to bring together peoples of many distinctive cultures and allow them to find common ground in their passion for Africa. There are differences between the “Canadian lifestyle” and that of Africans, but these

“There are differences between the ‘Canadian lifestyle’ and that of Africans, but these differences are what make each culture unique and none can be undermined in favour of another”

differences are what make each culture unique and none can be undermined in favour of another. Many African students can attest to the warmth that they have received within UBC and the impact it has had on their lives. The promotion of global citizenship by UBC is fully embraced by the Africa Awareness Initiative team and its members, and has inspired them to push for equal representation of the African continent. The continued dedication of the AAI team to increasing the knowledge of African economic affairs, among other things, has resulted in the African Dream Launch, which was held on February 26 at the Liu Institute. The guest speaker during the launch was Dzingai Mutumbuka, who is the chair of the Association of Development of Education in Africa and the former sector manager of human development at the World Bank. This was a wonderful opportunity for all who are interested in learning more about African education policies based on African leadership and developmental issues in Africa. The dream of the Africa Awareness Initiative is to promote inquiring, knowledgeable and open-minded global citizens, and we hope that The Ubyssey will embrace our hope for the future. U

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Editorial

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March 3, 2009 | Page 14

Bye-bye Wendland

We have come to the following conclusion: pants are overrated. At least, that’s what many of us were thinking following the highly successful and PDAtastic No Pants Party held in the SUB on Friday. It was spearheaded by the fun-loving Radical Beer Faction, who have done a bang-up job in holding the occasional party that helps to make this campus a fun place to be on a Friday night. What they haven’t had as much success with is changing the culture on campus that allows a hyperbolic slogan like “War on Fun” to have some merit. Changes could be coming though. For a number of years, the officer who developed the worst rapport with students on campus was Constable Rob Worsley, who never met an exuberant party he didn’t want to end. But last semester, he was granted a requested transfer out of UBC. We’ve been told the reason was that he felt he had lost the trust of students on campus to effectively do his job. His replacement, Charlotte Peters, has, by all accounts, been a significant improvement. But a far greater, and potentially far more important development is currently underway. Staff Sgt. Dan Wendland is set to be transferred out of UBC later this year. Who’s that 99.8 per cent of you ask? Well, he was the first officer of his rank to come to UBC in 2005. He revamped the rules around granting special occasion licenses on campus (ie: passes to serve liquor), and has strictly, and we mean strictly, enforced them. Many in the know point to his Javertesque devotion to the law as the reason that scores of faculty and club events have been cancelled or significantly curtailed in recent years. In an interview with The Tyee, he disparaged the events held to raise culture and raise funds for clubs as “weekly beer gardens, daily beer gardens, drunkfests, whatever [students] want to call them,” and have said students “don’t own this place out here.” So yeah, he’s sort of a big deal. And his departure creates a giant opportunity to re-open fundamental debates about the role of the RCMP, with the RCMP. Now obviously, a new staff sergeant does not make a resolution to the War on Fun. It doesn’t change the simple fact that there are way too few officers policing this campus, and that the Vancouver Police Force is much better suited than the RCMP to deal with this area. But it’s a start. So, while we’d like to wish Sgt. Wendland the best in his future endeavours, we’d also hope that the AMS and the UBC administration take steps to work with his replacement in ensuring that the RCMP aren’t, in Stephen Toope’s words, “purveyors of prohibition.” And even if you waited until you were out of the SUB and in your bed before you took your pants off Friday, isn’t that something we can all agree on? U

Rules are meant to be questioned

Do you know why laws and rules exist? They exist for us. They exist to make our lives better. They exist so I can’t go outside and start fights in the street, because we have decided that we’d rather not have to fight someone just to get to work. They exist so that companies can’t dump toxic waste into the water supply to preserve their bottom line (Hi Erin Brockovich!), because we’ve decided that it’s more important for us to have water that isn’t poisonous than for a company to save a few bucks. They exist so you can cross the street without getting run over by an oncoming semi, because we’ve decided that we want to cross the street without being hit by traffic. Laws protect society as we know it where morality falls short. Rules start to lose their value when people follow them blindly simply because they are the rules. They are meant to serve a greater good. The minute they no longer fulfill that function, it is justified and proper to freely ignore that rule. Rules serve the people, people do not serve the rules. In other words, let’s say we want to break a rule. Ask the question: would breaking this rule cause any harm (harm defined as negative or unwanted consequences)? If the answer is no, then feel free to throw that rule out the window. A good example for this is that jaywalking (i.e. crossing the street anywhere other than a crosswalk) is against the rules. Why is it against the rules? Because we decided that pedestrian safety is a good thing. And we at The Ubyssey agree that a rule against jaywalking is a good rule. However, if there is no traffic, then it is perfectly fine to ignore that rule and cross the street. In fact, if we blindly follow the rules, more harm may come than good, as we will not be evaluating our actions. We live in a democratic society where debate on laws is technically public— constant thought about the effectiveness of a law is necessary. This applies on campus as well. It is your right to question whether a rule works anymore, and, more importantly, respectfully disobey it. U

This day in Ubyssey history March 3, 1992 AMS orders EUS to pay $15,000 because of a racist, sexist, and homophobic EUSlettre published in 1990.

by Trevor Melanson

Letters Dear fellow Koreans,

THE UBYSSEY PRESENTS: INTERNET WOES

Shut the fuck up. I don’t want to hear how you’d love to tap that white chick’s ass, ride her on her all fours, make a white horse out of her. Nor do I want to see how you revel in the fact she is ordering her fried rice and veggies unaware of foreign degradation, standing just a meter away from you—hardly far enough. —Minwook Bae English 3 If you wish to to submit a letter it must be no longer than 350 words. Your identity will be confirmed by phone or by ID from the office. People may email us at [email protected]

For those of you that have not noticed, there has been no new content put on our website for quite some time now. This is due to issues that we are having while switching servers. Now, we know that we have been promising new web content every day, and it’s been made—but not posted. Our webmaster tells us that it’s because the tubes are broken and leaking somewhere in the dry Texas desert. We’ve been keeping in contact with him through satellite phone as he traverses that rugged terrain with a very super-duper leak detection device made especially for finding excess Internet deposits in typically dry areas, such as Texas. The device doesn’t work so well in wet climates, as the Internet will dissociate in water, leaving porn and LOLcat deposits in

the soil. These will confuse the detector, giving constant false positives. This was the initial reason for switching over our servers, at least according to our webmaster, who knows a lot more about this sort of thing then the rest of us. Hell, as far as we know, it’s magic. So, hopefully we will find the source of the leak soon and stop it up with large amounts of silicone and excess internet comments. Then the natural flow will be restored and you can read great Ubyssey content with only minor interruptions, usually from our own pipe trolls. We’re looking at you, Clayton Burns. Love, The Ubyssey

Streeters Do you use vitamin supplements?

Alek Hrycailco BASC 1

“I take calcium, a couple forms of vitamin D—other than that I don’t generally take them personally. I do think they are a good idea though for the average person.”

Alex Stevens Science 3

“Nope, not really. I don’t take them at all... They’re expensive, and so far I’m doing good without them.”

Ammar Bakhurji Engineering 1

“We need vitamins every day in our lives, and sometimes we don’t get vitamins due to our studies. We don’t have time to cook, we don’t have time to eat.”

Brian Wong Science 2

“Yes, definitely supplements for sure...I take lots of supplements: vitamin pills, fish oil pills, anti-inflammatory, liver pills...vitamin supplements are key because you can’t get all the nutrients from regular food.”

Caitlin MacDonell Commerce 3

“No...I probably should take calcium...I haven’t really looked into it, but I feel like my diet is sufficient for my vitamin needs.”

—Coordinated by Tara Martellaro & Alicia Woodside

march 3, 2009

the ubyssey | www.ubyssey.ca

A POEM FOR A CHANGE: AE CONSUMMATION Seldom do I finish what I start, Books, literature, associations, and Eros, all in part, Fortitude, astuteness, and forbearance I lack, All that and desire, passion, and regret, courtesy of you, now I pack. That inveigling smile which shall remain ensconced forever, Spouting a perennial fountain of tranquility, prurience, and pleasure, Relying on the incandescence of that beam when a journey I embark, Thy will steer me through intricacies when outlook is dark, Your eyes, mammaries, and glowing beauty all mesmerize; That initial rainy night shall remain a life-long gratifying surprise. Hand in hand we strolled momentarily, Brimming with lust, frolicked boisterously, He clutched onto you with his firm embrace; Nourishing his soul, you absorbed him with grace, Barring that, he is abyssal in his approbation and regard for she, For the inspiration and ingenuity bequeathed on the anarchist he. With ardor and resolve, I will pledge to commit this: Compose much more of such for you, beauteous bliss, O Heather, don’t be unsettled by my fervor and expansive hold, Cherish, stay firm, and deliberate, for your name implies bold. For once, I will finish what I start, Books, literature, associations, and Eros, all part by part.

—Sulman Umar

games & a poem | 15

Crossword ACROSS 1. The “Australian drop-bear” 6. Type of tea 10. Herring-like fish 14. A venomous snake 15. Surrealist Salvador 16. Designer Chanel 17. Alias 19. Still mooing 20. High school subject, similar to Chem or Econ 21. Underwater shocker 22. One who gets a goal 24. Consult 26. Sheet of paper 27. Provoke 29. Furniture that lines the wall 33. Perfect score on a scale of attractiveness 34. “Do you see what I’m trying to __ __?” 36. Part of the animal or fruit that is eaten 37. Jason’s ship 39. The 1852 publisher of the Thesaurus of English Words and Phrases 41. Not here 42. A small island 44. An eagleís nest 46. American icon, with 66a 47. Captain Malcolm __, of Firefly 49. Sultan’s abode 51. “Well, I guess...” 52. A wooden prop 53. Tumbler 56. Opposite of WSW 57. Examine 60. Margarine 61. Conclusive argument 64. Highly excited 65. White-tailed Eagle 66. American icon, with 46a 67. A lot 68. Raise 69. Lacy potholder DOWN 1. German philosopher of the Critique of Pure Reason 2. Smell 3. Appreciatively 4. Account book 5. I am, we __ 6. Time waster 7. To be “born in the __” 8. Tree from certain Plath poem 9. Type of vehicle that burns heavy oil 10. “King’s Evil” disease 11. Dramatic frost 12. Winnie’s wood had a hundred of

by Kyrstin Bain

these 13. Perhaps the opposite of 6d 18. Eye slang 23. Baby elephant 25. Stale air, slang 26. By and by 27. Step 28. Laconic 29. “The __ of sin” 30. Journalism wire service 31. Abraham’s son, of Genesis 32. Homonymic herb 35. Lackey 38. The art of wine making 40. A waitress’s favourite patron 43. “Puff the dragon” 45. Piece of corn 48. Pantry 50. Someone from South or Central American, maybe 52. Scornful smile 53. Soapy froth 54. One __, two algae 55. Philosopher __ Trotsky

56. Sicilian volcano 58. Buy and __ 59. Basketball three-pointer 62. Shakespeare’s before 63. To slander, or throw __

FRIDAY’S ANSWERS

Looking to scare yourself this Friday the 13th? Come to the Black Box Theatre, party with The Ubyssey and be frightened at how much our editors can drink...

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march 3, 2009